Cake (19 page)

“
Yes, Xavier?”

“
Do we eat? Food, I mean.”

“
A little.”

“
Drink?”

“
Marcus is a lush.” Okay, hadn’t expected that answer. “Hopefully, you will have some influence on him in that regard. He never would listen to me.”

“
What about sunlight? Aren’t you guys heading out during the day? Or is it night? I don’t know what it is, trapped down here.”

“
It is day.”

“
So, do we burn up if we go out in the sun?”

Claudius folded his arms over his chest and looked down at me. I couldn’t read his face. His eyes were blank. “Shouldn’t you be asking Marcus all these questions?” he asked.

I pulled my sheet tighter. “As you’ve seen, we don’t actually talk. He just tells me what to do, then makes me do it.”

“
Then it is up to you to change that, my grandson. Start off how you plan to continue. You’ve already fought against being a fuck toy—colorful words, by the way. You’ve gotten yourself a proper name. Kudos for that, I really did not like the name Sex. Now, work on getting Marcus to see you beyond the bedroom.”

“
What I want him to see me in are clothes,” I snapped, glaring at the wall, focusing on the spot Claudius had outlined for me. Nothing, damn it. And it felt like I’d broken a blood vessel in my forehead with trying. I flopped over backwards and held a hand to the throbbing spot.

“
Do not try so hard. Concentrate, but let it flow. Unfocus.”

“
Unfocus?” Focus, but not really. What the hell kind of advice was that? Marcus came out of the bathroom, fully dressed. Unlike Claudius, he had gone for a casual look, with a turtleneck and sports jacket. His hair was still damp, and he had caught it up in a black clip. He looked at his elegant sire’s hairdo, then down at me.

“
I did not know you could do that,” he said, amazed.

“
Well, if you talked to me once in a while instead of just raping me, you might actually learn something.”

I got jerked to my feet. “I already told you I would,” he snarled.

“
Then we don’t have a problem,” I replied calmly.

Marcus let me go, and I stumbled. He gave me a push, and I fell back on the bed. He followed me down until he was sprawled across me with his hands on either side of my head. “You are going to be challenging me every day, aren’t you?”

“
Probably.”

The big vampire smiled, leaned lower, and kissed the tip of my nose.

What the hell was that?

“
Good morning, my Xavier.”

“
Get off.”

“
Give me a kiss first.”

“
You got one.”

“
No, you bit me. You are forgiven because you were in need.”

“
I kissed you,” I argued.

“
No, I kissed you.”

I frowned. Yeah, he did, and I’d bitten him without as much as a how do you do. “Sorry.”

“
Give me a kiss, and I’ll be on my way.”

I got an arm free from his crushing weight and slowly reached up, tracing his jaw line to his lips with my fingers. His eyes were a warm brown as he stared down at me, with not a hint of red anywhere in them.

“
Your touch is exquisite as always, my Little One, but I want a kiss.”

Claudius’s voice broke the erotic haze we were beginning to weave. “Tic-toc, Marcus. You know how finicky the High Council is on punctuality.”

“
Xavier?”

I cupped Marcus’s head with my hand and dragged it down towards me. He had gotten what he wanted this morning, I’d let him. But that was enough for now. I allowed my mouth to almost brush his, letting my breath seep out and caress his lips. I felt him getting a hard-on, and he had no problem pressing it into my thigh. I used my tongue to flick at his lower lip and he gasped, giving me the opportunity to push my tongue inside if I wanted to. But I didn’t. Instead, I leaned up, kissed his forehead and fell back against the bed.

“
There. You got your kiss, now go.”

Claudius’s eyebrows arched, and he looked at us. Marcus stiffened on me, and I stared up at him, a little apprehensive, but I squared my jaw. Start out how you plan to continue, I said to myself.

I am not a fuck toy. I am not a pet. You made me to be your equal, start treating me like one.

I pushed at his chest to get him, and his erection, off of me.

“
You did get your kiss, Marcus,” Claudius reminded his son quietly.

Marcus ran his thumb over my bottom lip. “You
are
my equal, Xavier. Do not forget it.” He leaned over, crushing me fully into the bed, his lips at my ear. “And this is not over. When you break the Blood marks, I want you dressed in leather.”

“
And if I can’t get into my closet?”

“
I have faith in your abilities. Just stay here in Sanctuary. The staff will be frightened of you if you go exploring, and understanding staff are hard to find or replace, if you get hungry.” He planted a kiss on my cheek and finally climbed off me.

Claudius touched another of those invisible Blood marks, and the bed began to roll sideways, exposing the concrete staircase leading down. I stared over the side and saw a tall, lean man with salt and pepper hair, holding a briefcase. Seeing me, Marcus reached out and smacked my face. It wasn’t hard, more a sort of love tap? I don’t know.

“
Keep your fangs, and your hands, to yourself, Xavier. I will be back as soon as I can,” he said, making his way down through the exit.

Claudius started down the stairs as well. “I like you, Grandson. More than I thought I would. Stay up here in Sanctuary; it is not safe for you outside of it, alone. And remember, unfocus.”

They disappeared, and the bed slid back over them, effectively sealing me in until I could see the Blood marks.

I scurried off the bed and ran forward, reaching out to touch the same spot Claudius’s fingers had brushed. Nothing. I didn’t feel anything different about that part of the wall beneath my hands. I couldn’t see anything. There were no visible signs to show that it was something secret or special. It just looked like every other part of the brickwork. And that was why I hadn’t found any escape, back when…I was alive.

I punched at the wall in frustration.

E
leven

Blood Marks and Belly Dancing

I stared intently at where the Blood mark should’ve been on the wall by the side of the closet, willing my eyes to see it but only succeeding in getting that throbbing little pulse going on in my head again. I ended up lying back on the bed with one eye closed and simply concentrating with the other. Still nothing.

Taking a deep breath, I tried to relax. Tide rolling in, tide rolling out. Unfocus, unwind. They used those Blood marks everywhere, so it had to be easy to shift your vision to find them. I just had to discover how to do it.

Burning eyes…not like the Flame. Crap, I don’t want my thoughts to go there. What if I flame up? No, don’t be scared of it. It’s just sex…with two men who are claiming to be my father and grandfather and who have left me stinking and in need of a shower.

Hopping up off the bed, I headed for the bathroom to cleanse both my body and my mind. I wasn’t ready to handle that bundle of torment yet.

I stayed under the hot water until my skin started to shrivel. It felt good on my neck and shoulders, and its touch reminded me of the two vampires. Both of them liked to manhandle me by the neck. Why? Was it because they wanted to fang me? Most likely, and I was short enough so that they could do it easily, with Marcus being over six foot and Claudius just a little shorter. I was lucky to hit five foot ten on a good day.

Getting out of the shower, I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around my waist before padding back into the playroom. I blinked. The bed had been made in my absence. I’d been in the shower that long?

With my little toga sheet gone I realized that, until I got that damn closet open, I was down to wearing a towel or nothing, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be seen without clothes. Not that the staff hadn’t already seen my naked ass for a year, but I still felt a blush rush up my face. I don’t know why I should be embarrassed about it; it wasn’t like I could have done a damn thing to make it any different.

Staring back at the wall, I worked at giving myself a raging headache, and when I finally succeeded in doing that, I fell on the bed, laid my forearm across my eyes, and went to sleep.

When I woke up, my eyes were unbelievably hot. I lay still, waiting for my skin to catch on fire too, but it seemed it was just my eyes burning. Instinctively I looked over at the hidden Blood mark, and for the first time, I could see it clearly. It glowed for me like it had been sprayed on with glow-in-the-dark paint.

I got up off the bed and ran towards the mark, not caring that I dropped my towel on the way. I had to get to the wall before the burning in my eyes disappeared.

Quickly laying my palm against the wall, it felt like I was touching warm bathwater, and my hand tingled slightly, more so when the closet opened. I took a moment to glance around the room, noticing that there were more Blood marks in the playroom. But first things first, I decided. I wanted clothes.

My gaze ran over the socks, shoes, pants. Holy crap. This was mine. All mine! I’ve been mostly naked for a year, and now I have clothes. It felt amazing.

Unfortunately, my enthusiasm waned quickly as I soon realized that most of it was the same sort of fuck-me-now gay-boy wear that Marcus had had me in before. I found boxers, but no briefs. I guess I should be thankful; it could have been thongs.

I found a cache of jeans and grabbed a pair, hiking them up as far as they would go, which wasn’t far enough for me. They were low riders, and my pubic hairs were almost exposed. Where the hell did he buy this stuff? I examined the rest of the jeans, and saw that they were all low riders. Jerking off the pair I had on, I threw them in the corner. I just wanted a simple cotton t-shirt and a decent pair of jeans.

The suits were nice. I noticed I had a tux. Hmm, with shiny lapels. But I didn’t want to get into a suit, so I headed for the leather pants. At least the pair I picked came up to a decent height this time.

There was a long-sleeved spandex and whatever crewneck that looked partway decent so I reached for it, grabbing a pair of socks and black runners with it, and happy with my choices, I got dressed, watching the closet door to see if it closed automatically. It didn’t, so when I was ready I got up and pressed my hand back on the Blood mark, and the door rumbled shut.

I could still see the other Blood marks that were in the room, and now I felt intrigued enough to explore. I chose one on the opposite end of the wall and I pressed it, watching as the brickwork rolled back to expose another closet.

Marcus’s wardrobe was a vast improvement over mine. Even knowing nothing of his would fit, I still snagged a white dress shirt. It was no bowling shirt, but it was big enough to cover me.

Closing his closet, I found myself looking at the Blood mark beside the bed, wondering if I should try it. But no, I didn’t trust myself to be around humans. I could barely control my fangs as it was.

Ignoring the tempting Blood mark, I shrugged into the shirt and was so happy that I bounced into the living room where I saw a large Blood mark right at the door. I pressed it, watching as a panel extended from the wall. Lights? By pressing at a few switches on the panel, I found that I could control the entire ambience of the room from this point.