Tears of the Neko (6 page)

But now one of his masters was here. He
sleepily uncurled and moved to kneel in front of the tall man.

The lamp was set on an empty shelf. "Well, my
little tiger," the voice echoed in the room. "Seems like you are
all alone."

Kayden gulped, recognizing the anger in the
voice but not knowing what he'd done to cause it. Suddenly, a large
hand gripped his throat and hauled him up, holding him against the
wall. His feet barely scraped the ground, as he felt his air being
cut off. Instinctively, he grasped at the arm pinning him to the
wall.

"Not so tough without your claws, are you,
tiger?"

His nails had been cut to next to nothing
earlier, and he felt himself grasping at the arm with the pads of
his fingers. His breathing quickened in panic, sure the man had
come to kill him.

Suddenly, the man attacked his lips, forcing
entry into his mouth with his tongue. As his breath was cut off,
Kayden gasped and the man gnashed his teeth against his. The sloppy
muscle invaded his mouth, scraping against his fangs. Kayden
desperately wanted to bite down with his small fangs but knew that
would push the man into a worse fury.

He was suddenly dropped, and Kayden collapsed
onto his hands and knees trying to draw in air. He could hear the
man rustling with his clothes but couldn't think as he coughed,
trying to force away the blackness threatening to take over. When
he felt the man behind him, tugging at his waistband, he hissed
reflexively. Kayden suddenly struggled under the weight of the huge
man, memories of other men forcing themselves on him fogging his
senses.

"Hold still!" Roman snapped, and Kayden
winced when his head was shoved into the floor.

"You may be Damien's gift, but you're still a
slave in this household, and you will know your place. And one day
very soon Damien won't be around. And I'll be king."

The pain of the man's assault on his body
kept Kayden from passing out, even though he desperately wished he
could. Tears streamed down his face as he waited for the man to
leave him alone or just kill him.

"Now you know who's in charge around here,"
Roman stated as he shoved off of him.

Kayden lay there, unable to move as he heard
Roman hitch up his pants and leave with the light. Kayden began to
wish that the man had just put him down. If Roman was like this,
how bad would the man named Damien be? He'd nearly died with the
agony and torture the hunters had put him through, he didn't know
if he could go through all that again.

Suddenly, the light was back, and he hissed
at the scent of Roman's return. Two rags and a small bucket of
water were dropped next to him.

"Clean up," Roman demanded, clearly intending
to wait for him to obey. With agonized movements, Kayden slowly
obeyed, washing away the evidence of the man's abuse. Kayden was
glad that the pants were dark and would hide any bleeding that
continued.

"Get some sleep," Roman sneered when he was
done. And Kayden slumped to the floor when he heard the door lock,
exhausted and in shock from the sharp pain spiking up his spine.
The tears flowed silently until he finally let himself fall
asleep.

Kayden was glad when they left him alone the
next morning. Ysmenia checked in on him briefly to give him a bowl
of food and more water, but from what he could tell everyone seemed
to be frantically rushing around outside his little room. He could
hear the shouts of the loud chef as he barked orders to other
servants, as well as footsteps racing around to complete tasks.

He was attempting to doze in the corner,
careful of the pain radiating up his spine, when the door opened
and he was instantly alert, sniffing the air. His shoulders relaxed
slightly when he didn't scent tobacco. It was the woman, Ysmenia
again.

"Hey little one," she said. "I just thought
I'd check on you. Do you want another bath today?"

Kayden started to nod, but didn't really want
her to see the blood. He couldn't tell how much he'd bled after the
man had left him, it didn't feel like much, but he could smell it
still. They would know, he was sure of it. He ducked his head,
turning away in shame and embarrassment. Somehow they would
eventually find out anyway...

"Hmm," she smiled slightly at his shyness,
"Maybe now that you know how to work the baths, you can take one by
yourself."

His eyes darted up to her gratefully,
pleading for the privacy, and he saw her nodding.

"Yeah, okay, but no darting off," she scolded
as she grabbed the leash that she had set on one of the shelves
yesterday.

Kayden rose stiffly as there was a tug on his
collar. The pants clung to him and he hoped that the black fabric
didn't betray his shame. To him, the cloying smell of his blood
overwhelmed him, but the humans didn't seem to notice, especially
with all the cooking spices wafting around the kitchen.

The older woman led him to the bathing room,
which was empty again. She set out another pair of worn black
pants, an oversized shirt, and a rough brown towel.

She dropped the plug in the drain hole and
pulled the rope to start the water running. Kayden hovered next to
her, hoping that she would leave before expecting him to
undress.

"Okay," she said, unclipping the leash. "I'm
going to wait for you right outside the door." She shook her finger
at him. "No running off," she admonished again.

Kayden ducked his head and nodded quickly.
His eyes watched her as she disappeared just out of sight, and he
sighed in relief. Moving quickly, but stiffly, he stripped off his
shirt and pants, grimacing at the soreness. He immediately stepped
into the water, submerging his lower body in the running water.

It immediately became tinged with pink.

A quick glance back at the door told him that
the woman still couldn't see him, and he sighed as the water washed
away his shame. Grabbing the soap he scrubbed his body almost
forcefully, removing the evidence of his humiliation.

He frowned at the pink water, the coppery
scent still wafted around him. With another surreptitious glance at
the door, he toed the drain plug free, allowing the contaminated
water to drain out.

"Yas!!"

He jumped at the shout from the kitchen
area.

There was a heavy sigh from the door. "Yes,
Garin?" the woman called back.

"Did you finish whipping the cream?! I need
it now!"

"I thought you wanted to wait--"

"Now!" the gruff chef sounded very
frazzled.

There was a rustling at the doorway. "Hey,
Ellis!" he heard her voice call, and he expected her to rush in and
yank him from the bath. He quickly tried to rinse one last
time.

But she didn't come in. Instead, he heard and
scented another neko at the doorway--the one he'd run into
yesterday.

"Can you stand guard here for a minute?"

"Guard?" And he could tell the other hybrid
was poking his head into the bath.

"The new little neko--you know the one from
yesterday--he's bathing, and he's a little shy. Just don't let him
run off. Here's his leash. Take him back to the storeroom when he's
done."

"Sure," the male voice chuckled, but then
Kayden heard the voice call back to the woman. "Hey, Yas, is the
kit okay?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I just..." the other neko paused and Kayden
froze, knowing exactly what was wrong. The other neko could smell
the blood in the air still.

"What?"

"Well, did someone cut themselves?"

"Not that I know of," And Kayden could almost
see the woman frowning.

"Yas!" the chef shouted.

"Coming!" the woman yelled back. "Can you
check on him?"

Kayden didn't hear a response, but knew he
didn't have much time. He scrambled into the new pants and shirt,
afraid they would come in to check on him any second.

"Hey, kit," the male neko's voice called.
"You okay in there? I'm coming in, alright?"

He quickly scraped at one of the small
scratches he'd gotten from climbing the tree yesterday, ripping it
open enough to cause a little bit of blood. Maybe they'd leave him
alone if they thought ...

Kayden cowered as the larger neko stepped
closer. He made a show of dabbing at the tiny cut on his arm with
the towel.

"Hey, you okay?"

Kayden nodded quickly. He couldn't bring
himself to look up at the other hybrid, his body was shaking in
fear, worried they'd discover his debasement. He could tell the
other neko had noticed the swipe of blood, and when he glanced up
he could see the large hybrid frowning, trying to decide
something.

Kayden suspected that the other neko didn't
believe that the small, rapidly sealing scrape was the source of
the scent, but as Kayden remained still under the hybrid's
scrutiny, he sensed that the other neko couldn't tell where else
the blood could be coming from. The neko eventually shrugged,
grabbing up his old clothes and towel and throwing them in the
large communal laundry basket in the corner to be washed by the
laundress.

He flinched when the huge hybrid reached for
his arm.

"I don't want to lead you like a dog with the
leash," the hybrid stated softly, looking a little sad. "Will you
walk nicely back to the storeroom?"

Kayden nodded slightly, allowing himself to
be lead back to his tiny storeroom.

****

"He's been very calm and quiet, my lord.
Doesn't speak at all," Ysmenia stated as the young count came to
check on his gift the next morning.

Harrison nodded, knowing the boy didn't
speak. He'd hissed at Roman, so he made noises, but obviously
either couldn't speak or chose not to. So much had been going on
yesterday, it was hard to remember which--maybe Farth hadn't known
either. If the boy couldn't talk, it would make him an even better
present for Damien.

"He seemed pretty tired all day yesterday,"
Ysmenia continued, "I sent him to bathe again and get dressed by
himself, but I did have Ellis guard the bathing room door, just in
case."

Ysmenia hesitated, "Ellis did mention he
thought he smelled blood on the kit when he was standing
guard."

Harrison frowned, "Blood? Is he hurt?"

Ysmenia shrugged. "Ellis asked him and so did
I, but he only shook his head. We saw some cuts on his arms where
he had scratches. It looked like maybe he picked at the scabs. That
must be what Ellis smelled."

"Odd," Harrison mumbled, rubbing his chin.
"Kayden," he said sharply to get the boy to look at him, and the
boy only cast his eyes slightly up. "Are you hurt?"

The black mop of hair shook furiously.

Harrison shrugged. "Well, I guess he's okay
then."

"He's been extremely cooperative, but he
didn't eat much yesterday. He ate a little more this morning."

Harrison glanced down at the ebony haired
neko kneeling at his feet, with the bowl of food now sitting next
to him. He knew the boy wouldn't touch it until he was gone, unless
he ordered him to eat then. He didn't like leaving the boy in the
storage room, but he'd had no other place to hide him from his
brother.

"Drystan!"

"Yes, sir?" the young man appeared down the
hall.

"Is the room ready?"

"Yes, sir," John Drystan stated. "I was able
to get it cleaned up while his grace was working in his study
yesterday. I haven't yet been able to get a bed up there, but I
placed a cot in there temporarily."

The young noble nodded. "That's fine. Damien
may not even want to keep him long enough to make it worth getting
a bed up there."

He barely noticed the small black ears droop
against the fine black hair, the shoulders hunching in a little
more.

"Well, good, everything is moving along fine
for this evening. Ysmenia, get him bathed again and dressed to be
presented to Damien tonight during the party."

"Yes, sir."

****

Damien forced another smile as he accepted
congratulations and more birthday wishes. He didn't like large
social gatherings but knew they were a necessary part of his
station. In many ways, he wished King Eudon would live forever. He
was perfectly content to manage the plantations and ports that they
owned. He even didn't mind sitting on the legislative council for
the king as he could voice his opinion for changes he thought were
necessary.

He watched his brothers laughing and joking
with the Baynards, Perretts and Druets. Roman loved the social
aspect of being a Marquis, one step under Damien. He was only a
year younger than Damien, but sometimes acted much too arrogant for
his position. He'd often even offered to take over as Grand Duke
for Damien, but Damien could tell the younger man was not settled
and reserved enough for such a position. He hated when he had to
step in and curb Roman's displays of authority when he went too
far. Sometimes Damien thought that Roman didn't understand the
difference between earning respect and trying to demand it.

Harrison, being five years younger, still
didn't seem to get all of his responsibility yet. He reminded
Damien of himself before he'd turned twenty. He'd been young and
carefree, and sometimes a little foolish. He sighed. That seemed
like a lifetime ago.

It sometimes didn't seem to occur to Harrison
that some of his impulsive actions had more far-reaching
consequences than he'd thought through. Both of his younger
brothers often lived in the moment and didn't consider what effect
their actions would have long term.

Damien smiled as Miss Penelope Winters
appeared next to Harrison and his brother immediately offered his
arm to her. The young woman smiled up at his brother as Harrison
tucked her arm under his and curled his fingers over hers. She was
radiant with her auburn curls pulled back with a silver comb, the
rest cascading over her back. Damien saw the sparkle in the light
gray eyes and smiled. The woman loved his brother. He vaguely
wondered how his brother felt, feeling a sense of regret that he'd
been so distant with both of his brothers lately.