I Thirst for You — Chapter 8 - The Straightforward Master

“Mr. Vitalis!”

Amanda’s eyes rounded. A surge of something that could be called a mix of alarm and excitement filled her whole body. Goosebumps erupted in her forearms and unconsciously, she pressed her personal bag closer against her abdomen in an attempt to halt the twisting of her stomach.

She didn’t expect someone to be inside the limousine with her, more so she didn’t expect him to be the one sitting.

Cord, though still in a blindfold, looked at her way like it was a casual thing for a blind man. With his left hand, he squeezed the handle of his cane when her scent filled the enclosed space. It tortured him immediately but he had already expected this when he decided to fetch her himself.

It was a torture he was willing to receive forever, or at least while his charade lasts.

“Good evening Amanda, ” he stated, managing his voice to come out smooth and relaxed.

Amanda’s eyelids fluttered fast. “Why are you—”

“I’m the one tasked to keep you safe, ” he butted in.

“You must be joking, ” she shook her head. “I don’t think you are employed like this by the police department.” She felt the car move, a sign that they were onward to their destination.

Cord released a throaty groan. “No, they didn’t employ me. I volunteered myself.”

Amanda’s brows lifted. This man right here volunteered himself? This blind man? This damn handsome blind man?

“Why so?” she asked, almost sputtering it with a sarcastic tone.

Cord didn’t shift in his seat. He remained as still as possible, unaffected with her undue interrogation. “My reasons are my own Amanda. You don’t need to know them.”

She attempted to contain herself from scoffing but failed. “Huh, quite helpful of you.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” Cord’s mouth moved upward ever so slightly.

Amanda didn’t miss it. She furrowed her brows more and shouted in her mind, ‘what the hell?’ She really wanted to know why, but it was safe not to press on especially when the man was so uptight in giving her information.

Instead of focusing on that, Amanda decided to mull on other things.

“So, ” she cleared her throat, “I presume we are going to the Vitalis Castle?”

“Correct.”

“And I’ll stay there because it will keep me safe from a threat that’s possibly after me?” She stared at him, making a mental note of his little expressions which consisted of - drum roll please - nil.

“Correct, ” Cord answered the same.

“And you are wearing that trench coat because you dig it?” Amanda’s eyes roamed from his head down. The man was as expected impeccably dressed for a Master, but he seriously had some fashion stagnation issues. Why prefer trench coats when there were other men’s clothing to wear? Like a suit perhaps. Or even a modern button-up shirt. But hey, she can’t deny it, he still looked extremely good in trench coats.

“Correct, ” was still his scarce answer.

She would have left it at that but then he added with a tilt of his head, “You amuse yourself of my fashion sense?”

She grinned, widely, taking note that he couldn’t see. “Honestly? I believe I do.”

Why the hell that she just said that? Why the hell she just let her guard down? The man was a stranger. She was supposed to not feel comfortable around him, but she did, momentarily.

“Then laugh all you want, ” Cord remarked, no tone of anger or rudeness at all. “I want to hear the sound of your happiness Amanda.”

And with those words, Amanda turned stiff and speechless. She blinked many times and diverted her attention to the landscape that the limousine passed. There was no way in hell she would comment on such a dangerous statement. Many in her exposures with men had she seen this kind of subtle flirting — if it was even called one for this man — and like any other, she had successfully eluded it by turning silent.

She leaned on the couch, rested her head, and closed her eyes hoping that he wouldn’t speak but blast it, he did, to her dismay.

“You became mute, ” Cord stated noticing the stillness of the air around them.

“I’m tired, ” Amanda answered. “It is a long day for me. If you may, can I take a catnap?”

He didn’t nod, but turn his head to the window he did and answered, “You do as you wish. I am not preventing you.”

Oh, thank God! her brain screamed.

“Thank you, Mr. Vitalis.”

“Cord. You can call me Cord.”

Subtle flirting hint number two.

Amanda checked it in her mind. She couldn’t really say if he was doing the ‘moves’ like men usually does, but it was safe to assume he was. In that way, she’ll guard herself better. Better than she did with Matteo. Or all men who attempted to trespass in her life.

She refused to use his first name though. No way.

But like she would tell him that vocally.

***

It was already dark when they arrived at the castle. It looked the same as it did when Amanda first visited, but this time, it didn’t have the colorful searchlights and the booming techno music.

The castle grounds sounded as dead as a graveyard, but this was a good welcome for her. She always loved music but preferred the silence of the night more.

“In here, you will be safe. No soul will harm you, ” Cord informed as the limousine neared the huge front portico.

Amanda couldn’t help herself but mentally laugh.

What a play on words indeed. No soul will harm her he said, but what if ghosts lived in the castle, what of them then?

Surely, there could be one or two, or more...just judging from the castle age itself. Heck, the grand abode looked like it had seen the dawn of the dinosaurs if she were to exaggerate it, but really, the castle looked like a thousand years old, so it was possible ghostly entities resided here.

Not like she was afraid of them though. Growing up without her biological parents, she had toughened herself. That’s exactly why she decided to learn men’s work. But still, ghosts especially when turning up unnoticed would give her a scare and then some if it exists to exact vengeance on a poor innocent soul like her.

“Still I don’t see the reason why you enlist yourself in my witness protection program case, ” Amanda stated, looking at him and crossing her arms to her chest. No, she won’t let it go easily if that’s what he thought earlier. “You did say that it is none of my concern, but for a man like you, who most likely owns this country, it makes me wonder why?”

Cord’s expression still remained neutral.

Reasons.

He had a lot.

A main one and a few others that he painstakingly convinced himself as trivial.

But she’ll never know any of those. Not in a million years.

“I’ll tell you when I see the need, ” he lied. There was no need at all. “Right now, you just have to live patiently in the castle.” For the first time ever, he cracked a mischievous grin and added, “I’m sure you won’t get bored. You can browse the rooms to your heart’s content except for the ones I forbid you to. If you break this, I’ll make sure to exact punishment, but more on that when we eat dinner later.”

Goosebumps erupted on Amanda’s skin for the second time. He just sent her a sexy-ass grin while threatening her. And good heavens, she just learned she’ll be dining with him later! Can’t she just have her own peaceful dinner alone? Without him? Without this Vitalis Master who just made her well-constructed immunity to men crack in little fissures?

“Huh, very straightforward of you Mr. Vitalis, ” she painstakingly filtered the trembling of her voice. She glanced outside of the car which by now had the very efficient Jerome reaching for the car door.

“I am. Very, ” Cord replied, taking note of the faint whoosh of air from the door opening. “See you later, ” he added which made Amanda release an inaudible scoff just as she disembarked the vehicle.

See you indeed, she voiced in her head which was pretty much a ridiculous statement at its best. The man was blind for crying out loud.

“Good evening, Madame O’Malley. Welcome back to the Vitalis Castle, ” the Head Majordomo greeted.

Amanda acknowledged him with a nod and answered, “Same to you Jerome.” She pressed her personal bag in between her arm and waist, expecting he would offer to carry it.

“Let me carry the bag for you, ” and he did, reaching palm open to her.

Amanda instantly shook her head. “No worries Jerome. Please give me a chance to carry it on my own.”

“As you wish Madame, ” he bowed his head. “It is good to see you again by the way.”

“Thank you, ” was all she could say. She stepped forward allowing the Vitalis Master to disembark next.

When he did after a short moment, he gestured for his butler to come closer. He whispered something in the servant’s ear thereafter.

“Yes, Sire. I will, ” was what Amanda heard before the butler turned to her direction and added, “Follow me to your room Madame. You only have little time to prepare for dinner.”

Amanda slightly frowned at Cord when she heard this. The damn Master wasn’t joking at all when he said they would dine together.

“Then lead the way, Jerome, ” she stated, her feet climbing up the first stair as she wrenched her gaze from him.

To Cord, he just listened to every sound of her heels hitting the marbled stairs. Though her scent lingered, at least it wasn’t as strong as earlier. Finally, this time, he was able to relax. Well, at least for just a moment.

***

“Any leads on who that bastard biter is?”

Biter.

That’s usually what Cord calls anyone of his kind, preferring it than what humans popularly dubbed as ‘vampire’.

Like Calvin advised, he planned to avoid the woman for good, but unfortunately, the murder that she had witnessed involved a biter.

This biter had been his problem since three years ago, acting rogue, draining the victim’s blood without remorse, and then shooting the neck leaving no traces or clues. Clues for the police officers that is but for Cord, he knew exactly it involved one of his relatives. His fucked up relatives.

It was certain that this freak would be after her any day from now, so he decided to act in haste. It was better to confine her in his residence, endure her enticing presence than to find her dead.

He didn’t want for that fuck biter to leisurely drink her promising blood. He was that protective of her, of his meal rather, as Amanda was basically his cursed body’s only nourishment. Solid foods didn’t content him amidst being able to down some inside his stomach.

And besides that, it would also be a waste if he couldn’t wring her out of what she exactly saw during the time of the murder. He didn’t have an enough evidence to pin the culprit down, but with Amanda as a witness, he hoped he’d get one soon. What she saw may become his only magic piece of solving the three-year-long puzzle.