I sat in the freezing dark, my only light coming from the flashlight Aro left me with. I shined it across the different corners of the room to see if there was anything I had missed when we first walked in. There wasn't. It was just as bare as I had thought it was. Swallowing hard, I had to stifle the angry tears that kept threatening to fall, but there was also pain mixed in them. He had really left me down here alone.
It was only a night. That's what he said. Aro would come for me in the morning, probably after Demetri and Felix had left for Bulgaria. After that, I would be back in Aro's quarters where it was warm, lit, and where I had begun to feel an odd sense of comfort. I had been sleeping there after all for some time now. It was not home, as much as Aro assured me it would begin to seem, but it wasn't a stranger to me anymore either.
Sitting down on the wooden bench, I calmed my breathing so I wouldn't have another panic attack. It had been a while since the last one, and I hated them. There was no way I wanted that feeling of dying while I was by myself, but perhaps if Aro knew or heard what was happening, he would let me out. He would take me back upstairs, apologize for what he had done, and then hold me until I fell asleep.
That was a joke and another nightmare altogether. Stop it, Lia. Deep breaths, in and out. In and out. I was going to be okay. Aro wouldn't leave me somewhere he thought was dangerous or that would harm me in any way. I knew he was sincere about loving me more deeply than I could imagine as a human apparently, but I also knew he was tired of me pushing him away.
Is that why he had been so exhausted-looking earlier? Perhaps it wasn't only everything he had to deal with as the leader of his world, but maybe I had something to do with it also. I wasn't sure whether I should find pride in that or not. It made me feel a bit powerful to understand the hold I might have had over him and still have. Aro was used to getting his way no matter what, and I was probably the only person in the world who could defy him and still make it out alive.
I pulled my knees into my chest and set the flashlight down on the bench beside me. He could have at least said he would bring a blanket or jacket down or something. It wasn't so cold that I was worried about getting hypothermia or anything, but it was cold enough that my teeth were chattering. Some of that may have also been anxiety setting in. Either way, I highly doubted I would sleep at all that night.
Yet, somehow, I did. I woke up to what I assumed and hoped was the next morning and a blanket draped over my form. Not only had I woken up to that blanket, but the room was lit by a medium-sized oil lamp that had been hung from the ceiling. At some point, someone had come into the room, covered me up, and gave me much better lighting. I wondered if it had been Aro, and that made me nearly explode with the fact that if it had been him, he left me with these things instead of just taking me with him.
There was no going back to sleep, so I wrapped the blanket tighter around me and waited. Maybe it was the lack of natural light and concrete walls around me that emitted no sound, but I was beginning to feel like I was going crazy. People don't often think about what it would be like if we no longer had technology to keep us company or books or music. I think we often take it all for granted that they exist and don't realize how these things keep us so occupied and allow us to get through the day. Without anything to keep my mind active down here, I was numb.
I stared at the lamp for a while, so still, not even a draft that allowed it to swing. I tried to make up stories in my head, hum some music out loud or also in my head. I tried to remember the words to plays I had recently read in Aro's study. I eventually settled on watching my hands and my fingers dance in midair as I held my arms up and made shadow puppets on the walls.
At some point, the door to the room finally opened, and I sat up, glancing over to who had entered. Marcus stood there and held out his hand to me. I was bothered by the fact that it wasn't Aro who had come like he said he would, but that didn't matter. I was at least getting out of that room.
I stood and walked across the room, and Marcus took my hand in his. It felt different than when Aro took my hand. With Marcus, he was doing so only to lead me down the hall, nothing additional to it. Aro, however, always caressed my skin or played with my fingers in his. When we made it to an elevator, much past the stairwell Aro had used to take me here, I frowned. I didn't realize the elevator went past the main basement floor where Aro's quarters were, but there was the lock, needing some sort of key which was probably required to descend to the lower levels.
Inside the elevator, Marcus pressed the button for the basement floor, and the doors closed before we ascended. "Where's Aro?" I asked, and I realized the timidity in my voice.
"He became preoccupied," Marcus replied before turning to me. "I apologize no one came to get you sooner. I wasn't thrilled to hear what he had done, but he was in the right."
Indignantly, I sighed. "He locked me up down there."
"When Aro realized you weren't in the room, you frightened him. I hadn't seen that look in his eyes in a very long time. He is not accustomed to fear, nor does he wish to feel such a way, so instead, he became irate."
"That's still not an excuse."
The elevator doors opened, and I followed Marcus out as we started back down the hall to Aro's quarters. "You disregarded what he told you to do, and you could have been hurt or killed."
"Well, I wasn't."
Marcus sighed. "You must stop going against Aro's wishes for you. He is trying his best."
"His best?" I asked, almost demanding an answer, but it was ultimately rhetorical. "You call everything he's done as trying his best? I've been trying my best," I continued. "I've been trying to be what he wants me to be, this perfect mate or whatever. But I'm not a slave to this so-called mating bond that you saw between us, and I'm not going to let some 3000-year-old vampire tell me what I can and can't do."
"And that is your choice, but think hard about the choices you decide to make before engaging them. That is all the advice I can give you."
We were outside Aro's quarters, and I fought with going in. I knew Aro was in there, I could feel his presence lingering beyond the door like a massive panther waiting to pounce. Normally Marcus and I were on fairly good terms when we did get to speak, but right then, I hated that he took Aro's side. Not that it should have been a shock, but it was the first time he had truly admonished me, and I despised it.
I thought about saying something else, but I decided against it, turning away from Marcus and opening the door to Aro's quarters. I wanted to slam it behind me, but seeing Aro standing at his desk with Demetri beside him, I changed my mind and closed it properly. Demetri glanced at me before turning back to Aro, who was speaking to him in Greek, which I only knew thanks to Aro speaking it every now and then in front of me because he did not wish for me to know what he was saying to either Marcus or Caius when they came around.
I went to sit on the sofa, waiting for Demetri to leave, as I had words I needed to say to Aro about what he had done, none of them strictly kind. I watched as Demetri finally gave a slight bow of his head to Aro before making his way to the door, acknowledging me on the way, and leaving the room. Aro slowly made his way over to me and sat on the other end of the sofa. I had pulled my knees up to my chest and peered at him with my chin resting on my right one.
Aro remained silent, only watching me, and it unnerved me. He had done this before of course, many times, but right now I felt like a deer in headlights or an animal in a cage, which is exactly what I was. I sighed. "Are you going to apologize?"
His brow furrowed in mock confusion. "Why should I apologize for that which was necessary to be done?"
"You locked me up in a cold and dark room, underground, and then just left!" The words came out harder than I originally planned, but they had their effect.
"You have not been unaware of what could happen if you defied me, Lia, yet you still chose to disobey."
I swung my legs off of the sofa and stood up, wanting to scream from the anger and betrayal I was feeling. Yes, betrayal, and why I would feel that was very clear to me. However, I didn't want it to be. "If I defied you? I just left the room. After what you did, I needed to get away somewhere quiet so I could think. I thought about going to the tower again, but I didn't because I had a feeling about where you were going. And I was right. So, okay, I disobeyed, but locking me up in a makeshift prison cell? That was going too far."
I jumped when he appeared in front of me, his hand grasping my jaw so roughly, to force me to look at him, that it actually hurt. "You will cease to oppose my actions. You are my mate, and you will abide by what I say and tell you to do. Do you understand?"
All I could do was glare at him, and he firmly disapproved. We weren't in Ancient Greece. We were in the 21st century, and I would be damned if I let a man, even if he was a vampire, try to shut me up. It was becoming so difficult at this very moment to continue on with my plan of making him think that I had become content enough and wanted to be here, but if I continued on like this, he would know I had been lying that entire time. I had to calm myself down and whatever I said, it needed to be said with respect.
Aro let go of me, and I did my best at pacifying my gaze. We stared at each other, and his eyes were piercing straight through me as if I could feel them cut through my chest. I continued softening mine, not becoming complacent, but feigning the truth when I was the one who apologized. "I'm sorry for questioning you. Marcus said you were worried, and that was why you did it. I just…" I took a deep breath, thinking of how to finish the sentence I had begun to start. "I just wish that maybe next time, if there is a next time where I do something that upsets you, and there might be because I'm bad at listening, but that you'll talk to me about it rationally at first and then decide on how you want to punish me."
His face said it all, shock. "My dear, what I did was not meant to be seen as a punishment, rather a lesson in obedience."
"What's the difference?"
"Caius punishes," Aro replied. "I merely tame."
"I'm not your pet."
He smiled then, softly and almost playfully, but it was sincere and meant to be warm. "No, you are not. You are so much more than that. Lia, you do not realize it," he paused, giving me a gentle kiss on the top of my head, "but you tame me every day."
His words went through me. Sure, I did, I thought sarcastically. I began to step away from him, and he grabbed my hand pulling me back. "What now?" I asked, frustrated with his confusing actions today.
"Try again, my dear," he told me sternly, his eyes darkening, not in color but in intensity as before.
I swallowed, again with the mood swing. "Is there anything else you require of me, or may I go clean up? I feel disgusting from being down in that room all night."
"If you ask politely."
He was not being serious right now. Whatever game he was playing today and yesterday, I was over it. Still, Demetri would be leaving soon since he wasn't gone yet, and after that, if I could just play along a little longer… "Please?"
"Please, what?" Aro was smirking at me now, a sort of evil grin saying that he was thoroughly amused but knew that I wasn't. I wished that I could smack it off of his face.
Telling myself to calm down, I answered him again. "Please may I go to the other room to clean up?"
He released me then and nodded. "Of course."
I nearly ran into the bedroom, slamming the door behind me. I waited for Aro to come in and chastise me for it, but he didn't. I finally decided to go ahead and go into the bathroom, after grabbing a clean set of clothes, and take a nice, long shower. The near scorching water actually felt amazing, and my muscles started to relax underneath the steady stream.
Closing my eyes, I let the water cascade down my hair, wetting it thoroughly so I could wash it. Chelsea had recently bought me a new shampoo with an added conditioner since my others had been low to begin with and eventually ran out. I wasn't sure if she had been the one to pick it out originally or if it had been Aro that suggested a particular scent, but it smelled heavenly. All I knew was that it had been made locally, just outside of Volterra, and my hair had never felt as soft when I finished using it.
I stayed under the stream of hot water for as long as I thought I could get away with, my skin reddening from the heat. I took a towel and patted myself down before dressing and combing through my hair. Once that was done, I put my hair up until it could finish drying and stared at myself in the mirror. What in the world had I gotten myself into, and what in the world was my grandfather thinking when he just accepted this?
Unsurprisingly, when I opened the bathroom door and stepped back into the bedroom, Aro was there, sitting on the bed. I ignored him and put my dirty clothes in a small basket that Caterina brought so she could launder my clothes, when necessary, more easily. When I turned back around, he motioned me over to the bed, and I went slowly, sitting down next to him when I reached it.
Aro leaned into me and I could feel him take in the scent of my hair and the body wash I had used. I sat still, saying nothing. I didn't really mind him doing this as long as he didn't touch me, something he was keen on doing every chance he got all of a sudden. For a vampire who had no need to breathe, his breath as he took in my scent was ice cold and left me shivering in its wake.
When he straightened back up, we both remained silent until it got to the point that it was screaming in my ears. Never thought silence could scream before? Try sitting alone in a room with a powerful vampire while saying nothing for nearly five minutes. I had no choice but to break it if only so my discomfort level receded back to somewhat normal. "I was surprised to see Demetri still here."
"Yes, he was leaving when Marcus brought you back. I needed a few words before he departed," Aro replied.
So he was finally gone. My heart pounded with that information, questioning whether I could really do this now that the time had come. It was one thing to think about, but to actually implement the plan and take action… Could I actually pull it off? Was I willing to risk it?
I knew Aro could hear my heart rate increase, so I willed it to settle down. Of course willing the heart to do anything was moot considering just thinking about it only made my heart rate speed up more. "Are you alright, my dear? Your heart seems to be pounding."
I nodded trying to quickly think of an excuse. "Yeah, I was just...thinking about you and me in here right now, sitting like this."
"Is that so? And what about that has your heart racing?"
His voice was grinning as he spoke, amused by the possibilities perhaps, but I ended up giving him one better, nearly slapping myself after it came out of my mouth, wondering why I would say such a thing as it. "I was thinking that I want you to kiss me."
Aro's eyes widened, obviously not expecting what I had said either. "Is that so?"
Too late now, I would have to continue what I started. I damned myself this time around. "I was just nervous to say anything because I shouldn't want that."
"Lia, we are mates. It is only natural for you to desire certain things from me just as I desire certain things from you. It is nothing to be ashamed of." He reached up and touched the back of his hand to my cheek, stroking it lightly. "I always want to kiss you and eventually more, but I was biding my time, waiting for you to ask. I may be many things, but I am, nevertheless, a gentleman."
That was definitely one truth, he was, despite what he did the previous night. "Are you still angry with me for disobeying you?"
"No, my dear. I was never angry with you but frustrated to find you had not listened. It was for your own safety that I told you not to leave the room." Aro suddenly reached back and pulled the hair tie out of my hair, dropping it to the floor. After running his fingers through my hair and smoothing it out, he inquired, "Are you sure this is what you want from me?"
He placed his hand on top of mine which was resting on the bed, bent at the wrist, before touching his forehead to mine. Speaking of him loving my scent, it was insane how delicious Aro smelled to me. I hadn't noticed it too much before now, though it was there, but at this moment, our faces so close together, it radiated off of him, and I was practically intoxicated with it. Before I knew what I was doing, I said yes.
I felt myself falling backward onto the sheets, Aro's lips crashing down on mine as his body laid over my own, one hand wound in my hair and the other unmoved. In my nineteen years, I had never been kissed like this before, and the fact that it felt so good, frightened me. That fear caused my senses to return, and I did the first thing I could think of. I bit him.
Aro pulled back. I thought he would scold me for what I had done, but instead, he snickered. "Perhaps you wish to be one of us more than you originally thought." He was hovering over me now, my back flat on the mattress, his head looming over mine. "Did you enjoy it, Lia?"
How could I respond to that? Did I enjoy it? Yes, I enjoyed it. It seemed to awaken something inside of me that I had been trying to keep dormant. I would not fall in love with him even if it was bound to happen. Yes, he was exhilarating, but he could also be cruel and thought mostly of himself. What about what I wanted?
I didn't answer, and he frowned. Before I knew it, I was up on my feet, him leading me towards the door with a hand on my back forcing me along. "I have a matter that needs attending. Do you remember the rogue vampire I told you about in Germany?" I nodded, and he continued, "He was brought here to Volterra this morning, much to my surprise. I wish for you to see how trials here work. You will be perfectly safe. I won't allow any harm to come to you nor will any of the guard."
When we reached the circular room I knew as the hall the Volturi fed in, I was hesitant about going in. However, whether I wanted to or not, Aro was directing me inside either way. Renata immediately appeared by my side as the vampire in question hissed in my direction, most likely smelling my human blood, amping his thirst. We easily passed over to the dais where Marcus and Caius were already seated, the latter giving me a look of disdain. I looked away.
Aro stood next to his usual seat and told me to sit on the steps next to it. I did so and found myself scooting closer to Aro's sort of throne when the vampire, who was being held down by Santiago and a non-elite guard member, seeing as how I didn't recognize him, sneered at me. Aro stepped back up to the vampire and took both of the vampire's hands in his. I was curious about this action, but no one else seemed to think it odd, so I dismissed it. Of course, it goes without saying that within seconds, Aro had torn off both hands where they proceeded to shatter on the ground like a stone.
I drew in a breath. There was no blood, just pieces of rock scattered across the floor, yet it made me ill. The rogue yelled as if he were in agony, and I wondered if vampires felt physical pain just as we humans did. As Aro reached out to take the vampire's arm that the unknown guard member was holding and began to squeeze, I discovered that I couldn't take watching what had just happened occur again. "Stop!"
It was out so quickly, and I found myself standing, looking at a room that had gone still. Aro turned to me, his eyes by far the most dangerous I had ever seen them. "Sit and watch. That is what you will do."
"I'm not going to sit here and let you torture him. If you're going to kill him, just get it over with."
It was a mistake. I called Aro out in front of the guard, in front of Caius. Before I knew what was happening, Aro had nodded to Caius, and that was when I felt strong arms grabbing me and sitting me back down on the steps, forcefully holding me there as the vampire who terrified me the most whispered in my ear something that had my spine crawling. "Be good or perhaps I'll ask Aro if I could teach you some manners and respect."
As Aro continued before me, Caius shifted back to his seat, and I dared not move. Aro took his time ripping out one arm and then the other, and finally, as Santiago and the other guard member pushed the rogue vampire down onto his knees, Aro stepped behind them and ripped off the rogues head. I wanted to scream or throw up. Maybe even a bit of both, but I sat mortified at the sight before me.
Aro stepped over to me and held out his hand. "Take my hand. We are done here."
The problem was that I couldn't be sure what he had said. I was in shock. Instead of waiting, Aro grabbed my arm roughly, hauling me up, and finally ushering me out of the room. Neither of us said a thing until we arrived back at Aro's quarters. Immediately upon entering the bedroom, I was pushed against the wall, Aro's hand at my throat.
Now I really had a reason for my heart to pound. He was squeezing, not enough to cut off blood flow, but enough that it started to hurt. I fought against him, but he held me there until I stopped moving and then he finally spoke. "You will never speak back to me in front of the guard again. Nor should I hear you speak back to me when it is only us. You will do as I bid, no matter what it is I tell you to do. No questions asked. You only do. Am I understood?"
"Let go of me!" I did my best to scream it in his face, but it only came out choked as I pushed against him again, trying to loosen his grip, an impossible feat, but it was human instinct to try.
"Am I understood, Liliana?"
"I hate you."
Aro's eyes closed momentarily, and when they opened, although he had only recently fed the previous day, they were black as pitch. He no longer held his hand around my throat but had instead quickly moved it up to cover both my nose and mouth, and I realized I could not breathe. I tried to kick, missing his legs, and his response was to only make his grip tighter. I was going to badly bruise if he didn't suffocate me first. I was starting to see spots.
"Stop testing my patience." His voice resonated through me, a truer fear than the previous day passing through my core. "Answer me. Am I understood?"
I hated myself for it, but survival came first. I nodded, and he released me, my body dropping to the floor like a rag doll as I coughed, trying to catch my breath and take in as much oxygen as possible. When I looked up, Aro was gone, the door was shut, and it had been locked from the outside. I could tell the study was empty leaving me completely alone, and at this particular moment, I was fine with that.
Whatever questions I had before about the risk of implementing my escape plan now that Demetri was away, were gone. No doubt in my mind was left existing. I would get out of here one way or the other.
A/N: This is now the longest chapter at 4571 words to say thank you. I received so many wonderful reviews. It's been a rough week, so they meant everything to me. I love communicating with my readers, so check out my profile for my socials, review so I can reply back to you, or send me a PM just to say hi.
Hopefully, I clarified in this chapter, through the writing, how Aro's power works in my mind, but just in case, I see Aro using his power by touching hands only. A guest reviewer had a question about it.
