Part 20

Lucien cursed while pulling an arrow out of his stomach. Wolf venom, he could feel it. The three vampires who had attacked the carriage were dead now, but they had put up a hell of a fight. Lucien could certainly guess who was behind this. These bastards reeked of the Strix. Apparently Tristan had heard that Dafne was with Lucien and decided to simply take her for himself. That wasn't going to happen. Lucien most certainly wasn't going to let Tristan take her.

"My lord?" Dafne's voice called. She had just made her way down to the ground and limped towards him. "You are hurt."

It was true that Lucien was covered with blood, but all of it wasn't his own. That wasn't his biggest concern though, the wolf venom hurt like hell. Damn Tristan… Lucien gritted his teeth and pressed his hand against the wound.

"Do you need blood?" Dafne asked.

"I have been poisoned," he panted. "I need the antidote."

"Where is it?" Dafne asked immediately.

"In the carriage… A metal box…"

Dafne didn't hesitate for a second; she limped back to the carriage as fast as she could and climbed in. Lucien couldn't stand, he needed to sit down. Thankfully Dafne returned soon with the metal box. There were several small bottles inside.

"Which one of these is it?" she asked.

"That one," Lucien muttered and pointed at one of the bottles.

Dafne picked it up and opened it.

"Here."

Lucien emptied the whole bottle with a one gulp. Fortunately the antidote was working, he could feel it. Dafne sat down beside him and offered him her wrist.

"Drink, my lord."

There was nothing he wanted more right now, he didn't bother pretending to be reluctant. Carefully he took her delicate little hand and touched her wrist with his thumb before biting. She tasted just as sweet as he had remembered; he truly enjoyed the taste of her blood. Clearly this wasn't a new experience to her; she was very calm the whole time.

"Thank you," he said and kissed her hand after he was finished.

"You are welcome," she replied. She sounded tired, he noticed the bruise on her other wrist. Obviously she had been hurt as well, he had almost forgotten that.

"Forgive me," he said and bit his wrist. "Here."

She closed her soft lips around the wound and took few small sips.

"Thank you, my lord."

He smiled.

"My pleasure. How are you feeling?"

"Better." She paused and looked at the dead vampires. "Who were they?"

Lucien shook his head.

"I have no idea, but they were vampires."

Dafne lowered her head; Lucien noticed the guilty look in her eyes. She probably thought that she had caused this.

"My lord, I… I am sorry you were injured."

"You have no reason to be…"

"No, you do not understand. I… This was my fault." She sighed and looked up. "Do you remember when we talked about my previous employer?"

"Yes, I remember."

"The thing is that he might be looking for me."

"Why? Did you run from him or something like that?"

She nodded.

"Something like that. I… I do not wish to jeopardize your safety, so I think I better leave…"

"Dafne," he cut in softly and cupped her face. "I do not want you to go anywhere."

"My lord, you do not understand…"

"I understand that you are a wonderful woman and an excellent scribe. I do not want you to be afraid; I will not let anyone hurt you."

"No, no, I am not afraid for myself."

He smiled.

"Well, you have no reason to worry about me; I am more than capable of taking care of myself."

"Yes, I am sure you are, but…"

"No buts. I am not going to lose the best scribe I have ever had."

She was quiet for a while and glanced at the carriage. The driver and the horses were gone and Lucien doubted that the man had any intention to come back.

"I will pay the carriage and the horses…" Dafne started.

"Nonsense." Lucien stood up and offered Dafne his hand. "Giving me the antidote and your blood was more than enough."

"It was the least I could do," she replied. "As I said earlier, I appreciate your kindness."

Lucien bit his bottom lip; he was tempted to show her some more kindness. Something told him that she wouldn't turn him down. She had really been worried about him.

"We should find a place to spend the night," he said.

She nodded.

"Yes, there could be more of these vampires."

Lucien picked up the metal box and took a step towards Dafne.

"May I lean on you?" he asked innocently. "I am still feeling a little weak."

"Yes, of course," she replied and guided his arm around her shoulders. "I can carry the box…"

"No, no, this is fine, thank you."

Her closeness felt very pleasant, she was warm and smelled sweet. Someone like her deserved a man who knew how to make her feel good. He had never found her unpleasant to look at and he had enjoyed her company, but right now he wanted something more.

"It's getting dark," she said. "Do you know where we are?"

"Not exactly," he replied. "But I think I see something ahead. It looks like a barn."

"It will have to do. Can you make it there?"

"Yes, I believe so."

"Alright, good. Just lean on me."