The Shadow Zone 2: Winning Madeline Page 6

  He walked slowly, matching his pace to hers.

  “Your heart is thundering. Are you okay?”

  “Yes,” she lied.

  She felt so small walking down the stairs with the elegant tall man at her side. Wearing just a thin blue robe made her feel vulnerable and she pulled it more tightly about her in response. When they reached the bottom of the stairs, the Spaniard rose from his chair and smiled at her. Like Maddox, he was beautiful. His black eyes showed her warmth and his smile was devastatingly handsome.

  He extended a hand to her, and like Maddox at times, his skin was unnaturally cool.

  “I am Rick. Welcome to my home, Madeline.”

  Warmth flooded her face at the way her hand shook. Rick seemed to sense her unease and placed his other hand over hers.

  “Don’t be afraid. No one will harm you here.”

  Turning, he held out an arm in the direction of the beautiful woman with red hair.

  “This is Julia.” The other woman’s green eyes widened when her gaze fell on Madeline. After a moment, she extended a hand and Madeline jerked in surprise at its warmth. Then she noticed the smell.

  “You’re Lycan?” Madeline asked, trying to keep her tone polite.

  The expression on Julia’s beautiful face turned defensive for a second and then eased as they let their hands drop.

  “Yes, I am.” Julia said simply. “Sounds like you’ve known a few.”

  “I have.”

  Julia almost smiled. “Don’t judge us all by that lot.”

  “I wouldn’t.” Madeline meant it. “I guess not all of us… are so great.”

  Julia’s expression seemed one of approval.

  “Was there something you needed?” Maddox’s eyes were clouded with concern.

  She swallowed hard. Then she decided to stick with the truth.

  “I was hoping to see Ivy and her father.” Her voice dropped off to a whisper. “Familiar faces, I guess.”

  “Of course,” Maddox said, looking almost relieved. “We’ll go see them right away. If you’ll excuse us…”

  Rick and Julia nodded as Maddox again took her by the arm and guided her in another direction.

  With each step she felt her anxiety ease. No one was angry that she’d been caught listening in on their conversation. No one minded her being here. His friend had welcomed her to his home and assured her that no harm would come to her. Even the woman who didn’t seem to like Maddox was kind to her.

  And if she saw that Gerald and Ivy were okay and just as Maddox said? Well, it was a step in the direction of establishing trust between Maddox and herself.

  Glancing up, she found him smiling at her. When was the last time someone had looked at her with… caring? Encouragement? It had her heart squeezing in her chest.

  * * *

  “Mrs. Kilmer tells me it won’t take her long to create some things for you to wear. She’s an excellent seamstress.” Maddox thought he’d start a conversation with Madeline when he returned to the room. It wasn’t easy. His mind was on anything but her clothes right now. “I hope you’ll enjoy having some nicer garments.”

  Madeline sat on the edge of the bed, a gold-trimmed plate of dark grapes resting on her lap. Wariness lingered in her violet eyes, but he sensed a lot less tension in her tonight. It gave him hope. Perhaps one day she’d come to trust him.

  Just one look at her sleek little body had him staring at her, hard. Though he loved her wearing his robe the night before, the blue robe was sleek and revealed her shape. Her breasts were full and beautiful, the curve of her hip and thigh a temptation.

  She only nodded in response to his words. And what was she going to say really? That she expected new clothes when she was accustomed to wearing rags? He knew she was beyond her element right now. Nervous as a young man courting his lady love, his mind scrambled to come up with something else to talk about. It was ridiculous. Yet he couldn’t do a damned thing about it.

  “Did you enjoy your visit with your friends?”

  A small smile formed on her lips. It would have stopped his heart had he been mortal.

  “I did. Thank you.”

  The visit had been wonderful for him as well. Watching her play with the child, hearing her laughter. He didn’t even feel threatened by the child’s father, knowing he’d been a rare client of hers. He didn’t sense anything between the man and his Madeline now. The man’s fear of him did come through clearly, however.

  Madeline had been happy to see them and that he could do every single day. And would, he decided. He’d just feel better once they didn’t have the Elders and their old friend Vincent to worry about any longer. “You’re welcome. We can see them any time,” he said easily.

  “No, I meant thank you for their situation. Ivy looked so…”

  On the way to being well fed? Clean? Adorable in the small dress Mrs. Kilmer had insisted on making before anything else? “Rick treats his servants well, Madeline,” Maddox assured her.

  “They are his servants now?”

  It was a clever question. Maddox thought carefully before he spoke. “I’m sure Rick would have no problem with my taking them when we leave this place. But I think much would depend on what’s best for them at the time. A man with a small daughter. Perhaps they should have some say in where they go.”

  Her brow knitted. “But they are servants,” she pointed out.

  “I didn’t dispute that.”

  “Servants don’t have choices.”

  Maddox smiled. “Here they do.”

  “And with you?” she asked in a lower voice.

  “I don’t think of you as my servant, Madeline.” No, he thought of her as so much more. If only he could tell her…

  “I’m your…”

  “Employee?” he offered. Lover? Dream? Mistress of my frozen heart?

  “Since that is the case, may I ask you something?” She was speaking so carefully, it tore at him just how precarious she thought her situation was.

  “Anything,” he promised, daring to move closer and sit on the edge of the bed with her.

  “You weren’t angry that I wandered out?”

  “No.”

  “I can… leave this room whenever I like?”

  “Yes. I just ask that you stay close to the manor. Stay where you can be seen. For your safety.”

  “Your friend said I wouldn’t be harmed…”

  “And he meant that,” Maddox assured her, not sure where she was headed with her line of conversation.

  “I’ve seen servants here who are… human. Like me.”

  Maddox fought a smile. Madeline wasn’t stupid. “He does have servants here who are human. The rest are vampires. But they live together relatively well. Though I won’t lie to you, there is a social hierarchy. The vampire servants clearly run the house.”

  Madeline nodded, seeming to consider this. “The vampires are stronger,” she said after a moment.

  “Yes.”

  “How is it that humans and vampires can get along here?”

  Okay, now he thought he knew where she was heading but he wanted to clarify. “In what regard?” he asked.

  “Humans are food for vampires. Right?”

  He loved her way of simplifying it. Now, how to explain it? “The vampire servants aren’t allowed to feed on their human counterparts here. Rick won’t allow that. That would lead to your next question, an obvious one -- how are the vampires fed then? How are all of us -- Rick and myself included -- fed? Isn’t that what you want to know?”

  Madeline nodded, managing to look guilty.

  Tipping her chin up with a finger, he stared down into her eyes. “Why wouldn’t you wonder that? It’s a good question.”

  When she said nothing, he continued. “For a time, we did hunt humans. We aimed for the dregs mostly, the ones who committed crimes against each other. We hunted human monsters. But our council realized, as we all did, that the human numbers have been dropping at an alarming rate for the last half century. They decide
d we had to find another way to feed. Their solution was cloning.”

  Madeline’s eyes rounded in fear.

  “Technically, that’s still the law of the land, though…”

  “What?” She was brave, wanting to know more. He’d give her that.

  “There have been problems with the cloned blood. It’s been causing strange effects in some of our kind over time.” He wouldn’t go into detail about that. “Some of us pretend to go along. Rick recently came up with another way that we can have human blood, real human blood as was intended by whatever evil force created us, and not destroy the source of our existence.”

  “W-what way?”

  “Just like the castles and villages of a time… more familiar to Rick and I, he is the noble lord so to speak and there is a village of people who work his land and depend on his protection.”

  Now her expression was clouded by confusion. He had to remember that he didn’t know what education, if any, she had. “On the other side of this manor, is a village of humans like you. They live on and work the land that Rick owns,” he explained.

  “Work the land?”

  Maddox nodded. “They grow crops of food that humans eat. They produce wheat and barley, vegetables. They grow fruits, raise livestock for meats and milk. They are farmers. They work the land to provide food for everyone -- the humans -- and in return, they are allowed to live there and prosper. Rick provides anything they need.”

  “How does that feed the vampires?”

  Clever girl. “There is one other requirement of the humans in the village. In exchange for their support, their protection, they provide blood for us.”

  “How…” Worry darkened her lovely face. “Do you pick someone or…”

  “No, no.” He didn’t like the way her hand trembled as it clung to the plate of grapes on her lap. “It’s not like that at all. All of the villagers of proper age and size give blood, in small amounts, every few weeks. They aren’t even required to give enough to weaken them. Those who are ill or too old don’t have to offer blood at all. It’s a rather large village and they just need to provide enough for Rick, his guests, and his vampire servants. There aren’t many of us.”

  “How do you… Do you bite them or…”

  “No, Madeline. That would be cruel. They draw it themselves, using needles and storage bags.”

  “Your kind doesn’t mind that?” Madeline revealed more by the moment what a sharp mind she had. As if she could become more appealing to him.

  “It’s not the natural way we’d prefer to feed, no. But the compromise works. It’s a way for us to feed ourselves and ensure our survival, and at the same time, we provide the humans support and protection so they can survive. Madeline, the humans in the village live good lives. They are able to care for their families and have a natural existence. They have nice homes, plenty of food. They don’t have to worry about the poverty and lawlessness of where you came from. We protect them from the threat of other vampires and even other humans. The village hasn’t been there long and we’ve had a couple of defections. But so far, it’s working well.”

  Madeline didn’t say anything for a couple moments. Her hands loosened on the plate of grapes however. Surely that was a good sign. “I could live there, right? You could come see me there…”

  Maddox pushed back the stab of pain those words brought. He tried to remember that she had no idea how he felt about her. She’d had no time to develop feelings for him.

  She would develop the same feelings for him, wouldn’t she? What would become of him if she didn’t?

  “Madeline, is that what you really want?” he asked gently. “To continue to sell yourself to other men for money?”

  “No, it’s not what I wanted. I guess I thought…” Her throat worked as she swallowed hard. “I guess I thought I could live like that. Growing a garden, giving a little blood here and there. You said you’d be my only client so just you…”

  Maddox did smile now. She remembered his conditions. She wasn’t trying to get out of their agreed sexual arrangement which made him happy. She was, however, testing the waters about living in the village. Away from him. No, he wouldn’t allow that as a possible avenue for her.

  “But we have Vincent to consider,” he reminded her. The flash of fear in her eyes bothered him but he could tell it effectively ended any talk of her moving away from him.

  A low rumbling growl echoed in her body and he shook his head.

  “I’m told you’ve eaten very little today. Why?” he asked her. “You’re starving.”

  Her face flushed pink. “I am hungry, but I…”

  Maddox waited patiently but she seemed at a loss for words. “Yes?”

  “I’m adjusting to everything, I suppose. And you have to realize that the food here is, well, a lot more than I normally have to eat. I guess I’ll eat more in time.” And with that she set the plate of grapes to the side, glancing up at him with determination in her face. The look that told him she was ready to fulfill her agreement to sleep with him was in place on her face like a mask.

  Maddox sighed. Physically he didn’t care that she was going through the motions as his hired lover. His body ached for her and would take her any way he could. His heart ached for her too and not in a good way. He didn’t want to be her obligation. He wanted her to want him.

  He just hoped one day she would.

  Chapter Seven

  Madeline took a deep calming breath as she contemplated the evening ahead. Now she did feel hungry after worrying all day about the mysterious world of vampires she’d entered. Her new and exclusive client was one-or so he claimed. There was still some unease for her in knowing he wasn’t technically alive. How easy it would be for him to kill her at any moment.

  Still, Vincent had been just as dangerous and unlike Maddox, he’d been ill-tempered. As a Lycan, he too had incredible strength and had been rough with her on many occasions. Out of bed, he’d been civil but never kind.

  Maddox had shown her more warmth in a day than anyone else had in years. He’d been unconcerned with her wandering around the enormous house. He’d taken her to see Gerald and Ivy who were safe and well cared for just as he’d promised. And it had made her heart so light to see the little girl in her pretty dress, her stomach no longer growling because of the food available to her now.

  Gerald, like Madeline, seemed a little haunted and cautious, considering their circumstances. They were surrounded by vampires and it was foreign and dangerous territory. But like her, it seemed he’d been treated well enough to give it a try.

  Maddox’s blue eyes watched her from under impossibly long lashes. Sitting there next to her on the edge of the bed, he didn’t seem real. He was too handsome, too beautiful, to be real. The night before with him had been surreal given what he’d told her and she still hadn’t completely squared with the idea that her new client was a vampire. But he’d allowed her to do what she wanted at her own pace and he responded like her other clients. He’d seemed quite pleased by her efforts, satisfied with just a blow job.

  She hated that her hand trembled as she brought it up to his face and all the while she wondered if it was a good idea to touch him at all like that. Touching a man’s body - anywhere -- was generally not a problem. More intimate things like a kiss or a caress to his face were often not welcome gestures for her clients.

  Her heart skipped a beat when her palm touched his cheek and he leaned into her touch. Again tonight his flesh was warm like a man’s. But it was so hard. She slid her hand up into his hair, let her fingers glide through the silky pale blond strands. His hair felt normal. It felt nice. And his eyes slid closed as she played with his hair, as if he were really enjoying her attentions.

  “Maddox?” she whispered.

  “Yes?” He didn’t open his eyes but a small smile formed on his gorgeous lips.

  “You’re really a…”

  “Vampire? Yes.”

  “Can you… prove it?”

  His sigh was a lon
g whisper. “I could but I don’t want to scare you, Madeline. I don’t want you to fear me.”

  She needed to see it. “Does it have to be so scary?”

  Now his eyes opened and the enjoyment faded from his expression. Slowly he opened his mouth wide. As she watched in silent fascination, she watched his teeth change. Two upper teeth and two lower teeth slowly elongated into sharp, deadly fangs. Madeline could imagine how they’d rip through the skin and a shudder passed through her.

  “See?” In a movement so quick she barely saw it, his mouth closed and she thought his teeth were perfectly normal again. “I knew it would scare you.”

  “I’m not scared,” she said automatically, wanting him to relax and not worry about her. Her job was to relax him, turn him on, and keep him happy.

  “She says as her heart pounds furiously…”

  And it was true. Her heart was racing. “Maybe it’s desire.” She tried to sound sultry but didn’t quite hit that note.

  “I wish.” Maddox’s smile widened. “But you can’t easily fool me, Madeline. I can hear your heart beat. I can sense your fear. It makes me a better hunter. Not that I’m hunting you. It’s just part of what I am.”

  “It’s not my job to fool you,” Madeline said in an unsteady voice. “It’s my job to please you.” She slid her hands down to his shoulders, to the buttons of his shirt. He seemed perfectly content to let her work the buttons with shaky fingers until they were all undone and she’d pulled the shirt free of him.

  His upper body was revealed and she had to do a double take. His flesh was white, too white, but flawless. He was all lean, powerful muscle and her mouth felt dry. “What do you like?” Madeline asked, anxiety blending with something else to quicken her heart and send tiny sparks of anticipation running all through her.

  Maddox, gorgeous as he was, seemed unable to decide what to say. That made her think. “You’ve had sex with human women before?” Madeline kept her tone sincere.

  He nodded. “But it wasn’t the same. That was either to feed, sorry, or boredom. I probably didn’t put as much care into it as I could have, though I never killed a human woman having sex with her.”

  “You’re not bored or…” She couldn’t bring herself to say hungry. She didn’t want to think about it.