Page 25 of The Vampire’s Prey

Another snarl begins to rise. "She is not what I imagined an untrained human to be like."

His chuckles turn into actual laughs as he slaps me on the shoulder. "Untrained or not, most women are not what you expect. I'm just glad this one is giving you a run for your money. I've watched you sitting alone in the bar, poring over your phone. You need some excitement. Something tells me that she will give you way more than you bargained for. But it will be worth it in the end. Ah!" he motions to the club submissive coming up to my side. "So that's the direction you plan to take. I can't wait to see how this plays out. "

The twinkle in his eyes burrows under my skin. Until this moment, I have never felt so possessive of a woman, much less a human, in my life. I have to walk away now before I say or do something I’ll regret. Taking the knife and ginger, I stalk back towards my prey. The closer I get, the better I can see that she is indeed crying. Not loud enough for humans to detect but crying all the same. I have to fight the urge to kneel down next to her and gather her into my arms. That is for later. Right now, she has to understand the consequences of her actions.

"Tatehiza.” With a wipe to her face with the palm of her hand, she gets up onto the balls of her feet. "Look at me my pet.” Her tearful expression guts me. At that moment, I know I’ll protect her against the world. Even me if I have to. "Ahhh, my dear one, " I soothe, wiping away the tears from her eyes. "Is it that very bad?"

In a lunge, she hurls herself at me and wraps her arms around my waist in a vice grip. Fresh tears fall onto my chest, and each one burns my conscience. I have indeed pushed her too far. Her hair is soft underneath my hand as I stroke it. I gather her closer and hug her tight, no longer worried about who is watching and who is judging. This little princess is mine, and no one will take her away from me. She doesn’t know it yet, but she will never be free of me.

"Tell me what ails you pet. I will soon set it to right."

"I'm-I'm sorry," she sobs, clutching me tighter. "I don't mean to lie. I just can't tell you things. If Fath-if I. I just can't!" she wails.

My brain clicks, trying to puzzle out all the pieces. She is truly terrified of someone. But who? My gaze whips around the club, noting that everyone is doing their own thing and not paying us a bit of attention. Nothing seems out of place, and yet, the air feels much heavier than it had. I pull her in even tighter. I will slay whatever monsters are hunting her, and they will rue the day they laid eyes upon her. At this point, I don't even care that she didn’t end with sir. Times like this need no formality. I certainly will not hold her accountable for forgetting in a time of weakness.

As suddenly as she grabbed me, she stops crying and pulls away. I feel the loss of her warmth keenly. However, I am puzzled by her reactions. She is acting as if nothing just happened. Frowning, I reach towards her, but she pulls further away.

"I'm fine. Truly. I don't know what came over me. I just… I'm just being hormonal, sir "

I scent the air. Nothing about her seems off. I am almost positive that she is lying again. When is my girl going to learn? My insides warm at the thought of making her mine. But first, I have to win her over. Letting her get away with lying is not going to help.

"Really? Does that mean I can actually take a belt to you?" I reach over to pick up the belt from where it was thrown to the floor and bring it up in front of her face. She flinches, but her reactions are a lot more controlled than they were earlier. She has trained herself well. I will give her that. With a flick of my wrists, I bring the belt around the back of her neck and both ends to the front where she can see them. "Is this what you want? To be punished and atone for all your many sins?" I gaze intently into her eyes. Bingo. That is part of it. "Tell me little girl. Confess to me. What have you done that is so wrong?" I know it is not the best thing to do, but I put just a hint of compulsion behind the words. I need her to open up to me. This will never work if she does not.

Her eyes narrow, then suddenly shift to an odd, vacant expression. This is not something I’ve seen from her yet. What the hell is happening in her brain?

"I confess that I lied to you. I deserve to be punished, sir.” Her eyes clear after a moment and search my own.

That is not what I want to hear; however, she did answer the question. But deep down in my gut, I can’t help feel she’s hiding something. Not a problem. I will find out soon enough. Sighing, I put the belt tail through the buckle and tighten until it closes around her neck.

"Yes. You do need to be punished. Let’s not delay then.”

Picking up my bag, the ginger, and knife, I stand and look down at her. How badly I wish to give in and just give her pleasure, so I can take my own. But that is not fair to her. Or to us. If we are to make this thing work, it has to be done right.

"Come with me.” I tug on the belt and smirk as she stumbles to her feet. So, maybe I am a bit of a sadist. Leading her back towards the dais, I notice her looking at Lucius and Selene, and reaching up to cover herself. "No. You have not earned the right to cover yourself. Maybe next time you will keep your sass to a minimum, and we can avoid these embarrassments.” Leaning down, I growl into her ear. "Be grateful I do not make you go up to them and confess your crime. Imagine that, naked in front of your employer and being punished by both him and I.” I tisk softly. "What a naughty little girl you were. But do not fear. Tonight, I plan to keep you completely to myself."

I look up to see both Selene and Lucius hiding their smiles. I am grateful that they are allowing me a small bit of gravitas where they are concerned. Making a sharp turn to the right, we both stop at a spanking bench. I wait a few moments to let her look it over.

"I don't understand, sir"

"This is called a spanking bench my dear. I will position you on it in a manner that is pleasing to me, and I will commence your punishment.” I bend over to set down my things but keep a tight grip on the belt. No need to chance an escape. Not that she can actually get that far in a room full of vampires.

She eyes me warily. "I thought you said you weren't going to use the belt, sir"

"Do you wish to negotiate that? Is the belt a trigger for you?"

She shakes her head no, and my heart sinks. Again, she has to do things the hard way. I remove the belt from around her neck and palm it in my hand.

"What would you say if I tell you that I am indeed going to use the belt?"

Her eyes turn to the floor. "I would say I deserved it, sir."

My heart breaks. There will be no belts used ever until I can get to the bottom of this. I tuck my finger under her chin and ease her face up to look at me.

"You deserve what I decide you deserve. If I feel you deserve a belt, then we will discuss it. I think you have been extremely naughty and quarrelsome. However, I do not feel that you deserve a belt. I have so many other ways to punish you.” Her look of hope when talking about the belt was quickly squashed when I mentioned other punishments. "Now, I do need some information about you. Are you allergic to anything?"

Her head jerks in surprise. Obviously not what she was expecting to hear from me.

"I mean, not really? Wasps and bees aren't good for me, but" her face pales, "you're not going to use those on me, are you?"