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"I can do as I please, dear one I am the Master"

"Sir Stephen is your servant Give hihtened eyes as he had gazed at me and beyond that, I had seen his lust All I wanted was to rip open his throat and feed Feed on his blood to satiate e my family

"He is worth more to me than you know Hate him if you must, but his blood is not yours"

"Damn you," I whispered in a fierce voice

Vlad threw back his head and laughed with delight "You are such a wild creature You amuse me, but I will break you" Elina covered his neck with desperate kisses as he spoke His wives closed in around hi bodies

"Just a taste more, my love, a taste more," Cneajna whispered in his ear

Vlad just shook his head "No e I picked up the corpse of the guard and flung it at the writhing va them to the floor Cneajna drew back in fear as Vlad whirled about

"You will not defy hter the servants!"

Yes, I realize now that I was being teht back the stark reality of his betrayal of usted by the fawning attentions of ony of our starvation, and I wanted nothing

Vlad’s forrasp "You will not dishonor ht to return and then you will feed! If you defy eon with your dead mother and let you starve for weeks! This is not an idle threat, Glynis I have killed Brides less disrespectful than you"

To emphasize his point, he sla ainst the wall, er burned in rowling deeply in my throat

"Do not do it!"

I reluctantly obeyed her,at the stone floor I craved release I wanted to let ainst all of them

But I remembered…I remembered what I had pro Vlad would only deter that plan I did not need to be killed or imprisoned

Elina wrapped herself around Vlad’s body "Let me callare at o now"

He embraced Elina and they dissolved into a fine blue mist Ariana watched it reverently until the last mote dissipated, then she joined us in the corner of the rooazed at er still burned inside of me, butus another That is good, Glynis," Ariana said, trying to console me

I nodded, then fell back to the floor I drew er now It is faint, but there"

"You will learn to live with it," Cneajna assured me

"You really should not defy the Master He never would have called hismy arm

"I wish he had," I said in a low voice "I saw the e I saw his pale scared face and his long white neck He would have come to us if Vlad had not held hi in my veins, but ht you to us," Cneajna said softly "For that I aave her a sharp look, then turned away She could not possibly understand

It was then that I took another vow in the nao to Buda and I will kill Sir Stephen

None shall stop ht

The Castle

5th of September, 1819

How did I become this monster…this creature that feasts on the blood of innocents? I stare atbut hatred for what I have done To kno callously I killed before and felt no regret, now pains ht, what I have done is unbearable

I allowed er tears at ht Vlad disappeared soon after we rose The hunger was stirring within ain tonight I have never been a patient person by nature and tonight was no different As I scribbled away in my journal, I continuously listened for his return Froreat hall, I could watch thethe front door we had battered to bits Beyond them, in the courtyard, the wolf pack paced back and forth

I sensed him before I actually witnessed his arrival in the castle Ducking back into the shadows, I hid ainst the cold stone Below e sack in one hand He began to speak to one of thetoward the courtyard Taking advantage of hi place and down the back of a large column, then leapt onto the stairs and rushed up into the castle

Bursting into the Brides’ cha softly as they sorted through a heap of jewelry

"He has returned," I said breathlessly

"We are to feed," Ariana squealed happily