The Vampire's Pet

Chapter 1

I’d been walking the streets of Ichoryllia for hundreds of years, but the same feeling had always come over me: emptiness. Something was missing, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I had money to buy everything I could dream of, but it was just empty objects to fill my mansion. I’d taken women into my bed, men too, but beyond the pleasure of the flesh, there remained a constant desire that nagged at the depths of my soul. I was caught in a constant state of dissatisfaction, trying to fill the void without ever succeeding.

Even when I was a young vampire and my parents were alive, I could never find what was missing from my life. I’d had a good childhood with a good upbringing. My parents tried to spark interest in me, but I was so disinterested in everything that they sent for a doctor. But there was nothing to be done, and the doctor prescribed that I sign up for private lessons, saying that I would eventually discover a passion. Singing, dancing, painting, anything my parents could think of—to no avail. I went from one day to the next with the same desolate weariness.

I pushed back the collar of my long black trench coat, my piercing blue eyes staring back at me in the mirror. I ensured I was clean-shaven and tied my dark hair in a bun.

The letter had arrived early in the morning and was addressed to Aleksander Dumoulin. I was surprised—it had been ages since anyone had addressed me by my full name because most people called me by my title of Lord. The royal seal on the envelope explained it all. My family had been employed by royalty for generations. Growing up, I had spent much time at the castle, so they were accustomed to calling me by my first name.

I came from a long line of piano makers and repairers. Over the centuries, our work had earned us the title of nobility. My father had always told me I should be proud, but I didn’t care about our title. Now that he was dead, it was my duty to carry on the family name. As an only child, there was no one there to do it, and besides, what would I do otherwise? I was skilled with pianos, having learned the trade from my father. It’s not like I could do something else. Nobody else was in the piano business in the kingdom, and money was good.

I went out into the street. A few vampires were happily strolling along. The day was cloudy, but it wasn’t raining. Still, the landscape was very different from previous months. There used to be many humans walking around, most of them working in the blood banks, but all that had changed. The city had been in disarray since the Queen reinstated the old vampire laws. Human breeding farms had opened on the same day. Some people had been astonished by the severe shift, but I wasn’t fooled. One didn’t open an establishment so quickly without warning. It wouldn’t be the first time there had been corruption in power. Whatever I thought of it, I wouldn’t let it show in my work with the castle that I knew the Queen was part of this corruption.

Some vampires were horrified by the new laws. Hybrid families had been torn apart. Some vampires went to the streets to protest, but the Queen repressed any upright with violence or death, cutting short any revolution. I knew the people would settle eventually, but truth be told, I liked the new laws. Humans have been treated as our equals for too long. I was happy to see them back where they belonged on the food chain.

Not that I hated them, but it was simply the natural way of things, and it was time they accepted it.

The old king had been weak—I didn’t like him. He didn’t propose anything new for the city and was content to continue what his parents had started. The new laws might have been a bit extreme, but they awakened my ancient vampiric instinct, the predatory instinct, which I liked. Was it the prospect of capturing prey? The sight of humans being captured in the streets? I wasn’t sure, but it didn’t matter.

I felt alive.

Soon, the castle came into view. Built on top of a mountain, it dominated the town. The walls were made of white stucco and black brick. They looked exotic, contrasting with the gray bricks of the outer walls. Ever since my father had taken me there as a child, I’d always found the castle magnificent.

Lysander greeted me upon arrival. The old servant always welcomed visitors, even if he had to lean on a cane to walk. He had worked with the previous king and his parents, but now that the cursed king was gone, he served the Queen.

“Lord Dumoulin!” called out Lysander. “The Queen will be pleased! She was distraught when the piano broke.”

“I didn’t know Her Majesty was so fond of the instrument,” I commented.

“Oh yes,” answered the servant. “She asks for it to be played daily.”

I followed Lysander into the palace. It was the first time I’d been back there since my parents died, and a wave of sadness swept over me. I remembered walking these corridors alongside my father as he brought me to all his contracts. He explained everything to me. I benefited from his experience without even realizing it.

I’d been learning the trade for some time now. I was a young vampire, only 215 years old. My father would come with me to the contracts, but he’d watch me work rather than do it himself, content to give me advice when needed. That’s when he fell ill. A few doses of fresh blood were usually enough to enhance vampiric healing powers enough to cure, but it hadn’t worked. The doctors diagnosed the same disorder, which had recently affected several vampires at the time. An as-yet-unnamed blood disease that turns the blood milky. No cure had yet been found to this day. He had survived a few months, but it had been excruciatingly difficult to watch him decline without being able to help.

I forced my thoughts aside, concentrating on the surroundings. The portraits of the goddess Hecate, mother of vampires, had been replaced by those of Alastor, demon and spirit of vengeance. I wasn’t religious, but even I knew this was wrong. However, the Queen had changed the official kingdom’s religion, and nothing could be done about it. Sometimes, it was better to keep our opinions to ourselves than to speak out, especially when any opposition was punishable by death.

Servants were busy repainting rooms and changing curtains and chandeliers. I continued, following Lysander up the grand staircase and into the music room. It was decorated with the same refined elegance as before. In the center was a grand piano, its polished ebony surface gleaming in the soft lighting. It was one of the most beautiful pianos I had seen during my career.

“Please, go ahead.” The old vampire motioned at the instrument.

I approached the piano and assessed its condition. It was a classic case: strings had rusted, hammer felts needed replacing, and the soundboard was damaged. Fortunately, I had everything I needed to repair it with me. Time always seemed to stand still when I was repairing a piano. Alone with the smell of the instrument’s old wood, I would lose myself in the strings. It was as if the piano had a story to tell, and I its sole audience during these repairs. I had no idea what time it was when I finished, but Lysander was still there.

“All fixed,” I said to the vampire.

“Ah, thank you,” he remarked.

As I left, I caught the scent of prey. My eyes darted around the room, and I noticed a human staring at the guitars in the corner. He looked tempting, even if I wasn’t hungry. I hadn’t expected to see one here.

“May I ask, what’s a human doing here in the castle?”

Lysander nodded. “This is Jason. He is the new pet of Her Majesty.”

“A pet?” I asked.

“Yes,” the old vampire answered. “He seems rather fond of instruments.”

He couldn’t have come from a breeding farm as they wouldn’t produce mature humans for another twenty years. That left only the pet store. The idea of getting myself a pet had never crossed my mind until now. Jason looked well cared for and seemed at ease even though vampires surrounded him at the castle.

And the feeling that overcame me in this moment . . . This intense desire . . . I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d felt like this. My heart skipped several beats, my blood turned hot, and I felt an instant impulse slither up my spine. Could acquiring a pet fill the void inside me? Is this what I’ve been looking for?

“How interesting!” I finally managed to say.

Lysander smiled. “Her Majesty seems to enjoy her pet quite a lot.”

I was curious, but I didn’t ask any more questions. It wasn’t my place to pry on the Queen’s private life. I took my leave and headed back to my mansion.

The large house stood at the end of a large tree-lined plot with a wrought-iron fence. Balconies overlooked the second-floor bedrooms. The windows were stained glass, a luxury my great-grandfather had insisted on. The Victorian roof gave the house an air of grandeur. Behind the house was a large garden of flowers and shrubs, where I loved to stroll.

Except for me, only a few servants lived here. It seemed unnecessarily large now that my parents were dead. My mother had told me many times that I should find a vampiress and start my own family. I had been with many, but none felt like the right one.

Seeing Jason at the castle that afternoon anchored a need in me that wouldn’t leave. I craved fresh blood. I should get a pet.

I tried to convince myself it was ridiculous. I didn’t need one. My family always preferred drinking blood wine. My mother used to tell me that we were civilized and had come a long way since our ancestors. She would remind me of the horrible dark times of our race and warn me not to make the same mistake. She was referring to when the human population had been decimated, almost to extinction. It was something close to her heart, and I tried to respect how my mother raised me. Still, the idea was there and wouldn’t leave me until it became an obsession. Nothing could satisfy this thirst anymore.

So much so that I was on my way to the human pet store two days later.

I walked on the gray stones of the streets. I passed the tavern. The happy laughter of the first customers could be heard down the street. I passed a blood bank and a few stores before finally arriving at the pet shop. The building wasn’t very big, and the sign was handwritten. It had once been a business specializing in merchandise for humans. Ironic that the same business now sold humans.

As I entered the dimly lit store, I wrinkled my nose at the smell of urine. Cages lined the wall, each containing a human, some straw, a bowl of water, and food scraps. Some were asleep, others clung to the bars in panic.

An aged vampire, probably half a century old, came to meet me. His hair was neatly combed on either side. He was well dressed, and his mustache curled up.

“Lord Dumoulin! Welcome to my humble establishment!” he greeted.

I was surprised at first. I didn’t expect my reputation to precede me here. But after examining the vampire for a few seconds, I recognized that I’d seen him before. He was a nobleman, but his name escaped me.

“I expected a neater store,” I commented.

“Ah, yes. I’ve been told that several times this week,” he countered. “I’m working on it, but the pets still urinate outside their cages.”

I nodded in silent judgment—what filth. I approached and examined the humans. They looked healthy, all adults, and the majority were women.

“They were all caught in the city. The ones produced on the farm are only babies,” explained the owner.

I wasn’t sure what I was looking for, but I knew I’d know when I found it.

In the first cage was a pot-bellied man. His hair was greasy, and he smelled of sweat. I immediately moved away from him, repulsed. I quickly passed the cages of two women. They were beautiful, one a redhead, the other a blonde, but neither particularly appealed to me. A young man with long, curly brown hair and blue eyes was in the next cage, skin dotted with freckles. I hesitated and looked at him for a long time. I decided to check out the other cages, but I’d return to him if I didn’t find anything better.

And then I saw her. She was in a cage at the back of the store. Long black hair and big brown eyes that bled with defiance. Spend hundreds of years craving fresh blood, and you learn to read prey by a single glance. She wasn’t like the others. The dirty rags she wore were torn, leaving me with a taste of disgust in my mouth at the thought of how the owner treated his merchandise.

“You, what’s your name?” I asked the woman.

“You don’t need to address them directly,” said the owner.

I turned to him and replied with annoyance, “I’ll address her if I want. If she will be my pet, I should be able to talk to her.”

I turned to the woman and repeated, “I asked for your name.”

The woman looked at me. “No.”

“Now, now,” the owner warned, “what did I say about being rude to vampires?”

The woman squinted her eyes and spat at the seller’s feet. He fumed and reached behind a stall without sparing me a look. At the sight of a whip, she gasped.

“Know your place, or you’ll suffer the consequences,” he said hatefully.

Anger filled me as he opened the cage door. The woman ducked into the corner of her cage, and I grabbed the vampire’s wrist as he swung his arm into the air.

“What do you think you’re doing?” the vampire roared.

I hissed, “Is that how you treat them?”

“Don’t tell me how to do my job!”

The owner tried to free himself, but I held on. “Beating them won’t make them more obedient. It will only damage your merchandise.”

“They’re humans. Who cares if they’re wounded?”

I was furious with him. He was obviously part of a class of vampires with an old mentality, and I wasn’t going to change his mind today. Humans might be a food source, but I didn’t agree with beating them.

“Don’t hurt the pet I’m interested in,” I said sternly.

The vampire looked at me, then lowered the whip back to its place.

The woman’s frightened gaze passed from the owner to me a few times, then she whispered, lip trembling, “Esmeralda.”

“Esmeralda.” Her name rolled on my tongue as if it belonged. “Yes, I like it. I’ll take her.”

“Excellent choice.” The owner clapped his hands together.

“No!” the woman screamed.

I turned to her. “Would you rather stay in a cage in a store that reeks of piss?”

Esmeralda froze and shook her head.

“Do you need accessories?” asked the vampire, pointing to his shelves. There was a wide selection of collars, leashes, toys, clothes, and other items. I picked up a black collar matched with pearls and lace, with a large black gemstone on the front. I also picked up a long black leather leash.

“These will do.”

“You have good taste!” A large grin was plastered across the owner’s face.

I rolled my eyes, thinking he was more likely satisfied with the price of the items I’d chosen than anything else.

I got back to the cage and gave the collar to Esmeralda. “Put this on.”

I liked the rebellious look in her eyes. I was dying to tame her.

Seeing she wasn’t complying, I moved closer, holding her fiery stare as she hesitated to put it on. My lip curled up. “Whether you like it or not, you’re mine! Now obey and put this collar on.”

I held her gaze until she obliged and slipped the leather around her neck. The gemstone complimented her more than I could have ever imagined.

“That’s a good girl,” I praised.

I attached the leash to the collar, but the girl didn’t move when I pulled on the leash. “I don’t intend to stay in this store all day. Come!” I ordered.

“I don’t even know your name, and you want me to follow you?”

A growl escaped my chest—she was prey, and that meant she was supposed to be obedient. I got within inches of her, so close that she shrank. “I would much rather walk you back than drag you, wouldn’t you agree?”

She swallowed hard. I could hear her accelerated heartbeat. It called out to my primal side—I couldn’t wait to sink my teeth into her.

Finally, Esmeralda relented and followed. “Is the leash really necessary?” she asked.

We stepped outside the store. A few vampires strolled the streets and glanced at us. They could sense that she was human.

“See those vampires?” I asked. She nodded.

“If you had no collar and leash, they would devour you,” I whispered.