The vampire and the assassin

Chapter 6

"This way, my dear." I lifted my head just enough to see where I was going. I didn't care where I was being taken as long as I wasn't under the watchful eye of Lucian and I wasn't near the confusion Xander seemed to cause in my head. I needed a little space to get my head together and work out my plan for what I'd do.

I followed the woman down a small hallway that was empty. I assumed it was like a servant's walk or hallway, as I'd heard that some big, fancy houses had that when the owners of the house didn't want to see their staff. I guessed this was one of those houses, and that made my job just a little harder. I needed to figure it out, though.

"So you were living in Master Lucian's home?" The older woman asked quietly.

"If you call it living," I retorted, and then looked up and quickly covered my mouth, as I couldn't believe I'd just said that. Glenda stopped and then turned, looking at me with sadness in her eyes.

"You don't need to be careful of what you say about your old master in this house. Lord Xander knows how cruel his brother really is and can see through the facade he has a habit of putting on for certain people. It is clear he has not treated you well simply because of your appearance." The simple comment made me look at Glenda in surprise. I wasn't sure which part of what she had hinted at shocked me more; I think hearing that I looked a mess was the real kick, but the bit that had me feeling a little suspicious of the house was being told that I didn't have to be polite about Lucian, and hearing out loud what I'd already suspected about Xander also put me on edge and led me down a little road of distrust in my head. No vampire was ever nice.

"Won't Lord Xander get mad and punish me, though? I mean, I saw that he and his brother have differences."

"Lord Xander will be the first to apologize to you about his brother's behavior and ask you to give him a chance to prove he is nothing like his brother. In all the years I have worked here, I can tell you I have seen firsthand how cruel Master Lucian is to humans. Both his own staff and staff that have worked here, I can also tell you that you are the first human from Master Lucian's house that Lord Xander has ever given shelter to." I guess Glenda had spotted confusion across my face as she simply nodded at me. "Yes, that was my thought too when I heard from where I was waiting to see if I was needed or not. So whatever you did or said to him seemed to reason with him and made him want to give you safety."

"I...I...I never said anything." I stuttered, as I now felt really worried and on edge after hearing that information. Had Lucian known that Xander would give me safety with him, or had he simply been taking a gamble on Xander taking me in? I had no idea, and I doubted I'd find out, but it just left more questions unanswered in my head.

"I know Rosetta. I saw that you said very little to him. It makes me wonder what he is up to." Glenda smiled, but it felt like there was something behind her eyes that made her not as sweet as she wanted to make her out to be. "Now, I think you should wait in this room for me, and I will go and run a bath for you to get the dirt off you and make you at least a little presentable."

I lowered my head and clenched my fist after hearing my full name. I hated it.

"Thank you, ummm... not to sound too ungrateful towards you, but would it be possible for you to call me Rosa?" I couldn't help myself. I hated hearing that name, as all I could think about was the disappointment on my parents' faces all over again. I turned my head away a little as I closed my eyes. I knew they'd still be disappointed in me right now, they'd hate me for what I was doing with my life.

"I will call you that if I remember Rosa. How does that sound?" Glenda opened the door as if telling me that it was the end of the conversation, so I went into the room. Glenda shut the door behind me as I looked around. There was really nothing in the room except for a couple of chairs and a fire that had been lit and was burning in the fireplace. I went and sat on the mat in front of the fire, as I wanted to get warm and didn't want to get the chair dirty. I had forgotten how good the heat had felt on my skin; it had been so long since I'd felt such warmth. I closed my eyes as I turned my face towards the fire. I could feel my muscles begin to relax a little as I mentally began to realize that tonight I wouldn't be in the horrible little cottage, and I was pretty sure I wouldn't be chained up either, and I wouldn't be sleeping on a wooden floor.

I heard the door open a little, but I didn't want to move from where I was sitting. It was nice to feel the warmth, and I could begin to feel it seeping into my bones. I silently told myself I would make the most of what time I had in the house and get myself rested and back to where I needed to be.

A small chuckle came from the doorway, so I turned my head quickly but found no one standing there; the door had just closed, and my heart raced a little. Damn, vampires. I always hated how fast they moved. I was about to turn my head when Glenda came back in.

"Bath is ready for you. Let's get you in and get you washed up quickly, as we don't want you getting a chill with how late it is getting." I really hadn't wanted to move, but I knew I had to. I forced myself to stand as I went with Glenda. I hoped that the water wasn't too hot; even though I'd warmed a little in front of the fire, the cold of all those nights in the broken window room had really seemed to seep into my skin, and I had a feeling it was going to take a lot of effort to shift the cold and the dirty feeling I was feeling about myself.