The Duke's Passion

Year 1830

The air was chilly and brought with it the faint but distinct scent of blood. The lanterns from a long procession of carriages cast the only light in the cloudy darkness as the troupe slowly made its way towards my mansion. I glanced at the carriages clumsily amble up the dirt road on the side of the mountain before setting my eyes on the woman standing below my vantage point.

"Why bother when the Lord has been asleep for hundreds of years?" she murmured before she resumed her quick trek back to this shack next to me.

"She's right." I nodded, closed-lipped. "Rufus had always this grand way of doing things. Did he really think those fools he was inviting over were enough to distract me if I somehow woke up?"

I clicked my tongue continuously, a bit disappointed at Rufus, my trusted vassal. Although I already got a gist of the reason behind this annual celebration in my mansion.

"They're so damn loud. Those damn rude people," I cursed, turning around to look at this shack. Good god... she lived here? This was the place that sheltered her? This shack was barely called a home. I would rather live in a cave than in this place; the cave would give more security than this shack. One strong wind and this would get blown away.

"Good lord," I muttered as I entered the shack, making me frown even more. This place was too small. Although it wasn't disorganized, no matter what cleaning she would do, this place wouldn't make it appealing in my eyes.

"How should I greet her?" I wondered while pacing around this small space filled with darkness. I raised a brow when I noticed the small chair near the table.

"Hah," came out a short chuckle, strutting towards the chair and perched on it. I lifted my legs up on the table, rubbing my chin as I pondered on how to greet that child.

That child kept on talking to herself while I listened. She was daft, I could tell after listening to her for years. But the lack of intelligence didn't make me change my mind to show her appreciation for accompanying me for over two decades.

I looked up at the roof of the shack. "I'll start by giving her a good place to live. This place is a disaster. It's already a miracle she survives this long while living alone in this rathole."

I just woke up from a very long slumber and walked around the street of Grimsbanne before coming in here. My only purpose was to give back to that child's... services. Whether or not I would like to admit it, but her silly mumblings were what kept me sane.

Moreover, it made me realize I wasn't as pitiful as her, and also, she made it clear to me I was actually gifted — a genius. I meant, how could she think children grow out of trees? Even an old vampire such as myself who indulged in the pleasure of blood and death had more idea of how human pleasure works.

"I guess dumb people are blessed with infinite luck since she lived this long," I mumbled and shook my head, sitting in this darkness in silence. It didn't take long when I felt her presence outside this shack, making me gaze at the shut door with disinterest.

"I'm... I'm home," she announced in a quiet voice with a touch of bitterness. To her, she would announce her arrival to no one, as this was her habit. But to me, every time she would say she was home, all my senses naturally focused on her voice to listen to whatever silliness that would come out of it.

I watched the door open, revealing a lean figure of a woman. Even in this darkness, she was very clear to me.

'Oh... my goodness,' I thought as my jaw fell slightly open, my eyes following her figure and listening to her count her steps. 'Good lord. She is not a child anymore. She's... stunning.'

This little girl, this woman, was covered with dirt and sweat. Her hair was a bit disheveled, with short dead hair straying away from the large portion of her hazel hair. She looked like a young witch, but she was beautiful. Like a raw diamond still covered with mud, but still shining.

"One, two, three…" she counted and along with it, I also heard my heartbeat for the first time.

I gazed up, counting in my head with her while listening to the beat of my heart until I lost count. She groped the table between us. Although I was right in front of her, she didn't notice me. Somehow, not being noticed by her irked me.

How dare she?

I raised a brow and picked up the matches beside the lamp she first found. She whispered an irritated, "what?" but I smirked when she looked a bit scared.

"It could have been the wind from the open door when I left this morning," she convinced herself.

My mouth opened and closed before I bit my tongue, suppressing my laughter. Gracious. I wanted to tease her. She was funny. I stretched my neck when she knelt on the ground and groped around to search for the matches in my hand.

"Fine," she huffed, "I'll just go without light tonight."

I snapped my eyes instantly and returned the matches to where she could find them easily. How could she just give up? If she wouldn't light this thing up, she would never see me! That's not good.

When she stood up once again, I raised my brows in anticipation. She should be happy now that she found the matches. But to my dismay, her entire face froze, and she didn't move momentarily, as if she just saw a ghost.

Why? I wondered. Why did she look scared if she found what she was looking for? She should be happy now, right?

'Fine. It seems you'll be happier if I do this,' I told myself, picking up the lantern away. As soon as I did, she held on to the matches as if she didn't want to lose them before her hand groped the table for the lantern. I smirked when she panicked.

"It was just here!" she hollered, absolutely terrified now.

'Oh my goodness. This is so fun,' I snickered inwardly.

"I haven't eaten much lately, and the malnutrition is affecting my brain. That must be it. Short-term memory loss is a real thing. It must be here somewhere. I just forgot exactly where!" I was amused at how she calmed herself down with such ridiculous reasoning.

I shook my head lightly, sighing faintly. 'I want to tell her her brain is already damaged long ago, but whatever. Just stop yelling. Here's your lamp.' I put back the lamp close to me.

Determined this time, she spread her arms across this table and stood on her toes. The side of my lips curled up as her face was only two palms away from me, letting me look at her up close.

I bit my lip when my eyes fell on hers. Hers were dry, asking me to give them some moisture. I was aroused, surprisingly.

'She is no child,' I whispered to myself, leaning forward to greet her with a kiss and mark her mine. But alas, she suddenly drew back with the lamp in her grip and the matches. I frowned and rolled my eyes, a bit frustrated that the fun ended too soon.

I watched her lit the match, each spark gave me enough chances to see her with light. She was already beautiful in this darkness, but she was even more beautiful as soon as the faint light danced on her face.

My eyes glinted. 'I want her,' was the first thing that came into my mind while staring at her.. 'It seems I found myself a wife.'