Twenty

Silla had never seen a wild animal before, besides a bird that is, which made her a bit worried and scared. Her eyes kept darting at every single sound that she came to her. She could only hope that she was covering a decent amount of distance and she would reach civilization.

Finally, like a ray of sunshine, she heard an engine, and she prayed that it was someone who didn't belong to the tower. Not all rays were the happy ones, and with that thought, she came to stand in the path so that the driver would be able to see her and stop. Raising her hands, she waved them. The holocraft at first didn't stop, and therefore she had to use her mouth to alert him,

"Stop! Stop Please!"she cried to gain the drivers attention. The craft did stop, looking at the lady, "Lady what are you doing here in the middle of the forest?" asked the driver.

Whoever was sitting inside the vehicle must have asked who the driver was talking to as the driver turned his head to say,

"There's a lady who is standing here. Seems like she's lost."

Silla quickly went to the window, and she saw it was a man who was inside who appeared to be in his forties.

"I am looking to get to the closest train station. Could you please give me a ride there?" she asked him, her eyebrows drawn together. The man looked at her, looking at her attire and then her face, "How do we know you aren't playing a con, trying to get into the holocraft and kill us?" he asked. His question surprised her, and for a second. she blinked at him.

"What?"

"I said how do we know you are not some stranded woman?" he asked her. When he moved his lips, the moustache on his lips moved along with his thin mouth.

Silla closed her eyes. She was tired and exhausted but going back was her priority, "I was riding in a hover craft, but they didn't give me a full ride. They had me step down after a few minutes." she spoke the truth, hoping he would listen to her, "Please. All I ask is for a ride," she pleaded. The man leaned forward, and he opened the door.

"Just a ride," he said, and she gave him a look of relief.

"Thank you," she bowed her head, but the man didn't say anything.

Silla felt better now that she was in the vehicle. With her hands folded together on her lap, she sat there quietly without a word. She could feel the man's gaze on her, but she didn't look at him straight. She bared the atmosphere in the craft which was turning hostile even without any exchange of words, but the man then spoke,

"I am Lyre Gibbethon," he

introduced himself, giving his hand and Silla had to oblige by giving her hand to him.

"Silla." she felt him kiss the back of her hand, and the little action made her skin crawl. Now that she thought about it, she realised how when Phanes had kissed her hand she had never felt disgusted by it just annoyed when they had first met.

"No last name?" asked Lyre and Silla shook her head. She didn't want to build an acquaintance here when all she wanted was to finish her ride as soon as she could.

"No." She shook her head,

"Do you know what time it is now?" she asked him curiously.

The man pulled out his watch that was made out of gold. He said, "It is well into the night," compared to the previous questioning gaze, the man was being friendly. She had to jerk her hand away from his hold, and she offered him a small smile, "Thank you." Returning her hand on her lap, she heard the man say, "You seem to look rich. Was it your family who kicked you out of the craft? Families can be impudent at times, " the man tried to console her.

Silla wondered if it was good to lie as she didn't know this man. Not to forget he was trying to get close to her by being familiar. She said nothing but gave him a half-smile before the smile fell from her lips. With the carriage that had started, she could only hope the station would come into view, and she would get down, to never see this man ever again.

"You look quite rich yourself? Where are you from?" The girl asked trying to get the attention of of herself, which seemed to work

"Ah yes, the upper ring- You see I was curious about the new building and transport hub. Though really I wanted to see how the commoner lived and I was not impressed. So dirty." She had to stop herself from making a face out of pure disgust.

"Where do you live, Lady Silla? I can drop you to your home instead of having you drop in the middle," offered the man, a smile upon his lips now that made him look like a sleazy man and she knew she shouldn't be thinking about it. Still, with him continuously looking at her it was making it difficult to sit ignoring it.

"I am here to return home and visit a friend of mine." A half truth, she still need to go home and somehow find Jyn, hopefully Raizel was safe with him because she still wouldn't see them for awhile.

At this time of night? Now? Asked the man to himself when he heard she wanted to visit a friend. He could tell that she was lying else why would someone be stranded at this side of the lower ring at this hour of the day. He moved closer to her, sliding on the seat to sit in front of her and Silla had to sit back with her back touching the seat.

The man smiled at her, one tooth of his at the side was made of gold, "I offered you a ride, shouldn't you give me something in return?" he asked her, placing his hand on her knee which she swatted away quickly.

"What do you think you are doing?!" asked Silla. Her words were careful while keeping her eyes on him.

"Getting favours of course," he said and the man placed his hand on her knee again, this time gripping it, "Don't act so poise-"

"Let go of my leg! Stop the vehicle!" she shouted.

"Now now. Be good-" and without needing to be told, the driver stopped the craft from going any further, "Why did you stop here you idiot?" asked the man, "Women shout all the time. Doesn't mean you stop because of it. Start the vehicle!" he ordered the driver.

"Sir, we have another hover craft stopped in front of ours. They aren't moving." the driver answered. To get away from this man who was trying to get his hand on her, Silla's hand reached for the door, and she quickly stepped out of the vehicle. The man followed her suit, and she walked only until she noticed the other long black holocraft that stood in the middle of the road. The black craft was parked in a way to cross the road, stopping anyone from passing through.

The black hover-craft's door flew open, and the light-haired man with green eyes stepped out. His entire demeanor made Silla stagger back and her breath shuddered by the sight of him.

She had not expected him to find her. Not now at least. She thought he would be searching for her with the guards.

H-he had found her.

Silla's face turned pale by looking at Phanes who had stepped down from the vehicle, and his eyes then swept from the craft that was in front of him to look at her. At that moment she realized she was in far worse trouble than she had ever been. Phanes face barely showed any emotion, he walked towards her, each step of his making her nervous, and she wished she could run, but she was rooted to the spot, his eyes making it difficult for her to move an inch. The man who had given her a ride had not seen the man approaching them because of the lack of light, but she had seen him, which was why she was quiet. All she could focus on were his shiny black leather shoes, that seemed to come closer and closer.

"What do you think you are doing by blocking our ride?" the man demanded with a rude tone, "Get your damn craft out of the path. Come on, out with it! Do you think this road is yours to block it?" Silla heard the man continue to ramble, not knowing who was here.

Phanes reached her, coming to stand in front of her and he looked at her. Silla didn't meet his eyes as she was shocked. With Phanes who was yet to speak to her, Silla felt goosebumps forming on her skin which wasn't because of the cold. The man behind her wanted to get his hands on her, and the person in

front of her wanted to cage her back in the tower.

She froze, her eyes popping out of her head and slowly cranked her neck, looking up.

There standing, looking down at her with a very scary look, was Phanes.

She gulped.

Her body started to tremble a bit, her mind screaming at her to run, thinking that he might want to kill her but as much as she wanted to listen to herself, her legs seemed to disobey, keeping her rooted to the spot, completely vulnerable to the incoming danger. His deep green irises slightly darkened and with another single step, he was already right in front of her, his hot breath fanning her face.

Heart wildly thumping inside her chest as his burning gaze kept digging deep inside her trying to find something. He then slowly, hesitatingly brought his big hands towards her cheek and in one gentle motion, he glided the back of his fingers over her skin, leaving a warm trail behind.

"Come, Silla. Sit back inside the vehicle," said Lyre. She wondered why she didn't notice before that the man had an accent.

Phanes lips twitched, and he continued to stare hard at her, "V'ho is z'e man?" his voice was low and deep. She gulped.

"I don't know."Silla's voice was small. The thought of being caught by him was ringing in her mind continuously that made thinking difficult. She felt Phanes' glaring eyes at her, and she tried to hold her ground.

His face had been shadowed with no light on it and Lyre not liking his treat of touching a young woman had been interrupted, he came forward. placing his hand on Silla's shoulder,"Come, dear. Let's get you back inside."

Phanes' eyes snapped at the man before he pulled the man's hand towards him to twist and push him against the surface of the hover craft. Silla took a couple of steps away from the men as Phanes pushed the man further into the craft. From where she stood, she could feel the vapours of rage coming off from Phanes.

"What are you doing?!" Lyre

demanded, who was yet to figure out who he was talking to.

"How dare you touch her," Phanes lowly threatened the man. His eyes had turned hollow in anger, and he threw the man across the ground.

The aristocrats green eyes then snapped at Silla, "V'hy is he talking to you familiarly?" he asked her, one of his eyebrows raising in question. Silla shook her head. At the same time, the light from the craft finally fell on Phanes face to let the man who was trying to get up, notice who was standing in front of him.

Lyre's eyes widened that the person he was talking to was none other than a Kaiserriech, "Your excellency," the man quickly bowed his head, such that his forehead touched the dirty ground while he offered his peace, "Please forgive this fool as I failed

to notice you."

Phanes looked down at the man, his eyes smouldering, and he said, "V'ere you z'e one v'ho tried to steal her away from me?"

The man's forehead was still stuck to the ground when he opened his eves and blinked at what the green eyed man just said. Confused slightly, he raised his head with both his knees touching the ground, "What?" he raised his hands to wave them, "No no! She said she wanted a ride. and I complied to her wishes," said Lyre quickly. His eyes moved from the Kaiserriech to the girl who stood behind him and then back at Phanes.

"I didn't know her, she said she was going to her friend's house," blabbered the man when he didn't receive any words from Phanes.

"Chauncey," called Phanes and the man appeared, "Take Silla inside z'e craft."

"Lady," Chauncey bowed his head, and Silla clenched her fist, not happy that she had to sit back in the vehicle where she would be taken back to the place she had thought she was free from.

Phanes wasn't looking at her but at the man who had raised his head, fear slowly crawling towards him which could now be seen in his eyes. Silla turned her head, and with difficult steps, she stepped inside the craft. Her hands were shivering from the oncoming storm that was going to hit her life far worse than before, and she was scared about what was going to happen. Lyre begged, "Please forgive me for my impudence, your excellency!"

Phanes gave him a nod before saying, "Stand up." Hearing this, the man let out a sigh of relief, and he stood up, dusting his knees that came to stick to his trousers.

"Thank you, my Lord. You're the most forgiving and generous one," praised the man, trying to flatter him.

"Are you speaking about me? Doesn't look like any of z'e qualities z'at belong

to me."

Lyre blinked again, the smile on his lips faltering when he saw the serious look on Phanes face and his eyes that looked annoyed. The man gulped, and his eyes widened. He tried to step away, but when he did try, Phanes had caught hold

of his shoulder. Bringing him forward, he placed another hand of his on the top of the man's head.

"Forgiving is z'e last thing you should associate me v'ith." he snarled. Putting force on the man's head, he tore the man's head off his shoulder before throwing it on the ground where the blood started to spread.

Phanes returned to the carriage after a few minutes later, taking the seat right next to her. Silla wished there was another door to get out from the craft,

but there wasn't one. Her lips trembled; therefore, she didn't open them. Too stunned to say anything and react, she sat quietly as she felt his overbearing presence in this closed space. She waited for Chauncey to join them

inside, but when the door of the vehicle was closed. she felt her heart almost slip out of her chest.

Internally she was a mess, and she couldn't think straight. By

the screams that she heard from outside, it was evident that Phanes had finished the man off who had given her the ride. The engine started and they began to head back to the tower, the same place she had tried to get away.

He didn't speak to her, not a word and Silla wasn't sure if it was a good or a bad thing. She was scared of what he was going to say or do. She didn't dare to look at him nor utter a word. Silla's eyes moved to the side, trying to look from the corner of her eyes to see what he was doing. Phanes sat with his leg cross one over the other. His eyes turned to look outside the window as if they were going back to the tower after a regular trip.

She knew this was the calm

before the storm.

Looking out of the window just as he was, she was shocked to see a familiar sight. Although they were moving fast she could still clearly see what it was. On its side was the same brown hover craft, that she had originally ridden in order to leave the grounds with the rude rich woman and maid. It was on its side as if it had been thrown off the road and crashed, with scratched and dents all over it. All the windows seemed to be broken too.

But what made chills run down her spine was the giant wolves thar seemed to surround it, expensive fabric from the dress the aristocratic woman wore was torn to shreds with only a large amount blood left on the craft and ground. The bejeweled necklaces and jewels she had worn scattered in blood. The bodies were no where to be seen and a part of her didn't want to know where they were, but she had an inclination when she saw one of the large wolf like dogs chewing on what seemed to be a large femur bone.

It honestly looked like a massacre of some sort had taken place.

When the hover craft stopped back at the tower, the driver opened the door for Phanes to step down. He looked ahead of him before turning around, offering his hand for Silla to take.

She would have told him she was fine to step out without his help, but she could feel the guilt of being caught. No matter how much she wanted to stop trembling, her hand couldn't stop it, and

she placed it in his hand for him to clasp. And the grip was tight that made her flinch before he loosened his hold on her hand without letting it go as he pulled her inside the tower. He continued to drag her without letting go of her hand, passing through the halls and corridors before he came to his room.

Pushing the doors, he locked the door and pushed her on his bed. Phanes moved towards her like a feline, and before she could move, he had moved himself to hover above her. His green eyes glared down at her, "You have z'e nerve to give me z'e slip v'hen I

v'arned you not to run away and look v'here v'e are now," he moved his hand forward to have her lean back against the surface of the bed.

Silla supported herself with her two hands, her eyes

staring back at him, "Did you z'ink you could run away, and I v'ouldn't find you?"

"You lied to me and gave me an impossible task, did you seriously think that I would just lie down and take it? Just because I behaved for a few days doesn't mean I will bend to your will that easily." said Silla, "You never had any intention to let me go-"

She had to stop talking when he brought his face close to hers, almost feeling his lips which were an inch away from her, "Makes me z'ink you have not been listening to me, my sweet girl. V'hy v'ould I let you go v'hen I have just found you."

"Why did you lie to me then?" she asked angrily, pushing him away but Phanes didn't budge. Using both her hands she tried to get away from him but he caught her hands in his. He pushed them behind her back to hold them single-handedly, and it would be a lie to say that he didn't enjoy the state she was in.

Her eyes mellowed, and she said, "Why did you give me hope if you were only going to take it away from me? Why would you do that?"

"You should have known better z'at I v'ouldn't let you go. V'e could have negotiated if you had returned to z'e tower but look v'hat you did," he tsked at her, "Now I v'ill have to punish you for v'hat you just did. I told you not to run, and you did just z'at."

"No." Silla whispered, "If you hadn't kidnapped me-"

"What?" asked Phanes. The man invaded her space, not caring as he looked at her. His eyes piercing her.

"Tell me something, Silla," Phanes murmurs next to her ear. "Do I treat you better z'an your daddy did?" Her breaths come out shaky as she held back a tear. He knew.

"Hmm?" Her fists clench and unclench around her knees. Slowly and quite unexpectedly,

his eyes grew darker. He trailed his deep green eyes over her, from her loose hair, to her facial features. She held her  breath because of how deep set his eyes had become. She was the only thing he was focusing on in that moment.

"Am I not gentler?"More reasonable?" Suddenly, before she could react, he reached forward and his icy fingers grazed her cheek. One never truly experienced fear until they had become catatonic from the sheer amount of it. Silla was almost certain that her heart had stopped beating. His calloused fingers felt like fire against her skin. Silla's subconscious made her feel like his fingers scraped across her skin like a match. Trying to burn her down. With one swift motion, he brushed her hair away from her cheek.

"N-N-,"she whimpers cut off.

"You thought I didn't know? Z'ose marks on your neck, z'e v'ay your father looked at me seeing how much he could sell you for? He was obviously abusing you, v'hile your family stood by and did nothing."

"Ha..."

"It's. Not. Kidnapping. V'hen. I. Bought. You."

"It's still against my will though isn't it?" She rebutted.

"Your stupid family thought I took you in as a slave, do you z'ink so too?" Phanes tested her, to see if she truly knew and could no longer deny what he planned to do.

"No, If I was just a slave, I wouldn't be treated this well. It's obvious you want something other than labor from me. And the only other thing men desire from a woman is their body. A mistress or something less perhaps is what you have in store for me, maybe something even lesser." Silla pressed almost talking to herself as her mind went on.

"You want someone to satisfy you."

"...Although it would be much easier and cheaper to simply go to women who already sell themselves, it confuses me as to why you went through this much trouble simply for a prole. Unless you have certain... Fetishes." To this his eyes seemed to glow even brighter, probably from rage.

"My dear, I thought you v'ere smarter z'an z'is," he sighed into his hand. He just kept those eyes on her. Eyes that held things no human ever should. "You're right to feel that way. It's normal considering your circumstances."

"To be fair... You are somev'hat close,  however, I desire so much more from you." She shivered from his words.

"YOU are lucky to be mine as I am to have you. I treat you gently."

"This is not gentle," she gulped when his face came close to her face again, his full lips a breath away from hers.

"This is gentle in my terms and this worlds. Do you v'ant me to show z'e other side," at his words, her heart started to race in her chest. His lips then moved to her cheek, "Shall I?" he asked her, his breath falling on her skin that raised goosebumps. Silla had closed her eyes, feeling every little movement of his. The soft lips on cheek.

His lips didn't touch her lips, but that didn't mean his breath didn't evoke the helplessness

she felt under him, "No," Silla spoke.

"You should have thought about it before deciding to step out of z'e tower," his nose drew in the scent of flowers on her which he had smelled the first time he had her in his arms during the time of the ball.

"You should have known better z'an to run away from me. Do you know how furious I v'as v'hen I didn't find you in z'e maze? Provoking me v'hen you have been v'arned more z'an two times."

"I am being patient v'ith you. V'aiting for you, yet you do things z'at v'ill make me upset," his lips had moved down to her throat, every word of his reverberating against her skin, "As much as I loved z'e chase to having you back by my side, it is time for you to be punished so that v'e don't have any repetition of v'hat occurred today."

With her hands held behind her back. Silla struggled to get away from him but that only amused him further,"I want to go back to my room," she said to him, her breath of words falling not too far away from him and the grip on her tightened but not too tight to bruise her skin.

Somewhere Phanes knew it would come to this but who knew she would find the opportunity to run away from the tower, moving past the guards and making it halfway away from this place.

After awhile, she had stopped moving to realize that there was no point in her struggling. Silla could feel his breath. It tickled and tried to entice her. "So stubborn." he whispered to her.

Phanes natural white blonde hair which was combed back fell on his face now- creating a shadow which she noticed when he pulled away from her face to look at her. Maybe if Silla was not intent on defying and trying to get away from him, she would have noticed why there were rumours about the Kaiserriech being an angel's reincarnation when it came to looks. It was told that when a woman would cross path with an angel, she would fall on his feet because of the way he looked and the words he could spin in his web.

His mouth parted and his jaw moved, his tongue playing with the fangs that grew and Silla's eyes widened. His canines on his upper and lower jaw elongated.

He moved forward, his fangs lightly scraping the surface of her neck and Silla had to make sure she didn't move at the fear of those fangs sinking into her skin.

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to be continued...