"Yes, Master." Marion responded as she took her time walking over to the pair. Her every step was made with grace and elegance.
"Scarlett has been busy taking a stroll in the garden when she should have been on cooking duty today. As her punishment, she will serve under me until the next full moon and follow my every order. Maybe then, she will learn how important her duties are to the manor." Demetri demanded.
"Don't you think that is a little unprecedented, Demetrius? I will not allow it." Marion spoke with disbelief in her voice. She knew the man can be strange at handling his affairs at times, but even she did not foresee this coming.
"Scarlett came to me to confess her wrong doings. She is prepared to take responsibility for her negligence. There will be no arguments on this topic. I am not asking for your permission to punish. I am informing you now as to refrain you from borrowing my servant until the next full moon." Demetri said, flashing his pearly white teeth at Marion. "Oh, right. I do not wish to be disturbed until dinner time." The man continued to say, as he made his way towards the petite girl who quietly stood there while he made his final judgment of her punishment.
Stopping in front of the petite girl, the man leaned down bringing his face closer to Scarlett's. The girl unknowingly inhaled a deep breath as the man closed the distance between them. "You, are coming with me, my sweet plum." The man said with a mischievous smirk. His face was so close to hers, that she could almost taste his breath as he spoke. The man then turned on his heels, slowly making his way towards the stairs. Scarlett let out the breath she was holding in relief.
"Hurry up, pretty. I am not a patient man." The man said without turning back to look at her as he continued walking towards the stairs. This caused the woman to scurry along and follow the man. At least her head will be intact for now. She would be willing to clean the dirtiest of crevices in the mansion in exchange for her life.
Following the man, Scarlett realized that they were headed to the west wing where the master resides. The man opened the door to his bedroom then turned to look at the woman who was making her way towards him. Tilting his head toward the room as if he were signaling her to go in first. Swallowing hard, the woman nervously entered his room as directed.
Once they were inside the room, Scarlett watched the man lock the doors then pointed to the navy-colored couch in his room which was placed facing his bed.
"Sit there." The man said sternly.
"What will you have me do?" The girl inquired nervously as she unconsciously bit her lower lips.
With slow steps the man made his way towards his bed. Sitting on the edge of his bed, the man made sure to take his sweet time. He sat and thought for a short while before a cunning smile graced his lips.
"Watch me." The man said with a teasing smile.
Scarlett's eyes widened in surprise and confusion, unable to utter a word. Watch him? Watch him do what, the girl thought. Her doe-like eyes blinking several times, as if doing this would help her better understand his words. But of course, it was of no use.
Looking at the girl's speechless reaction, the man let out a small chuckle. He returned to his bed, where he laid down on his back with an amused smile. The man had one arm propped behind his head and peacefully shut his eyes.
Although the girl was confused, Scarlett proceeded to follow the man's instructions and sat on the couch as he had requested. She realized that every inch of the wall facing his bed was a mirror. She did not notice this last night when the man had attacked her, but now that she saw it there, she was curious as to why he would need such a large mirror.
Scarlett sat on the couch quietly, not daring to make a move, as she feared doing so would wake the man and cause him anger. After sitting unmovingly for a while, the girl could finally breathe a sigh of relief as she heard the man's soft and steady breathing. The man had fallen into a deep sleep. Seeing this caused the girl to scratch her head in confusion. He is going to sleep? He wanted me to watch him sleep? And as she sat there patiently for several minutes, Scarlett's mind drifted back to the scene she saw last night.
Last night when she met the man, he had a large and deep cut across his abdomen. She saw the cut clearly. There certainly was no way he could suddenly heal overnight. He even had the strength to grab her by the arm and swing her back onto her bed this morning.
Thinking back to the conversation she had overheard, she tried her best to reassess the situation. It was not that she had never heard of the underworld and night creatures before. When she lived in Blue Moon Village, she had heard many stories about the creatures that took human form but were not truly human. Was it really true that this man was not a human? Her curiosity was killing her. She had to confirm it for herself.
The girl made light and steady steps toward the man. Looking at the man's shirt which was no longer tucked into his trousers, her confidence grew as the man was asleep. There was no way anyone would find out as long as she kept quiet about it, right? With that thought in mind, the girl carefully began to unbutton the last few buttons of the man's shirt.
Seeing the man's beautifully sculpted abdomen, Scarlett's heart began to race, pounding uncontrollably in her chest. There were no scars. Nothing. Not a single sign that a cut was ever made. Slowly, the girl began to rebutton the man's shirt as she thought to herself. Did she see it incorrectly last night? Or was he truly a demon?
"Enjoying what you see?"
With shaking hands, Scarlett lifted her head up towards Demetri. His eyes bore into hers as he looked at her intently as if he was ready to gobble her up.
"Are you sure you don't want to take a longer look?" He said with a smug look on his face.
"I-I," The girl's mind went blank. No words of response could be formed. She bit her lips in nervousness as a tint of pink emerged on her cheeks, embarrassed that she was caught red handed.
"I gave you a chance to look earlier, pretty. And you chose not to. Now that I am sleeping, you are eager to take a look. I did not know you were like this." Demetri said with an amused look on his face as he raised himself from his bed, causing the girl to take a few steps back. "I could also take off my trousers if you would like me to." Demetri continued to say, teasingly. He walked toward Scarlett, attempting to close the distance between the two.
And as he walked closer to her, she continued to take steps back. That was until she felt her back hitting against something cold and hard. The man had her pinned against the wall, both his arms trapping her in. The girl shook her head with a pleading look but seeing that the man was unaffected by her plea, she ducked down and tried to run through the man's arms. However, he was quick to catch her.
Demetri lifted the woman up in his arms and walked towards his bed, lightly dropping the woman on his soft bed. Scarlett again attempted to get off the bed and run out the door. However, the moment she got off the bed, the man sat her right back down.
"Stay still!" Demetri growled impatiently. Resting her back against the bedpost, and propping both her legs on the bed, he sat at the foot of the bed. Grabbing Scarlett's foot, he carefully removed her shoes. Both her feet had large blisters on them and the skin on her ankle had been rubbed raw.
"How did you know?" Scarlett questioned with surprise. Her secret had been exposed.
"Because I am a demon." He replied in a teasing tone.
"I am serious." Scarlett answered with a small pout. She could not take his answer seriously, even if it were true that he is a demon.
"I saw you were uncomfortable when you walked up the stairs, and I can smell your blood." The man said as a soft knock on the door could be heard. Demetri got up from the bed and made his way towards the door.
"Thanks Marion." Scarlett could hear Demetri say as he closed the door and made his way back to the bed with a small basin of water and what looked like ointment.
Demetri sat back down on the bed, ringing out the warm water from the towel that was inside the water bin. Carefully, he pressed the warm towel against Scarlett's blisters and raw skin. He continued to do this multiple times before the wound was all cleaned. He then applied the ointment onto her raw skin.