Rafael's lips twitched when he saw smoke rising from the house Bella was in. The woman had burnt the whole house!
Who was this brave and stupid woman?
"Oh dear lord! Is she not afraid that the burning roof would fall on her slim frame?" His aide drew his attention to a crucial point when Rafael's eyes narrowed. They were sitting on the branch of a tree near the house.
The roof had started to burn and fall down where the girl was! His eyes flickered but then he shook his head.
"You went last night to offer her help and she rejected. And then, it was not an accidental fire, she had burnt the house herself." Rafael announced when his aide sighed.
"If that is the case, why are we here my lord? Lady Scarlet would be furious to not find you. We have meetings to attend and decisions to give. The position of lord did not offer a vacation." his voice was full of exhaustion.
He would rather sit with his wife in their house if he was going to take a leave from their work. Rather than sitting on a branch of a tree in a slum area where crimes are more prevalent than the breaths of humans, watch a witch struggle.
"And if they knew you were taking care of a witch.." he paused when Rafael finally turned to look at him.
His broad muscles flex, giving threat to anyone closer. His deep red eyes are full of dangers and mysteries that no one could solve. Many thought that he was reckless, carefree, he had learnt nothing from the death of his family. But his aide, Valen knew better. He had served Rafael all his life and knew.. Though his actions look random and useless. There was a pattern in his action and they all smelled danger.
"You think she is a witch too right?" Rafael whispered with a crooked grin, "I checked her on the dial but it broke the moment she touched it." the dial, it was an instrument used to measure the mana of the witches.
A captured witch had made it for them. They were skeptical at first but it came handy while finding other witches.
"Maybe that thing was old now." Valen whispered with a sigh. "The girl had green eyes and as much as i want her to be a witch so that we can deal with her and be done with. I have never seen a witch abstaining from using her magic that much and.." he hesitated when Rafael's eyes grew darker.
"And?" he titled his head probing Valen to sigh and shake his head.
"She did not have a change in emotions when she saw me in the room as if vampires and humans are one to her." which was strange. Even humans do not treat vampires and witches alike.
Yet, the girl did not care if he was a vampire or not. As long as he was a stranger, she would fight him. Rafael nodded, the girl was bold, brave but naive. As if she had seen nothing in this world.
"Why do you want her, my lord? We could have any witch, any human. We could have anyone that keeps you amused." Rafael chuckled! Amused? Was that how his actions came about?
"But she is beautiful and brave and a fool but a brave fool. I have never seen a girl putting up a fight by burning the house she was trapped in." as if on cue, the building fell apart gaining a crowd but when it fell there was no one there.
Rafael's eyes fell on a figure running on the opposite side. She was wearing a blanket to cover her body and though they were far away, he was sure the blanket was all wet. His crooked grin grew deeper and he laughed with joy.
"My lord.." Valen shifted at his place when Rafael finally looked at him.
"You can go home, Valen. I am offering you two days leave. Go and take your wife out." The man was embarrassed that his thoughts were read. But the hesitation only lasted for a moment.
He bowed his head and jumped away, vanishing into the air when Rafael stood up and smiled. The branch bending with his weight until he jumped and vanished too.
Bella's breath came in installments as she ran hard. She had hidden herself in the corner behind the wall, not the door. So when the house started to fall apart they came looking for her toward the door. She had run behind.
And she was far away when they looked for her. But that vampire. He would be faster. She didn't know whether she wanted to get caught or run away. But one thing she was sure about.. She was being chased by that vampire.
It must be a game for him. A thrill that he was getting at her expanse. But she would soon return the favor.
She only paused when she reached crossroads. Crossing them, she would be free from the grip of that foolish human.
She paused in front of a small broken cart selling cheap berries.
"Where did this road lead to?" she asked, making the boy tilt his head and look at the strange woman. Where had she come from to not know the meaning of blood marks?
He looked away when she blinked at him innocently and cleared his throat.
"That red boundary is a warning. The land of vampires starts from here. I would have avoided that place at all cost if I had been you?" his warning fell to deaf ears. Bella stared at the marks with her lips slowly curling upward.
"Do humans not live in the land of vampires?" she asked, making the boy frown.
"Of course, they do. I have even heard from those maids that they pay well. But they take your blood in exchange." he grimaced at the thought, "wouldn't selling berries be better than those riches?"