the
light. Lots of sunblock and sunglasses take care of that problem. I must say,
the hardest thing about meeting you yesterday at sea was not the sun. It was
waking up early enough to get out there. That's the first time I've been out
before the sun went down in centuries."
Elizabeth
was quiet. He knew what she was up to. She was trying to find ways to kill him.
But he wasn't foolish enough to give her a way to do that.
"How
am I here," she asked him darkly. "Did Mark Taylor sell out to you?
The captain of the boat too?"
"Yes.
In fact, Mark sold out very quickly. You have a lot of money to buy people
with. I have more." Aaron gave her a cocky grin. "Once I had paid him
off, it was all very simple. He hired a morally bankrupt captain who loves
money to take you out to sea where I could abduct you. I'm sure Mark and the
captain of The Argosy are enjoying their retirement right about now."
"How
did you get all my stuff here? The movers were all in on it as well?"
"Oh
no! Not at all. They were only work horses. Mark had them load up all of your
stuff onto another boat--as planned. He had already given their captain the
location for my island, and then that captain and the movers all came here and
unloaded your things before we arrived. I instructed Mark to tell the movers
not to kill themselves trying to move in your things. They could set the place
up however they liked. Besides, I already had the most important item set up:
that nice king size bed all ready for us."
"Why
did you bring me here," she asked spitefully.
"Because
I wanted you. It was that simple. I've wanted you ever since I moved to
Temecula. And I take what I want."
"Well,
you've already had me. So when are you going to let me go?"
"When
I'm done with you," he said imperiously.
"And
when is that going to be?"
He
shrugged. "Maybe tomorrow. Maybe in a week. Maybe in a year. Who knows?
But take comfort in the fact that I will eventually grow bored. And then I'll
let you go." He cruelly smirked and said, "But it won't be tonight.
The only thing I'm bored with now is eating."
He
got up and moved slowly towards her. Elizabeth looked down at her soup bowl
wishing they could just go back to eating. Aaron pushed back her seat, grabbed
her around her shoulders and made her stand up.
"I
like that outfit you're wearing. It's great for hiking. But we're not going
hiking. You'll have to take those clothes off for what we'll be doing tonight.
And tomorrow, I want you to wear one of those lovely dresses you brought with
you. No more hiking clothes when we're together."
"I
will never wear a dress for you."
"Fine.
You can always wear nothing. That works even better."
He
violently scooped her close to him. She had the wind knocked out of her as he
clutched her to him with too much force. He kissed her and when she screamed he
bit down hard on her tongue, turning her scream into a whimper. She felt his tongue
lick the blood inside her mouth. Then he lifted her up and carried her to the
bedroom. She cursed him the whole way and then he slammed the door behind them.
Chapter
10: The Next Month
Elizabeth
was sipping her tea one evening and reading a new magazine. It was always a
treat when one or more of the other vampires went off the island to get
supplies and other things (such as magazines). Aaron had told her that one of
the other vampires had a working boat on the other side of the island. He said
it like it was a dare. She heard the taunt in his voice and the challenge (Go
ahead and try to steal that boat!). But he knew she wouldn't dare, and
Elizabeth hated him all the more because he knew her fear and exploited it. Her
encounter with Joe Newman's fangs and his red eyes had been enough to keep her
on Aaron's turf.
Elizabeth
tried her hardest not to think of Aaron's cruelty and focused as hard as she
could on her magazine. She had to. It was the only way she was able to receive
news about the outside world. The
vampires would often come back with