Even if he'd been so distant and ignorant of
their lives lately, he loved them both dearly, and he smiled
genuinely as he approached them, taking a deep swallow of his
whiskey. The noise of the hundred or more celebrants around him
drowned out their voices until he was very close.
"... now that he's of age," Harrison was
saying.
"I bet you'd love to be king someday," Oliver
Druet commented.
"Do you know who would have to die for me to
become king?" Harrison scoffed. "My uncle and my brothers. I have
no desire to wish anything to happen to any of them. Right,
Roman."
Roman lifted his glass jovially as they all
chuckled. "Of course. Long live the king."
"Yes, well, even if the king is on the upper
side of life, Damien is much too young for either of you to worry
about it," Lady Perrett giggled.
"Neither of you will have to worry about the
weight of the crown on your head. I'm sure Damien will outlive us
all," Edward Perrett toasted with his glass. "Ahh, here comes the
birthday boy now."
Damien was greeted with the usual thumps on
his broad back. He smiled and turned to the servant passing by with
a tray, placing his empty glass on it.
"Happy birthday, your grace," Lady Perrett
smiled at him.
"Thank you, madam."
"So, Damien, what do you think of the debate
over the proposal to change the slave law?"
A slight furrow in his brow appeared. He
didn't want to discuss politics, but it was usually unavoidable.
"Which one would that be?"
"The one that punishes an owner who kills a
slave."
He nodded, "Ahh, yes, well, I don't think
anyone should have the right to kill another human being."
"But what if they aren't able to be useful?"
Roman argued.
"Then they should be freed," Damien
stated.
"You know most slaves can't survive on their
own," Oliver Druet stated. "They rely on their owners to
survive."
"Then they can stay with their owners,"
Damien said thoughtfully.
"So, what, the slave owner has to keep paying
to take care of a slave that is no longer useful?" Roman growled
back. "That's a waste of resources."
Damien watched Harrison and Roman exchange an
odd look.
"I think all slaves are useful, even if they
may not still be strong enough as they grow older. And if a slave
has served his owner well over many years, then the slave deserves
to be taken care of by his owner when he's too old to work."
Harrison smirked and glanced at Roman, who
rolled his eyes at his brother. "You know what? I think it's time I
gave you my birthday present." He turned to Lady Penelope, removing
her hand from his arm and kissing the finger tips gently. "Excuse
me a moment, my lady."
The dark-haired Duke frowned at his brother,
while the young lady blushed profusely. Gifts were gathered in the
parlor and were not usually opened in front of the guests as a
courtesy. He didn't like the guests seeing what others had brought,
as that resulted in competition to see who brought the best
gift.
Roman grinned at his brother's discomfort.
"Oh trust me, brother, this gift is not about expense. In fact,
you'll probably toss it aside."
Harrison glared at Roman. "You don't know
that."
Roman chuckled as he sipped his bourbon.
"We'll see."
Now Damien frowned at both of them, who were
looking extremely amused. "What is it? Some gag gift?"
Roman nearly spit his drink back in his glass
as he burst out laughing. "You could say that."
But Harrison had turned and made his way over
to the huge hybrid who was standing guard at the doorway, quietly
giving him instructions. When the hybrid left, Harrison took up a
glass and spoon and loudly clanged them together. Damien was
frowning at his brother, wondering just what the hell was going
on.
"Our esteemed guests!" Harrison called,
getting the attention of the large crowd. Slowly, the chattering
and gossiping stopped and everyone turned toward the archway. "I
would like to present my brother, His Grace, with a gift on this
wondrous day of his birth twenty-five years ago."
Several people murmured, and the crowd moved
so that there was a small path between Harrison and Damien. The
young count moved into the hallway to the side to retrieve his
gift. Damien could see Geoff Brenner, the guard captain, hovering
at the edge of the archway, carefully scanning the crowd as always
for problems.
When Harrison stepped back through the
archway holding a long chain, there was an audible gasp as they
took note of the tiny young hybrid at the end of the leash.
Damien's eyes widened in shock at the sight
of the thin creature being led toward him.
Oh, fuck,
he
thought. The pale boy kept his eyes on the ground, midnight locks
falling forward, obscuring his face. His black ears twitched in
agitation, and Damien could see the sleek black tail tucked against
the baggy green pants that had obviously been cut shorter, even as
they still pooled around his feet. A linen shirt hung on the narrow
shoulders, with a green silk sash tied at the waist loosely.
The boy never looked up as he was led forward
amidst the murmurs and giggles that had started through the guests.
Damien's eyes narrowed at his smirking blond brother who strode
forward with the little neko. Then he cast a glance at Roman, who
stood to the side with a sly grin, toasting his glass towards
Damien as if to say 'I told you so.'
****
Kayden trembled as he stepped into the
crowded room. He tried to control his breathing and kept his eyes
down to avoid seeing all the people. There were so many, and he
shook just to think what all those people could do. He was led
forward, and when he felt the slight tug on the chain when the
blond stopped, he dropped gracefully to his knees out of habit. He
focused on the shoes of the man in front of him. His nose twitched,
catching the sharp lemon-tobacco scent of the sandy-haired master
called Roman, and his body tensed. But then a new scent, a woodsy
scent, of sandalwood and fresh soap, caught his attention. He
breathed deeply, and for some reason, he felt himself relaxing
slightly.
Until he heard the tightly controlled, deep
voice, barely containing his anger. "Harrison, what is this?"
The blond grinned widely. "It's your birthday
present, of course!"
"It's a
slave
, Harrison," Kayden heard
the voice in front of him clip his words, and Kayden pressed his
clipped claws into his thighs in fear. "What do you expect me to do
with him?"
Oliver chuckled next to him. "Oh, but Damien,
you must have
some
use for him."
"But there's hardly anything to him," Lord
Perrett smirked. "What could he possibly do?"
"Told you, Harry," Roman gloated. "That thing
is useless. Trust me, Damien, it's too weak and skittish to be of
any use to you."
Kayden felt the tears burning in his eyes. He
knew that voice too well and knew that man was eager to be rid of
him. He focused on the scent of sandalwood and the deep rumbling
voice of his new master and tried to keep the tears from falling.
He failed miserably.
****
"Oh, come on, Damien," Harrison goaded, "be a
sport and accept my gift. He could keep you company while you work,
be a companion."
"I don't need company," Damien stared down at
the little creature, noting the slight trembling in the tiny hands.
He noticed the long tail was wrapped tightly around his body. "I'm
just fine alone."
"I bet the little kit doesn't last a week
with you," Lord Perrett chastised, and there were giggles and
murmurs around them at the rebuke. "You don't have the patience.
He'll drive you crazy."
"Oh, I don't know," Harrison grinned, "I
think Kayden would grow on him."
"Kayden, huh?" Damien raised his brow.
"I know," Roman said suddenly, raising his
glass, "A bet."
"A bet?" Harrison queried, and Damien
narrowed his eyes at his brother.
"Yes, I bet Damien here tires of the little
tiger before the month is out," Roman announced.
The men gathered in the hall buzzed with
excitement and started making their own wagers amongst
themselves.
"A month," Harrison agreed. "Damien, you make
it a month, and we both owe you a thousand pounds," he paused as
the voices rose at the high stakes, "otherwise, you owe both of us
a thousand pounds each."
A couple thousand pounds wasn't much to
Damien, but his pride was worth more. He wasn't about to show that
he couldn't do something as simple as keep a little neko locked up
in his room for a month.
"Fine," Damien growled.
"But," Harrison grinned after his brother had
agreed to the bet, "You actually have to keep him
with
you."
Roman smiled deviously. "You may want to lock
him up and keep hold of that leash."
Damien's eyes widened at the thought of
locking up a slave permanently. They never had to chain slaves to
keep them from running away because they just didn't want to leave.
Damien had always run a fair and consistent household. "He's tried
to escape?"
Harrison burst out laughing. "Not so much
escape, as just
running
."
"And keep him away from trees," Roman smirked
again, knowing it was going to be amusing to watch his brother deal
with the little creature.
Oliver Druet laughed at the look on his
friend's face as he studied the little neko. "Well, he looks pretty
quiet. I think it'll be good for you to have him around."
"Don't worry, he doesn't talk," Roman added.
"But, he has run and attacked, so be careful."
"It was an
accident
," Harrison tried
to placate again.
Damien's brow raised in shock. The little
thing didn't look like it could cause any trouble at all. "He
has?"
"Yes," Roman growled, "If he misbehaves or
hurts you in any way, just let me know. I will make sure he's taken
care of."
Damien noticed the flattening of the ears of
the tiny creature in front of him.
"He'll be fine, Damien. He's just nervous.
I've taken the liberty of having the old study next to your room
prepared for him to sleep in," Harrison announced gleefully, now
that his gift had been accepted, however grudgingly. He handed the
leash over to his brother.
Damien's eyes widened when he realized he
hadn't thought about where the boy would sleep when he agreed and
was glad that Harrison had thought of it. It was unusual for his
brother to be the one to think that far ahead. "That was very
thoughtful of you."
Oliver Druet laughed as he clapped his friend
on the back. "Good luck, my friend. I'm betting on you to win."
Damien grunted. "I think maybe I should
let...what was his name, again?"
"Kayden."
"...Kayden here settle down in his room.
Drystan," he called over a servant, "take Kayden to his room. It's
apparently the old study next to mine."
"Yes, sir, I know," the young man's eyes
gleamed mischievously, and Damien knew that he'd been in on the
preparations. He glared at his man-servant for being in on the
whole thing.
"But, Damien," Roman protested, "You have to
keep him with you."
He glared at his younger brother as he
watched the young neko rise to his feet shakily. "I think tonight
might be a little overwhelming for him with so many people here. I
think it would be best to begin this little foray tomorrow, when we
can all be a little more settled."
"Very well," the Marquis agreed.
Damien turned to his little charge as the boy
rose fully to its bare feet. The top of the little thing's head
barely reached his chest. He grabbed the arm of the boy to lead him
toward Drystan and was shocked at how thin it was. The boy's head
shot up at the abrupt movement, flinching, and Damien saw the young
neko's face for the first time.
Thick lashes framed eyes that were impossibly
large and green. The gaunt cheeks hollowed out to a narrow chin and
thin pink lips. What struck Damien's heart, though, were the trails
of tears glistening on the pale face, before the head dropped again
and silky black locks hid his face again.
Fuck
, he cursed under his breath. He
couldn't deal with this now, and he briefly wondered what he'd
gotten himself into. He let go of the boy's arm and gripped his
neck to guide him towards Drystan.
He felt his hand nearly wrap all the way
around the thin tendons, but he kept his grip light and guiding. He
squeezed lightly, reassuringly as he handed the leash over to his
servant. He briefly felt the shoulders under his hand relax before
he let go.
He turned quickly away, forcing a grin as he
turned to his friends. "Well, shall we indulge in the delicious
cake that Garin has made?" he asked jovially, suddenly weary and
ready to be done with the party.
****
When Damien finally made his way to his room,
it was well past two in the morning. He'd drunk much more than he
usually did after Harrison's spectacular presentation. With a
glance at the closed door to the small study, now bedroom, he
grunted as he ripped off his tie. Stripping out of his shirt and
pants, he made his way to his washroom to relieve himself and wipe
a cool rag over his face. After brushing his teeth, he stripped
back the sheets and thick comforter on the bed and fell in.
He knew the boy was probably sound asleep,
and he could deal with him in the morning. Right now, all he wanted
to do was collapse in the bed and forget for now that his brother
hadn't just added one more stressor to his plate by gifting him
with a slave he didn't want or need.
The knock on his door startled him from
sleep. Damien squinted at the sun shining through the drapes,
surprised by how late in the morning it was. He groaned as his head
pounded from the movement of sitting up.