A Shade Of Vampire 4: A Shadow Of Light(27)

I stared up at him and decided to ignore him. I didn’t trust men and he was no exception. I slipped one hand into a hidden pocket in my dress where I always kept a dagger. I was willing to use it on him if I had to.

After a prolonged silence, he just narrowed his eyes at me and said, “So you’re not going to give me your name, huh? That’s fine. Are you off to town? That’s where I’m headed too. Mind if I walk with you?”

I remained silent, unwilling to have even the slightest small talk with a complete stranger. I couldn’t deny, however, how attractive I found him. He was at least six inches taller than me, with a lean, lanky build and a charming dimple that appeared whenever he smiled. His nose was slightly crooked but in a way that I thought added to his charm. He had a certain boyishness about him that drew me in. He was nothing like the Duke at all. Many would say that the Duke was far more handsome than Yuri, who would look like a wimp next to the Duke. Many women thought the Duke was the perfect specimen of a man.

I knew better. The Duke caused me nothing but pain.

I was so busy studying Yuri’s features and losing myself in melancholic thoughts of how powerless I was against the Duke that I barely noticed Yuri was still waiting for a response from me. When he didn’t get an answer, however, he didn’t leave like I had expected him to. He just kept walking beside me and talking.

“Hmm… I’ll take your silence as you not minding me walking beside you,” he piped up. “We just moved into the village recently. Me and my older brother, Eli. He got work as a tutor for the Maslens. He’s really smart you know and he wants to be an inventor someday. I think he can do it. I wasn’t pleased about moving here with him, but I figured this place is as good as any to hone my art. When we got here, I was so disappointed…that is until I saw you last week. I was hoping you’d allow me to paint you. Is that alright with you?”

For some reason, I wanted to say yes, but knew that being around Yuri would just get me in trouble with the Duke, so once again, I just kept silent. Again, he didn’t seem to mind. Apart from me shaking my head when he asked me if I was either deaf or mute or maybe both, I didn’t respond to most of his talk. He talked on anyway.

That was the way it was every week. He would always show up and just tell me about his week, how he and his brother were doing, what new art project he was out to do, which new friends he had made. I would often try to hide a smirk or a scowl whenever he would mention a name that I would recognize—a face I’d already seen at the Duke’s brothel. Still, I never talked to him. I kept silent, and satisfied myself with listening to him—something I found I was delighted in.

I hadn’t realized the effect Yuri had had on me until one day when I came home from the market and the Duke questioned me about why I always had a smile on my face after returning from my errand at the market. I lied and told him that it was because I enjoyed the long walks.

“Liar!” He slammed the back of his hand against my cheek so powerfully that I fell to the ground. “Don’t you dare lie to me, Claudia! Ever!”

He put me through hell that night. It didn’t end until I was bloody and bruised all over. I couldn’t walk for days and once I was able to get up and around, every step still caused me pain.

The Duke didn’t need to tell me. I just knew. I knew that what he put me through was a clear warning that I was to stay away from Yuri for my own good. For two weeks, I wasn’t able to go to the market. The Duke sent someone else instead. When he decided that I was ready to go, he warned me, “Walk alone, Claudia. You must always walk alone from now on.”

That afternoon, as I started my trek toward town, Yuri once again appeared. I could see the delight in his eyes upon seeing me. It made what I had to do even more difficult. The moment he began walking beside me, I stopped and turned toward him.

“Please stop. I would much prefer walking alone from now on. Thank you very much.”

“Did I do something wrong?” he asked. “It’s the first time I’ve ever heard your voice, and you use it to make me go away. It’s a lovely voice. I hope it comes with a name.”

“Please. It’s best that you stay away from me.”

I knew that he could sense something was wrong, but he just nodded. “I understand.”

I wondered what it was that he understood. Did he think that I didn’t desire his company when I actually did? In fact, I longed for it every week…

He handed me a piece of paper. “You didn’t show up the past two weeks, so I figured something went wrong or maybe you got tired of me. Whatever your reason is, I want you to have this. I told you I would paint you. I hope you like it.”

I simply stared at it, not knowing whether to take it or not.

“Please take it. It’s not much, but well…it’s my birthday today. I would really appreciate it if you at least take this small token of my affection.”

I didn’t know how to resist. I was trembling as I took the folded piece of parchment in my hand. It’s his birthday today, I thought. That means he’s twenty-one. Older than me, but a lot younger than the Duke.

I opened the paper up and drew a breath at what I saw. It was a painting of me, taking a walk by the woods, a serene and peaceful look on my face. The girl in the picture looked so happy—something I was not. I swallowed hard, trying to fight back the tears. I knew then that I would treasure that painting forever, and that even if I never saw it again, I would never be able to get it off my mind.