The Vampire’s Servant
Chapter 101

[Echo]

When I woke up Saturday morning, Victor wasn't in bed with me and Gray. I saw him pacing in my room. He looked distracted and didn't seem to see me. I watched him for a while. "What's he pacing about?" Gray whispered next to me.

"I don't know." I answered.

Victor didn't notice us talking either. I was nervous. I didn't like it when he was so in his head that nothing else registered. It had been like this over the last few days.

He was stressing out over the curse. We hadn't gotten any movement on it since. It had only been a couple days, but Victor said he was feeling differently than normal. "Victor?" I called out.

No response. I got out of bed and tapped his arm. Victor jumped a little. He looked at me like he didn't fully recognize me for a moment.

"Echo? Why are you up?" He asked.

"My alarm went off, Victor. Are you alright?"

"Already. I didn't even hear it. Are you excited for your dance tonight?" Victor smiled.

"Maybe we shouldn't go." Gray said. "It looks like you need Echo here."

I nodded. I was worried about Victor. He was always distracted recently. It was like he couldn't focus on anything else.

"No. You should go. Echo should have this experience. I want her to have fun." Victor responded.

"I don't need to, Victor." I insisted.

"You do. This is just me overthinking. Don't worry. I want to see you in your dress." Victor smiled. "I have a surprise for you later. I want this to be a wonderful evening for you." "What is it?" I asked, suddenly eager.

"You'll find out later. Don't you have training today?" Victor asked with a smile.

"Oh no!" I yipped and rushed to get ready for training.

Once I was dressed, I met the boys downstairs. We headed out for our run and Dillon worked with me while Jean-Claude and Gray sparred. It got me out of my head a little.

Gray had tried to talk them out of training, but I thought it was good for us. Especially me. I was working really hard to be better than before. I didn't want Victor and Gray to worry about me anymore.

Victor and Finn had breakfast ready for us when we came in. It was really nice to have found our stride as a household. Everything was working smoothly and I wasn't having any trouble keeping up with the housework now that Gray was helping out around the house.

I went with Victor up to his room when it was time for him to sleep. Soon he would be going to bed before I finished training in the mornings. I would miss having breakfast with him.

As I curled up in his bed with him, I could tell he was tense still. I trailed my hand up and down his stomach, trying to calm him. Though it worked on Gray, it didn't seem to be working for Victor.

"Are you worried about the curse?" I asked.

"I'm sorry, princess. There's some invisible, looming deadline hanging over me and we aren't moving as quickly as I would like. Every night that passes, we get closer to my end, and I can't shake this feeling of impending doom." He sighed.

"I know it seems like this is all going slowly, Victor. We're doing what we can. There are so many people working on it, that I know we'll see the end before anything happens to you. No one has tried this hard to break the curse before. The light witches are helping even though they know the dark witches are helping too. Everyone who knows about the curse is really focused on ending it. Just have patience." I said.

"I hissed at Gray this morning. Before you woke up. He rolled over and put an arm around you and I hissed like some angry cat. I didn't want him touching you. I hated his presence. It was only for a moment, but, I couldn't help myself. That was part of why I wasn't in bed when you got up. What if I hurt him? You'd never forgive me." Victor admitted.

"Don't tell me what I would feel, Victor. You didn't hurt him. You pulled yourself together. It may mean working harder on containing your emotions, but I think you can do it. I know you can do it. If there's an incident, we'll all work through it. Even if I have to start sleeping alone again." I insisted.

Victor stopped my hand and brought it up to his lips. "Don't say that, princess. I love our nights together. I know how much you hated being alone all the time. Even in your sleep, you cling to us. I can't force you to go back to being alone at night. What if you have a nightmare?"

"I'll figure it out, Victor. I just want you to know that's an option I'm willing to explore if we have to. Thank you for being honest with me about your thoughts and feelings. I worry sometimes that you and Gray keep quiet about things so you won't upset me. That's not healthy for our relationship. I want to know everything you're thinking." I told him.

"I will always tell you my mind, Echo. I promise. I feel the sun tugging at me. I can't stay awake any longer." He said softly.

"Close your eyes, Victor. I'll stay here until you're asleep. I love you." I whispered.

"I love you, too, my Echo. I'll always love you." Victor murmured as he closed his eyes.

I pulled my hand from his grasp and moved up to kiss him. I wanted him to go to sleep knowing that I was there for him, feeling that I loved him. His kiss was gentle and slowly began to slacken as sleep took him from me.

Tenderly, I ran my fingers through his hair and traced over the curves of his cheek and jaw bones. I managed to keep the tears out of my eyes until he was gone, then I laid my ear over his heart and listened to the slow, muffled beating. He wasn't dead, just sleeping. I would repeat that phrase throughout the rest of the day.

-

A few hours later, I was dusting in the living room when I heard the buzzer for the front gate. I had decided to clean until Harmony would come to get ready for the dance. It helped me stay calm.

Gray had held me for an hour after I let Victor rest. I told him what Victor said about the hissing and what I told him about sleeping alone. Gray agreed with Victor, that we should wait until there was more of a danger to him. I didn't like it, but it was two against one. I went to the entry and hit the intercom. It was Harmony. I looked at the clock on the wall. It was only just one in the afternoon. I didn't know why she was there so early. Maybe she just wanted to hang out with me a little before we got ready. I smiled and opened the gate.

Returning to the living room, I finished the last of my dusting, then put the duster away in the laundry room. The front door opened just as I was coming back. Harmony grinned and entered with the bag that held her dress and another bag with her other things. Behind her, two women entered the house. I tensed. I didn't like people I didn't know in the house.

I recognized one of the women as Opal from the salon. She smiled and wiggled her fingers. Gray came down the stairs and froze for a moment.

"Hiya, I'm Opal. Master Nightshade requested me and Penny come to help the girls get ready for your dance." She said.

"Right. I didn't really expect you this early." Gray replied with a smile.

"You knew about this?" I asked him.

"Victor wanted you to have everything perfect. He said it would be a chance to see what Opal could do, since he's hired her to help you get ready for his announcement ball next weekend." Gray said.

"Yeah, no human servants allowed. Well, actually, I guess that's not true. They asked for volunteers to be servers, but I didn't want to. If I'm going to a party with my master, I want to be a guest, not a worker bee." Opal giggled.

"I'm Penny." The other girl said. "It's an honor to meet you, Mistress Nightshade."

I looked at her. She was tall with dark skin and dark curly hair. I didn't get a bad feeling from her.

"You can call me Echo. I prefer it." I said.

"Thank you." She smiled.

"You need a shower." Harmony told me with a scrunched nose. "You smell like dust and sweat. It makes the vampire smell really weird."

"Where are we setting up?" Opal asked.

"Why don't you take them up to your room, Echo? You can have a shower and they'll help you get ready. Cam and Val will be here around four. We'll leave by five to get to the restaurant in time for our reservation. That way Victor can see you in your dress before everything get ruined from dancing and having fun." Gray said.

With a nod, I guided everyone up to my room. Harmony handed me my robe and pushed me toward my bathroom. I'd showered after training, but I guess I'd worked up a sweat cleaning. I shrugged and went in to take my shower while they set up their things and Harmony hung up her dress.

Carefully, I washed, shaved, and rinsed my body. For good measure, I flossed and brushed too. I wrapped the robe around myself tightly and tied the belt before entering my room.

My computer chair and another chair were set out near my desk and dresser. There were a lot of things set out all over the surfaces. Everyone turned to look at me and I was keenly aware of the fact that I was actually nude under the thin cloth. "Don't worry, we're all girls. We do this sort of thing." Harmony smiled. "Trust me."

She came over and pulled me to the computer chair before settling herself in the other chair. Opal grabbed a hairbrush and a dryer. I took a deep breath and readied myself.

"You're not going into battle, sweetie. Chill out." Opal chuckled.

"If you're nervous, think of something else. I don't know what you're nervous about, though." Harmony said.

"I've never done this before and I don't really like having people I don't know in the house while Victor's sleeping." I told her.

"I understand those nerves. When I first found out how vulnerable my master was, I got nervous at the mail delivery." Opal said.

"When Grant first bought me, I was so grateful that I sat at the foot of his bed for three months. He tried setting me free after we went back north. I didn't know what I'd do with myself. He even offered to give me money and set me up in a shop. I asked to stay with him. He didn't touch me, except to feed, and he was always kind. I couldn't imagine a safer place than with him." Penny murmured.

"How old are you?" Harmony asked.

"I'm nearly two hundred years old. Grant was my second master. He bought me when he heard my previous master's sons planning something. He never told me what, just that it wasn't very gentlemanly. I figured it out and was grateful. I didn't want to be hurt like that again. They weren't very gentle men at all." She replied.

"You decided to stay with him forever." I smiled.

"Yes. I've seen so many changes in the world since then. I've experienced so much of the world... until we came here. It was only fifty years ago, but we can't leave. When we tried, Grant started getting weak and hungry. Too hungry." Penny shivered. "We're trying to fix that. Soon you two can start planning to travel again." I told her.

"I can't wait. This place is nice, but I'd love to see the south again." She intimated.

She and Opal started working on our hair. I wanted to free everyone who was stuck here now more than ever. Penny deserved to be able to travel.

Once our hair was in rollers, Penny and Opal talked to us about our dresses and shoes. They decided we needed manicures and pedicures with polish. Harmony was excited.

They had big bags I hadn't noticed and pulled things out, setting out some little folding tables and filling things with water and chemicals. I watched intently. I would tell Victor about all of the things we did. He loved hearing what I did while he was sleeping. "So, I know you said I didn't have any place in your relationship, but I wanted to ask about something. I hope you'll humor me." Harmony said as we soaked our fingers and toes.

"I guess. I'll tell you if I don't want to answer it and I want you to accept no if that's my response." I told her.

"Fair enough. It's just that.... I think you may actually be more experienced than me now. Tonight Cam and I are going to a hotel after the prom. It's... well... it's our first time and I was wondering if you'd done it yet." Harmony blushed.

The room seemed to go still. I didn't know how I felt about answering that. She wasn't trying to be nosy. She was just nervous about her first time. I certainly wasn't an expert, I'd only been having s*x for a week, but I wanted to help her relax. "I have. Is this your first time ever?" I asked.

"Yeah. I've done other things with him and with some of my ex-boyfriends, but I've never gone all the way. I'm a little nervous. My friends who have done it all act like it's not a big deal, but I heard it hurts." She said.

"It does, but not for long. It feels better as you go. You just need to be relaxed and ready for it. Gray was very sweet and gentle. I bet Cam will be too." I smiled. "You can always say no if you're not ready. He'll understand. He loves you and doesn't want you to feel pressured."

They were similar to the words Amy had told me when I was talking to her about having sex for the first time. She told me about how she had been in control for her first time with Lucien and that he had tried to be as gentle and caring as he could with her. I wanted to reassure my sister that her mate would make her feel good and didn't want to hurt her.

"So your first time was with Gray? I thought it would have been with Victor." Harmony whispered.

"I've been with both of them, but my first was Gray. We decided to be each other's first. It was a good decision. When I was with Victor, it was another first and just as special. I love them both so much." I said softly.

"I'm sorry I was a bitch about it. I just didn't know how you could love them both. It seemed to me that you just didn't understand, but, maybe, I didn't understand. You've always had a lot of love in you and never got enough of it. Maybe the moon goddess gave you two mates so you would finally get all the love you deserved." She supposed.

"Thank you for that. I appreciate you making the effort." I smiled.

"Of course. I'm your sister. I need to try to understand you. But now, you have to spill about your first time. I want all the details. Was it romantic? Did he do anything special for it? What was it like? Beginning to end. Spill." Harmony insisted. "I don't think-" I started.

"It's the rules, babe. When you're getting made up you have to share secrets. It's all part of female bonding. It doesn't leave this room." Opal chuckled.

I blushed. "Seriously?"

"It's very true." Penny nodded.

Harmony grinned at me and leaned forward. I wanted to have regular girl time with my sister. If I had to sacrifice a couple secrets, I guess I could. I kind of wanted to tell someone anyway.