The Soulless

Chapter 11. A heart of Stone

Becoming Mark Blackthorn’s friend turned out to be an impossible mission. After our last conversation at the porch that night, his behaviour got even worse. Well, subjectively. He spent more and more time in his room at the attic and in the brief moments he did leave that cramped space, he was even meaner towards us all. I tried to talk to him again several times, but he tossed each of my attempts and acted like I didn’t exist, playing the part of the rejected child in favor of the foster kid. It was stupid and childish and didn’t suit someone his age, but there wasn’t much I could do about it.

I started wondering if he knew somehow about my plan and did everything to avoid it? God, what had happened between him and Adan that Mark was so afraid? I guessed at least Mark wasn’t such a fool as I convinced myself he was and he suspected I had something fishy in mind. My plan was fishy after all. He was Abbie’s son and as much as I disliked him, using him felt like using the rest of his family to my advantage.

At some point, a week later I decided I had to use some other tactics on him. Something to make him loosen up a bit. Not that I expected him to agree to a movie out night or something, but maybe if I was just myself, all back thoughts aside, he could eventually see reason.

When I got home tonight however he was still nowhere to be found, which was about right – the sun still lingered on the horizon, the last beams painting the endless sky in purple and red. It was too early for Mark the vampire to crawl out of his den. Sighing, I went to the kitchen where Abbie was just putting the dinner in the oven. She looked at me through her shoulder and smiled, the worry briefly leaving her bright eyes.

I greeted her with a smile back and left the groceries I cArid on the kitchen counter.

“You need some help?” I asked pointing my chin towards the oven, but she just waved her hand and came to help me unpack.

“Nah, I’ve got it. I wouldn’t decline the offer tomorrow though. Carl is bringing a girlfriend for dinner.” She gave me another bright, secretive smile which I couldn’t not return.

I squeaked happily. “A girlfriend? And I don’t know? Who is she? Where is she from?”

Abbie shrugged her shoulders. “Well, he didn’t exactly tell me her name only that they were together thanks to you, something about opening his eyes and all.”

“So, Heidi. Took him long enough.” I said, munching on a celery stick, enjoying the harsh fresh taste and spiciness.

“You know her?”

“I guess…” I sighed suddenly not feeling as excited. Not that I had something against the girl, but I just wasn’t eager to meet her. “She kind of doesn’t like me.”

“Oh, dear, I cannot imagine someone not liking you,” Abbie said kindly.

“There are many people in this world who don’t like me. One of them right now sleeps in your attic like some bat.”

“Who doesn’t like Terry?” Jonathan asked as he just entered the kitchen through the back door. He left his hat on the hanger there and went to kiss his wife, while I was still pouting and swinging my celery stick around.

“Mark,” I replied miserably.

“Mark doesn’t like anybody.”

I could not argue with that. Mark was their son after all and it wouldn’t sit well if I started bitching about him in front of them. Which reminded me I still had to come up with a way to ask him out and make myself sit through the whole thing without snapping at him every now and then.

“It is not true I don’t like anybody.” Mark’s voice reached us from the stairs. A second later he was in the kitchen, his hair tousled and clothes rumpled, smirking as an i***t and shooting looks at us. “I do like our sweet Terry over here and her cute little ass.”

I jumped in my place, staring back at him, my temper ready to show up. The way he said it, with this smug look in his eyes, made me feel dirty, especially because he did it in front of his parents.

“Really? You don’t have anything smarter to say?” I stepped towards him, shoving my celery at his chest, eyes wide with rage.

“I can be as smart as you tell me to be, sweetheart, but is my smarts really what you want from me?” Mark smirked unaffected by my anger and red face.

“You… you are…” I mumbled, suddenly at a loss of words.

“Out. Now.” Jonathan interfered, pure rage pouring off of him while he fixed his son with a darkened gaze.

“Make me.” Mark spat back, all traces of teasing gone from his threatening voice. He seemed… dangerous right now, daring even. I wanted to punch him.

There was something about him at this moment, something dark, that made me realize he was suddenly on the verge of snapping. It was the way his body suddenly tensed, the anger and challenge written all over his face, and how he was turned towards his father, fists clenched to his body in hardly contained rage.

I could barely breathe, shifting my eyes between the two of them. How did events turn so grim in the span of seconds? Well, I guessed the fight was always there ready to burst at the tiniest spark, but still… It was really sad to watch father and son on the verge of an actual boxing match just because each of them was too stubborn to say sorry first.

I stepped in, looking Mark in the eyes. “You are coming with me.”

Abbie tried to protest, but I just nodded at her and shoved him back towards the living room, a bit surprised that he actually listened to me and did what I told him to do without arguing.

When we were finally alone, Mark visibly relaxed and his expression returned to one of superiority and condescension. “Are you going to teach me morals again, sweetheart?”

I sighed and tried not to roll my eyes at him for a change. “Do you really think I have so much time to teach you anything, at all? You and morals? Baby, that ship has sailed long ago.”

“So, are you offering something sexier? Maybe the old guy is not enough for you these days?” Mark pressed, clearly enjoying how enraged these dumb comments made me.

This time I was having none of it. Rage swelled inside of me and burst free like a fire.

“Stop it!” I commanded with dead determination, my gaze unwavering, my stance unrelenting for a change. I needed control over the situation and I would f*****g get it. No more stupid little boy games. The heat poured out of me in waves, and all my strength and willpower were pointed towards him.

Suddenly Mark froze and stared at me. He just stood there, no smart ass comments, as if my words did make him listen for some reason. Something shifted in him and he kind of stepped back a little, his smirk wiped out of his face, his expression not so cocky anymore.

Surprised, I pressed a step towards him and he stepped back again without hesitation, falling for my unspoken commands.

I should be glad for my small win, but at this exact moment, I didn’t care. Because he looked at me with such deep hunger and expectation, his blue eyes widened behind the neon contacts, and the sudden gesture sent shivers down my spine. His body was turned towards me as if I was the holy grail. He took a quick breath in, almost hissed in expectation for something, and I just stood there tracing the way his pink tongue darted out to wet his dry full lips, and suddenly it was all could think of. He seemed…so compliant, so ready to …as if he waited for my orders. It was like at this moment he craved my commands and would do anything to receive and follow them. Wait, what?

I looked at him querying, surprised, and a little bit excited. My whole being shivered with the thought of my little victory, but there was something else there, something hidden deep inside me which thrived at the thought that I somehow made him submit. As if he were mine to do as I pleased. Somewhere deep in my mind I realized I was going mad, but still couldn’t help myself.

I didn’t stop to think it through, no matter the dark twisted reasons for his submission which did send bolts of inexplicable heat down inside my body. But I finally had him exactly where I wanted him and I would not allow my stupid sudden and definitely unwanted desire to actually distract me. So, I didn’t hesitate, even though everything in me wanted to stop and admire my masterpiece of submission which Mark Blackthorn was at this moment. Because of me, because of what I had said. One word, only one damn electric word and he was mine!

 Focus, girl, focus, I reminded myself. Just one more breath and I was back to my senses, or at least tried to convince myself in it. Then I attacked. “Is it that important for you to play the misunderstood bad boy from the small town that you are actually ready to break your mother’s heart again and again like it is a toy for you to play with? Actually, never mind, I don’t care for your reasons. I don’t care how special you think you are or how you believe that you can make everyone play by your rules. I am not here for that, I just don’t f*****g give a damn. But you will respect your mother and your father. Is that understood?”

For the longest time, Mark didn’t move. Didn’t say a word. Just stared at me, tension and oblivion written all over his handsome, submissive face. No, no, no, I didn’t care! I said it and I meant it. I was not drawn towards him, towards all the f****d up things I could do to him just because I could, just because with one word out of my mouth I had gained complete control over him.

“Is that understood?” I repeated, louder, firmer this time.

He finally nodded. He did it slowly, reluctantly, but the control was still there and he was helpless against it. I didn’t need to look down his body to know he was getting hard because of it. f**k, why did it turn me on in return? I didn’t want him, not in that way, never. I already had someone I loved, someone because of whom I even bothered wasting my time with Mark. Then why…

But Mark was there, only a few feet away from me, his gaze as dark and full of expectation as I felt inside. He was distracting me, making all my reasons fly out of my mind and I would have none of it. I could do this. Of course I could. I would not think of the way the white t-shirt wrapped around him too tightly and complimented every muscle of his body, or the way a single beat of sweat run down his temple; of the way he just waited there for my next command, and how I wanted to make him beg on his knees for my mercy…

I blinked to toss away all the distraction that Mark Blackthorn was.

Unfortunately this broke the link, and he somehow was free of my control.

He laughed nervously and turned his back on me, trying to hide his flustered face and how deep thes momentary madness that happened between us affected him. And all I could muse over was how it was possible for him to blush if his heart didn’t even beat in order to pump the blood straight to his high cheekbones … 

His heart didn’t beat!

I tilted my head, listening in, trying to catch some sort of a sound, of pulsating deep in his chest, but… my mouth opened on its own while I stared, struck with the realization, when I blurted it out loud. “Why isn’t your heart beating?”