Violet almost held her breath when he started speaking. For as long as she’d known Finn, he’d been closed-mouthed about who he was and what he had done. His best friend Soren might have held more clues, but she and her friends never dared ask questions.
“Our tribe was small, but my memories are of a family. My own and the bigger one consisting of the tribe. I have a vague image of my parents and many siblings apart from one. I was closest to my older brother, maybe because my mother lost a few children between the youngest ones and me. It made us bond, although I don’t think my brother had more than a year on me, and in those times, it was nothing.”
His voice dwindled to a stop; his gaze lost for a moment before he resumed. “We were only boys in today’s terms, but men back then when the Romans invaded, and by the number of them, I knew we would die. It was like a tidal wave overtaking us, tearing through us. We fought but were soon decimated.
“My brother and I were two of the very few who survived, only to be captured. That was the first time I understood the concept of hell. They forced marched us to the coast and kept us in some sort of barracks, chained to one another, beaten so often I can’t remember the count.
“With no food or water, vermin all around us, the promise of our impending death sounded almost like heaven. My only consolation was having my brother by my side. The only family I had left. And when night fell, I saw him. My maker.”
A shiver raked her body at his story, and Finn started rubbing her skin. “He was a very handsome man. At least I thought he was a man. Tall, strong, well in his prime, and dressed like a centurion. He examined all of us like cattle, with a gleam in his eye. It made me so mad. After all, what did I have to lose? When he came close, I tried to attack, but the chains and lack of food made me as weak as a puppy.
“I remember his laugh. I thought he’d be so angry he’d slash me with his sword. Instead, he looked at me with interest and asked my jailers to release me. I didn’t see it a chance to escape my fate, but rather as abandoning my brother, so I stayed put and snarled. The man understood, and took my brother and I.
“The man spoke a language I didn’t understand when he spoke with other men, gesturing in our direction. They dragged us out of the jail with new chains, where the man and a stranger dressed like him, waited.
“Despite the language barrier, our savior gestured and made us understand we would be separated. My brother sent with the other man, me with our rescuer. With only a brief goodbye, my brother left, and I never saw him again.”
Violet had a sudden urge to comfort him. He didn’t show his distress by talking so matter-of-factly, but it was obvious that even though it happened centuries ago, it still tore at him. “What happened next?”
“I expected the man to treat me as a slave, but he was kind to me. Fed me, clothed me, and made me learn his language until we could communicate. At some point, I feared he wanted me as his companion, but with the number of women coming in and out of his house and how he treated me, it was obvious that wasn’t his intention.”
“You wouldn’t have wanted to be his boy toy.” Her attempt at humor was only mildly successful.
“At that moment, vulnerable and not knowing what my future held, I wouldn’t have had much choice. His name was Romus and he held a high rank in the Roman army. He said he’d been a soldier all his life, and he’d soon be discharged and allowed to follow other pursuits. I didn’t understand it back then, but what he wanted was to build his own personal army.”
“An army of vampires?”
Finn nodded. “Romus was a politician, a strategist, both in the human world and the underworld. Back then, vampires were lost souls roaming the earth, and he wanted to change that, have them take the place that was rightfully theirs. He saw something in me, and that’s why he bought me and brought me all the way back to Rome. After months of building trust and loyalty, he disclosed who he was.”
“You must have been terrified.”
He shook his head. “I was fascinated. All that power, that strength. And when he said he wanted to offer me the same gift in return for my allegiance, the choice was easy. For the first time I’d be free, master of my own destiny forever, fighting alongside a man I’d started to consider a friend. I said yes and became who I am now.”
“Why do I get the feeling it wasn’t enough for you? To become a vampire and rule the world with Romus?”
This time his grin was more sincere. “That’s because you’re a smart woman. I was never one for politics, and it was at that time the different factions of magical beings united to create the High Council. I believe it was necessary at the time. As power grew, and to guarantee stability, we had to have rules and limits.
“Romus thrived in that environment and was an obvious choice as representative of the High Council. I remember a lot of fights and blood from that period, even though I’ve lived through many wars. When Romus gained his seat, I distanced myself from it all, I found no purpose in power. Romus never forgave me, but I couldn’t help it.”
“What happened next?”
“I decided to
