Chapter 14: Just don't break him
Cass didn't remember going to sleep, nor the dreams that he had either. When he opened his eyes the next morning and realised rather quickly that this was his reality once more, he groaned.
Sam flung the door open when he heard him awaken, two glasses of the nasty black liquid on a tray in his hands. He quickly placed the tray down on the table beside Cass' bed before helping him into a sitting position.
"Good morning my Lord! Did you have a restful sleep?" Sam's cheerful attitude helped shake away the dreariness of his thoughts so early in the morning. Cass ran a hand over his face with a groan, wincing when he came up against the wound on his head.
"I didn't dream." Cass told him. It was a small thing. A little thing that shouldn't upset him, but Cass always dreamed. He hadn't ever not dreamed.
Sam stared at him blankly.
"You never dream, my Lord." Sam told him and a deep heaviness filled him. Oh. Another thing he had lost. Cass gripped onto the sheets beneath his hands tightly, holding his tongue. If he opened his mouth right now, he might scream. "Uh, my Lord, I know that you've just opened your eyes but I was hoping we could do Byron's second test early." When Cass looked up at Sam he noticed that he was sweating.
Right. Byron. The man thought that Cass was going to have him killed. Cass put his head in his hands, sighing heavily before he nodded.
"Alright. He's waiting outside the room I'm assuming?" Cass asked, glancing at Sam who gave a giant nod. He was shifting nervously on his feet. "Then go get him." Cass winced.
That sounded harsh coming from his lips but Sam didn't seem to notice. He rushed away from the bed and Cass grumbled to himself. He wasn't looking forward to drinking that gunk again. His mouth salivated, but for the wrong reasons.
He felt like he was going to throw up just remembering the taste.
Sam and Byron came into the room at that time and Byron froze. Clearly, Cass' expression in the morning looked like death since Byron did not look relieved. In fact, he looked even more nervous.
"I made sure that I used the proper water this time." Sam stated proudly and Cass slid his eyes towards Sam as he picked up the lesser of the two glasses. Lucky bitch. Cass watched him bring the glass to Byron, who seemed to be going white all over again.
He'd already done this once. As long as he didn't lie, everything was going to be fine. Cass had no intention of killing the man, and he'd already passed one test. It wasn't as if he was suddenly going to fail the next one.
Byron took the glass holding the black liquid cautiously, his throat working as he stared at it. Sam gave him a pat on the shoulder, clearly encouraging him. Cass watched him with mild disinterest. He just wanted to get this over so that he could figure out who the fuck Lord Blackburn was, and see how he could go about unlocking the knowledge of the book.
So this small display of power that was a left over from Lord Blackburn's villain era? He didn't care for it.
Byron, because he'd already drank this liquid before, wasn't as scared this time. He took a hefty sip and then stared at the glass in confusion.
"Uh, I'm not sure?" He replied carefully and Sam grabbed the glass and took a sip. He gave Byron a concerned look.
"It has no taste." He declared and Byron's eyes went wide.
"You don't...get a slightly fruity taste?" Sam seemed partially relieved at his words, while also quite upset.
"Byron...you aren't supposed to be able to taste anything." Sam told him quietly and it was a good thing that Sam took the glass otherwise Cass was sure the young man would have dropped it. He fell to his knees, his eyes wide.
"I-I-"
"What does sweetness mean, Sam?" Cass asked tiredly and Sam swallowed.
"B-Betrayal." Ah. So Byron was a spy.
Wait. Why the fuck did Lord Blackburn have a mixture that could detect if someone was going to betray him? And why did he drink it whenever he was unwell? Those two things didn't make sense.
The black liquid must not mean betrayal, but maybe people who thought it were sweet were more likely to betray him? Dear lord, what kind of life had he lived before Cass had gotten here?
Byron looked like he was going to die. His eyes were watering and his whole body was trembling. Glancing at Sam, he didn't look much better. It was too fucking early in the morning to deal with these two drama queens.
"Sam, leave the room while Byron and I have a discussion." Sam swallowed, clearly not wanting to leave them alone together, but did remain loyal to him and gave a nod. He turned and it looked like Byron felt that small betrayal quite deeply. Cass leaned back in the bed, closing his eyes as he took a second to just breathe.
"M-My Lord, I never-"
"I have a theory." Cass interrupted whatever nonsense he was about to spew. He didn't care. "As you know, I am lacking a large portion of my memories." He opened his eyes and met the brown ones of Byron. The man looked terrified. "But, there are a few theories as to why I have so few servants to serve me." Cass held up his hand, the back of it facing towards Byron. He began putting up a finger with each point. "One, I am an asshole. Two, people view me as the weakest, therefore, want to serve someone else. Three, I'm not just an asshole, I'm very mean. Four, I don't pay well. I don't believe this one as much, but I haven't looked into it yet. Five, those who come to work for me are spies, trying to get information on the group."
Byron was sweating, and he looked especially ill as Cass brought up the last point.
"Byron, I believe you are number five. You already know what I'm like, and yet you hung around and made friends with Sam. The only man I allow into my chambers. Now, tell me the truth, who are you spying for, and who are you spying on?" Byron dropped his head and Cass watched as his fingers clenched on the thick carpet beneath him. Everything made his eyes hurt, but at least it was quality.
"I-I-" Byron stuttered and Cass sighed.
"Take your time. I've got aaaaaaaaall day." Cass couldn't help sounding sarcastic. Byron's face flushed.
"Well, uh, I..." He took a second, taking a deep breath in before he exhaled. Once he had done that, he seemed to have calmed himself down. "I...I've been in the care of the fairies." He started, glancing at Cass as if that was supposed to mean something. It didn't. He continued, thankfully. "M-My parents either died, or left me in the nest, but I was found by the fairies. Ever since you took this part of the land away from them as part of your inheritance, they wanted more information on you. Since I'm sturdy, and just a fledgling, they thought I could get in undetected." Byron wouldn't meet his gaze. "This is the first time I've been caught." He admitted quietly.
So he was a fledgling and was also involved with the fairies. There was also that mention of his inheritance. So, Lord Blackburn had some fairy blood in him somewhere. Interesting. Cass crossed his arms, staring at the younger man.
"So you were looking for information on me?" Cass asked. "How have you managed to not be detected till now?" Byron's throat worked. "If you lie, I'm going to bring Sam in here and tell him you've been lying to him this whole time." Cass threatened.
He watched as the nervous man crumpled. Tears started streaming down his face.
"N-No! I, fuck, I have a power! It lets me blend into the background. Once I...hit my second growth spurt it should develop further. My parents...were apparently involved with shadows." That was supposed to mean something to Cass. He was going to pretend that he understood this much. It might make Byron die of embarrassment if Cass asked him to explain everything he was admitting. The man already appeared on the edge, and Sam liked the boy. It would be cruel to make him clean up his body.
"Byron, now that I know your plan, what are you going to do?" Byron raised his eyes, and Cass noticed that they weren't brown, they were black with a slight shifting shimmer to them. He must have had a glamour or something on them. "What would you do without thinking about what punishment I'll give you?" Byron's expression twisted.
"I am just a humble-"
"Don't fucking try to sweettalk me, answer the question." Cass demanded, and Byron sealed his lips. His eyes darted around the room as he thought.
"I would...I would like to remain near Sam." He muttered quietly. "I don't...I don't just like Sam." He told Cass. It was oddly powerful, his admission. Cass even felt his heart stir.
"So you're in love with him?" Cass asked and tears fell from Byron's eyes.
"Yes, I am. I've already...I planned to throw away my mission already. I know it doesn't sound...logical, but I just-I care about him so much." Byron muttered. It was hard to watch, honestly. He looked so sad and broken, but as a fellow gay, he understood.
"Does he know of your feelings?" Cass asked and Byron gave a wet laugh.
"My Lord, even without your memories, you should know that all relations between the same sex are forbidden." Cass snorted.
"Says who? Have I ever seemed like the kind of person who would care about those things? Byron, in your observations, what kind of things have I cared about when it came to the people who served me?" Byron swallowed.
"Uh, competence, loyalty and...if they can handle your temper." He mumbled and Cass had to fight a small smile at the last part.
"And does any of that have to do with who you are sexually attracted to?" Cass asked and Byron, for the first time since the door closed, didn't look scared. He looked...shocked.
"N-No. That doesn't...it doesn't matter to any of those things." Cass huffed.
"Then you understand my stance on it. I don't give a fuck about it. As long as you don't force Sam into a relationship with you, I don't care. He's my best henchman, I need him in working order." Byron nodded, before he froze.
"Wait, you're not going to kick me out?" Byron turned his gaze towards Cass, shocked. Cass chuckled, and couldn't stop the dangerous smile that crossed his lips.
"Byron, how do you feel about working for me