I looked up at the men and women around me, a spark of hope growing inside of me. Unlike Oscen, they had figured it out. They knew. Does that mean they will let me out?

"She understands us. Who else sensed that hope?" one woman with blond hair asked. I looked at her in wonder. She was the only one in the room who had that color. All the others were brown or black haired.

The youngest of them said, "I did."

"Does anyone have any ideas how to communicate with her? If she could speak, she would've tried that by now."

A woman with curly black hair cautiously said, "We know none of us can mindlink with anyone outside our pack or who isn't our mate, correct?" When everyone nodded, she continued, "Well... We know one person is telepathic."

"Prazey, do you mean the vampire?" the youngest asked, his eyes widening.

"Dubren, you know Thoysal isn't evil. Just because he drinks blood and isn't alive, doesn't mean he's our enemy," the woman that had carried me chided.

Dubren hung his head, mumbling, "Sorry, Esna."

The woman nodded, accepting his apology. She then looked back at me. "I have an idea. We put the bottle next to the fire, as that'll most likely make her more comfortable. One of us will stay to watch and try to build trust. Two others will go to Thoysal. The rest will do the daily chores. Does everyone agree?"

The other five in the room uttered their assent. Esna said, "Good. Dubren, you stay here. Maflar, Askio, I trust you will not insult the vampire. Ostek, Prazey, you are the most experienced, along with me. We'll get the things done."

When all roles had been handed out, they left the room one by one. Soon, I was alone with the amber-eyed boy. He carefully picked up my bottle and put it in front of the hearth.

I closed my eyes in content as warmth filled my body. The fire's glow seeped through my eyelids, and I revelled in the feeling. Yet, I was filled with longing. I wanted to be in the fire, not in a bottle next to it. I opened my eyes and scratched at the bottle, trying to get out.

"You want out, don't you? Just how long have you been in there?" Dubren asked softly, watching me with his amber eyes.

I let my paws glide to the floor and looked at him, trying to convey one message: far too long.

He moved around uneasily and looked away from me. "Sorry. It's an Omega thing. We can't look in people's eyes directly. It's odd that you still carry so much dominance, even when frightened."

In reply, I flicked my tail. After a moment of silence, a weird expression crossed his face, and he leaned closer to my bottle. "You know, I think that vampire is really creepy," he whispered. "Do you know what vampires can do?"

I shook my head to indicate no. My momma had told me about them, but I hadn't had much time to listen to her stories before...

"They can actually look into your mind. Without your permission," Dubren said, stopping my thoughts from going to dark places. He shuddered. "Some can whisper commands in your head, or cast illusions, or control your emotions, or teleport from place to place. They can even perfectly mimic people's voices! Nasty, they are."

I listened as he spoke. It wasn't as if I could do much beside that. The idea of a vampire coming to get me was getting more and more terrifying, though. I didn't want someone to look in my mind, or control my emotions. My emotions were mine, and mine only.

"What did I say about spreading rumors, pup?" a gruff voice commanded.

Dubren whined and moved away from the man, to the corner of the room. "I-I'm sorry, sir."

The vampire huffed and walked closer to me. With Dubren's words in my mind, I watched the pale man with wide eyes, backing up against the glass wall of my container.

"Look at what you've done. She fears me now." He shook his head before sitting down across of me. After a wary glance at the blazing hearth, he shoved backwards a little. "Is there one of you that she does trust?"

"Not yet, Thoysal. Esna only brought her in less than an hour ago, and communication has been difficult so far," a woman said, her eyes amber-colored like the rest. The only one with grey eyes, almost like storm clouds, was the vampire.

He nodded thoughtfully before sending a glare in Dubren's direction. "You, go. You only scare her, pup."

The boy whined again and quickly made himself scarce, scampering out of the room. The two adult amber-eyed humans huffed as he passed. The blonde woman that answered Thoysal earlier asked, "Can we do anything to help?"

"There is nothing you can do now. That said, as long as you do not push me in the fire, you are free to stay," the vampire replied. "However, if you feel the need to cling to each other as mates often do, please vacate the room."

"That we can do."

The two sat down in the corner of the room, out of my vision. I watched the grey-eyed man warily, still with my back to the glass. A nice side effect was that my back was nicely heated by the fire behind me, comforting me and taking the edge of my fear.

I could feel the warmth in my body and relaxed somewhat, allowing it to make me feel safe and secure. Normally, I only felt this way when I was in the fire, but if it also happened when I was next to it, I didn't mind.

"There you go. That's better, isn't it?" the vampire asked softly. I simply purred.

'Can you hear me?' he asked. It took me a moment to realize he was using telepathy, like my momma used to with me. My ears perked up as I looked at him, almost frozen in shock.

I could communicate with him. For the first time in centuries, someone could speak with me.