by Allie Santos
“How did you do that?” I gasped breathlessly, both awed and scared.
I had been a hard cynic in the face of my little sister’s romantic mindset. When she had gone on about magic, I would just laugh it off and tell her it wasn’t real. That she would see when she got older and all that belief would go away. But this… this was magic. The woman waved her hand. The fitted long-sleeved shirt she wore was replaced with the exact same top but without the rip.
Even as I watched it happen, my brain tried to deny it, but how could magic not exist if vampires did? Maybe she was a vampire sorcerer of some sort. My pulse picked up as I stared at the dome. There was no glitter, no shiny, flashy lights, no smoke. She had just waved her hand, and bam, she had a new shirt.
A light flickered on inside, and I saw an outline of a large bed nestled in the middle of the space. It looked so warm inside. My body tingled with desire. So warm inside…
I didn’t realize the crazy vampire approached until she was standing next to me, sneering. Was that her perpetual look? If my life wasn’t in her hands—literally—I would have asked.
“You reek, and that thundering, can you not control your emotions?”
“I-ah-no. I’m sorry,” I stuttered. I didn’t really know what I was apologizing for. Maybe it was for my existence.
“It’s annoying,” she said, glaring at me.
I was jealous of her in that second. She was what every girl saw in magazines. Pristine. Perfect. Beautiful. And if I thought Jen and the blond duo roused my insecurities, this woman did that times ten.
“Get digging.”
“You don’t have a sh-shovel or something?”
“Use your hands,” was all she said before disappearing into the tent. I looked down at my already-numb hands. This was going to hurt.
I knelt in the snow. The cold seeped into my jeans. I tugged the sleeves of my thin sweater over my hands and flashed another glance at the dome. Her outline reflected on the side of the thin brown tent. I looked back down at my task and braced myself. I hooked my hands together to create a circle with my arms and began shoveling the snow with my makeshift arm-shovel.
I shivered, but I didn’t stop until I saw the dustings of leaves and dirt at the bottom. By then, I was surrounded by snow up to my sides. If I closed my eyes, I would have easily imagined I was in a freezer with how the icy cold speared into me.
I was officially exhausted. I looked toward the sky and tensed. Were there two moons? My mouth dropped. There were two moons. They were the only light in the vast darkness. The orbs high and bright, the only solace in the dark night. Where the hell was I? Fear trilled through me, and I squeezed my lids shut. Not the time for a mental break down, Rae.
Now that I had paused my tired movements, my bladder informed me of its discomfort. I cursed myself, squeezing my thighs together. I did a little hop on the tip of my toes and glanced at the dome and then out at the trees.
The woman was in there, her shadow stark against the dome material. I squeezed my hands into fists and stared up at the sky. I was really about to do this. I walked to the closest tree to my left and pulled my pants down, hoping I wouldn’t pee on myself.
Hiccupping croaks sounded from the side, and I swung to look at the origin of the creepy noise. My heart rate sped up. I searched around me and saw nothing but the swaying of the trees and the rustling of the leaves. I peered into the darkness just in case something wanted to hop out at me and quickly finished my business.
A rustle sounded, and I jerked to look in the direction from where it came. Two large, intelligent eyes stared back at me from the darkness. I swallowed thickly. The noise came again, and the eyes got closer, jumping down from the top of a tree and landing with a smooth thump. It was the size of an overgrown bird. Tilting its head, it hobbled closer.
As it got near, I was finally able to make out its form. There were no feathers, and the leathery black skin looked rough to the touch. The silver beak was sharp and angled out in a jut with a wicked curve down. The beak opened, and the sharp cry pierced my ears. The scream that had been building finally exploded out of me in a short release.
I stumble back in shock. My gaze was drawn to movement from the tent as the woman stepped out and took in my scared posture. She looked in my direction and smirked. I followed her gaze as the thing chirped and hopped back onto the tree, disappearing from sight.
What the hell was that? It looked like an extra-large featherless eagle. One that had been experimented on.
Chills wracked my body as my adrenaline rush subsided. I looked down at my wet clothes, and fear pierced me. I could lose something if I didn’t get warm. I started jumping up and down and rubbing my hands together.
The woman eyed me. “Go find kindling,” she ordered.
I stared at her in shock and then looked at the dark forest. She wanted me to walk out into the woods. Who knew what the hell was out there. My gaze flicked to where the thing had disappeared as her words came into perspective. If I was out there, I wasn’t here.
“Phoenixes are harmless,” she said, laughing at me.
I looked back out into the darkness. There was a possibility I would bump into one of those, but… this was my chance. I could get away from her, or at the very least, it would be a head start.
She wouldn’t—
“And don’t think of running.” She tapped her ear. “I’ll make sure to listen for you. Thirty-foot perimeter.”
She then gave me her back and strode into the dome tent. My fists clenched as hope fizzled out. This evil, vile…thing. That was what she was to me, a thing.
I jumped toward the edge of trees clustered around instead of walking like a normal person. I wanted to live. I knew that more than anything. And right now, my survival stemmed from keeping warm. I hopped from stick to stick, picking them up as I went.
I had gathered a good amount of them in my arms when I found a sharp rock. I transferred the weight of the sticks under one of my arms and reached down with the other. Fondling it, I brought it up to the moonlight. It looked lethal. A rush filled me as I realized it could work as a spear. If I could get close enough to her, I could smash it over her head. I could save myself. I could run.
Killing had never crossed my mind, but I held onto how she’d hit me. How she’d treated me. She would deserve it. Wouldn’t she? I nibbled on my bottom lip, slid the spear into my jeans pocket, and continued my task of collecting the wood.
If she tried to hurt me again, I would fight.
3
It was getting hard to hop with all the wood I clutched to my chest, but I knew it was vital to keep going. I made sure to count my steps every time I walked outward. I didn’t want to incur her wrath by heading outside of the parameters the woman-thing had given me.
Now that my eyes had adjusted to the lights, I realized the space the vampire had stopped at was a small clearing. Frosted trees loomed overhead and all around. The domed tent stood nestled within them, stark against the darkness, like a beacon.
I approached it, stepping over tree roots that exploded out of the ground. Pausing behind a tree ten feet before the outskirts of the clearing, I tilted my head around a curving branch to get a better look inside. I could see the still outline of the woman, her shadowed body like a statue.
The spear felt heavy in my pocket. I needed, more than wanted, to go up to her and stab her. Just so I had enough time to run, to escape. Nothing more, nothing less. I didn’t have to kill her. Just incapacitate her enough to get out of here. If I kept running straight, I had to eventually hit the main road, right? This might be my only chance.
My conscience wanted her to attack me first, but she was too strong for it to ever be fair. It had to be by surprise. I inhaled sharply, mind made up.
A shuffling from the left made my head whip to the side. All I saw was darkness. I sighed and continued with one thing in mind. The feeling that someone was near wouldn’t release me, I itched to take off running.
I was about to releas
e the wood I clutched to my chest so I could grasp the spear nestled in my pocket—until my feet tangled in some unseen foliage, and I flew forward. I slammed into a hard, cold surface as most of the wood scattered around me on the ground. I clasped onto the tree I had crashed into.
It wasn’t until I looked up that I realized it wasn’t a tree, but a man. A very large man. His hands engulfed my waist as they clasped me close. The moonlight shone on half of his sharp, chiseled face, leaving the other half to darkness. I met his eyes, or at least the one I could see. It looked almost lavender, and it was made more striking by the long dark lashes highlighting the color. Impossible. My gaze trailed up to the short midnight dark hair gracing his head. The ebony locks seemed to glint.
My heart picked up speed, and my senses expanded as my body took notice. I felt… everything. Each individual finger digging into my flesh. Even the slight sting of his nails as they dug into my now overly sensitive body. I licked my lips. He was the prettiest man I had ever laid eyes on. His lavender gaze fell to my mouth, and his eyes narrowed. I suddenly found myself on my butt, staring up at his intimidating shadow.
“Who the hell are you?” he said in a tone so sharp and disgusted, I cringed back. My eyes flicked down, and I dipped my head. It was another dirty vampire. This must be the other one’s mate. They definitely had a lot in common, namely a total lack of manners.
I wanted to laugh at the ridiculous path my thought process chose to take. He must have noticed the hysterical laughter I was attempting to suppress, because he leaned closer to my face and snarled, “Answer me.”
I had so many curse words I wanted to spit at him, but fear stopped the words in my throat. Swallowing, I looked up at what I could see of his imposing face, at the disdain gracing his handsome features.
This one scared the crap out of me. There was a predatory air about him that rattled off warning signs. I couldn’t bring myself to kick at him or rail all the things I wanted to. My throat was too tight for that, but my terror mingled with defiance as the disdainful look made my spine shoot straight.
I settled for narrowing my eyes at him and squeezing my lips together. Anger flashed across his face, and his hand was reaching for my arm when I heard an angry screech. Instead of grabbing my arm, I was lifted by the back of my thin sweatshirt. Air hit my formerly unexposed midriff, and the icy shock of it made me jerk as the cold bit into my skin.
My feet floated off the ground. I twisted and turned, feeling very much like a kitten picked up by her scruff and just as powerless. He sped off but stuttered to a slower normal pace just as quickly—cursing as he did. I hovered off the ground, trying to process the pain his quick movement shot through my gut. I was sure if he’d kept going at that speed I would have imploded. The world tilted as I was unceremoniously dropped to the ground.
My vision swirled, but I thought I could make out a large white lion. Or at least looked like one as it tried to claw the vampire woman’s face off. Did it have two tails?
I smiled woozily. Man, I hoped the cat won. I giggled and then wanted to slap myself. What was wrong with me? I needed to get a hold of myself. Now was the time to escape. Especially since the male vamp had joined the struggle against the large, white, two-tailed feline. He pulled on the large sword strapped to his back. The zing of the blade slicing out of its sheath sent shivers down my neck.
I closed my eyes to center myself. Inhale. I was okay. I would survive. Exhale. Release all the bad.
I did it a couple of more times, knowing I was running out of time. The animal was now fighting both of the beings. As they paced around it, it kept its eyes on the beautiful vampires. I needed to act. I got to my feet just as the cat pounced at the female, nails extended and aimed at her throat. I hoped it tore her head off.
I wasn’t even shocked about my bloodthirsty thoughts as I took off, running as fast as I possibly could. The only issue was the snow. It slowed me down, causing my steps to become sluggish. And when I wasn’t slow, I was tripped up by the snow-hidden holes or protruding branches sprouting from the ground.
Pure desperation kept me going. Time was running out—nipping at my heels. I didn’t know how far I got, but I also didn’t dwell on it too much. I would feel weak… too human.
Rough large hands suddenly swept me up, and I cried out in defeat. “No, no, no. Please,” I begged. I looked up at the male again, begging with my eyes. He was about to take a step, but at my plea, he looked down with a harsh frown. He opened his mouth, but then her voice invaded, echoing around me.
“Roark,” she screamed again.
I closed my eyes as the world swirled around me as he took off toward her again. Thankfully, he didn’t do that super run that sent my stomach into my throat. It might have killed me. Roark, that was his name. I hadn’t placed much consideration into what kind of vamp he was… yet, but I vehemently hoped he wasn’t like her. Without realizing it, my hands clutched onto his back. I kept my eyes closed, not wanting to see what had become my reality.
“Why are you still holding her?” female vamp spat, jealousy edging her voice.
“I’m not,” he bit back just as sharply.
I squinted to look at his face. What I could make out was so cold, it sent a sharp shiver through me. He pushed at my hold on him. But I didn’t want to let go. There was something about his arms that felt like a haven. I didn’t know how or why I felt it, but I just did. Or maybe I preferred a less abusive captor.
He shoved again, and the push made me stumble back. I rubbed at that side of my shoulder where he’d pushed me and stared at him. He looked down at his hands and clenched them. A shadow passed over his features as he stared down, a confused twist gracing his lips.
At this angle, I could see the entirety of his face, and I would have thought it was impossible, but he was more striking. A thin white scar curved down the side his face that had been shadowed from my sight. It extended from his temple to his chin and made the corner of his mouth dip into a permanent scowl. I blinked to make sure I was seeing clearly, but his other eye was a beautiful darker purple. The contrast between the light and dark lavender was riveting.
I’d never met anyone with heterochromia, but the effect was jolting, and not in a bad way. My gaze traced over his intimidating stature, and my jaw went slack as I drank him in. I was drawn to the large sword poking out from behind him, held by the strap across his wide chest. I opened my mouth to tell him how beautiful he was, but before anything could come out, I was picked up from behind and tossed toward a tree. I landed hard, and something popped in my ankle. As pain rushed through me in a wave, I curled into a ball, sobbing softly.
I heard cursing over the ringing in my ears and then a gentle hand brushed over my face. I blinked the blur out of my sight and saw his face. Roark. His face was tight, such an opposite to the gentle hand tangled in my hair.
Over his shoulder, her face seethed with fury. From this angle, she couldn’t see Roark’s hand touching me almost absently. I leaned away before she saw and caught Roark’s look of surprise, as if he hadn’t realized he’d been caressing me. He clenched his hand and sat back, his face freezing into expressionlessness.
“This was uncalled for, Sabine.” He sounded almost bored.
She shrugged. “We know where she’ll end up regardless. They don’t have to be perfect.”
“It will slow us down. We don’t have a healer for it.”
Wow. I was the “it” in this scenario? I would have laughed at the ridiculousness of that statement if the pain shooting through my leg wasn’t making me want to punch a face… or die.
The cold I felt was fading away, replaced by a heat that sent beads of perspiration to my forehead.
He muttered something as I woozily gazed up at his pretty face. Why was he speaking another language? His words were perfectly pronounced, without an accent. I could have sworn he’d just cursed in German. Or was it Russian? He leaned closer to me, and I gasped.
“Are you going to bite me?” My voice trembled.
His eyebrows flew up, giving him a very human expression. “What?”
“Aren’t you vampires?” I stuttered.
Sabine threw her head back, and loud, obnoxious laughter exploded out of her. I was glad I’d found another flaw that made her unattractive, other than her personality, of course. Roark just shook his head, a flash of irritation crossing his face as he leaned down and set a hand on my ankle. I let out a shriek of pain. I couldn’t help it.
“Oh, human, we are better than those low beings. We are Fae. Advanced. Gifted. All around better than you pathetic humans…” She paused, looking pensive, then said gloatingly, “Or any other Unnatural creatures.”
Fae? What in the world, like Fairy? These two weren’t exactly what came to mind when thinking of Fairies. Far from it.
Processing that fact was put on hold when a burning pain overtook my ankle. I screamed and writhed on the ground. My hands beat at the wall of Fae currently putting me through hell. I clutched his overgrown shoulders and whimpered in pain. His multicolored gaze met mine, and I swore there was compassion swirling in their depths. I squeezed my lips as he tore his gaze away. With a final twist, I felt my bone slide into its socket and almost passed out.
“It was dislocated. I had to set it, but I believe it’s also sprained,” he said and stood in one smooth motion.
I stared down at my ankle, relieved to see that the bone was no longer bulging out. Stretching it from side to side to test it, I stood up. A twinge of discomfort stemmed from the area and shot up to my knee when I took a cautious step. Limp. I tried it again. Limp. I swallowed harshly, panic rising in me like a volcano ready to explode.
The bitch lamed me! I wanted to cry out. To rush her and stab her with the spear in my pocket.
“At least she won’t be able to get far if she tries to run again,” Sabine said with a satisfied smirk. My fists balled of their own accord. If Roark hadn’t spoken then, I would have charged her and damned the consequences.
“Clean yourself up. Your blood is bothering me,” he said, turning to face her with a cold look. Blood. She was bleeding? I flicked my gaze to her and saw purple goo splattered all over her. The accident and the wound flashed across my memory. The fact that it was being verbalized cemented the fact that she wasn’t anything close to human. That they weren’t.