by Yana Guleva
“Amabel?” I heard someone say my name. It was Argem, looking quiet handsome today. I’m guessing he went hunting. I couldn’t smell human blood on him though. It was fresh from an animal. “Are you here to join me?” He asked me.
“Yes, only on one condition.”
“And what is that my beautiful?” He asked me. Even with Argem being as handsome as he is, I still cringed at the thought of being around him.
“All hunters will leave my parents and Tae alone. As well as take Kierce back into the family.”
“Hmm, I forgot all about Kierce actually. I’m sure Luthius will be thrilled to hear this. Sit tight, I’ll be back.” He told me, as he looked at the guards and down at me. Hinting to them so they’d keep watch on me. I sat down on the white couch that was against one of the front windows, and waited patiently. I still couldn’t imagine myself being something I hated. Something that by nature, I did not agree with. A hunter, a blood sucking demon. I would feel the venom burn in me, the toxicant that wanted to destroy every part of human in me. I shook my head to lose the thought.
“So, you have decided your faith I see.” Luthius came in saying.
“Yes, but I suppose you’re the one who did that.”
“Now why is that?” he asked with a smile.
“You put my loved ones in danger, more than once. You killed my brother, and won’t stop until I have no one left.” I told him, now filling with anger.
“Calm down now watcher, you have come here in peace, remember? I wish to not fight you right now, as you have told me you have chosen to get changed. Am I correct?”
“Yes.”
“Well then. I will leave your poor family and lycan be. Oh, and Kierce, he’ll always be welcomed back.” Luthius told me. I eased up with slight happiness. I was glad to hear no one will be in danger any longer.
“I will be going now, since I have a wedding to plan.” Luthius said.
“A wedding to plan?” I asked him, but I got no answer. Just a smile from his wide lips.
“Yes, Amabel. A wedding.” Argem now said. “You will marry me first of course. Don’t you remember?” He asked. How could I not. I remember everything he told me from the time they locked me up in the factory. I didn’t want to even be near Argem, not to mention marry him.
“I suppose.”
“Well then, I’m glad to hear that. Make yourself at home, since you are here at your free will.” He told me, slowly coming up to me. He put his hand on my cheek and smiled with excitement. Whatever he was thinking, was not going to happen. I sat back down on the couch against the front window, and awaited my new fate. I wondered if Tae tried to contact me. Well, I guess not since I haven’t heard him, but I’m not planning on it either. I tried to take the fact that this was really happening now, wondering what I will be thinking after I was changed. What would actually happen during the change.
“La .. la .. la..” I heard someone say. A female’s voice for that matter. “so you are the famous watcher, huh.” She asked. I looked at her with confusion. Who was she? “I don’t see what’s so great about you, or why you have Argem and Kierce drooling over you.” She added with an attitude to her voice.
“I’m sorry.. but.. Who are you?” I asked, giving her the same attitude.
“Listen honey, don’t get wise with me. I’m probably your worst enemy when it comes to men.” What on Earth did she mean by that? “I’m Josaline, Argem’s ex, if that’s what you want to call me.” She said with laughter in her voice. Great, not only did I have to marry someone I didn’t want to, but now his ex is jealous and probably ready to kill me. Not like I couldn’t take her though. She was slim, as well as I was, but much smaller. Her skin was a beautiful pale, smooth. She had blonde curly hair, with deep yellow eyes. You could tell she was one of them. I couldn’t sense a drop of human blood on her though. She fallowed the law. Not for long probably.
“I don’t want trouble. I just want to get this over with.” I told her.
“Over with? This hasn’t even begun. Sweetie, I will make your life hell. As well as I did for his last unlucky girlfriend. I oh so wonder where she has went?” She said with sarcasm.
“Too bad that won’t be the case here.”
“Oooff, you’re a tough little one huh.”
“Listen, Josaline. Don’t fuck with me.” I told her. She looked at me with a slight frightened glare. I guess that told her it wasn’t going to be easy with me this time. “You know who I am, and you know what I am capable of. Back off before it’s too late.” I wasn’t going to play around with some ex. I was sick of everything right now, and she wasn’t going to add to my stress.
“What you’re capable of until you’re one of us.” She said laughing, and walked away. She was right though. I remember Kierce telling me about his mother and how she never kept her powers as a watcher when she was turned. I couldn’t imagine how that could be with me. It was terrifying to think of. What have I gotten myself into?
“Amabel? I will bring you to your room now. Samuele will be here to meet you tomorrow.” Some guard told me. I got up and followed him. We walked closer by the painting in the room, and I got a better glimpse. It was ancient, filled with lycans fighting off people. Fighting off hunters, yet they were defeating. There was one girl on the lycans’ side, a watcher. The painting frightened me in a way. It was much too similar to what was going on now. I wish I could get a better look and really look at what’s going on in it.
We walked up the stairs and down the main hallway.
“This will be your room.” He told me, opening the door.
“Thanks.” I told him. The guard then looked at me with a weird look on his face. “What?” I asked him.
“You’re one touch watcher, huh.”
“Not as tough as everyone may think so.”
“No, you just underestimate yourself.” He told me and walked away. I wonder if he was right, but at the moment, even that didn’t interest me enough to keep my mind off Tae and Kierce.
I closed the door and looked in detail at the room. It was as bright as the rest of the house. The curtains were a light gray color with the walls as white as everything else. There was a dresser on the right side of the room with a huge mirror on top of it. On the other side, there stood the bed. It looked like queen size with nice gray sheets. The room was pretty cozy, and I didn’t mind spending the night here. I laid on the bed and let myself relax. “Tomorrow is going to be a long day.” I told myself, now closing my eyes.
I woke up the next day with a knock on the door. I didn’t recognize where I was at first, since it wasn’t the usual room I woke up in. I missed Tae’s house, and everything about him.
“Get dressed, Samuele is here.” I heard Argem say.
“Okay, I will be out soon.” I slowly got up, and took plenty of time to get dressed. There was such strange clothing in the closet. Dresses and shirts that looked like they were from the last century. I found one though, that fit me just right, along with a pair of skinny jeans. I was amazed by whoever owned this before. The skirt was a loose white blouse, which tightened at the waist. The pair of skinny jeans were black, and fit me just right. I looked at myself in the mirror that was on top of the dresser, and saw a normal high school girl. My burgundy banana curls sit just right, with my eyelashes darker than most. Almost makes it look like I constantly have mascara on. I was on the slim side, but not anorexic. I didn’t hate the way I looked, especially the color of my skin. It reminded me of those hot summer days when I used to live in Massachusetts. I always enjoyed all the girls on the beach jealous of my tan. So I guess in a way, it was natural to me. I couldn’t possibly look at myself pale, with no color at all. It wasn’t me.
“Are you almost ready? Don’t want to hold up the most important person in on this planet.” I heard Argem say to me. Most important person? I thought that was me. I stepped out of my room, and noticed so much commotion as I looked down from the balcony. Everyone running out, trying to get everything perfect for the
wedding.
“So, when’s the wedding?” I asked.
“You’re the bride and no one even filled you in on the wedding date? Well, it’s tomorrow silly.” Argem answered.
“Tomorrow? Isn’t that.. soon.”
“Well we didn’t want you to change your mind. Plus, we know for a fact that Samuele will agree with everything we have to tell him.” My heart started to race. Not in excitement, but yet fear. Fear for something I didn’t want. Something that I wasn’t meant to do, and that was marry Argem tomorrow. I looked down from the balcony once more, and saw how much more white filled this mansion. The fake white roses, with white chairs and tables. I wondered if that’s the only color they believed in. It was better than blood red though. I walked down the set of the curved stairs, and was called into the room with the painting. It was so open in there and had a perfect view of the backyard. I could see a small pond with a walkway straight through onto a small island with a smaller house on it. Was that their private beach house? Or is that where my honeymoon would be? I shivered at the thought of even getting married at this age, not to mention to Argem.
“Well hello there, Miss Fowler.” I heard a voice say. I looked to see where it came from and there was an old man sitting behind the office desk. “I have been waiting to meet you for quite some time.” He told me. “My name is Samuele Pence, father of Luthius and grandfather of a fellow friend of yours, Kierce. I believe we were supposed to meet one day already?” He asked me. I remembered the time I was locked in the old factory, and how I wished something bad upon him. I hope he doesn’t think it was me. I couldn’t afford anymore bumps on the road. I wanted to get this over with.
“Yes, I suppose.” I told him.
“Yes, well. How ready are you for this?”
“Ready as I could possibly be.”
“Hmm, well. You’re a smart girl, and we wouldn’t want you making the wrong choices, now do we?” He asked me. I wasn’t really sure if he was hinting on something or just trying to crack me.
“No, we don’t.”
“Yes well.. I welcome you then. Soon, you will be one of us. You will come in great measure of help you know. We will need to fight off all your angry protectors.” He told me laughing. I still didn’t understand who else could possibly protect me. I had no one but Tae and Kierce. I had a brother, but they killed him. Now I was going to join them.
“No.. thank you sir. I don’t need the welcoming.” I told him honestly with respect. Even though he was not someone I would like, he was still an elder.
“You really are a fine girl.” He told me with a slight smile on his face. The wrinkles in his face made me curious on how he grew this old. I never thought that hunters were capable of doing that, or even getting sick for that matter.”
“I know this may be weird to ask. But why are you this.. old?”
“Ahh, you noticed. I’m half human, if that’s the way you’d want to put it. Whatever I had within me did not agree with being a hunter. I myself, fell in love with a hunter while I was still an innocent man. She tricked me, and tricked me good. I earned where I stand right now, and that’s where I’ll leave it.” Samuele told me. He didn’t answer much of my question, but I don’t think I wanted to know the answer. It seemed like one of those, ‘If I tell you, I’ll have to kill you’ kind of thing.
“Oh well, that’s plenty for me then.” I told him, looking away, hoping I could leave. It felt strange being around this man. Something felt out of place. He seemed to notice.
“Amabel.. Surely this isn’t what you want, but you will learn to like it.” He said with more of a statement than opinion. He knew how I felt about this whole situation. He knew it all. I saw him nod at someone outside the door, and at once, Argem came in to lead me out.
“I can walk through a doorway by myself you know.” I whispered to Argem.
“Yes, but it’s very disrespectful.” I guess they had cultures that I would need to learn as well.
I tried very hard not to think about tomorrow. When it came, I was planning to just set my mind to another state. Instead of Argem standing at the altar, I would imagine someone I loved. Someone so precious to me. I would imagine Tae. I can picture him standing dressed in a tuxedo with a white rose in his front pocket of the jacket. It would pop from his skin being so tan. I can hear him saying it already ‘My Amabel, my love. Oh how beautiful you look.’. I felt a sudden tear escape my eye. Without hesitation, I got rid of the evidence that I was such a cry baby.
I enjoyed the rest of the day in the backyard, enjoying the view of the lake and the colorful birds that were flying around the mysterious island. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky. Surely, the wedding couldn’t possibly be that bad. Yet I can picture myself being in a room full of hunters, the ones who have drank human blood. The ones who have killed the people for it. Again, I shivered at the sight. The watcher within in wouldn’t come out, not when I was about to give it all up.
The day went by quick while I was enjoying the fresh air. By night time, I decided to head up to my bedroom and get some rest.
“Amabel, you may not proceed. All of the powers within you will lead your way out.” I heard a voice say. Again, it didn’t sound familiar. It could be my father’s, but then again, it may not. “Amabel, you may not proceed. A hunter you may choose, but your powers must stay within.” Unexpectedly, my sight went from bright as if I was looking into the sun, to a dark blood red.
“Tae!” I woke up screaming, so used to always relying on him when it came to bad dreams. His presence altogether just made it better.
“Are you okay my beautiful bride?” Argem answered my scream.
“Uhh.. yes. Thanks.”
“Well you have a choice today. Either you get dressed yourself or have someone help you get dolled up. You decide.”
“Well.. I’ll get dressed. Do I have anything to wear?”
“Well of course you do silly. May I come in?”
“I suppose.” Not like I had much of a choice. Argem listened and came into the room. He held a small white bag in his hand. The type that could hold in dress without it getting ruined. My dress.
“This is for you, as long as this.” He handed me the dress along with a small box. “That should get you ready for the wedding.” He told me smiling. His smile seemed soft. He was really looking forward to it. Why hasn’t he asked he asked me if I would learn to love him? With that, he left me to get ready.
I opened the zippered bag to come to find out if was nothing like the usual wedding dresses. It was short in a way, and loose on the bottom. It was filled with floral designs, something from the eighteenth century with a modern touch. It was pretty, but not my dream dress. Well, this won’t even be the my dream wedding. I then opened to see what was in the small box that was weirdly designed. As I opened it, it had more than one section. They kind of darted out from being closed all this time. The box was filled with different type of makeup. Blush, mascara, lipstick and eyeliner. Anything a girl would need, not me though. I didn’t wear any of that, and today’s occasion did not satisfy me enough to put that much effort. I noticed a small jewelry box within in. I reached for it to find out it was a necklace. White gold with a blue diamond as the center of it. Something any woman would adore. Without a second thought, I put it back down. “I have my own.” I whispered to myself, reaching for the necklace I was already wearing. The necklace Tae has given me. It has never left its position around my neck. I quickly put on the dress, and looked at myself one last time. This is what I will always remember myself as. Tan, warm skinned, blood pumping.
“It’s time.” Argem told me at the door. I let out a small sign.
“I guess it is.” It was time to give my life away to save my loved ones. To save them from their deaths.
Chapter Fifteen – Protectors
Red carpet, red covered seats, red curtains and everyone dressed in white. I started walking up to the alter without my father on my side. No one to give me away to my soon to be husb
and. Argem. No one here that cares for me enough to stop me. I felt so alone in a room of hundreds. These hundreds of still bodies were sitting without a single heartbeat, yet all had smiles and eyes on me. Surely, this wasn’t the time where I could say ‘I’ll be the one in white’.
I haven’t been in this room yet. It was on the far right of the house, and it seemed as if it was waiting for me. Everything seemed as if it were planned far ahead. I kept thinking of the voice I heard in my dream, and what it meant. It kept telling me not to proceed yet I still could chose a hunter. If Argem wasn’t the one I was supposed to be with, then why does it all seem so planned?
The song now began, it was strange in a way. Not the one I would have picked as I walked down to the alter. My favorite was Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven. It was the one song that relaxed me and made me think about the good. It made me wonder about life, but never the bad. The song that was playing was mellow. It reminded me of every bad thing I have seen and more. I pictured hate that appeared during war, and the feeling I would get as the watcher came within me. It was all wrong, and nothing I wanted.
I approached the alter without any happiness on my face. Each step I took meant the end of everything, so I made sure to take it slow. Time although, could not go by faster in that moment. As I came up to the alter, Argem put his arm out so I could join. I stood there for a minute without any movement. I tried to picture how marriage would be with him, and for some reason, I couldn’t. The only thing, or person I could think about was Tae.
“Are you ready my bride?” Argem asked me, looking inpatient. I gave out a small sigh.
“Uhh.. yes.” I said in return. I took a step onto the alter, and combined by arm with Argem’s. This felt all wrong.
“Good, now we may begin.” The martial hunter told us. He didn’t look like a priest, so therefore, I guess he really wasn’t. I’d hope this marriage would be void because of that, but in this world, under the hunters’ law, I know it wouldn’t. “Everyone please rise.” He said to the guests and begun his speech. It was different then what I have seen in movies. The hunter talked about pointless stuff that no human, or me in that matter, would understand. I tried not to listen because I wouldn’t accept any of it.