“Oh, you stupid. Stupid child.” He says as he comes close to me and looks down at the straight and brave face even though I am trying my best to maintain a straight face and not look scared or weak in front of him.mc
“You know I thought you had escaped. That I would not be able to reach you. Even though I wanted to. I have wanted to taste you since the first day I saw you in the bar that night. But then you met your puny strength man and decided you had found your one. When Jennifer told me about him, I figured, you know, I would have to kill him to get him out of the way and then enjoy the chase for you.” He sighed and gave a smile suddenly made me even more scared than I was. Oh my, Mark. My precious Mark. He continued talking.
“And Jennifer came up with this brilliant idea. I must confess, even I was skeptical at first. But you have to give it up for the smart crazy bitch. Her plan worked. Now we have both you and Mark to have fun with. You ran to me just like she said you would. Humans. So predictable. I gave you credit and thought you were smarter than that but hey, it is not the first time I have been disappointed by dumb humans are.”
I try to sound calm and not let him think he can work me up. I control my panic. “So, tell me, Ray? Where is Mark?”
He just shrugged nonchalantly and grab the naked lady by the chin. “It doesn’t matter. You will see him soon enough.” He looked at me and gave me a wink. “It just would not be the same. Because when Jennifer is done with him, it is going to be my turn. And he will become my little servant.”
“And me? What do you plan to do with me?” I ask in a seemingly calm voice. Just keep him talking, I tell myself.
He had left the door open. I just have to find a way to get rid of him so we can make our getaway. But how do you get a vampire out of the way?
He licked his lips and stared at my neck and his red eyes gleamed even in the dark. “You, my dear Jane, will become my servant. But I will take my time before turning you. I like the fire in your eyes. Yes, I will keep you with me for a while longer. Then you will be mine. For eternity, baby.”
“Just like her?” I nod at the lady beside me.
“Yes. She is my pet. Just like you will be.” He then looks at her and to my horror, he called her to crawl to him. And just like unexplainable sorcery, she responded: “Yes, master.”
I thought she was dumb!
She moved away from me, threw the jacket to the ground, got on her fours and started crawling to him like a dog. When she got to him, he tapped her head and smiled at the mortification in my eyes.
“Yes, princess. I will turn you and you will also become my servant. Just like her. And you will do my bidding and live your life or what is left of it---to please me. I like the look in your eyes. That tiny bit of hope. Like you still think you have an option. No one is coming to save you. It is just us from now on. Till forever.”
“How did you get her?” Just keep him talking, I said to myself
“It was simple. Too simple to please me. I just captured her walking alone at night ten years ago. She did give a good fight but it wa so rewarding when I turned her and she became my servant. I don’t even remember her name anymore. I probably would not forget yours though. I like Jane.” He looked down again at the woman at his feet. “Lick my shoes, servant.” He commanded her. She does that and he smiles at me. “ You should take notes on how to be a good girl.” He was intentionally trying to break my spirit but I was not going to give in. This will never be my fate.
A shadow envelopes the door and when I turned, I see Jennifer dragging an unconscious Mark. She then throws him next to me. I quickly rush to him and start crying. Oh, my poor Mark. This is my fault. It is all my fault. If I had not moved to Boston and started working at Whisky Peak maybe Mark would have been living a good life and not literarily be in a vampire’s lair. I did this to him. By bragging about him to Jennifer and showing her pictures. Oh, Mark, I am so sorry.
“Oh, poor baby. You don’t have to cry. He is not dead. He is just on his way to becoming a Vampire just like you would soon be.” Jennifer says to me in a sweet singsong voice. “Oh don’t be sad, Princess. This is going to be fun!”
She moves close to me and tries to run her hands on my face. I slap her hand away immediately and she becomes very angry. “Still a proud little bitch, right?” Then she smiles again. “I Like it!”
She turns to Ray. “Oh, this is going to be so much fun. Having them as our servants. Don’t you think?”
Ray nods and smiles.
“But why? Why me? Why would you even bring Mark into all this? He does not even know who you are. He is on his way to becoming a doctor. He is going to help and change lives. But you have to ruin that. Why?” I burst out in tears.
“Shh shhh. It is not all bad.” She cooed. “I want you. And now I can have you for the rest of eternity, baby. Anytime I want. I always get what I want. If only you had agreed when I asked you the first time, maybe we won't be here right now. And maybe your doctor beau would still be in the library reading about human anatomy.”
“So you would have left me alone if I agreed to sleep with you?”
“Well, I can't promise. Who knows? It may have been so boring that I would have avoided you like a plague.”
“Can I ask you something?” I wipe the tears off my eyes.
“Sure, baby. We do have forever but sure ask whatever you want.” She said.
There was a sound coming from outside. It seemed there was a disruption outside. Ray looked up.
“You stay here with them. Let me go and check it out.” He said and Jennifer just nodded perturbed.
When Ray left, she even prompted me. “Ask me what you want, princess.”
“Do vampires walk in the sun? I thought that was impossible for them since you sleep in coffins and stuff?”
“That’s just tales. Although our strength is indeed weakened in the sun. But we can walk in it. We do feel most powerful in the night though.”
“Is it also true that you have superpowers? Like they show in movies? Super strength and speed and all that?”
“Yes, we have those. Although they are more romanticized. We can see better than eagles, hear from the farthest distances. We do have super speed and super strength. Which we only use those when we want to feed or hunt. And most importantly, we can live forever.”
“Wow.” I pretend to be so entranced in what she is saying that I let her even touch my shoulders while I strategized on how I can maneuver myself out of that room. I just have to play along for a while longer. “So how do you feed? I have been curious about that?”
“Well, we feed on blood. Both humans and animals. But we prefer humans. The scent is more inviting. And it so tasty” She said as he moved close to my neck and sniffed me. My breath caught in my throat. She was going to bite me. And kill me. “Very intoxicating.” She moves her lips to my face and was about to kiss me when she suddenly flew into the air. She screamed as her back slams against the wall. But just like a cat, she bounced back and then I see Diana come closer to her. She raised her hand and rendered Jennifer immobile in the air, slammed against a wall. Another guy appears. Wait, I recognize him. The guy from the bar that night. Sagat.
“Sagat, grab the hostages and let's get out of here quickly. I can't hold her for much longer like this.” Diana screamed at him as Jennifer kicked in the air, trying to break free of the spell Diana was using to keep her suspended in the air.
Sagat ran towards me as I struggled to stand up. He steadied me with his firm hands and helped me stand.
“Are you okay, Jane?” He asked with a worried expression on his face. “Did they hurt you? Are you hurt anywhere? Can you walk?” He continued to ask as he tried to scan my body for injuries.
“I am fine. I am. But they are not.” I point at the unconscious body of Mark and the paranoid naked lady had managed to roll into a ball.
“Okay, I will carry Mark and you can handle the lady. Come on. We have to hurry.” Sagat lifts Mark off the ground like a sack of potatoes. He
looked like he did not feel the weight at all. Now that was not normal. That kind of strength does not come normally. But I don’t even have time to think about that right now. I have to convince this lady to come with us. I turn to her.
“Please, you have to come with us. I am sure these guys can help us.”
She shook her head curled tighter into herself. She kept muttering about never leaving her master and that I should leave her alone. I was not having it. I still kept trying to make her see the reason why she could not stay.
“We have to go. This is a chance for you to return to your family and normal life. Please, let us go. I promised to take care of you. Let me help you.”
Upon hearing that she ran even farther away and started rocking herself as she said she would never betray her master.
Diana was growing impatient was now using both hands to hold Jennifer.
Sagat was the one who jerked me away when I tried to follow her again. “There is nothing you can do for her. She is his slave and will never leave unless he is dead. I am sorry but we have to go. Now.”
My heart sank as I looked in her tormented eyes as resignation took over. Sagat nudged me towards the door and we make a break for it. I hear Jennifer’s groan of pain as Diana cast a spell on her before she joined us. We run through a dark hallway till we got to a spiral staircase that looks different from the one I saw when I came in with Ray earlier. We reach the top of the stairs and enter a large living room and found three men waiting. At first, I thought they were part of Ray’s vampires. But when Sagat nodded at them, they nodded back. I exhaled loudly. They had come with Diana and Sagat to save me. I wonder how I would ever repay them from the terrible fate they are saving me from. But my relief was short-lived when three vampires appeared out of nowhere. Their fangs and red eyes ready to battle.
“Sagat, Go. We will handle this.” One of the guys says to him. Sagat nods and both Diana head towards the door that led outside.
I panicked and turned to see how the guys would handle themselves against blood-hungry vampires. That was when I saw them transform from humans into the biggest kind of animal I have seen. They became… werewolves! I could not believe my eyes. I almost stopped in my tracks before Diana pushed me forward.
“We have to leave now, Jane.”
“But, they just-“
“Later.”
We finally reach the exit and I see a black SUV parked. We were about to head for it when Ray suddenly appeared.
“Well, well, I guess you brought some new friends. It seems like more food for me tonight. You should know you can never escape me, Jane. But I am so proud of you for trying.”
“It is over, Ray.” Sagat spat out.
Ray just laughed. “And who is going to stop me? You? Or your little witch? She’s mine, dog. I will never let her go. Her purpose in life is now to serve me.”
“Oh, shut up, you asshole,” Diana interjects and tries to cast a spell on him. But he seems stronger than Jennifer and was able to wade her off. He moved with the speed of light and grabbed Diana only to throw her in the air, far across the lot.
Sagat puts Mark down, carefully, his gaze never leaving Ray, he told me to get Mark into the car and make sure that Diana was alright too. And he would be there in a minute. His voice was so low even I was scared. Ray tried to reach for me but Sagat changed into a huge black werewolf and grabs Ray by the limb. Ray tried to slap him away but Sagat tightens his grip on his limb. I quickly muster all my strength and carried/dragged Mark to the car. I locked the door and run to find Diana. She was whimpering in pain. I help get up and assist her in the car. That was when I saw Sagat and Ray still at it. Now Ray had managed to get some scratches on Sagat. But the big werewolf soon managed to have on the ground and stomp on him. I hear the cracking of bones and pain before help Dian climb into the car and before I knew it, Sagat was almost at the door of the car while just small black shorts on.
“You have to drive, Jane.” He says as he opens the door to the driver’s seat for me. Before going around to get in. “We have to leave now. We will pick up the rest of the guys on the other side.”
I look back to the bloody Ray on the parking lot. I was not sure he was breathing or that I care. But I found myself asking.
“Is he dead?”
Sagat looked at the body and exhaled. His battered firm muscles looked like they had battled a lion.
“It is done.” He says in a final distant tone.
Even I am surprised by how calm I was being with all these things I experienced tonight. I look across at him. I can't believe how strong and protective he is. To come here and rescue a stranger. Risking his life to save mine.
He gave directions and as I rounded the corner, I saw his friends come out from the door I had come through with Ray.
I stop the car and they climb in. I look through the rearview mirror at Diana. She knows exactly what I mean. She had some explaining to do. She nods at me and I found Sagat also smiling at us.
“I will leave this to you, Diana.” He said to her through the rearview mirror. “She would understand better coming from you.”
“Sure, I understand. And I will tell you everything you need to know, Jane. Trust me. I am just glad you are okay.”
“I am,” I say to her. “And honestly, I don’t even know how to thank you enough for everything you did today. All of you. Really. I thought it was over.” I look over at Sagat.
“Thank you so much for what you did back there. You and your friends saved my life. I don’t know why but I am so grateful.”
“We look out for each other. That is how we stay alive. You will learn.” He said and sank deeper into his chair. I could see he is in pain but he was doing his best to cover it well.
“Sagat, Diana… Thank you.”
“You're welcome,” Diana replied.
I took a deep breath. Because I know beyond any doubt that whatever she was going to say will change my life forever.
Chapter 12
I continue to drive. Everyone was silent except for when Sagat gave directions for a place he said is safe. I had wanted to go to my apartment but Diana advised against it. She had said that there was a possibility that Ray was not dead and even if he was, he belonged to a community of vicious vampires who will still want to come for me. And that we were going to a territory they will never dare venture into. And that was the safest place for us right now.
I did not even let myself think so deeply about what just happened. It all feels like scenes from a terrible teenage sci-fi movie. I almost cannot believe that everything I would have never thought in a thousand years was possible, had come to life right in front of me. Even though, I had had that conversation about the Salem witch trials with Diana that other day, I did not imagine a world of supernatural would exist. And that they are even closer than I thought. Well, I am smack in the middle of it. There is no denying that. It is just that I have a lot of questions. How did they find me? Was there a relationship between witches and werewolves against vampires? Has this friction always existed between the fractions?
My mind wandered to the lady we had left behind. Why would someone do such evil? Take someone from their family, their life and reduce them to being a servant. More or less a living zombie. For ten years? Ten whole years! He had her locked away in that room. Naked and alone. Paranoid and mentally saddled to him. To think he wanted to do that to me. I shivered on the wheels. I could not believe how close I had been to a real hell. Why did I even get into that car with Ray in the first place? What if Diana and Sagat had not come to my rescue? Would I have become Jenifer and Ray’s sex toy and mental slave for life? My heart filled up with so much gratitude for these guys. Putting themselves in danger to save me. That took guts. Way more guts than I could ever have.
We continued to drive for a long while through the night until we left the city and drove through the back roads. I drove for about three hours following a rail system that led through several forest reserves until we eventually got
to a small native town called Dogtown. With Sagat’s direction, I drove through a little square clearing which opened up to a modern log house.
The most beautiful aesthetic structure I have ever seen. It looks so… so different. So captivating.
The way the white woods were used to make the structure had this entrancing nature about it.
I park the car and Sagat gets out. The back seat door opens and the other guys also get out. I switch off the engine and open the door to go and help Mark out since he was still unconscious. But before I got there, Sagat already had Mark in his arms and was heading up into the house. I assist Diana out of the car.
When it was just us. I ask her. “Where are we, Diana?”
“A safe place.” She replied. Seeing that was not enough. She continued. “It is Sagat’s family house. It has been here for more than a hundred years. It is a retreat and intentionally built by his grandfather as a haven for their pack. When his father died three years ago, Sagat became the alpha of the pack. And he finally managed to create a peace treaty with witch covens in the Boston area as a form of alliance against the vampires. So we can also use this place as a haven.”
We were almost at the porch when the door burst open and a woman in her sixties came out dressed in beige slacks and a silk top. She is small and fragile-looking but a simple look in her eyes told she is stronger than she looks. Fine limbed and beautiful. Now I see a resemblance between her and Sagat.
She rushed down the stairs to assist Diana.
“How are you, darling?” she asked with worry evident in her brows
“I am okay. Just a little banged up.” Diana tried to hide a wince when the woman touched her face. “Ayanna, this is Jane.” Diana pointed at me as she did the introductions trying to get the attention away from her. And it worked because Ayanna directed her worried gaze at me now. “She is the lady I talked to you about. The one we went to rescue.”
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