STEP STEP STEP.
Silence fell as the danger halted at the side of the green dumpster where Madison hid. She tightened her hand which covered her mouth trying to mask the wheeze of her breath, not allowing a single sound to escape her mouth. The little hope that had remained beneath the expecting end had now diminished. The air froze in her chest, her eyes widened in fright and the final tears froze on her cheeks.
Her fingers dug into the skin around her lips as the danger took another step closer. The silence was deadly and almost frustrating, waiting for an untimely death.
Two hands grabbed Madison from the side and pulled her to her feet so quickly she no time to react or scream. She caught her breath as the pressure of two hands tightened at her forearms. A vast eruption of panic overflowed like a volcano, causing her to become dizzy and almost faint. As she regained control Madison threw her hands up in defense, a scream erupting from her sore and swollen throat.
“Madison! What’s the matter? Are you okay?!” said a familiar panicked voice.
Madison ceased struggling, stopping dead in her tracks. Her eyes focused on the familiar figure stood before her. It was Brendan. His face was stricken with fear and concern, his eyes scanning every inch of her face as he tried to piece together complex pieces of the puzzle of what had happened. He supported Madison’s frail body up with his hands as she struggled to regain control of her senses. She was disoriented and everything had become muddled and surreal.
“Brendan…” Madison whispered, the tears beginning to flow heavily again. She threw her arms up round his neck, allowing him to fully support her limp, broken body. She buried her face into his hard cold chest and wept uncontrollably.
Brendan held her for a moment, both arms wrapped tightly around her fragile frame as he scanned the alleyway wearily.
“Madison, what is it? Who has done this to you?!” Brendan asked frantically.
He pushed her small body away from his, staring into her hazel brown eyes, searching for the answers to his questions.
Madison’s vision was blurred. A frosty white firm peeked at the edges of her sight, like an out of focus picture frame around Brendan’s face. She inhaled deeply, trying to speak through the mental and physical trauma she had injured.
Brendan’s eyes shifted down towards the deep gashes on her knees, he grabbed her arm twisted it carefully around to examine the foot long gash of the back of her forearm.
“Madison. Who did this to you?” Brendan asked again, anger flaring in his voice.
Madison stared into Brendan’s piercing blue eyes. The fear began to subside but the traumatic experience had left her weak and near unconsciousness.
“G…Gabby” she stuttered.
“Gabby?! Why would Gabby do this to you?” Brendan muttered in disbelief, staring at the foot long cut on her arm.
“She knows! She wants to remove me from the picture completely. I’m just an obstetrical in her way.” Madison spat at Brendan, her words bitter and cold but truthful.
Brendan’s face hardened. Madison’s words had cut like a knife. Gabby had been Brendan’s friend, companion for centuries, the thought that she could have done something like this made him feel sick to his stomach.
“Gabby wouldn’t do this. She’s not that stupid, the coven would kill her for murdering a human. You must be mistaken…” Brendan protested defensively, but unsure at the same time.
“Not if they thought I was going to tell your secret and Gabby just so happened to be in the vicinity when I was about to tell someone or that I had given her the impression that I would. She knows that I know Brendan!” Madison said more gently, but angered at Brendan’s attempt to defend Gabby.
Her words were weak and the feelings that came with them caused the hurt to fade rapidly - fear had drained Madison. The hopelessness feeling that had troubled her since she had been a little girl was beginning to eat away at what little feelings Madison had left. She found it difficult to hold any other type of feeling apart from numbness and fear.
Brendan’s face turned hard he stared deep into Madison’s eyes, piecing together her story. She had no reason to lie to him and Brendan had no reason to doubt her.
The rainfall subsided, only a light mist of rain fell from the deep black clouds that lined the night’s sky. Madison clothes were soaked through, the thin material of her shirt clung to her torso revealing her slender curves. Her mind drifted in and out of the present situation, she couldn’t grasp one thought without fear pulling her consciousness away onto something else.
“We’ve got to get out of here” Brendan said suddenly.
Before Madison had time to agree he grabbed her arm and began to usher her swiftly down the alleyway towards the safety of the main road.
“I need to get you someplace safe where Gabby can’t find you” Brendan whispered.
Her injured and damaged legs shuffled along concrete beside him. Her Ugg boots were heavily on her feet from all the rainwater they had sucked up. Blood splashed down onto the wet concrete from the open wounds on her knees and allowed Brendan to control her body once more. Brendan’s nostrils flared as he smelt the fresh blood, but he didn’t seem phased by it, he continued to push Madison faster down the alleyway towards the road ahead.
In the exact moment where Madison had thought her life was finally about to end, it suddenly occurred to her that everything that had happened over the last few days was because her path in life had become accidently entwined with Brendan’s and in that moment she realised there was no regret. Everything that had happened up until this moment in time was what was meant to happen. Fate had brought them together and Madison would be grateful for whatever few moments she had been allowed to spend with Brendan. Madison’s destiny was now in the hands of fate and no longer could she make a single conscious decision that would prevent fate from taking its path. A door to another world had been opened up for her, a world where monsters and demons were real, where time had no meaning and all the restrictions in the human world were nonexistent. Life now had a different meaning and although at this moment in time life had seemed dark and evil, there was always sun on the horizon.
Madison felt terrified and exhilarated at the same time. Every feeling or pain was heightened, almost too much for her human shell to bear, but adrenaline still pulsed round her veins from fear.
They approached the large green fire exit of the nightclub; both doors still remained wide open. Fearful Madison shifted for her weight into Brendan so she felt more protected by him. Her heart pumped fast and loudly in her chest, Brendan’s threw her a concerned look as he sensed her anxiety.
“It’s okay, she’s gone” Brendan said reassuringly, leaving Madison’s side and proceeding towards the open fire exit.
Madison watched wearily her eyes glazed with tears.
Brendan entered the nightclub and stopped in the empty corridor.
“What are you doing?!” Madison said panicked and confused.
A tear streaked her cheek as she watched Brendan curiously, fear grinding away at her sanity.
“We can’t leave the doors open like this or there won’t be a club to come back too” Brendan said thoughtfully.
Madison nodded but remained silent, frozen in fear at the prospect that Gabby could still be inside the nightclub.
Brendan took another step further inside the bright corridor.
“Don’t leave me!” Madison almost screamed.
Brendan’s eyes widened at Madison’s distress, he held out his right hand towards her.
Madison stared at it for a moment, debating whether it was safer to stay where she was or go inside the nightclub with him. Either way, she knew she would be safer with Brendan then without him. Reluctantly she took his hand and gripped it tight; her hand shook violently within his tender touch.
“Don’t worry, your safe” Brendan whispered as he pulled Madison towards him.
The nightclub was still and deathly silent. Brendan shut the fire exit behind her and pulle
d her slowly onto the dance floor. She scanned all corners of the room but there was nothing. Shadows crept along the long walls of the room, dancing eagerly with each other.
Madison relaxed slightly at the empty nightclub but the pursuing shadows unnerved her.
“It’s okay, she’s defiantly gone! I can smell traces of her scent on the air, but it’s not strong enough to suggest that she’s hiding” Brendan said reassuringly.
“Are you sure?” Madison asked concerned.
“Yes, positive. She’s not stupid. She knows I would rip her throat out for what she’s done! She wouldn’t hang around for that!” he spat.
“You believe me?” Madison whispered thankfully.
“Of course, I’m sorry I doubted you to begin with, but any Vampire would be stupid to go against the laws of the Coven. But I guess, if anyone would do it, it would be Gabby. She acts too much on compulsion and emotions rather than considering the consequence for of her actions or the logic in her decisions”
Madison squeezed Brendan’s fingers fondly and flashed him a weak smile.
“Come on, let’s get out of here” Brendan said leading Madison towards the main entrance of the club.
A veil of darkness lay over the doorway to the reception area. Madison shivered at the prospect of entering the darkness once again. Her mind flashed back to the reoccurring dream that had turned into reality, the pressing nightmare that would haunt Madison for the rest of her life. She felt disappointed not to of adhered to her unconscious minds warnings, but realistically it was uncommon for a person’s nightmare to become reality.
Her hand was clammy resented within Brendan’s as they both entered the darkness of the reception room hand in hand. The darkness of the room threatened to consume them; it had eagerly awaited the presence of a person as it began to swallow them whole. Brendan squeezed Madison’s hand reassuringly as he guided her towards the two large wooden doors of the entrance.
“My bag! It’s behind the bar!” Madison blurted out panicked.
“I’ll get it, wait here” Brendan murmured.
Before Madison could protest the prospect of being left alone for a single second in the darkness, Brendan had faded away into the shadows.
The silence was prolonged and deadly; her ears were filled with the sound of her own heart beat thumping loudly in her chest.
The darkness dance wildly all around Madison, shapes and figures seemed to jump out at her. She stared around as the outline of Gabby’s curvy silhouette began to jump out from the darkness. She knew her mind was playing tricks on her as it tried to process the darkness, but the fear was too near for her to cope with even the silhouette of Gabby generated by her imagination.
“Brendan!” Madison cried, tears beginning to well in her eyes once again.
In a flash Brendan was stood at her side once again. She jumped at his fast movement, the movement jerking a single tear from each of her eyes causing them to slide quickly down either side of her flushed cheeks.
“I’ve got it! Are you okay?” Brendan asked eyeing the fresh tears on Madison’s cheeks.
Madison struggled to make out the disguise features of Brendan’s soft face through the darkness. Brendan was able to see perfectly fine through the thick veil of black, Vampires seemed more cat like than any other animal. Unfortunately for Madison she did not posses this trait.
“I’m fine. Let’s get out of here” she said wiping the tears from her cheeks.
Brendan grabbed the handle of the right door and flung it open. Madison hurried through onto the street followed closely by Brendan. Once outside Madison took her handbag from Brendan and pulled out the ring of keys for the nightclub. Her hand shook violently as she tried impatiently to insert the key into the lock. After a few seconds of frantically trying the key slipped into the lock and she twisted it - locking the nightclub.
She turned towards Brendan and smiled weakly. A gust of wind swept through Madison and circled around her body sweeping past Brendan down towards the street. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up on end, a chill flew down her spine. The large gashes on her knees throbbed in pain, the cuts had already beginning to heal but the pain lingered on.
The road was lit up in a beautiful golden glow from the street lamps. Water that lined the street sparkled like a string of diamonds beneath the street lamps. Brendan’s car was parked alongside the pavement across from the entrance of the nightclub.
Madison gasped as the cold air filled her lungs. Together they stepped quickly down the stone steps of the entrance towards the car. Brendan grabbed the door handle of the shiny black car and opened the passenger door for Madison. She slipped inside slowly, gasping as her knees ached from being bent as she sat down into the seat of the car. Brendan shut the car door behind her and quickly ran around to the driver’s side of the car and jumped in.
Madison pulled the seat belt over herself and began to examine the deep cuts of her knees. Carefully she removed the ripped fragments of tights from the wounds, clenching her teeth at the sight of the deep gashes.
Brendan half watched as he started the car and pulled away from the pavement into the road.
She lent back in her sear, unsure of where she was going or what would happen next but she was reassured with the knowledge that Brendan was once again at her side.
Chapter Nine: Safe House
She found it difficult to focus on her surroundings. Her eyes were blurry and sore from the many tears that she had shed that night. Large balls of golden light flew past the passenger window as they sped down an unknown road. They looked more like shooting stars rather than street lamps, each ball of light urging Madison to make a wish. The motion of the road outside the car resembled the blurriness you get when you’ve drunk too much alcohol. All the different coloured lights seeping into one another, producing one extraordinary mass flowing colour. Her body was relaxed, but the muscles in her arms and legs were still tense. The pain had now subsided but she was left with the tingling sensation of healing wounds. Only in the morning would Madison truly feel the impact from her injuries. There was an edging darkness in her mind that had been caused by shock, which had caused her to fall in and out of consciousness. Her mind was mentally tired and her body more so. In the state of shock that had grabbed a hold of her like a parasite, she had no concept of time. It seemed like they had been driving for days, but reality was they were almost an hour outside of London in a town or village where Madison had never been before. There was a lot of countryside compared to the normal sight of towering buildings and pebbled roads which she had become accustom to in the busy London lifestyle. There was something about the deadly calm and tranquility of the countryside that unnerved Madison. She knew now that silence was the root of all evil.
Small droplets of water fell from overhanging trees onto the windscreen of the car as they zoomed through the countryside.
Madison hadn’t noticed when the city had diminished and the countryside began, the whole journey was becoming a never ending blur of street lambs, trees and darkened fields.
“Where are we going?” Madison asked.
Brendan span around to look at her, she met his gaze. He seemed surprised that she had spoken; the silence between them both had lasted for some time.
“A friend’s place, we can lie low there until I figure out what to do?” Brendan replied facing back towards the road.
“…try to get some sleep” he continued.
Madison sunk further into the bucket seat of the car; she rested her head against the seat belt and allowed her eyes to fall slowly shut.
* * *
She was awoken by the sound of gravel grinding under the wheels of the car.
Brendan was creeping slowly up a long drive way towards a small wooden house surrounded by large fern trees. The front garden appeared to be about half a mile long and consisted of a large stretch of grass and a small, narrow graveled driveway. The house at the top of the driveway was old and painted gray, there was a large wooden porc
h that stretched along the width of the front of the house. The house was more suited to a western movie rather than situated in the middle of the countryside. It looked out of place and not very friendly to visitors. The two large French windows at either side of the front door were lit up with a white glow from the inside lights. A few pots of multi coloured flowers were scattered along the porch and at the corners of the wooden steps which lead up to the front door. Brendan pulled the car around alongside the porch and stopped. He turned off the ignition and stepped out of the car onto the driveway leaving Madison behind. Slowly, Madison unbuckled her seat belt and got out of the car to join Brendan.
It was almost dawn, a few beams of orange light flooded out over the edge of the horizon. Birds sung their morning songs from the trees that surrounded the still, wooden house. The wind and rain had subsided and all that was left was a fresh smell of morning due on the grass.
“Where are we?” Madison asked, doing a full circle scanning every inch of their surroundings.
“This is Leon’s house, I known him for a few centuries now” Brendan said a little smugly.
“Vampire?” Madison asked shyly.
“No, Leon is something completely different” Brendan smiled.
Madison stumbled around the car towards Brendan, she propped herself up against the car next to him. Her legs were weak and not as stable as she hoped. They made eye contact, a warm smile spread over Brendan’s face as he gazed into Madison’s hazel eyes. He placed his right hand across her cheek, grazing his fingers across her soft pink lips. His touch was ice cold but refreshing, butterflies flapped around wildly in Madison’s stomach. They held each other’s gaze. Almost everything that had occurred a few hours ago seemed to melt away when they looked into each other’s eyes – gazing into each other’s soul. People say that true love is timeless. You can be with someone for only days but it can feel like a lifetime, like you know that person inside out. Or you can be with that same person a lifetime and still find new exciting things about them. When you find your soul mate you can gaze into their eyes and time instantly stands still - and time stood still for Madison and Brendan.
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