Looking up, I took a quick glance around the room and found that mostly everything but the wooden canopy bed was covered with white sheets, and when I turned, I found Alexa sitting in front of an old dusty piano on the far right. Her back was to me, but even though I couldn’t see her face I was sure that she had the look of pure sorrow. Before, I sensed panic and fear, but now all I took in was her sadness.
“Alexa?” I called as I stepped further into the room.
Alexa slowly raised her head. “You shouldn’t be in here. It is almost sunrise.” Her voice was low. Tired even.
I wanted to continue walking towards her, but something told me to stay where I stood. “I know, but...I was worried about you.”
Alexa slightly turned her head to the side to look at me through the corner of her eye. They were a vibrant blue that probably would have filled the room with light if it weren’t for the help of the bright moonlight shining through the large window across from me. “You don’t have to worry about me. I am okay now.” she turned back towards the piano.
I bit down on my lower lip while trying to avoid radiating my worried filled emotions. It was clear to me that she was going through something, and I didn’t want to add to her pain. Still, I couldn’t help but worry about her recent behavior. Earlier, she let me in only to close me out and then I awakened feeling every negative emotion she had.
“Alexa, why won’t you talk to me? I’ve been trying to understand what’s been going on with you, but you’re blocking me out. Ever since the attack at your home...”
Alexa took a deep breath, her shoulders rising and falling. She didn’t speak for a long time, but I could feel her need to talk. Her wall began to rise even higher than before, but before she could raise it any higher, I walked over to the piano and sat down on the bench beside her.
She turned to me with a blank stare, and for a moment I wondered if there was a person behind those eyes, but the longer that she watched me, the more she softened.
Alexa open her mouth to speak but no words came out, and I wasn’t going to force them. It was clear that she was struggling with something inside of her, and the only way for me to truly understand was if she let me in.
I placed my hand over Alexa’s thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze. “You don’t have to talk.” I offered a slight smile. “What’s the point of being connected by mind and soul if you don’t let me read your mind sometimes?”
Alexa’s eyebrows creased into a frown as she thought to herself, like she was debating on what to say next.
“Let me in,” I said softly. “I can handle it. “
Alexa’s expression never changed, but as time went by, I was beginning to feel as if I were sinking into her. I was no longer only sensing her panic, but I could feel a softness inside of her. A more vulnerable side.
“I need you to be ready,” Alexa said through her mind as she dropped her eyes to my hand. “The thought of you not being prepared terrifies me.” She took a deep and shaky breath. “But what terrifies me most is that I won’t be ready. Sometimes I can’t control my thoughts, and my memories flood back too vividly. If that happens and I can’t protect you, I need to be sure that you can still protect yourself. That you can get away if I decide to command it.”
My heart pounded in my chest at the thought of ever having to leave Alexa behind. I would never agree to do such a thing, but then again Alexa didn’t agree to leave Esha either. She was controlled by the sire bond and was forced to let the person she loved most die.
“You could never make me leave you.” I said softly. “You’ve been training me as best as you could, and I’ve been learning every step of the way. I may not have the experience in fighting
real battle, but I do know how to fight, and there’s no way that after all the work we’ve done that I would run away without you. I’d use everything you taught me, including my new gifts, and if I have to, I will protect you.”
Those words brought Alexa’s eyes back to mine. She seemed angry at first, but then confused as if she couldn’t decide if she was relieved that I wouldn’t leave or if she was afraid that I would stay. “Do you really think you can fight the sire bond?”
“If I have to, I’ll find away. History will not repeat itself, and you will not lose me. As for the man that hurt you, if given the chance, I will kill him myself.”
Alexa’s blue eyes flashed before they glazed over with tears, causing my chest to ache. That was when I realized that this was the first time she’d experienced something like this.
Before she and Esha were taken by the scientist, there was no dreaded fear of losing her master, but now that she had me with full knowledge of what was out there, her fear ran too deep for me to understand. Even with our bond I would never be able to fully comprehend her feelings unless I lost her in the same manner that she lost Esha.
“I’m afraid,” Alexa’s voice cracked. “I never fought him before, and all I really know how to do is run. That is why I’ve been going so hard on you, and that is why I had to keep my distance, so that I would be able to train you right, but even still, I can’t help but worry that you won’t make it out of there. That we won’t win.”
Seeing Alexa like this made me feel less like myself. I was used to being the one that was afraid and vulnerable, but now it was as if Alexa and I had traded places, and I was the one that had to be brave.
Something cracked inside of Alexa after nearly losing me when we were attacked, and ever since then she had been breaking inside, doing everything that she could to keep it together. She was now showing me a side of her that I wasn’t used to, and I could only hope that one day she would show me more, but in a better light.
All we had to do was make it to that day.
Chapter Seven
I stood in the kitchen with a familiar fear creeping up my spine and wrapping so tightly around my throat that I couldn’t breathe. I wondered what I’d done this time. What did I do to make my husband so angry?
I stood frozen beside the hot stove as Steven approached me with a reddening face, a tight jaw, wild hair, and already bloodied knuckles.
I didn’t understand what I’d done. I was home alone cooking and preparing for him to arrive, and he was just out at the bar enjoying his time with his friends, but the moment that he stepped in his mood completely changed like something darker had taken over the moment that he saw me.
“You fucking slut,” he said as he raised his hand. “What have you been doing to impress my friends so much?” When he hit me, my side slammed into the stove and my arm hit the pan of cooking grease, knocking it over onto the floor between us. When he raised his hand again, I open my mouth to speak but he had spoken over me. “Why are they so taken by you?” His hand came down on my cheek again, this time rattling my brain and causing my vision to blur. “What are you doing when I’m not around?” I braced myself for another blow, but even still, that didn’t do much to shield me from the jaw crushing pain.
Dazed, I fell onto the floor and lay still on my side with my sore cheek resting on the white tile. Tears slid down my face and dripped onto the floor, but I didn’t sob. I no longer had the energy to do such things anymore.
I fully expected Steven to continue but his screaming suddenly stopped, and it was deathly silent. I wasn’t sure if I was hallucinating or if he’d hit me so hard that I’d died, but when I felt a soft hand slide over my arm, a hand that could never be Stevens, I turned to find Esha gazing down at me with a warm smile.
“Everything is okay,” she said soothingly. “You were dreaming. You never have to worry about me hurting you. Ever.”
When I took a look around, I realized that I was no longer in my kitchen but in another room. A room that wasn’t in mine and Steven’s home and much bigger than any room I’d ever slept in.
Finally realizing where I was, I smiled and rolled onto my back. I was with Esha during our last night in the city before she took me to her home in the country, and I couldn’t help but feel excited to sta
rt a new part of my life.
We were currently in a hotel room that she’d gotten us after a long and fun night of hunting, feeding, and killing. She was the one who taught me how to hunt those who deserved to die, so I felt no remorse after nights like these, but she was ready to take a break for a while, and so was I. I was more so ready to spend my time learning more about her.
Ever since she turned me, I hadn’t had the chance to learn much about her other than the fact that she was a vampire. She kept her thoughts blocked off from me so I didn’t know anything about her history, and I could barely break through her shell. When I did, it was by accident, but there were times that I actually tried to break into her mind. Since she sometimes avoided my questions, I felt as if that was the only way to learn the answer, but she was a master at cutting me off.
All I was ever sure about was that she cared for me. I knew that I wasn’t just some blood bag she asked to feed from or some fun project, because on more than one occasion I could feel her love and desire for me. If there was one thing that I knew, it was that Esha loved me.
When I heard the faint sound of a piano, I turned back over to my side to find Esha sitting at it while dressed in nothing but a white sheet with her brown hair cascading down her back.
The sound of her soft melody sent me into a serene calmness that reminded me of the times my mother used to play for me and my little brother before bedtime. We weren’t the richest in the world, but our father did everything that he could to buy my mother a piano because of her love for music, and as a family, we enjoyed hearing her play.
I truly missed those days, and I missed my family, which was one of the reasons I enjoyed hearing Esha play so much. She played my mother’s songs, memorizing the melody that she pulled from my mind, and usually put me to sleep just before sunrise.
Just as I began to drift off, I was reminded that all of this was only a dream.
A dream that could quickly turn back into a nightmare.
The room began to shift, filling with light and blinding my eyes. All that remained for a moment longer was Esha and the piano, but when she looked over my shoulder with tearing eyes, she began to fade, and all that was left was a man in a white laboratory coat with the top half of his face covered by the shadows. All I could ever see was his smile, and sometimes a reflection from his eyes.
The kind of reflection only an animal would have in the dark.
~Frostbitten~
When I opened my eyes, I was somewhat confused. There seemed to be a light in the room, which was odd since I usually awakened to pitch blackness, but that was probably because it was always dark out when I awakened, and for the first time since I was human, it seemed that I was awakening during the day.
I squinted my eyes and threw my arm over my face as I tried to get them to adjust, which probably wasn’t the best way, but I didn’t know what else to do. I shouldn’t have even been awake during the day because when the sun came up my body usually went on complete shutdown.
I should’ve expected this though. I was a turned modified vampire, which meant that at some point, I should’ve been able to stand in the sunlight.
When I looked towards the window, I was grateful that the light didn’t spread throughout the room. I guessed that was why Alexa hadn’t covered the window since it only shined in one direction.
When I turned to Alexa on my right, I found that she was still asleep and hoped that her nightmare had turned back into a dream. Even if it were about Esha, I hoped that she was able to dream of something beautiful. Her nightmares seemed to lessen after our talk in the old abandoned bedroom but only in its intensity.
That following night, we found out that the call for the werewolves was nothing more than a trap, and they were ambushed. The vampires did call them, but with bullet holes in their bodies and guns to their heads.
Apparently, the soldiers had learned about the authority of the werewolves and wanted to lure them out. They figured that if they took out the leaders, everyone else would fall into chaos. Not to mention that it would probably be easier to find me and Alexa.
From what I was told though, the soldiers didn’t know anything about our whereabouts. They underestimated the strength of the Alaskan wolves and were taken down. I was told that Loren did most of the fighting herself, and that Aramus was the interrogator, which made sense since he seemed to be the brains of the group.
The soldiers were questioned all the way up until they suddenly died on their own. Aramus told us that when he looked in their mouths, he found a small chip embedded in their cheeks. Apparently, all they had to do was bite it to release a poison into their mouths before swallowing.
Nothing was mentioned about Alexa and I before the soldiers committed suicide, so we figured that they didn’t lure out the wolves because of us, and even if they had, I was told that the witches cast a spell on the land that kept others from finding the mansion. No one, not even the vampires knew how to find this place. Not unless they were led here.
Sitting up, I took a look around the room and welcomed its familiarity. We had been here for a few weeks now, and I was beginning to think of this place as home.
Everyone, besides Loren, were welcoming, and they each made me and Alexa feel a part of the family. Well, I had a feeling that Alexa was always going to be treated like family, but I was grateful that they treated me just the same. Kind of like I was a younger sister to them. Even Argus made me feel as if he cared about my well-being.
Glancing down at Alexa again, a thought ran across my mind. I knew that I shouldn’t have thought of such a thing, but I was awake, and I wondered if my body could withstand the sunlight just as Alexa’s could.
Slowly and quietly, I climbed out of the other side of the bed and made my way over to the light that shined through the window. I stood right beside it, staring down at the wide ray like it was made of gold.
When I became a vampire, I felt as if I’d lost something and that something was sunlight. The thought of getting it back was all it took for me to test my theory of being able to stand in it. Of course, I wasn’t just going to throw myself into the sunlight and risk bursting into flames, so I steadily eased my hand into the ray to find the most amazing thing happening.
Just as Alexa looked as if golden ocean water was swaying under her skin, I had the same affect, only it looked different under my caramel complexion. It was still golden, but my skin made it look as if it were a brighter gold.
Curiosity suddenly boomed on me at the thought of standing in the warm sun and looking out at the forest. I could only ever see what it looked like through Alexa’s eyes before, but now, I probably had the ability to see it through my own.
Hesitant to make the mistake of being too eager, I eased my way into the wide ray of sunlight before facing the open window.
At the realization that I could withstand the sun, my eyes began to water. The one thing I thought I’d lost had come back to me.
Stepping towards the already opened window, I place my hands on the window seal and leaned forward to observe the bright and colorful nature of Alaska.
I love it here, I thought.
Glancing over my shoulder at Alexa, I wondered what it would be like to walk out in the day with her. I was sure that once all of this was over, she and I would have plenty of days in the sun so long as we weren’t near humans or cameras.
I turned back to the window and smiled, but the moment that my eyes set on Loren, who stared up at me through the window through bright golden eyes, my smile faded.
I almost frowned and hissed when I noticed something different about her. She still looked the same with her brown hair and fiery eyes, but for the first time she was making eye contact with me without the look of disgust on her face. She didn’t look as if she wanted to rip my throat out at all.
Slightly tilting her head to the side, her eyes flashed. I figured that she was just taken by my appearance in the sunlight or the fact that I could stand in it at all, but even that logic didn
’t completely seem to be right. I also noticed that she was dressed differently. Loren was a leather jacket in tight jeans kind of woman, but today, she was wearing a long white dress that blew lightly in the wind.
My heart began to pound in my chest, and I found myself growing rigid at the sight of her. She looked so much like Esha, even more so than before, and I couldn’t help but wonder if that was exactly who I was staring down at.
Taking on some of Alexa’s emotions, I felt a hint of yearning, but I was also experiencing a warm nostalgia. I wasn’t sure how long we’d spent watching each other, but it felt as if time had come to a complete stop, and it didn’t continue until Loren lowered her lids, tightened her jaw, and began to turn away.
Confused, I started to panic. It was just Loren — it had to be, but as she began to walk in the opposite direction, I had a strong urge to call out another name…
“Esha,” I said in a low voice.
Loren stopped where she stood and looked over her shoulder at me through almost sad eyes. I didn’t understand it until her lips parted and I noticed a glint from her fangs.
Not canines.
But fangs.
Vampire fangs.
Chapter Eight
Allie jumped from the end of the bed and began doing his morning sprints around the room. I’d never understand why he felt the urge to do so, but he seemed to have his own awakening ritual.
“Faith,” Alexa called tiredly.
Turning towards her, I saw that Alexa was lifting herself into a sitting position with the look of bewilderment, which was exactly how I was feeling right now.
Did I just see Esha? Or was that Loren? Only thing I knew was that I saw fangs instead of canines. A normal person wouldn’t be able to tell, but vampire eyes were sharp and could tell even the smallest differences. Especially when it came to our kind.
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