by Sophia Sharp
She lifted her head and peeked to make sure the men were gone, and then she continued after them. If she could just size them up before she had to fight…
A black gale engulfed her from the side, and she lost consciousness.
Chapter Seventeen
~Capture~
Nora opened her eyes slowly. Her head hurt. Everything hurt. She groaned, not remembering where she was or how she got there. Even the sound that came from her throat increased the pain in her head. She tried to bring a hand to her temples – but realized with a start that her limb wouldn’t move.
What the…? She could feel her hand, somewhere by her side, but it just wouldn’t respond. She looked toward her hand – and her eyes widened with shock.
She was completely bound. A rope the thickness of her wrist had been tightly secured around her entire body. Her arms were completely locked to her sides. But that wasn’t the worst part.
She was hanging. Upside down. She looked to her feet and saw that an end of rope had been tied around a thick wooden stick, leaving her dangling in the air. She could feel her hair graze the ground. At least she wasn’t suspended high in the air.
In fact, glancing up – or rather, down – at the ground positioned in an unfamiliar place by her head, she saw that she was only a few inches away from it. That didn’t make the sensation any better. She imagined this was what it must feel like to be trapped in a spider web.
She tried to move, to struggle out of her shackles, but it was no use. The rope might as well have been a straightjacket. A surge of fear rose up within her.
Panic threatened to overcome her. She wanted to scream, but realized something was pressing up against her tongue, keeping her mouth jarred slightly open. She tested it and realized she had been gagged with some sort of rag.
She tried to think. There had to be something she could do to get out of there. Again, she tried to wiggle out of the rope. It was no use. No matter how hard she squirmed, there was no effect. But she knew that with her strength, she should be able to break out of the binds easily. What was going on?
She looked around and saw that she was in the forest. Following the path of the stick holding her up, she saw that it connected to two stakes that were stuck into the ground. They crossed in a triangular formation, much like a tent, and the wooden rod she hung from rested on top. The other end, she saw after twisting her head to the side, was exactly the same.
Then she looked past her immediate surroundings. It was difficult, trying to get a sense of her coordinates when her entire world was flipped over. Even blinking a few times to try to get used to it didn’t help.
She was in a clearing. It was the same forest as before and there were trees off to the sides, but directly in front of her was a flat, open area. It looked like it had been trampled on. There was nothing else that way except the edge of the trees.
She looked to the side, past the stakes that held her up, and saw that things were much the same there. And on the other side, as well. But what about behind her?
She tried to crane her neck, to look back over her shoulder, but everything was too stiff to allow her such flexibility. So, doing the only thing left to do, she started to swing. At first, it made everything worse. That dizzying sensation deepened as even more blood rushed to her head, and her brain felt like it would explode. But then, little by little, she started to turn her body back, as the thick rope gave a little leeway.
That was when she saw the others. They were all bound, much like her, and all hanging upside down. Her eyes darted to Hunter first. He was there, but his eyes were closed. Nora saw with relief that his chest still moved with breath. Although…was that a bruise on his face?
She squinted, trying to get a better view and surprised herself when she couldn’t. And again surprised herself when she realized she was squinting. Ever since the transformation, and especially since the feeding, her eyesight had been perfect. More than perfect. She had been able to see every grain of every blade of grass, see the thin veins running across the leaves of trees hundreds of feet away. But now, she realized, she couldn’t even make out the detail on Hunter’s face, and he was suspended less than twenty feet away. Panic returned. First it had been finding her strength gone, and now her eyes were worse – what was happening?
She started breathing heavily. Her nostrils flared as they fought to supply her lungs with enough air. She bit on the gag in her mouth, and the taste of it caused her to cough. But she couldn’t cough, not with it in her mouth. More pain shot through her head as the pressure on her ears increased. Her eyes started to water, and her throat now stung. Her heart was racing in her chest, fast enough she thought it’d burst right out. Her breaths quickened as she tried to supply her body with enough oxygen, but it was too late. The dizziness returned just before she passed out again.
***
Nora opened her eyes groggily. It took a second for her to remember where she was, and when she did, her eyes went straight to her feet. She was still tied up, still suspended from that wooden pole. At least this time, she was more ready to come face to face with reality.
It had gotten darker since last time. The sun was still out, providing those last golden-hued moments at the end of the day, but it wouldn’t last for much longer.
The fear she felt from before started to creep in again. Nora did her best to ignore it. Without thinking, she started to swing again, hoping to turn backward, before she realized she was already facing Hunter and the others.
Still, she couldn’t make out his face as clearly as she should be able to. But at least he was alive. As were Madison and Alexander, suspended from the makeshift structures behind him. His eyes were still closed, though. Nora looked to Madison. Her eyes were closed, too. And then to Alexander. His eyes were…open.
Nora tried to yell out, to say something, to get his attention, but he was staring off into the distance. And he was gagged, just as her. He looked completely dejected, absolutely desolate, and demoralized. His eyes were open, yes, but the way he stared blankly out toward the forest made him look worse than hopeless.
Not knowing what else to do, Nora started to struggle against the rope again. She should be able to break out of it easily, but for whatever reason, no matter how much strength she applied, nothing happened.
Something hit her from behind. It wasn’t hard, but it was enough to send her twirling on the spot. The landscape all blurred together, becoming one incoherent mess, and she shut her eyes tightly to avoid the feeling of vertigo. It was no use – it still came. She felt like she would throw up. She spun and spun, round and round without ever seeming to slow down.
Then she felt herself strike something else, and stop.
She opened her eyes slowly. It was the worst sensation, being so completely dizzy while hanging upside down, feeling like your head would explode as all the blood from your body rushed to it, exacerbated by being completely helpless.
It took a number of seconds just to get her breaths going again and then even longer to get her eyes to focus.
And when they did, she wished she’d kept them closed.
Standing in front of her, peering right at her, were two of the most grotesque and disgusting creatures she could ever imagine. They looked like they had been men, once, but nearly all hint of humanity had disappeared. Unevenly-sized eyes bulged out of incongruent heads, and specks of hair grew in tufts that seemed haphazardly placed on top of their heads. Their skin was splotchy and yellowing, like the corners of an old newspaper left too long in the sun. Their noses were the noses of beasts, one curving sharply like a fleshy beak and the other smashed inward like a pig’s. A few long, thick whiskers sprouted from just above their upper lips, which – for both of them – were curled upward in a crude semblance of a smile.
And they stank like hell.
Nora didn’t know what frightened her more – those eyes crawling up and down her body, or the knowledge that she was completely helpless to whatever these creatures wanted to do.
<
br /> “Is this the one?” one of them asked. If Nora were free, she would have gaped. The voice that came out of its mouth – the voice of the creature standing right in front of her – was not at all what she expected. Her thoughts grew frantic. She knew this voice. She had heard it before. In fact, she had, not very long ago, tracked after this voice.
The other sneered. “Yes,” it answered. And the last question in Nora’s mind was eliminated. The second creature’s voice…it was the voice of the man she heard before. The other one. Both voices belonged to the men she heard speaking about finding her, before she had been captured and bound. But…she had been sure that her attackers had been Vassiz. The two in front of her, however, could not have been any further from the elegant form of Vassiz than she imagined.
Nora wanted to scream, to yell for help, to do anything but hang there completely helpless against them. Their eyes struck fear into the very pit of her soul, and it was an unnatural, discomforting fear. She wanted to run.
But all she could do was hang there and await her fate.
“What do you say we ungag her, hmm, Serkhol?” the first one said to his partner.
A smile deeper than before appeared on Serkhol’s lips. “All the better to hear her scream.”
The first one reached down toward her, and Nora tried desperately to squirm away. She didn’t want that mangy skin touching her, didn’t want to even think about the feel of his hands on her. He chuckled as he gripped her easily with one hand and used the other to pull the gag out of her mouth and snap it onto the bridge of her nose. An unexpectedly strong pain radiated from there immediately. Nora thought the impact may have broken her nose.
“Who are you?” she demanded as soon as she could speak. “And what did you do to my friends? What do you want with us?”
“Ooooh,” Serkhol crooned, looking up to his friend. “I can tell we’re going to have a little bit of fun with this one.”
“Answer me!” Nora demanded. She was amazed that her voice didn’t quiver more. “What are you going to do with all of us?”
“Do with…all of you?” Serkhol said, emphasizing the last word strangely. “Why, we’re not going to do anything with all of you.” He stood, and motioned to the others hanging behind Nora. “We’re not even going to pay the others much mind. All we want, my dear, is you.”
Fear pulsed inside Nora’s stomach. She couldn’t push it away. She couldn’t do anything about it. But it was more than fear, and she knew it. It was fear, mixed with dread, tinged with immense apprehension, and tainted with the taste of failure. She had allowed herself to get caught, after she was the only one left who could have saved Alexander and Madison and Hunter.
The feeling in her stomach grew stronger, until she started shaking uncontrollably. Something was definitely wrong. She felt like she would vomit, and her stomach heaved. Even though she knew she didn’t have anything in there – she hadn’t eaten as a Vassiz for weeks – it felt like she did. She gagged on the air she was breathing and felt something burning down the back of her throat. A coughing fit overtook her, and she coughed and coughed, trying desperately to gulp down enough air to stop it. Finally, it came to an end…but she tasted blood on her tongue. Her blood.
“Cut her loose,” Serkhol’s friend commanded suddenly. And before Nora knew it, a knife appeared in Serkhol’s hand, and he was working on the rope at her feet. He cut through it with a few slices, and Nora fell with a grunt onto the hard earth. She managed to duck her head out of the way just in time to avoid hitting it on a sharp rock.
“Now that you’re free,” Serkhol said, leaning down close to speak in her ear, “we wouldn’t want you causing any trouble, would we? So don’t try to scramble away, because if you do, we aren’t going to be so kind.” Nora felt something slithery and wet worm its way around her ear and realized with horror that it was his tongue. She jerked back instinctively and spat in his face.
Serkhol raised an eyebrow at her. He looked to his friend, who nodded as if giving permission. And then he slapped her across the jaw so hard her ears rung.
She fell to the side with the force of his blow and heard laughter erupt from the two creatures standing over her. Her eyes watered from the pain, and her jaw felt as if it had been dislocated. Even trying to move her tongue hurt.
Nora felt herself being pulled up. Serkhol held her by the shoulders, and he smiled at her. “Try to remember what I said about learning to behave. For next time.”
Nora knew she was trapped. She could see no way out of her situation. None whatsoever. The rope that bound her – the same one that had been cut through so easily with that knife – might as well have been made of steel. The pain she felt everywhere, from the top of her head to the soles of her feet, was unlike anything she remembered experiencing since becoming a Vassiz. Her vision was not as sharp as before. And, worst of all, she was entirely at the mercy of the two most hideous creatures she could imagine.
“Get her up,” Serkhol’s companion ordered. “Go make her more…presentable…for tonight.”
Serkhol chuckled cruelly. “It would be my pleasure.” He looked to Nora. “We’re going to have fun tonight, you and I?”
You and I? Again, panic gripped Nora by the very essence of her being. “What are you going to do with me?” she cried out desperately.
“Oh, don’t you worry your pretty little head. We’re not going to do anything that would spoil you for the elders. But before they even get to you…well, it has been a long time since Borrak or I have experienced any pleasures of the flesh. Entirely too long.” An ugly grin split his face in two. “So tonight, him and I…and you…are going to have a little fun.” And he winked at her.
Nora’s eyes bulged in terror. She wanted to scream, but her tongue was caught in her throat. She wanted to run, to lash out, to do anything that would get her away. But as hard as her mind worked, she could see no way out. Serkhol reached down to grab her and hefted her easily over one shoulder. Before she knew what was going on, Borrak had replaced the gag over her mouth. She thrashed against Serkhol’s grip, trying desperately to hit him with some part of her body, but he just laughed at her feeble attempts and started walking away. He walked by Hunter and Madison, both of whom still hung limply from their posts. And he walked by Alexander, who was clearly awake and had watched helplessly the interaction between Nora and the two man-like creatures. As Nora met his gaze, she saw his eyes now shine with anger and determination. For a brief moment, their eyes locked as Serkhol passed him by.
Help me, Nora willed.
Chapter Eighteen
~A Small Hut~
Nora was taken to a small cloth hut that couldn’t have been erected more than a few hours ago. It was there where Serkhol cut her free of her bonds. Nora’s arms were at her side the entire time, and she felt a flutter of hope as Serkhol’s knife made its way through the rope that twirled all the way from her shoulders to her ankles. If she moved fast, she thought, she could grab the knife and use it against him.
But that plan fell away the moment she realized that underneath the thick rope binding, her hands were tied together behind her by a different piece of rope. The brief glimmer of hope faded completely when she realized she couldn’t break free.
In the middle of the hut was a single wooden stake driven into the floor. It looked flimsy, but as Serkhol lifted Nora to place her onto it, she realized it was anything but. The wooden post was now between her back and her hands. With her arms bound on the other side of it, there was no way she could move, or try to make a run for it.
Next, Serkhol bent down to tie her legs around the post in the same manner. She tried to kick him, but he caught her foot easily and tsked in amusement. Nora was astounded – she knew how strong she was, and there was no way her kick could have been caught before. But it was like all the strength she had gained in the transformation was now gone, and she again felt very much the ordinary, human, teenage girl.
The wooden post pressed against her back, and Serkhol went a
round to adjust something Nora couldn’t see. The next thing she knew, three sharp points were pressing into the small of her back, causing her to stand upright.
Nora was trembling by the time Serkhol came back around. He was humming, she realized, and it was a horrendously ominous tune. Especially for her. He did not meet her eyes as he did the work of “preparing her” without saying a word. He was a hunter preparing his game for an epic feast.
Tears formed in Nora’s eyes as she realized she was past the point of rescue. There was nobody who could save her now. Everybody she knew was bound and tied. The tremors that ran across her body intensified as Serkhol used his knife to make two very careful slits at the top of her shirt, causing it to fall to the floor. And she started completely shaking when he bent down to make the same cuts at the waist of her jeans. The tears intensified, and she sobbed into her gag as she stood there, bound, helpless, and completely naked save for her underclothes. She wanted to sag down, to admit defeat, but the sharp points pressing into the small of her back kept her posture perfectly straight.
Serkhol bent down easily to pick her garments off the floor, and in a very deliberate showing, folded both of them carefully in front of her. He then placed them off to the side, on a small wooden table that was otherwise bare.
“There,” he said finally, and for the first time in this whole ordeal met her eyes. “You look…magnificent.” Nora could do nothing but cry. Thoughts of what he and Borrak were planning to do with her flashed through her mind – horrible, terrifying thoughts – and there was nothing she could do to stop them from coming.
He ducked out of the tent, leaving Nora alone. Alone with her thoughts, and alone with the immense despair they brought. She had failed everyone. The angels, Madison and Alexander, and especially Hunter. Oh, Hunter, how much she wished at least he hadn’t been caught in all of this. She failed her family, and she knew that after tonight, she would never see them again. She failed Gray. But at least he was free. He could go on and survive in the woods, be with others of his kind.
