Escape

by Sheritta Bitikofer

  Amelia was at least thankful that the moon was still shining bright enough to light their way, despite the dark wisps of clouds that floated across it. She did notice, however, that the moon hadn’t moved at all. It was fixed in the same spot in the night sky. It was like no time had passed at all.

  She wondered if any time had passed in her world. She wondered if her parents were home already and if they had seen the packet from Princeton still sitting on the dining table. Would they notice? Did they care? If they had noticed and cared then why hadn’t they woken her up yet? She so wanted to be woken up. She was tired of being in this nightmare. She hated the darkness, the monsters and the crazy vividness of this dream.

  Perhaps, if the monsters were more pleasant, she wouldn’t mind it so much. Amelia looked up to Connor’s broad, rigid back and wished that he had been kinder to her. There was something about him that pulled at the corners of her heart. It was a peculiar longing to understand him, to know him and be accepted by him. He put up such a wall that it seemed not even Esmeralda could penetrate.

  Before she could stop herself, Amelia spoke. “Why do you hate me so much?”

  Connor froze in his steps and turned to face her. His eyes were cold and his expressions stony. “Because you’re everything I hate.”

  Amelia blinked, feeling like that should have made sense. But all she felt was that she had just been insulted for something that wasn’t even her fault. “What do you mean? What have I done?”

  “This isn’t your world.” Connor’s lips curled with contempt as he growled out each word. “You don’t belong here.”

  “You don’t think I know that? It’s not my fault that I’m in this nightmare. If I had a choice, I wouldn’t be stuck here.” Amelia’s voice grew shrill as she tried to defend herself against this man’s inexplicable rage.

  “If it were my decision, you would have been left in that burrow to die or be eaten.”

  Amelia felt even more hurt by his words. “How can you wish me dead like that? You don’t even know me.”

  “I know your kind. I know of humans. You’re nothing but a greedy, selfish race doomed to bring about your own destruction.”

  “We’re not all like that.” Amelia knew of many people in her own life that were selfish like he said, but she knew many more that were good-hearted and generous.

  “I haven’t met a single human who was truly good.”

  “Then you obviously haven’t spent much time with one.”

  “I’ve spent too much time with them. You’re no different than any of them.”

  “You don’t even know me!” Amelia raised her voice, practically yelling. “You’re making an assumption about my character that is not at all true!”

  “All you care about is getting home. Tell me how that isn’t selfish.”

  Amelia’s shoulder sunk at the idea. Yes, she wanted to get home more than anything right now, even at the expense of inconveniencing Connor to lead her there. But, she was too proud to lose this argument. A clever rebuttal came to mind and she lifted her chin a little higher. “I want to leave so I don’t have to bother you anymore.”

  Connor’s lips pursed together and she could see a hint of surrender in his eyes. Was she actually winning? “Then let’s get this over with,” he muttered, then turned and continued on the path.

  Amelia timidly followed, keeping a few more strides behind him than before. She was surprised how easily he caved under her argument, but she could still feel the tenseness radiating from him like a warning beacon. He was just one comment away from exploding and Amelia didn’t want to be the one to set the bomb off.

  They walked for another long while, not speaking until Connor unexpectedly broke the silence.

  “You mentioned this being a nightmare.”

  She knew that he meant that as a question and to explain her choice of words.

  “This isn’t real. It can’t be. Nothing makes sense about this place or you or anyone else. This is all just a nightmare and I’m going to wake up any minute now. Monsters don’t exist.”

  Connor looked over his shoulder to her, frustration mounting in his tone. “So, you don’t think I’m real?”

  “Nope, not one bit,” Amelia said cuttingly.

  “And you don’t think I’m scary, either, huh?” Connor’s upper lip rose a bit to reveal one of his sharp fangs.

  “Nope. You’re just a result of a bad mixing of garlic powder and minced onion.” Amelia felt it was her turn to slur his existence like he had slurred her race. What could he possibly do to her anyway? This was just a nightmare. She had completely forgotten that he was close to the edge.

  In the fraction of a second, Amelia found herself pinned against a tree trunk alongside the path. The box fell from her hand with a loud thud, plunging into the mist on the ground.

  Connor’s body was stiffly pressed against hers, his face just inches from her own. She could feel every curve of his strong demon muscles, immobilizing her against the rough bark of the tree.

  She didn’t even have time to scream as one of his hands gripped her neck, cutting off much of her air supply. His sharp nails dug into her skin, sending a searing pain along her nerves. Amelia’s hands wrapped vainly around his wrist, pushing with all her strength against him, but she might as well have been trying to move the statue of liberty with her bare hands.

  Connor’s eyes burned a bloody crimson and his canine teeth grew longer than she had seen before, baring them in a menacing growl. The skin on his face grew murky and almost leathery, revealing his true demon self under his human façade. His ears morphed into tall points and hair stiffened into spikes all over his head. Gone was his heavenly fragrance and replaced with the stench of sulfur that assaulted her nose so much that she felt the impulse to gag.

  Amelia choked for air, whimpering as she felt warm blood ooze from the puncture holes he was driving into her flesh with his claws. Connor opened his mouth wide as a roar bellowed forth and a slimy forked tongue slipped over his bottom lip.

  She watched with horror as he leaned into her neck and licked the blood away. Amelia shivered at the sensation of his saliva lingering over her skin. Every part of her shuddered with the desperate need for air and safety. She had never felt so close to death in her life and she doubted that she would ever be this close again.

  Connor’s lips grazed the sensitive outside of her ear. A new sensation flooded over her, making her whole body feverish.

  “Is this real enough for you?” he whispered, his voice throaty and deeper than before. His fiery hot breath made beads of sweat roll down her neck and back.

  Amelia’s mouth opened to answer, but no sound would come out besides the crackled noises of a girl who couldn’t breathe.

  His grip tightened and she could just barely see his glare from the corner of her narrowing sight. “Is it?”

  Amelia’s head quickly bobbled in an affirmative nod, but his hold upon her neck didn’t loosen right away.

  Connor pulled away so their eyes met. She knew that he could see the utter fear in her eyes. There was no hiding it this time. And he would forever know that he could scare her greater than anything else in this world, which she was beginning to realize was quite real. This was no nightmare. This was all real, too real.

  Just as she felt she would pass out from the lack of oxygen to her brain, Connor’s grasp slowly opened and his claws dislodged from her skin, but his sweaty palm was still resting upon her throat. His body eased away from hers and despite her rolling eyes, she could see his face return to normal. She much preferred his blue eyes to his demon ones.

  He stayed there for a moment with their bodies still flush together. Amelia was defenseless and anxious, unsure of what he would do next. His stare softened from pure wrath to something much less. It was a kind of placidity, void of emotion or feeling of any kind.

  He slowly released her body, letting her lungs expand to their full potential. Her knees buckled beneath her and she thought she would crumble into a he
ap on the ground if Connor hadn’t liberated her neck to catch her around the waist just in time. Amelia’s hands fell upon his chest to help steady herself.

  She could feel his muscles flex under her fingers and all of the sudden she felt a new and foreign sensation. It was so similar to fear that if it were not so intense, she wouldn’t have noticed. Her stomach twisted into nervous knots and the blood seemed to rush from her head so suddenly that she thought she would faint. She determined the feeling was something she had felt a little earlier, only magnified so strongly that she couldn’t will it away.

  And just as suddenly as she felt this flow of anticipation, she saw something flash in his eyes. It was the same vulnerability mirrored in her own expression. Did he feel something too? How could someone go from terrified out of their mind and then hopelessly, but happily confused all within such a brief moment of time?

  Connor guided her away from the tree and she was able to stand flat-footed once more on the path. It was only then that she was able to break her stare away from him and focus on regaining her strength.

  Though she still trembled with an enigmatic desire, she was able to steady herself without his assistance. Connor cautiously backed away, his expression turning docile once more. Amelia raised a shaking hand and touched the side of her neck where he had drew blood. It stung on contact and she winced a bit as she rubbed the rest of her throat, thankful that it was still there and in one piece.

  She looked up and saw Connor grab the box and slowly walk back down the path. She wasn’t about to argue or complain about who carried the box. It’s not like it would work for him anyway. And with her frazzled nerves, she wasn’t too sure she could carry her own weight, much less the box too.

  Amelia gathered up her wits, took a deep breath and followed the demon down the path, unsure of what the rest of this journey would hold for them.

  Chapter 5

  After hours of continuous silent travel through the forest, Amelia had begged for a rest. Connor couldn’t understand how she could be tired already. But, then again, he wasn’t used to being around a human again. He didn’t grow weary like they did. Not even Esmeralda was like that.

  As he unpacked a blanket for Amelia, he thought about Esmeralda again. He wondered how she was doing and if she had recovered from their farewell. For a vampire, she was always so emotional. He couldn’t understand that either.

  When Connor turned back around to give Amelia the blankets, she was already passed out on a nearby fallen tree. He could hear her heartbeat. It was steady now, not as rapid as it had been for most of this journey. The moment flashed in his mind when he had pinned her to the tree, trying to prove to her that he was just as real as she was. The way her heart raced, the way he drank in her fear like it were a drug. How he felt so high when he tasted her blood for the first time. He hadn’t struck so much terror into a human like that in a long time. It felt good, but so condemning too.

  Connor pushed the thought from his mind and covered Amelia with the fleece blanket.

  “So, the rumors are true.”

  He knew that voice. Without turning to the demon behind him, he answered. “What rumors?”

  The demon stepped closer to stand beside Connor. He peered down upon the sleeping girl and grinned. “That there is a human in our midst.”

  Connor turned to the demon he knew so well. Veloch knew Connor too. “She’s going straight home,” he grumbled.

  Veloch looked to Connor with his glowing red eyes. Like most demons, Veloch did not hide his true self. Connor knew of no one else that masqueraded as a human as much as he did. When he let Amelia glimpse into his true nature earlier, he felt vulnerable and ashamed, like he had committed a cardinal sin that only existed in his mind. He didn’t like that form. He wanted to hide it, conceal it from this world and from himself. Veloch was fully capable of disguising himself like Connor did, but he never saw the point. Veloch had been a demon so long he had forgotten what it was like before. And as much as Connor wanted to, he could never forget.

  “How will you do that?” Veloch asked, his pointed ears twitching with excitement.

  “An enchantment. That’s all you need to know. She’ll be gone in a few days.”

  Veloch turned back to Amelia and bent down low, his face hovering over her hair. He breathed in deeply and let out a satisfied growl. “Baal will be pleased.”

  Connor, losing himself to rage, grabbed Veloch by the collar of his shirt and threw him to the ground. Mist fled from his body like he had plunged into a puddle of water. “You will tell Baal nothing,” Connor hissed through his teeth, wanting to stay quiet so Amelia could sleep as well as intimidate Veloch. He was fooling no one though. Veloch was much more powerful and they both knew it.

  Veloch chuckled and rose up from the ground. “Why do you think he sent me?”

  “Baal is looking for me?” Connor felt a twinge of fear rise in his heart.

  “No, he’s looking for the girl and the box.” Veloch gestured to Amelia with a black leathery hand, complete with sharp claws. “But he knows where he will find the box, he will find you.”

  Connor stood toe-to-toe with his old comrade, their noses almost touching. “Neither you nor Baal will harm her or so help me I’ll slice you open from your crotch to your chin and feed you your own guts.” Connor let his eyes shift to red. “Am I understood?”

  Veloch was not amused this time. He glared and shoved Connor back. “You can try, Connor. You can try.”

  With those last words, Veloch vanished, dissolving into a black cloud that scattered into the wind that rolled through the forest path. His last words rang in Connor’s mind. He balled his hands into fists so tight that his dull human nails still drew blood that dripped into the soil by his feet.

  He couldn’t explain why he had become so protective of Amelia all of the sudden. She was nothing to him. Nothing but a filthy human child. Was it Esmeralda’s parting wish that he took care of her? Was it Sir Jedalf’s prophetic words of their tangled destinies? Or was it something else? There was something that stirred within him back when he scared her. Back when he almost lost all control.

  There was a spark, a fleeting moment of something he hadn’t felt in so long that it wasn’t recognizable anymore. It wasn’t rage; it wasn’t fear or bitterness, not even sadness. It was something else. He knew it was something he felt once before, but he couldn’t find the word.

  Connor looked over his shoulder to Amelia who was still sleeping soundly on the log, her head resting upon her arms. He listened to her heartbeat. So stable, so constant. He wondered if she were dreaming of something pleasant. He hoped that she was.

  He took the box that was still sitting alongside the path and sat down near the log, setting it next to him. His eyes searched the trees and path for any more unwelcome visitors. He put himself on alert, keeping all of his senses open for anything unusual.

  If Baal was looking for them, he would need to be ready.

  Amelia woke from her slumber a few hours later, feeling refreshed. She wasn’t expecting a different view when she opened her eyes, but she was a little startled to see an eyeful of Connor’s back. She watched his shoulders rise and fall with each breath, memorizing the curve of his muscles beneath his leather jacket. She bit her lip, feeling her stomach tighten once more. The thought that he was purely real, not something from a nightmare, made her heart skip a few beats. She was even more drawn to him now; despite how dangerous she knew he was.

  Connor turned his head and their eyes met. She was caught. Amelia quickly stood up and wadded up the blanket to hand back to him. His blue eyes never left hers as he took it and stuffed it into the pack that was sitting beside him.

  “Was I asleep too long?” she asked, her voice soft, almost in a whisper.

  “No,” he replied as he stood up and shouldered the pack once more. He went to grab the box as well, but Amelia took a few quick steps forward to intercept.

  “I can carry it,” she insisted. “It’s not that heavy.
” Amelia felt a deep conviction to make every effort not to inconvenience him. If she could do it with this simple task, she would be satisfied.

  Their eyes locked again and Connor slowly maneuvered around her, leaving the box where it was. She could see no hostility in his countenance, no desire to argue or retaliate against her. All she could see was a blank, but tolerant expression. If she could manage to keep it that way, she would be content.

  She took the box by its handle and followed after him down the path once more. As before, Amelia did not speak, but the millions of questions that nagged unyieldingly swamped her mind. They were too numerous to put into words. She didn’t even know which one was more pressing than the other. Her head was a jumbled mess of confusion that she knew might never be sorted out. She was beyond hoping that Connor could be someone to talk to about any of it. She suffered in silence.

  Not long after they began walking, they came to a break in the trees. They stepped upon the edge of an open field and Amelia couldn’t help but gawk at the thousands, maybe millions of grey and white tombstones that littered the ground. She could just barely see the tree line in the distance over the crest of the turf. It reminded her of a place like Arlington cemetery, only the graves were not dug in neat rows, but were scattered at random all throughout the pasture. Some graves were marked by crosses, and others by the traditional curved-top stones. Only a few were marked by statues of angels or simple plaques fixed in the ground.

  There seemed to be no sound here. No birds chirped in the trees, no creatures called into the forever night. All was still. All was quiet. They both stopped and gazed out over the cemetery.

  “I thought everyone was frozen in time here? Everyone is supposed to live forever.” Amelia asked as Connor cautiously and warily walked into the graveyard.

  “They do… Only, a portion of the population is forever dead.”

  She ran to catch up with Connor, still toting the box along. It bumped against her leg with every step, possibly leaving a bruise that she would notice later.