by Vicki Cross
Chapter 20
Shay
I saw him…. he’s here to save me. My Jude. My guardian. I blink a few times looking up at Gabe. He clutching his stomach and he’s furious with me. He’s seething watching me through heavy eyelids. He wants to hurt me, his eyes tell the story of pain and revenge. I push myself up onto my elbows and move backwards to the headboard. He won’t grab me again. Not without a fight. I’m dizzy from the drugs but somehow, I’m starting to feel my strength come back. I was no longer afraid of Gabe.
“You’ll pay for that!” Gabe shouts stepping forward. I ball up my fist ready to connect with whatever part of his body he offered me first. As I look around the room, I realize I don’t have any true weapons to arm myself with. To kill him, I would either need to cut off his head or stab him in his heart.
Closing the distance, he gets on the bed with me. Feeling the shift, the mattress made from his weight, made my body tense. “I’ve been good to you. I haven’t touched you the way I wanted trying to wait for the binding. Fuck that! You need to be taught how to please your new husband!” He yells. Gabe grabs hold on my ankles and pull me down under him. My fist pound against his chest and I slam my hand up near his throat, but before I can connect he grabs hold of my wrist.
“You don’t know how long I’ve been aching for this moment,” he grins tugging at his pants until they come undone. I scream as loud as I can. The haze of the drugs still made me weak and my arms were now pinned over my head. Gabe silences my screams by forcing crushing his lips to mine. My screams are muffled by his tongue being forced into my mouth and I start to panic
His knee pushes my legs apart as he pulls both my wrist in one hand. He’s going for my pants now. The tears in my eyes are heavy, and I fear that Jude was a figment of my imagination brought upon by the drugs. I squirm underneath him, afraid that my movements would hurt the baby. He pauses for a brief moment to look me over. To in the sight of me under his control.
“This is how I want you…every night.” His voice is deep with a sinister sound. The hunger in his eyes makes my gut tighten. He leans down against me and I can feel his manhood hard against my inner thigh. I cringe and look away.
“Feel how much I need you,” he groans.
“I will watch you die!” I retort with all the hate and disgust I could muster. He throws his head back in a roaring laughter before placing his gaze back on me.
“No my Princess, you will watch me rule over both our clans and tear apart every single human and vampire that dare challenges me. But that is later, now you will watch me give you exactly what you deserve.”
His free hand found the button to my jeans as rapidly pulled at them. My voice was becoming too weak to scream. All I could do was close my eyes as his hand yanked my pants down my hips and thighs. Forcing my weak voice, I cried for Jude again. Suddenly the weight of Gabe was lifted and a loud screeching sound of pain filled my ears. My eyes shot open and he was clutching a silver dagger in his heart. His eyes looked at me as he fought for every breath. Pushing myself up, I moved backwards again towards the headboard. The burning of skin filled the air and it was coming from Gabe. Within seconds fire engulfed his entire body and his screams filled the room. The smoke from his body made it hard to see. I searched through the cloud of smoke and I saw him. My guardian Jude. Something was different about him. He looked stronger than ever before. He was focused and angry. He had awoken the powers that the guardian offered him.
Once he looked at me, I saw the change in his face. His once brown eyes were now red as his eyes found mine and he held my gaze for a few moments.
“J-Jude,” I stutter timidly. It was if he wasn’t seeing me.
“Did he hurt you?”
“No.” I cry pulling my pants back up to my hips.
He reaches into the pile of ashes and pulls out the dagger. I’m not sure how he got into the room, the door is shut and the window is closed.
“How are you here?”
He doesn’t answer instead he turns his back on me and heads for the door. I call out to him and he turns back around to face me.
“What are you doing?” I question.
“My job is not done.”
“You can’t possibly take them on by yourself. We need to get out of here together.” I stretch out my hand to him and he doesn’t even blink.
“Go out the window, Sebastian is waiting for you there.”
“No! Not without you,” I fight.
The mark was in full control now, and I could see there was very little I could do. He may be strong enough to take out a few but he couldn’t possibly take on them all. I needed him to come back to me, like he brought me back to him.
I closed the distance between up and capture his lips with my own. His hesitation doesn’t deter me, instead I keep going and before I know it, he is kissing me back. I slide my hand down his arm to grab hold of the dagger. When I touch it, his hand tenses up and I pull back.
“Come back to me,” I whisper.
His red eyes flicker in-between brown and red and I can see part of him struggling to be with me again. My lips find his again and he doesn’t hesitate this time to kiss me back.
When he breaks the kiss he looks me over and wipes the tears away from eyes. “Are you alright?” he questions again.
“Yes.”
Sebastian
Shay and Jude are heading towards me. Through the dark, I can see their quick strides as they try to put as much space between them and the camp. I look Shay over and I can see the stress and worry that has been eating at her over the last few days. She seems weak, and it seems she has very little energy.
The smell of smoke is all over them and I can sense what happened. Gabe was dead, the only thing that bothered me was that I wasn’t the one to shove the dagger through his heart. They both tried to catch their breaths.
“Are you both alright?” I question.
Jude took in a deep breath before answer. The difference in him is clear. He has fully embraced the mark and it shows.
“We’re fine, but we need to get to your father a-.”
“He’s gone,” Shay interrupts. “He told Gabe that he wasn’t going to be at the camp anymore.”
I cursed under my breath. Now that Gabe was dead, my father would have to find another for his hellish plan.
Shay walked towards me and smiled. “Thank you. I know it was hard for you to go to him,” she wraps her arms around me then releases slowly. I give her a small grin before looking around. We needed to get out of here and we needed to do it soon. I could sense that we were being followed.
A ringing sound beings to fill my ears. It is painful and I collapse to the ground. Shay follows suit as the sounds forces her down as well. We both place our hands over our ears and fight for understanding. Looking up at Jude, I can see that he is not effected by the noise. He swings around behind him and that’s when it happens. A human approaches carrying a shot gun. Shay turns towards Jude and cries out something I can’t quite make out.
The man before us is a hunter, no doubt working for my father. He quickly levels the gun to his chest and shoots. The force of the shot sends him backwards. He hits the ground immediately. The human smiles then turn on the ball of his feet and runs. I don’t go after him, instead I make my way to Shay’s side who’s now crawling towards his still body. Forcing myself up I make my way towards her.
There is blood everywhere, it is all over Shay’s hand’s as she tries to apply pressure onto the wound. It’s not enough to stop the bleeding. I can see it. He’s bleeding out too quickly and something needs to be done. She looks up at me and I tell her to back away. Her fangs are out. The look in her eyes tells that she’s hungry and I realize she hasn’t feed or hunted properly for days. Her pregnant body makes her crave blood even more now.
Tears are streaming down her cheeks now and I race towards her. There is only one way to try and save Jude. He needed to be undergo a conversion. It would by us enough time to slow the bleeding and hopefully his life. The
ringing in my ears continue but I force my way through it as I grab a hold of her and pull her from him. She’s kicking and screaming, fighting me with all her strength. I tell her to relax but the she can’t seem to hear me.
I made my way back to Jude whose eyes were closed. I never converted a human before, but this would be this was the only way. I bent my head down to his neck and carefully drew blood. The conversion process is very delicate for a vampire. You cannot take too much or too little. I felt the pounding of fist against my back and could hear the sounds of her crying.
“Get off of him.” She sobbed. I continued to draw from him, and when I was satisfied, I captured her fist and spun her around.
“Listen to me. Take him back to North Jefferson street up the road a few miles. There’s a small clinic, ask for Lou. Tell her what happened and she’ll know what to do. Ash for Lou, do you understand?”
Her eyes were wide with fear and she stood still with fear.
“Do you understand?” I ask again taking a harsher tone with her.
She nods.
“He won’t die,” I promise her.
She makes her way back to his side and I walk towards the camp. I need to cover our tracks as best I could before meeting up with her back at the clinic. The last thing I wanted to do was draw attention to Lou.
Shay
I watched her intently as she hooked up every tube and cord to Jude’s body. The tears from my eyes fell quickly as she made her way around the hospital bed. He was unconscious and pale. The smell of his blood filled the air and without meaning to, I step forward. His still body frightens me. I need him to live more than anything and I would give up everything to make sure he does. The sudden onset of nausea reminds me of the life inside of me and I step back.
Lou straps him down at his ankles and wrist. She works around him as if she’s done this before. She’s focused and determined. I look her over again. This is the woman that Sebastian loves. She’s beautiful, and a human. She checks his pulse and shakes her head, but doesn’t stop working. Something is wrong. Her eyes move quickly to me and I wonder how desperate and frighten I must look to her. Lou quickly closes the distance between us and grabs my hands in her.
“He’s going to transition soon and it won’t be pretty. His pulse is extremely weak. He may not be able to live through it.” She warns me. I peer over at Jude and fight back my tears.
“What about the bullet?”
“It travelled through him. Right now, I’m giving him medicine for the pain. But with a weak pulse, it’s a sign of internal bleeding. If he doesn’t transition quickly he may die from that.”
My eyes travel back to her and the tears I’m fighting is no longer contained. “W-what can I do?”
“Nothing. I strapped him down. The transition is very violent for a human. Just be there for him. If he survives, he will be very disoriented and will need you there.”
“Have you done this before with a human?”
“Only a few.”
“Okay,” I nod but her hands still hold me.
“Your fangs are out…are you able to control yourself around the blood.”
I run my tongue slowly along the ridges of my fangs and force them to retract. “Yes.”
She wants to let me go, but she’s hesitant. There is something else she wants to say. “What is it?” I urge.
“Is Sebastian okay?”
There’s worry and fear in her eyes as well. Her soft features remind me of myself and I can see why Sebastian wanted me to be her.
“He was when I left. He helped me put Jude into the truck and headed back towards the camp. He wanted to cover our tracks.”
She forces a smile and she releases me. My answer wasn’t what she wanted. But it was all I had for her. Sebastian could hold his own, but I wasn’t sure how well he would do up against every vampire in the camp. It was suicide. But, she didn’t need to know that.
Sebastian
I march forward towards the south side entrance. My father’s no longer here. But I was going to send him a message. Taking Shay wouldn’t be without consequences. There were scouts on the top of building position perfectly for an attack. Two vampires guarded the door with daggers and swords. None of them matter to me now. I want the hunter who shot Jude. The scent of his sweat fills my nose and I know he is not far. The men watch me stride closer and closer, none willing to challenge me. They were weak. I would take each down one by one, but who would be brave enough to try and kill a prince?
“Give me the human hunter and the rest of you will live.” I shout. The guards at the door look at each other briefly but none respond. I look up at the men on the roof top and give them a sinister smile. I undo the buttons on my jacket and slide if off my shoulder.
“So my father has weak and pathetic vampires working for him. None are will to challenge a prince?”
“You are no prince of ours!” one of the men at the door shouts before he takes a step forward. “Your death will come, but not today Prince!”
My lips curl up, happy that someone is so eager to die. In one fluid motion I am in front of him. His eyes widen with fear, and before he can move my left hand has his throat and he is lifted about a foot off the ground. The guard next to him reaches for his dagger but I am already a step ahead. I pull my dagger from behind me and stab it into his heart. He lets out a pitiful scream and collapses to his knees.
“My day may come, but not before yours.” I grin as I rip his throat out and throw him at my feet. His blood runs down my hands and he clutches his throat as the blood pours out everywhere. He cannot contain it, and I finish him off by pulling the dagger out of the other vampire and force it into his heart. The sound of his heart bursting sends me over the edge.
Quickly the two men from the roof jump down behind me with their weapons drawn and I turn around to face them. My yellow eyes are focused as one takes a cautious step forward. Weak and pathetic vampires. One lunges forward while the other tries to circle behind me. He misses be by a few inches and I’m quick to take hold of his wrist and force his hands backwards. The sound of his bones breaking and the scream that comes with it, pleases me and I force his own dagger into his chest and heart.
The other behind me wraps his arms around me to try and control my movements. But I’m much stronger than him. I throw my head back to hit his and flip over my back until he crashes onto the ground. I reach for my other dagger on my right leg then force it in his heart and chest.
Their blood has splattered on me, and I look around to see who else wanted to try and kill me.
“Give me the hunter!” I roar out once more. A few seconds tick by without a response. Suddenly, the door before me opens, and the human is thrown out of it. I look up smiling as the vampires retreat in fear.
The human scurries towards the door as it is closed on him. His fear creates a hunger sensation and side me and my fangs pushes through my gums. I want to look him in the eyes as the life leaves from his body. It was the only way I would feel satisfied.
“Y-your kind are ruthless killers.” The man spats out as I approach him. He is unarmed and scared. “We will kill every last one of you and everyone you love!”
I stopped short of him as he Lou pops into my mind. His words only pushed me over the edge more and let my shadow cast over him. His eyes widen with fear as he watches me reach for my weapon. “You’re wrong. We’re not all ruthless killers…just me.” I swing the long dagger against the side of his neck and take his head off in one motion. A sense of relief over comes me as I watch his body give way to its final movements.
I close my eyes as I prepare to emit myself to the clinic. When I open them, I am standing in the room and Shay sits at Jude’s side. She strokes his hand slowly as tears run down her cheek. After a brief moment she looks at me and stands up.
“You’re back.” She cries and moves over towards me. Her beautiful eyes are puffy and round. She’s shaking with fear.
“Come,” I open my arms to her and she doesn�
�t hesitate to close the distance.
She looks up at me, and her smiles is slow to form but it is there. “Thank you.”
“Has he transition yet?”
“No…are you hurt?”
I shake my head no and she leans her head against my chests. I place a kiss on the top of her head. “Is he still bleeding?”
“Lou was able to stop the bleeding but we don’t know why he hasn’t transition yet.” I look to the left as Lou enters the room. Her hands are folded across her chest as she stares at Shay in my arms. The disappointment is clear on her face, but she doesn’t say anything.
“So far he is alright.” She adds.
Shay breaks the embrace and makes her way back to the bed as Lou steps back out. I follow her instantly and her strides are no match for my own.
“She’s beautiful,” Lou replies turning to face me. “I can see why you choose her.”
I run my hand across the back of my neck. “Lou don’t do this,” I urge.
She doesn’t respond instead she shrugs and faces the window to peer inside the room. Her eyes are focused on Shay and Jude. “If Jude doesn’t transition she will need you.”
“I know.”
She forces a smile. “Well there isn’t much I can do now. I have to take care of some things.” She lying, I can tell by the sound of her voice that she just wants out. I grab her wrist before she tries to leave.
“She’s pregnant.”
She turns back to face me with tears in her eyes. “Is it yours?” her heart is breaking and I hate myself.
“No. But the child is half human.”
She nods. “Then I guess she will really need you if he doesn’t survive.” She pulls her wrist out of my hold and walks away. I want to follow her, every part of my body fights to move but when I turn and see Shay, I know that I must be here for her.
Chapter 22
Shay
I sit beside him, holding his hand and feeling his weak pulse grow weaker with every moment. Every fear, I’ve ever had starts to ring true. How do you I go on without him? What will I tell our child? I try to force myself to look at Jude’s face but I can’t. I hate myself for the vision. I should have known better. I should have protected him. He risked his life to save me.
