by J. P.
My eyes snap open as I remember exactly where I am. I look around and find Luke staring back at me. I turn back to the window and open the shade. I’m surprised to see that we are getting closer to the ground. The pilot comes on the announcement system and asks everyone to put on his or her seatbelts. I look out the window again and as we get closer, and closer to the ground, my stomach sinks.
I spin around quickly to face Luke again. “What are we doing here?”
“This is where I was instructed to take you.”
“This whole time Ethan has been on Termin?” How could we not have known?
Luke doesn’t answer me as he turns away and packs his computer into his carry on.
I always thought coming back to Termin would be amazing and nostalgic, but right now, I feel like I’m going to be sick.
“I have to go to the bathroom,” I say, my stomach knotting up.
Luke turns to face me. “You can’t, we’re landing.”
“I’m going to be sick.”
He rolls his eyes. “Vampires don’t get sick.”
I want to argue with him, but there is no time. I grab a bag from the compartment in the seat in front of me, below the TV. I open the bag, and in a matter of seconds, I am puking my guts out.
I feel Luke over my shoulder staring, and he brings his torso down, his face a few inches from mine. I’m literally vomiting, can’t he give me space? I go to push him away, but he only leans in closer.
“I have to stay here, people can’t see,” he whispers. I am about to ask him what he is talking about when the vomit finally stops.
I open my eyes, and a gasp is stifled in my throat. I stare down at the bag that isn’t filled with bile but with blood. I squeeze the bag shut and turn to look at Luke.
“Shit. That isn’t supposed to happen,” he says as he stares from the blood to me and then back to the blood. I wipe the blood off of my lips when the plane finally hits the ground.
What does that even mean? Am I dying or something? Maybe Ethan won’t get the satisfaction of killing me after all.
Everyone starts to shuffle off the plane, Luke and I included. He loops his arm through mine again and this time actually has to drag me through the airport. I lean against him as he stands behind me, his arms looped around my waist. He lifts me up and wraps one arm under my knees, now carrying me in his arms. My head is killing me, my legs are weak, and my whole body feels limp.
“Do you need help, sir?” I hear someone ask him.
“No, my girlfriend is just feeling faint. She’s anemic. Her iron pills are in the car,” Luke lies.
“Are you sure?” I hear the man ask him, his voice sounding more distant from before. I can’t tell if it’s because I’m weaker or if Luke has rushed away from him.
I hear the sound of doors closing, and I force my eyes open. I notice that we are alone in the elevator.
Luke tries to set me down on my feet, but I crumple to the floor.
“What is going on with you? Are you okay?” he asks as he leans over me. I try to focus on his words, but he is spinning around the room. “Nina?”
The whole room goes black, and I feel my head hit the floor.
I feel the blood hit me as soon as it drips on my tongue. I drink as fast as I can, knowing how much I need this and how much my body needs it. Slowly things start to come back to me, and I remember where I was right before everything went black. Just before an intense wave of emotions hits me from the person I’m drinking from, I pull away.
Blue eyes look down at me, and I jump off of his lap. I look around and realize that we are in the back of a random car. I glance at Luke again and notice the bite marks on his neck that are slowly starting to heal.
“Take it easy, Nina. I’m still not sure what’s going on, but you can’t afford to fight right now,” he says as he watches me.
I try to catch my breath as I look around the car again. “What happened to me?” I ask.
“I don’t know. I thought for a second there that you weren’t going to make it,” he says as he tries to meet my eyes, but I refuse to look at him.
“That would’ve been convenient for you.”
“What did you feel before you blacked out?” he asks, ignoring my comment.
“Don’t worry about it, Dr. Luke. I’m sure it doesn’t matter to you anyway.”
He just shrugs as he moves to the door. “We should get going.” He climbs out of the car and gets into the driver’s seat. When I don’t follow his lead, he looks back at me. “You can sit in the front if you want,” he says as he pats the seat next to himself.
I cross my arms over my chest and ignore him.
“Fine.” He starts the car and begins to drive down the main road.
The sun starts to set as we continue driving. I’ve never seen this part of Termin before. There are trees everywhere, a dirt road parting them. Luke taps the steering wheel to the beat of the song playing softly on the radio. We’ve been driving for hours without saying one word to each other.
I keep forgetting that he’s betraying me. I catch myself looking at him and feeling safe that I’m with him, but that isn’t the case. He’s literally bringing me to death’s door.
Finally, Luke pulls up to a gate hidden in the trees and talks into a small box.
“It’s Luke, I’ve returned with the girl.”
Someone buzzes him in, and the gates open. We drive down a row of trees, and my jaw drops when a large mansion comes into view. It’s huge with beige bricks and tall white columns.
Luke drives the car around a circular driveway with a fountain in the middle. He stops the car by the large steps to the entrance of the mansion. Two men dressed in all black stand at the bottom of the steps. Luke gets out before opening my door for me. He holds out his hand to help me, and instead of taking it, I climb out myself.
“Looks like she isn’t as in love with you as you thought, huh Luke?” one of the guards tease.
What? He told them I was in love with him?
Luke laughs along with them as we pass by. Luke leads the way up the steps and stands in front of the enormous mahogany door.
I feel anxiety bubble in my stomach, unsure of what will be on the other side of the door. This is all surreal. I think a part of me still believed that Luke was bluffing this whole time, but here we are, at Ethan’s literal doorstep.
Luke pushes the door open, and we step inside. I look down at my feet and notice the black marble floors. The next thing I notice is that there’s no furniture. This isn’t really a home, it’s more of an evil lair.
There are a few people walking around, dressed in all black. The second they see me, they stop and stare.
Luke takes my arm and leads me down one of the many dark marble hallways as he ignores the stares of the others.
“Luke!” a female voice calls from behind us.
We both turn around, and I find a beautiful blonde rushing over to us. Her blue eyes are locked on Luke as she smiles at him.
Luke rolls his eyes as he turns back around. “Not now, Olivia.”
“It’s nice to see you too,” she says once she reaches us. “After not seeing me for a few months you would think I would at least get a hug or maybe even an ‘I’m glad you’re not dead.’”
Who is this girl? Another one of Luke’s girlfriends?
“I’m glad you’re not dead. Happy?” he asks as he takes my arm and starts to walk again.
Olivia laughs as she flips her long, wavy blonde hair over her shoulder. “I’ll take it,” she says as she keeps in step with us. Her eyes land on me, as if she just noticed that I was there. “Who is she?” Her eyes get wide. “No, wait, don’t tell me. This is Nina?” Olivia asks before she starts to laugh hysterically.
“Shut up, Olivia.”
“This is the girl that is causing all of this trouble? She is pretty I’ll give her that, but I was expecting someone more…” She taps her chin as she tries to think of a word. “Impressive,” she finally spits out.
“Although, you have given my brother quite some trouble,” she teases as she goes to elbow me.
Brother?
“Olivia!” Luke snaps. “Stop talking to the prisoner.”
“Don’t be so dramatic, Luke.” She rolls her eyes. “I’m just playing around.”
I stare at Olivia for a second, trying to understand what’s going on. She doesn’t seem to hate me like everyone else here, but then again, neither did Luke. And she said Luke was her brother. I didn’t know he had a sister.
We get to the end of the hallway, and Luke pulls on a door handle. I feel a surge of adrenaline when I see Ethan sitting at the end of a long table with a few others dressed in black.
“Nina! You have no idea how long I have been waiting for you.” Ethan puts his hands together, a sinister smile on his lips.
Luke leads me to the opposite end of the table and drops my arm.
Olivia walks around us and takes the seat next to Ethan. “Maybe choose your words a little more carefully, Dad. You don’t want to sound like a creep.” Olivia leans back and places her feet on the table, crossing her ankles as she ignores Ethan’s glare.
Wait. Did she say Dad?
4
“My favorite son, welcome back.” Ethan nods his head to Luke. “I am so glad that you finally began to see things my way.”
This can’t be real right now.
“We both know Jeremy is your favorite,” Luke says casually as he shoves his hands in his pockets.
“Jeremy failed where you have succeeded, my son.” Ethan beams with pride. He stands from his seat and slowly starts to walk over to us. “I have many plans for our Nina.”
“You’re slipping back into creepy territory, Dad,” Olivia says from her seat.
“Olivia, don’t make me suspend you again,” Ethan snaps.
“I have been thinking about what to do with the prisoner,” Luke begins.
“Yes, what do you think?” Ethan asks as he keeps his stare on me.
“Before we kill her, we should use her as leverage. We can get whatever we want from Chrome, they will trade anything for her,” Luke says, a smile creeping onto his lips.
Ethan smiles. “I like the way you think.” He places his hands on his hips as he thinks. “We will let them know we have Nina and then see what they offer.” He spins around on his heel, turning back to his followers in black that have been gawking at me. “In the meantime, we should come up with a plan. We’re going to bring down Chrome once and for all.”
“It’s about time,” Olivia says.
“That it is,” Ethan agrees. He turns back to Luke and me. “Luke, show Nina to her room. We will keep her there until we decide what to do with her.” He sits back in his seat before he suddenly stands again. “Who should we assign to guard her?”
“If I may?” Olivia asks as she raises her hand. “Luke should do it. He knows her best.”
“I thought that too,” Ethan says with a nod. “But, I have heard rumors that you might have a soft spot for our prisoner.”
Luke laughs as he shakes his head. “Any kindness shown toward the prisoner was purely for the purpose of gaining her trust.”
“That’s ruthless,” Olivia says with a smirk as she drops her feet back to the ground and sits up straight.
“Alright, son. You will guard Nina until we figure out an alternate solution.” Ethan stares at me for another second before he sits in his chair again. “Dismissed.”
Luke takes my arm again before we exit the room. He drags me up a huge flight of stairs and starts to pull me to the left. We walk all the way down a long hall, and at the end of it, he opens the last door on the left.
I take in the large room and notice that it’s more like an apartment than a bedroom. To the right, there’s a sitting area with an uncomfortable-looking couch and a coffee table. Further into the room, there’s a king-sized bed with a white comforter. There’s a dresser, a vanity, and even a bookshelf. I turn to the right and find a massive walk-in closet with everything I could ever need. A second door reveals a master bathroom with a shower on the left and a huge jacuzzi tub in the center.
I walk back out to the sitting room and find Luke sitting on the couch, on his phone. “What is this?” I ask.
He furrows his brow as he looks at me like I’m crazy. “Your room?” he asks like it’s a trick question.
I notice a door on the opposite wall, and when I look in, there’s a twin bed in a small room with just a lamp and a side table.
“That’s the room for your guard, so technically it’s my room,” he says from the couch behind me. “Cozy, right?”
I shut the door and walk back over to the bedroom, ignoring him. I notice that there’s a large window to the right of my bed, but there are bars on it. I look around, trying to find another way out, but Luke catches me.
“Don’t go crazy trying to find a way to escape. There’s no way out.”
I look back at him and frown. “Okay.”
That’s what he thinks. I will make it out of here. I refuse to give up.
I run my hands through my hair, stressed, and I feel all the dirt and dried blood caked to my scalp. I cringe at how gross that is as I head for the bathroom.
“Where are you going?” Luke asks from behind me.
“Bathroom.”
Immediately, I lock the door behind myself and consider pushing the tower holding towels in front of it as well. I don’t know if I’m crazy, but I can’t imagine Luke actually hurting me. I don’t think he has it in him. I decide against moving the furniture around and make my way across the tan, tile floor before I start the shower.
I look around for soap, and when I open one of the cabinets, I find every shampoo, conditioner, and soap that I could ever need. I take one of each before I undress and step into the shower.
As I scrub all the dirt and blood off my body, my brain keeps nagging me to think about the information I just learned. So, Luke is Ethan’s son. They do kind of look alike, I guess.
I wonder how evil Luke really is. I thought he was sincere in California. Either he was and now changed his mind, or he’s a master manipulator and a crazy good actor.
The way he is acting now makes my skin crawl. I know he’s sarcastic and arrogant, but to betray me and not even seem bothered by it…I don’t know. I guess I just have to accept that whatever was between us wasn’t real.
I forcibly push Luke out of my mind, not wanting to waste my cognitive energy on him for one more second. I wonder what my dad, brothers, and Tyler are doing right now. They must be so confused, wondering where I am and what went wrong in their plan. There has to be a way that I can communicate a message to them.
A knock on the door makes me jump.
“Hurry up in there.”
I curse Luke out under my breath as I shut the water off and squeeze my hair out. I wrap a towel around myself and walk over to the mirror. I almost jump at the reflection.
The delicate skin under my eyes is all puffy and red. The inside of my lips is still stained from the blood I threw up. Maybe even from drinking from Luke. Ew. I really didn’t need a reminder that Luke’s blood is mixed with mine right now as it’s coursing through my veins.
I’m about to make my way back to the bedroom when I notice another door. I push it open, and it reveals the walk-in closet I saw before. I find the closet stocked with designer clothes and shoes. Why is this place so nice?
I finally pull a nightgown over my head and slip some socks on my feet. The floors are all marble, so they are freezing. I step out of the closet and find Luke sitting on my bed, leaning back on his hands.
“You look cozy.” His eyes scan me up and down, and I cross my arms over my chest, suddenly self-conscious. Luke rolls his eyes. “Please, I’ve seen you in less.”
I feel my jaw drop as I look at him. “Who the hell are you?”
A smirk spreads onto his lips. “I’m Luke, son of Ethan, Prince of Malum.”
“I don’t believe you.” I keep my arms crossed as I squint at him, calling him on his bluff. Something about this is wrong. This can’t be it. This can’t be the real Luke.
Luke laughs. “You don’t have to, babe.” He stands from my bed. “You can live in denial all you want, but this is who I always was. I’m sorry you were susceptible to my fake persona. I’ve been told I’m quite the actor.”
“I drank from you. I felt what you did.” I take a bold step up to him. He towers over me, our height difference seems more significant than ever.
Luke leans down and grins like he’s about to tell me a secret. “I’m so good at pretending, I can do it with emotions too. It’s really not that challenging.” He takes my chin with his hand, but I yank it away, feeling humiliated. “If you ever want to make out, though, I’m down.”
I let out a deep, frustrated breath as I step around him and climb onto my bed. I sit with my back against the pillows as I watch Luke, who’s looking back at me.
Luke’s face softens, and he shakes his head. “You’re right. I’m sorry, Nina. I don’t know what I’m doing.”
I stare at him as my jaw drops. My heart lurches in relief.
A wicked smirk spreads along his face once more. “See? It’s that easy.”
I feel like I’ve just been punched in the gut. I take a pillow from beside me and hurl it at him, which only makes him laugh as he swats it to the side.
“You should get some rest. We have a party to attend tonight and it just so happens, you’re the guest of honor.”
“I’m not going,” I say defiantly.
“Yes, you are.” Luke turns to walk away from me. “It would be in your best interest to remember that even though your prison cell is a luxury apartment, you’re a prisoner, not a princess,” he says from over his shoulder before he disappears into his room.
I stare at the door that Luke just shut behind himself and frown. I can’t take all of this back and forth. I rub my eyes, exhausted from everything that has been happening. I peel back the comforter on the large bed and slide into the silk sheets. This is the strangest hostage situation I have ever been in, and I find myself wondering when it will end. They will use me as leverage, but I doubt Ethan will ever give me up. If I don’t escape, this will surely lead to my death.
