Blud

Part 15: Eve

My head aches as I try to lift it off the cold surface. I'm laying on my side, curled up in a ball. I give up lifting my head and just crack my eyes open, and they adjust to the darkness. I'm in a concrete cell with one slit of a window on one wall, too small to even fit my arm out of, I'm sure, and a heavy metal door. Somewhere around me a water drips, echoing in the space. I try to swallow, my throat like sandpaper making me wince.

"Hello?" I croak, my voice barely audible, but I know if there is a vampire out there they will hear me. I hear scuffling and then footsteps on stone as someone walks to my door and stands in front of it.

"You're awake," a voice I recognize says, and they chuckle. My blood turns to ice.

"Marcus?" I rasp, trying to clear my throat but it's no use.

"You know how hard I worked at Hector's side to become the second in command?" He laughs darkly, making me shiver on the ground. "Then you had to go and fuck it all up."

"I didn't have anything to do with-" I try to argue, my words burning my throat, but his snarl reverberates in the cell and I shut up.

"Let's see Nicolas ignore me again with you out of the picture." He turns away and walks quickly down a hallway, and then I hear a heavy door scrap on the stone before slamming shut. The metal clang of multiple locks echoes down the corridor and I feel tears swell in my eyes. I wrap my arms tighter around my knees and cry on the floor until I fall back asleep.

~

When I wake up again, my head is better, and I gingerly sit up, testing my joints and muscles for injury. All seems to be well as I stand up and creep over to the door. It's made of silver, I can smell it from here so I don't touch it. I stretch on my tip toes and try to see out the little window, but lose my balance, catching myself on the door and crying out when the silver burns into the palm of my hand. My flesh sizzles, and I clutch my hand to my chest, silencing my pain by biting into my lip hard. I stifle a groan and back away from the door and sit on the floor against the wall, holding my knees to my chest.

I sit like that for a long time, frozen on the floor with fear and hopelessness. My mind wanders all over the place, and I wish more than ever that I could actually starve to death. I could be down here for years and only get weaker but never die, never get released into sweet nothings.

I bounce my head on the wall behind me, keeping time with the water that drips somewhere. I wonder what Liam is doing right now. Did he come home to the house empty and panic? Is he out looking for me right now? I was shopping, getting clothes to replace the ones that were ruined in my apartment when someone grabbed me from behind and darted me in the neck with wolfsbane, and I woke up here. I start to cry again at the thought that he will never suspect Marcus and will never find me down here.

What if he thinks I left him? My chest begins to tighten as I imagine him coming home and thinking I ran out on him, leaving my clothes and not even caring to say goodbye or give him a reason. Would he try to find me and ask why I left or just let me go? I want more than anything to hold his face in my hands, to press my freezing body against his burning hot skin and hear him whisper that everything is okay; that I'm safe. But I have a growing, sinking feeling that that's not going to happen.

The locks on the door begin to click and slide and I stand, crouched and ready to pounce at whoever comes through that door. It slides open heavily about halfway, then I hear the flop of something slap the floor, and the door pulls shut again I rush over to it, about to grab it but remembering I shouldn't.

"Wait!" I cry out, and the door pauses. I exhale in relief. "Please, let me out!" I plead, and the door slams shut in response, locking again as quick footsteps retreat. My shoulders hang in disappointment, and I glance down to see what was tossed in. A bag of Blud sits on the concrete. I grind my teeth and walk by it, sitting back in my spot on the floor and ignoring it stubbornly.