The Vampire's Siren

Chapter 8

I can't breathe. My lungs are working so hard. My arms are pumping, and my legs are striking the treadmill at a quick pace. I check the time on the equipment. Forty minutes. Not bad, but I can do more.

"Carmen!" I hear a voice call from upstairs.

"In here!" I call back, breathless.

"Here you are." Susan says as she walks into the basement where the treadmill was. "I have to go into town. Is there anything you want or need?"

She's been quite nice the last few months. It's throwing me off completely, and I think that's her goal.

"No, I'm fine." I reply, still out of breath.

"How much longer are you going to run?" She asks, leaning against the door jamb.

"Just a little more." I reply.

She hums and turns out of the door. "Alright. I'll be back later. Behave. You know the rules." Is all she says, before I hear the front door close.

I roll my eyes and finish out the hour. By the time I get to the end of the hour, my legs feel like jello, but I still do my cool-down routine. I do fifteen minutes of walking to get my heart rate back down and stretch my muscles a little.

I check the mileage on the machine to see how much I've improved. When I first got the treadmill four months ago, I was barely able to do two or three miles at a time. But now, checking the display, I see that I've easily cleared ten in an hour.

"Awesome." I say, catching my breath. I turn off the machine, and make my way up to my bedroom with its own ensuite bathroom to shower off the sweat.

I unplug the old phone I had found almost a year ago, having found the charger just last night. I had tried to message Ana, but the stupid thing had no signal, and I was afraid to connect it to the internet. I didn't want Susan to know I had found it.

She didn't let me have any freedom. Her trips to town were solo missions, and I never really left the house. Because of course, her cameras were everywhere.

While I wash my body, I try to think of how I could find out where I am exactly. I haven't seen any mail in the eight months we've been here. And I can't risk her seeing my attempts when she checks the browsing history. I'm not allowed to do anything besides my classes on the computer.

Then, I hit my forehead on the wall of the shower. God, I'm an idiot! I can check my student profile! It should have an address on it!

I hurry through the rest of my shower and sit in front of the computer, switching it on. I get to my student profile, and let out a disappointed breath. She had listed our old address.

Damn it. She's one step ahead of me. Her stupid nine hundred years vastly outweigh my eighteen.

I lean back in the chair, tilting my head back. It may seem to her like I've given up, but I haven't. I regularly cry myself to sleep, silently missing Jackson. I miss Ana and the others of course, but him being my Vampire, it's an extra level.

A crash downstairs jerks me out of my thoughts. What the hell? Did someone break in? I do my best to keep my breath quiet and hide in the closet. Voices echo from downstairs.

"They're definitely here. This is their scent." A voice says, though I don't recognize it.

I can tell they're not alone though. I hear several sets of footsteps.

"Search every room thoroughly. We can't return empty handed." Another voice says.

The footsteps disperse, and I hear one enter my room.