The Underground City of Cinders

Chapter 2

The inside of his car was exquisite. The seats were leather and the stereo system exuded an expensive quality. "How much did this car cost you?" I inquired tentatively.

Putting the car into gear he answered me, "Only as much as the parts. I built this car from just the body."

I stared at him in amazement, "Wow, that's really cool. So you're a mechanic?"

He smiled and took my left hand into his right, "Well mostly all vampires can be." He moved my hand and put it on the dashboard, "Can you feel it? Can u feel the engine purr, all the parts moving independently but still cohesively?"

I nodded and took my hand away from the dashboard. I could still feel my skin tingling from where he touched me. I sneaked a sideways glance at him hoping he wouldn't notice. The drive was mostly silent but that didn't bother me. I'm sure if he talked to me, my brain would figure out a way to mess up what I meant to say. I looked out the window and watched the scenery zoom past me. We had to be doing at least 100 mph but that wasn't what made me nervous. The thing that made me nervous was Dimitri being so calm and quiet. It was as if driving 30 mph over the speed was no big deal for him. Thankfully, there wasn't a cop in sight.

A faint pink glow slowly appeared in the sky. Dimitri spoke as if he was reading my mind, "I'm fully aware of the sun Liz. We'll be at a hotel shortly. Don't worry. I've already got a room for us."

I blushed a little. Ooo, a hotel with him? I shook the thoughts from my mind. What am I thinking? He has scrambled my brain. It doesn't even seem like these are my thought. When we got to the hotel I stepped out of the car. Without realizing how tired my legs still were I tried to take a step. Guess what happened next. I tripped. Yup, and he laughed. I was sure I was going to smack my face on the cement but Dimitri caught me.

His smile seemed to make me feel not as embarrassed but my cheeks were still flushed. Dimitri pulled me back onto my feet, "Are you ok Liz? You look a little bit...clumsy."

I blushed even more, "Yea, thanks for noticing."

He smiled. "Don't worry. That will go away as you fully change." I stood there looking at him and I didn't notice the sun coming up until I felt its intense heat on my skin. I buried my face into Dimitri's jacket and he pulled me quickly into the hotel. I could feel him cringing away from the sunlight. I wished I could help him like he was helping me. "Uh, Mr. Collins, you've already checked in," the receptionist said with a confused look.

Dimitri's lips curled up in to a snarl, "When and what did he look like?"

The receptionist shrugged apologetically, "I'm sorry but he checked in around 4 o'clock and it wasn't my shift. I never saw the man. Here's the key to your room."

Dimitri took the key card and we quickly jogged to the elevator. When we got to the room, Dimitri cautiously opened the door. We took two steps into the room and suddenly we were being grabbed. To my dismay, I let out a girlish shriek, which was thankfully cut short when a hand clamped over my mouth. I struggled to get out of my captor's arms. I could feel a couple of my kicks connecting with his body but it was almost as if I was struggling with a statue. I could hear Dimitri groaning beside me as they tied us both up to metal chairs.

"Let us go!" Dimitri sounded out of breath, as if someone had knocked the wind out of him. "Who do you think you are? When I get out of here you are all dead!"

A loud crack filled my eardrums and I cringed. Someone had cracked a whip and when Dimitri cried out in pain I almost jumped out of my chair. I would have had I not been tied down. A woman walked over to us with a cocky smile on her face, "God I've waited for this day to come Elizabeth, ever since I learned who you were."