Destined Part I

France

I regained consciousness, slowly pushing through the thick liquid dream, and blinked rapidly, trying to focus on the blackened sky around me.

My head was pounding, and there was a phantom sting remaining in my neck from Madeline’s bite. I knew that the wound had healed by now, but the amount of blood I lost was still affecting my senses. Even though my head felt light and woozy, though, I was able to force myself to identify my surroundings.

It was obvious that I was outside, judging by the sky up above me, and I was on a balcony it seemed. As I moved my eyes across the horizon, I noticed the Eiffel Tower glowing brightly in the distance.

So she had brought me to France.

I didn’t have the energy to panic. But as I stared vacantly at the tower in the background, I prayed that somehow Haiden would be able to find me. I tried with everything I had to concentrate on my location, wondering if there was any way he could sense it.

I lifted my hand to touch my neck, but my arm was much heavier than it should have been. I heard the rattle of the chains, and looked down to find that there were shackles around my wrists, weighing me down. My furious growl echoed across the balcony.

I was attached to a metal chair, the chains just long enough to where I could reach up and touch my face, but no further. As if the cuffs weren’t frustrating enough, the seat was bolted to the ground, and my feet were shackled to the concrete underneath me. I was trapped.

As the panic began finally to boil in my stomach, I examined the shackles, trying to find a way to break them free. It was then that I heard the sound of a door shut behind me, and I stiffened, bracing myself for the worst.

Madeline walked into my view on the arm of a frightening looking man.

He was at least seven feet tall, and his body was so thin that the skin seemed to be simply hanging off his bones. He had long, stringy black hair and his eyes were violet, glittering wildly.

“See, Nicolas,” Madeline said, sneering at me scornfully. “She is nothing without her beloved Haiden.”

The sound of her voice made me want to spit, sending a fresh wave of rage throughout my system, dissolving my lethargic feeling instantly.

He tapped his lips gently with his wiry finger, his dark brows drawn together on his ashen face, contemplating something I couldn’t guess.

“Just another piece of the puzzle,” he breathed, his voice sounding painfully hoarse.

“Now if Haiden just does as we hope,” Madeline said, her white eyes more disturbing than ever before, “then he will lead them all right into our trap.”

I thrashed violently in the chair, cursing at her for bringing my family into this, but my tantrum only caused Nicolas to laugh faintly.

“Dear,” he muttered, touching my hand with his plastic skin, sending a shiver up my spine in disgust, “Your Haiden has been killing my people for years. Kristopher should have never presumed that he could get away with this kind of betrayal. It has gone on too long.”

After remaining there for a moment, sighing as he looked out at the city of Paris, he drifted behind me, exiting the balcony. As he walked past me to leave, a slight waft of wind from his movement caused his scent to float into my nose. I nearly doubled over and vomited from the pungent smell. It was nothing like Haiden’s rich, sweet scent. It was revolting. I tried so hard to imagine Haiden’s intoxicating aroma instead of the bitter smell of hate that radiated from Nicolas.

Madeline’s heels clicked on the balcony again, snapping ominously as she kneeled down in front of my face.

“I can’t wait,” she exclaimed, her eyes fiercely holding mine, her mouth drawn in a tight line. “Haiden and the others will come to find you. But it will be too late. By the time the sun is at the top of the sky tomorrow, you will be burned alive. The only thing they will discover will be your ashes here on the chair.”

She flashed a wide smile at the horror in my eyes, looking genuinely psychotic.

“And then they will be trapped,” she continued giddily as she clasped her hands together with joy. “Their death will only be a moment away.”

The noise that came out of her throat made my skin crawl. The cackling sounded sharp and thorny, and the echo of it resonated in my ears, prickling through my brain. She turned to leave the balcony then, laughing sinfully as she closed the door with a snap.

When I knew she was gone, I began to yank my arms madly, trying to break the chains. My efforts were unsuccessful, though, since the only thing that I accomplished was gashing my arms and wrists from the steel.

I screamed at the top of my lungs, hoping that someone could hear me, but knowing that my attempts were futile. The only thing I could hope for was that Haiden would come to find me.

I knew that Madeline was wrong, that Haiden could defeat them, especially if he brought the others along. But what I didn’t know is how long I would last once the sun began glaring down on my skin. Would it be enough time?

The tears streamed down my face now as I tried to think of anything besides burning alive. What if I never saw him again? What if he really did arrive, only to find my ashes here on the chair? A pain slashed through my heart on that thought, sending more tears over the edge as I sobbed hysterically now. I had to think of something, anything that would make me get control of myself. I was losing hope too quickly.

Calling upon the memory, I made myself think of the first night that Haiden had told me he loved me. The night of the Winter Ball when people danced around us, and how time for us stood still. How the next morning the light spread its pink glow across the room, and the way he smelled as he held me in his arms. I remembered waking up to him and never wanting him to leave. I forced myself to think of these things as I prayed that Haiden would come, that somehow he would be able to figure out where I was. Before the sun started to rise over the balcony.

Before it was too late.