Until Dawn

Chapter Five

                                                                   Dawn

They stared at me like I was a wild animal in a zoo, my keeper walking me around to show me off to the guests. When the numbness subsided, humiliation, terror and rage soured through me, heating me to the point I thought steam might have been blowing out of my ears. Jasper yanked on the chain and hoisted me painfully to my feet, hissing something in my ear that I couldn’t register. Instead I kept my eyes to the ground.

“Miss Colchester, we would appreciate it if you could look at us.” One of the Darklings in front of me said. Against my own will I obeyed, the voice too inviting to ignore, one of a Darkling’s key traits; everything about them was alluring to the weaker mind. I latched my gaze onto that of the leading woman, her eyes sharper than a shard of glass, slicing into me and slashing at my soul. She was very tall, a head taller than me, wearing a flowing red dress that kissed the floor around her feet. Her arms and shoulders were bear, silver spirals overlapping one another on her skin, over her upper chest, only to disappear before creeping along the edges of her inhumanely beautiful face. Red lips were pulled up in a harsh smile.

“Good,” she said, pleased.

“What do you want with me?” I whispered, but Jasper suddenly swatted me over the crown of my head, silencing me.

The woman held out her hand, shaking her head slightly. Not letting go of the chain, Jasper drew back after dipping into a bow. “My dear,” she murmured. “we will not hurt you as long as you cooperate with our rules.”

“I don’t have to do anything for you.” I growled, clenching my fists until my nails dug into my palms. “I want to go home!”

“Not an option.” A new voice said, the one that had called me ‘kitten’ upon entering. To the right of the woman, among the four brunettes, was a boy smirking at me, eyes shockingly green. His hair, though short around his ears, was a glossy amount of curls on his head, long enough that they almost fell into his eyes. Cheekbones sharper than the blade of a knife, a jaw too strong for words, he was like every other Darkling ever described in school; as handsome as a medal yet with the ugly soul of the Devil. He had no Marks on his face, but I could see black streaking rising from beneath his collar and cuffs.

The way he called me ‘kitten’ and the familiarity of his eyes were all I needed to know. “You,” I hissed. “You brought me here!”

“Clever aren’t you, Kitten?” he replied, his lips parting into a shock of white teeth as he grinned.

“Be quiet, Felix.” the woman huffed, drawing my attention back to her. “There is a reason we have brought you here, but it would appear that you are not ready to know what that reason is.”

“I don’t care what the fucking reason is, I want to go home!” I yelled, and then Jasper had me in his hold by my hair, yanking my head back as he leaned down to speak in my ear.

“Address her like that again, and I’ll cut your throat.”

“Jasper!”

I was alert at the sound of this voice, my heart escalating in its beat. I suddenly found it hard to breath, like a rock had been lodged in my throat, brittle and painful. In my head I could see the blur of coloured gowns again, parting for that one important host as she came forward. That was happening now, silencing falling around me as a girl stepped apart from the line of white hair, overtaking that of the spokeswoman. Unmarked, dressed in flats, black tights, a black skirt and a blue button down shirt, was the girl I had seen twice in my dreams, once before I was kidnapped and once after. I couldn’t forget those murky grey eyes, flickering with blue shards.