The Gift

Chapter Five

Everybody was lined up for the various activities of the day. Rose didn't feel like joining any of the groups. She saw Amber happily chatting with two Kenyan boys they had met on the induction tour.

"I think I'm going to stay behind for this one babe" Rose announced as she reached their group.

"Rose, hi! How are you?"

"I'm good, how are you," she replied to the Kenyan boy not really as interested as he appeared to be. She tagged at her brain trying to remember his name. It something with K, Kameel maybe.

"Perfect."

"Kafeel was just saying how excited he was that we were on the same ritual group," Amber said wiggling her eyebrows at her.

"Hmm, emm" that was all that managed to come out of her mouth. Amber's eyes were pleading her to say something more. "Not interested in rituals," she blurted out and left the group without excusing herself.

◇◇◇◇

Rose knew she was not normal but in retrospect she could have been more polite with the guys, "I'm sure Amber will find the perfect excuse for me. She always does," she spoke to herself.

Walking through the forest that surrounded the castle, breathing in the mountain air helped her sort out her thoughts.

A low shuffling sound registered in her brain. Goosebumps spread all over her body, her arm hair was on point. She halted. Slowly took a 360 turn with narrowed eyes looking for something, anything, to reveal itself.

She recognised the sign. It was way too familiar for her.

"Calm yourself down g.." She felt the force of power pushing her over in the trench but it was too late.

She lay still in the trench not even daring to breathe, hoping that whatever did this to her would think she was dead. A shadow stood there looming over her body, blocking the sun from reaching her for what seemed like an eternity.

With her eyes closed Rose was reciting, no, shouting her motto in her head trying not to scream. The pain she felt was excruciating. The pain was everywhere.

This is my path, this is the hand life has dealt me and I must fight to pull through.

All moments; the moments that I am soaring to the sky filled with happiness and the moments that I am crawling on the floor filled with pain. I must fight, because if I don't I will most certainly be lost.

Finally, the shadow left and she took deep breaths trying to calm down the screaming in her head. She needed to focus. She had to think. She couldn't just lie there in hopes that someone would find her.

Her phone was in the side pocket of her baggy jeans. She tried to move her right arm towards the right side pocket.

Nothing.

She closed her eyes and tried once more to move her right arm. Still nothing.

She took a deep breath and tried to move her other hand. She could feel the sweat drops forming on her forehead. "You have to do it Rose" she muttered to herself, and as if her arm was a loyal soldier it followed her command. The screaming in her head grew louder and louder, she managed to push through the pain and reach the left side pocket. Her phone was there.

She could feel it at the edge of her fingertips. She took another deep breath and tried to extent her arm a bit more. She needed to grab the damn phone. It took her several tries but she managed to take hold of it.

Amber would most definitely freak out if she called her. No, she needed to call someone else, anyone else for that matter would be better.

"Maybe", "no", "but maybe", "no no no." "He is too arrogant already and asking for his help would fill his incredibly bloated head even more." She argued with herself. "Come on girl you need to do something."

She went through her contact list and found the number of the hotel lobby.

◇◇◇◇

"Brother can you hear that?" Vladimir asked.

"Hear what?"

"Constantin stop messing around, seriously can you not hear the screaming?" He insisted.

"Perhaps you had a batch of bad blood brother and you are hallucinating. No one is screaming" Constantin replied dryly.

Vladimir dropped his glass of blood double checked that he was wearing his pendant and dashed out of the dining room. The scream came from the east side outside the castle walls. He stopped and listened for something, anything. The sound of a furiously beating heart guided him through.

"It's you," he said nonchalantly.

"How did"

"Did I not tell you to be more careful?" He growled at her.

"Well, to be honest you didn't," she spat out through her grinding teeth.

"Be careful little girl, you do not want to infuriate me."

"This", she said taking in a deep breath that had her wincing with pain, "is not my fault."

"Sure it's not," he replied.

"Did you push me over?"

"What are you talking about? Did you hit your head?" He said and started examining her head for any signs of cuts.

"Pretty sure I hit everything, but did you push me over?"

"And why would I do that?" Vladimir continued to trace her body with his hands to make sure that she was not seriously injured. Three broken ribs and one sprained ankle.

"So that you can come and play the vampire saviour part."

"You have quite the imagination little girl."

"First off I am not little, as you can see and second I am not a girl, I am a grown ass nineteen year old woman," she barked.

"I did not push you over, I heard your screams," he said.

"I did not scream," she enunciated every syllable to get through to his thick skull and her vision started blurring up.

"Yes you did. How else would I be able to hear you?" He asked her. "Obviously you are in shock from the fall and in dire need of medical attention, we'll discuss the details of your fall later if you wish."

He picked her up in his arms as if she was as light as a feather.

"I was pushed," she blurted the words out. "Good thing you work out," she said before she drifted into darkness.

Vladimir silently carried her to the infirmary. She looked so fragile in his hands.

Word count: 1071