Immortal Lovers {Run 2}

28. Screaming

I woke up with a jolt. The room around me was dark and quiet. The curtains had been drawn and the door shut, neither I remembered doing before I fell asleep. I sat up and smiled, telling myself that Harry was back. We'd sit down together and talk everything through. It would end with a hug and a promise to always be with each other.

I glanced into Kayla's cot to find it empty. Panic rose inside of me. I prayed to find Harry with her downstairs. I darted out of the room and down the stairs. The whole house was eerily quiet. With my breath held in my lungs, I burst into the living room and froze at the site before me. A familiar figure had his back to me; I instantly recognised who it was. He slowly turned to reveal Kayla lying in his arms giggling and reaching up to his cheek. My muscles grew and my vision sharpened until all I could see was the threat before me.

"She was crying," Luke murmured, "and you were sleeping so I brought her down here. She's alright now though."

"Give me my daughter back," I spat, taking a dangerous step forward.

He smiled despite my threatening tone and handed Kayla to me. I reached out and took her from him as quickly and safely as I could. She grumbled, but soon found a comfortable position in my hold. Once I finally had her back, I stepped away from Luke as if he had a contagious disease.

"Get out of my house," I ordered.

"I'm sorry about yesterday-"

"Did you not hear me? I said get out." My voice had raised, causing Kayla to shift in my arms. I bounced her until she settled again. "Stay away from us, you got that?"

"Can we talk? Just for a minute. I want to explain everything."

I could feel my teeth slowly tearing from my gums and Kayla could sense my sudden strength as I swung her onto my hip effortlessly. She looked up at me with wide, entranced eyes as I revealed my teeth to Luke. The colour drained from his cheeks and he took a wary step back. "Rosie."

"I will hurt you if you don't leave," I threatened. "You've ruined everything I had with Harry and I stupidly let you, but I won't let you hurt my daughter. Don't ever come back here again."

Luke looked hurt, but I was no longer interested in him. He nodded and turned to leave through the back door. I kicked myself for not checking that all the windows and doors were locked last night. I made sure to watch until he left, but after opening the back door he slowly turned his head around to the side and said, "I liked you a lot, Rosie. You were fun to spend time with. I'm sorry I ruined it for us."

"There was no us," I spat. Kayla whimpered. "I made a mistake that cost me my husband, but I wasn't the only one on that sofa. You controlled me and made sure Grace and Harry saw us together. I don't understand why you did it, but I'm fine with never knowing. I just want you out of my family's life for good. Stay away from us and especially away from Harry."

"That's easy," he murmured, glancing at me over his shoulder. "He's gone missing."

I stood shocked for a moment. "Missing?"

Luke nodded. "He's not at the boxing club, the flat or at the cliffside. I've looked everywhere for him, but he's disappeared."

I wanted to worry and run out the door to find him, but I had to supress it all. I refused to show weakness around Luke or Kayla who was beginning to shift awkwardly in my arms. I swallowed hard. "I won't tell you again to leave, Luke."

Luke sighed and eventually left, shutting the door behind him and climbing back over the garden fence. Even after he was gone, I knew Kayla's senses were heightened and would pick up any stresses I had. My first instinct was to call Grace, but I had burnt that bridge too. Instead, I set Kayla down in her playpen and searched around the living room for my phone. After finding it shoved between two sofa cushions, I sneaked into the kitchen and called Harry's phone. My heart was beating wildly as the repetitive calling tone rang in my ear. Eventually, it went to answerphone, but I panicked and ended the call. I had no idea what I would say to him if I saw him again and I especially wouldn't want to say it over the phone. I decided to call Grace, but it went straight to answerphone. She was avoiding me too, and I couldn't blame her.

I spent the next few hours coming up with where Harry could be, starting with his childhood home or town where he could be meeting up with an old friend. I wanted to believe this theory, but deep down I knew where he was. Harry was a man of bitter revenge which would cause him to do dark and hurtful things. All I could do was picture him with another woman, kissing her and holding her while thinking of all the ways he could torment me with it later. Then a thought struck me. Could he be with Grace? Kissing her and holding her the way he used to do with me? It would be the perfect revenge.

I wanted to storm over there and catch them in the act, but at the same time I knew I couldn't bear it. I tried calling each of them again and still neither were picking up. So, all I could do was sit and think about all the ways they were being with each other.

I didn't know how long I'd been sat at the kitchen table staring at the wall until I heard Kayla beginning to squeal loudly in the other room. I burst in to find Kayla reaching her arms up to the empty space above her, clenching and unclenching her small fists.

"Ga...da," she tried saying. "Ga...da..."

I made my way over to her and tried picking her up, but she protested wildly and I had to quickly let her go. She glared at me with dark eyes before reaching up to the air again. I tried holding her for the second time, but soon enough her sharp teeth had sunk into my hand and I pulled back again.

"Kayla?" I asked. I tried catching her gaze and noticed how glazed over her eyes had become. She began getting upset as her need to be picked up was ignored, not by me but by an invisible force.

I shot around in a full circle, looking out for a dark figure in the shape of Samuel once again. Within seconds, I was in my vampire form ready to fight whatever had hold of my daughter's mind.

"Ga...da," Kayla was saying insistently. "Gan...da...gan...dad."

Gan...dad? I thought. Gan...dad. Gandad...Grandad.

Samuel.

Just as the word crossed my mind, my chin had been grasped and my whole body was forced against the nearest wall. Through my hazy vision, I could just make out the familiar dark figure in front of me. He was breathing heavily and the grip on my chin cold and tight. I tried fighting back, but as the figure continuously hit my head against the wall behind me, I knew I'd have to give up. Through the ringing in my eyes, I could hear Kayla screaming, but the figure was insistent on getting me out of the way. He knew it would take longer than a human to knock me out and so he hit my head over and over and over until I thought my skull broke. One final hit and I had collapsed to the floor with a heavy thud and a blacked-out mind.