Splayed across the large, ornate stone table in the centre she yearned to leave through the crumbling archway. Adjacent to the archway was a golden effigy, its significance unknown. Was it to bring luck, or to forever remind her of her dishonourable actions? How was she to escape the oppression? There was no way out, trapped in the clutches of snarling, leering men who were thirsty for her blood. And so easily, they left her to die.
The memory of the night replayed in her mind. Bright lights illuminated the room and the sweet sound of jazz filtered through her thoughts, anyone else who was near became compelled by the soothing hum of the instruments. In her eyes, she seemed far away but she stood on the stone table and danced like any other jazz dancer would, maintaining a fake smile on her face – whilst inside she was screaming. She couldn’t show these monsters what her true feelings were. She was terrified, but held her head high and continued swaying her body and kicking her legs. The crowd of grubby looking men cheered and whistled with approval whilst puffing out smoke from their cigars.
When the song stopped, she stopped too and stared at the band, praying they would play again but of course they wouldn’t, they were men too, they liked to make women uncomfortable.
“Dance!” One of the men hollered at her.
All of a sudden, she felt very exposed in her undergarments, with little to cover her small body. Nervously, she swallowed and continued to dance. Dancing without music was alien so she imagined the beat and the melody of the trumpets in her head; letting it consume her. She visualised what music would look like if it had a shape; triangles, swirls, stars, curving vines, every colour of the rainbow flashed though her mind’s eye. At least she was distracted, could forget the hungry fiends that gawped at her. In a world like this, a woman was expected to entertain the men of the night with her blood, her body. She was not her own person; belonging to them like a piece of furniture. As far as they were concerned, her conscience and feelings were of no concern. She was a walking blood bag and tonight her life would end.
Standing still with her hands by her sides, fighting hard the urge to cover her body, the silence of the crowd of beasts surprised her. Long moments of silence passed. The silence becoming a loud, unbearable sound, a sign of their hunger as they bared their pointed teeth, ready to slaughter their prey. She could only fear what would happen next, only dream she’d see sunlight again, only pray she would hold her newborn baby in her arms again. He was not a planned baby and conceived out of wedlock, unheard of in these parts. It was disgraceful but she deserved it. She was a whore who gave her body to the blood-thirsty savages for money, sold her blood. When she died, her baby would soon die too, no one would think twice of raising her son. He was considered a pariah in this town.
“What an enchanting performance,” a man sniggered, blowing out a puff of smoke. He stood at the front of the crowd, the closest to her, offering her a hand which she refused. She knew that as soon as she descended from the table, Death would greet her. This man, no not a man in her eyes but a creature posed the biggest threat. This time, she couldn’t fight the need to cover her body and wrapped her arms around herself.
“Look what you’ve done,” another man frowned, shoving his way through the crowd. She recognised him. His name was Joseph. “You’ve scared her.”
“Get away, Joseph, she is my snack, not yours, find your own whore,” the man replied baring his razor sharp teeth. He stubbed his cigar against the wall and let it fall to the ground, the embers still glowing where they fell. Then, he took a step towards Joseph, ready to attack at any moment. She despised being branded a whore, wanting to kill anyone who called her it, shove a stake in their heart but she was merely a human, not strong enough to take on a savage of the night. “Leave me with my meal, all of you. Bryce. Robert. You remain.”
The crowd of men frowned, uncertain for a moment before leaving the room. When Joseph reached the archway, he looked over his shoulder, eyes connecting with hers. He was the only blood-thirsty creature she’d met who pitied her, but pity was not enough. It wouldn't save her life. He left her alone in the company of a psycho. It was stupid, but she had hoped Joseph might have saved her. She was disheartened and her death was now inevitable.
She stood tall, if she were to die it would be with dignity.
“Vulnerable, scared,” the creature snarled. His dark floppy hair covered his forehead and fell into his luminous red eyes. “Just the way I like. Apparently, human blood tastes better when the prey is scared.” He slowly paced back and forth in front of her. Bryce and Robert laughed maliciously as they stared at her body.
“Lie down, be the whore that you are,” Bryce ordered. She guessed that these two men were special to the creature. They had importance.
“I will give the orders around here,” the creature snarled. “Lie down.”
And so she did. She lay on her side, her hand resting on her forehead. Hoping she had managed to mask her nerves but these beasts were not stupid.
Robert shoved her down so she was lying on her back, holding her breath. He pressed his nose to her neck, inhaling deeply the aroma of her blood. Rich. Luscious. Without a warning, he sank his teeth into her flesh. A tortured scream escaped her lips. In a blur, the creature had snapped Robert’s neck and flung his body aside.
“Do not do the same Bryce,” he told his other companion. “She is my food, not yours. You will only feast after I give you permission to do so.”
Tears fell from her eyes, fighting the urge to cover the wound with her hand, letting the blood run. Now that her blood was flowing, the unnamed creature would not be able to resist the temptation much longer. He closed his eyes and breathed in the bittersweet smell of her blood. Her end was close.
Bryce clenched his fists, trying to fight his own urge to rip her apart, to drain her dry, to steal the life he no longer had. Praying her end would come soon; she did not want to suffer such torture but desired peace.
“Swallow your urge, Bryce,” the creature ordered. “Do not disappoint me.”
The creature was taking his time. Why couldn’t he just be swift and kill her? She wanted to scream, fight and run away, but she knew such a fairytale did not exist. At least, it would quicken her journey to the end; she would happily open her arms, welcome Death in and surrender her soul. Maybe in the after-life, she’d have a son and watch him grow up. She could only hope. The creature stood at the side of the table, looking down at her but she refused to meet his blood-thirsty eyes. He grabbed her jaw in his hands and forced her to make eye-contact; he did not bother to wipe away her flowing tears.
“Any last words?” he sneered, glancing at Bryce. Bryce laughed and clenched the side of the stone table unable to fight his desire to quench his thirst much longer.
She thought for a moment. Should she say something? Should she close her eyes and hope it wouldn’t take long? That it wouldn’t hurt too much? What was it like to die?
Taking a nervous swallow, she uttered the only words she could think of, “Where is your humanity?”
The pair of monsters laughed hysterically and without any word, they both sunk their teeth into her neck in unison. Her screams would not be heard.
