Empty Eyes: Book 1

Chapter 11

While the bath filled, I stared at my battered reflection in the mirror and desperately tried to swallow the sobs tearing at my chest. The bite marks on both my thigh and neck were completely gone, not even a scar left to commemorate the attack, but the memory of the pain and terror could never be erased.

Sasuke must've been patching me up after each attack. I wonder why his repairs were perfect after the first attack and not so perfect after the second one? Maybe it's because those wounds were caused by a weapon and not a vampire. Do their healing abilities not work as well on wounds not caused by their teeth?

My once expertly styled hair was completely ruined and my makeup was completely gone due to the sheer amount of tears I'd spilled. Strands of hair slipped messily from the bobby-pins once holding them in place and my hands shook as I reached up to start pulling them out.

Who even attacked me this time around? It was definitely a man, but I couldn't remember what their voice sounded like for the life of me. If I recall correctly, I had this issue after both of my previous attacks as well, so memory loss is likely a side effect of being fed upon.

The familiar burn of self-loathing brought an angry scowl to my face and my fists clenched at my sides. It was hard to stop myself from punching the reflection in the mirror. There's no way I could've been more stupid. This is humiliating. I've been surrounded by predators since the day I arrived and it should've been obvious.

Now that I know the truth, I started to remember all sorts of things that should've tipped me off. For example: Mikoto looks like she's in her twenties when she's really who knows how old, the family remains separated from the citizens of their town, and even something as stupid as the deep red liquid that Madara was drinking during the ball. I'd assumed it was red wine, but now that I think back, it appeared much thicker than wine should be. He was drinking blood out in the open and no one even noticed.

My heartbreak at being completely betrayed by the entire Uchiha family overpowered even the deep hatred for myself. Mikoto, Madara, Sai, Sasuke: they all left me in the dark. For all I know, every encounter I've had with each of them was fabricated. Mikoto's lies hurt almost as much as Sasuke's because of how kind and motherly she's appeared up until now. She knew how much danger I've been in all this time and didn't do a thing about it, not even offering the slightest bit of warning.

My vision suddenly blurred over with the sheer amount of tears pouring from my eyes and I turned away from the mirror, finding my way to the bath by memory and removing my underwear before climbing in.

The hot water burnt my skin, but it was nothing in comparison to the burning in my chest. It felt like a demon was inside, trying to claw its way out.

The Uchihas always seem to know exactly what goes on in the castle even if they're not present, so will everyone know that I've learned their big secret? Will I be killed or perhaps have my memory somehow erased? What if it's neither and I'm kept prisoner for the rest of my life so they can feed on me over and over again?

My body shook with fear and I tried to push the terrifying thought away. If it comes to that, I'll have no choice but to take my own life. There's no way I'll let them take advantage of me like that.

Ino's shy face as she talked about her feelings for Sai earlier today suddenly crossed my mind and my eyes shot wide open. Oh no! Is he feeding on her as we speak? What if he's been hypnotizing her this whole time!

My eyes searched the bubbles surrounding my body as I tried to rationalize with my own anxiety. Ultimately, I decided that if he hasn't killed her yet, she surely wouldn't be killed tonight, especially after being introduced as his date in front of the entire town. It'd look too suspicious.