"Where is she?"
Landon barged into Naomi and Willow's room. He looked rather disturbed and like one whose sleep had just been drawn to a sudden end.
"She wanted to get some air, she told us," Willow responded.
"And you let her." He said,
"She couldn't have gone that far. Is there a problem?" Naomi inquired in a nervous tone. She could now tell that something was amiss.
"We all know that evil has tentacles which is why I expected you two to be extremely careful and protective over her.
It is not enough that we brought her from the other side and I just got word that one of those tentacles happens to be here and right now." He informed them.
"Oh, my God." Naomi voiced, bearing a frightened look on her face.
"but we got no signal. We should have." Willow said,
"You won't get a signal when we are dealing with professionals. I am out to find her, do your part but keep this on a low. I don't want to start a fight without an end." He said, exiting the room.
"I told you, you are too soft on that girl." Willow turned to Naomi.
"Let's focus on finding her first. It shouldn't be so hard. If somehow they have blocked the effect of our blood bond then we just have to search for her like a regular stranger." Naomi said,
"Let's hope they didn't have a backup plan for that too. I will get something of hers." Willow said,
———
EARLIER ON.
Done with her food, Keira took the final sip from her glass and then gently placed it back on the table.
She glanced around a bit as she began feeling uncomfortable because she was sitting alone.
She patiently was waiting for Jason to show up for it had begun to bother her that she was spending too much time out.
Just then she heard a soft calm voice over her shoulder.
"Excuse me, ma'am, sir Jason said that I informed you to join him outside. He seemed a bit disturbed." the waiter said,
"Oh. Is he okay?" She voiced, once she recognized it was the waiter who had served them earlier on.
"I think so." The waiter responded, standing upright.
"Okay then. Thank you." She said,
"And the bills?" she inquired.
"He already cleared them." the waiter replied.
Keira smiled at him and then walked out of the restaurant. It seemed the temperature had dropped lower than it was when they arrived there.
It was quiet. It gave her a feeling. She stopped walking and then bent down pretending to fix her shoe.
She was deliberately buying time and hoping her feeling was wrong but then she could hear a car door slam shut aggressively. It startled her, yet she remained in her position.
Her heart began to race and she could only expect the worst.
She wasn't prepared for a fight, she didn't even know how to fight against things as she would normally do in a horror movie but then why had she stepped out in the first place?
To get some fresh air.
'why didn't I just return afterward, why trust a stranger to this point? What if I don't make it out of this alive? I would die for being foolish.' She regretted.
"You would have to come with us." She heard a voice that sounded like that of a killer and then the appearance of feet covered in black brogues, it meant two persons were currently standing before her but how?
How did they get to where she was so quickly?
'What do I do? What should I do? ' She racked her mind.
It occurred to her then that she wasn't so far from the door to the restaurant and if she could only gather enough momentum, she could successfully get back in which would buy her enough time to locate the back door for an escape.
"Don't test our patience." The speaker in front of her said,
"Okay. Okay.."
Keira voiced, slowly ascending on her feet with both her hands lifted. She could see they were dressed in black suits like regular assassins and it frightened her the more.
She calculated they would be wanting to grab her arms while leading her to their vehicle or probably one would be behind while the other in front, she understood it would gravely tamper with her plan and so once she was halfway on her feet, she saw their faces but their eyes were hidden behind dark shades.
'Who wears dark shades at night
She gave them a push and ran as fast as she could towards the main entrance door.
The customers got standing at once as soon as they saw her running like one being chased.
"F*ck! We can't afford to make matters complicated, she must be heading for the back door, go that way, I go this way." One of the men said to the other while they stared at the entrance door to the restaurant.
Keira ran as fast as she could. As she did, she wondered where Jason was, if they had got to him, if he was safe but at that moment, her life mattered more.
She scattered through kitchen equipment and even got cut by a knife in the process of her careless race. The kitchen staff were all marveled and gave way to avoid problems.
She got to the back door and rushed out of it.
"Got you!"
She felt someone grab her from behind.
"No! No! Let me go!"
She screamed while struggling.
She realized it was one of the men in black and the thought alone sent shivers down her spine.
"Let me go!" She yelled in hope that help would come but there was none in sight.
"I believe you heard the young lady. Let—her—go." Landon emerged from the darkness and dressed in a black coat.
"And if we don't?" One of the men responded in a daring tone.
"I bet you can't wait to find out," Landon responded, taking off the hood of his coat.
"We have heard your tales and it doesn't tickle our fancy." One of the men said, throwing Keira down aggressively, passing the message that she remained there.
She watched both men match toward Landon transforming into what she recognized to be vampires.
Her eyes broadened. She began to shiver from where she sat.
"I don't have the time for this," Landon said,
In less than a second, he had gotten to each of them and chopped off their heads with the extremely long claws that emerged from his fingers.
It startled her the more, as their blood splashed on her face causing her to shut her eyes.
"Not so gutsy anymore?" he asked, turning to her.
She could only struggle to look up at him.
"Just— stay back. Don't come any closer. Don't touch me.." She said, in a shaky tone.
He looked at her. Realizing how fragile a being she was. He blinked twice and heaved a brief sigh. He felt bad when he saw it in her eyes— the fear.
Just then they heard the siren that indicated the cops were close.
"We have to go." He told her.
"Now," he added,
————
In her bed she lay, quiet. She had turned towards the opened window just to stare at the moon through it.
Naomi and Willow stood by the door and realizing she didn't wish to speak to anyone, they bowed their heads and left, shutting the door behind them carefully so as not to disturb her.
"You shouldn't treat them that way," Landon said,
Keira remained unmoved.
"I don't want any of this." She said,
"They don't want it for you either and I don't want this for anybody but some of us are just— unfortunate," he told her, remaining in the dark of the room.
"I have them but I feel lonely. On the inside," she said,
"Everyone's been down that road before," he told her.
"Don't counsel me," she said,
"I am not," he told her.
"Don't try to be my father you killed." She said spitefully
"I don't intend to and it's more complicated than that." He told her.
"I am sorry you are a part of this. You are so young but it gets better with time," he said,
"It won't ever — get better. I feel… Dead." She said,
"You shouldn't. I mean, I felt that way too. A long time ago. I was much younger, was only— fourteen when I turned.
Unlike you, it was much harder accepting the fact that I was meant to be this way — I was meant to be a monster because that is who I am." he said, in a regrettable tone.
She slowly sat up.
"How did it feel? Turning?" She asked,
"Worse than how they make it look in the movies." He responded.
"Sorry." She voiced,
"Over time the pain goes away as your mind accepts your true nature." He said,
"If only my parents were alive, maybe all of this would be easier to master but you killed them." She told him.
"Someday you will know the truth but till then, try to stay alive. As you know, your death will mean the end of the world.
Lucas must not get his hands on you. You shouldn't be so trusting." He told her.
"Well, there goes my first date." She said, blinking her eyes away.
"You've never been on a date?" He sounded surprised.
"I just—grew up seeing every male as the beast I remembered attacking my parents." She replied.
"I always thought I was doing the right things, never did I for once stop to think that I had contributed this negatively to someone's life." He said,
"Well, you did." She told him.
"He sounded nice—different—Jason. I…believed he was my lucky choice or would be. Didn't think he would be willing to give me up to be used in some ritual." he said,
"And who is Lucas?" She inquired.
"My brother," he responded quickly.
"Oh." she voiced,
"Just get some rest." He said, getting on his feet and turning to walk towards the door.
"How did you do that?" She asked,
"Do what?"
"I saw you. You moved with so much speed and then your fingers. I have seen a lot of werewolf movies and even am a fan and I can tell you, those aren't the attributes of a werewolf except you were—" she said,
—"do not be faster than your shadow and there are some matters best untouched." He said,
Shutting the door behind him, he bumped into Mia. She had a weird look in her eyes and it prompted his question.
"What is it?"
"Why wasn't I informed?" she inquired, walking behind him as he approached his room.
"It was a matter I could handle." He replied,
She shut the door once she was in.
"Typical you. You make everyone else seem irrelevant." She said,
"Well, I can assure you that wasn't the intention" He replied, pouring himself a drink at the bar area.
"And what were you doing in her room?" She inquired.
"I don't seem to get you." He said,
"I stood outside that door for as long as I can remember, Landon." She said,
"Are you really that idle?" He asked,
"Is she? Is she the reason why you don't regard me?" She asked,
"What are you insinuating?" he asked, turning towards her. He wasn't finding her words funny and his face showed it.
"Do you like her?" Mia asked,
"Oh for f*cksake, she is a child!" he roared.
"And you are some sort of an immortal. Age doesn't count when it doesn't affect you so don't give me that." She fired at him.
"Stop this—now." He warned, gulping his drink and dropping the glass on the bar table before turning to walk towards the balcony.
"No, you—stop this!" She said following behind him,
"Why can't you just give us a try?" She said,
"We won't work." He told her.
"Try me." She said,
"I don't want to. You should understand, I don't see you that way." He replied.
"Let my love for you teach yours to reciprocate." She placed her hands on his shoulders from behind him.
It was cold outside and he had his hands on the rail.
"Lan, please." She spoke softly.
He turned towards her and held her hands while looking into her eyes.
"We need to focus. What's ahead is bigger than us, we do not need any distractions and I don't intend to fall in love again.
Find someone else, Mia." He told her and then walked back into the room.