I had gotten myself treats from time to time and I was sipping my umpteenth glass of excellent champagne when Jarod once again came to talk to me. We had little thing, our exercise as pretenders, going on. Both of us were mingling and letting our pretender side be out and see what we would find, and then we would meet up and compare notes, so to speak. I saw Jarod had circled quite close to Damon many times. I guess he was trying to get reading on him, too.
I was walking around and chatting with Jarod several times. I was just telling him what I had found out about a couple of werewolves and Jarod was watching them too, as I had gotten an idea that those had been not married but were actually in a secret relationship. So there were two couples. Married one and the wife of one couple had an affair with the wife of another couple, and same-sex affairs are quite damn rare among werewolves. Or at least that is what I have heard.
So Jarod was trying to read those two women, too. We were talking, or I was telling him what I had picked up from those two ladies and he was truly proud of me. I was his little pretender protégé, all grown up and almost as good as he was. I was then making a few notes of men, who were talking to ladies or other men.
We were having a good time when, suddenly; I started to get scared. At first, I thought that Damon had fed up with our play and was reminding me of my place as his wife, and his displeasure with Jarod. But then fear crept really on me and I did recognize this feeling as Fear Demon attack. I cursed in my mind. Oh, fuck. How did the fear demon get in here?
The feeling got stronger, and it started to take over my reason. Soon I could not even speak. There were too many people for me to recognize that damn demon.
I said to Jarod, "Can you see if Charles is somewhere? Can you go over to him now, right now, and tell him that there is a fear demon, and I'm about to panic? And this is a strong one. I am soon in a state where I cannot act or speak, so I am a sitting duck, so to speak. Please hurry."
Jarod nodded and left immediately.
Fear paralyzed me in my place, and I could feel it getting stronger. I was just standing there. Now shaking from the fear that was taking over my mind relentlessly. Then Charles came to me and wrapped himself around me. It helped a little, but not terribly. He murmured something into my ear, trying to calm me down.
I said, "You need to calm me down with your teeth right now. Try to get some fucking sedation going. Flank me with your fangs. Hurry!."
My voice trembled, and it had been an effort for me to utter those words.
Charles grunted and held me and then, after a moment, sank his teeth into my neck and drained something into my vein.
My head got a bit cloudy, but not enough. The fear was still pushing through. My fear was so damn strong.
I said, "Make it stronger, that is not enough. " I struggled to form words, and I was not sure did I uttered them out loud or spoke to Charles in my mind.
Charles bit again in my neck, draining stronger stuff, which helped a bit, but I felt myself start chopping up the drug instinctively. That was just something that my body did. I had no control over it and it had come more on since that shed session. my willpower had its way of doing things. It did not see when that drug would be useful to have my blood. My grip on Charles was tight as ever.
Adam came to us and said, "What's the problem? "
He looked at me. I was my eyes half-lidded, still sedated, but all the time, fighting that drug out of my system so soon I would be perked up and that damn fear demon would get to me.
Charles said, "A fear demon. I've got some sedative, but it won't last long. I can give her more, but you know how fast she gets resistance and I am not used to drug my wife. Go ask Salvatore if he has any flanks on him. If he doesn't, we have to get some on medbay and get her out of here."
Adam went to ask. He strode to Damon, talking to him in a low voice a bit. Soon Damon's expression changed, and I watched as Damon pushed the women away and looked at them for a moment. Then he picked up one that ugly brunette who had glued on him all night and straight out ripped her heart from her chest. And threw it on the floor—the flock of women scattered. His expression was beastly.
Damon wiped his hands and came over to us. I started shaking again, holding on for dear life to Charles as the drug wore off. Fear was burning in my mind.
Damon got closer. I could feel his presence and smell passionfruit. He came real close and said, "Baby, hey, come here for a second, come here, just hold me, okay? I am here, shh. Calm down.."
I released my grip, hung on to Damon, and held on to my life. I shake now quite damn wildly. Then I felt the needle sink into my lung, and the fear took a back seat for a moment, but I felt it still burning my head somehow. I was still gripping Damon with all I had got. I could feel him in my mind, too. My mind seemed almost being under attack and he was trying to protect me.
Damon said, " Oh fuck, it's no use. It'll help a bit, but that fear demon is so fucking strong and is on the verge of attacking Mimi. The lady needs to be put to sleep or even deeper sedation, and then someone should find the freaking fear demon, and that's me. Charles, here is what we are gonna do. Now you will take her for a moment, and I'll give her some more drugs, but she's pretty legless then, so please support her. I have pretty powerful stuff on me. You keep her calm, safe, and I will go and try to hunt that damn demon. I'm going hunting next."
I felt myself getting another flank from Damon, and the pounding in my head stopped. My vision was quite damn blurry. I was quite close to being completely unconscious, and I felt Charles supporting me as we walked over to one sofa to sit down.
I sat next to Charles' his hand around my shoulders, and I was just so tired, and then the fear started to come through again, and somehow I knew the demon was closer again. I tried to hold on, knowing that Damon was on the prowl, and there were others too that he could alert, like Magnum or those boys even.
I opened my eyes and tried to look. I was getting rid of those flanks and fast and it was not so a good thing, even though I felt Damon trying to shield my mind. I was trying to ponder who would be coming after me. Was this just a fear demon or was there someone else too? I got my answer soon enough.
That's when I saw him. This guy resembled Holby city's Henrik Hanssen and was one of the main instigators of the pharmaceuticals along with Sark. I had been chasing this guy for a long time, and there was a rumor that he had just developed these dreams for the pharmaceutical industry. The blue dream and shit. This was a dangerous man, and I knew the game's name—my kidnapping. So this was not a good thing at all.
First, Damon was lured into women, but then he saw through it. The idea was probably to keep me isolated and crippled with fear demons while I was injected with some other drug and brazenly taken away from the pack's Christmas party. But how in god's name did they know about our party or had been invited here? We did not advertise this publicly, at least to my knowledge. But I soon realized that it is true that ask and you shall be answered.
I saw Bran go up and talk to this man, shake his hand, and take him away, and I distinctly heard Bran say, "I'm glad you could come. I wasn't sure if you could come when I sent you the invitation."
Fine, they're friends then. The man looked at me with no emotion and with confidence. He had not yet revealed all his cards, apparently.
Charles and I already had a true soulmate bond, and I sent a few scenes of what I had to endure in the pharmaceutical facility at that guy's treatment. I could feel how the message got through, and Charles became fully awake. He was swearing and had come to the same conclusion I had. Bran probably knew who this guy was and had promised them to me in the nick of time.
I had no time to think why Bran saw me as someone who could be given to be tortured like I was meaning nothing. And as he'd been worried about me after that Salvatore treatment. he was one hypocritical bastard who was always trying to kiss as many asses as he possibly can, no matter who gets banged up in the process.
Charles said, "Fine, this Christmas party can stop here for me. I'll take you somewhere safe." Charles squeezed me tighter against himself.
Damon came up to us and said, "You're right. Bran knows and they're lying to Bran directly about what they're going to do to Mimi. It is again some sort of a business deal of his. We're getting out of here right now. But first. I need to see that the coast is clear of the door because I don't have so many flanks with me, and if she panics, she might escape. I go and see one more time if I can locate that damn demon. "
Damon went back to see if he could see the demon anywhere. I didn't see Adam. I had seen him a while ago, and now I didn't see him again. Panic was starting to get to me. I know that Adam had been close by, but where he was now? Charles was sitting beside me, ready to go, and then I couldn't see Damon either. He vanished into the crowd too.
I said to Charles, " Have you seen where Damon or Adam are? Because the medicine is starting to wear off. "
Charles grunted and started looking around. He was still sitting next to me. I saw that Mimosa walked past us, and I saw her staggering. She was drugged. I was getting worried and not wanting her to get into the facility.
I said to Charles, "Go help Mimosa, see if she's drugged too. She needs to be protected, too. If Bran has promised both of us to them. "
Charles got up from the couch, went to Mimosa, and started leading her into one room. He kept her safe, and I was glad about that. Mimosa was too innocent to end up being tortured.
I kept trying to see if I could see Adam or Damon and couldn't find either. I tried to send a thought, and no, no response. I tried to feel with pack bond but they were quite damn tight and I realized goddamn Bran has messed with them. That is one thing that needs to be corrected. How to protect our pack bonds so that Bran is unable to get to them? Oh fuck. Fear started to creep up on me badly. Someone came and sat next to me, and I was paralyzed with fear. I didn't stop the person next to taking my arm, or injecting a syringe full of drugs in my arm at all. Then came the darkness.