THE BLOOD MOON CURSE

CHAPTER 3

CLAIRE FRASER

I groan as I try to open my eyes, and everything around me seems blurry.

Then I remember what happened.

The first thing I see is the wooden ceiling of a cabin, but not mine.

I frown and look around, realizing that I am in an unfamiliar place, lying on a bed.

Where am I?

I look down at my body, seeing that I am still wearing my nightgown, but there is no sign of the king or the vampires.

I get up, carefully walking around the room.

I grab a dagger I find and then hear heavy footsteps.

I hide behind the bedroom door, waiting for the person to appear so I can attack.

I grip the dagger tightly, waiting.

When the door opens, I scream, raising my hand and aiming for the person’s chest.

But before I can strike, my wrist is caught, and I am pushed forcefully against the wall.

I lift my head and widen my eyes when I see a pair of golden eyes locked onto mine.

The same werewolf who saved me in the village.

"You...", I whisper, still holding the dagger as he grips my wrists tightly, very close to me.

He looks different from the last time I saw him.

"You’re still alive...", I whisper, and a smile grows on his lips.

"So are you...", he murmurs, very close to my face.

"What?"

"I saw when you jumped off the cliff. I must admit, it was a very brave and stupid act..."

I frown, feeling his breath against my face.

"You pulled me out of the water..."

"I saved you for the second time, human..."

I remain silent, staring at him. Then he smiles, pointing to the dagger I am holding.

"I didn’t need your help...", I whisper, and he laughs, rolling his eyes.

He presses his body against mine, still holding me against the wall.

"Of course not. I’m sure you could have handled a group of vampires and a cruel king all by yourself."

I glare at him, trying to push him away, but he keeps holding me.

"Get away from me...", I murmur, and he does, taking the dagger from my hand.

"How did you escape the castle? I saw what they did to you...", I ask, watching him step back.

Then my eyes fix on his back, and I suppress a gasp of horror.

There are many scars on his back from the last punishment.

"You should be dead..."

He turns to look at me and smiles.

"So should you..."

"What’s your name?"

"Steve Storm." he whispers, and I nod.

"And yours?"

"Claire Fraser."

I look around the cabin and walk toward the window, seeing that we are still in the forest.

The daylight is weak, which means the vampires could return at any moment.

"So, the prophecy was true...", Steve says, making me confused. I turn to look at him.

"What?"

"There is a very old prophecy that the king has always believed in, and it seems he has finally found it."

"Are you going to tell me?"

Steve turns his back, and I can’t look at the scars on his back.

"The king has always searched for a person who could change everything. Someone with a rare kind of blood. He never found this person until now.", he says, pointing at me.

I shake my head.

"You’re saying that person is me? You’re crazy! He wants to kill me because I attacked one of the guards in the village."

"Not just that. Do you really think the king would personally hunt you down just for attacking a guard? I don’t think so, and you know that too."

He’s right.

The king would never leave his castle just to capture someone like that.

But I can’t believe I am part of some ancient prophecy.

"Come with me..."

I follow him into the cabin’s main room, seeing many books. Steve grabs a very old book and walks toward me.

He opens it to the first page, displaying drawings of werewolves.

"You know that werewolves have been forbidden to transform since the king’s reign, right?", he asks, and I nod.

"The king wants total power over humans, which means any creature with great potential power becomes a threat to him."

I look at the book, seeing a drawing of a baby and a blood moon.

"This legend has existed for centuries. A child was born under a blood moon, with power running through their veins. The child has blood capable of destroying the creatures of the night..."

"Vampires...", I whisper, and he nods.

"What’s in this child’s blood?"

"No one knows, but it’s something sacred or something like that. This child would have the power to kill any vampire, including the king."

"Why do you think I’m that child?"

Steve blinks his golden eyes, pointing at the open book.

"What do you know about your family?"

"My mother died when I was born, and I was raised by my father."

"And where is he now?"

My eyes fill with tears as I remember what happened to my father.

"Dead. He’s dead. He was bitten."

"I’m sorry, Claire."

"None of this makes sense to me. If I am that person, does that mean the king wants me dead?"

I remember his words last night, saying how much he had searched for me. That part makes sense.

"Not exactly. He wants your destruction, but if your blood is used the right way, it could make him more powerful than ever."

"What do you mean by more powerful?"

"He would be able to walk in the daylight."

I widen my eyes at the thought of it.

Humans would suffer even more if the king became more powerful.

"I..."

Before I can say anything, Steve lifts his head and runs to the window.

"What’s happe..."

Steve turns back, grabbing my arm and pushing me against the wall of the room, covering my mouth with his hand.

He stands in front of me, and then I hear voices.

"Remember, the king wants the girl alive, not dead."

I blink, and Steve signals for silence. I nod.

He doesn’t let me go.

We are very close now. I stop breathing when he removes his hand from my mouth, staring deeply at me.

"They will search every house looking for us. We have to go now...", he whispers, stepping back.

"Go? Go where? There are guards everywhere! We’ll never get out alive!"

"I have a way, but we need to leave now."

I stare at him in shock. I still don’t know him, but he has saved my life twice.

"Why are you helping me?"

Steve grabs a sword and some clothes before handing them to me.

"Because if you are the person from the prophecy, you are the only one who can kill them all, and I will make sure that happens."

"Put on the clothes. We have to hide you from them."

I quickly do as he says, wearing his clothes and a cloak over my shoulders.

"Steve?", I call, and he looks at me.

"I want them all dead...", I whisper, and he smiles, his eyes glowing.

"I want that more than anything, so let’s make it happen, human..."

I don't know how Steve managed to escape from the vampires or gain his freedom, but I know he wants their destruction as much as I do.

Steve grips my hand tightly, and then we run together through the forest.

He holds a large, gleaming sword as we continue running.

We hide behind trees when he spots a group of people.

I look at him, and he nods his head.

"We need to pass through the village to reach the other side."

"That's impossible; they'll recognize us..."

Steve smiles at me, and I feel my heart pounding inside my chest.

I feel something strange when I look at him.

"Trust me, human..."

"Don't call me that...", I murmur, and he smiles even more.

"Let's go, Claire..."

We run through the forest, and near the village, we see guards searching every house.

I squeeze Steve's hand, and he looks at me.

"Nothing will hurt you while I'm here..."

We blend into the crowd of frightened people, and I hide my face with the hood of my cloak.

Then my eyes lock onto the large castle before me.

I blink, taking in the grand structure with thousands of watchful guards.

Steve curses, and then I see the king appearing as the gates open.

I widen my eyes as I feel Steve pulling my hand.

Steve pulls me in the opposite direction, and then I am completely caught off guard when he kisses me.

My heart leaps inside my chest as I feel his lips against mine. I have never been kissed before, and he's doing it now.

And then I realize he's doing it to camouflage us from the king's gaze.

When Steve pulls away, he looks at me.

"Why did you do that?", I whisper, still very close to him.

"My scent masked yours..."

I remember that vampires can smell human blood, but not that of werewolves.

"I had to do it...", he explains.

"I know...", I whisper, touching my lips.

I blink in confusion, and then he touches my face.

"Never been kissed before?"

I don't answer, and I think he doesn't need one.

"I promise to be more romantic next time...", he teases, and I smile, holding his hand.

"Let's go..."

We continue walking through the crowd, avoiding the vampire guards who are scanning everything.

We get far, and I see Steve approaching a horse.

"What are you going to do?", I ask, shocked, and he smiles at me.

"Are you really going to tell me you're against horse theft when vampires want to kill us?"

I roll my eyes and help him cut the rope tying the horse near a house.

"Well, what a lovely surprise!"

My heart seems to stop inside my chest when I turn my head and see a guard looking at us with a sadistic smile.

Steve glares at him, gripping his sword tightly and pushing me behind his body.

"The girl comes with me, and I'll love watching you die, beast. The king will love it."

"I'll kill you first!", Steve growls.

The vampire lunges, and Steve attacks with his sword as I watch, my entire body trembling.

Steve fights incredibly well, even in his human form.

The guard knocks him to the ground and then runs toward me.

He grabs my arm, trying to pull me, but then Steve gets up and drives his sword into the vampire’s body, shoving him hard to the ground.

I fall from the impact, watching as Steve keeps attacking him.

"Steve! You can't kill him!", I say in fear, but then he plunges his sword into the vampire’s chest, killing him.

He killed a vampire. He condemned his life even further.

He steps closer, pulling me by the waist and helping me up, and I stare at the dead vampire on the ground.

"Don't worry, he wasn’t the first, and he won’t be the last. Are you okay?", he touches my face, and I shiver as his golden eyes study me.

"Yes..."

"Let's go; we can't stop now."

Steve helps me mount the horse, and together we ride away from the castle.

I know the king won’t stop until he finds us.