The Bloodgoods

Katie woke up to darkness. She couldn’t hear a single sound. Katie racked her brain, but couldn’t remember anything. Did I fall asleep, She thought. Was I in my room at the Bloodgood Manor? She attempted to sit up, but was unable to. Was this some sort of sleep paralysis? She tried moving again and realized that it wasn’t her mind keeping her restrained, but ropes. Katie’s legs were tied together, while her wrists were bound behind her back Her heart began to thump rapidly. This has to be a dream. Katie pinched her arm and was shocked by the sting that followed. This was real? How did I get here, she thought in horror. Katie tried harder to remember what happened. She had finished her last class of the day and headed to the bus stop to go to work. A black car had pulled up claiming to be one of Mr. Bloodgood’s men. He had on an expensive suit with a neatly trimmed beard. He held the same intense aura that most of Mr. Bloodgood’s associates seemed to have. The man had claimed that Mr. Bloodgood needed her urgently. Kaite entered the backseat of the vehicle without a second thought. “You look like you’ve had a long day.” He reached back and offered a bottle of water. “You need to stay hydrated if you’re going to work that hard, Kaitlyn.” “Thank you, Mister…” “Torello.” She took a long drink. It had been a long day. She had several finals. Katie had studied for them all, but she was always nervous when it came to taking the actual exam. Katie looked out the tinted window of the car. After a few minutes she realized he had taken the wrong turn. “Mr. Torello, Mr. Bloodgood’s residence is in the other direction.” “I’m aware of that, Kaitlyn.” Confused, she asked, “Then where are you taking me, Mr. Torello?” “Don’t worry about that.” “Mr. Torello?” “I won’t hurt you. Just be a good girl and stay quiet.” “Mr. Torello, please let me out.” She slowly placed her hand on the door handle, ready to open it and roll out if he didn’t stop the car. “I can’t do that, Kaitlyn.” She heard the doors latch. “Now sit down and behave.” Katie’s eyes widened. She pulled at the handle, but it wouldn’t budge. She kicked at the latch and slammed a textbook against it hoping something would break the lock. Katie’s head began to ache. She felt light headed and couldn’t see anything but spots. She groaned. Why is everything spinning? She glanced down at her bag and saw the half empty water bottle. Did he poison me? She tried to reach for the handle again, but her movements were slowed like she was under water. Katie’s body felt heavier until she couldn’t hold herself up anymore. She slowly sank into the seat of the car. Everything slowly faded. The last thing she heard before drifting off was Mr. Torello on his cell phone. “I have the girl. Make the call.” The memory was hazy, but given her current state there was no mistaking what happened. Why would someone want to kidnap me? I'm a collage student working for a reputable family. I don’t engaged in shady business. Who would want to hurt me, she thought to herself. Katie could hear a door creak open. She saw the silhouettes of two large men before the lights came on, blinding her. She blinked repeatedly, trying to make her eyes accustomed to the lights. “I see you’re awake, Kaitlyn. Good.” She recognized Mr. Torello’s voice. “I hope you slept well.” Katie looked up to see Mr. Torello and a man She didn’t recognize standing over her. “Why am I here? If you want money I don’t have any.” He chuckled at her comment. “I’m not here for money. I need to teach Drac Bloodgood a lesson.” “I’m only a maid. He won’t care if you hurt me. Mr. Bloodgood has many servants at his estate. He wouldn’t notice if I’m gone.” “You underestimate yourself. He may have many servants, but you are the only one working directly under his son, according to my informant. He doesn’t trust anyone with his heir, yet you are at his beck-and-call? You are far more valuable than you give yourself credit for.” Katie thought about his claim. It was true. Drake didn’t have any other servants taking care of him besides her. It didn’t occur to her as unusual until now. “Boss, it’s been six hours and nobody has attempted to reach out to us. Are you sure this is the girl,” the man next to Mr. Torello asked. Six hours? I was late for work! I was going to get fired! But if Mr. Bloodgood didn’t care to retrieve me after all this time, then why would he care if I showed up to work? If he didn’t come to get me, what will these men do with me? “Are you questioning me, Tony?” Tony’s eyes widened slightly before he shook his head. “No, Sir.” “Good. Now, I think it’s time to give Drac a little motivation.” He looked at Katie with a sly grin. “Bring her to the chair.” “Yes, Sir.” Tony walked towards Katie. He could easily be a wrestler with his bulging muscles and large frame. She didn’t know what they planned, but she didn’t want to find out. Katie tried to push herself away from him as he approached her. He leaned forward and picked her up with ease. Tony swung Katie over his shoulder. She tried wiggling to get out of his hold, but his grip was to strong. “Stop moving!” Tony’s voice boomed, striking fear into Katie’s heart. This man could kill her with no problem. It was better that she followed orders or who knows what he would do to her. Tony set Katie on the chair. Now that she was upright, she glanced around the room. It was empty, other than the padded chair and work bench. The walls were made of cinder blocks and the floor was covered in concrete. It appeared that she was in some sort of warehouse. Katie could tell the sun had fallen, because the large windows that hung high on the wall were pitch black. To the left of the chair she noticed a set of tools laying out, including several knives, hooks, a hammer, and metal implements that looked like they came from the medieval ages. Her heart dropped at the thought of what they might use them for. “Tie her to the chair,” Mr. Torello commanded. Katie snapped her neck in Tony’s direction. What are they going to do to me? Tony grabbed her wrists and cut the rope, then tied each wrist to the arm of the chair with zip ties. Katie pulled at the ties, but she couldn’t budge. What did I get myself into? “It’s time to give Mr. Bloodgood a call.” Mr. Torello pulled a cell phone from his pocket. Then began dialing numbers and placed the device to his ear. “Hello, Drac. This is Lou Torello. I have one of your maids with me. Don’t worry. She’s in good hands.” He glanced at Katie with a chuckle. “Yeah. Kaitlyn’s right here. She’s a little tied up at the moment. Why don’t you come down here and we can talk business?” A displeased look crossed Lou’s face. “I see. Then I’ll have my man, Tony, give her a proper farewell.” He looked up and nodded to Tony. In a quick move, Tony grabbed Katie’s jaw and pushed it to the side. She let out a scream, then froze when the cold blade of a knife pressed against her throat. “You should see the look on her face. It’s like a deer in headlights. I can’t imagine how a crook like you could get a sweet girl like her to work for you.” His brows furrowed. “I see. So, you’re not interested in saving this poor girl at all? Then I guess we’ll have our fun with her.” Lou nodded to Tony again, causing him to yank Katie’s hair back. She let out another scream. “Looks like you’ll need to find a new maid. See you around, Drac.” Lou clicked off the phone and placed it back in his pocket. He turned to Katie. “Sorry, Sweetheart. Nobody is coming for you.” He started walking towards her. “You seem like a nice girl. Maybe I can make good use out of you.” He held her chin between his thumb and index finger. “You’re quit a beaut. I could have some real fun with you.” Katie had a feeling his idea of fun wasn’t going to be the same as hers. “Tony, go join James and watch the door.” “Yes, Sir.” Tony took the blade away from Katie’s neck and set it on the table before exiting the room. Lou let go of her chin. He took off his jacket and placed it on the table. He turned to face Katie and started unbuckling the belt of his pants. “I bet that pretty mouth of yours feels just as soft as your skin.” Katie froze as she realized what he meant by “fun.” She needed to get out of here now. She was tied to the chair with nothing to cut through the zip ties with. Katie had no weapons, and she had a feeling that if She screamed no one would hear her. Lou started approaching her. “Don’t be difficult. I’m sure a pretty girl like you has done this a hundred times.” He started lowering his pants. Katie closed her eyes. This has to be a dream. This can’t be real. I need to wake up now! Katie could feel Lou’s leg brush up against hers as he leaned into her. CRASH! The sound of a window shattering filled the room. “What the f*ck? How’d you get in?” Katie opened her eyes to see shards of glass covering the floor and standing in the center of the room was a man in a black hoodie with his hood covering his face. Lou quickly zipped up his pants and stormed over to him. “This is a private matter!” He threw a fist towards the man’s jaw, but it was stopped effortlessly. “It’s never a private matter when it concerns the Bloodgoods.” The man’s hood slipped backwards to reveal Drake Bloodgood.  Lou’s eyes widened. “Drake?” His forehead wrinkled with annoyance. “This is a matter between your father and King Andre. I suggest you leave before this gets messy.” Drake chuckled sadistically and smiled, revealing two sharp fangs. “Don’t you know that all vampires love a good mess?”