The Darkest Night

Chapter 7

I tried to slow my crying before I started hyperventilating. It took a few minutes to achieve that and once I did, I then had to focus on stopping the adrenaline shakes. My hands were shaking so badly I couldn't even try and stand up. I put my hands into my hands and let out a shuddering sigh. I was in serious trouble. OK, let's think things through. My sister's future step-in-laws are vampires. VAMPIRES! What am I supposed to do with that information? I leaned my head back, staring up at the ceiling. Huh, there's a chip in the paint in the corner. I know that focusing on the chip in the paint was just my mind's way of trying to handle the situation I found myself in.

"OK, first things first, I need to figure out how to get out of here." I said out loud, finally getting my shaking hands under control. I pushed myself up heavily on the desk. I took another look around the room this time closely. The room was smaller than the guestroom that I left my sister sleeping in. The thought of her alone in this house, not knowing how dangerous these people were, scared me more than facing Victor. I needed to get to her and out of this damn house and back home as quickly as possible.

I walked around the room exploring every bit of it. There was no window in the main room and only one small vent in the ceiling that I wouldn't be able to fit through. In a vain hope I tried the door but it was securely locked. I decided to search the bathroom next, hoping I would get lucky there. I flicked on the light switch and heard a fan whirling from above. There was a basic shower in one corner, a sink with a small mirror above it, and a toilet. As far as prisons go, this isn't so bad honestly. I let out a brief hysterical laugh. Clearly, the stress was getting to me. I looked around once more, noting the lack of windows, and slapped the light off in frustration. Maybe I could use one of the chairs to bash a hole in a wall? The thought flitted through my mind before I dismissed it as quickly as it arrived. I'm nowhere near strong enough to do that, and the noise would probably attract attention.

I sunk into one of the chairs, noticing the plushness of the cushion and the fine craftsmanship. Freaken rich people. I sunk my head into my hands and took a deep breath. I really needed to get my thoughts in order. OK, so vampires are real. They are real. Holy fudge monkeys they are real! I had no idea what that ment. It looked like so far that they, or rather Victor Jameson, had no intention of killing my sister or I. That was a good thing. I think. I have no idea what his plan is for me or what he's going to say to my sister about my disappearance. How the hell am I going to get out of this situation? I rubbed my face with my hands fully aware that I, should be a lot more freaked out than I was.

I walked over to the bathroom, flicking on the light switch once again. I washed my face with some water and stared at my reflection in the mirror. My face was abnormally pale, as was to be expected. My pupils were dilated, which also was to be expected with how anxious I was. My hair was in disarray, so I decided to quickly braid it to keep it neat for the time being. Tying off the braid quickly, I walked out again and, not knowing what to do with myself, I just sat down at the desk opening and closing drawers.

Finding nothing I could use as a weapon, I started rummaging through the papers. Some looked like basic business ledgers, but others were far more intriguing. I started thumbing through the intriguing ones in earnest. What else was I going to do with my time? What I found read like a fantasy story. I couldn't understand all of it but the gist of it was about some war between different clans. Who uses the term clan anymore?

My head snapped up at the sound of whatever lock was on the door being undone. I shoved the papers back into the desk in a hurry and closed the drawer right as the door was opening. Victor stood there staring at me calmly, his eyes surveying the room. Was he checking to see if I was trying to break down a wall? He carried a tray in one hand with one of those old school metal food covers on it. On his shoulder, however, I saw the strap of my bag. The implications of him having my bag made me blanch. "What did you do to my sister?" My voice came out barely louder than a whisper.

"I haven't done anything to your sister. Yet. What happens to both of you is up to you." He said while closing the door behind him. He placed the tray on the desk I was sitting at and slid my bag off his shoulder onto the couch. He took a seat in one of the chairs and gracefully crossed his long legs. I hadn't gotten a good look at him earlier, but I saw that the suit he was wearing was perfectly tailored to him. He had left the jacket off and was wearing a black brocade suit vest over a black button-down shirt. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled up to his elbows, exposing his forearms. He cleared his throat, making my eyes snap up to his face. I could feel myself flushing with embarrassment realizing I had been ogling at him. What was wrong with me? Was I really checking out the guy that was holding me captive? Guy? No, he wasn't a guy, he was a vampire, a predator. "If you are done staring," could this get anymore embarrassing? "I would like to have a conversation with you, while you eat that is." He removed the lid off the tray, revealing a grilled cheese sandwich cut into diagonal halves and a bowl of what I guessed was tomato soup. Steam still wafted out of the bowl. I stared at it incredulously of all the things he brought me comfort food? I glanced up at him and saw that he had an eyebrow arched as he waited for me to what? To start eating?

"What do you want from me?" I asked, feeling bolder now that he hadn't done anything threatening.

"I want you to eat. I want you to answer some questions of mine, and eventually I want you to go home and never speak of what you have witnessed here." He laced his fingers together and hooked his hands onto his knee that was crossed over the other. He stared at me patiently waiting for me to start eating. I leaned forward and dragged the tray closer to me and grabbed half of the sandwich and took a small bite. The taste surprised me. I wasn't sure what type of cheese this was, but it wasn't plain American for sure. The bread was golden brown and crunchy when I bit into it. The taste of butter complemented whatever cheese he had used.

"Good girl." Those words had an effect on me that I didn't want to acknowledge right then, so I forced myself to ignore it. "Now then, I'm guessing you have understood the implications of what you have heard. Correct?" I nodded my head as I took another bite. "Well, you understand as much as you are capable of understanding." He murmured to himself while uncrossing his legs and leaning back in the chair. Watching him move so gracefully made my throat go dry. I dipped the sandwich into the soup this time for my next bite. "So now here is the real question. What are you planning on doing with this information?" His gaze probed at me. I swallowed what food I had in my mouth. I stared down at my hands, trying to come up with an answer that would satisfy him enough that he would let me go. All I wanted to do was get my sister and get away from this place as fast as possible.

I decided the truth was better than any lie I could come up with. "I don't plan on doing anything with this information. I just want to leave with my sister, alive if I can manage it." I looked up hopefully at him, wishing with all my heart that he would just let me go.

Hmmmm. He seemed to be pondering my words. He waved his hand towards the tray, indicating that I should continue eating. Picking up the half of the sandwich that I had almost finished, I obliged his unspoken request. I was starving. After all, it had been a couple of hours since he had arrived, and I had only eaten a few car snacks on the drive up here. Questions burned inside of me. Now that he was right here and seemingly willing to engage in an actual conversation with me, I couldn't deny my curiosity was growing.

"Can I ask you some questions?" I said after finishing a few more bites of food. He waved his hand and nodded, indicating that I could go ahead. Pondering which question to ask first, I figured the most basic one would work. "How old are you?"

He barked out a laugh before answering. "I'm over 400 years old." I guess the question caught him off guard. Well, the feeling was mutual because his answer floored me. 400 years? That would mean that he was alive when america was getting its first colonies. "Anything else you would like to ask little human?" The smile he did now was menacing. It showed all his teeth and exposed his fangs. Why hadn't I noticed his hangs earlier?

"Yeah, I have a few more. Is Michael a vampire?" I wanted to make sure my sister would be safe and if she was in love with a vampire I needed to figure out a way to get her to break up with him.

"No. Michael and his mother are not one of us. To answer your next question, they were a cover just like all my other wives." He stretched his arms behind his chair and clasped his hands together. "I will divorce her soon enough before we move on."

"Why marry at all then? And can you go out in daylight? How often do you need to eat or feed rather as you put it? Do you kill people?" The questions spilled out of me one after another before i could stop them. I watched him smile again at me and just pushed the tray a little bit closer to me.