Loving the leech (Guardians of Red Moon city #4)
6. Bloodlust

Kaylin’s POV

My head is throbbing, and my gums are stinging while my body feels as if a steamroller repeatedly runs me over. What’s going on? I groan when I manage to touch my head and hear rustling when I move. Wait... Why can’t I move my arms? I open my eyes and look towards my left arm, which is locked in chains.

“What the hell!?” I exclaim the panic.

The panic rises within me when I realize I can’t get loose, and my scream echoes in the building. Heavy footsteps come from the stairs outside the cell door, and suddenly it opens. A blonde man I recognize comes through the door and looks at me with pity.

“Hello Kaylin,” he says, stopping a few feet in front of me. “My name is Elijah, and I’m best friend with William. You’re confused, and I understand that a lot is going on inside you now that doesn’t feel familiar. That’s why I’m here to answer any questions you might have.”

I look at him and don’t know whether to laugh or cry. Is he serious?

“I don’t give a shit who you are; let me out of here! You’re all psychopaths who live in a fantasy world and have no grasp of reality at all. Let me go home to my family!” I scream in pure anger.

He looks sadly at me and says nothing more. It’s now I understand; I won’t be allowed to go home. That realization makes tears travel down my cheeks, and to clarify what I already know, I have to ask.

“I’ll never be able to go home again, will I?”

“No,” he replies with a broken voice, and I break apart.

He says nothing but looks at me with continued sadness staggering in his eyes, and I can’t stop crying. My head hangs down towards my chest, and I see my tears dripping down onto the floor. Finally, my tears run out, and I calm down; however, I feel a scent that I never longed for as much as now. My fangs come forward-wait, fangs!?

“What am I!?” I exclaim in fear.

“You’re a vampire, sweetheart,” Ozzandra replies from the doorway and comes up to me with a blood bag in her hand. “The uncontrollable feeling you feel now depends on your bloodlust; you haven’t learned to control it. But we’re here to help you with that.”

“I don’t want to be a vampire!” I continue hysterically, and Ozzandra puts a hand on my cheek.

“I’m sorry, honey, but you have no choice,” she replies, lifting the bag to my mouth.

There’s no control at all when I hungrily drink up the entire bag in just a minute. When I finish, Ozzandra smiles softly at me and caresses my cheek again, which calms me down to the point that the fangs pull back into my gums.

“Good, good girl,” she coos. “You calmed down quickly for being a newborn vampire.”

New footsteps are coming, and the rest of them enter the room. My fangs extract when my eyes land on William, and I try to get away from the chains.

“Kaylin, calm down! It’s just your beloved,” says Ozzandra.

“He’s not my beloved!” I roar and try again to get loose, this time loosening one section of the chain on the wall.

“William, get out of here, now!” Ozzandra thunders, and he leaves the room with a dark look in his eyes.

As soon as he’s out of my field of vision, I calm down, and my fangs retract once more. The others look at me confusingly while Ozzandra chuckles.

“It seems that my son is your trigger, sweetheart,” she says. “Now, I need to move you to another cell because you broke the chain over there.”

“Mom, you can’t move her alone!” Vivienne exclaims anxiously.

“Oh, yes, I can, can’t I, Kaylin? You’re not going to hurt me,” she says, and I’m slowly shaking my head; I wouldn’t even think about hurting this woman, after all, she helped me with.

She unlocks the chains until I’m completely free, but instead of attacking or hurting someone, I put my hand in hers to let her lead me out. The others prepare the way, and no one says anything when we walk together to the new cell. Ozzandra leads me to a more robust wall with thick chains, and when she locks me up, I’m calm; I trust her.

“Good girl,” she says when she finishes, caressing my cheek again. “I’ll come back later to feed you; until then, you should rest for a while. One of the boys will come down again soon to teach you about what it’s like to be a vampire.”

I give her a look, and she hurries laughingly to continue.

“Not William, I promise.”

They leave the room, and I’m again alone with my thoughts. What am I going to do now? Kaylin Clarkson as a vampire, who knew? Will dad make it without me? And Britney, beloved Britney... Even though she’s a pain in the ass many times, she’s still my cousin, and I love her. I was too hard on her when I spoke to her last time, whenever it was. Given everything that has happened these days, I no longer have any sense of time. It may have been an hour or a year; I have no idea.

The door opens, and I look up to meet the same blonde man I’ve met before; he’s pretty similar to a young Ben Cornish. He smiles a little gently at me, and I smile back.

“Nice to meet you, Kaylin,” he says.

“Likewise, I would shake your hand, though...” I say, looking at my arms locked up.

“It’s okay,” he says, laughing. “You have a little humor anyway; it’s always an advantage.”

“Well, my dad always says I can get through any shitty situation through comic,” I answer and shrug my shoulders.

“Well, he’s right about that. Will you attack me if I sit next to you on the floor?” he asks.

“No, there’s no reason,” I answer.

“What do you mean?”

“Come on,” I say, raising both eyebrows. “Say hypothetically that I manage to overpower you who have probably been a vampire for a hundred years; there are still at least five other vampires up there. I have no chance; hence there’s no point in trying either. Besides, I don’t want to hurt Ozzie.”

“You like her, don’t you?” he asks and sits down next to me.

“I had no mother when I grew up and have always wanted one. She’s the closest I can get to it,” I answer quietly.

“Ozzie can take care of others. She’s a real mother hen; just wait until she starts those tendencies with you,” he laughs, and I laugh with him. “Do you have any questions? I answer everything, even what has nothing to do with the vampire race.”

“How old are you?” I ask, and he laughs.

“I knew that question would come; I’m 240 years old,” he replies, smiling.

“Including or excluding the age you had when you were reborn?”

“Included, I was at your age about the time I transformed.”

“Were you scared?” I ask and look down.

“Yes,” he replies, and I look up at him confusingly. “I was terrified and had no idea what was going on; I felt much like you do. The difference was that I had no one who could help me understand what I am, you have. We will help you all as best we can.”

“Except for William,” I mumble, annoyed.

“It was he who set it off, yes,” Elijah answers, sighing. “And he shouldn’t have done that given the rules that exist.”

“What do you mean?” I ask confusedly, feeling as if this is the thousandth time today that I don’t understand.

“To mark their beloved without their permission, especially when they’re from another race, is seen down upon. Besides, there’s a special case for humans; William can’t legally mark you before applying for it to the council. Because he did so without your or their permission, they sent Joseph here to turn you. Instead of William suffering the punishment, you’ll take it because it hurts him more to see his beloved punished than if he himself had to go through it. In other words, it’s the ultimate punishment to expel.”

“So... It’s over now?” I ask, hopefully.

“There’s no one except the council and Joseph, who knows. Their way of dealing with punishments and ensuring that the law fulfills is uncertain, this may be the end, or it’s just the beginning. No one knows, and it’s extremely annoying because we then also can’t prepare ourselves on whatever it is that comes if it comes.”

Those words indescribably scare me. So I can’t breathe out, ever, because I don’t know if it’s over or not. Suddenly, the next problem can arise without any of us being able to stop it. Haven’t I been tormented enough over the years by being forced to grow up without my mother, daily anxiety, and also fighting with my isolation from both friends and society? Apparently not, although it’s desirable.

“The best thing would be if we started training you, for safety’s sake,” Elijah says after a few minutes of silence. “But for that, you need the others too.”

When he says that, the two other men I recognize come into the room, Elijah introducing them as Benjamin and Oliver; Benjamin is the man I served whiskey to; he resembles Colton Haynes. While Oliver looks like a copy of Craig Horner, except for the hair and that Oliver has raven-black hair.

“Hey, favorite bartender,” Oliver says and wink at me.

“Favorite bartender?” I ask and look at Elijah, who’s laughing.

“It’s a story for another time,” he replies before getting serious again. “I understand; you don’t know much about vampires beyond what you’ve seen in movies and read in novels, do you?”

I nod and think about all the sexy vampires I’ve seen in movies, Stefan Salvatore from “Vampire Diaries,” for example, but quickly pushes away the thoughts to focus on what Elijah says. However, Oliver starts laughing suddenly, and the rest of us look at him confusedly.

“Stefan Salvatore, huh?” he says, amused, and looks at me while I look away with red cheeks.

“Be nice!” Benjamin growls and smacks his friend in the back of his head.

“If you don’t understand it yet, I can explain; Oliver can read minds, but it takes a lot of energy from him; it’s one of many different “powers” that vampires can have. Which one you have is impossible to know now, but you’ll realize it with time. Everyone mustn’t necessarily have the same powers; Benjamin nor I can read thoughts, for example. I have telekinesis, which is that I can-.”

“Move objects at a long distance without touching it,” I finish at him and smile.

“Exactly, Benjamin is capable of manipulation, which means that-”

“He can manipulate visions, sounds, and objects to be experienced in any form that he desires,” I answer again, and this time I get confused.

“Wow,” Oliver whispers with wide eyes. “You must be-.”

“Psychic,” I answer yet again, and it starts to scare me.

“Okay, we have to try something,” Elijah says, walking out of the room with his friends behind him.

I wait patiently for a few minutes before they come back with a vase; I already know in which direction Elijah will throw it and catch it instinctively before saying;

“Watch the last step,” and just when I say it, all three fall on the floor.

“Yep, you’re psychic. Cool! I’ve never heard any other vampire, that is, it’s more the witches thing,” Oliver says. “Then we know at least that you have one specific power; it’ll be exciting to see if you have more! Unfortunately, the three of us only have one each.”

Suddenly I see in my head like a movie when William walks out of his room to continue down the stairs and then walk down to the basement, where I’ll lose control when I see him. I come back to reality, and my fangs come out.

“Tell him not even to take a single step down here,” I growl noisily just as the others, and I hear William open his bedroom door two floors up.

“Why not?” Benjamin asks confusedly.

“Because I’m going to lose control,” I answer silently and shamefully.

The footsteps come closer until the basement door opens, and William stands in front of me. I’m possibly calm outwardly, but inside me, there’s a storm of emotions I can’t place. He takes a step towards me, and I use everything dominant in me when I say;

“Stay where you are, not one more step.”

He stops, and it looks honestly like his feet are glued to the floor. The rest of his body is in motion, except for the feet. Oliver and Benjamin withdraw William.

“Oookey,” Elijah says, pulling out on the word. “We have possibly found another force, but we need to test to be sure... Let him go.”

“Move,” I answer hard, and William can move his feet again.

“Damn, you’re badass at this!” Elijah exclaims happily.

“Leave me alone,” I tell William, and he walks up the stairs again like in a trance.

“You’re not only psychic, but you can also order others to do what you want, obviously,” Benjamin says, looking at me with a startled grimace.

“Ugh, my head is aching,” I say, trying to hold it but getting stopped by the chains, the very thing I’m locked up.

“It’s probably because you used the powers too much and too quickly; it’s not common at all to be able to use them just when you discover them. I had to train to be able to control it, but for some reason, you’re a natural talent,” Benjamin replies.

{Hi, Kaylin.}

“Why do you say hello again?” I ask, suddenly confused.

“What? We haven’t said anything,” Elijah replies with furrowed eyebrows.

{It’s all right, my beloved Kaylin. I’ve been waiting a long time to talk to you.}

“S-someone is talking to me, and it sounds so close! I’m going crazy!” I exclaim, and my breathing becomes erratic.

{Fear not, darling. You talk to me through your power, channeling; you can speak to souls who have moved on to the next place. I’m Miranda, and I’m your mother.}

“Mom?” I ask quietly, and the others look at me.

{Hello, my darling! I’ve longed so for you, ever since I saw you for the first time. Unfortunately, we had to say goodbye too soon, but I’ve never held you accountable for what happened. This is your destiny, and you must fulfill it no matter what.}

“What fate and fulfill?” I exclaim in panic, I don’t get it right now, and it scares me. “I’m not special; I just wanted to be left alone!”

{Oh, my beloved piglet... Don’t cry, dear. I understand that it’s heavy right now and that it feels like the whole world is falling apart. But you need to keep moving forward and start training. Joseph will come back very soon; you will have to undergo the ultimate punishment because your beloved is high-ranking... I’m so sorry, Kaylin, for getting you involved in this. Time is short, and I have to get back; trust the clan; they’re the best chance you have.}

“Kaylin, what’s going on?” Elijah asks anxiously, and now he sits next to me on the floor with one hand on my shoulder.

“My mother says I can channel,” I whisper, and Elijah gasps. “She also said that since Mr. You-know-who is high-ranking, I must undergo the ultimate punishment. What is that?”

The others gasp again and higher this time. None of them look at me but each other. Why don’t they want to tell the truth!? I have the right to know, given that I’m embroiled in their world without my consent!

“You’re right, Kaylin. We’ll tell you,” Oliver suddenly says. “Elijah, you have to explain. I don’t want my head cut off.”

Oliver and Benjamin leave the room. Elijah is silent and doesn’t look at me; instead, he seems to have difficulty dealing with this information. Whatever that means, I have no idea.

“Elijah?” I ask quietly.

“The ultimate punishment is when you fight for survival,” he starts, looking at me. “You can see it as a mix between the movie “Hunger Games” and “The purge,” but instead of fighting for riches if you survive, you fight to win back your freedom and thus serve the punishment while all sorts of actions that usually are seen as crimes are allowed during the stay in there.”

“What happens if I lose?” I ask and swallow hard, even though I know the answer.

“You die,” he replies with a broken voice, and this is when I realize what a fight I have ahead of me.

A/N:

Hello everyone!

Kaylin has three of many powers and probably has to fight for survival because of her possessive beloved’s mistake.

❀ Do you think she’ll get more powers?

✿ How good are her chances in the fights?

❀ Do you feel that William is worthy of being Kaylin’s beloved?

Please let me know your thoughts since they help me develop in my creative process! Thank you for reading, lots of love.<3