Chapter 4

VERONICA

I hold my clothes tight with my last strength. Everyone stares at me precisely, wondering what gave me the nerve. Honestly, I don't know what gave me this audacity, but whatever it is, it should also not let me die at the hands of this Lycan.

"Let me go... you monsters," I scream, and I move away from the vampire. Tears clouded my vision as I stood. Inwardly, I am too scared to even breathe properly, but how I put up with the act of acting strong is one thing I don't know of.

"You are the stubborn one, huh?" "Kill her," he orders. My heart sank to my belly. Grandma died for me to live... And all I could do to keep her last request was to get myself killed? The fear of my blood being sucked until I drop dead on the cold, bare floor creeps up on me and hunts me.

I shiver and move backwards with each of the vampire's approaching steps. I hear the Lycans call him Mike. He kept on moving until I got to my dead end. I was trapped by the crooked wall. I see a glimpse of a smile across Mike's lips when I can't move any further. I held my breath, waiting for him to bite off my flesh and feed on my blood.

However, it occurs to me that I must never die like this. I have to succumb to pleading, even though it would hurt my pride. To hell with the fuckin' pride that will soon get me killed.

"I will strip." I said it nervously just when I felt Mike's teeth on my neck. His smell was disgusting—he smells like dirty blood, or should I say a dead corpse.

"Let her live," the Lycan man said almost immediately, like he was waiting for me to beg for my life. Mike grumbled in anger. He hesitates for a few seconds before getting himself away from me.

I breathe out heavily, knowing that I have been relieved of not only the smell that could have sent me to my early grave but also the fact that I won't die with my whole blood sucked . It was as if I were pulling a movie show, as everyone watched me with keen interest. I will strip. Maybe they think I won't. It's not like I have some magical powers that would make me disappear from the cave or that I could use to open a portal passage to another world and escape forever.

Slowly, still in the same position, I start to pull my clothes bit by bit, wishing that someone could appear and order them to stop and then take me away from here. Unfortunately, I pulled the last cloth I was on without anyone like that showing up.

I sigh in disappointment as he walks towards me and starts to inspect my body. If only he knew how embarrassed I am at the moment; however, I still look directly into his eyes, pretending not to be surprised by him. At a point, he had to squeeze his face; I don't know why, but that scared the hell out of me. The other girls that were killed had the same face-squeezing experience before they were killed.

"Lock them up," he orders. I quickly put my cloth back on, and then we were dragged down a lonely aisle. I walked slowly, trying to find any clue or exit, but there was none. We walk along the route, which only has two exits; one will lead you back to the cave, while the other will take you to the place we are heading to, obviously the prison.

As I was being led into the castle prison along with the other girls, I couldn't help but feel a deep sense of dread in the pit of my stomach. The imposing walls and high towers of the fortress seemed to loom over us, casting a dark and foreboding shadow.

We were herded through the gates and into a dimly lit hallway, where we were locked in a cramped cell with barely enough space for all of us to sit. The air was stale and musty, and I could hear the distant sounds of clanging metal and muffled screams echoing through the corridors.

As soon as we entered the castle prison, I was struck by the overwhelming sense of dread that filled the air. The walls are made of rough, gray stone that seemed to absorb all the light, casting the interior in shadow. The air was thick with the stench of filth and decay, and the sounds of clanging metal and distant screams echoed off the walls.

The hallway leading to our cell was narrow and dimly lit, with torches flickering in the sconces on the wall. The floor was slick with moisture, and I stumbled more than once as we were led deeper into the prison.

When we finally reached our cell, I was horrified by the conditions. The space was cramped and crowded, with barely enough room for all of us to sit. The walls were damp and covered in mold, and the only light came from a small window set high in the wall. The air was thick and stifling, and I could barely breathe.

I crouch to my feet, waiting and thinking about the next action. I am powerless, and even though they knew I was a werewolf, I wonder why they decided to leave me alive. Obviously, I have no powers, and I am more like a human since I can't even switch to my wolf form.

My stomach rumbles in hunger, but when I look around, I see the others, especially a little girl of about ten years old, taken captive with us. I feel pity for them. Somehow it seems I am the oldest among the other fifteen surviving girls; they all rather look at me as if I were. And hopelessly, I cannot even do anything for them. The display of disobedience I exhibited earlier was just what my grandma says—that I should never behave like the others. for some reason that I was different." I am still waiting for that, which makes me different, but it seems to never show up.

I am terribly starving, and I think of what to do to get myself and the others something to eat.

"Heyyy.. get us some food... Anyone out there? We ain't gonna starve to death you knowww!!!!" I scream as I shake the iron straps covering the cell violently, ignoring the surprised looks from the others.

There is silence, and my voice echoes to the far end. I don't know how many meters away they are, and it also seems no one would ever come to us. No one is there guarding us, but still, there is no escape for us. The fear of that immediately crept into me; that was reality. I keep my calm and watch the disappointed glare I get from the inmates.

"Are we gonna die?" The little girl is crouching beside me, about to break into tears. She asks with a shaky voice. I drew her close to me and let her wet my shirt with her tears. She cries. I hear her constantly calling out to her mother, and I look around; no one in there could possibly be the little girl's mother. I also notice one more thing. Only teenagers were taken except for this little girl and maybe me; I am no teenager; I just turned twenty a few weeks ago.

"What's your name, little princess?" I asked, not sure if I would get a response from the broken girl.

"Alice, my mother calls me that."

"You've got a pretty name there, Alice." I say she's trying to lift her mood. She gave a faint glimpse. and stare directly into my eyes. I almost feel like tearing up. How could she look at me with so much hope in her eye? I can't even protect myself in here. not to talk of her or any other person.

"You are Veronica." Alice asks

I nod, surprised that she knows my name. I never said my name to anyone else.

"Yes, Love. I am. "Don't tell me you guessed that."

"More like I saw it," she says.

"You have powers?" "To see things?" She blinks her eyes as she nods her head. I am confused. Even if she was a werewolf, Grandma never told me that werewolves possess such powers.

The doors clicked open, interrupting us from our discussion. Everyone looks up, waiting for the owner of the pitter patter footsteps that sound approaching the prison.

I am scared... Maybe they will finally get us killed, and I am to be blamed for my useless noise for a meal.

He finally arrived, and his cold gaze sent shivers down my spine. I don't know of the others, but looking at them, you can easily tell that they were all scared to death as well.

Somehow, our eyes met, and my heart skipped a beat. A lump suddenly grew in my stomach.

"Werewolf girl?" I hear him whisper. I am sure I have heard that voice. But I didn't see his mouth moving, although his expression shows that he asked the question. Why is he surprised to see me? Does he know me?