XIX. Haunted

Jasper

The blood was everywhere. It littered the entire hallway, from one end to another. There were even splashes of it on the goddam ceiling, the fucking ceiling. He had made quite a mess. Some of the locker doors were broken and one of the drinking fountains had been disconnected from the wall.

I would have applauded if not for the fact that this was a school with children, human children.

Slowly, I approached Ivanov. He was knelt on the floor by the dead body...whatever was left of it anyway. The stench of death filled the room but there was something else. There was a taint on the blood, a tincture of sin, though well hidden, it was still there.

A vampire, I concluded mentally.

I didn't think a vampire could have so much blood. This one was...well fed. By the stench of it, it fed on young blood, fresh too. This was no clan vampire.

I heard footsteps approaching. Without bothering to turn my head I knew who it was. The Sallow boy quickly moved towards me -well, as quickly as he could. He stopped right behind me, probably out of fear.

I could smell the fear in the atmosphere but it was not coming from the Sallow boy, this fear had been there when I came in. I was very familiar with the stench of cowards, many times I had inflicted it on people, especially when fighting the wars of man.

"Ivan?"I only referred to him because we were so close we were practically born of the same woman. I was his right hand man, his beta, his brother. Had I not been, I would have received a harsh punishment for referring to him so, as if his w my kin.

He looked up at me. His eyes were filled with darkness, anger and pain.

His fists were clenched so hard I worried he would break his own bones. Blood leaked out of his hands. His claws were out and as he fisted his hands they broke through his palms.

I could tell that at the moment the pain was the only thing keeping his inner beast at bay. Control was something all of us struggled with, especially Volk who were the most impulsive and animalistic species of lycanthrope. The fact that he had not already gone on a killing spree across the town was worthy of an applause.

" My Lord...Alpha?...Ivan..."

A painful grunt was his only response.

From the clues in the room I had a good idea of what happened. This was his beloved's high school meaning she must have been there. There was a dead vampire on the floor meaning the vampire attempted to feed on the girl and Ivan stopped him. But there were still a few missing links. Where was she? They must have been together earlier, her scent was heavy on him, coated with lust and arousal.

Then I remember that she was human.

He hadn't told her. I had been sure that he had told her. He promised me he would.

"You can't put this off forever? People are beginning to talk. They know you found her. The people celebrate. They await their queen... " I told him.

"She is not ready," he responds, staring out into the Kingdom.

"No, you are the one who is not ready."

I had known this would blow up in his face soon enough and he had been too stubborn to realise it. Another thing about Volk: they were stubborn as hell, good thing Ivan was the only one. I only had to deal with one of his kind.

I made my conclusion. She had found out and ran away leaving him angry and pained. Yet another thing about Volk: do not run away from them especially if they have become territorial and possessive over you.

Never before had I seen him like this. Ivan was always the most 'in control' of us all. I knew one thing for sure, this would be no easy task.

Cara

"I am a witch, dear," Kogo said. I am sitting on a cushion in her reading room. The tarot cards are on the table staring at me. The chariot, the lovers... The tower.

"Tarots don't lie... "Kogo's voice fades away and so does the room. As her world fades away, Hoff's face appears. He smiles sickly at me. He wants to bite me again. I fear I may not survive his fangs again. Before I can react he disappears and I am in the woods.

I hear a deadly growl behind me. Turning I see the wolves, many of them and I don't hesitate to start running. My breathing gets faster and faster, I am practically panting like a dog.

Suddenly I trip and I am on the ground. I face up and I see his face. It's Ivan. He is hovering over me like he was when we first kissed in the forest. His eyes darken and as he opens his mouth I see his large fangs, two at the top and two at the bottom.

Raising his hands, he shows me his claws. They fly down to my face and...

Panting, I jolted out of my seat ,waking Alice in the process.

"I-It was just a d-dream, sorry I woke you," I tell her, stuttering.

"It's alright, I could not sleep anyway. Don't think about it, "she responded,giving me a tight hug. "Look out the window."

Looking out the window, I see city lights and buildings. Just then the pilot makes an announcement,"Ladies and gentlemen we are now beginning our descent into the ancient city of Rome. Do buckle your seatbelts for safety. We hope you enjoyed your flight."

I buckle my seatbelt and begin to assemble my things since we are about to arrive. I did not want to leave anything behind.

I would have done anything to get my mind off what had happened earlier that day. Sleeping was not an option anymore. I had had the same dream twice already.

It brought many questions to my head none of which Alice was willing to answer. I tried to make it go away but how do you run from your own thoughts? You can't, but you can sure as hell try. That was just what I would do, I would try.

After the customary procedures at the airport and a quiet car ride, we arrived at the hotel. We were staying at the 'Hotel Des Artistes'. The place was pretty good. I liked it. The rooms were very spacious.

We were paired up with whoever we would be sharing rooms with. As per the school rules, hotel rooms were not to be shared by a boy and a girl. I got paired up with Alice while Lisa got Angela, another girl in my class.

"Isn't this nice? "Asked Alice excitedly. She wasn't usually so jovial so it was nice to see her looking happy.

"It's great." I did not bother to unpack. I was too tired.

"Save me!" Someone shouted. We turned to the door where Lisa stood looking distressed. "It's Angela. She's no fun. She turned on the TV and put on Animal Planet. Now she's watching some documentary about the dung beetle. Gross! "

"There is nothing wrong with animal planet,"I said defending my third favourite channel after Discovery and Comedy Central.

"I know but I wanna have fun. Nothing educational...Idea! Some guys are throwing together a little, get together in room two o’ seven, let's go!"

"You know what, let's go! Cara?" Said Alice. I shook my head. I told them I was not in the mood and they left me alone on the condition that I promised to have fun the following day.

Once they were gone I undressed and grabbed my towel. I could not help but stare at the pendant hanging around my neck. My mom's necklace rarely caught my eye,  I was too used to it -I rarely took it off, it was the only thing of hers that I had. Was it silly to keep around the property of someone who abandoned you? Maybe it was, it was surely too late now.

Take it off... I thought, not wanting to have a murderer's necklace around my neck.

Was I being too harsh? Calling him a murderer? He had saved me.

God, I was so confused.

I just couldn't get over the fact that he had... he had... I didn't even know the word for it... 'changed'? He had changed...become an animal and done what he had.

I don't think anybody would be able to deal with that. I had so many questions that I wasn't sure I wanted answered, not that Alice was willing to answer them.

This situation was just messed up.

I grabbed the loofah I had packed and headed to the bathroom. The water was too warm for my taste so I turned the knob for cold water. I, unlike many, appreciated a cold shower.

Looking at my bare abdomen, I spotted a few specks of dried blood. It was another reminder of today's incidents, evidence that it had actually happened. I shivered at the memory of Hoff's hands on me as his fangs mercilessly pierced through my neck.

I was haunted by the fresh memories. They hung over me, never leaving my mind.

Getting out of the shower, I wrapped a large white towel around my body and brushed my teeth.

I put on my pyjamas in preparation for bed. I wore a simple panda bear printed short and a black tee written 'Save the pandas'.

I did my best to get a good night's sleep.