Chapter 9

“We can do this the easy way, or the hard way, little hunter.” he says, snarling in my face as my visions blurrs. “The choice is entirely yours but hear me when I say I can make your time here, much, much worse. Do you understand me?”

I struggle to nod my head, my voice barely above a whisper, “Crystal clear.” I gasp.

Mihai drops me, my back landing on the edge of the window sill as I crash into the ground, coughing as my lungs fill with as much air as they can.

Why was he so impossibly strong? He was stronger than any other Nati I had ever met, and I have met my fair share of them over the years.

Maybe I truly was lost to my family.

I whimper as I try to stand, my back screaming at me in protest to the movement, landing on my back must have done more damage than I thought. I manage to move onto my hands and knees, crying out as another fit of coughing overtakes my lungs.

Who knew that being choked could hurt so much. They never mentioned that in the books I read.

Mihai takes a step towards me, my body instantly going into fight or flight as I shuffle back on the floor, trying to put some distance between us. I can’t let him do tha again, i need all my strength if I want to somehow escape.

My father always did say that my smart mouth would get me killed one day. Perhaps he was right.

“I’ll send someone to tend to your wounds.” Growls the Nati as he heads for the door, slamming it closed as he leaves.

I wonder if he’ll actually send someone to take a look at my back, or is it another one of his tricks? Do vampire’s even employ doctors? I don’t see why, personally they have no use for them.

I fight against my own body as I crawl towards the bed on my hands and knees, I will not just lay here and feel sorry for myself. I have to come up with a plan, I have to somehow find a weakness in Mihai that I can exploit.

But I won’t get far, not if he keeps throwing me around like a toddler with a toy. I have to make him stop for a while, but how?

How does a human convince a vampire not to hurt them?

I'm not waiting long for the doctor to arrive, and to my surprise, she’s human. A tall, blonde woman wearing heals that I’d break every bone in my body wearing.

She approaches me cautiously, holding out one hand in surrender as the other carries a large bag. “I’m not here to hurt you, I’m doctor Natallie.” She says slowly, as though she is approaching a bear with a sore head. “I’m here to look at your back.”

Perhaps she acts like that because she works for some of the most dangerous creatures in the world, or maybe it's because the Nati told her who and what I am.

I've heard of people who choose to work for the undead, but I have never met one, hunters normally destroy them, or they are sent back to the high council for questioning. I’m not sure what happens to them after that, I’ve never asked.

I adjust myself on the bed, trying not to wince of cry out. “I’m afraid they’ve sent you to me for no reason, I am perfectly fine.”

She doesn't believe me; I can tell by the look on her face. I don’t blame her either, I’ve never been very good at lying.

“It won’t take me long.” She promises. “Just a quick look and I’ll leave you alone.”

I reluctantly nod, turning around so that she can see the damage her master caused me, and by the sharp intake of breath I hear her take, I know it's bad.

Of course it's bad, I got manhandled by a fucking vampire.

They don’t exactly treat their food with care, and I’ve seen plenty of dead humans to back me up on that. They are normally left mangled and in pieces.

Natallie holds my shoulder with one hand and begins to press on random areas of my back, I’ve never wanted to kill a human I’d just met so badly in all my life. She's fucking pushing her luck.

If I wasn’t trying not to cause trouble I’d have her bleeding out on the floor already.

“It’s pretty badly bruised.” she says, removing her hand from my back. “But nothing is broken.”

I scoff, “Good for me.”

I turn around, making sure I am a good distance away from her as she rummages through her bag, I’m not risking get stuck with a needle. No fucking way.

Natallie hands me a box of pills and picks up her bag, “Take two when the pain gets too bad, other than that, you should heal in a couple of days, unless..”

“Unless I’m smacked around like a piñata again.” I say, finishing her sentence for her.

She smirks a little, but doesn’t respond, she just walks towards the door and knocks three times, the guard on the other side letting her out.

I look down at the bottle of pills, there was no label, but I didn’t care, I just wanted the pain to stop. I swallow two of the pills dry and lay down, looking up at the white ceiling as I try to relax.

Sleep is an escape from life, and right now, I need that escape more than I’d care to admit.