Chapter 5

Silas recovered quickly, his fiery eyes alight with fury; his long brown hair tattered and knotted as he lifted my mother from the ground. He growled, quickly snapping her neck as he sunk his fangs into her wrist, draining her of the essence witches carry within their blood at the moment they die.

An essence that will make a vampire stronger, give him abilities he otherwise wouldn’t have, my mother’s blood was like mine, it was special in a way only they could use, it would allow certain pure breeds of vampires to walk in the daylight, to reside amongst the living.

I screamed, dropping to my knees, the cold winter air chilling me, making it difficult to breathe as I could do nothing but tremble; I was a failure. I couldn’t save her. I should have listened, I should have run, maybe then she would still be alive.

I could have taken her with me, we could have gotten to the border, we could have finally had a life worth living. But I didn’t, I was too petrified to move, my mind betrayed my heart, it talked me into disobeying my mother. And now, she was dead. I was all alone anyway.

I dropped my head into my hands and cried, I cried more than I had ever done in my entire life. It was my fault; I may as well have killed her myself. I couldn’t control what happened next, my heart breaking into a million pieces as the power we had spent so long trying to hide from them broke loose, my eyes morphing from brown to violet as I turned to look up at the creatures.

They were closing in around me, surrounding me on all sides; I was next. They would kill me now that I was the last one left. The last of my bloodline. They had done it, erased us from existence so easily, without even a second thought.

Suddenly, I stood; knowing what needed to be done. It was as though my entire form had morphed into something better, something stronger. The power I wasn’t allowed to show had made itself known, it was pulsing through me, giving me exactly what I needed to take them down.

Giving me the power to destroy the undead, to make sure that their existence was nothing more than a lie. Screams echoed through the small estate of houses as the vampires dropped to their knees, their skin burning and breaking away from their bodies. One by one, they fell onto their fronts on the grass, scorching the ground with their molten skin.

I hid my smile as the first one died, I felt it within me, it was like a song, the rhythm of their screams soothing me, making me want to do it more. Yes, there would be consequences to this, but I was already dead without my family, I had needed them. I had wanted them. But these creatures had taken them away from me, they had ripped my family apart and burnt the pieces, and now; I would burn them.

Fire. That is what kills a vampire, that is what rids the world of their kind. But not just any fire, it was the fire that came from the sun that killed them, the fire that I could conjure throughout my entire form.

Silas was the only one left standing, I couldn’t hurt him with this power, not whilst he had my mother’s blood within him. That was the only issue, now I was all alone with an angry vampire prince, his subjects around him all dead, or dying; and there was nothing he could do to stop it. He couldn’t save them; it was already too late. Maybe now, he would understand how I felt only moments ago. How I felt when they killed my father.

“Interesting.” He smiled, closing the gap between us as he spoke. “So, my informant was right. You indeed have a special gift.”

I took a step back, attempting to mask my violet eyes from him. Only, it was no use as he lifted my chin towards him, my fiery skin barely even scorching his. My heart once again raced as I clenched my jaw and closed my eyes, knowing that I would die for what I had done. Though, I had avenged my mother, not entirely; but enough to go to the afterlife with some peace; and perhaps I would see them there. We could be reunited once more.

Silas lifted me from the ground, cradling me in his arms as he turned away from the house, taking one last look at the corpses. “I wouldn’t worry about dying just yet Luna. I have great plans for you.”

I gasped, knowing that a vampire saying something along those lines wasn’t good, not at all. It meant that I was now under his command, that he personally owned me; and could do whatever he wished with my life. But why choose to keep me alive? What could he possibly have to gain from my power? Yes, they all knew about my shapeshifting. But this ability was forbidden, anyone who could do such a thing as I had just done was meant to be disposed of. Permanently. Was it different somehow because he was a prince? Did that mean he didn’t have to follow the same rules as the other vampires? What would the King and Queen say to him if they found out?

“Don’t fret little witch, I am not going to hurt you. Not unless you try that shit on me. Are we clear?” He questioned, his voice calm and level.

“Yes sir.” I whispered, too afraid to open my eyes as he opened the car door; gently placing me inside.