Chapter 3

No Signal.

I had no means to communicate with the outside world. And now, the screen went black after minutes of trying to seek help. 

A groan escaped my lips as I pulled myself out of the small space in the wardrobe and onto my feet.

I crossed the room, latching my palm onto the door knob, but it took three tries to pry the door open before I realised that I was locked in.

"Shit!" I cursed, stomping my foot against the wooden floorboards. 

My eyes drifted over to the window which had the moonlight still peering from it, and in an instant, I found myself in front of the window with my fingers wrapped around the ledge, while peeking down from above.

My eyes struggled to adjust to see beyond the thick fog formed below,that was until, a bold thought popped in my head. 

One that sent sirens blaring.

I lifted my foot, placing it  on the creaky window ledge, while steadying myself by gripping the two sides of the wall.  But then, something flickered behind my eyes sending a sharp pain to the side of my skull.

And then I saw it—my limp body hanging at the edge of a rocky cliff, with blood pooling from my forehead and nose.

I blinked hard, ignoring the recurring throbbing headache.

“Nope. Not doing this.” I muttered under my breath. Just as I was about to step down, the door slammed open, startling me.

One second I was reaching for the ledge, with my fingers spread, the next— nothing. My fingers gripped the air with a memory of the hard ledge only lingering in my mind.

The last thing I saw, before completely losing balance, were the panicked eyes of Ronan.

Tears fell freely from my eyes with a shrill scream erupting from my throat as I braced myself for the impact of the fall.

Thinking I had finally met my demise, my back plunged into something hard, forcing my eyes shut as she waited to hear the sound of bones snapping or an explosive headache from a cracked skull.

But nothing came.

With tears still streaming down my face, I peeled my eyes open only to meet a face contorted with rage.

“Are you insane?!” Ronan barked, his jaw ticking. 

I stayed silent, but my eyes darted around, only to see I was being held mid air, at the bottom of a rocky cliff, while the tall imposing stone walls of an ancient castle sat neatly on it. It looked way too similar to the one I had imagined.

“I'm-I’m alive?” I stuttered, wide eyed. “You're floating?!”

“Of course I am! All vampires do, but that's besides the point.” He complained. “Bloody hell! I told you-”

His strings of  curse words and corrections faded into the background as the word, ‘vampire’, kept ringing over and over in my head. 

I went still first, before my eyes found the clearing that was now visible. Waves crashed around violently, while the smell of the salty ocean attacked my senses. Then I looked back at him before unclenching my fists.

“Okay,” my voice came out breathy and uneven. “So, you're a…vampire.”

I didn’t scream nor dare to cry. A long time ago, I had learnt that reacting big rarely got me anywhere good, and I was not about to try that in the hands of this…vampire.

He stayed silent, then circled around the castle, before stopping in front of an open window. I took it as my cue to climb through, before he did.

The room had white sheets draped over furniture like patent ghosts. Lavender hung in the air, like perfume that had stayed on a fabric for too long, but beneath it, a faint smell of mothbolls and something musty lingered in the air.

“Um, thanks.” I said, turning away to wipe my eyes with the back of my palm, then back to him.

“Thanks? What the hell were you thinking?!” he exploded, grabbing a handful of my shoulder.

His tone caught me off-guard, causing my nails to dig into my palm as anger bubbled up at the pit of my stomach.

“What was I thinking?” I spat, “A freaking monster takes me to the middle of nowhere and I’m expected to just stay calm after everything I saw?”

I slapped his hand away, while looking at him dead in the eye. 

“If anything, you got me into this mess, Ronan,” I accused, shoving my fingers to his chest. “So excuse me for trying to find my freaking way home. I have someone to get home to, but you and your friend made sure whoever that woman was, she’d never reach hers!”

The silence was so deafening that the sound of my quickened heartbeat could almost be heard amidst it. My chest heaved up and down as my eyes mirrored his enraged ones.

“Corvin didn’t kill her.” He blurted out.

My head jerked back in surprise. “What do you mean? I know what I saw.”

“What you saw before you blacked out,”he said, fingers closing around my wrist. “In fact, she got home quite safely.”

“No! She was barely alive. You’re lying!”

Before I could draw a breath, his grip tightened around my arm. The room blurred, the floor seemed to vanish beneath my feet, while the walls streaked past like painted shadows.The hallway illuminated by gasoliers and a bunch of candle lamps on the wall, while we stood face to face with an enormous wooden door. My heart hammered, as the echo of his impossible swiftness still clung to my skin. Never in my life had motion felt so sudden. 

He pounded rapidly against the wooden door, and a soft, ‘come in’ came from the inside.

The door creaked open, revealing none other than the young lady from the alley.

“Your highness,” she gasped, putting down a book she was reading.

I staggered backwards, clutching the door knob.

“H-how?” I blinked hard, turning to him. “Is she a vampire?”

Ronan looked towards the woman, offering a small wave, and received a small bow in return. 

“She’s a human.” Ronan replied flatly, placing his hand on mine then shutting the door.

Heat crept up my neck at the gesture, but I quickly pulled away, embarrassed at the false accusation.

“She willingly had a blood bond with Corvin. What you saw there wasn’t an attack. It just happened at the wrong place.” Ronan explained, running his fingers through his silky black hair with his gaze set on me. 

When I finally looked back at him, he realized he hadn’t looked away first.

“Please, I don’t want to get caught up in all this.” I pleaded, fiddling with her fingers. “I need to get back home. All this–”

“You can’t.” He interjected, sealing my fate.

I opened her mouth to argue, but he raised his hand, silencing me.

“For centuries, not once have I failed to erase the memories of a mere mortal, even the weakest vampires can perform such a flimsy act. But you my dear,” he said, reaching out his hand, brushing the strands of hair that fell against my face while staring intensely at the bloody bandage, “you are the first.” 

That was when it hit me. The repeated act of putting his finger on my forehead must have been his attempt at wiping memories of all I had witnessed.

“I won’t put the lives of my brood at risk by letting you go scott free.” he said, snapping me back to reality.

Anger surged through me—Or perhaps it was fear. Whatever it was, it rose within me, driving her hand upwards until it struck his face with a sharp slap. 

The sting of my palm lingered in the air, but the fury that had driven it was already shifting, twisting into regret. 

Ronan’s eyes flashed bright red. His jaw ticked, as he did everything in his power to suppress his rage.

“You’re going to regret that.” He whispered, clenching his fists. The color drained from my face as realization washed upon me.

Two shadows appeared beside Ronan before I could utter a single word. 

They came in the form of smoky silhouettes. The haze thickened, and figures began to take shape, rising from their feet upward until at last two men stood revealed. 

“Lock her up,” he  snarled with fury raging in his eyes. “She doesn’t leave… not until I say so. ”