E D W A R D

My mind burst with the millions of possibilities regarding this sentence. The future was circling around my head, what was I supposed to make out of it?

"What do you mean?" I asked staring down at him. She would die? What did he mean by that?

"You didn't think I came alone, did you?"

A horror clouded upon my face as he chuckled silently with blood coming out of his mouth.

There were more and she was alone at this hour, Jenna was alone! No Lisa. She was my sole priority right now.

"Where is she?" I glared at him from down my lashes and held out my hand to separate his head.

"Good luck Ed." He murmured.

He stood up onward such that making me fall on my back; pride laced his blue eyes as he kicked me in my abdomen and ran away before I could chase him.

Nevertheless he was not my problem yet. I had bigger problems at hand right now.

Lisa's scent was always stuck in my lungs for more than an hour even after her departure. I should be able to sense her out.

With that thought I let my instincts take over to get a better view of my surroundings. The worst part of that process was hunger.

As soon as my demon was out of restraints he came at me with all his might, manipulating me into being the monster I wasn't-I was escaping from.

I tried to sniff her scent out and to some extent I did but the thoughts of my acquaintances playing around with her like kittens playing with wool stuffed my mind so much that my nostrils were filled with their scent and I could feel her no more.

I still couldn't believe Mason didn't trust me enough to leave me with Lisa. There was no point of sending Joseph and his friends here.

No wonder I always hated his ways. He was oppressive and a borderline brain-dead psychopath.

There was no point of arguing with Lords and everyone seemed to blindly trust his commands for no reason at all.

I kept walking as my skin gradually healed but the mud on my attire was the evidence of my defeat in a battle I knew so well I didn't have a chance in.

He'd become so powerful, I doubted if it was Mason's guidance that made me so.

I dawdled, scampered, and occasionally walked trying to catch even a hint of her smell but all I could feel were vampires and their fangs pressing together at some far distance.

I kept walking until I was welcomed by a familiar scent.

My eyes perched on the women in violet slim top and tight jeans. Her brunette hair fell over her shoulder in curvy waves.

I knew from her childish eyes that she was Lisa's aunt.

"Edward!" She ran towards me.

I should've run when I had the chance. I was in no mood to deal with her questions but my demons had other plans for her.

"Jenna. You shouldn't be here." I took her cold palms in mine.

They were adjusted into warm weather after they were placed between my palms. I looked down at her face to see wariness that masked the low-spirits of her always-so-lightened face.

"Aman bailed on me." She sighed.

Her eyes searched my side for her and then looked at me with a questioning look.

All the while my demon was checking out something else; the vein that ran up along the curve of her neck, the joining of her shoulder and bare neck.

"Where is she?" She questioned.

Words couldn't find a way out of my mouth, a decent explanation.

The mere mention of her was enough to calm my demon down, he knew he had a task at hand to complete, a mission though my demon's mission entirely differed from Mason's.

My demon was allowing itself to be tamed so I could find her out.

I perceived Jennifer staring up at me with pleading eyes and I realized she was waiting.

"I'll bring her to you." I explained and spotted her heartbeat raising high. She was scared as anyone would be.

I looked at the sun setting behind me meaning nothing but a vast sky of lonely gloominess. All the goodness about the day had vanished and now only the bad parts were left.

I took her hand in mine and walked past to a safe place where I hoped they wouldn't come. The vampires were lurking around us and leaving her like this would cause a great deal of chaos in future.

Besides I knew Joseph would not allow anyone to feed from her so they'd just keep her hostage for enough time to get on my nerves.

I put Jenna to one place and gathered some dry woods from the ground. Taking out the lighter from my back pocket, I ignited the flame as she rested beside me with her arms crossed.

I could tell she was worried and cold but there was no point of looking for her at this late and who would protect Jenna if I was out there.

I should take a break.

She quickly leaned back on the trunk that was rested on the ground and struggled to rest.

I had to compel her into letting go of her worries, why? I didn't know-probably because her questions were starting to irritate me.

But now she was asleep silently in front of me. She looked peaceful as if she'd made a treaty with the darkness and was slowly leaning into a slumber that would last long than the sunset.

I leaned back on the other trunk supporting my back, keeping me above the ground.

I inhaled and exhaled thinking about the girl that now surrounded every corner of my room and every part of my dreams.

She was an exquisite beauty and if only she could see herself from a vampire's gaze, she'd know just how special she was.

I was smiling, grinning at her thought. That was a genuine bliss after a long period of time. How my mother would scold me for always being so brutal even around her. I loved her nonetheless.

~ ~ ~

She was running deeper into the shamrock trees. The locks of her hair falling in the air were a sweet agony to my lungs, my soul.

The sun was down and bound to protect herself she kept running, even though fearful of darkness and mostly the one that followed her that moment.

Her breath hitched and it was getting closer to her with every second, every breath, with every pace.

Her pride depended on it, her life and she wouldn't stop. She had made peace with her miseries but this one was out of her expectations.

She wouldn't hand herself over to someone like him. She was a human, not a source of entertainment, not food, not . . . his desire.

Thorns prickled into her bare sole that made her cry. She'd lost her slippers while running.

The darkness was taking over her vision, slowly consuming every part of her conscious.

She had made a promise to herself, to keep the secret even if it means her destruction.

She was easily destructible and her enemy wouldn't take any mercy on her.

He wouldn't flinch while beating her to get what he required. He required information that only she could provide.

She collapsed and her foot stuck into the ground. She fell hard on her face and her forehead bruised. Fear was evident on her face like a black ink floating on a paper.

She was tainted by terror. She turned back to stop him and with much efforts held up her hands as if they would stop him.

He leaned over her as she constantly begged him to stop . . .

~ ~ ~

I sighed lifting my head with a mere force. My heart thumped loud enough to be heard by my ears.

I wanted to cry at the dream―nightmare―no! A memory. A memory that I was holding deep into my heart for years, the one that made me hate who I was, a monster.

I'd let my family live on the verge of destruction, I knew the consequences, I knew the risks. I could've saved her.

I peeked to my left and saw her effortlessly lying still. Jenna was fast asleep. I ran to be on my feet and struggled to stand straight.

I couldn't let the past repeat itself, I had to save Lisa. I'd save her.

What did she mean to me? I didn't know but I knew that no one should go through what Stace did.

My Stace . . . I couldn't save her but I'd mend my mistakes enough to be able to stare at my image in the mirror again.

I scampered off and hopped to different branches to get a better view of the ground. A thought invaded my mind.

If he wanted to keep someone hostage, he'd keep her somewhere suffocating and closed, somewhere that would cause someone to feel like claustrophobic. That was just the kind of imagination he had.

My sight fell on a maze, small bushes interweaving on the centre of which laid a pit, dark one offering nothing but disappointment instead of any life.

I knew it worth a shot and time. As much as I got closer her scent became more vivid.

Her blood! The scent of her blood. Abruptly I was wishing I wasn't too late.

I got closer and the pit seemed deep-even with my vision I couldn't see further into the darkness.

After enough inspection I jumped in without another thought holding me back.

The ground was yet to reach as the darkness enveloped me in an undesired embrace.

When I fell, my feet momentarily trembled with the sudden jolt but what left my heart to shudder was the sight of blood on the rocks and it was indeed hers.

She must've fallen down from all the way above.

The possibility of her climbing her way out of this place was quite less, especially with a heavy head and perhaps broken knees. So she must've taken off to wander and as stubborn as she was she would've endeavored to search for a way out.

On my right a slight path was leading somewhere. It was too dark to notice the opening but the chattering that led out of it was enough to take it into notice.

The voice was light and so slow that I could barely hear it. Yet it was enough to be spotted.

I followed it as my beacon into that swallowing dark. The rocks crushed under my feet. The webs crowded my way and the rats stumbled onto my feet.

I had just wanted a vacation and this was so not my definition of break. Anyway I got closer to the voice.

I walked closer.

"Ed you're hurting me!" I heard her call in an almost fatigue tone that seemed to be pleading.

Ed? I wasn't there! Who was she with? Anxiety ran along with my blood and with grave madness I searched each and every way of the cave to find her once again.

Her scent filled my nostrils, laced with blood and sweat-no longer the heavenly scent of flowers from her garden. There was pure terror skimming over her scent as an exterior coating.

"I missed you." I heard a voice that was mine―like mine.

I needed a moment and several others to digest the fact. My doppelganger?

Unable to hide my curiosity, uncertainty, anger and jealously of what he might be doing pretending as my imposter, I ran into them.

I saw a man pressing against her front and she was glued to the wall behind her.

He was like me in every possible exterior but I'd never put her into the position he had. That was one difference between us.

My sight went further down her skin to spot her hands masked with red marks, his fingers!

Adrenaline rushed through my body, every part of me quivered with anger and my head spun rapidly but my eyes stayed deadly fixed to the prey I was going to hunt.

She took notice of me or so it looked but I never left his face, my anger flushed in my eyeballs and my veins tightened beneath my eyes.

He was doing this on purpose, ignoring me. I'd make him pay very soon.