E D W A R D

Before I could realize my hand swung in air to stop that hunter from hurting her.

The voice left my mouth as everybody stared at me, except for her. She must've been in so much pain to think the voice had left from her throat.

It must be painful. My own misery and pain of broken bones disappeared when I saw the blood wetting her shirt.

My demon was awoken and he desired blood but the sweet aroma filling my nostrils failed to fill my senses, my demon was hungry but he craved the blood of this hunter.

It pained me more than my broken ribs because my wound would heal by midnight but hers would take weeks. And even then a scar would be left there to remind her of this doomed night.

She lifted her face a bit, still squirming in his arms as the grimace swiftly masked her face. I wanted to lift her and run away as far as and as fast as I could.

What would happen to my acquaintances? Well, I'd rather enjoy seeing their faces turn pallor as the hunters drive the stakes through their hearts.

"Well that's a first." One of the hunters spoke.

"Since when do bloodthirsty monsters pay a damn about their food?" The hunter spoke who had her locked up in his clutch.

He must really care about her. Or maybe he's just faking it. He wants her for his master, that's it! Maybe I could use her against him to get what I want. He thought.

A smirk appeared on his face as I peeked into his intentions.

"So vampire. What does your unconquerable Lord wants from her?" He smirked deeply revealing his perfect set of pearly teeth that didn't for once match his tanned skin.

I blinked several times before coming up with a decent and credible statement.

"He wants her . . . for um . . . he thinks that she comes from an aristocratic bloodline and we know that he always had a thing for that." I explained getting a side glare from each and every one of the four nuisances.

They didn't like me explaining even a word for her sake but she was no good to us dead.

"Well, that would explain her extraordinary scent. What specie?" He asked believing the tale I'd just faked.

What specie? Hell I didn't know that answer! We're attracted towards her by her blood so a human then . . . but she smelt more like a nymph I'd encountered in my early days of vampirism. Human wasn't a decent answer and nymph was over the top so . . .

"I don't know. A hybrid I suppose." I blurted as I got more unbelievable glances from both of my sides.

Hybrid weren't a thing to exist. In early days of course but since most of the specie had already endangered and some become extinct, there were no hopes for the birth of a hybrid and even then it would be considered as a scandalous fact even for someone like Mason.

But he didn't know that.

"A hybrid." His eyes widened and then he suddenly burst out into laughing.

"Now that's too much of a lie, don't you think?" He laughed but then his expressions turned serious.

His grasp around her stomach tightened. Just then I realized the knife was still there and it deepened into her back as a whimper left her mouth.

She threw her head back to rest on his shoulder as more and more pain devoured her life.

"Choose your next words carefully." He threatened.

Involuntarily but a groan escaped my throat as my jaws clenched. I'd had enough of this damn play.

I started to put motion into my limbs and feet. I was going to hop at him if he didn't let her go in the next few minutes.

"Since when has the Savior of humans gotten hell-bent to kill one?" Joseph muttered beside me.

I calmed myself letting them carry on with this feeble attempt.

"Oh that's cruel. I mean we'd never kill one of ourselves." Alex mocked.

It was true. Killing a vampire was considered as taking the first step towards a death trap one had set for himself.

If you weren't a vampire your penalty was received as your death sentence-however for vampires, there was a different law.

Since a vampire wasn't permitted to kill another one of his kind, the penalty would be received was hemorrhage.

The process was simple. The vampire was restrained to a pole or beneath the ground and would have to be completely bled out until the possibility of a slumber of waiting ghosts was near to haunt him.

I had lack of expertise in that experience. But everyone who'd gone through that had one thing in their story common to tell. It wasn't a pleasant experience.

Although I did appreciate Alex's mock. Comparing those egoistic jerks with the ones they hated more than their lives was enough to inflame them into doing something out of their plans. In other words, he was persuading them into making a grave mistake.

And us vampires we're known to be Devil's servants, and thus provoking someone was the foremost part of our personality-and of course seducing.

The hunter's eyes blazed with an amount of loathing and anger that was impossible to hold back from his facial features.

The annoyance of the comparison made was confirmed in them. Their brows twitched in disgust and lips almost curved proving the presence of an evident grimace.

My companions were bursting with a devious laugh on the inside in spite of the hot air that now began form a ring around us.

I was too, like every vampire, feeling happy and delighted with myself and my kind in ages. The hunters would remember this remark for a long time to come.

I was on the edge of my bliss when I saw Lisa and suddenly I fell from the high mountains' crests of my utopia and ended up in this hell of misery where a girl was suffering.

After that moment of joy, I couldn't help but worry about the probability of what would happen if Lisa were to pay the price of our move.

The hunter drew back the knife from her back restoring her life back into her body.

I sighed out of relief but only loud enough for my ears until her body crashed to the ground.

She was still breathing and trying to hold the bleeding from her wound. I wouldn't say I wasn't surprised; she still wanted to live after everything.

"I can't kill her but what about one of you." He chuckled darkly behind his smirking face.

As long as that vampire wasn't me, I didn't give a damn about what happens to them all.

Kill them all and I'd get to leave with her. I planned deviously in my mind.

I smelt her blood spreading on the grass near her. Her face was on the ground and her fingers crawling on the grass as if seeking for something.

It wasn't just me who noticed.

All of our breaths hitched and a knot formed in our throats, strangling us. We weren't restrained with anything so it was kind of difficult to hold ourselves back.

All the while I was just worried she would drain herself out enough to die.

"You know, we only have so much as self-restraint." Marcus admitted staring down, focusing on anything but blood.

The hunters no wondered had tired us enough to get us hungry. And with the food right in front of us lying almost willingly was just challenging but the blood reaching out towards me was more than enticing as it drew the patterns of a snake slithering towards its aim.

I shut the light out, restraining my senses.

"You wouldn't kill her. You require keeping her safe if you want to live." He reminded.

My body tightened unwillingly as I got a closer look of her.

Her eyes were suddenly focusing on mine. Why? I wanted to tear that gaze but I wanted to stare at her just as bad-only to gain nothing but pain in return.

She looked like a pleading child; her eyes were enough to get my heart thawed, let alone her condition.

Oh how I wished she wouldn't have looked at me with those eyes! Those exhausted pale brown eyes carrying grief, pain, anger, and depression!

I wished to take it all back, to take all the pain she had to offer. If it caused her even a moment's relief than I was geared up to do whatever it took.

"She could die by herself if she continues to bleed the same amount!" I growled.

The hunter eyed me out of extreme irritation and malevolence. He was cooking up a plan I sought to know but before I endeavored to read his thoughts he disrupted me.

"Fine then. Treat her wound." He offered though sounded more like challenging.

He wanted me to kill her so I could die by Mason's hands. He must've thought I wasn't capable of holding myself and I didn't know if I was.

What if my demon thought it was the time to finally give in?

I shook my thoughts away and carefully took each step towards her-still balancing on my knees as they'd broken my joints-reminding myself what I needed to do.

I wouldn't let anyone get the best of me, I'd take care of her and my demon altogether.

As I got closer I stopped breathing knowing well that I would cause nothing but pain to myself. I leaned in as I gripped her head between my palms and perched it on my lap.

Her wound looked nasty and I wasn't strong enough to heal it right away. I thought for a while before taking out a handkerchief from her back pocket. At least I could alleviate it to some extent.

I put the cloth in on her wound and pressed it hard to stop the bleeding which worked to a short extent.

This will have to do for now. I thought.

I could feel the dazed glances falling upon me. Surely they had expected me to fall over the top and drain her out myself―even though I wanted to―I had to be wise.

Now being wise there was another stupid decision I had to make. And this could be the dimmest escape plan anyone had ever come up with in the history but in my shoes, it worth a shot.

I took a deep breath, bracing myself. My heart thumped in my chest at the risk but I had to remind myself again and again what this was all about.

I had to take this risk for her safety and she wasn't safe here.

I breathed once more as I hauled her up into my arms and drew her into my chest before running off like I was being chased by my death.

This was it.

With only a few moments of decision and preparations, I won the game. I thought they would follow me but I was running out of time to look over my back.

She wasn't fighting now just sinking into a catnap. If it wasn't for the admirable stubborn beating of heart, I'd guessed she was dead.

She was getting pallor by every second and her heart faltered to a beat I couldn't catch. I was wrong; she was fighting-fighting for her life with the Devil.

I secretly promised myself that she'd be in a better place when she woke up.

I didn't stop nor turned back to see if they're coming. I held her tightly close to myself and ran. I ran till I knew she was safe.