Darkness fell, engulfing us like a thick blanket. I lost my sense of time from the changing climate.

"He won't be dead for long." Radella grimaced, getting up on her feet. "I'll show him the ropes."

Ha. Are you kidding?

"You're the one that caused this." My breath grew thin and ragged as I gestured at his limp body. "He didn't have a choice. You made that for him."

Ethan will never be the same. She took his choice away from him—they both did.

I knew what Dad meant when he said he had to get away from Shadowbrook. This place was a curse.

Humanity was a gift. A blessing to feel every emotion under the sun. That was the difference between mankind and the vampiric race.

Johnathan trailed his fingers down his cheeks, resting them in a prayer position on the edge of his chin. He hadn't shaved for several days as stubble defined his jawline. "How did it happen?"

I remained silent, chewing on the inside of my mouth.

When I replayed what happened, the stinging grew bigger like somebody used a gas torch over my chest, scolding my heart.

Finding myself in the middle of vampire drama was a double-edged sword. It kept my mind preoccupied but led me head-on into traffic.

Johnathan gripped my arms, bringing me back to the present. "It's only about time until Samuel overhears, and something tells me he will find somebody to blame."

I had forgotten about Samuel recuperating in the car.

My voice quivered, breaking towards the end of my utterance. "She eavesdropped on our conversation, but I had no idea he was a pawn in her revenge scheme."

It hit me like the tide going out, carrying me with the current. Each wave crashed into me, burying me underwater until I gasped for breath. Tiredness drowned me. "God, it's all my fault."

Breaking free from his hold, I staggered backwards and held my head in my hands.

I should've listened to Ethan and gone back to the car.

"It's not your fault, Erika." He stepped towards me, unsure if he should move closer for a hug or if that would be inappropriate in his profession.

What are we? Does he still see me as his patient or as a friend?

Johnathan had saved my life multiple times, so I guessed that put us higher up the friendship scale than the rest of his patients.

"Can somebody carry him home?" I said to nobody in particular.

"I'll do it." Samuel ambled to Ethan's body, preserving the strength he had left.

On alert from Samuel's arrival, Johnathan tensed his shoulders and clenched his knuckles, preparing himself if things turned south.

Samuel was incautious and rash at times, making him unpredictable. He lifted his grandson's body over his shoulder as if he were a sack of potatoes. "Radella, tell Nadine I killed her men and that I will ruthlessly kill more."

"I thought you wanted an alliance?" Clawing at the blotchy area on her arm exposed to the sunlight, she had a determined look on her face. "We can take down Akrsna and Alani together?"

Edwina wouldn't go down without a fight. Once she reached her full power, she would be unstoppable.

"That was before the bitch witch hurt my grandson." He nodded as he passed Johnathan, ignoring me and yelled out from behind. "Feel free to take a heart as a souvenir." Using vampiric speed, he vanished into the dark.

"His bow and arrow. I need to find it," I said, marching through the lopsided turf and over mounds of earth.

Johnathan half-jogged to keep up with me. "Finding his weapon won't make things better."

No, it won't. But at least it's something I can control.

When I didn't respond, he cleared his throat, slowing his pace. "You have five minutes, no more. Radella is on watch."

Continuing with my search, I spotted his quiver not far from the car.

A prolonged howl lingered through the sparse terrain, deriving from the woods on the perimeter. Wolves guarded their territory, keeping their pack safe and still being in alliance with the vampires.

When is it ever good to be on my own in the dark with nightwalkers potentially close by?

Slinging it over my shoulder, I tapped the ground in rapid motion, hunting for the bow. When my foot touched something hard, I bent down to blindly inspect, only for paranoia to get the better of me.

God, please let it be close.

Five minutes wasn't long enough, but I didn't want to outstay our welcome.

As silent as the wind, a figure plummeted into me, pinning me against the body of the car, knocking the air from my lungs. I strived for oxygen.

"It should've been you," Samuel said, grinding his teeth as he crushed my sternum with Ethan's bow. "You're a lost cause.  A child with cancer. With any luck, you'll die either way. If cancer doesn't kill you, Shadowbrook will."

I would give anything to change places with Ethan.

He had a long life to live, but mine was on a tightrope. One tinniest movement and I would fall over the edge and into darkness, clinging onto the prospect of seeing another day.

I had to keep moving forward. If not for me, for my dad. I could save them both. I wasn't going to let Samuel get in the way. "When I touched you earlier back at the house, you felt something. We both did."

He remained passive, emotionless and locked in place.

"You can deny it all you want, but I know what I saw." Curling my toes within my shoes to ground myself, I plucked up the courage and mentioned her. "Would you believe me if I said Edwina has contacted me from the other side?" I was swimming beyond my depth with no lifejacket.

He hissed, grabbing me by the t-shirt before slamming me back against the side of the car. A sharp shooting pain advanced up my back, paralysing me from any vigorous movement. The headlights of the SUV went off ceaselessly. "Liar."

"I can prove it to you," I said, bargaining any vital information I had without mentioning Edwina's reason for demolishing their entire existence. I had too much to lose. "We will find another witch and do a spell that can reverse the transition by using your blood."

The flashing beacon illuminated his glowering expression. "Witches fled Shadowbrook in 1744. I killed them all, leaving only one. Good luck trying to find another."

Can I lure Samuel into a trap? I mean, Alani wants Samuel. If I do this one bad thing, will I be in Akrsna's good graces?

The white granules were loose in my pocket with the remnants under my fingernails. My stomach churned, igniting a burning fire from the consequences when this turned ugly.

Clasping Samuel's wrist, I watched as his eyes widened from the toxic substance sizzling at his flesh. That gave me enough time to immobilise him with an arrow.

A pair of hands whipped the arrow from my grasp, shoving it into his gut. Radella's sunset hair glowed in the headlights, stealing the limelight. "He won't be down for long. Never underestimate him."

"Today is not his lucky day," Johnathan said, resting his crossbow over his shoulder.

You can say that again.

A/N

Word Count: 1,228

Erika is having second thoughts. Should she trust Alani, or should she help Samuel and find another way to save Ethan and her father?

Will Ethan make it before he transitions?

Have a fantastic day!

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