"Trust me," Evangeline shouted over the roaring wind as she held onto a frightened Pan tightly, "you will thank me later, and I will only accept it on bended knee." 

Evangeline Hurst.

The Bronx, New York

The air was still. Pan doubted if anyone was awake besides her and the zealous drug dealers down below. Some might call her crazy for choosing such a neighborhood, but humans were much easier to handle then, 'other things'.

This rundown apartment wasn't much, but it was serving its purpose. Sam found not problem with it, he slept in a dark corner rolled tightly in a blanket. Pan sat beside him, gun cocked and loaded in her hand looking at him ever so often. The room was empty and dark. The only source of light was that of the full moon. It shone in through the uncovered glass of the one and only window in the room.

Instead of bringing comfort, it reminded Pan of the night and all of the evil things that existed with it. Like everything beautiful, the milk like rays of the moon was deceptive, cruel, mocking. Nothing could be trusted, no one could be trusted. These are the principles that had kept her alive. Trusting others was foolish, it got one killed.

Her mind floated back to Doe her mother's Lnamar and only friend. He had told her to trust the Grimwore wolf, that she couldn't do it alone. Pan smiled sadly at the gullible yet well meaning nature of Doe. The Grimwore had proven himself nothing more than a typical Alpha. Greedy, arrogant and foolish.

All she needed was herself, she was the only one who she could trust. There was no way she would let anyone she didn't trust near her son.

She would fight this, to the end. If it killed her. She would not let his world, his kind turn him into the evil that runs so freely through their veins. They will not take her only reason to live, her precious baby boy.

Turing to him, she stroked his golden head softly. Each caress held the promise of her unspoken words. No, she would protect him.

With no other reason other than to stretch her legs, she got up and walked around. The window on the apartment had bars. Even the front door had bars. Pan knew that the evil of humans was nothing in compared to the demons that were chasing them.

Just as the thought swirled in her mind Pan's skin prickled in warning. Her heart thumped and the blood in her veins rushed to her ears. The familiar warning of danger swirled in her gut sharpening her senses. She looked down outside for the cause of her unease. There was nothing. Poorly lit streets and graffiti splashed walls showed beyond the fire escape.

All was quite. Nothing but Sam's steady breathing could be heard.

Pan reminded tense, standing immobile in front of the window.

"Just because something cannot be seen doesn't mean it's not there." She recalled her mother's warning.

And something was there, Pan could feel it. It was on the other side of the fire escape she suspected. It was almost as if she could feel the person standing against the wall, shielding themselves from the view of the window. Whatever it was, it was dark. How she knew was of no consequence, she was certain that they only had evil intent.

Pan raised her gun, slowly but surely she walked closer to the window. She froze when she heard a small creaking, like whoever was hiding had stopped on an rusted part of the escape.

It frightened them both because soon afterwards all movement stopped.

She waited clenching her jaw and taking her stance. They would not leave alive, let alone with her baby.

They must have gotten tired of waiting because all of a sudden a black form flew in front of the window breaking the glass.

Without thinking she launched herself backwards avoiding the spray of glass. It was everywhere. So sudden. For a second Pan was blinded. She rolled across the floor covering her head from the onslaught of glass pieces.

Quickly, she opened her eyes. A man stood on the fire escape. One bloody hand holding onto the now glass-less window pane, the other grasping the bars.

Pan felt her body stiffen in fear. Never had she felt the emotion so acutely. Her body was bathed in a cold sweat as she looked at the thing in front of her.

What was before her wasn't even a man. It had all the limbs and body of a man, it was even dressed in a black suite and a white dress shirt unbuttoned at the collar. But its face was something else. Overgrown dank, twisted black hair did nothing to hide red glaring slitted eyes. Its mouth, stretching from ear to ear was the most horrifying aspect of it all. It was filled to the brim with sharp needle sharp teeth jammed in in every direction. Some curled upwards while others pushed through its chin wounding it.

The lips of the creature were almost non existent pulled widely away from its teeth. They gave it the look of a huge smiling deep sea angler fish.

It didn't seem to mind the continuous stream of blood trickling down its pasty white chin. Yes. it was white. White like the inside of a rubber room in the most haunting of asylums .

Pan could only stand stuck to the floor in mind numbing horror. Never had she seen or heard about anything like it. It wasn't like the tainted vampires, this thing glared at her intelligently. It watched her from the steps sniffing the air rapidly.

Then, it looked past her. Pan didn't have to look back to know what it was looking at.

Sam. It wanted him.

Never.

Her blood boiled in her veins as she took a wide legged stance, raised her gun, and fired.

One.

Two.

Three.

Each landed it mark, one in the heart and two between the eyes. The thing seems dead. The force of bullets sent it flying backwards towards the bars of the fire escape. It slumped over, chin resting on its chest, blood that was a bright and unusual red trickled through it's open wounds. 

Was it really dead? Pan was not about to unlock the bars and find out. Pulling up her gun, she decided to shoot once more and send it flying off the railing.

Aiming at its head, she shot.

With inhuman speed, the creature raised its hand and did something that made Pan stagger back in shock.

It caught the bullet.

Pan watched transfixed as the monster rose with painful slowness and walked back to the window. Its ferocious enraged glare struck her heart. One hand after the other, it reach for the bars. With a loud hiss, it pulled them apart like melted butter. It watched her watch it as the bars separated, never taking it's red eyes off of her. The thing then put a careful leg through the clear window the firm crunch of broken glass sounding louder with every foot fall.

Convinced on not letting it step one more foot inside, Pan raised her gun again, this time emptying the rest of the clip. The shots rang through the empty apartment like firecrackers. It was a futile attempt, Pan knew. But it was an act of desperation. She hoped with all her heart that it's bulletproof thing from earlier was just a fluke.

Appearing in front of her with unnatural speed, the mangled tooth monster again alive and well, insured her it wasn't. Pan stared as it stood only a hand span away. She dropped her useless gun before reaching for a silver dagger in her belt. Two quick slashes to its chest made her feel better.

The monster hissed sprays of spittle flying from between its teeth.

The feeling of satisfaction soon dissipated when Pan watched in horror as the wounds  begun slowly healing leaving its white, plaster looking chest unmarked and 'healthy'.

Looking away from its torso, she met the eyes of the thing. It looked even more angry than before.

Pan raised her knife to slash again this time the monster caught it. The thing must have been fed up with her useless attempts because it swiftly tossed her across the room with a vicious snarl.

She went flying and she felt her back hit the the wall breaking through the cheap plaster and wood before she even knew what happened. Every bone in her seemed broken and bent. Her head had taken full impact, the effect was instantaneous. Pan groaned. Her vision became blurred so all she could see was an impeding fog. She willed herself to get up and fight yet, all she could do was watched helplessly as the monster stooped over Sammy who was now widely awake and terrified. She could feel his fear.

Her breath quickened in terror. A scream of anguish tore from her lips as the monster reached out to touch Sam.

"Leave him alone!"

The thing ignored her and continued reaching for her son.

"Mom!" Sam pleaded.

The pleading cry triggered something deep within Pan's soul, she snapped. Anger and rage broke through her heart and rolled into her body in startling waves. Pan felt it engulf her whole body awakening something foreign in her. Something powerful. She saw red.

Pealing her body off the floor, she failed to realize that her she didn't hurt anymore. Even as she rose to her feet she registered nothing. Someone was hurting Sammy. They will die.

Roaring loudly, Pan ran towards the monster barehanded. A fool? Maybe. But she couldn't care less. Pan turned her shoulder and body slammed the monster to the wall breaking it.

They rolled across the floor before landing and separating into battle stance. Pan felt something pour into her muscles. It was as if someone had pumped a drug into her system. She had never felt more alive.

Charging once more, this time she grabbed the thing by it's shoulder and pulling harshly. If she was in control, Pan would have most surely been surprised at the green glowing tendrils that grew from her hands like young beansprouts. They twirled around the monster's hand before tightening and making her job of dislocating it's shoulder that much easier.

It came loose with a sickening squelch.

Screaming and flailing, it threw both of them back onto the kitchen floor with the monster falling against her. It's huge large body threatened to suffocate Pan.

Luck was not with Pan this night. Just as before, the power Pan felt retracted its little vines back into her soul leaving Pan high and dry.

Pan came down from her high in seconds. Blinking rapidly, she willed her vision to clear. When she did, she realized she was trapped. But how? The thought was interrupted as the monster leaned the forearm of it's good arm against Pan's neck choking her. Her body jerked in response as every cell in her body fought for oxygen. Gasping and gurgling, she battled for air but found the force against her neck sealed her throat shut. A warm stream of something wet flowed out of her left nostril as her ears rang. Pan suspected it was blood.

The world was fading. She could faintly hear the sounds of Sammy crying and pleading in the background. Desperately she reached for the pocket of her right pant leg, but the way that the monster was straddling her made it impossible. It was over. Death was near.

Pan's last thoughts was of her baby and how she had failed to protect him. The monster's looming jaws opened giving Pan a fear crippling inside view of the black abyss like mouth. It kept opening, wider and wider as if readying itself to eat her head off whole.All of a sudden it stopped.

The monster sat on her chest with its mouth wide open and its arm pinning her down in suspension. The pressure lightened and gradually Pan's world became more clear.

What was happening? Her mind wondered.

Suddenly the thing sat up and clutched at its own throat releasing her. A strange gurgling noise could be heard coming from its wide mouth.

It was almost, almost as if... No. but how? It seemed like its choking, Pan realized.

Sure enough, the beast was. It clawed at its throat as if being strangled. Pan took a closer look at it's pasty white neck, she could see what looked like red burning hand prints around its neck. Like it was being choked by an invisible force.

The creature got off Pan its red eyes turning glassy grasping at its neck in desperation.

Freed, Pan scooted back against the cabinets rubbing her own bruised throat. The thing was wild now, thrashing and falling attempting to unfasten whatever was holding on to it. Pan watched with wide eyes as it lost the fight, falling to the ground, twitching, and eventually laying still as the dead.

Terror was coursing through her veins rendering her immobile. What was just happend was more bizarre than the creature itself. What did that, what killed it?

A foot fall shattered her thoughts making her head swivel to the doorway of the kitchen. Another fell more loud than the last. Pan listened with bated breath recognizing the sound at once. After all, they were the same sound her's and every woman's made as they came in contact with a hard floor. The distinct sound of clicking of heels. Someone was coming, most likely a woman.

Backing up further against the cabinets, Pan reached into her pocket and pulled out the previously unreachable blade never taking her eyes off of the sparsely lit doorway.

Time slowly passed making seconds feel like agonizing minutes.

Click, clack went the heels as their wearer finally stood in front of the doorway.

It was a beautiful woman. Pan could see her as clear as day. Strangely. She wore a long black dress that sloped down in a V neck collar to the crease of her curvaceous breast. Her violet colored eyes were luminescent, shining in the dark just as bright as her smooth ivory colored skin. She looked young, younger than even Pan herself, but Pan new by aura that she was much older than that.

The woman looked like a vampire, her skin and almost unrealistic beauty gave the fact away. But Pan could feel it, smell it. Deep inside her something told her the woman was a vampire.

She must be the one responsible for the thing that lay at her feet. And she was then she was most likely with the people who wanted to take Sam.

Well, over her dead body. Glaring menacingly, she raised her pitiful blade and braced herself for whatever might happen next. The woman stared at the blade for a second before turning her gaze to the dead monster on the floor. Pan was almost perplexed at the confused frown that marred the woman's perfect features.

"Mom?" she heard Sammy's frightened voice call out from the adjacent room. Pan turned her head sharply and so did the woman. Turning back to the woman, Pan saw the woman's previous confused frown gone and it its place, curiosity. Pan watched as the woman took one step towards the hole.

"Stay in there baby," she called to him before turning back to the woman, "You stay the hell away from him," Pan spat attempting to rise with the help of the cabinet behind. Her pitiful attempt was laughable. All she did was slide back onto the floor as the woman turned her eyes back to her with a look of even greater curiosity.

"And who might you be?" The woman asked in posh British accent.

"That's my question to you," Pan clipped.

"Well, I would love to sit and chat but there are more of those things coming." she tilted her head gesturing to the corpse.

Pan became rather confused, "so you're going to have me believe that you aren't with them."

The woman's eyes widened in disbelief. "Heavens no! I don't even know what that thing is."

As they were talking another woman came in behind the British lady. Sporting a chin length bob that framed her face and a crisp maid's uniform, she struck Pan as the pompous help.

"Pardon mistress, but they are on their way. More are coming," she spoke in a soft french accent.

As more time passed under the scrutiny of first, British woman and now the french one, Pan's mind was in full swing. The powerful aura that came off of them both left her thinking that they were far from the normal vampires she had encountered in the past. They weren't the same as that foolish changeling that the Grimwore Alpha had killed with such sickening ease.

In quick steps the British woman walked over to Pan and kneeled down to her height. What Pan saw made her heart skip a beat. There, in the hollow of the woman's neck was a pattern etched into her skin in black ink. A single flower that Pan remembered from her mother's books was called Dog Rose, native to Romania. Overshadowing the flower was the letters VH written in beautiful calligraphy. The mark of the Van Hurst. This woman was a Pureblood.

"Now don't be afraid," the woman said after seeing Pan's expression, "there isn't enough time for proper introductions my dear so I will make this quick. My name is Evangeline Hurst. Are you the Golden wolf?"

The words of comfort did nothing for Pan. She clenched her fist over the knife. There was no way she could defeat a Pureblood, let alone one from the leading vampire Crypts.

"Leave her alone!" Sam shouted this time running into the room and standing with his back to Pan.

"Get away from my mother or I will hurt you!" she heard him threaten.

"Sam! I told you to stay inside!"

"But," the little boy pleaded with tears in his yes, "she was going to hurt you even more."

Throughout this entire interruption, Pan had never taken her eyes off the woman. This allowed her to see the softening expression on her face as the woman looked at both her and Sam.

"Aww, look at that, he's yours," she cooed smiling softly.

Pan was taken aback. Unsure what the woman's expression meant, she took the necessary precautions. She reached for Sam and grabbed him around the waist before pulling him back behind her. Carefully scooting, she covered him shielding him.

The woman named Evangeline closed her eyes but not before Pan saw a flicker of annoyance pass through them. She then opened them again directing an urgent stare at Pan. " For the love of Dracula, I'm not going to hurt him, or you. But there are those coming that will," reaching for Pan she added, "we need to go."

Pan raised her knife to Evangeline's hand in warning. "How do I know that you are not with them?" she countered accusingly.

The woman sent a quick worried glance to the doorway where the french maid still stood stock still like a statue.

"They are almost here madam," the woman warned.

The woman turned back to Pan and grasped her by the wrists firmly. Pan felt her cold skin and Violet eyes pierce her. "Listen to me girl, I want you and your boy alive and well. These people who are coming for you, don't. You can doubt me and die, or you can come with me and live."

Pan stared at the woman. Doubt and distrust floated through her mind.

"No," she denied.

Evangeline rolled her eyes and grabbed Pan off the floor. In a blink of an eye, they had left the apartment and were flying over the city with the maid holding Sammy close behind.

"Trust me," Evangeline shouted over the roaring wind as she held onto a frightened Pan tightly, "you will thank me later, and I will only accept it on bended knee."  

.......................................

Did Jackie update on time?! Gasp! Yes I did girls and boys. Tell me what you think about this chapter. What do you think about Panora's character? You like? You hate? What can I do to improve this chapter? Just rant in the comment section, Jackie out!