Prologue
The music was playing loudly as an older couple, two younger girls; one of them holding a small boy in her arms danced around the room laughing loudly. The happiness was clear on their face and judging by the party hats they wore they were obviously celebrating the boys first birthday. The girl holding the boy gave him a large smile, "Do you like dancing with mama, baby?" She cooed softly in his ear as she held him closer, "I love dancing with you, Billy."
Swinging around in a circle she lifted him up high, laughing at the giggle that came from his mouth. Bringing him back down into her arms she pressed kisses against both his round pudgy cheeks and he grabbed one of her blonde curls and pulled on it, "Mama…" Another giggle bubbled out of his mouth as she gave him Eskimo kisses and started heading towards the table.
"Time for cake, handsome," Placing him in his high chair the girl turned to the rooms other occupants. "Okay I'm going to grab the cake, get ready for happy birthday guys." A large smile still in place, the girl waved her hand a bit at her son and headed towards the kitchen humming quietly along with the music. When she walked into the kitchen she didn't notice that the door wasn't hanging on right and she didn't think about the fact that the shadows in the hallway leading towards the bathroom seemed to be moving towards. The only thing on her mind was getting the birthday cake ready for her son. Just as she lifted the cake into her arms a hand covered her mouth and she was roughly shoved against the counter causing her to drop the cake.
She managed to let out a muffled cry and tried to kick out at her captor but he merely laughed and his laugh chilled her to the core. The only thing she could think about was her family in the other room and her son, oh god her son, she prayed that they didn't hurt him. She didn't have the chance for too many more thoughts though as she was knocked unconscious.
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The first thing that crossed her mind when she came to was that she was lying on something cold and hard. Then what had occurred came rushing back and she sat up her eyes flying open, she saw she was in some sort of creepy old house in a cage and her parents were still unconscious and her sister was in the far corner gently rocking back and forth holding a sleeping Billy in her arms. "Oh thank god…" She crawled over towards her sister and gently took her son from the other girls' arms before cradling him close. "What happened, Mari? Where are we? Who took us?"
The questions were spoken quietly so she wouldn't wake her son but there was a sense of urgency to her voice. They needed to figure out what was going on so that they could get out of her. When her sister raised her head, she could tell that Mari was terribly frightened. "I don't know, Lexi. They woke me when we got here and gave me Billy. There's something wrong with their teeth, Lexi, something very wrong with them." Lexi could tell Mari was going to start babbling soon and wrapped her free arm around her younger sister trying to comfort her.
"It's all going to be alright, Mari; we'll get out of here. I promise," She just prayed it was a promise she could follow through on. Lexi glanced around the room trying to find a way to get her family out of here safely. She couldn't stand the thought of anything happening to them. Silently, she began praying for God to protect Mari and Billy and her parents. Glancing around the room she couldn't find anyway to escape and she couldn't help but wonder what these people wanted from them. Slowly Lexi handed Billy back to Mari, "Sing to him. I'm going to try to wake Mom and Dad."
As Mari took Billy, Lexi crawled over to her parents and pulled her mothers head in her lap and that's when she noticed the deep puncture wounds on her neck and down her arms. A startled gasp escaped her lips, "Dear god…who are these monsters…" She muttered under her breath as she began silently crying. Pressing two fingers to the side of her mothers neck she tried to find a pulse and when she couldn't she leaned over the body of her mother and began to weep. 'Why did they put her in here with us if she was already dead? What kind of torture is this?'
Wiping the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand, Lexi lowered her mothers' body to the ground and crawled over towards her father, fearful of what she was going to find. When she turned him over his eyes slowly opened and groan escaped his lips, blinking a few times he raised his gaze to hers. "What's going on, Lex?" Lexi couldn't answer she was so choked up and instead wrapped her arms around her father holding him close. He slowly raised himself to a sitting position and hugged her tightly for a moment while taking in their surroundings.
For some reason he didn't seem as surprised as she thought he would when he realized they were in a cage, she supposed it was the shock of the situation though. "Daddy…Mom…Mom…" She couldn't bring herself to say it and instead crawled back over to Mari who was staring at them but it didn't seem as though she were actually seeing them. Taking Billy from her once more Lexi took a few deep breaths trying to calm herself down as Mari curled up into a ball in the far corner of the cage.
Her father had gathered her mother into his arms and brought her to the other side of the cage. He held her in his arms for a few minutes but didn't shed any tears, it was as though he was unable to but Lexi could tell he was in pain. He brushed a few stray strands off of her mothers' forehead and gently placed a kiss on her lips. "I love you, Hannah, always and forever." The words were whispered so quietly Lexi almost didn't catch them but when she did new tears began to fall down her cheeks. She cradled her son close to her chest and kissed his forehead thankful he was still sleeping so peacefully.
After a few moments he made his way over to his daughters and took a seat in between them, gently rubbing Mari's back. "Don't worry; we'll get out of here. I promise I won't let anything happen to you."
Lexi wanted to believe him but all she had to do was take one look at her mother to know that they weren't equipped to deal with what they were facing. This was beyond even her fathers' capabilities and she'd always believed her father was capable of anything. When she was younger he'd been absent a lot of her childhood because he'd been in the Marines and when he'd come back he'd been withdrawn and angry. Eventually that had passed though and he would take her and Mari out on hikes and sometimes to the gun range when they were older. Mari had only ever gone once to the gun range, she'd hated it with a passion but they both enjoyed the hikes and the wilderness.
He'd taught them to track animals and about different plants that were edible and which ones were poisonous. Their mother had never understood how two girls could enjoy the wilderness so much, but Lexi had always found it fascinating that humans could essentially survive on very little. She had planned on taking Billy out on trips with them when he got older; she figured it could become a family tradition and a way to spend more time with her father.
She was startled from her thoughts by the sounds of footsteps and by the sounds of it there were several people coming. When they entered the room and she got her first good look at their faces a startled shriek rose from her throat and Billy awoke with a cry. Hugging him even closer to her she backed away from the door to the cage and her father moved in front of her and her sister. It wasn't that they were particularly hideous, but their chins and mouths were covered in bloodstains and when one of them opened their mouth to growl at them she could see their jagged, sharp teeth. Obviously the cause of the injuries on her mothers body. Lexi tried not to sob as she rocked Billy back and forth trying to calm his cries.
One of them stepped forward, a man who appeared to be in his early to mid thirties and he crouched down in front of the cage. Lexi could see the amusement in his eyes and she felt a rush of anger at it. He was laughing at them; he found this whole thing amusing. "Papa bear protecting his clan…isn't that adorable? Don't worry soon enough you'll want to tear their throats out and feast on their blood just like that pretty little wife of yours will when she wakes up."
He laughed and pulled the door open, moving so quickly Lexi could barely keep up. He roughly punched her father in the face and tossed him to the side before ripping Billy from her arms. A strangled cry escaped her lips and she rushed forward trying desperately to get her son back. "No, please, don't hurt him. Please, take me, I won't fight. Please let him go. Please, he's just a child he won't even remember a thing. Please, please…" She sobbed and had almost made it out of the cage when one of the women that had been standing to the side stepped forward and roughly pushed her back before slamming the door.
"Don't worry, love, we'll be back for you soon. But we can't pass up a meal like that, sweetest blood you can imagine." The man cackled as he spoke and Lexi collapsed to her knees, sobbing. What kind of people could hurt a baby? He was an innocent little boy. Lexi jumped to her feet and began to scream, wrapping her fingers around the cage and shaking it back and forth as the man laughed in her face. "My, my you are a feisty one aren't you?"
Turning he walked from the room, holding her screaming baby in his arms. Lexi continued to scream and shake the cage until her voice was hoarse and her arms felt like jelly. Sinking to the floor, Lexi wrapped her arms around her legs and began to rock back and forth sobbing the entire time. She felt two sets of arms wrap around her and pull her away from the entrance to the cage and she was too tired to fight them. Lexi was too lost in her world of pain to know what was going on.
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Hours past and they heard no sign of Billy; they only heard Lexi's crying. She hadn't been able to stop since they'd ripped her son from her arms and she didn't think she'd be able to any time soon. She felt as though she'd lost a part of her soul and mind when they'd taken him from the room. Images of what could be happening to her helpless son while she did nothing kept replaying over and over in her mind. If only she'd fought harder or been a little quicker she could have gotten out of the cage and somehow fought them off and she'd still have her baby boy in her arms.
It seemed as though these monsters were going to let them rot here for days before doing something else to torture them. Soon enough though they came back and Lexi's father gave her a hard look trying to warn her to keep quiet and not to attract anymore attention to herself. He moved closer to the entrance to the cage, he wanted to try and negotiate with these people and get them to let his daughters go. "I won't fight you; you can do whatever you want. Just let them go and I'll do anything you say."
The man who had taken Billy earlier stepped forward and pressed his face against the cage. "Is that so, papa bear? Sacrifice yourself for your children?" He splayed his hand against the cage, "Are you sure you want to do that?"
An evil smile crossed his face and Lexi blinked, sitting up, "Don't. He's just playing with, with all of us."
The man laughed and turned his eyes towards Lexi, "I'm going to enjoy breaking you." He motioned towards the other three occupants of the room to come forward before he opened the door and pulled Lexi's father from the cage. Lexi's father turned his gaze on his girls and he shook his head when they began to move towards them.
"I love you, don't ever forget that."
A woman to the side of her father laughed, "Are those your dying words?"
Her father simply scowled at the people and held his head high as they shut the cage door behind them. Lexi crawled over towards the door, her eyes finally drying as she watched her proud father. She knew in her heart that they were all going to die here tonight but she swore to herself that she would fight them with every bone in her body and try to get her sister out of here. The man who seemed to be their leader studied her, a dark glint in his eye, before he pulled her father flush against his body facing the cage. He gave Lexi a wink before viciously tilting her fathers head to the side and biting his neck. A gasp escaped her mouth as she backed away from the entry to her cage; she could hear a sucking noise and knew instinctively that the man was drinking her fathers' blood. Her father cried out in pain and closed his eyes. Forcing herself to turn away and go to her sister to try and shield her from the sight. She heard their laughter and realized that they truly were monsters. The kind of monsters she never would have dreamed existed and in that moment her heart filled with the need for revenge. She wanted to tear them apart limb by limb and watch as they took their last evil breath.
Lexi pulled Mari into her arms, the girl still hadn't spoken and Lexi knew she was in shock and wouldn't be able to fend for herself. When she heard her fathers' body hit the ground she turned her head to the side to see what was going on but all she could see was the man bending over her fathers' lifeless body. Carefully Lexi unwrapped her arms from her around her sister and looked into her eyes. "Turn around, Mari." Her sister complied without saying a word and Lexi moved over to the door. "What are you doing to him?"
The man glanced up at her, "Making a surprise for the quiet one over there." He laughed and the others moved toward the entrance of the cage. Lexi stared at them, unsure of what they were doing at first, but when the man gripped her fathers arm and started pulling him towards the entrance it dawned on her that they were putting him in there with her and her sister.
Holding back a sob, Lexi watched as they deposited him inside and expected them to leave once more like they had every other time, but she was caught off guard when they grabbed her arm and dragged her from the cage. "No, let me be with Mari…at least for a little bit," She pleaded, but like before it fell on deaf ears and they pulled her completely from the cage before locking the door once more. The man came forward and cupped her chin, caressing her cheek almost lovingly.
"I'm really going to enjoy this," He said a smirk in place as her fathers' blood dripped down his chin. She snatched her head away and spit in his face before throwing her elbow behind her, connecting with the womans face who was holding her arm. The woman let out a small cry and an evil smile crossed his face as he wiped away her saliva. He backhanded her and Lexi's face snapped to the side feeling as though it were going to be ripped off. He pulled her into a bear hug and lifted her into the air before walking towards the entrance to the room. Lexi heard Mari begin to sob and knew she'd seen her father. Lexi tried to turn and look back at her sister but the others had fallen into place behind the man and she couldn't see beyond them.
When they entered the next room, Lexi's eyes landed on a table that held a bloodied blanket and a tiny form. She gasped when she realized it was her son. Candles were lit all around his body and she turned her head away only to have her chin grasped and her head turned back to the horrible sight. "He was a tasty morsel. I think he may get it from his mom, guess we'll just have to find out."
Lexi's body began to fill with rage as they brought her closer to the table. A cry fell from her lips and it sounded so foreign even to her own ears, it was filled with hate and pain and anger. She lifted her legs up and pushed the table, causing it to topple against the wall. Silently she cried when she heard her sons body hit the ground but she refused to stop fighting. Throwing her head back she felt it connect with the mans nose and his grip lessoned for a moment, but it was long enough for her to pull away and turn to face the crowd that was slowly surrounding her, boxing her in. The man looked up at her, blood gushing from his nose and he snarled before he realized the candles that had been on the table had caught the drapes on fire and it was spreading rapidly. A slow smile crossed his face and he pulled his arm back before punching Lexi.
As the hit landed she flew back against the table, nearly breaking it in half with the force she hit it with. She felt something hit her again before she blacked out for a few moments. When she came to the room had filled with smoke but the people that had been there weren't in sight. Flames licked the walls around her and she scrambled to her feet, running around the table to get her son. His body was already engulfed in flames and she slowly backed away her mind numb to what was going on around her. When she hit the wall she felt the heat from the flames already crawling up one side of her body. When her skin began to sizzle she snapped out of her daze and quickly took off the sweater she'd been wearing patting out the flames on the side of her body.
Running out of the room, Lexi coughed and made her way to the cage that held her family. Her sister was sitting in the corner crying, but when she saw Lexi her eyes widened and she scrambled to her feet and over to the entrance. Lexi looked around for something to break the lock on the cage and saw a crowbar on the ground, it was coated in blood. Grabbing it Lexi ran to the cage and used all of her strength to break the lock. When it came apart and the cage door opened, she fell to her knees. Mari stepped out and wrapped her arm around Lexi, practically dragging her from the house.
Once outside Mari collapsed to the ground, gratefully sucking in the fresh air. She could hear the sirens and knew they weren't far, so she waited, running her hands through her sisters' hair and praying to god that they were safe. As the sirens came closer she could see their lights and as much as she wanted to run towards them she couldn't leave her sister laying there on the ground. She was the only family Mari had left and she couldn't stand to be away from her even for a moment.
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Lexi came too slowly, feeling as though she were waking from a nightmare. When she opened her eyes and realized she was in the hospital, everything that had happened came flooding back and she knew she wasn't waking from a nightmare because the nightmare was all around her. She turned her head to the side and saw Mari sprawled out in a chair near the bed, sleeping. Lexi lifted her arm and saw it covered in a bandage and she realized it must be for the burns. Slowly she pushed herself to a sitting position and tried not to groan at the pain that shot up her side. Running her hand lightly down the hospital gown she wore she felt the edges of another bandage covering one side of her body.
Turning to the side, Lexi set her feet on the ground and pushed herself up from the bed before walking towards the bathroom. Quietly shutting the door behind her she flipped on the light and turned to face the mirror. The left side of her face was bandaged as well and parts of her hair had been singed away by the flames. Lexi leaned her hands against the counter and looked down, tears silently streaming down her face. She couldn't understand why this had happened to them, why God hadn't chosen to protect them. In that instant she decided there couldn't be a God because no God would her innocent son be ravaged by those monsters. At that moment she decided she would be her own God and she would hunt those bastards down and make every last one of them pay.
Looking back up at the mirror, her face set with determination she knew she would have to learn everything about them. Not the legends and the fiction but the truth. God, she never would have thought she'd be in this position, but then again she never would have believed that vampires existed if it wasn't for this. Wiping her face dry, Lexi turned off the light and went back out to her bed. As she climbed on top of it Mari woke with a start and looked at her sister, her gaze heavy with grief. "What are we going to do, Lexi?"
Lexi looked at her, a tight frown in place on her face, "We're going to make them pay Mari. We're going to make sure every last one of them wishes they had never taken us. We're going to kill them."
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A.N. Hope everyone liked the first chapter. Let me know what you think. Anyway, I'm having trouble with the html coding so if anyone knows a good amount about it, drop me a message, please. I'd love to pick your brain!