Eva's POV

"Girl! Hurry up!" the man snapped, his black eyes burned like coals. I shivered and tried to concentrate but it was too late. I had lost my focus. My mind was blank. The man seemed to have sensed it as well because he immediately swore. "You worthless, mangy shadow hunter!" his fist collided into my cheek. I fell backwards on my back, my face burning. A couple years ago I would have already been crying. Not now, long ago I've decided to stop looking for mercy and hope. Crying would do no good for me.

"Did you find out?" a woman's head popped in from the door. The man hissed something in demonic language. I recognized some of the words and they weren't pleasant. "Too bad, you know what this means, girl." the woman walked over to me. I got onto my knees and looked at her warily, tensed. She was a cruel woman. I knew all too well her torture methods and her satisfaction in them.

"I need to know what will happen if we fight the Shadowhunters!" the man growled. "You better knock some sense into her thick head." the woman smiled sickly.

"I'm sure I can do that." she grabbed my arm, her long nails dug into my skin. I forced myself not to wince. She half dragged me out of the room to the stair ways. "So, you didn't do what you were told, huh?" the woman sounded faintly amused. "Funny how you always do that and every time after that I have to do these things to you. Yet you still won't do the simple thing." I grit my teeth.

"I'll never help you heartless monsters." I spat. Her face immediately became cold.

"Oh really?" her voice was cool. She pushed me forward. Suddenly, there was nothing under my feet. I gasped as I realized there was nothing for me to hold onto. I tried to protect my head as I crashed into the staircase. The pain was winding and painful. I banged my forehead on a step. I cried out, as my head bounced up from the force. I tumbled head over heels, the steps hitting me hard. I crashed into the floor on my side and lay there curled up. I could feel thick blood filling my mouth and some sliding down my face. The woman giggled and appeared in front of me, kneeling so she could see my face. I looked at her defiantly, the pain was excruciating. "Still alive? I have to admit that was pretty stupid of me. You could have broken your dainty neck." She stood up and nudged me roughly in the face with her leather boot. Pain flared in my cheek and neck. I let out a low cry. Blood stained the carpet. "Did you break any bones?" the woman asked sweetly. She pulled me up by my shirt. I bit back a scream as agonizing pain filled my body. "My, you seem in pain. Maybe you did break some." I was about to say something but before I could, she threw me to the ground. This time I let out a half scream as I tumbled on the ground. I hit a sofa and lay there on my stomach. I felt more excruciating pain as the woman kicked me in the midsection. I choked out a gasp. Blood splattered the ground. The metallic taste of blood sickened me. I closed my eyes and tried to shut out the growing agony, hoping for the darkness to take over. It didn't. Instead, I heard a loud sound of glass breaking. I opened my eyes. The woman was on the ground, wrestling with a person. She let out a wail as the person leaned in and bit her in the throat. The woman became still. I watched in amazement. The person disappeared. The next second, he was in front of me, on his knee. He leaned over me, his face looked anxious and worried. I stared at him in shock. Who is he? Why is he here?

"Do not worry," the boy's voice was soft and soothing. His dark hair covered his forehead and curled slightly at his neck. "You will be safe." His arms went under me. I could feel his muscles tense as he lifted me of the ground with quick, smooth movements. Pain knocked me out for a few seconds. When I woke up, I was already outside. The boy was moving with inhuman speed. Everything blurred around us. I stared at him in awe. His dark eyes looked serious and old but it didn't match his young looking face. Suddenly, I realized he was a vampire. I struggled feebly, pain flaring. He held me tighter and looked down at me, surprised.

"Where are you," I forced myself to talk but it hurt too much.

"Do not worry." he reassured me and looked ahead. I watched the world blur past us, occasionally glancing back to his face. After a while, he slowed down. I felt his muscles, taut and braced. He jumped up with such force I could feel the gravity pressing against us a little. Then we were in a building. I looked around as much as I could without turning my head. The pain was still growing. The vampire walked across the room with long strides and gently put me down on a king sized bed. I felt my body relax slightly at the soft surface. The boy stepped back and looked at me with concern. I avoided looking in his eyes and studied the room instead. There were some cracks and fissures in the ceiling and the walls. I tried to open my mouth to speak but nothing came out. I felt a stab of panic. Is he going to suck my blood and kill me? Or will he make me his subjugate? Maybe he knows what I can do and he'll torture me like how the demons did. I thought dully.

"You broke a few bones," he said finally. I flinched and met his eyes. He looked nice enough for me to consider that he'd actually let me go. He stood up. I noticed that he had a hungry glint in his eyes.

"So what? You're going to break a few more?" I snapped, surprised at my anger. "Maybe after that you'll suck my blood? Because everyone knows that vampires likes to torture their prisoners then feed on them." Some sarcasm dripped into my voice. He looked startled and the hungry glint left his eyes.

"What?" he sounded confused. "I do not drink human blood." I eyed him suspiciously. With a jolt, I realized that I could see the points of his fangs . He's hungry. I thought and tensed. He saw me tense. He hesitated before speaking. "Your blood, I will not deny, does smell good. Better than most." he admitted. I blinked and put a hand to my face. I saw bright red blood on my hand. I looked at the boy warily. He didn't show any signs of strains or hunger but I saw his fangs come out a little more.

"Are you going to suck my blood?" I asked, suddenly feeling tired. The blood loss was finally taking its toll on me and it was leaving me light headed. The vampire boy smiled baring his fangs some more.

"No, I trust my self restraint," he took a step closer and held his hand to his mouth.

"What are you doing?" I tried to move myself away from him. Agonizing pain blinded me for a few moments. I blinked away the tears. The boy noticed and frowned.

"Do not move," he said ignoring my question. Then he sank his fangs into his palm. I froze. Bright red blood appeared and started dripping on the bed sheet.

"You feed on yourself?" I asked incredulously. The boy laughed. I could see some blood on his gleaming white fangs.

"You do have the silliest notions," he said amusingly. He came closer and bent over me. I froze again.

"What are you doing?" I snapped. He was studying my arm. I looked down at my arm as well. I felt sick. My arm was bent in an odd angle and it was turning blackish purple. The boy bit his lip.

"This is going to hurt," he said and smeared his blood on my arm. I yelped and watched the blood sink into my skin. The blackish purple was slowly starting to fade. The pain in my arm was slowly ebbing away. The boy gently took my wrist and slowly straightened my arm. I screamed in agony. "It is going to be alright," his calm voice soothed me. Tears blurred my vision.

"I think you just killed me," I groaned. He laughed again. I felt slightly better. The pain was gone from my arm but everywhere else still hurt. "Hurry up and do that blood thing again." I ordered unable to help myself. He put more blood on my legs and my face. Soon the pain was fading away. I smiled in relief and slowly moved my arms then my legs. "It doesn't hurt anymore." I said in delight. The boy straightened up and walked away. "Hey, thanks you know." He only grunted in reply. I watched him suspiciously, I noticed that his posture was stiff and his shoulders were tense. "Um, are you ok?"

"Y-yeah," his voice was rough and cleared his throat and spoke again. "It is nothing." I sat up and swung my legs over the edge.

"Are you sure?" I asked concerned. I stood up and took a hesitant step towards him.

"Yes," there was some anger in his voice now. "just leave me alone!"

"But," I took another step towards him. He saved my life. I can't leave him if he's in pain. Plus, I don't how to get out of here. He whirled around.

"Go!" he shouted angrily. I forced myself not to flinch. I caught sight of his red fangs. There was more blood on his fangs than I had seen last time. I looked at his bleeding hand. The wound was gone but there was no blood.

"What happened?" I slowly walked towards him. I could see his eyes now from here. They were black. "Did you drink some of my blood?" I asked realizing that was what must have happened. He didn't answer. I had a bad feeling. He must be hungry. I had no idea if he could control himself from attacking me. "Are you alright?" I was just a foot away from him. The veins around his eyes and neck were dark showing that he was very hungry. He turned away from me.

"Go, I might hurt you," he said hoarsely. I stood there watching him struggle for self control.

"I can't leave," I said finally. "there's vampires downstairs, they'll tear me apart if I go there and I can't leave through the window. We're several stories above the ground. I'll die if I try to jump out." I knew this wasn't helping the hungry vampire at all. He growled softly.

"You really want a death wish?" he asked. I didn't answer. "Shadowhunters," he said with contempt. "always thinking they are above everyone else yet still happy to die at a Downworlder's feet." I stayed silent. Does he hate us? I wondered. "They kill us. You know that? They keep remains of us as spoils. They don't care about us at all."

"I thought that was for demons," I remembered the man talking about the spoils. The vampire let out a bark of laughter.

"They think of us as demons, they think we are all the same." his voice was full of grief and anger.

"That's not true," I started to tell him. Suddenly, a strong force grabbed my shoulders and pushed me across the room making me slam into the wall. My breath was knocked out of me. I gasped in shock. I saw the vampire's face close to mine. His eyes were a frighting black and his fangs were fully out. He bared them and leaned in. I could feel his hot breath on my throat. I shivered and waited for the pain, closing my eyes. It never came. I opened my eyes and saw his face watching mine with faint curiosity.

"I was not really going to bite you," he said, amusement colored his voice. I glared at him, flushing. "I told you my self restraint is quite good." and he let go of me. I followed him to the doorway.

"No, you just said that you believed in it," I corrected him. He shrugged.

"It is the same thing once you get to know me,"

"I'll be staying here?" I asked, my eyebrows raised. He glanced down at me surprised.

"I mean," he stumbled over his words. "if you are going to stay." I pondered about that. Stay? Should I? But some vampires including him might try to kill me. Unless I turn into a vampire..."Will you?" his voice interrupted my thoughts. I blinked and looked at him.

"I don't even know your name," I was worried. If i stay with him- but I'm a Shadowhunter. I can't live with vampires. They'll hate me, I'll be an outcast.

"Is that what is worrying you?" he smiled. "It is Raphael Santiago." An angel name. Unusual for a vampire.

"Cool, I'm Eva-" I froze. He stopped and looked at me concerned.

"What is wrong?" he asked. I stared at the ground, my mind racing. I couldn't have. But I did. I had forgotten my name. How? Eva-Eva...

"I - it's nothing," I kept on walking. He followed. "my name's Eva." I saw Raphael's eyes narrow but he didn't object.

"And your last name?" he asked softly. I threw a hard glance at him. I realized with a sinking that I had also forgotten it.

"Um," I stuttered. "it's..."

"You do not know do you?" his voice dropped. "You forgot your name and your childhood." I growled. No, no. I remember my parents! They were- they were Shadowhunters... weren't they? All of a sudden I felt angry. For years I had whispered to myself about my memories and about how I was going to escape this. But now when I had actually escaped the demons I couldn't remember anything. I couldn't remember anything at all about my childhood before the demons took me. I turned around to face Raphael.

"So?" I demanded. "So what? Just because I forgot everything doesn't mean you should rub it in my face. It doesn't give you the right to talk about it or ask me about it." I saw his expression change. "Why can't you leave me alone? Stop asking me personal questions. I can't remember okay? I said it! I can't remember a dam thing about my childhood!" I screamed the last sentence in his face. I stepped away, breathing hard. He was silent, his face was expressionless. I immediately regretted my words. Wow, I messed it all up. Now he's going to get angry and kill me. But I didn't say sorry. Something stopped me. I was too angry to say anything nice. It was Raphael who apologized instead.

"I am sorry, I was inconsiderate about your feelings." I stared at him, shocked.

"What?" I mumbled.

"You heard me," he smiled ruefully. "I was being inconsiderate. I am sorry."

"Oh," I let him take me to the staircase. He apologized. A vampire apologized to me.

"Hey, Raphael!" a vampire shouted from below. "You got yourself a subjugate. Finally." I tensed. Raphael tightened his grip abound my wrist.

"No," he said stiffly. "I found her in a demon's house." the vampire sniffed me.

"Ah, so you're going to make her your subjugate." the man smiled, showing his fine teeth. I looked at them, horrified.

"No, she will never be my subjugate." Raphael sounded like his patience was wearing thin. The man frowned.

"But she smells so good," he whined. "can she be my subjugate?" he asked hopefully. Raphael shot him a death glare and the vampire fell silent. "So she's staying with us?"

"Yes," I said before Raphael could answer. Before I could think about it. They looked at me surprised.

"Are you sure?" Raphael asked me. I nodded firmly.

"If that's no problem for you," I added hastily. He shook his head. The other vampire smiled brilliantly.

"Yay, a Shadowhunter is going to live with us. I bet Lily and the others won't mind that." the vampire said sarcastically and disappeared. Raphael tensed.

"Maybe you should not be here," he said reluctantly. I scowled.

"I can take care of myself," I snapped. He smiled. "What?"

"You did not refer to yourself as a Shadowhunter." he said quizzically.

"So?"

"Nothing, it is just... that is what Shadowhunters usually do." he smiled again. I looked away. The only reason why I didn't say I could take care of myself since I was a Shadowhunter was because I didn't have much training in being a Shadowhunter. I don't even much marks on me. I bit my lip. I didn't fit with the Shadowhunters. I didn't fit with the vampires. Don't worry. I can still try out the warlocks and faeries and werewolves. I thought dryly. "Eva?" Raphael sounded concerned.

"What?" I turned back to him.

"Let me introduce you to the clan then I can take you out for dinner." he offered his hand. I looked at it then started walking down the stairs. I heard him sigh and follow me. His long strides easily overtook mine and he got down first. He waited for me. I scowled and ignored his laugh as he took me to a large room.

"Everyone, this is Eva," Raphael's voice boomed in the room. Everyone looked up at us. Their faces darkened.

"A Shadowhunter?" one exclaimed.

"She'll lead the other Shadowhunters here!" another shouted.

"She'll kill us all!"

"We could kill her," Raphael reminded them. "She doesn't have a weapon. I found her being tortured in a demon's house. The Shadowhunters don't know about her." I stiffened when he said those things. It reminded me how vulnerable I was.

"How do you know?" a woman demanded.

"Make her our subjugate!" someone yelled. I glared at the vampire who said that. He glared back.

"No," Raphael was angry. "We'll protect her from the demons who want her. We'll shelter her. It'll be our responsibility to protect her and make sure she's happy." Cries and protests rose. "Quiet!" Raphael snapped. "Everyone will have to do a blood oath." I looked at him shocked.

"What?" I began, he shot me a glance. I shut my mouth, confused. What have I ever done to him to make him do this? I wondered.

"What did she do to you, Santiago?" a woman shouted.

"You can't be serious." another yelled. Raphael's face was expressionless.

"I'll give you three days. In the meantime, you cannot hurt her in any manner. In the three days you'll have to tell me your answer." Raphael said and he stalked up the stairs. I gave a half apologetic glance at the angry vampires and hurried up the stairs after the angry vampire.

"Camille would never do this to us!" a man yelled. I saw Raphael's shoulders stiffen. We went inside his room, I quietly shut the door behind me.

"Raphael," I began. "what was that about?" I stopped at the doorway. He kept on walking to the window.

"Nothing," he said curtly. I didn't ask anymore questions, sensing that he wasn't in the mood to talk. "Come on," he was standing on the window sill. I hurried over to his side and got up on the sill.

"We're jumping out of the window?" I asked surprised. He nodded and moved closer to carry me. I quickly moved away without thinking. His face became cold. "Sorry," I felt bad. I wasn't used to people touching me without inflicting pain on me.

"I'll jump down first then you," he said, getting ready to jump out.

"What?" I watched him, panicked. "But I can't-" he jumped of the window. The words died in my throat as I watched him land gracefully on the concrete.

"Come on," he held his arms out. He's going to catch me. I realized. If he can. I took a breath, braced myself, and jumped out. I lost my breath as the wind whistled around my ears. The ground was coming closer. I couldn't see Raphael anywhere. I'm going to die.I thought as I was about to hit the ground. Suddenly, a strong pair of arms wrapped around me. I never felt the impact. I gasped as I was up righted and gently put on the ground. My legs felt shaky as I put my weight on them.

"Are you okay?" Raphael leaned down, smiling. I glared at him.

"What are you smiling at?" I growled and took a few steps forward. Once I felt my balance was alright I turned to him. He was still smiling.

"You're face was priceless," he chuckled. I growled again. "we should do this again some time."

"No, just no," I felt slightly sick. "Where are we going?" I changed the subject.

"To Taki's Diner. It's an actually good restaurant." Raphael walked to the side of the hotel. I waited where I was.

"How are we going to get there?" I called after him.

"I'll drive on the demon motorbike." Raphael came back riding on a wicked looking motorbike. It had a fiery design but it was silent despite the looks. I hesitantly got on it. "Hold on tight, it might get bumpy." and the bike sped away. The speed surprised me and I immediately, almost panicky, wrapped my arms around Raphael. I felt him chuckle and the bike went faster then we were in the air. We were going higher and higher. I gasped in surprise. I need to get a bike like this. I thought.

"You like it?" Raphael asked, the wind muffled his words a little.

"Yeah," I raised my voice a little, the wind caught my breath. I watched New York go by under us. For the first time, I felt at peace. My whole body felt at peace but I was still on my guard. Demons could come out and attack us at anytime. Or maybe, Raphael would suddenly attack me and try to drink my blood. Who knew?

Soon we got to the restaurant. Raphael gently landed in the parking and smoothly parked the bike. I got off, my legs felt wobbly. He got off easily and gracefully and headed to the restaurant.

"Come on," he said not checking to see if I was following. I quickened my pace and caught up with him.

"Will there be demons?" I asked nervously.

"No, demons don't come out in the open like this." Raphael told me and he didn't say anything else. I was relieved and worried at the same time. What does he think about me? I wondered. He held open the door for me and I walked past him mumbling a thanks. I was surprised to see so many Downworlders here. My mouth opened slightly. The Downworlders stared back at me, hostility and fear plain on their faces. "Don't stare." Raphael took me by my elbow and gently guided me to a booth. He sat across me. A faerie gave us our menus and left. I opened the menu and studied it trying to ignore how quiet the restaurant had gone after I came in. I looked at the vampire over my menu.

"I'll assume you're going to take the blood smoothie?" I asked. He nodded.

"It has a nice texture," he put down his menu. I quickly chose my food and put mine down as well. Raphael saw and waved the faerie waiter over. "One blood smoothie and..."

"One ham and cheese sandwich." I finished.

"Thank you," the faerie didn't smile, she gave a cold glance towards me and took our menus then left. I looked around the restaurant. There were a bunch of werewolves in one corner laughing quietly, casting glances at me. There were a few warlocks having a heated conversation, they seemed to be ignoring me. A few vampires were drinking what I assumed were blood and were looking at me hungrily. I didn't see any faeries. I noticed one of the lone vampires were staring at me. I felt cold. He gave me a smile, his teeth stained with blood. I turned back to Raphael. He was glaring at the vampire. I glanced at the vampire. He looked scared and was turning away.

"Sorry about that," Raphael faced me again. "he's a bit drunk." I nodded and contended myself with studying the table. My mind was racing with thoughts about what was happening.

"Don't worry," the boy's voice was soft and soothing. His dark hair covered his forehead and curled slightly at his neck. "I'll get you out of here. You'll be safe."

I glanced at Raphael. His angelic face was looking down at the table, studying his hands intently. Who knew that we would end up having dinner together? I wondered when was the last time I had food.

"Eat this you mongrel!" the man threw the raw meat at my face. I moved away as fast I could on my knees. The slab of bloody meat splattered on the ground in front of me. My stomach turned at the sight of it. "Just eat it!" the man shouted. He kicked me in the ribs. I yelped and quickly picked up the meat. I could see specks of dirt underneath the meat. I brought it to my mouth. I opened my mouth and got ready to bite the meat. Tears pricked my eyes. I can't do this. I put the meat down and looked at the man.

"I'm sorry..." I whispered. His face darkened. "I can't-" he kicked me in the face. My head snapped back. I lost my balance and sat down hard. My face burned in pain.

"Stupid Shadowhunter. Always thinking that they're above everything else." the man brought his foot down on my legs over and over. I cried out in pain. He knelt down beside me and grabbed my throat. I coughed and gasped for air. He squeezed tighter. I opened my mouth, gasping for air. He forced a chunk of meat down my throat, massaging my throat to make sure it went in. I felt the cold slimy meat slide down my throat with difficulty. I choked on it and I started convulsing. Alarmed, the man let go of me. I got on to my knees and started vomiting the meat up along with the other few contents that were in my stomach. Blood and other liquids stained the kitchen tiles. The man swore and kicked me in the back. I fell on my stomach, my vomit drenching my shirt. I lay there until he left the kitchen. I coughed out the remaining liquids in my mouth trying to get rid of the revolting taste of the meat in my mouth. I rolled on to my side and curled up, crying. Pain-

"Eva!" Raphael's voice brought me back to the restaurant. I blinked and saw his concerned face. "Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah," I realized my voice was hoarse and tears were streaming down my face. I cleared my throat and furiously wiped away the tears. "I'm fine."

"You were crying," he knit his eyebrows together. "are you sure you're alright?" I nodded.

"Here you go," the faerie came back again with the food. I smelt the sandwiches and my stomach turned in hunger. I took a sandwich and bit it. I put the sandwich down in disappointment.

"What's wrong?" Raphael asked. He was silently sipping on his smoothie. He looked like as if he wasn't in any hurry to finish the drink but it was already half way finished.

"Nothing," I mumbled and forced myself to eat another bite. I felt nauseous. When I choked down the third bite, the nausea rose in my throat. I quickly snatched Raphael's smoothie and drank the rest of it, almost greedily. The nauseous feeling went away. I put down the cup and licked my lips, satisfied. I realized Raphael was staring at me, surprised.

"You drink blood?" He asked, sounding mildly curious. I pursed my lips. This is not going as how I hoped it would be. I thought sourly.

"I was forced to eat Downworlder food." I said shortly and didn't say anything after that.

"Harsh," Raphael remarked and took his cup back. He looked in it and put it down. "well, you finished my smoothie." I looked at him apologetically.

"Sorry- I didn't realize what I was doing-" I stumbled over words. "I'm sorry." Raphael smiled, a happy smile. I like his smile. I thought.

"It's okay," he handed me a napkin. "You have some on your..." he gestured to my face. I blushed and took the napkin, dabbing it gently on my face. When I looked at the napkin, there was no stain. I looked up at the vampire, confused.

"Where is it?" I asked. I realized he was smiling one of his cheeky smiles again. "There wasn't any stain!" I felt a flash of annoyance. He grinned. Another real one. "What was that for?"

"I wanted to see how you would react," he admitted. I scowled.

"And why would you do that?"

"Coz' I like you." he answered with such simplicity I stared at him.

"Huh?" I narrowed my eyes.

"You seem like a nice girl," he continued. I glared at him. "at least for a Shadowhunter." he amended. "anyways, you have a nice personality-" I scoffed. "and I like it." he finished. I raised my eyebrows.

"I guess I like you too," I sighed. "you'll be a... a strange friend." he grinned and leaned over the table, putting his weight on his arms. I crossed my arms over my chest and lifted my chin. "So why did you tell them to do that?" I asked. Something flickered in his eyes and his expression became guarded.

"Pardon?" but I knew he was avoiding the subject.

"Why did you tell them do that blood oath to protect me and stuff like that," I asked again. His face didn't betray anything and he leaned back in his seat.

"Maybe I'll tell you one day," was all he said.

"What? Tell me now," I pleaded. He shook his head and shot me a grin but I could tell it was forced.

"One day, Eva, one day." he repeated. I scowled. I waited until he paid the bill and gestured for me to come. I got up and followed him out of the restaurant to the motorbike. He got on and smoothly pulled the motorbike out of the crowd of bikes. He waited until I got on then started the silent engine.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Let's drive around then go back," he said and drove up into the air. I reluctantly put my arms around his waist and tried to relax as the bike rose above the buildings. I enjoyed the cold wind pressing against my body, blowing my hair behind me.

"Do you always do this?" I raised my voice so he could hear me.

"I do this every night," he replied. I left it like that. I liked the silence and peace. I closed my eyes, letting the sensation take over me, and quickly gave way to the darkness.