Heres the update for Chapter 2. I hope you all will enjoy this one as well. I'll continue to update as often as possible, but thanks for the reads and reviews!
Chapter 2: A Well-Deserved Explanation
Morning dawned the next day and Sarah's eyes shot open once again, panic still frozen on her face. She quickly looked around, not entirely remembering the events of the previous night, but remembering a fear that she had never known before. Her breath came out in short, rapid bursts as she continued to look around her living room, eventually bringing her gaze down to the floor where she lay. "Did…did he finally leave?"
No sooner had she finished her question, a quite audible laugh was heard from behind her, coming from the kitchen. Sarah turned in fear only to be met with the same face as last night. In the doorway that led to the kitchen, stood Viktor again, dressed now lazily in an old looking pair of jeans and a light jacket. He was stirring a small cup of coffee as he looked down at Sarah with a grin.
"Well that took longer than most, though I expect shock prevented you from waking sooner." It was still the same man, still speaking in cryptic riddles.
"What…what the hell did you do to me last night!?" She quickly raised her voice, grasping at her hip to grab the knife she still had concealed beneath her shirt. Viktor, however, remained calm and unfazed, slowly walking forward towards her.
At the first sign of his movement Sarah, finding almost a second wind of strength, rose to her feet and backed away, pressing herself against the wall. Viktor simply shook his head and let out a long sigh, looking down at the floor. "I understand your apprehension my dear, but you need to trust me now…"
"Like hell I will!" Sarah shouted, immediately cutting him off. "Give me one damn reason why I should trust you!"
Viktor slowly brought his gaze up from the floor, his eyes hardening as he looked back into her own eyes. "Because without me you will be dead within the span of an hour." His voice became cold again, his gaze penetrating deep into Sarah, his stare unbreaking. "Like it or not you must listen to me now, vampire."
The last word struck her cold, like a dagger to the heart. Her hand, which once gripped the knife with such intensity, immediately opened and let the blade plummet to the floor. Slowly sliding down, the wall, Sarah soon found herself curled in a ball on the floor as tears began to form in her eyes. "No…no you're…you're joking. Vampires aren't real. They're just something made up." She kept spoke the phrase repeatedly, hoping that eventually it would comfort her. Despite her efforts, she found no such comfort, no reassurance, nothing but the lingering word: Vampire.
By this time, Viktor had made his way across the room and now knelt in front of her, his hands resting on his knees. "It's a lot to take in I know, but I assure you it's the truth. If you don't believe me, just feel your new fangs."
Sarah brought her gaze up to meet his and gave a small nod, promptly rubbing her tongue against the inside of her mouth. Just as Viktor said, she could feel the difference immediately. Two sets of fangs now adorned her mouth where once perfectly normal teeth sat. "Why me," she cried out, tears streaming down her face now, "why did you do this to me?"
The sound of her cries affected Viktor more so than he had thought possible and, soon, he knelt in front of Sarah, a comforting hand on her arm. "To show you a world the likes of which you could only dream of" his voice was calm, reassuring almost. The harsh tone that had once adorned every syllable of his speech, gone. "I came back my dear Sarah, to welcome you to a family that will never leave, and a life that few can ever imagine." He punctuated his sentence with a warm and welcoming smile, something completely out of the character had come to expect from him. "There is much of your family history that has been hidden from you, isn't there?" He continued to kneel in front of her, his eyes locking with hers for what seemed like an age in and of itself.
Sarah processed the thought for a few moments, her eyes darting around to avoid connection with Viktor's. It was true that she knew very little of her family, her parents abandoned her when she was a baby. Never knowing her true name, there was nothing she could ever dig up. Finally, she decided to answer, her voice eking out as a hoarse whisper. "No…I was adopted as a child, I still don't know who my real parents are." When she finished speaking, she brought her eyes to meet Viktor's once again. The vampire's eyes had softened considerably, his gaze no longer feeling like daggers to her.
"Then there is much that you will be able to learn from this" Viktor spoke softly now giving Sarah the first real breath of relief she had taken since their first meeting the night before. He smiled warmly and extended his hand out. "Now, we should be going soon. We have much to discuss, and I must get you to the sanctuary."
Viktor stood up, pulling Sarah with him, still smiling, as if to reassure her that everything was truly going to be okay. She still did not trust this man, the same man that had assaulted her, took away her very humanity, and turned her into a creature, a demon. She knew that she had no choice but to trust him for now, who else could she turn to for help. People would call her crazy if she sought help from normal humans. Normal, the word stuck inside her head, like the punchline of some sick joke. What even was normal anymore, was it the life she led before, or this new one that she was about to enter.
"Can I have a few minutes to shower, pack a few things?" She took a long breath in, finally accepting that she must leave everything she knew behind.
"Of course," Viktor replied with a laugh, taking a few steps and settling in the same chair he sat in last night. "Do not tarry too long though, we will surely be expected."
Sarah nodded and hurried down the hall to her bedroom. When she stepped in the bathroom she took a long look in the mirror, noting all the changes that happened overnight. Her once bright green eyes now shone a pale, and cold blue. Opening her mouth, she stared at her new fangs, where once perfect teeth sat. They were not as large as Viktor's were, but they were going to be noticeable should she hold a conversation with anyone. Her once tanned skin now paled, as if she had hardly stepped foot in the sunlight. Looking away from the new reflection that stared back at her, she turned on the water and began to undress.
Stepping into the hot water she finally began to relax, though only slightly. Her hair clung to her neck as she did nothing more than stand under the showerhead. After a few minutes of standing in the water, she began to clean herself. She had hoped a hot shower would wash away the fear of the unknown, the fear of entering this new life. It had worked, for the most part, for as she stepped out she immediately felt calmer and more collected.
After about thirty or so minutes Sarah finally reappeared in the living room to face Viktor once more. She found him still sitting in the chair, face buried in a cell phone. She had chosen to wear a pair of slim fitting jeans and a loose tank top, and had pulled her hair up into a ponytail. By her side, she pulled a small rolling suitcase, and on her back, was a camouflage patterned backpack. She did not know what to take, so she merely packed as if she was going on an extended vacation.
"Mister Kharkov," she muttered, still unsure as to what to call him. "I'm ready to leave now." Ready wasn't exactly the word that she had wanted to choose, but it was the only word that seemed to fit her situation. She dreaded leaving her house for what would be the final time, and abandoning the life that she had worked so hard to build. Viktor, however, only smiled, putting the phone away as he stood up to lead her away.
"I'm glad to hear it my dear," still he spoke with utter sincerity, as if trying desperately to make up for his previous actions, and the attack. "My car is parked outside on the street, it's a two-hour drive to the sanctuary, so we must hurry." His hand reached down and grabbed the handle of the suitcase from her hand, a move which startled Sarah for a moment. "I'll take your suitcase, we can put them in the backseat." With that, he walked towards the door and rapidly opened it, beckoning Sarah outside. However, Sarah had frozen in her place, as the way out was blocked by three more unknown persons, a woman with two men by her side; persons whom Viktor hadn't noticed as his eyes were locked on Sarah as he opened the door.
Viktor seemed puzzled for a moment, until he turned to see just what Sarah was starring so nervously at. As his eyes met the three strangers in the doorway, he let out a low grumbling, hiding his frustrations under his breath. "Lady Astrea, Councilman Sulivahn, whatever are you doing here?"
Sarah had eyed the newcomers with fear, judging by the titles that Viktor used to address them, they were clearly more important than he was. She studied their attire closely, taking note of every detail, just as she did with Viktor. The woman, whom Viktor had called Lady Astrea, wore a long flowing strapless black dress. Her eyes were just the same as her own, pale blue, and through her smile she could barely make out the set of fangs in her mouth. Sulivahn, in contrast, wore a blue button down shirt and khaki slacks. The top button was left open as he wore no tie with his outfit. He had similar facial features to Viktor, though he had short blonde hair rather than the pitch-black hair Viktor sported.
The third person was the one that brought the most concern to Sarah, much more than the two others. Between Astrea and Sulivahn stood what appeared to be a man dressed in black combat armor. He wore a black Kevlar plate carrier overtop a long-sleeved black combat shirt. His face was obscured beneath a black balaclava and Kevlar helmet. On his left hip, a pistol sat holstered, one hand always near it. To Sarah, he resembled something more akin to a mercenary than a vampire, however, his eyes revealed he was the same as the other two. The only part of his face that was visible were his eyes, as they were the same pale blue that Sarah had now associated with vampires. He was as silent as a statue, though Sarah could feel his gaze piercing into her very soul.
While she was busy studying the three newcomers, her mind had drawn her away from the conversation, returning to reality only when she heard her name being called. All four of the visitors were staring at her as Viktor called her name once more. "S-sorry" she stammered out, a tinge of red barely visible on her cheeks. "I must have spaced out for a moment."
Viktor shook his head slightly, though the smile that he once wore had now disappeared. "Sarah, I have some business with Lady Astrea and Councilman Sulivahn to attend to, its rather urgent." The news hit Sarah hard, though Viktor continued to talk. "This man here is Nikolas, one of the Nightstalkers assigned to our sanctuary, he will take you there and introduce you to your mentor, Priscilla."
The man in the armor, Nikolas, bowed slightly before speaking. "A pleasure to meet you Sarah." His voice was calm, kind even, much different than Viktor. Sarah sighed slightly and moved towards the door, giving Viktor one last look, a plead to come with her. She may not trust him completely, but he was a face she knew, and a voice she was at least somewhat familiar with. Grabbing the suitcase from his hand she followed the soldier vampire outside and down the sidewalk towards her new fate.