I'm happy to see reviews and other alerts; thanks people. I'm going to put up one more chapter for the many reviews. Thanks again!
I was instantly confused. I knew the end was coming. Dave and I got any and all information from the vampires and killed them after. I assumed he would kill me on the spot once he knew it was really me, as was our deal, but he didn't. Instead, he smiled and pulled me into a one armed hug.
"I can't believe you survived," he mumbled into my shoulder. I inhaled his scent and matched it to the blood I found earlier. My stomach ached with hunger.
"Dave, stop; you have to kill me. You have to kill me before I hurt anyone," I whispered. He pulled back to look at me. I knew from personal experience that all hungry vampires looked the same; black eyes, pale skin, and claws out. I didn't doubt I looked the same.
"The Mindy I knew never gave up. You were never defeated. What did they do to you?" he asked.
"They broke me. Not the vampires, but our own people. I could take whatever shit the vampires said to me but not our own people. I've let them down. I've fucked up. They looked up to me and I failed. They don't see me in their eyes anymore and you shouldn't either. Kill me before you might change your mind," I told him.
"I already have the moment I saw you again," he said. He leaned in and I leaned forward but suddenly I heard voices and the air was drafty. Dave dissolved and so did our room. I closed my eyes and then opened them to see I was in the ship's hold where we stored supplies. Barrels, boxes, and bags surrounded me. The ship creaked every so often and water dripped somewhere. The noise grated on my nerves.
"What the fuck happened?" I mumbled tiredly. I tried to move but was held back. I pulled again and realized I was chained to a pole above me. My gloves were removed and the metal dug into my skin every time I shifted. I hung just enough so I could rest on my knees but my arms were held straight above me. I must have passed out at some point and had a dream. I smelled a human nearby and turned to see a muscled man standing not too far away with a stake held ready in his hand.
"Is she here? I came to talk to her for Kick-Ass," a familiar voice said. The muscled man grunted. I peered ahead and saw Dave. I was relieved to see he was ok. I was worried his arm might have been broken but the only damage done to him was small cuts or bruises on his face and arms.
"I'll take it from here," he told the man. The man grunted again before leaving. Dave walked in slowly, taking measured steps like he couldn't see. It must have been darker than I thought. I could see in the dark now and he couldn't. The only light source was a lamp by the entrance. I pushed myself to my feet, not wanting to face him from the floor. The chains rattled with my movement. I didn't say anything and waited for him to start the conversation.
"People say you're pretending to be Hit-Girl. Why is that?" he asked seriously when he stopped in front of me. I sighed with some irritation.
"I am her. I was infected Dave. I was overpowered just like I said I would never be. I put Kick-Ass in danger and he was almost killed. It's enough that he got away and isn't sharing the situation I'm in now," I responded, trying to keep the shame out of my voice. It looked like my words were getting to him but then he scowled.
"If you were her you would come back asking to be killed. Why the sudden change of heart?" he questioned. I was aware of the venom that was constant in his voice. I couldn't stop it from hurting me every time he spoke.
"I wanted to see you. To tell you that it is me. I still want to be killed. This isn't the way I want to be anyways. I'm glad I got to see you and hear you one last time. I would prefer it if you were the one who did it though. I think you know our deal," I reminded him.
"So you remember?" he questioned, his heavy brows lifting somewhat. I only nodded. He looked around before cautiously stepping forward. He reached out and froze, gauging my reaction.
"I won't hurt you Dave. I can't even if I wanted to," I said, rattling the chains for emphasis. He took a deep breath and reached to remove my mask. When the fabric was pulled away, he gasped. He went to touch my face but hesitated and stood back. He shook his head and paced back and forth, my mask clenched tight in his fist. He was deeply conflicted. He stopped suddenly to stare at me with watering eyes.
"Fuck Mindy! You said this would never happen! You assured me! I can't kill you. You know that right? It's still you. You haven't changed. No one will look at you the same but I always will even if I'm not supposed to," he whimpered.
"I should have known. You always were the softy Dave, but you have to. What choice do you have?" I asked him. He stayed silent for a long time. I watched him pace some more.
"I'll come back for you. I'll tell everyone that I need you for information. It's the only way to keep you safe from being killed by the others. But that means…" he said hesitantly. I nodded reluctantly.
"The torture," I finished for him. He nodded confirmation. I sighed.
"Whatever, it's not like I haven't been through hell already. I don't even know if I'll last. I haven't fed since I woke up. I resisted the urge. Do you really think I would be caught without a fight? I just couldn't fight back. I would have waited for you back at the mainland but I was side tracked. I wanted to have you kill me out there. That way everyone would have assumed me dead, not one of those monsters," I told him with disgust.
"I'll think of something," he said with determination.
"Dave no, what do you think you're doing? Don't be a dumbass. Anything you do for me will get you killed as well. You know this more than anyone," I warned him. His expression turned fierce like when we were fighting. He rushed forward, grabbed my upper arms, and shook me.
"I can't kill you! I can't…I can't let you go. Not in any way whether it's by my hand or theirs. You can't die. I don't know what I'd do without you," he stated. He wrapped me the best he could in his arms. I was caught by surprise but then I relaxed into his embrace. I rested my head on his shoulder.
"I'm so sorry Mindy. I couldn't protect you. I failed you. If I had kept you safe, you wouldn't be like this," he cried into my shoulder.
"It isn't your fault. We can get through this. As long as you still want me," I said. He pulled back to gaze at me. He ran his fingers over my face and stopped at my mouth. He faltered before leaning in and gently brushing my lips with his. I stayed completely still. Being so close to him was hard as it was. He inhaled and held his breath before letting it out.
"I love you," he whispered. I smiled in relief.
"I love you too," I replied just as quiet. He smiled sadly and stepped back.
"Strangely, it doesn't bother me as much as I imagined it would," he told me. My smile dropped and I turned away.
"I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or not," I said grudgingly. He chuckled, chasing the tension away a little. He put my mask back on and walked away.
"I'll see you later," he said over his shoulder. When he left the guard came back in and stationed himself at the entrance. I sighed and kneeled again.
"Shit, you always find a way to make me feel like anything can be fixed Dave," I muttered to myself. The three men who brought me in returned a while later. I looked up at them and smirked knowingly. Whatever they came to say or do, at least I didn't have to act nice. If they wanted to see me as a monster I would let them.
"What do you want?" I grumbled. The burly man only smacked his palm with his fist. The thin man grinned and the young man chuckled.
"Interrogation or just plain beating?" I guessed.
"Just plain fun blood sucker," the thin man corrected.
"I was beginning to think you couldn't talk and let fatty do all the talking for you," I replied. They instantly looked livid.
"Shut up!" the young man yelled. He rushed at me and I jumped to my feet. I climbed up the chains as fast as I could and the young man darted under me. I let go and kicked him in the head on my way down. He stumbled back holding his head. The thin man came at me swinging a butcher's knife.
"Funny, I thought you looked like a butcher," I taunted. I smacked it from his hand and punched him in the face. The burly man punched me in the gut before I could turn to him. It barely slowed me down.
"Didn't think you would hit a girl," I said to him. He hauled back and punched me in the face this time. I stumbled but managed to see the young man come at me from the corner of my eye. I grabbed his arm and threw him at the thin man. His newly obtained swinging knife came swishing through the air and buried itself into the young man's arm. He screamed and the thin man looked surprised. I smirked but when I saw the blood I froze.
I bared my teeth and snarled, startling all three of them plus myself. I jumped forward but the chains halted me. I was breathing heavily and all I could think about was getting to the blood. The burly man pushed the other two out yelling obscenities at them. He turned back to me and marched over. Without blood around I managed to calm myself but the smell wouldn't leave me alone. He grabbed the chain and quickly had it wrapped around my throat with a few swift swings while I stood dazed and struggling with the hunger.
"Don't test us demon. We were told to keep you for questioning so I can't kill you but I will beat the shit out of you," he growled in my ear. He tightened the chains and lifted me off my feet. The pain from the metal digging into my skin bothered me more than the lack of air I no longer needed but I said nothing. He dropped me and I fell to my knees again.
"You douche," I gasped out. His shoulders tensed and he spun around to throw a slim dagger at me. It struck my torso harshly. I gritted my teeth and growled angrily. Losing more blood was not ideal at this point and that bastard knew it. He leered and walked out the room.
