Pain Without Love

Chapter 11

[Any advice? Oh! And I'm going to make a little competition for the few readers I have….Theme song contest! Pick either a character, scene from any chapter, or the entire story! Pick a song that you think goes well with one of those and the winner will have a character based off of them in the story! I'll message the winner and ask them what they dream of in a character of themselves, or just their dream character, and that character will be entered into the storyline. :D Fun right?]

"Belle…stop that…No!" Zoey laughed softly as the dog gnawed on her pants leg. "That is not a chew toy!" she giggled quietly and tried to get away from the Shetland Sheepdog, but only managed to get knocked over, tumbling to the living room floor. A fire was roaring in the fireplace and Zoey was waiting for the hot chocolate that Matilda had promised her. "Doesn't Danny-Boy get you any toys?" asked Zoey in a teasing voice. Belle barked and then dropped Zoey's pants leg, walking away from her all of a sudden. "Pfft…Fine…." Zoey grumbled with a wry smile.

"Miss Zoey…Here we go…" spoke Matilda as she entered the room, carrying a tray with steaming hot chocolate and a few cookies. "That meeting should be starting soon, so drink your hot chocolate and get up to the meeting room…" said Matilda, her voice much like a mothers.

It had been two days since Zoey decided to join the organization, and it was time for her to meet the other members. She hadn't spoken to Daniel since the evening in the garden, and hadn't actually seen him since then either. Matilda came back and forth to give her instructions, feed her, and cloth her. It had been a peaceful two days, and Zoey was relaxed and feeling much healthier.

Zoey sat on the couch, pulling a cup of hot liquid to her lips, blowing softly on the drink to cool it down. "Smells wonderful, thanks Matilda…" Zoey waited a moment and then began to drink her hot chocolate. Within minutes the thick and delicious drink was gone, and Zoey felt warmed to her very core, a bright smile on her face. "I guess I should get up to that meeting…" she mumbled as she stood from the couch, her feet carrying her towards the staircase. She wasn't incredibly nervous about meeting the members of the organization, she was nervous about seeing Daniel again.

Her pace slowed as she got closer and closer to the meeting room, until she stopped in front of it, her breathing hitched in her throat. What if he didn't want to see her? What if he was ashamed of how she lost control and kissed him?

Several minutes passed until Zoey clenched her fists and shook her head. Who cared! If he wasn't going to return her feelings that was his own problem, she wasn't going to let him ruin her moment. Zoey pushed the doors open and closed them behind her, smiling at the decent size group standing around the large meeting room. Some had wine in their hands, others seemed to have a …thicker drink of choice, while others merely watched from the corners. The moment she entered the room however, all conversation ended and a multicolored mob of eyes were watching her.

"Miss Zoey…lovely…I was beginning to fear you were going to back out…" spoke Mikal in a friendly manner. Zoey shook her head and headed over to him, nodding to a few men and women as she passed them.

"Of course not, Mikal…I never back out of anything…Is this everyone?" Zoey asked softly. Mikal shook his head.

"Sadly no, many of us are in America and couldn't break away from certain obligations, but this is most of us…" he motioned around, spending a few minutes introducing her to the many vampires, witches, and even werewolves that littered the room. Daniel was sitting on an armchair in the back of the room, a glass of red wine in his hand, his eyes dark and emotionless. He wasn't looking at her, but off into the distance. "There are some papers that we need you to sign and some oaths that you must take…you also need to fully understand the risks that go along with this organizations…" Mikal continued.

"Alright…let's get started then…" Zoey said simply, allowing Mikal to move her towards a desk. There was a man sitting behind it, the introductions moments earlier told her he was the ring leader of the group and his name was Joseph Trawley, a warlock. He appeared to be only in his thirties, but truly he was centuries old. It was funny what magic could do to a person.

"Miss Hansen…" Joseph drawled in a gruff voice. "You understand that our purpose is to bring down the vampires and other supernatural folks that break the rules?" Zoey nodded,"And that we put our agents into particularly dangerous positions all over the slave trade…and you being a human would be put into the most dangerous of those positions…We have only ever had three humans among us and they only lived about a year after entering our ranks…" Zoey went still at his words and then nodded. "You are okay with the thought that your life could be cut extremely short by aiding us?"

"Yes…And I'm happy to help a cause such as yours…Like I told Mikal…If I'm going to die for something…I'd rather it be for a good reason…" Zoey stated with a nod of her head.

"Very well…" He grabbed some papers and slid them across the desk at her, along with a pen. "Please read these over and then sign them where the line is at the bottom…" he said softly. Zoey grabbed the pen and started to review the document closely, aware of the eyes that all focused on her around the room, including Daniel's. She took a few minutes before she signed it and pushed it across the desk to Joseph. He didn't speak for a few minutes while he put more papers together and then handed them to me. He explained that he had given me a handbook and a list of guidelines, tips, rules, and training plans. It seemed I needed to learn some basic defense skills to up my chances of survival.

"Welcome to our organization, Agent Hansen…" the room said in unison. One person didn't say anything though, and it was Daniel, who had stood up and walked out, the door clicking shut behind him. Zoey turned and looked sadly at the door. A sigh escaped her lips moments before a glass of wine was set in her hands.

The next hour was spent drinking and speaking with the other members of the group, each one giving her a little bit more information about what she had just gotten herself into. Others told her stories of their own experiences, and overall she had a good time talking to them. They were fighting the monsters. Just because someone was a vampire, or a shapeshifter, or even a witch…it didn't mean they were a monster. Monsters were made because of actions, not species.

"Goodnight everyone…" Zoey called as she headed out of the meeting room. Many of the members had already left for the night, and as she started to get tired she decided to call it a night. She headed down the hallway a little woozy, caused by a few too many glasses of wine. By the time she got to the bedroom she had been staying in she was giggling over something one of the members had said earlier. Slowly she opened the door to the room and closed it behind her, fumbling for the light switch in the dark.

Before she could find the switch a force pushed her roughly into the door, causing her to gasp. "You're drunk…" a male voice growled. She recognized it instantly as Daniel's.

"And you…my fine sir…are an ass…" Zoey teased with a giggle. He growled under his breath and pinned her arms beside her head, his lips close enough that she could smell the tangy scent of wine on his breath. "Why are you here?"

"I live here…" he mumbled.

"No….I mean in this room…" Zoey stated with a sigh. He was silent and then released her arms, flipping the lights on. They lit the room dimly and Zoey looked at him with a frown. "Daniel…"

"I was hoping you wouldn't join the organization…"

"Well that isn't really your decision…and since I haven't seen you since…Well how was I supposed to know?" she snapped. Daniel looked smug as he stepped back and turned his back to her.

"You're going to get yourself killed Zoeybird…." Daniel whispered sadly. He turned and looked at her, his eyes filled with so much despair that all Zoey wanted to do was ease his pain. "I won't be able to save you from all the danger that you'll face in this…"

"I'm not asking you to protect me, Daniel…" Zoey said quietly. "I just…"

"What?" he asked, eyes curious.

"I just…I want you to not avoid me…Don't hide from me…I understand that I was stupid in the garden…Reckless…I can forget about it…but please don't avoid me now…" she admitted.

"Zoey…I…I shouldn't have been avoiding you, but I was mad…"

Zoey felt some anger flare up inside of her at that. He was mad? Mad because she had kissed him? Because in some way she thought he wanted her too, and that he enjoyed it by the way he kissed her back? She frowned and glared at him and opened the door. "I'm tired Daniel…We're cool…can I just go to bed…" she grumbled.

"Zoey-"

"I'm tired Daniel…" She interrupted, as he slowly walked to the door. As soon as he was far enough in the doorway she pushed the door closed in his face, locking it. She felt her heart break a little bit as she got ready for bed. He didn't want her like she wanted him. He never would. She was human. Breakable…a liability.