Hello! Night World's concept and ideas is SO not my property, coz if it
was, do you really think I would be sitting here writing fanfiction based
on my own story? Didn't think so. I'm just using it purely and solely for
entertainment purposes. But, don't even think about using Kel, Jake,
Charlie or any of my original ideas and characters, because that is bad,
and why would you want to anyways? Make up your own, they will be much
better than mine. But by all means take Jess. I'll pay you to take her!
Lol.
Valene: So you've discovered the truth about me! Mwa ha ha haaaa! Ahem, sorry. As you can see I am writing as you so kindly requested me to.
Neoen: To satisfy your many questions, read on, I beg you! And review of course! Don't panic or hyperventilate, all will be revealed. Well, mostly, coz if I left no suspense in it, it would be silly, right?
Eri: Will do. Thanks, I am a sucker for personification, lol. I'm keeping going!
Tamashii: Well, I wonder who will be Kel's soulmate? Hmmm... To either stop you worrying, or to make you worry even more, read on!
Nora: Kewl, thanks!
This has got to be one of my most reviewed chapters! Yay! Thank you all so much, my loyal reviewers! If you read the story, do not be shy! Review! Even if it's short, or if it's long, I love them all! I really appreciate all sorts of comments, be it constructive criticism, praise, or depressingly awful reviews. -_- Obviously I prefer happy ones, but hey!
So come on then, let's find out what happens next.
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Kel was paralysed, mesmerised by the fangs, by the blood that dripped slowly to the floor, smeared across the singer's handsome, feral face. Even as they hovered plainly, undeniably before her, Kel's mind rejected the idea of it all. It couldn't be true. His eyes were magnetic, drawing her into their silvery grey depths, and Kel felt as if she was falling, drowning madly in a rush of cold fire.
She tried to move, to get away, but for some reason her body would not obey her, and that was certainly weird. The singer - vampire guy - smirked, as if he knew just what she was thinking and feeling. It felt so strange, to mentally panic but show no physical symptoms of her inner distress. Kel supposed that this was what paraplegics felt like - trapped helplessly in their own bodies, unable to move no matter how much their brains and souls raged against it all. She had had no idea that a clothing of flesh could become such a demeaning, horrifying prison.
"You are a pretty one, aren't you... Kelsey..." the lead singer whispered absently as he fingered a lock of her long dark hair, bending his blond head close to hers. Kel wondered how he'd known her name, but then, couldn't vampires read minds? She tried to insist to herself that vampires didn't exist, but right now she wasn't so sure. It was all well and good to deny their existence in the abstract, but when faced with a supposedly real, live bloodsucker eyeing your neck, things took on a different perspective. She wanted to shrink away from his touch, but found herself incapacitated still. His face was unbearably close now, and her pulse raced a million times faster as she saw him stare hungrily at her bare throat.
Absorbed in her mental struggle to free herself, Kel was lost in her own, panic-stricken world. This may have been a good thing - she did not notice the singer as he bent closer, to her throat, his fangs bared, ensuring that she did not freak out any more than she had already. This also meant that she did not hear the heavy, rhythmic sound of rushing footsteps, coming closer and closer, louder and more audible with each passing second.
"Take that!" a voice screeched inanely, deafening Kel, shaking her from her escape attempts. Immediately after that, she heard the whooshing of air moving against something hard, and an almighty thud. She looked up, just in time to see the singer's face, bewilderment and confusion mingling across his predatory features, as he swayed precariously. Then he fell to the floor. Knocked out cold.
As the body of the vampire singer collapsed, Kel could now see her saviour. Standing there, wielding a cricket bat in her slim but surprisingly formidable hands, was... Jess? Jess!? This was just too surreal for comfort.
Kel was speechless. Yet another surprise. She just stood there stupidly, her bright green eyes wide with shock, her nerves jangled to breaking point. This is so not happening, she told herself, before conceding that she must be insane. Yes. She, Kelsey Murdoch, was officially, certifiably mad.
Dropping the bat, Jess launched herself towards the frightened girl, enveloping her in a smothering bear hug.
"Kel! That bastard tried to rape you didn't he!?" she yelled, squeezing her tightly round the middle, almost cutting off her air supply. "It's OK, I got him good," she said soothingly.
Kel didn't know whether to laugh or cry, as Jess made her press her face into her shoulder. The girl had really gotten the wrong end of the stick this time, but even if Kel did explain the truth to Jess, the chances were that she would just take it all as a joke. But Kel knew what she had seen here. She was not crazy. Eyes and ears could not lie. The truth was that vampires did exist, they were real. And this frightening revelation was scaring her senseless. But, the most important thing was to keep cool, to get Charlie, and to get out of this club right away. The interview was so out of the question now. She wasn't sticking around. She squirmed as Jess patted her head with vigorous affection and muttered comforting words of sympathy at her. Kel winced at the strong smell of perfume and smoke from the club that her clothes exuded.
Kel also noticed another smell. The unmistakeable, metallic odour of... blood. Her heart sank like a stone, and she pulled away slightly from the girl, her eyes trained upon her throat. She nearly had an emotional breakdown as she saw those two tiny red pinpricks of colour there, the skin puckering slightly around them. Jess had been bitten by a vampire.
"Kel, what's wrong? Are you OK now?" asked Jess, releasing Kel from the stifling embrace, now eyeing her critically.
"I'm... fine," she replied tiredly, holding a hand to her head in a gesture of despair. Proof that there were more vampires around. Black Iris must be crawling with them. Kel was beginning to make a connection, to see the pieces of this bizarre puzzle come together, but there was no time to sit and dwell upon this discovery. Safety first, after all. Charlie was still unaccounted for, and this room was dangerous too. What if the other members of Bloodmoon were... vampires too? She shuddered, still not used to the idea. Would she ever be used to it?
"Jess, which door leads to the bar?" asked Kel quietly, now frowning with concentration as she mentally outlined a plan to herself. No time for emotional outbursts now.
"It's on the... left, yeah, the left. As you come out of this door, it's directly on your left. Why?" asked Jess, though she didn't exhibit any real interest in the question.
"Don't worry..." said Kel, but Jess interrupted.
"Well, anyway, I've got to get back." She straightened her dress out, her eyes sparking with excitement. "I met the band's manager, the one Jake told us to meet, y'know, and he is soo cute! And..."
"Go to Charlie's car and get in," she said authoritatively, interrupting Jess' speech. "Don't argue, I'll explain later OK? Lock the doors," she added as she steered Jess out of the dressing room and into the white corridor. Kel looked back momentarily, her eyes moving skittishly from the unconscious body of the singer to the eyes of grey-faced girl. The lifeless girl, so pretty even in death, her dark eyes glazed over, her unseeing gaze boring into Kel's skull. That could have been her if Jess hadn't stepped in. Then the door swung shut with an alarming crash, the doorframe vibrating.
"Kel?" said Jess, an annoyed pout on her face. "Come on, lighten up! Malachi said he'd be waiting for me! I can't leave now!"
"Just go. Don't let anyone in." Kel pushed her towards the door at the end of the corridor, her face ashen. "Seriously Jess, please. Just humour me this once, OK?" Jess cast her a worried look of concern.
"If it really means that much to you, I'll go then," she conceded with a small smile. Kel realised suddenly that, for all her flaws and annoying habits, Jess was a good friend. Sure, Kel knew that they would never be best buddies or anything like that, but when it counted, Jess' virtues seemed to shine out, the girl's true character finally revealing itself. Underneath the makeup, the clothes and the attitude, Jess was pretty nice. Though, Kel knew that if things ever went back to normal, she would find Jess as annoying as ever.
"Thanks," smiled Kel as she followed Jess down the hallway. As the blonde haired girl went to push open the door, Kel asked her a question.
"Where did you last see Charlie, by the way?"
Jess heaved the door open, casting a small pool of light into the darkness of the lobby, before turning to Kel, still holding the door open.
"Oh, he was right at the end of the bar, talking to some stranger," she said carelessly as she swept through the door. Kel hastily followed.
"Also, if I don't return in, say, fifteen minutes, just go. Get a taxi. Me and Charlie will be fine," added Kel to Jess' retreating back.
"'Kay," Jess' voice floated down to her. "See ya, Kelsey."
With a look of determined triumph upon her face, Kel pushed open the door that Jess had pointed out to her. With a deep breath, she strode into the Black Iris, conveying confidence in her every move, whilst fear and despair made her heart quail. Whatever happened, she was going to get Charlie out of here.
So this was the Black Iris. Vampire central. Kel stepped in, and found the place absolutely packed with people, well, bodies, anyway. Did vampires even count as people? Shaking the slightly irrational though from her mind, Kel concentrated, feeling slightly surreal. As if she were the 'heroine' in a b-rate movie. She grinned in spite of herself as she remembered several cheesy and inappropriate lines from vampire-themed films, before realising that she was getting off-track again.
It was dark inside. The lights were down low, but things were still visible - just about. Here, there seemed to be a large floor space in front of her, where about a million people were dancing to the beat of some seductive, hypnotic tune, of an indefinable genre. Bloodmoon clearly hadn't started their gig yet. At the memory of her brush with death, she shivered, compelling herself to look around. At each side of the cavernous room there were various chairs and stools, all clearly expensive, dark, and comfortable. The whole place exuded a sensuous, dangerous elegance.
She craned her neck, thankful for the four-inch heels that brought her up to 5 foot 9, which gave her extra height - useful if you wanted to find someone in a big crowd such as this one. But she couldn't see anyone remotely resembling the scruffy, long-haired Charlie. Kel forced herself not to worry. He was probably fine. She was just going to have to try a bit harder to locate him; that was all. Kel knew she was kidding herself; to a vampire, humans were probably like meals-on-wheels - 7 days a week, all hours of the day.
Ploughing determinedly through the throng of bodies, Kel scanned everyone she passed, searching for Jess' brother. In the back of her mind, a voice whispered that it was hopeless to expect to find him in such a busy place; she knew that she would rather be doing this than abandoning him to the hungry vampire freaks roaming around.
She tried to get past a tall, shadowy, suit-clad figure that blocked her path. Contrasting with the dark suit, he had golden hair that shone like a burning blaze. But with a violent, thrusting elbow, he rammed her in the stomach. The impact was incredible. Kel actually felt her ribs cracking as she was shoved backwards as if she was as light as a feather. Pain blossomed explosively in her belly, overwhelming her fraught senses as she almost flew across the room. She landed flat on her face, several feet from the offender, carving out a trench of space on the floor. She blinked dazedly, looking up, the throbbing agony beginning to dull slightly after the initial collision, but it still lingered, sapping her last reserves of energy. Whoever had done that to her had to be a pro wrestler or something. She struggled into a sitting position.
At once, the scar of emptiness in front of her filled in again, the dancers barely missing a beat. No one offered her a hand up; no one cared or noticed her anguish. They ignored the scene completely. Another piece of proof that the Black Iris was no ordinary club. She levered herself heavily to her feet, breathing hard, one hand clamped to her stomach. She teetered for a second upon those high spindly heels, almost falling back down again, but by clinging to a woman's bare shoulder she stayed on her feet, though she twisted her ankle. The owner of the shoulder moved, and fearful of another attack, Kel hurried into the anonymity of the crowd. She hadn't meant to dig her nails in, but she doubted that that the woman would be understand the situation.
Kel staggered around weakly, no longer seeing or feeling. A dull and distant roaring echoed in her eardrums. The pain was the centre of her attention, her only focus. A brief vision of Charlie floated before her eyes, reminding her of the task, but she was in no state to continue for now.
Miraculously, Kel found that up ahead, there was a place that the horde had left clear. In gratitude to her guardian angel, she stumbled into the space. A stool was situated directly in front of her, and she gingerly sat herself down upon it.
Then she realised that she was at the bar. A small, pained smile flickered upon her face. A wave of pain hit her suddenly, and she groaned softy with a sharp intake of breath. Her eyes watered. Kel realised that she was really hurt. That guy had seriously injured her, and what she needed right now was a doctor and a packet of morphine.
She turned her head, and at once, she saw Charlie at the end of the bar, lounging in a dark, quiet corner. He looked as if he was enjoying himself; he was tangled up quite literally with a pretty, raven-haired lady. Normally Kel would have searched for some more tactful way to alert Charlie to her presence whilst he was in this slightly compromising situation, but she was tired, in pain, and terrified that a vampire might get her.
Kel leapt off her stool and stormed across to the couple as best she could with a limp and a stomach that was almost crippling her with pain. It came in throbbing waves, each one causing her to bite her tongue to keep herself from crying out. She tasted blood in her mouth, and that made her think of vampires even more. As the frightening thoughts swirled around in her pain- fogged consciousness, she approached them. As she drew closer, she saw that the woman seemed to be... Kel felt hysteria begin to affect her. That woman was drinking Charlie's blood. It had to be. Kel hobbled quickly over to him, ignoring her ankle in her fear.
"Charlie!" she shrieked, as she tried to pull Charlie away from the vampiric lady. A burst of pain hit her, and she doubled over in agony, tears of tormenting anguish rolling down her cheeks. It was like being hit all over again. It had gotten so much worse, so quickly. Kel was afraid. She literally could not sense anything but the suffering of her wound.
"Kel, what on earth has happened to you?" Charlie's concerned voice filtered into her brain, and she was dimly aware of being supported by strong arms.
"We... have to get out of... here....." she whispered, her breathing laboured and shallow. "Please..." She looked up into his face.
But it wasn't Charlie. The stranger was certainly gorgeous, a shock of auburn hair falling casually into his baby blue eyes... Kel frowned confusedly as she looked again. No, they were... brown eyes. No, green. No... A terrible, familiar feeling of foreboding crept into her heart. No normal person had changing eyes. No human was that ethereally good-looking. No real person would have fangs... Suddenly, the arms around her tightened menacingly. And then Kel knew that she was trapped. Again.
A flood of unbearable agony assailed her weak and trembling body, and she was shaking violently. Her captor, the terrible stranger, only laughed.
"Charlie?" she moaned softly, struggling a little against the encircling, imprisoning embrace. "Let me go." But it was as if she was tied with bands of steel. Beads of sweat appeared upon her forehead as pain erupted again in her stomach. She couldn't take much more of this.
"Nice to meet you too, Kelsey. I'm Malachi Redfern," he said in a cruel, deadly serious tone.
Why was that name so familiar? Where was Charlie? What was happening to her?
Then, as sudden as a gunshot, as perhaps just as fatally, she blacked out, letting the darkness and the agony free into her soul. Kel just couldn't fight any longer. The questions remained unanswered as the blissful numbness of unconsciousness engulfed her.
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Well, sorry for being annoying with another cliffhanger. ^_^
You know what to do.
It ain't nothing new.
I won't be blue.
If you just review!
REVIEW!
Sorry for that appalling rhyme, I couldn't resist. So, what is gonna happen to Kel now that Malachi Redfern has got her in his evil clutches? Where is Charlie? And will Kel be OK after that stomach wound and that life- threatening twisted ankle? Review now, and the next chapter will come all the quicker!
Valene: So you've discovered the truth about me! Mwa ha ha haaaa! Ahem, sorry. As you can see I am writing as you so kindly requested me to.
Neoen: To satisfy your many questions, read on, I beg you! And review of course! Don't panic or hyperventilate, all will be revealed. Well, mostly, coz if I left no suspense in it, it would be silly, right?
Eri: Will do. Thanks, I am a sucker for personification, lol. I'm keeping going!
Tamashii: Well, I wonder who will be Kel's soulmate? Hmmm... To either stop you worrying, or to make you worry even more, read on!
Nora: Kewl, thanks!
This has got to be one of my most reviewed chapters! Yay! Thank you all so much, my loyal reviewers! If you read the story, do not be shy! Review! Even if it's short, or if it's long, I love them all! I really appreciate all sorts of comments, be it constructive criticism, praise, or depressingly awful reviews. -_- Obviously I prefer happy ones, but hey!
So come on then, let's find out what happens next.
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Kel was paralysed, mesmerised by the fangs, by the blood that dripped slowly to the floor, smeared across the singer's handsome, feral face. Even as they hovered plainly, undeniably before her, Kel's mind rejected the idea of it all. It couldn't be true. His eyes were magnetic, drawing her into their silvery grey depths, and Kel felt as if she was falling, drowning madly in a rush of cold fire.
She tried to move, to get away, but for some reason her body would not obey her, and that was certainly weird. The singer - vampire guy - smirked, as if he knew just what she was thinking and feeling. It felt so strange, to mentally panic but show no physical symptoms of her inner distress. Kel supposed that this was what paraplegics felt like - trapped helplessly in their own bodies, unable to move no matter how much their brains and souls raged against it all. She had had no idea that a clothing of flesh could become such a demeaning, horrifying prison.
"You are a pretty one, aren't you... Kelsey..." the lead singer whispered absently as he fingered a lock of her long dark hair, bending his blond head close to hers. Kel wondered how he'd known her name, but then, couldn't vampires read minds? She tried to insist to herself that vampires didn't exist, but right now she wasn't so sure. It was all well and good to deny their existence in the abstract, but when faced with a supposedly real, live bloodsucker eyeing your neck, things took on a different perspective. She wanted to shrink away from his touch, but found herself incapacitated still. His face was unbearably close now, and her pulse raced a million times faster as she saw him stare hungrily at her bare throat.
Absorbed in her mental struggle to free herself, Kel was lost in her own, panic-stricken world. This may have been a good thing - she did not notice the singer as he bent closer, to her throat, his fangs bared, ensuring that she did not freak out any more than she had already. This also meant that she did not hear the heavy, rhythmic sound of rushing footsteps, coming closer and closer, louder and more audible with each passing second.
"Take that!" a voice screeched inanely, deafening Kel, shaking her from her escape attempts. Immediately after that, she heard the whooshing of air moving against something hard, and an almighty thud. She looked up, just in time to see the singer's face, bewilderment and confusion mingling across his predatory features, as he swayed precariously. Then he fell to the floor. Knocked out cold.
As the body of the vampire singer collapsed, Kel could now see her saviour. Standing there, wielding a cricket bat in her slim but surprisingly formidable hands, was... Jess? Jess!? This was just too surreal for comfort.
Kel was speechless. Yet another surprise. She just stood there stupidly, her bright green eyes wide with shock, her nerves jangled to breaking point. This is so not happening, she told herself, before conceding that she must be insane. Yes. She, Kelsey Murdoch, was officially, certifiably mad.
Dropping the bat, Jess launched herself towards the frightened girl, enveloping her in a smothering bear hug.
"Kel! That bastard tried to rape you didn't he!?" she yelled, squeezing her tightly round the middle, almost cutting off her air supply. "It's OK, I got him good," she said soothingly.
Kel didn't know whether to laugh or cry, as Jess made her press her face into her shoulder. The girl had really gotten the wrong end of the stick this time, but even if Kel did explain the truth to Jess, the chances were that she would just take it all as a joke. But Kel knew what she had seen here. She was not crazy. Eyes and ears could not lie. The truth was that vampires did exist, they were real. And this frightening revelation was scaring her senseless. But, the most important thing was to keep cool, to get Charlie, and to get out of this club right away. The interview was so out of the question now. She wasn't sticking around. She squirmed as Jess patted her head with vigorous affection and muttered comforting words of sympathy at her. Kel winced at the strong smell of perfume and smoke from the club that her clothes exuded.
Kel also noticed another smell. The unmistakeable, metallic odour of... blood. Her heart sank like a stone, and she pulled away slightly from the girl, her eyes trained upon her throat. She nearly had an emotional breakdown as she saw those two tiny red pinpricks of colour there, the skin puckering slightly around them. Jess had been bitten by a vampire.
"Kel, what's wrong? Are you OK now?" asked Jess, releasing Kel from the stifling embrace, now eyeing her critically.
"I'm... fine," she replied tiredly, holding a hand to her head in a gesture of despair. Proof that there were more vampires around. Black Iris must be crawling with them. Kel was beginning to make a connection, to see the pieces of this bizarre puzzle come together, but there was no time to sit and dwell upon this discovery. Safety first, after all. Charlie was still unaccounted for, and this room was dangerous too. What if the other members of Bloodmoon were... vampires too? She shuddered, still not used to the idea. Would she ever be used to it?
"Jess, which door leads to the bar?" asked Kel quietly, now frowning with concentration as she mentally outlined a plan to herself. No time for emotional outbursts now.
"It's on the... left, yeah, the left. As you come out of this door, it's directly on your left. Why?" asked Jess, though she didn't exhibit any real interest in the question.
"Don't worry..." said Kel, but Jess interrupted.
"Well, anyway, I've got to get back." She straightened her dress out, her eyes sparking with excitement. "I met the band's manager, the one Jake told us to meet, y'know, and he is soo cute! And..."
"Go to Charlie's car and get in," she said authoritatively, interrupting Jess' speech. "Don't argue, I'll explain later OK? Lock the doors," she added as she steered Jess out of the dressing room and into the white corridor. Kel looked back momentarily, her eyes moving skittishly from the unconscious body of the singer to the eyes of grey-faced girl. The lifeless girl, so pretty even in death, her dark eyes glazed over, her unseeing gaze boring into Kel's skull. That could have been her if Jess hadn't stepped in. Then the door swung shut with an alarming crash, the doorframe vibrating.
"Kel?" said Jess, an annoyed pout on her face. "Come on, lighten up! Malachi said he'd be waiting for me! I can't leave now!"
"Just go. Don't let anyone in." Kel pushed her towards the door at the end of the corridor, her face ashen. "Seriously Jess, please. Just humour me this once, OK?" Jess cast her a worried look of concern.
"If it really means that much to you, I'll go then," she conceded with a small smile. Kel realised suddenly that, for all her flaws and annoying habits, Jess was a good friend. Sure, Kel knew that they would never be best buddies or anything like that, but when it counted, Jess' virtues seemed to shine out, the girl's true character finally revealing itself. Underneath the makeup, the clothes and the attitude, Jess was pretty nice. Though, Kel knew that if things ever went back to normal, she would find Jess as annoying as ever.
"Thanks," smiled Kel as she followed Jess down the hallway. As the blonde haired girl went to push open the door, Kel asked her a question.
"Where did you last see Charlie, by the way?"
Jess heaved the door open, casting a small pool of light into the darkness of the lobby, before turning to Kel, still holding the door open.
"Oh, he was right at the end of the bar, talking to some stranger," she said carelessly as she swept through the door. Kel hastily followed.
"Also, if I don't return in, say, fifteen minutes, just go. Get a taxi. Me and Charlie will be fine," added Kel to Jess' retreating back.
"'Kay," Jess' voice floated down to her. "See ya, Kelsey."
With a look of determined triumph upon her face, Kel pushed open the door that Jess had pointed out to her. With a deep breath, she strode into the Black Iris, conveying confidence in her every move, whilst fear and despair made her heart quail. Whatever happened, she was going to get Charlie out of here.
So this was the Black Iris. Vampire central. Kel stepped in, and found the place absolutely packed with people, well, bodies, anyway. Did vampires even count as people? Shaking the slightly irrational though from her mind, Kel concentrated, feeling slightly surreal. As if she were the 'heroine' in a b-rate movie. She grinned in spite of herself as she remembered several cheesy and inappropriate lines from vampire-themed films, before realising that she was getting off-track again.
It was dark inside. The lights were down low, but things were still visible - just about. Here, there seemed to be a large floor space in front of her, where about a million people were dancing to the beat of some seductive, hypnotic tune, of an indefinable genre. Bloodmoon clearly hadn't started their gig yet. At the memory of her brush with death, she shivered, compelling herself to look around. At each side of the cavernous room there were various chairs and stools, all clearly expensive, dark, and comfortable. The whole place exuded a sensuous, dangerous elegance.
She craned her neck, thankful for the four-inch heels that brought her up to 5 foot 9, which gave her extra height - useful if you wanted to find someone in a big crowd such as this one. But she couldn't see anyone remotely resembling the scruffy, long-haired Charlie. Kel forced herself not to worry. He was probably fine. She was just going to have to try a bit harder to locate him; that was all. Kel knew she was kidding herself; to a vampire, humans were probably like meals-on-wheels - 7 days a week, all hours of the day.
Ploughing determinedly through the throng of bodies, Kel scanned everyone she passed, searching for Jess' brother. In the back of her mind, a voice whispered that it was hopeless to expect to find him in such a busy place; she knew that she would rather be doing this than abandoning him to the hungry vampire freaks roaming around.
She tried to get past a tall, shadowy, suit-clad figure that blocked her path. Contrasting with the dark suit, he had golden hair that shone like a burning blaze. But with a violent, thrusting elbow, he rammed her in the stomach. The impact was incredible. Kel actually felt her ribs cracking as she was shoved backwards as if she was as light as a feather. Pain blossomed explosively in her belly, overwhelming her fraught senses as she almost flew across the room. She landed flat on her face, several feet from the offender, carving out a trench of space on the floor. She blinked dazedly, looking up, the throbbing agony beginning to dull slightly after the initial collision, but it still lingered, sapping her last reserves of energy. Whoever had done that to her had to be a pro wrestler or something. She struggled into a sitting position.
At once, the scar of emptiness in front of her filled in again, the dancers barely missing a beat. No one offered her a hand up; no one cared or noticed her anguish. They ignored the scene completely. Another piece of proof that the Black Iris was no ordinary club. She levered herself heavily to her feet, breathing hard, one hand clamped to her stomach. She teetered for a second upon those high spindly heels, almost falling back down again, but by clinging to a woman's bare shoulder she stayed on her feet, though she twisted her ankle. The owner of the shoulder moved, and fearful of another attack, Kel hurried into the anonymity of the crowd. She hadn't meant to dig her nails in, but she doubted that that the woman would be understand the situation.
Kel staggered around weakly, no longer seeing or feeling. A dull and distant roaring echoed in her eardrums. The pain was the centre of her attention, her only focus. A brief vision of Charlie floated before her eyes, reminding her of the task, but she was in no state to continue for now.
Miraculously, Kel found that up ahead, there was a place that the horde had left clear. In gratitude to her guardian angel, she stumbled into the space. A stool was situated directly in front of her, and she gingerly sat herself down upon it.
Then she realised that she was at the bar. A small, pained smile flickered upon her face. A wave of pain hit her suddenly, and she groaned softy with a sharp intake of breath. Her eyes watered. Kel realised that she was really hurt. That guy had seriously injured her, and what she needed right now was a doctor and a packet of morphine.
She turned her head, and at once, she saw Charlie at the end of the bar, lounging in a dark, quiet corner. He looked as if he was enjoying himself; he was tangled up quite literally with a pretty, raven-haired lady. Normally Kel would have searched for some more tactful way to alert Charlie to her presence whilst he was in this slightly compromising situation, but she was tired, in pain, and terrified that a vampire might get her.
Kel leapt off her stool and stormed across to the couple as best she could with a limp and a stomach that was almost crippling her with pain. It came in throbbing waves, each one causing her to bite her tongue to keep herself from crying out. She tasted blood in her mouth, and that made her think of vampires even more. As the frightening thoughts swirled around in her pain- fogged consciousness, she approached them. As she drew closer, she saw that the woman seemed to be... Kel felt hysteria begin to affect her. That woman was drinking Charlie's blood. It had to be. Kel hobbled quickly over to him, ignoring her ankle in her fear.
"Charlie!" she shrieked, as she tried to pull Charlie away from the vampiric lady. A burst of pain hit her, and she doubled over in agony, tears of tormenting anguish rolling down her cheeks. It was like being hit all over again. It had gotten so much worse, so quickly. Kel was afraid. She literally could not sense anything but the suffering of her wound.
"Kel, what on earth has happened to you?" Charlie's concerned voice filtered into her brain, and she was dimly aware of being supported by strong arms.
"We... have to get out of... here....." she whispered, her breathing laboured and shallow. "Please..." She looked up into his face.
But it wasn't Charlie. The stranger was certainly gorgeous, a shock of auburn hair falling casually into his baby blue eyes... Kel frowned confusedly as she looked again. No, they were... brown eyes. No, green. No... A terrible, familiar feeling of foreboding crept into her heart. No normal person had changing eyes. No human was that ethereally good-looking. No real person would have fangs... Suddenly, the arms around her tightened menacingly. And then Kel knew that she was trapped. Again.
A flood of unbearable agony assailed her weak and trembling body, and she was shaking violently. Her captor, the terrible stranger, only laughed.
"Charlie?" she moaned softly, struggling a little against the encircling, imprisoning embrace. "Let me go." But it was as if she was tied with bands of steel. Beads of sweat appeared upon her forehead as pain erupted again in her stomach. She couldn't take much more of this.
"Nice to meet you too, Kelsey. I'm Malachi Redfern," he said in a cruel, deadly serious tone.
Why was that name so familiar? Where was Charlie? What was happening to her?
Then, as sudden as a gunshot, as perhaps just as fatally, she blacked out, letting the darkness and the agony free into her soul. Kel just couldn't fight any longer. The questions remained unanswered as the blissful numbness of unconsciousness engulfed her.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Well, sorry for being annoying with another cliffhanger. ^_^
You know what to do.
It ain't nothing new.
I won't be blue.
If you just review!
REVIEW!
Sorry for that appalling rhyme, I couldn't resist. So, what is gonna happen to Kel now that Malachi Redfern has got her in his evil clutches? Where is Charlie? And will Kel be OK after that stomach wound and that life- threatening twisted ankle? Review now, and the next chapter will come all the quicker!
