Chapter 19

Blood

"Adrian?"

"Dyson, can you stay here and watch Julia?"

"Adrian, what…"

"I have to find her!" Adrian said and turned to his cousin, the necklace in his hand.

"I don't know what exactly happened here, but someone must have kidnapped her and I have to find her!"

"You don't even know where she is. How long she's been gone. There's nothing to be seen in this snow!" Marcus said and tried to keep Adrian from running out of the house immediately.

"She can't be gone that long. And they will have headed for the woods, where they can't be seen immediately. So that's where I'm going."

"You can't go alone." Dyson tried to reason with him as well, but he could tell that Adrian's mind was set.

"I'll come with you." Marcus told him and together they headed out into the darkness.

It was cold. That thought played itself over and over in her mind. The hem of her dress was reaching the snow as Fred dragged her along and every now and then the fabric hit her legs, sending shivers through her body. She could barely feel her hands anymore and she could clearly see the breath of Fred and his friends in the moonlight.

She knew she held them back with her constant attempts to flee Fred's arms, but she never succeeded. Now her only hope was that Adrian wouldn't stay out too long and that he would notice her missing and find the doors open when he returned. He was the only hope she had to get back home now. And she clung to that ray of hope as she tried to not think how it must feel to freeze to dead.

"You should have left her there! They will catch us! And all because you have gone mad!" one of Fred's friends told him angrily and Angelina had the silent hope that they would leave her now. She would somehow manage to find her way back home. And she needed to get out of the cold soon. The snow that kept falling started to soak her hair, she could already feel some of the wet strands clinging to her skin. Her eyes hurt from the cold and her teeth chattered underneath Fred's hands. She wanted to be home, in her bed, next to Adrian and not out here in the cold with some lunatics.

"Do you have any idea who could have kidnapped her?" Marcus asked through gritted teeth as he tried to keep from shaking. No one would be out in this weather if they had a choice.

"No. I could think of some people who would like to hurt her or me, but they would use more subtle ways to do so."

"Like Camille?"

"For example."

"Just remind yourself that this weather here is what she has most likely in summer."

Had he not been so worried, Adrian would most likely have smiled at that, but as it was, he could only think of Angelina. Where she was, who had taken her. And he blamed himself for not protecting her. For not being there when she had needed him.

"Have you thought of the possibility that whoever has taken her has just apparated somewhere nice and warm like, say, Hawaii?"

Adrian stopped and held his hand up to keep Marcus from talking.

"You hear that?"

"Hear what? All I can hear is the storm …"

"There were voices. This direction." And Adrian was already heading to where he had heard the voices.

"Ouch!" Fred pulled his hand away from Angelina's mouth and she managed to free herself also from his arm around her waist.

"What did you do that for?" Fred asked her and looked at his hand.

"Are you crazy?" Angelina asked him irritated.

"I want to go home. I WILL go home this instant!" She was about to turn around when Fred grabbed her hand and yanked her around.

"I know you're lying, Angie. I know you still love me." He looked at her with pleading eyes.

"Can't you see that this is our chance to be free? We can leave together and live a happy life together."

"You really are mad. I would never leave with you!"

"Angie."

"Stop it Fred."

"Will you two shut up!" Dave turned to face Fred who kept staring at Angelina as she turned away from him.

"I told you it was a mistake going after her." He took a step to Angelina and turned her around by her shoulder.

"Oh no, you won't go now."

The tension of the evening left Angelina as her rage needed a way out of her body.

"Let go of me you son of a …"

"Shut up you bitch!" Dave slapped Angelina, causing her to fall to the frozen, snow covered ground.

"You like to spread your legs for those deatheaters, you little whore?" Dave asked angrily and kneeled down in the snow next to her, not caring how cold it was as he started to reach for her skirt.

"Dave!"

"Shut up Bryan! She is a bitch, so she should be treated as one."

Bryan let out a curse while Fred stared paralyzed at Angelina's unmoving form. His eyes looked straight at the thin red trail that showed in the snow next to her temple. The moonlight shone on her blood as he saw her eyes trying to focus on something.

He saw Dave being hit by a ray of green light and falling on the ground next to her when he had been about to fully uncover her body from her skirt. He felt himself being pulled away from Bryan and followed him.

Angelina heard something falling into the snow next to her and then she saw Fred running away. Only this time, she felt no pain at being left behind by him. If only it wouldn't be so cold…

Just as she thought this she was being picked up by a pair of strong arms. She felt Adrian kissing her head as he pulled her closer against his chest. When he turned around, her gaze fell to Marcus, who was kneeling on the spot where she had been laying moments before. He looked at the man – Dave – who was lying in the snow.

"Is he…" she whispered and tried to look into Adrian's eyes.

"He was hurting you." Was the only reply she got from him. Her head ached. She couldn't remember having been in such a pain before. Or maybe it was the cold that increased the feeling.

"I didn't want to leave." She tried to say but it was barely audible. When Adrian tried to find out what she had said she had already become unconscious in his arms. And so there was nothing for him to do but carry her back home and hope and pray that she was alright. The thought of her not opening her eyes again was more frightening than he had ever thought possible.