Chapter Four

Nicholas POV

"Solange, no!" I yelled as my little sister ran towards the very people who wanted to take her to Montmarte. I looked back at Lucy and decided she'd be fine as long as she stayed where she was, hidden among the trees.

"Don't go anywhere Lucy, I mean it." I tried saying it orderly as I grabbed her by the waist, but knowing Lucy she'd probably ignore me anyway. I hesitated for just a second, looking into those soft, brown eyes. If something bad were to happen to her…no, the Hel-Blar were far enough away, they wouldn't be fast enough to get their filthy hands on her. I ran straight into the mayhem, right in front of Solange, positioning myself into a crouch. A claw nearly met my face but I ducked in time to avoid it, and rose in time to catch a stake, courtesy of Solange. I turned one into ash at the same time Duncan did, and then I heard an arrow whistle right next to my head. I turned and glared at Quinn, who was smiling sheepishly, as the arrow hit its target behind me. God, he was worse than Lucy. At least she has good aiming skills. Speaking of which, I turned my head and my heart dropped into my stomach.

"LUCYYYY!" I yelled as a group of vampires, not Hel-Blar, hit Lucy so hard, I felt it from here. They gathered her and were gone in a blink of an eye. I ran after them as fast as I could manage, the trees and my background blurred. I couldn't tell if the others followed but frankly, I didn't care because there was only one thought in my mind.

Lucy, I'm so sorry, it was my fault. Lucy. I'm sorry I left you, unprotected. Lucy! Come back. LucyLucyLucyLucyLucy.

My thoughts didn't help. The figures in front of me grew even faster, until one realized I was gaining on them. Sadly, I was only focused on the man carrying my Lucy that I didn't notice him in time to defend myself. The force behind his punch was so great I fell to the floor and as my surroundings faded, I could only think one thing: Lucy.

Nicholas POV

"Nicholas? Nicholas, please wake up! Help me, I'm scared and I need you!" The strange voice brought me up to the surface. My first thought was: what a pretty sound. My second thought was: Am I dead? Wait a minute. I know that voice. It was the same one that I heard during my blood change. Lucy.

"Lucy, is that you? What's wrong?" I said, hoping for a response.

"Nicholas? You- you can hear me?!" the voice said in disbelief. "Nicholas, I don't know where I am…and I- I'm scared."

"Don't worry Luce, I'll find you. I promise." I said, trying to hold on to her voice, "If it kills me, I will find you."

And then she slipped out of my mind. The memories came to me in a disorienting blur, and I bolted up into a sitting position. The first things I saw were five pairs of worried eyes, peering down at me.

"Oh thank goodness." I heard Solange sigh, as she fell into a chair and sobbed. I didn't pay attention to her though, because my eyes were busy searching for the one person who wasn't there. Did I imagine her panic stricken voice? It doesn't matter if I did or not, I was going to get her back and bring her home.

"We have to get her back. Now." I said, determined, while four of my brothers just stared. I grabbed a duffel bag and began packing weapons while my eyes blurred from the tears. This is my fault, I left her there, alone. I thought. Then, I looked around and everyone remained where they were. I was confused. Why the hell weren't we all springing into action?

"Nicholas. Think for a second. This wasn't some random action; it was planned. If we go into this without a strategy-" Logan started, as he put a hand on my shoulder.

I pushed him off of me and yelled, "Bullshit! Lucy's out there right now, all alone. She's helpless and scared and alone! I'm not going to waste a second more, it's my fault she's gone! And I'll go with or without your help."

"Nicholas! Where the hell are you even planning on going to? We don't know who the hell took her or why! We have to plan this out. Your right, Lucy is counting on us to save her, so we have to do it right." Quinn said, making perfect sense. I slumped back down onto the couch I was lying on.

"You are wrong about one thing. It wasn't your fault, it was mine. If I wasn't so eager to run into the fight, you wouldn't have had to leave her. She would still be here, safe." Solange cried. I looked into my sister's troubled eyes and my emotions flooded my mind.

"Stop blaming yourselves, it isn't going to help getting Lucy back." Conner chimed in, "What exactly do we know?"

"Well, if anything the Hel-Blar were obviously a distraction. And they only answer to one person. Montmarte." Duncan concluded.

"But why Lucy? Why would they take her? She's only human." I said. Nothing was making sense right now.

"I'm sure everyone who took a glimpse of me and Lucy, would know we're best friends. Maybe they took her to get to me?" Solange included. That made more sense. Montmarte wanted Solange so he took Lucy to use as leverage. The others came to this conclusion at the same time I did.

"Now we know who and why, but where do we go from here?" I asked. I realized they were right. I was in over my head earlier.

"We go find Lucy, and bring her back home." Solange said with a smile, as she looked up at me. I smiled back. I'm coming for you Lucy.

Lucy POV

Ouch. My head hurts. Not the kind of pain that you can take an Advil for, but the kind that makes you want to fall into a coma. My temple ached and there was a huge throbbing that was driving me insane. The last thing I could recall was Nicholas with a horrified look on his face, and then the mangled sound that came out of him. And then I got hit upside the head and passed out. Which equals bad news for me. Sigh.

"Do you think she'll awaken soon?" A rough voice asked. My senses came alive as I heard a pair of footsteps coming.

"Is it of great importance that she wakes of her own accord? We could simply inflict pain on the poor girl and she'd awaken in an instant. Why in the world would he want with such an insignificant creature? Nonetheless, restrain her to the chair and tape her mouth shut. " A female this time.

"Can I skip the tape, I like it when they scream." The first voice asked. I broke into a cold sweat at the talk of their plans. They spoke as if they were talking about a tea party. Then I felt ropes against one of my wrists, restraining me to the armrest of a chair. I bolted up and instinctively connected my knee to someone's groin. The body fell to the floor and groaned. I took the chance to run into the opposite direction, but my equilibrium was off, my limbs too heavy, and I fell to the floor.

There was a cold laughter as the female spoke, "Oh my, we have a live one, Mateo. Do you have the strength to come and seat yourself or shall I have Mateo drag you by the hair?"

"Go to hell." I spat out. My throat burned and my voice was weak. That probably wasn't the smartest thing to say, because she was true to her word. She nodded in Mateo's direction and he came over, grabbed a fistful of my hair, and then dragged me back into the chair. Tears decorated the corners of my eyes, as the pain grew to impossible heights.

"Now, now, don't cry. We only want to help you, help us. My name is Cassandria and you've already met Mateo. Just answer our questions and you won't suffer. Much." She said in a sickly, sweet tone. Her voice matched her appearance. She was small and child-like, and her blonde hair framed her heart-shaped face in tight curls. She was wearing huge heels, probably to make up for her height, and a small blue sundress similar to mine. She would look like an innocent cherub if it weren't for her eyes, which were green and made of glass. I looked over at Mateo, who was huge. He towered over the Ice Queen, and his arms were wrapped in pure muscle. Both were vampires, so I wasn't escaping anytime soon. I could only wait and hope the Drakes came for me.

"Now, moving on to the first question, what is your age?" Cassandria asked. I looked at her and decided I had no choice but comply. If I lied, my heartbeat would tell her I wasn't telling the truth, and I don't think I could take any more pain.

"Fifteen and nine-months." I replied dryly.

"When did the Drake's first realize of your abilities? And since then, how long have you been in their possession?"

"What abilities? And never, I am not an object. The Drakes are my family and I'm under their care." She looked surprised at my first answer and scoffed at the second. She moved on leaving me confused. Cassandria seemed genuinely caught off guard that I didn't know of these so-called 'abilities'.

"Have you ever been fed upon, by one of my kind, child?" she asked. I wanted to spit in her face. I hated when people thought they could talk down on someone just because they could.

"Well there was that one time at band camp…" I couldn't help it. Cassandria's face contorted in an angry expression.

"Don't toy with me, child," she warned. "You are vermin to me, and I won't hesitate to break a few of your bones to get the answers I need. In fact, why don't I have Mateo…convince you to be more submissive and I can come back in a few minutes." What have I gotten myself into now? Mateo slowly smiled and winked at me. I'm going to be sick. I heard the click of Cassandria's heels as she walked away.

I looked at my surroundings for the first time. I was in a huge room with marble floors and wooden walls. It looked posh and well kept, except there was no windows or furniture besides the wooden chair I was in. The door Cassandria used as an exit looked normal except for the numbered key-pad and no handle. It looked escape proof. I wondered if there were others before me, the room definitely looked as if it could hold several prisoners. My attention was suddenly brought back to Mateo, as he sauntered over and his fingers grazed my cheek.

"What pretty skin and lips you have." He said slowly, "Mm and your blood is exquisite. O negative. My favorite. How did the Drakes resist for such a long period of time?" I flinched and he laughed.

"I would drain you dry if I could, but my liege needs you alive. What an inconvenience." He said. Now his fingers were caressing my neck and jaw.

"The real inconvenience is that I don't have a stake with me at the moment, because if I did, I'd shove it straight up your ass." I said sharply. And then his fingers found my lips and I bit him.

"I like them feisty." He brought his mouth to my neck and I shivered in disgust. "Now it's my turn." Then he bit down. I had just started to feel drowsy from blood loss when Mateo suddenly pushed me away.

"What the hell?" he sputtered. He began to choke, and fell to his knees grabbing his throat. I watched as he retched and spewed out my blood from his lips in a stream of scarlet. As soon as it had started, he turned to ash and once again I slipped into the darkness.

When I woke up I was back in the Drake's home. The house was empty. I checked everywhere, my room was left untouched, my bed was undone and the pile of clothes on the floor were where I last left them. I ventured into the kitchen and had the same results. There were plates of pancakes, gone cold from neglect.

"Was it all just a sick dream?" I thought to myself. Just then the door opened revealing, Sol, Quinn, Logan, and an unconscious Nicholas, carried by Conner and Duncan. They rested Nicholas on the couch and continued to talk amongst themselves. No one seemed to notice me, as much as I got in their faces and yelled they couldn't see me. Holy crap, I must be dead. I stopped next to Nicholas and watched him sleep. I felt a pang in my stomach. I will never see any of them again. Nicholas would never poke fun at me again. We won't ever argue again and he won't ever take me to IHOP. The living room disappeared and it was just me and Nicholas surrounded by black.

"Nicholas? Nicholas, please wake up! Help me, I'm scared and I need you!" I pleaded to his sleeping self.

"Lucy, is that you? What's wrong?" I heard his voice in my head. What the hell? I was looking at him and his lips hadn't moved.

"Nicholas? You- you can hear me?!" I said in disbelief. "Nicholas, I don't know where I am…and I- I'm scared." I hoped he could truly hear me.

"Don't worry Luce, I'll find you. I promise." He promised, confirming my hopes. "If it kills me, I will find you." I held onto his words, even when I slipped away once again. I woke up once again to the concrete room. And then I saw Cassandria, examining her henchman's ashes.

I have a lack of self-restraint and no preservation skills because then I said, "I've only been bitten once and he didn't fare well." I nodded towards the pile of dust, "Don't mess with me, princess, or you'll end up like your friend." Cassandria's angelic face once again contorted in anger as she backhanded me so hard, I saw stars. This time she had brought a syringe and injected it into my arm. The contents must've been strong, because I was asleep in under two seconds. I welcomed the abyss that followed.