C a p t u r e d

28: Artificial-Blood

       

Chapter Twenty-Eight- Artificial Blood

Biting

1.      A vampire's necessity.

2.      ...Good luck with that.

3.      ...Turns out that some vampires don't have to bite people at all. Get ready to be amazed by it.

  Where was I now?

  Before Tyson took me, I'd never woken up without knowing how I got there. Now, it was almost commonplace.

  My head was throbbing like a grenade had split right through it. I sat up, slowly, to see the white walls of Nam Ha's bedroom.

  I sat up. The covers around me were wrinkled, like someone had been sitting at my bedside. But the room was empty.

  The memories began flooding back. Tyson had attacked me again. He took my blood and the stolen keys. He also messed with my head, and I was more fucked than ever now.

  Perfect.

  I could still feel Tyson's cold hands against mine. I had a feeling that he hadn't sucked my blood for long.

  But I saw his drawing of me. And fuck, that made me terrified.

  I was glad I had my blood. It was essentially his heroin. As long as I tasted good, he could never Turn me.

  A fate worse than hell. At least I was still human, right?

  I stood up, shakily, pressing my bare feet against the white carpet. Round and round. Endless, endless.

  As I crept out of the room and downstairs, no one was sleeping. How long had I been passed out/sleeping?

  God, I didn't know. I never knew anymore.

  I crept downstairs, to the sound of soft voices. They led me down the hallway and into one of the expansive sitting rooms.

  The twins were out of the Labyrinth. They stepped around the room, wearing ghostly white dresses and carrying silver trays. Said trays were decorated with tiny doilies and pastries.

  On the couches lounged a group of strange Donors. They wore white garments but strangely, had withered, long faces.

  Elderly Donors. That was a rare sight.

  Nam Ha sat with Uzair on one of the velvet armchairs, across from the other Donors, talking softly. They flashed me smiles when they saw me.

  My hand flew to the bite marks on my neck. The elderly Donors stared at this, too.

  "His new Donor," one of them murmured.

  "How sad... Look at how skittish she is."

  I shrugged past their glances, stepping further into the room. In the room's center, there was a tiny stage with sleek sofas. Tyson himself sat on one, with Aubrey nearby, clinging to her teacup. Then, across from them, on the edge sat another figure. I was walking too close, I knew.

  Tyson's eyes tore right through me. "Oh, Laurie, you're awake. Come and sit with me."

  At that, I should've turned right around. But despite my throbbing bite-marks, curiosity actually got the best of me.

  I stepped onto the narrow stage, ignoring the claustrophobic sensation of being close to the grey ceiling. Soft as a dove, I sat down next to Tyson, ignoring the way his leg pressed against mine like it was made for it.