The Vampire's Deal

Chapter Ten: Screaming

Catharine was jolted out of her sleep from what at first seemed like a horrible noise from her nightmares. Heart pounding close to her chest she was confused and panicked as it continued to awaken her.

With the sun still up, all she could hear was a loud shrill scream. It was so much louder than any human's and not being able to sleep through such noise she had to know what was happening.

Out from her bed and down the hall she was surprised to hear breaks of human speech for pleads to stop. Her immediate response was to race down the stairs.

Though once down the second-floor hall to the library her body began to tremble. It was when she passed by the windows near Desmond's office did her body collapse.

Shaking, she felt her skin blazing in a stinging sensation with her face feeling hot and as if she were being hung upside down. She herself began to scream on the floor the sensation of pain bursting through her becoming more intense. "Help!" she now pleaded.

It was when Nicholas peered in the door at the end of the hall, did the pain and screaming cease. She laid still her vision blurry from her own tears covering her eyes as Nicholas ran over to her grasping her into his arms. "Damn it!" he shouted. "I'm so sorry."

She wondered why he was apologizing and when Desmond stepped forward to them the alpha said, "Good, you have quite a range on your ability." He was smiling paying no mind to either of them on the floor. "Those who love pain the most have wider ranges."

Nicholas didn't answer, but instead took her up into his arms bridal style and picked her up. She knew his intentions were to walk her back upstairs, but she tapped her hand on his shoulder and said, "I'm good, you can put me down."

With scrunched eyebrows he asked, "are you sure?" and when she replied an 'I'm fine'  and he had set her on her feet. "Do you need anything?" he pushed.

Desmond intercepted, "She said she's fine." Then he turned to her. "Aren't you?" Catharine nodded and then he reached out his hand and gently slide his cold knuckles down her cheek. "That's my tough kitty-cat."

He was no longer concerned with prodding her for reactions, his new focus was on Nicholas who seemed to endure most of Desmond's torment. She rolled her eyes to Nicholas trying to focus him on not saying anything.

Instead, he looked away and back to the library saying, "I should practice more now. Make sure you stay out of the hallway." He walked away leaving Desmond and Catharine next to each other.

A growl escaped Desmond's throat before whispering to Catharine, "he doesn't have the control he needs to harness his ability, so I'd be careful around him." When she nodded as a reply he continued, "Go get Daniel in the basement to come collect the girl."

"I was hoping to just go back to bed," she admitted.

He shook his head, dark curls of his hair waving around his horns. "You're going to keep hearing screams today. You might as well stay up."

She wasn't too happy with what he said and she wondered if she even had the mental strength to hear any more of the cries for help. "Fine. Let me get dressed first," she answered.

Rubbing her fingers to her forehead she walked away to her room. After only a few hours of sleep she was exhausted and even dizzy as she strained to keep her eyes open.

Once dressed and groomed she then began to pick up the room. She wanted to take as long as possible to go to the basement. She even hoped she'd take too long and that perhaps Desmond would send Nicholas instead.

Picking her clothes up and tossing them in the hamper, making her bed and then as she started to clear her side table she picked her book up that had been laying flat tepee style. She was too tired the night before to find a bookmark and had just laid it on the side for later.