Bloom {Book 1 of the Rose series}(Watty's 2016)

Chapter 23: Locked up

Daymiens POV

I woke up in a cold and dark cell not able to see anything in front of me. The horrible images that the crazy blue haired girl put in my head are finally gone, but when I try and stand I get dragged back down. Then I feel the cold metal of chains wrapped around my arms and legs.

"Hello? HELLO!? H....."

"No point in yellin' kid," a mysterious man says with a frightening chuckle. "Ain't nobody goin' come down here to save you."

"Who are you?" I ask with as much disgust and rage I can put in my voice trying to hide the pain I feel.

I look up next to me and see a pair of red eyes that match the southern voice, " I'm Julius, who are you?"

"Daymien," I slump back down, finally realizing what has happened.

My mate is gone. My friends and family are gone. I'm locked up in a cold murky cell with a red eyed man.

Am I going to be tortured or left here to die? Will my family ever find me? How am I going to get out of here?

With every thought, a picture of the people I love floats through my thought and I let it fuel my rage, but when the thorns never come I realize: shit, I lost my powers too.

"Kid, shut up! Your thoughts are so damn depressing," Julius whines.

"Why are you in my thoughts anyway?"

"My punishment was to spend eternity listening to the sorry thoughts of every prisoner that enters here, listening to their pathetic screams when they begin the torture and the screeching of metal aginst stone when they drag them down to their torture rooms," he says in a mocking tone. "Worst of all they make me tell them everything before they allow me to feed."

I couldn't help but feel sorry for him, "You're a vampire aren't you, the old kind?"

"Yes, I'm a pure blood. You're the most lively thing they've ever brought down here. I will try and pay my respects when you die."

"Well, I'm not planning on dying anytime soon," I say with a dark laugh. "While I'm down here you can tell me your story."

For a very long moment, the only thing I hear is the drop of water that, I'm guessing, comes from a loose pipe.

"I've been alive a long time......my family was close to the Bloom family and they protected us from the hunters at the time. People weren't very accepting of my kind back then in Florida so we moved to Louisiana ," I can almost hear the sad smile in his voice.

" I was around 100 When Edward was born and he was a very sweet kid. His parents never gave him the credit or attention that he deserved, so I played the big brother role in his life. We were both at a mighty fine club in New Orleans when everything changed.

"There were two beautiful girls, Daniella and Angelice, on the dance floor and when we saw then we knew we were in love. I heard y'all call it love at first site or mates now but we didn't care about all that. A few weeks later we started havin' these crazy.......changes. My powers were stronger and his," he whistles softly. "well his were on a whole different level.

"When our parents found out we were courting these girls they were furious. Those beautiful lil' mamas were angels in disguise." He pauses and stays quiet for a long while.

"What happened next?"

"No one wants to marry an angel. They got rules and stuff about the way you're supposed to live. Once you marry them you're set for life. Both our families wanted us to marry woman of high status, of our kind, but we had fallen in love and there was no going back.

"My family came around and let me marry my Daniella, but his family wouldn't allow it. You have to understand, they were the most powerful family in all of our society, there was an image to uphold. So, instead of giving him his love they ordered her dead."

Every word he says is filled with so much emotion. All the while I can only think of Jay.

"Wait so Edward is a Bloom?"

"No, Eddie was a Bloom. My friend was a Bloom. Edward is their downfall," he says the words with such venom and disgusts it fills the room with hatred.

Suddenly the realization hits me, "That must be Jay's psychotic uncle. That explains why he's crazy but why are you in here? You were his friend."

"Were is past tense kid. I knew they were goin' kill her and he saw that as a betrayal. I got to keep the love of my life, but let his die. So he killed his parents and mine, then hunted me and the rest of my race, that son of a bitch."

I can't help but chuckle at how childish this all sounds, "That bastard took down an entire race and his family all because of a girlfriend? I thought he was crazy before but now he just sounds like a big killer baby."

"A big killer baby that holds your life in his hands," a distant voice says as bright lights switch on and a muscular man in his thirties walks to the front of my cell with an evil grin on his face.

"Hello Edward," an equally large Julius says from his cell. "I didn't know you guys had lights in here."

"You don't know a lot of things, Julius," Edward says snarling. "Now for you little throne boy, I have learned lots about you. I see you have fallen for my fiery little niece. How is she these days?"

"Oh you'll find out soon enough, she coming for me!" I try and rip from my chains and feel a horrible burning sensation and the painful images come back.

Edward just chuckles, "I'm banking on it. I can't wait to see her again, the look on her beautiful face when she sees you broken and in chains. Also, those beautiful images are coming from an enchantment on the chains, you won't be leaving anytime soon."

I spit in his direction hoping the pain and defeat aren't present on my face. The saliva splatters over his left eye and I smile in triumph. Then suddenly theirs a piercing scream that makes my ears bleed and my vision fogs.

When the pain clears I see someone's face,"J-jay you m-made it....," I reach out to hug her and the images come back.

"Not even close lover boy. I don't even have the right parts."

When I open my eyes again I see a man that looks almost identical to Jay smiling almost as evil as Edward.

"Father, can I play with the new pet?" he says.

"No, my boy, we will save him for the grand finale."

With that the both of them walk away and my vision fades again.