The Runaway

Chapter 16

Colton held Violet while he whispered further instructions to Colette. "Get them out and do what I told you." Colette nodded and went back inside. Colton carried Violet to the van and placed her in the front seat next to him. She stopped crying but fell silent, not knowing how to feel. Colton looked out the window to check on Colette. He could see her dragging Aiden, Delsin, and an unconscious Riley out one by one and guiding them near the car before she headed for the gallon of gasoline. Her face displayed a look of disgust as she drenched the dead bodies in gasoline and then lit them on fire with a matchstick. He looked back at Violet who remained the same. He felt her pain. He didn't intend to be a killer, but he had to in order to live. That's why he wasn't going to give up. He was going to give his all if it meant he would get his old life back. Understanding the state they were in, Colton decided it was best to put distance between Aiden and the group for the rest of the night.

Violet flinched when the doors to the van opened. The feeling of discomfort was back, which worsened her guilt and fear. She simply resumed to staring at her feet, not wanting to look at them. The ride back to the motel was completely silent once again.

When they arrived back at the motel, Colton told the others to stay put while he took Violet to book a new room. "I'll stay with you," he said bluntly. Violet didn't respond but felt a huge weight lift off her shoulders. Being around them made it harder to breathe, except Colton seemed different. She wanted to trust him. "I'll be right back," he said. Colton returned to the car to give Colette the keys to their room. "I'm staying with Violet tonight. Colette, I'm putting you in charge." He paused. "Tonight has made me reconsider the trust I had for some of you. Think about what you did and how you're going to make up for it because if you really want your old life back, you better not screw it up for the rest of us." He glared at Aiden with disappointment before leaving.

When Colton spotted Violet, he gently took her hand and walked her to the elevators. He  had screwed up again and it was all his fault. He was a bad leader. He should've made sure Violet never came with them. He was about to think of more flaws in his decisions but there was a ring and the elevator doors opened. They finally arrived at Room 132 and Colton unlocked the door. The room had one queen-sized bed and smelled like old cigarettes. He didn't complain since it was a motel after all.

"I have to shower," Violet mumbled before locking herself in the bathroom with her duffel bag. Within a second, the shower was already turned on.

Colton sighed and sat on the bed. He had to fix this and decided that the only way was to use his mind abilities again. The only way to calm her was to show her how he dealt with his first kill. He promised himself that he would never think back to that process, but he had no choice. She was still human and killing was different in their eyes. Colton had no idea if it would work but it was worth a try.

Violet felt dirty. The hot water soaked her from head to toe, washing the dried blood from her trembling hands. How did they all do it? How did they live and kill all at once? It was just an accident, she thought. It was an accident, yet she was still softly crying from guilt. The morbid scene was replaying in her head and it wouldn't stop. A knock on the door snapped her out of it.

"Are you okay?" Colton asked from outside.

She gulped. "I'm fine. I'll be out in just a sec." She waited until she heard him walk away and then turned off the shower, making sure her tears were gone and it was dead silent. Was she doing the right thing in trusting him? Should she be scared? Back at the cabin, he was turned away from the bloody scene. He wasn't a bad person. Violet changed into a tank top and shorts that she messily stuffed in her bag from back home and threw the dirty clothes in, which surprisingly wasn't stained with blood. Violet took one last look in the mirror. Her eyes were puffy and her nose was runny. She also noticed that her hair color was beginning to fade back to its original form which was going to have to be fixed later. Grabbing her bag, she finally went to face Colton.

"Hey," Colton said when she got out. Before she could answer, Violet's attention focused on the blood stain on his gray shirt. Catching her stare, he looked down at his shirt and quickly jumped up. "I'll go shower. You can relax for a bit but I have to talk to you later." She nodded and he went to clean up.

Violet's emotions exploded once she heard the shower turn on. Slowly, the shaking and crying built up. She couldn't handle the stress of it all. Was the police going to find out? And Aiden...he made her so extremely terrified. What if he killed her next? Just the thought of that made her want to jump off a cliff. Her mind switched back to the killing. That couldn't have been real, she kept thinking, but her gut told her that it was definitely reality. The tears and fidgeting increased rapidly and so did the questions and thoughts she had. It was overwhelming and she began panting. She couldn't breathe. Violet hyperventilated in a state of shock and fear. Her heart was racing and she felt like throwing up.

"Violet?" someone questioned off in the distance. She couldn't quite focus on anything while she was struggling for air. "Violet, breathe. Concentrate on my voice." Someone was holding her hand now. "Calm down. Relax. It's okay." The soothing voice continued on. "Breathe. Everything is alright. You're safe." Those words repeated themselves in her head until she was finally aware of her surroundings.

"What just happened?" She stared at Colton with worried eyes.

"You're fine now. I think it was a panic attack."

It took less than a second to snap. "No Colton, nothing's fine! I can't handle this. I'm going fucking insane," Violet cried. "I just killed someone, don't you understand?"

"I understand the feeling. I've been there myself," he said.

She looked at him in tears. "Then how did you still do it? How?"

"I need to show you something." He put his hands on her head like last time. "Hopefully, this will help."

No, nothing could be helped. Her actions were permanent. She wanted to scream that in his face, make him realize how she would never be okay again, but calmness suddenly flooded her. Violet's eyes closed and everything turned pitch black. Like last time, scenes began playing in her mind like a movie.

Colton and Phoebe were in the front seats of a car. He looked extremely pale and exhausted. "Are you crazy?" Colton said, staring at the blood bag in Phoebe's hand.

Phoebe simply tore open the bag and demanded, "Drink."

He looked at it with disgust until she brought it closer. His facial expression softened as he inhaled the alluring scent. When the blood was near his lips, his eyes grew dark and he grabbed the bag, squeezing it into his mouth with heavy force. Phoebe was staring at him, observing his every move. The bag was empty in less than a minute.

"What did you do to me?" Colton asked in horror of his actions.

Phoebe started the engine and began driving off. He couldn't escape now. "You're a vampire now."

His eyes studied her in incredulity. "A what?"

She sighed, eyes locked on the road. "You're a vampire. I'm a witch. I turned you earlier and now you're here drinking human blood."

He was speechless in that moment wondering how on earth it was possible for those two things to exist. "You're kidding."

She shook her head. "I'll give you proof later. I'm just still surprised it all worked out."

"Where are you taking me? What about my family?"

She only shrugged and said, "You're not going to see them for a while. We're heading to Texas and I'll tell you everything you need to know along the way."

Violet could feel the sudden shock in Colton's heart as he heard that. He was leaving his family and friends behind. He was being pulled into something that he never wanted to be apart of.