Sold: The Vampire's Slave

Just One Vampire: Just How Powerful Are They?

I can't tell if it is day or night, but the candles have dimmed quite a bit now, so it feels like night. I lean back against the stone wall when something hot drips on my shoulder. A tiny little shriek escapes my mouth, gaining me some sharp looks. Candle wax dripping down the wall sticks to my skin. The skin turns a shade or two darker. Jeez, I hope the burn fades away. I pick myself up off the ground, my knees cracking, and my legs feel oh so terribly heavy. I look out into the hallway for Cole. Between the wall and the crates, I can just barely see him. He's sleeping, seeming at peace, so I'm not going to bother him. I look around the room with caution. Some people sleep through the suffocating heat, sleeping off the nightmare of this hellhole. Others roam around the closed area or sit in the dirt and their own filth too weak to move. I move to the other side of the room, shuffling around a couple people. I stand below the short little tunnel we had gone down from the outside world. The cover over the dirt is too far for me to even reach no matter how much I stretch. There's no way I can get it. I sigh softly, but I can't lose hope that things would turn around. Maybe if I rummage around, I can find something to give me a boost. I turn around, bumping into someone by accident in the crowded basement. The person I hit immediately recoils away like a snake. She is frail, thin, and desperate looking as she clutches two cups of water. My eyes flicker across the room to see that water had been dished out again, and I missed a chance to have a little bit of water.

"Don't look at me for water, and watch where you're going," she snaps, practically barking at me. The girl gulps it down and licks her cracked lips. I back up away from her, and her eyes narrow.

"I-I'm sorry I-" I began to apologize with my hands held up defensively. The girls' nose crinkles up, and she takes a threatening step forward.

"What are you some rich piece of shite?" she curses at me, her cold pebble-like eyes looking me up and down. Despite all the filth, I'm covered in I still wear an expensive puffy, soft, lavish purple dress. It is the color of royalty in the midst of gray; it stands out here.

"Excuse me?" I whimper. People are beginning to take notice of the trouble brewing. She smirks at me, sizing me up carefully. She's much taller than me, but also frailer looking from starvation.

"You are, aren't you, mind if I take the dress?" she snaps at me critically, her voice rising now.

"E-Excuse-" I whimper again, my voice choked as I struggle to speak up. The girl grabs me by the front of my tattered dress. I see a hand go up, and then something stings the right side of my face causing my head to turn by sheer force. It only now just occurred to me that I have been slapped. My cheeks burn hot all the way up to my ears, and my draw drops a little. The grin she wears grows in response.

"Hurts, doesn't it?" she sneers, laughing as if this were entertaining. I grit my teeth, the feeling of tears starts to build behind my eyes. My arms tense, and I shove the girl away as hard as I can. She stumbles backward, her eyes wide, and new light burns in them. She charges right at me, and her fist pulls back. Instinctively I catch her arm. Her eyes widen. I twist her around and shove her away. She's absolutely speechless except for a couple swears. I step back, but my back finds the wall. She whirls around, eyes flaming. Her fist hit me in the stomach. I double over, losing my breath, but she didn't let me fall. Her fist came up again, keeping me up against the wall. With my body slumped over, my mouth nears her wrist. I bite her as hard. She recoils, eyes wide, and she pales like a decomposing corpse. I can see it as she jumped back, clutching her arm, examining the teeth markings. I hadn't even broken the skin, but she looks petrified! I spit the taste of dirty skin out of my mouth. She stares at me in disgust, still holding her arm desperately.

"You're just rich shite, one of those rich nobles, aren't you?" she assumes.

"So, what's wrong with being a noble lady?" I shoot back proudly. I was hoping for shock, but instead, there's laughter. A couple people around the room chuckle under their breath.