The Window to the Soul

Chapter 13: More that Meets the Eye..

I drove for about 3 hours before the hot mess next to me woke up. His slumber seemed to disrupt his ability to control me slightly, so I was free to speak now.

"If you're going to kidnap me you know, you could at least drive the damn car yourself," I yelled into his awakening face.

His control over me slipped further, and I pulled over to the shoulder of the highway. He groaned.

"It's not nice to be that way, princess," he mumbled, his eyes still shut. Was he f'ing kidding me?! I was going to kick this guys ass...

He must have sensed me raging because he finally opened his eyes and looked at me. 

"Fine. Do I have to compel you to not run, or are you too tired to anyways?" he snickered.

"Just get out of the passenger's seat. I'm too tired to put up with your shit right now," I responded, waving him away.

We switched seats, and not once did I think about running. As dangerous and threatening as he is, I still don't feel like he would ever seriously hurt me...intentionally, that is. Sitting in the passenger seat, I realized how cold I was. I only had a green tank top on, some dark denim jeans and some green Vans. I looked over at Dante who was starting the truck up again. Well, I had to admit, he was gorgeous. He must have noticed me staring again, and he looked at me.

"Why are you staring at me like that," he asked, trying to stop from laughing.

"Are you bi-polar or something?" I asked him, a genuinely puzzled expression on my face.

He pulled back onto the highway, relaxing in his seat. 

"I mean, I was never tested," he laughed.

I rolled my eyes and turned away from him, looking out the window at neverending hills. I bet he was pleased I'm too tired to escape right now. I'll find a way later, when I don't feel like I'm going to pass out. I took my hair out of its bun, letting my loose waves fall down my shoulders and back. Reclining in my seat, I fell asleep.

~

I looked up and saw someone, towering over my slumped body. 

"Dante?" I questioned.

The figure moved out of the dark, and I saw that it was indeed Dante who stood before me. Blood dripped from his face all the way down to his black hoodie and jeans. He stared at me, with such hunger and desire. His eyes not wavering from mine, watching my every move. I couldn't look at him any longer, and I craned my neck around his body. About a dozen corpses littered the floor, all of them covered in scarlet. I returned my gaze towards Dante, who was closer to me than he was minutes ago. I read his intent from his eyes, and immediately backed up.

He's insane. He's going to kill me.

He pinned my arms down, eliminating any chances of escape. I tried thrashing, my own fangs bared at him. He growled in response, his fangs, longer than mine, inches from my face. 

Why were his eyes different colored?? I just now noticed they weren't his usual blue, but instead a solid black rimmed with gold. What the...

He pushed me against the concrete again, and I screamed, but no one was around to hear me. Crows  took flight from the trees overhead and screeched to their comrades. Dante leaned down, digging his teeth into my neck-

~

My hand struck out before I knew what happened, hitting a hard surface. Dante's swearing woke me up.

"Jesus Christ, can you not do that," he yelled, rubbing his nose where I had punched him.

I stretched, disregarding his comment. The asshole deserved it.  I realized when opening my eyes that there was a black hoodie draped over half of my body. I must have been too tall for it to cover my whole body, but hey, at-least he had the decency to make me warm. I turned towards Dante's voice, meeting his face inches from mine. Jumping back a little, I picked the jacket up from off the car floor. I put it on, its sheer size dwarfing me. I was tall, but not as tall as him. Hey, what'd know, someone is actually taller than me. Whoop-de-frickin'-do. Grasshoppers chirped in the night air. Were we almost at Houston? Remembering my dream a little, I kept my distance from him, still feeling really panicked. 

"Are you okay?" he asked, with genuine sincerity.

"I'M NOT F'ING OKAY. This last week or so, I was turned into a vampire, found out that my parents are murderers, got kidnapped by four guys, and I am terrified of yo-" I stopped my sentence. He raised an eyebrow at me. I sighed. I needed to do yoga or something to detox. 

He seemed to be contemplating what to do after hearing my rant. He pulled into a nearby parking lot, that was deserted. Putting the car in park, he got out of the truck, making his way to my side. What the hell.... He opened my door.

"Get out." he ordered.

I gingerly got out, looking at him like he had just killed somebody. Instead of ripping my heart out, he pulled me into an embrace, his arms wrapped tightly around me. He really was bi-polar. But hey, in this moment, I wasn't complaining. He released his hold on me a little, staring down at me. I was relieved to see that his eyes were still blue.

"I'm not saying you shouldn't be afraid of me, but you know I would never hurt you intentionally. I'm sorry that I have been such a horrible person to you ever since you came." his last words crushed my heart. Now he was just a terrifying teddy-bear. Or, was that an oxymoron?? 

"Apology accepted," I said, leaning back into his chest, and closing my eyes. My stomach growled. God, I hadn't eaten in like three days. Where could a girl get a cheeseburger around here? Damn it, that won't fill me. 

Dante retracted again, looking down at me.

"You're hungry."

"Yeah well a litt-wait, how did you know that-" 

"Your eyes. They are darkening. We need to get you something before you kill somebody." 

My stomach churned. I could never kill someone else. That poor last man-

I heard a car pull up behind us. Dante released me, scanning the new vehicle. He shoved me back in the car with force. 

"Get in the car, keep your head down, and shut up," his normal tone was returning in his voice. I guess nice moments can't last forever. I obeyed him, trying to crunch my large frame into the tiniest ball I could imagine. Dante was putting the truck in gear when a pair of arms broke through the window and grabbed me. I looked over at Dante, who was handling another attacker on his side. The man trying to attack him fell to the ground, and Dante turned to face me, his eyes slowly turning black. No hint of gold, I mentally noted. The arms pulled me from the truck, and I was dragged to the other vehicle, a black Mercedes, from what I could see. They pulled me up, and in the process I captured an image of my assailant. He was taller than Dante, maybe 6'6" or so, his brown eyes so dark you couldn't see his pupils. The same black curly hair Dante had covered his head, except his hair was kept very short, and he appeared a year or two older than him. The man jerked my head, not allowing me to look at him anymore. The cold silky touch of a blade pressed against my throat. For some reason, the knife burned my skin at the touch, causing me to flinch. Dante stopped in his tracks, watching the man hold me. First the incident with Gabriel, and now this? My life was just too eventful, don't ya think? His body heaved up and down, his fists clenched at his sides. His expression turned from angry and irritated to furuious within seconds. Why couldn't he just mind-control my attacker? Why was he trying to bargain?

"Let her go, brother."