Everlasting Bond (30 page)

Coming to the front door, she froze. Sounds of Donovan violently destroying the contents of the basement sent chills up her back. Holding her breath, she carefully twisted the rusted knob and tried to pull the backdoor open. Unfortunately, the knob hadn’t been used in so many years, it was stuck. Katrina had to put a little bit of force behind her efforts before the door finally came loose. As it did a loud noise echoed through the rotted space and Katrina froze. She hoped like hell Donovan hadn’t heard her. After a brief pause, Katrina could still hear him throwing things around. Luckily for her, he hadn’t heard anything.

Katrina looked out into the blackness and wasted no time. She ran as fast as her fatigued legs could carry her. Off to the right she noticed an odd figure hidden amongst the shadows. She headed in its direction and hoped i
t was someplace she could hide.

The closer she got the more it resembled some type of a vehicle. It was too dark to make out the model and color, but Katrina knew it was definitely a car. Her heart fluttered in excitement at the thought. If the keys were inside she could drive herself out of there and away from
him
. Anywhere away from Donovan was better than here.

Nearing the back of the vehicle, Katrina could make out the license plate,
BROSTR1
. Panic consumed her as she realized something was very wrong. Brody wouldn’t have left his car abandoned in this empty field. His car was his baby and he would never willingly do that. She wondered why it had been abandoned in an empty field like this.

Katrina carefully yanked on the driver’s side door and it was unlocked. Sliding her fatigued body into the driver’s seat, she almost puked from the awful stench that punched her in the face. It smelled worse than anything she remembered. Trying not to throw up, she checked the ignition, hoping it would be that easy. Unfor
tunately for her, no such luck.

It was hard to see, but Katrina’s shaking hands did their best to search for the car’s keys. Every part of the car she came into contact with was cold and lifeless, li
ke it had been empty for years.

Tired of looking through darkness, Katrina stopped searching for the keys and focused on finding a source of light. Fortunately for her, she didn’t have to search too long. Wedged tightly beneath the driver’s seat was a small flashlight. It took her shaky hands a couple of tries before she could actually grab it.

Clicking on the light, Katrina almost blinded herself. It was much brighter than she was expecting. Refocusing, her trembling hands shined the light on the car’s ignition. It was empty, making her heart sink. She should have known it wouldn’t be that easy to find the keys. Using the light, she scoured over the driver’s side of the car and came up empty.

Flicking the light towards the center console, Katrina noticed a dark purplish coating caked onto everything. Looking around, she noticed the strange filmy layering was all over the passenger side of the car. Large pools of it mostly gathered in one spot on the floorboard. She wasn’t sure what happened, but she could tell it wasn’t good.

Then out of the distance she heard him shout, “CAROLINE!”

In a panic, Katrina turned off the light, threw it into the backseat and slithered herself back there after it. As she fell, something stiff and icy broke her fall. Curiosity got the best of her and she searched for the flashlight. As she did, she cringed in disgust. T
he stench was worse back there.

Feeling the hard steel of t
he flashlight, Katrina quickly pressed the button. The bright light hit her eyes and Katrina was blinded. Squeezing her eyes shut from the shock, she quickly aimed it the other way. A few moments went by before she attempted to open them. As she did, it took a few seconds for the dark spots to stop dancing around her.

After her eyes readjusted themselves, she shined the light onto the giant lump beneath her. Letting out a blood curdling scream, she shuddered in horror. In the small space, her yells seemed twice as loud. As the sound escaped her lips, she quickly covered her mouth. She hoped Donovan hadn’t heard her.

Dry heaving, Katrina tried to fight the nausea building in her stomach. The last thing she ever expected to see was something as gruesome as this. She had seen things like it in horror movies, but in person, it was much more frightening. Sprawled out on the backseat was Brody’s rotting and mutilated body.

Taking a deep breath, Katrina mentally prepared herself for what she was about to do next. She shut her eyes in repulsion and just went for it. Her trembling hands began to frantically search over Brody’s lifeless body. She hoped the keys were still on him somewhere.

“CAROLINE!” Donovan’s voice shouted. This time he sounded angrier and much closer. Time was running out for her. She needed to either hurry up and find the keys or take a chance and make a run for it.

Her hands finally felt the hard cluster she had been searching for. She yanked the keys from Brody’s pocket and threw herself into the front seat.

“Come on,” she muttered to herself. Flipping through the cluster of keys, her eyes searched for the one engraved with the Mustang logo on it.
It didn’t take her too long.

Katrina jabbed the key into the ignition and cranked it as hard as she could. The car made a sluggish coughing sound but refused to start. Katrina grew frantic. She tried a couple more times, hoping it would actually change its mind and cooperate.

“No, no, no. Start, please. You pile of crap!” she shouted, punching the steering wheel.

Tap, tap, tap. A low hollow noise came from the driver’s side window. Katrina sat frozen in a panic as she turned and saw Donovan’s devilish eyes glaring at her. He was giving her a deviant smirk and
waving something in his hands.

Katrina’s heart sank. She wasn’t sure what it was, but she knew she was screwed. There went her only hope of escape. Dangling between his fingers
were some type of cables.

“Did you really think I would make it that easy? You need these for your little escape to work!”

As he reached for the door handle, Katrina shot herself across the other side of the car and ran out the passenger side door. She saw two small circles of light off in the distance. Katrina felt a little relieved. The road wasn’t too far away. Her only problem was Donovan. If he was as fast as Cole, then out running him wouldn’t work. This left her only one choice. Feeling the adrenaline pump through her body like a drug, she ran as fast she could in front of the passing car. She just hoped she didn’t get run over in the process.

She ran so fast, she barely had time to hear her own footsteps crushing against the grassy floor beneath her. Her eyes fixated on the car and refused to let it get away. It was her only possible escape to freedom and she refused to pay attention to anything else. Just when she was nearing the road, she felt something grab her from behind.

“No, you don’t!” Donovan growled.

Katrina tried to scream, but she couldn’t. He was too fast for her. His hand pressed hard over her mouth, trapping any sound inside her throat. Panic started to set in. She felt like a rag doll being thrown around in his arms.

“Caroline, stop. There’s nowhere to go. Just stop fighting the inevitable and give in. I’m going to win anyway. You’re only making it harder on yourself.”

He kissed her neck and she could feel the stubble of his five o’clock shadow grazing like sand paper against her cheek. Her exhausted body fought back tears, as his warm hands began to molest over her once more. Despite being held prisoner, Katrina refused to lose sight of the car’s moving lights. It was her ticket to freedom and she wasn’t giving up. Her tear stricken face watched, as the car slowly edged its way closer to them. She knew she wouldn’t be able to wait much longer if she was going to make an escape.

“I told you, you’re mine.
Mine
forever!” Donovan taunted. Katrina’s terrified voice let out a muffled yelp of protest at the vicious assault of his arms. As he shushed her, Katrina could feel his moist teeth tug at a corner of her ear. It sent chills of nausea through her.

When he forced her to turn and face him, Katrina found her opportunity and seized it. She shoved her knee upward as hard as she could into Donovan’s groin. His hold on her loosened as soon as her knee made contact. Watching him fall to the floor in a ball of pain, Katrina wasted no time. Sh
e bolted towards her freedom.

Until she started running, she had no idea just how tired she was. Her fatigued legs became anchors weighing her down. The agony of the pain was unbearable, but Katrina refused to give up. She wasn’t dead, yet. The last thing she was going to do was let Donovan win. She pulled h
erself together and kept going.

Inches from the pavement, she felt something warm and firm reach for her. She jerked away and fell into the road, directly in front of the car’s path. She looked back to find Donovan glaring back at her. The two only had time to lock eyes for a second, but it was enough. Judging by the look of bitterness on his face, K
atrina knew she’d won, for now.

Hearing the loud screeching of the tires, Katrina’s eyes darted to the road and she panicked. It skidded to a halt inches in front of her. Katrina was blinded by the car’s headlights. Covered in a thick cloud of smoke, it made breathing nearly impossible. As she coughed, she could feel the dryness of the sand in her throat.
Whoever said a little dirt never hurt anybody was full of crap!

“Are you hurt?” asked a familiar deep voice.

Even though it was a simple question, she couldn’t answer. Safe at last, Katrina let her emotions go. Her body started to tremble in relief.

“Katrina, Katrina Davenport is that you?” came the same
voice.

Katrina tried to look up and find the man’s identity, but she was blinded by the car’s headlights. She could only make out a vague outline. It wasn’t until the figure came into full view in front of the light
s she realized who the man was.

His hazel eyes stared back at her in concern. With his infamous black-rimmed glasses, Principal Weber’
s face was the best sight ever.

“Goodness child, what happened to you?”

Katrina wiped the tears from her face and took a deep breath. She knew she needed to answer carefully. Telling him the truth would only complicate things far worse. “I was being attacked, by a—wild animal. I think it was bear or something.”

“Where did you see it last?” He anxiously glanced around.

“It was just over there.” Katrina turned towards the last place Donovan had been standing and found an empty dark space. It was as if he simply vanished into the blackness, like a ghost in the wind.

“Can
you walk? Is anything broken?”

“I’m fine, Mr. Weber. It didn’t hurt me.”

“Well, come with me. I’ll take you home. Unless you want me to take you to Dr. Aldrich’s place?”

Katrina thought for a minute and ult
imately nodded. “Yeah.”

Feeling the warmth of Principal Weber’s hands grab hers, Katrina went to lift herself up to her feet, but felt weightless. Principal Weber had her up on her feet in seconds. This took her by surprise. For a man his age, he wa
s much stronger than he looked.

Leaning against his body for support, she stumbled to the passenger side of the car. Principal Weber opened the door and she slithered inside. She’d never felt such relief in her life. Resting her head against the car’s cloth interior, she closed her eyes, finally feeling safe.

Awaking to the sudden slowing of the vehicle, Katrina wondered just how long she’d been asleep. She looked up and saw the Aldrich house start to come into view. It looked like a welcome mat of safety for her at the moment. As Principal Weber shut off the ignition, she quickly unbuckled her seatbelt. Before she could move to open the door he stopped her.

“Just a minute, Miss Davenport. You were pretty shaken up. You sure you’re all right?”

“Yeah. I’m fine.” She forced a fake smile and attempted to reassure him.

She shut the door and took a deep breath. Considering everything that she had been through that night, a house full of vampires was the least of her worries. Making her way to the porch, she heard the sound of Principal Weber’s car leave. Katrina kept walking towards the house wondering what she was going to tell them when she was stopped by a familiar voice.

“Caroline?” Andrew suddenly appeared in front of her. Katrina froze. Up until that point it had seemed like coming there was the right thing, but now she wondered. “What’s wrong?” Andrew looked her over, worry written all over his face.

Katrina searched for the words, but she couldn’t find any. Everything she had just been through flashed in her mind and she realized just how close to death she had come. Then thoughts of Stacy came through and it sent her over the edge. She broke d
own, letting her tears fall.

“Hey, come here.” Andrew wrapped his arms around her. “Let’s go inside.” He gently nudged her to follow him.

Katrina never looked up. She kept her head buried in his chest. Letting him lead the way, she felt the ground beneath her and kept going till she felt the warmth of the house’s interior.

“Here, have a seat.” Andrew helped her sit back against the couch. The cold leather gave her a bit of a shock, but she was too upset to care. She almost hadn’t noticed Andrew pull up a chair and sit across from her.

Soon Alaric joined them. “Andreas, what’s all the—” He stopped mid-sentence as he saw Katrina.

Katrina burst into hysterics. “Stacy’s dead! He killed her!” She tried, but she couldn’t stop her tears. It was like opening a door of pain and she wasn’t sure if she’d be able to close it. Everything had hit her full force and she couldn’t control herself.

After a few moments, she was able to put herself together a bit. She wiped her tears on her sleeve and looked up at their concerned faces.

“What happened?” Alaric sat down next to her.

“We were at the dance having fun and then everything changed when we left.
He
changed. ”

“Give me a name,” Andrew demanded. His voice was an odd mixture of calm and rage. It was so stern it startled her. “
Where
is he?”

Katrina flinched at th
e demand in his voice. “I wish I knew.” Her eyes started to well up again. “I thought he was my friend.”

“Who is
he
, Caroline?” Andrew clenched his jaw and Katrina could see his anger starting to boil over. His eyes were darkening into deep blue pits.

“Did he say anything to you?” Alaric asked, in a much gentler tone.

“He’s been searching for me a long time. He knew things about me. Things only Cole had told me about. And his eyes.”

“What about them?” Andrew asked, leaning towards her.

“They were a golden yellow.” As she answered, Andrew’s jaw clenched. The muscles in his face began to tighten.

Andrew gave Alaric a startled look. “How is that possible?”

“That’s a good question.” Alaric sounded calm, but unnerved at the same time.

“We need to get you out of here, now!” Andrew went to grab her by the arm, when Alaric motioned him to hold off.

“Easy Andreas,” Alaric intervened.

“But Uncle, it isn’t safe here anymore. If they decide to attack, we’ll be outnumbered. We can’t protect them.”

“It’s too risky. If we take her out of here, she’ll be even more vulnerable.” Alaric gave him a firm glare.

“We’re out of time. Nikolas needs to get back.”

“And he will. In the meantime, we stay put.” Alaric sounded so stern that Andrew let it go. He turned his attention to her and his expression softened. “Caroline, I’m sure you’ve been through a lot tonight. Would you like to see your mother?”

Katrina’s felt her heart jump in her throat. “Yes.”

“Come on.” He helped her stand and looked back at Andrew. “We’ve waited this long, a little more isn’t going to matter.”

Katrina held onto Alaric’s arm and followed him down the hall. She could feel Andrew glaring at them in disapproval from behind. It didn’t matter to her what he thought at that moment though.

Heading towards the back of the house. She had never been to this area before. The hall walls were covered in forest green wallpaper. It was dark, but elegant. To her right, she could see a small bathroom. It looked just as dim as the rest of the hallway.

They came to a head at an adjacent doorway and Katrina held her breath. Anxiety was taking over her tired body. She wanted nothing more than to run in and bury her head against her mother’s chest. Just hearing her voice would put Katrina at ease.

Alaric gave her a smile, as he gently pushed open the door. “I’ll leave you two alone.”

Too excited to answer, she simply nodded her head. Entering the room, Katrina could see rows of bookshelves along the first half of the room. Just past a small window there was a decent sized bed. On top of it was a small lump and her heart about jumped out of her chest.

“Katrina. Sweetheart!” Her mother sat upright. Except for some minor bruises, her injuries had healed.

“Mom!” Katrina ran over and threw
herself into her mother’s arms.

“What happened?” Her mother pulled her into the bed next to her.

Katrina didn’t say a word. Having her mother there was exactly what she needed at that moment. She curled up next to her and cried her pain away until she passed out.