the Vampire and the Assassin

Chapter 30

"What happened?" Ian asks the question for the second time as we ride in silence back to town. I had almost fallen asleep, drifting off as if my body knows I need rest because it'll soon be time to fight.

I look at him and tell him the same thing I had told him before, "She's gone." I'm not sad, and I'm not really afraid. The ring has brought me comfort. I glance at it. I had slid it on my right index finger as soon as Roselyn vanished. It had seemed the right thing to do since those were her parting words. She was right; I don't feel alone, not anymore. I feel like Roselyn is closer than ever. I feel like she is a part of me— her strength and her resilience. I've always respected her, but I do much more now since I'd learned of our heritage that I used to think was a curse, but it is beginning to become me, just me.

"Where did she go?" Ian seems genuinely concerned. Although I want to talk to him about everything, I just can't, so I ignore his question and continue staring out the window at the woods where it all began.

We pull up to my apartment— or I should say the apartments the vampires are allowing us to use. I roll my eyes as I think about it; I seem to be doing that a lot lately. The thought makes me smile, and I wonder if I'm going crazy considering I'm having a conversation with myself.

Ian opens my door as he always does, and I step out. "You've proven your worth, Ian." I look up to see a vampire unlike any other I've come across. His white-blonde curly hair frames his face, and there is no doubt that he is powerful. He has a smile that I just want to knock off, but I wait patiently and listen because going in without a plan is what had gotten me locked up the last time. "She really does trust you." Ian bends down on one knee. My fingers are beyond numb now, and I'm just waiting to remove his head from his body with my cold hands. He looks at me then and gives me a wink. "Be careful, my dear, you do not know what you are going up against."

"Perhaps it's you who doesn't know." I can't stop the remark. I have to do something. Ian's head is still bowed, and he doesn't even bother to look my way.

"She's funny." He looks back to Ian as if to dismiss me, and I'm glad because any more piercing stares from him and I'll probably try to kill him. It's in my best interest to stay alive, and killing him will probably be a bad thing. "You did well." I look from Ian to this new stranger who seems to have stepped out of a designer magazine; definitely not my type. "You may rise."

"What's going on?" I blurt out the question, not caring if I'm interrupting their conversation. Ian doesn't say a word.

"My dear, Ian has done his duty by handling the situation." He gives me a look-over once, and I know he's talking about me. "So, therefore, he will be rewarded."

The reality of what's happening hits me. I can't respond, I can't do anything. My hands are visibly shaking, and I don't want them to see me like this. I'm caught off guard and hurt and angry because I let him do this to me once again. I simply turn around and head for the entrance to my apartment. Ian doesn't call for me, and nothing else is said. I assume they're waiting for me to leave before their conversation starts back up. The door to the building entrance closes, but not before I hear Ian say, "Yes, Roselyn is dead."

I head upstairs because I can't wait for the elevator. Ian is my enemy as all vampires are. I'm wrong to think anything else. He's used me in his clever vampire ways as I've always suspected with his charms. Vampires are known for being seductive, and Ian's everything and more in that department. I decide I have really bad choice in men. I flop down on my bed as I usually do in times when I need to think about my personal life, and I think that maybe I'm just destined for Looser Ville as me and Bryn would call it. I laugh; it's an insane laugh, but I need it, so I don't question it. I go to the liquor cabinet which is fully stocked thanks to the vampires in charge— eye roll— and pull out the bourbon sitting there all proper, just waiting for me. I grab it and take a swig. I'm desperate, I know, but my heart is broken, and I don't want to cry, so I drink and drink until I'm tipsy before realizing there's more at stake.

"Drew, open up." I pound on his door. "Drew." He opens the door, and I know I must look a drunken mess, but he steps aside, and I don't even have to say anything to him. He shuts the door behind me, and I take that moment to throw myself at him. I yank at the shirt he has on, desperate to rid him of the garment. I feel his hands on my hips before he lifts me off the floor. Everything happens so fast. I hear him curse under his breath before he stands me up, putting distance between us. I immediately start to cry and turn around when I feel his embrace. He holds me from behind as the tears stream down my face. "I love him and he sold me out." I'm not making any noise, but I can't seem to stop the tears from falling. "I'm fine," I manage to say, and he releases his hold. "I just need to be alone. I'm sorry, Drew, I shouldn't have come here."

Before long, I'm back in my apartment. I look out my window. Ian is gone, and I don't think I will ever see him again. I hope that's true.

I look down at my left hand. The ring has a dull, brassy color, making it somewhat ugly to the untrained eye, but I can feel its power. It's old and has been worn by all those that have come before me. It signifies the start of my journey to free the enslavement of the human race; that's all that matters now. I glance at the scar on my wrist and I feel angry. I have let down the people I'm supposed to protect, all for love that had never been returned.