The Ties That Bind Us

The Escape

A vampire woman sprang up from behind a bush. "What are you doing out so late, Malia? Where's Matt?" Malia hesitated and the woman glanced at Stiles. "Hello. We haven't met yet. I'm Soya. I run this show."

"Well, if you're taking demands, our bathroom needs a serious wash up," Stiles told her.

She smiled but it didn't last long. Next thing, she attacked. Malia pushed Stiles out of the way and dodged Soya's initial attack. But Soya was fast. She caught Malia by my arm and swung her toward her, trying to break her arm. At last, Malia managed to duck a little and punched her in the stomach, which just made Soya angrier. She grabbed hold of Malia's hair and jerked her upright, and Malia let out a groan. Soya shoved her into a wall.

Stiles was getting ready to step in when a shout suddenly drew his attention to the door. Matt stood there, face blazing with anger. Fury radiated around him, his eyes narrowed and fangs showing. The pale skin and red eyes contrasted sharply against each other. He was like a demon sent straight from hell to destroy them. He strode towards them, and the immediate thought in Stiles's head was—well, at least we're going to die together.

Except... Matt went for Soya instead.

Stiles wasn't sure which of them was more surprised, but in that moment, he and Malia were totally forgotten. The vampires raced toward each other, and Stiles froze, stunned at the terrible beauty of their fight. There was almost a gracefulness to the way they moved, the way they struck out and skillfully dodged each other. He would've stayed there forever if Malia hadn't grabbed his hand again and pulled him away.

"You trust me, right?" she asked, voice strained. "That's what you said."

All Stiles could do was nod. Malia gripped his hand with more force and ran straight for the glass window in the opposite direction. The profanities that came out of Stiles's mouth when he hit the ground would have been understandable in any language. It hurt. Like a whole lot. The bushes down there weren't particularly sharp or pointy, but it wasn't soft by any stretch of the imagination. It broke his fall somewhat, though it didn't save his ankle from twisting underneath him.

Malia wasn't much luckier. She had a great piece of glass sticking out her abdomen. Stiles almost threw up when he saw it. But she didn't seem to care. She pulled it out like a band-aid and the two of them watched as the wound started to heal on its own.

She then stood up and pulled him with her. It took only one step for him to realize his ankle was broken. This was going to slow down their getaway. Also his strength was fading fast. He was still suffering from the effects of vampire bite and blood loss. Malia helped him limp away from the bush, and Stiles tried to pick up the pace and ignore the pain.

He almost lost hope when he saw what awaited them. Stretching ahead was a hedge maze. The sky was cloudy, but Stiles doubted moonlight would have made it easier to navigate.

"Don't worry," Malia said as if reading his mind. "I can see very well."

They circled the property just to discover an unhappy truth—the hedge was everywhere. It encircled the estate like some kind of medieval moat. Well, there was nothing for it, then. They picked an opening to the maze at random and started winding their way through. Stiles had no idea where to go, no strategies for getting out.

"Lia!"

The voice carried distantly on the wind, and Malia stiffened. "Goddamn it," she let out. "He won."

"Lia, I know you're out there," Matt called. "I can smell your bloody little friend."

With new resolve, Stiles and Malia headed down the next twist in the bushes, praying for the exit.