Hooked

Chapter Thirty: The Dark

"If you don't eat, you won't survive the bite."

"I know."

He nodded and retrieved the tray, and it was dark again. 

~~~~~~*~~~~~~

One positive outcome of existing alone in the dark was the time I had to think. 

I thought about my family, whom I hadn't seen in so long that it hurt. They had once been my entire world, before they felt the need to return home after living so long on land. I'd been unable to part with my life, and now, after having the opportunity to meet my soulmate and enjoy some of our lives together, I wouldn't have changed anything. I thought about the necklace daintily resting against my chest amidst the bloody shirt. It was my only means of finding my family, as most Mer were consistently moving with the ocean. It was so precious to me that the thought of losing it was equal to losing my entire family, which was something I couldn't bear. 

I thought about my friends from Portland, and then about the people I had met in Chalance and Illinois. People I would probably never see again. I wondered fleetingly if Patrick had healed in the two weeks that had passed. I hoped for Emily and Patrick's sake that he had.

Most of all, Adrian was at the center of my mind. I wondered if he was trying to find me, or if he was already on his way. I believed he would try his hardest to get to me. I knew I would've done the same and more for him. 

~~~~~~*~~~~~~

Over a month had passed. I had little to no hope that I would be leaving, but I had come to terms with it.

At this point, Adrian featured in most of my thoughts. Every thought eventually turned to him, and I realized all the things I would never get to experience with him. He would never meet my family, never see where I spent the first six years of my life. We'd never get married, never have a child, never grow old. I hoped that he would never suffer because I wasn't there, but I wasn't naive enough to believe losing his mate would be easy.

William began to visit me more frequently. When I continued to refuse to drink anything, he had my body moved into a large above-ground tank, filled halfway with water to prevent me from escaping. It was made of clear glass, and I was released into the water practically feeling his hope that it would magically reawaken me. It didn't. The water was filtered constantly, keeping me from even potentially getting sick, and the hydration was the only thing keeping me alive. 

"You need to stop this nonsense, Sophie."

Will stared at me as the lights flickered on, completely blinding me. I winced noticeably, and he continued, "You're only hurting yourself and keeping us from moving on, princess. It's time to grow up and stop being so selfish."

That comment got the first reaction out of me. I hadn't moved so quickly in weeks, but before I knew it, I had breached the surface of the water and faced him with fury burning through me. 

"I'm being selfish, Will? Whose sick, twisted fantasy got us here in the first place? Because of you, I'm going to die in here--."

"If you eat, you'll transition easily."

"--because of you, I will never see my family again. My sisters will never know why I stopped visiting, my mother will never know why I cut her off. My father will try to find me, and he might end up stuck on land in the process. Because of you, I'll never have children with my mate. I'll never marry him and love him the way he deserves."

Will's body tensed immediately. "Don't talk about that piece of shit in front of me, Sophie Thwaite. I will give you everything you need. You will have my children."

"I will not," I retorted. "I would never spend my life with anyone with him. You stand no chance against him. You never have, and you never will!"

Furious and running out of hope, I pulled back and slammed myself against the glass. Over and over, I shoved my entire body against the cage, just wanting to be free again and to walk on my own legs. I felt my unhealed wounds begin to bleed, but I hoped that would only speed up the process and get me out of this hell. 

"Stop!" Will shouted in his rage. "You're going to fucking reopen all your wounds, dammit!"

Good, I thought, and I slammed myself against the side one more time before a gunshot rang out, and the glass shattered. 

The water poured out of the tank so quickly that my body couldn't keep up. I instinctively tried to catch myself on the upper ledge, but the sharp edge sliced my hands and broke off into the wave of water that began to flood the entire room. I felt pieces of the tank cut into my skin as I was submerged and dragged with the flow through the room, directly into the man I wanted nothing more than to tear apart with my bare hands. 

My time here had left me feral, and I felt completely primitive and uncivilized as I stared at Will. By now, the water had filled the entire room halfway, and more water continued to spray from the pipes that had connected the tank to the filtration system. 

The person who'd shot the tank was no where to be found, but if I had my guess, I suspected on of Will's vampires had done it. From what I could see, none of them wanted to be here. Even as time went on, Rebecca had begun to realize that Will's intentions had always been selfish. They wanted to be free just as much as I did. 

Will stared at me, and I watched a slow grin take over his face as I lay bleeding in the water, staining it red.

"Have you given up yet, princess?"

I stared at him for a long time, and it eventually dawned on me exactly how to get away from this.

"Yes," I said, so quietly I could barely even hear myself. "I give up."