Runaway Girl - The Secrets of Avelina Chronicles 1

Chapter 4

Rob had just made it back up to the room he had left Maria in and was walking across to the bed when the door suddenly blew open and an elder walked in. With just one look, it was clear to the elder that it was indeed the same Maria that Karl had feared it was. The elder was glad that someone, even so young, had the initiative to know better and report this disaster.

"Take this woman to the master ... now," he ordered angrily.

"Now, wait a minute," Rob protested. "I turned her for myself, not for anyone else to take her away."

But the elder, Louis, didn't care what Rob thought. He knew the rules of the clan. It was forbidden for this woman to be touched or turned since she was a child. It was even forbidden to make contact with her unless she approached them first or it was an absolute necessity for the safety of the clan. "That woman is the reason we have an understanding with the authorities. That woman is Maria Macintyre, our only human advocate," he exploded in anger.

The raised voices woke Maria from her unconscious state. She sat up in the bed, confused, holding her head. "What's going on? Where am I?" Maria asked, disoriented.

No one in the room knew quite how to answer.

"Don't worry my dear. We'll find a way to make it right again," Louis replied, trying to soothe her worries, but his words only made her panic.

Suddenly, she realized just where she was and what was going on. She raised her hand instantly to her neck as flashes of the night before ran through her head. She remembered saving Rob, who was standing just a few feet from her now. She remembered leaving him with Yuri at the morgue and going home, then her eyes flew open wide with shock, remembering that she woke up as he bit into her neck.

"After all I've done for you ..." she sighed, confused and moved to tears. She couldn't understand why they would mistreat her so, when all she ever did was to support and defend them her entire life. And now they repaid her by making her one of them? At the moment, she wanted to get as far away from them as possible to figure out what she was going to do with herself. She slipped off the bed and backed over to the window that was already open. "I can't believe you'd do this to me!" Maria cried as tears rushed down her cheeks.

"But, Maria ..." Rob said, making a move to grab her before she reached the window.

"Don't you dare touch me!" Maria screamed, rushing to the window. Not even taking a moment to think it through, she looked at the ground below her then at the two men behind her ... and jumped. It frustrated her even more when she landed on her feet, but she didn't have time to be angry at herself or anyone else. She just wanted to get as far from the place as possible. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she ran into the dark.

Maria was so unmindful of where she was going or what she was doing—other than running for her life—that she wasn't paying any attention to what little energy she had. She hadn't fed since Rob had forced blood down her throat in her own house. After only a few minutes of running, her legs grew weak along with every muscle in her body. She was physically exhausted and drained, so much so that as she turned a corner onto a street, she looked over her shoulder to make sure she wasn't being followed and ran into someone, practically bouncing off him as they made contact.

"Hey, princess. Be careful." The guy smiled at her, catching hold of her shoulders.

She looked up at him, terrified, baring her fangs in natural instinct. He clearly recognized the well publicized face and panicked at the very thought of her being one of his kind.

"Maria?" he asked, then she collapsed into his arms, exhausted. He thought about his bearings and realized that the nearest vampire clan was just around the corner. Knowing that they might be responsible for turning their only protector in the human world, he decided to take her back to his own clan for protection.