New Beginning(on hold)

Chapter One: Prey or Predator?

I wake up to the sound of gunshot in a distance. My eyes jerk open and instantly my hand tightens around the hilt of my blade. I jump up from the rusty cot I was laying on and back up into the darkness of the room. Very light footfall could be heard outside my room. Someone shouts in a distance and the footsteps stop. In the dark lighting, I could see the doorknob turn and a dark figure step inside the room. My fingers tighten on the blade and I lunge forward, towards the figure. I press the blade against their neck and they let out a low chuckle.

“Cam calm down, it’s only me.” Jake’s soothing voice fills the small room. I sigh in relief and the tension leaves my body.

“I could’ve cut your head off, Jake. Next time give me a signal.” I growl in anger and take a small step back from him. He leans back and flips the light switch on and soon the light floods the room. I blink a couple times before my eyes adjust to the bright light. Jake’s strong chiseled features cloud my vision. His black hair was slightly damp from the rain-causing it to stick to his forehead-and his forest green eyes were full of amusement and care. Jake and I have been through hell and back but still remain strong together. We were even together before the vampires took over the United States.

                I take a step forward and wrap my arms around his body. His heart beats strong against my ear. I sigh in relief that I could hear his heart. You never know if one of your own gets turned into a monster until you press your ear against the chest and hear pure silence. My body shudders at the memory of when my own brother was turned into a vampire. I remember staring down at what I used to call my brother, now a cold blooded killer. Tears build up in my eyes but I fight them back and pull out of his grasp.

“You should go before the others catch you in here.” I whisper and Jake nods curtly. He gives me one last look before walking out of the room and down the hall. I let out the breath I was holding and shut my door, locking it. None of the other members know we are together. If the word got out, it is possible they would turn us into the vampires. As soon as the vampires took over, they banished love. They warned that if they ever saw anyone hugging they would kill them.

                After a few seconds of standing in silence, I unlock my door and head towards the main room. Most of the crew was eating scraps of food that they could find or either out scavenging. I walk into the main room and Sharon, an older lady that joined the crew one month ago, walks towards me and hands me a tin can halfway full of soup. 

“Here you go Camilla.” She pats me on the shoulder before walking away. I tip the tin can back and the thin liquid runs over my tongue. As soon as I was finished, I wipe my mouth off on the back of my sleeve and place the tin can down on a dusty old shelf.

“When do we leave for another scavenging hunt?” Brandon asks.

“I’m going to head out today to search around the areas and see if I can find an abandoned building. If I find any food I’ll carry it back.” I say in a flat tone. Brandon nods his head and turns his attention back to his food. I could feel Maria’s burning gaze on my back. Maria joined the group one year ago and she has always had a grudge against me. I could probably guess that it is because she has a thing for Jake. She will never mention it, because she is afraid we will turn her into the vampires. I wonder if she is just plain stupid or really that way, because if we turned her in then that would mean putting ourselves in danger. Why would we give up our hiding place because she is just a little too attached?

I turn on my heels and grab a tattered backpack off of the ground. Jake glances up from his food as I pass and gives me a small nod before looking away. I take my gaze off of him and slip through the broken window. By the looks of the sky, I had over five hours before the vampires started wandering about so I better start now. I walk down the tight path in the forest and keep walking until I come across the familiar sewer drainage pipes. Sewer water or even water hasn’t ever come out of the pipes. I slide down the small hill and jump down inside the huge tunnel. Darkness surrounds me and fear starts to come out. I pull out my lighter in my back pocket and let the warm glow lead the way. I walk farther and farther into the tunnels with my lighter on until I spot a small light on the end of the tunnel. My breathing begins to slow and I surmount my fear. Darkness has always been my weakness. My body shivers as a gust of wind comes from the end of the tunnel. I walk to the edge of the tunnel and peer up at the chain-link fence blocking off any unwelcomed guest. As soon as I take a step, I hear growling in a distance. My heart stops and I don’t even think before sprinting off in the opposite direction. Shit! The hellhounds shouldn’t be out yet. I find a small hole in the fence and slide through it, causing my shirt to get caught. A hole rips in my shirt but I ignore it and look around my surroundings. I was standing in the middle of a street in the Vampire City.

“I think I heard something move over by the fence.” A deep male voice says a few feet away.

“Might’ve been a hellhound.” A different voice says. By the sound of it, they were getting closer and closer by the seconds. I spot an open door to a house and think about what I should do. Either I stay here and possible run into to vampires or walking into a human slave’s house and they yell for help. I run towards the house and slip in the doorway as soon as they walk around the corner. My picks up pace and I duck down behind the sofa and listen to them talk.

“Are you sure you heard anything?” one asks.

“Yah, it sounded like something was rattling the fence…” his voice trails off and suddenly he says,” See! Right there, there is a hole in the fence. Damn human probably crawled out it.” I wince at the anger in his voice. The other one huffs and I hear the fence rattle.

“Go fetch some human slaves and get them to finish it.” My heart freezes over. Please don’t come in here, I plead in my mind. I try to listen for a signal of them walking up the stairs but everything was silent. They must be human guards, because a vampire wouldn’t be out right now. Suddenly a figure cast a shadow across the floor on the opening of the door and I silently start scooting back as far as I could. If I get caught I am a goner. I am a good fighter, but I can’t fight off two built guys who were trained to kill any threat they see. It stays in place for a few seconds before it starts to fade away. My heart pounds against my chest and I wait until I couldn’t hear them to move out from behind the sofa. I need to get out of here NOW. My body jerks to the door, but I stop myself from making a careless mistake. The guard might still be out there waiting for the other guy to return with the human slaves. I glance around the room that looked like a living room and head off down a hall. My ears prick at the sound of something moving around in one room. I wrap my fingers around the handle of my blade and wait for them to step out of the room. The doorknob turns slowly and a guy with a black ring around his neck steps out. He must be one of their best human slaves, because he has a black ring, which is the highest one you can get. His brown eyes meet mine and they widen. I stay silent and completely still in fear and shame that I have to kill someone of my own kind. As I take a step forward, his whole body tenses and he looks as if he could flee any second and blow my cover.

“I mean no harm. They assigned me to this house.” I lie. His body relaxes a little but not much. He nods his head and proceeds to walk down the hallway. I make sure that his back is turned to me when I pull out my blade. The blade gleams in the light and I walk right behind him.

“I’m sorry.” I whisper and plunge the blade straight into his back. The guy lets out a whimper and falls to the ground. I close my eyes for a second before yanking the knife out of his back and ripping the black ring off of his neck. The ring was made out of strong and thick leather. I tie it around my neck and slip my knife in my back pocket before grabbing the frying pain off the stove and smashing his face in until it was unrecognizable. I had to move fast, because the guards most defiantly heard the noise. The guy lay unmoving on the ground and had blood pouring down his face. I grab him under the arms and begin to drag him down the hallway but stop when I hear footsteps behind me. My eyes widen in fear.