A/N: Content Warning - Strong Language
"Did you enjoy your meal?"
I flinched at the voice outside the door. Antoine hadn't walked in, but I still couldn't stop shaking. Squeezing my eyes shut, I took a deep breath. I couldn't let them get the better of me. I needed to stay calm.
"I'm coming in."
As the door opened, I hurried all the back to the wall. A minion followed Antoine inside and left with the tray.
"There's no need to glare," Antoine said.
"F*ck you."
He bowed. "I understand my methods were a bit barbaric."
Rage bubbled inside my chest. Barbaric? I wanted to throw a chair at him, but there was no chair to throw. Besides, knowing him, he would probably starve me until I apologized. I'm sure he was petty like that.
Instead, I clenched my teeth. "What do you want?"
"You'll be happy to know the good Crown Prince Rothchester has agreed to trade. You can go home soon."
I looked away, my eyes burning. My chin trembled. I hated being powerless. I hated how they used me to force Alexander to do what they wanted. This wasn't what should have happened.
"Hmm. You don't seem too happy. Do you want to stay here instead?" He chuckled.
Just thinking about how I had gotten kidnapped and controlled made my blood boil. Who was it? Who was behind all of this? What did they want? It all boiled down to Camellia. Why?
"Get out," I said.
"Come now," he said. "There's no need to be rude. You might hurt Mr. Adams' reputation."
I looked at him. "You're lucky you have someone protecting you," I said. "And let me clarify; this won't be happening again."
Antoine titled his head unperturbed. "Hmm, we'll see."
After he left, the lights turned off. Great, now they wanted to keep me in the dark. I scooted further into the corner and hugged my legs to my chest. I buried my face between my chest and thighs.
This time, I couldn't stop the tears. It felt like that was the only thing I'd been doing lately. All I could do was wait to get rescued or, as Antoine said, have Alexander give in to their demands.
I wasn't trying to bust down the door because of that serum. They made me into an obedient hostage so quickly. I didn't want to go through that again. I couldn't.
I might have fallen asleep because it felt late when I finally woke up. My body was stiff. Even moving, my legs hurt. I stood, and my joints popped. Even my back felt stiff and uncomfortable.
The door suddenly burst open. I jumped and peddled back against the far wall. Two vampires walked in.
"What do you want?" I asked. "Get out."
Beyond the door, it was dark as well.
"It's time to go," one of them said.
My mouth went dry. My stomach twisted in knots. This was the moment I was waiting for. I thought it would take a few days for Alexander to agree to the trade. I thought to Camellia and felt sick. What would happen to her?
"Let's go," the second minion snapped.
"I'll walk by myself," I told them.
They didn't care. They grabbed my arms and marched me out of the room. I looked around as we walked. I could see a few pieces of furniture, but it felt like a huge space. A warehouse, maybe? It was cold too and dark. Antoine wasn't leaving anything to chance. I was sure he didn't want me to identify where they had been keeping me.
He couldn't be working alone. There's no way he was responsible for everything that had happened so far. Someone else was calling the shots. I was more certain of it now. Granted, I hadn't done a good job asking questions, but Antoine wasn't dumb. He was part of the mafia. He wouldn't accidentally let anything slip.
The two handlers took me to a car. I only knew from the sound and headlights.
"Where are you taking me?" I asked.
No one said anything. I couldn't even see their faces. They weren't worried that I would remember something. My heart jolted in panic. Did that mean they were going to kill me?
I stopped walking. The two handlers weren't having it. I tugged at my arms and tried to dig my shoes into the ground, but nothing worked.
"Let me go," I said.
The handlers pushed me into the backseat and slammed the door shot. I pulled at the door handles, but they didn't budge. I leaned back on the seat and kicked at the window.
"Hey! Let me out!"
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said a voice over an intercom.
I looked around the backseat. There was a speaker by both doors.
"Let me out!"
"Play nice, or we'll make you place nice."
A chill crawled down my spine. Tears jumped in my eyes.
At my silence, the voice continued. "That's much better. I suggest you sit back and enjoy the ride."
I swallowed thickly. "Where are you taking me?"
"Where you belong."
What did that mean?
The car started moving, but I couldn't see outside the windows. There was even a glass separating me and the driver. They didn't want me to get any ideas about escaping. We traveled for what seemed like an hour. At one point, I might doze off.
When I woke again, the car had stopped. A strange mist hung in the air. I sat up with a start, remembering the knock-out gas the mafia had used before. But I was waking up and not sleeping.
I waved a hand in front of my face. The mist prickled my throat. Coughing, I tried the door. This time it opened. I quickly stepped out, coughing. I gasped, choking. Closing my eyes, I tried to focus on my breathing.
Once I stopped coughing, I looked around. I was in a shipping container, it seemed. But it was three times the size and width. It was not a warehouse, either. There were floodlights across the floor and on the ceiling. Walking around the car, I saw that the tires had been slashed.
Feeling dizzy, I leaned against the car. The air felt stuffy and hot. When I looked up, I noticed the section of the container that was darker than anywhere else. I made my way towards it and found a door.
Breathing heavily, I turned the knob, and the door opened. Fresh, cold air rushed into my face. Relieved, I put my face up against the door.
Behind the door was a massive white hallway with bright lights. I glanced back at the container. I didn't want to stay in there. Taking a deep breath, I started walking. There were no other doors. There weren't any windows either. The hallway twisted around until I finally came upon a set of glass double doors.
I approached cautiously. The doors opened into a dark room. Biting my lip, I walked inside. The door closed behind me almost immediately, and the lights flared to life. I tried to get the door to open again, but it wouldn't budge.
The room was circular, with full-length windows around the dome. I couldn't see anything through the windows. The one thing that drew my attention was the symbol drawn on the floor. It was a basic silhouette of a vampire with a cape and a red cross on it.
The breath rushed out of my chest.
The mafia hadn't handed me over to Alexander. No, they handed me over to the vampire hate group.