The doors slid open, and two blood-soaked figures in white robes collapsed onto the floor, a hollow sound accompanying their fall. The man’s hand on my back urged me forward as I stepped over the corpses, their cold, vacant eyes staring up at me from the blood-soaked ground.
I’d never been to this floor, although that isn’t surprising. We were in a sparsely furnished lobby with dead vampire guards in tuxedos strewn over the floor. A throng of Unicorns stood before us, encircling the final two vampires.
My heart leaped into my throat at the sight of Gabe and my father, fangs bared, standing back-to-back. I gasped and tried to yell, but only choked, muffled sounds came out.
“At ease,” the man instructed the other white robed individuals. A sudden shove sent me to my knees, and he gestured toward my boyfriend and father. “Salvatore Asposito, I’m pleased to make your acquaintance.”
“What have you done to my son?” My father’s eyes narrowed to slits, his face pale and tense, and he spat his words like venom, a cold fury radiating from him.
“Vinny, did they harm you?”
I quickly shook my head, my scared heart pounding in my chest. The man promised I wouldn’t be harmed, but what about Gabe or my dad? Never before had I seen them both so sharplypeaked and furious, their voices sharp and their bodies tense. A fierce, infernal light blazed in their eyes as they focused intensely on the man.
“I can assure you that not one hair on your precious son’s head has been harmed and will remain that way as long as you do what I ask.”
“I’ll kill you before you lay another finger on him.” With a fierce cry, Gabe launched himself at the man, only to be stopped short by the sharp crack of a Unicorn’s gunshot, the bullet ripping into his shoulder. With a yell, he plummeted from the air, clutching his smoking, sizzling arm wound.
“Our bullets are infused with silver, and before you say anything—we know they won’t kill you because you’re vampires, but they do more damage than a normal bullet.”
My dad raised his hands, his knuckles white, and a vein throbbed in his forehead as his anger swelled. “Let my son go, I’ll do whatever you want. Take me if you’d like!”
“We don’t want you.” The man laughed, a sound that resembled water bubbling in a drain. “I’ll release your son and signal my troops to retreat if you do one thing for me.”
“Anything.” My dad sounded defeated as his eyes darted between me and the man.
“Open the vault.”
“Do it,” Gabe moaned from the ground, his blood pooling on the floor.
“I-I can’t,” he whispered. “W-what if we supplied you with advanced weapons to fight against the Dogs? Or-or I could build an Elysium for humans only, to protect you and your family?”
I turned from my father’s pleading gaze to the imposing figure beside me. I’d give anything to see the face behind the mask at this very moment. Was he contemplating my dad’s offer?
He shook his head. “Open the vault, or I take your son. This is your choice, Mr. Asposito.”
My father went quiet, his face a mask of silent contemplation, and I silently pleaded for him to choose me. Hewouldchoose me, right? He always told me I was the most important person in his world. Why was he taking so long to make this decision?
My father looked away, his jaw tight, avoiding my gaze. “Take him.”
“WHAT?!” Gabe yelled as he stumbled to his knees.
“Dad?” My voice came out in a whisper as the shock of what I heard manifested at my core. “Are you serious?” Did that really just happen?
My mind went hazy as I tried convincing myself I didn’t hear him correctly. My legs felt light, as if I were going to collapse. What was going to happen to me? Surely Gabe wouldn’t let this happen.
A deafening explosion ripped a gaping hole in the wall, revealing the chaotic world beyond, the air thick with the smell of smoke and dust. A cool breeze blew into the lobby as wisps of snowflakes danced inside. With a roar of its engine, a large helicopter settled over the hole, and a massive door extended, forming a walkway inside.
“You made your choice,” the man spat at my father, and he roughly pushed me toward the helicopter, shoving me inside.
“Dad!” I screamed. “Just give them what they want!” My voice came out as a shrill wail, as if this were my last moment of life.
Maybe it was.
Above the insistent thrum of the helicopter, I heard Gabe’s desperate, increasingly frantic shouts directed at my father. His words were a jumbled mess, barely audible over the deafening sound of the helicopter blades.
Before the door closed, I took one last glance at my father, tears blurring my vision, and he remained stubbornly avoidant to my gaze. He stood there, head bowed, shoulders slumped, a picture of utter defeat. Only one thing was running through my mind: what’s going to happen to me?
I carry on,I carry on.
