CALEB
"By Imperial family, we mean The Silvermist Imperial family, rulers of the Vampire Dominion while Dominic is the Crown Prince of the Mermaid Island."
I scoffed. I must be a joke to them. They probably saw me as some kind of toy they would play with when they were bored.
I ran my hand through my hair. What the heck was I thinking anyways?
"Aargh! Mom, I wish you were here." I groaned in frustration.
That's right. Mom. This is New York. My home is New York.
"Mom!" I screamed as loud as I could, breaking into a sprint.
Mom was the only one who'd never lied to me.
She was the only one whose arms I'd feel safe with.
She was home.
I didn't care if I was breaking some stupid Aethorian rule. I didn't care if they'd catch me and hurl my ass back to Aethoria. All I cared about was talking to mom.
The city buzzed around me — horns blaring and sirens wailing — but none of that mattered because I was here finally.
Because I was home.
The porchlight flickered weakly against the night, barely reaching the edges of the house. Behind the window, barely visible through the curtains was HER — Mom.
A sob escaped my lips.
She stood still in the kitchen, her head bowed, lost in thought.
She had no idea I was here. Had no idea how much I needed her. Had no idea how much I ached to hear her voice, to feel her arms wrap around me like they did when I was little.
My vision blurred and I stepped forward. My chest heaving and throat tight.
You're almost there, Caleb, I told myself. Just push the doorbell.
My fingers barely touched the doorbell when cold fingers clamped around my wrist.
Before I could scream, another hand smothered my mouth. Panic surged through me like ice in my veins. I thrashed and kicked but the grip only tightened.
No. No, no, no.
Mom's head lifted.
Tears burned my eyes. I fought harder, sobbing behind the hand silencing me. If she saw me, if she could just open the door, I would run to her.
Mom, please… Please, look at me.
She didn't. She didn't even notice my presence.
She frowned. Then, she turned away and I was dragged into the dark.
"Aargh!" I struggled against my assailant. "Let me go!"
"Shut up!" The stranger gave me a hard shove in the chest and I fell on my back.
I had barely had time to recover when another shove came hard on my chest and I gagged, blood tricing down my lip.
"Let me go!" I managed a whisper.
"You don't get to talk terms, human!" The man, I was sure, sneered and kicked me in the stomach.
"Stop!" I choked out, pain exploding through my body.
He didn't stop. He never did. Instead, he laughed—a cold, merciless sound that cut through the night like a blade. His boot slammed into my ribs, my stomach, my thigh. Again. And again. And again.
A sharp cry tore from my throat when he fisted my hair and yanked me up. My feet dangled off the ground, my weight hanging from his grip.
Our eyes met, and my blood turned to ice.
Those crimson-red eyes, low buzz cut and scar slashing across his upper lip. Tall, broad, terrifying.
I knew him.
"James?" The name barely left my lips before something shifted in his expression. A flicker of rage—then nothing.
He flung me into the alley like I was trash, my body hitting the ground with a sickening thud. I gasped, pain ripping through my ribs, my limbs, my skull.
I tasted blood. Warm, metallic, pooling in my mouth and seeping from a gash on my temple. My fingers trembled as I pressed them to my side, where pain pulsed in thick, unbearable waves.
"J - James," I called out weakly. "Why are you doing this?"
A deep growl came as my reply and he stomped forward, each sound rippling through my body.
I was going to die.
He crouched before me, red eyes filled with bloodlust and fangs bared. He reached out a hand and they closed around my throat.
"James! Stop!" I croaked but he didn't listen. Instead, he tightened his grip.
I felt life seeping out of me and closed my eyes. This is the end.
Only it wasn't.
Police sirens filled the air and he shivered.
"Aargh!" Pain lanced through my body as he shoved me to the cold floor.
I couldn't breathe. Couldn't think.
I tried to move but it felt like I broke even bone in my body.
I gave up and laid on my back.
It was so cold.
I closed my eyes and stared at the sky. It was bright out tonight.
Teras pooled at the ends of my eyes. It's ironic how I'm going to die under such a beautiful night.
I stifled a cough, feeling the metallic taste in my mouth. And then I heard it.
A sharp, insistent ringing.
My vision blurred as I turned my head, blinking against the haze of pain. My phone. The screen glowed in the darkness in the cold, filthy alley.
Dominic.
I stared at the name, the letters swimming before my eyes. Anger flared beneath the agony. He'd lied. No—he hadn't told me the truth. And wasn't that the same damn thing?
I could've ignored it. I could've let the call die like the trust between us but I didn't. I couldn't.
Why?
I was bleeding. I was broken. And I was all alone in a cold, dark alley.
With what little strength I had left, I reached for the phone, swiping the screen with a trembling finger. My lips cracked as I whispered the only thing I could.
"Dominic… help me."
Darkness swallowed me whole.