Kyla

We pause mid motion when Diedrek walks out of the dark forest. He pauses in his steps for a moment and sniffs the air. Then, he does a complete circle before we see him shake his head and continue his way.

"Whew, that was a close one." Satine says.

She begins running again, and before we know it, we are to the gate of the city. Once we reach it, she sets me down on my feet, looks around, and lifts the gate up. She motions with her head for me to crawl underneath, and then she joins me on the other side.

Once we are outside the gate, she picks me up and continues running into the forest. Going towards the mountains in the distance.

"So which way are we going?" She asks out loud.

"It's okay you know," She looks down at me, her brows furrowed. A question held in her eyes.

"I know we cannot go far." I look away from her, so she cannot see the tears welling up in my eyes.

"The process of Diedrek and my mating has already begun. He told me blood bond mates cannot be too far away from one another for extended periods of time." My voice sounds sad.

Nodding her head she explains, "He isn't wrong. That's why I'm sticking with you. If you have a vampire around you with the same blood line, it will help." That's information I did not know.

"How is that possible?" I ask her, turning my face at her once more.

She continues to run like it's nothing. She isn't the least bit tired or out of breath. "Simple, as long as you have a vampire of the same blood line, it calms your blood. Making it so it's not too painful for you."

She looks down at me a moment, "Having me here will keep your mind at bay, and your heart calm."

She must see my wide-eyed look because she lets out a little giggle. "When two blood bond mates are away from one another their blood can feel it, and as that runs in your veins throughout your entire body, it can be a painful thing being separated."

All this latest information is so good to know. I love that her and I have become close. "Me being around will also help keep your mind peaceful. For a time at least." She's quiet for a while as she continues running along the forest.

We've been quiet for quite some time that when she speaks again, I find myself jump a little in her arms. "However, you are correct you won't be able to be away from him for long without going crazy eventually. Since I'm with you we have some time to figure this out." She states with so much determination held in her eyes.

"I'm not sure it's a promising idea to be away for long. I just needed to get out, and I need to find my uncle." I tell her. I don't want to hide anything from her, since she is the one helping me out so much.

"What for?" She asks.

"Well, I think he knows more than he let on. I have so many questions and I think he holds some of the answers. I'm not sure what will happen once I get back, or what I'll do when I know those answers." I grow quiet with my thoughts.

"Perhaps being that you'll know a little more about yourself, you can figure out what you really want out of your life." She smiles down at me.

"Yeah, well I already know what I want. The real question is can I have him?" We look at each other. Her eyes hold understanding.

We stay silent for a while, just listening to her foot falls. Once she feels we are a safe distance away she sets me down on the ground. It takes me a minute to get my bearings. Once I do I stretch my restless limbs and look around.

"What are you looking for?" She asks with her hands on her hips.

"Trying to figure out where in the forest we are." I tell her as I make a complete circle. Looking at our surroundings.

"To be honest, I'm not entirely sure the rebel camp is still where it was. We tend to move around a lot. For obvious reasons, but if it is, we are about a half a days' time away." I can see the markings Lucas and I leave whenever we wander away.

"That is the way we need to go." I point East.

"Lead the way, little human." She gives off a little laugh when my eyes shoot to her. I give her a glare before I start walking the way we need to go.

"I don't think you can really call me little human anymore. I think we have established that I'm not entirely human." I speak.

"True. But I love to see your face when I call you it." She admits.

I laugh aloud at that, "Yeah I suppose that could be fun for you." I tilt my head to the side, to look at her.

Surveying her from this angle, I can see that she looks different somehow. More serene. Seems like she's happier being away from the castle. Being out and free from it all. She holds a smile on her face. It's good to see her this way.

"Why are you looking at me that way?" Her brow is raised as she looks at me.

"No reason," I shake my head. "It's just lovely." I tell her.

"What is?" She stops walking a moment to focus all her attention on me.

"Seeing you happy. I've known you now for a few days, and I have never seen you this serene. Being this calm and relaxed in another's presence. It's like being away from there helps you in some way. It's nice to see." I give her a genuine smile.

"Yeah, the times I run off for a few days are the best times of my life. Just me and nature. No one around. I hate crowds, heck I hate people. Don't trust anyone, and I don't feel safe around them." She goes on to explain.

"Not even Diedrek or Darius?" I can't help myself. I know I shouldn't be thinking about him, but I must know if she feels threatened around him as well.

"No, being around those two..." She pauses, lost in her thoughts. As though she's thinking of the right words to say.

"Being around Diedrek and Darius is the only time in the castle I feel safe. I know my cousin and his friends wouldn't allow anything to happen to me now that we are all old enough to do something about it."

"Can I ask a question, and hopefully not sound rude." She gives me a nod of her head.

"If you have witches' blood inside of you, why did you never use your powers against your evil uncle and cousins?" I'm hoping inside my head that I don't cause her to think about the past. Not when she is this serene.

She stops walking, so I stop as well. I turn to face her, and when I see her face, I'm afraid I asked the wrong question. I know I mentioned bad memories for her. I feel simply awful.

"You know what? I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked that. I'm just lost in my own thoughts and trying to deflect so I don't have to think about my screwed-up life right now." I give her a small smile hoping to ease the tension.

"It's okay, you didn't offend me at all." She's quiet and looks around.

When she finds what she's looking for, I'm guessing a place to sit, because she walks over to a tree. She crouches down, until she's completely on the ground and leans her back against it.

"I never used my powers because I didn't know I had them until I was thirteen." She begins to explain as I make my way over to her. Guessing this is going to be a long discussion, I sit across from her and get comfortable. Once my legs are folded, I look at her and wait for her to continue.

"It all started when my father died. I was five. My mother had already passed away. She died giving birth to me." She gives me a sad smile.

"They didn't get horrible with their actions towards me until I was ten. I mean it was trivial things before then. That's when all kinds of abuse began. Their father said I would be good practice, so they would know how to satisfy a woman when the time came." Her body shivers in repulsion. As does mine just thinking about that.

I must hold back my tears as she goes on with her story. As she tells me all the gruesome details of what she's been through, I understand more why she is the way she is. The way she acts around people, being scary/weird, like when we first met, it's to protect herself.

"Then, when I was thirteen one day Alaric came into my room. I knew he was going to do something horrible. I just remember thinking I wish he'd go away and leave me alone." She looks down at the ground.

"When his hand reached out, I don't know what possessed me to do it, but I raised my arm in his direction. Shouting for him to be gone, and to my surprise he went flying across the room." She looks up at me with tears in her eyes.

"He hit my bedroom door and passed out. That was my first spell I cast and didn't even know how I did it. My uncle came in hours later, saw what I'd done, and I got quite the whipping that night."

I reach out and hold her hand in mine. "Why didn't Diedrek or Darius do anything that entire time?"

She wipes the tears from her eyes, "They were off training. They weren't even there. Vampires have a training camp, a few different ones. They didn't return until a week after that."

She takes a deep breath and releases it. She looks up at the night sky, "That's when it all stopped. Diedrek saw my scars, and I told him everything. He and Darius went crazy on their fathers. I don't know all the details of what happened, but after that the abuse stopped."

I smile at her words; they are good men. "Wait, their fathers?"

She nods her head, "Yes, my uncle and his best friend Tristan. He's just as evil as the rest of them. Don't care about anyone but themselves and holding all the power of course."

"I didn't see Darius's father. He never mentioned him at all. Just figured he wasn't around." I shrug my shoulders in thought.

"Oh no, he's around. Believe me it's a good thing you haven't met him yet. He's not a nice person to be around. He has always made me uncomfortable." With her free arm she brings it to her body. Wrapping it around herself the best she can with my hand held in her other one.

"Did he do things to you as well?" I tentatively ask.

"No, nothing like that. He knew, hell he heard my screams, but did nothing. That's why Darius went off as well."

"So, neither of them is like their fathers?" My eyebrows raise at that knowledge.

"Not one bit." She smiles at me.

I return it, "Good!" I say with conviction.

"That makes me feel loads better." A smile forms along my lips thinking about it.

She squeezes my hand to get my attention, "That's why I don't want you to completely give up on him. I know Diedrek said he will agree to his father's terms, but I don't see him being able to do that to you. I think he will find another way." She tells me.

"I think he will too, but for now I need to go home. Tell Lucas and his brothers I am all right. As well as get my answers from my uncle, and then I will decide what to do from there." My tone has determination within. I mean what I say, there will be no more of my uncle avoiding the answers I need.

She agrees, "Okay, well how about we get up and continue on our journey?"

"Sounds good," just as we get up from sitting on the ground, I hear someone shout my name from behind us. My heartbeat picks up. I know that voice I think with a bright smile on my lips.

I turn around and standing there is my cousin Lucas. He has Isabella and Lilly standing beside him. They have weapons strapped to their hips and backs. From the looks of things, they were coming back for me. What I specifically told them not to do.

He must see the look I give him, as he raises his eyebrow, "I know that look. You're pissed we were coming back for you, but can we skip the lecture and you come over here. I think I need to hug you to know you're real." He holds out his arms to me, waiting for me to step into his hold.

His words make me smile, and before I even realize it, I'm running to him. I jump into his arms, and we hug one another for a minute or two. Lilly and Isabella don't wait their turn, they wrap their arms around the both of us. After a moment, of us standing here embracing one another, I feel Lilly lift her head.

"Who's that?" she asks.

When I step back, I know this is going to be a tough one to explain. None of them will be understanding about any of this. I'm in so much trouble.