Run While You Still Can

6. My Life Sucks

The sound of my beating heart could probably be heard across the room. Dante chuckled coolly. He was a vampire, of course he could hear it. I knew what was going to happen, I knew that it was going to hurt, a lot. What I also knew was that he would never shoot me in the heart. Dante always loved theatre, making him overly dramatic. Hence the whole hanging scene.

I tried to fight out the best I could, but my whole body was numb. Whatever drug Dante had injected in me wasn't wearing off as fast as I wanted. Even if it was completely dark, I shut my eyes tightly. I had done this so many times before but pain was pain. You could never really get used to it, no matter how many times you were tortured.

As I heard the last, chilling word, I sucked in a breath like it could protect me. I was not going to give him the pleasure of hearing me scream.

I wasn't going to scream.

I was not going to scream.

Oh, how I screamed.

The first arrow pierced through my shin, going through the bone like it was a sheet of paper. A sharp, blinding pain shot up and down my leg, a high-pitched scream escaping my lips.

The second arrow landed maybe an inch higher than the other arrow. A damp liquid oozing out, snaking around my calf, and dripping from my toes. A small puddle formed under my right leg, the dripping sound echoing every time I took a second to breathe.

The arrows kept coming in, one by one, each landing a perfect inch one above the other. My screams were getting lower pitched after every arrow, my throat dry and irritated. I could barely take a breath before another arrow plunged deep into my thigh, right below my hip.

Holy.

Seventh arrow.

Mother.

Eighth arrow.

Of.

Ninth arrow.

GOD.

Tenth, eleventh and twelfth arrow flew in one after the other, the eleventh shattering my pelvis.

I wasn't one to pray, my faith in any sort of higher power had disintegrated centuries ago. I knew that there was no one that was going to save me right now, no one has and no one ever will. Right now, these Hunters and their bloody...-

OUCH!

-... arrows were the higher power now. So, I tried my best to bite my lips to contain the screams. If there was something I remembered clearly from my father's teachings it was to always face danger. Fight instead of flight. His words resonated in my mind.

'It's your fucking mistake, face it like a man and accept the consequences with honor.'

With everything I had ever done, I deserved much more of this, like centuries worth of this. But I wasn't supposed to endure this now. I mean, I was supposed to die first, then I would be chained up in hell where Mother would have the pleasure of making me regret all the things I've ever done.

I still had something to do on earth, something of extremely high importance. There was no way I could let myself succumb before it was accomplished.

Just as I was thinking that, the arrows stopped. I waited a little, still bracing myself but no new pain came. I let myself take a small shaking breath.

Wide heels were clicking its way towards me, a wave of arrogance crashing to my face.

'' So, how did that feel, darling? Feeling a bit more cooperative?'' Dante chuckled lowly, clearly enjoying this whole show.