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Was this it? Pam mused to herself, uncertain where their current situation would lead them. She wondered how likely it would be to escape under the scrutiny of the two large goons looming nearby. She knew her friends and herself couldn’t physically restrain them, but was it possible to outwit them? She shifted slightly to her right and noticed that Ally was unconscious. It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. She hoped Ally might regain some of her strength if she were able to rest just a bit. But, at the same time, Pam knew that what she needed most was more than a quick cat-nap. Ugh, she muttered in disgust, forgetting her whereabouts.
“What’s up?” Trish asked in a concerned voice.
“Nothing.” She sighed, then added, “Oh, everything! How did we manage to get ourselves into this mess? How are we going to get ourselves out of it?” Pam threw her head back, bumping the post upon which she and her friends were confined to.
“It’s going to be alright, Pam. We’re going to get through this. We just need to be patient. You’ll see. One day, we’ll look back, and maybe even laugh at this whole sordid affair.”
“You’ve always been the optimistic one.”
“And you, the Negative Nancy!” She whispered in a mocking tone.
Pam tried to stifle a chuckle. Trish could always be counted on to lift her moods. But, how she wished she could be as confident and positive as she was at this moment. Before Moira departed from the cabin, she went out of her way to reveal that she was trying to entice Ally to murder them. She wanted Ally to lose control over her cravings and to hopefully consume her friends. She wanted to kill two birds with one stone. If Ally were to eat and kill her friends, then Moira wouldn’t have to worry about any witnesses testifying against her, and Ally would most likely be forced into exile. Moira mentioned that it was illegal for their kind to slaughter humans. And, if, for some crazy notion, Ally defied the law and chose not to go into exile; then, she would be arrested, tried and disposed of. Pam began to see their situation as starting to look very grim. Of course, there was a small chance that all of this could be avoided if Moira married Benedict...
Pam smiled. Ah, that conniving little bitch! She couldn’t believe it. Pam was now actually rooting for Moira. She shook her head. Well, in the end, if Moira married Benedick then that would be the best outcome for everyone. Pam was sure of it. Once the psychos were wedded, Moira would release them, since she would no longer have a reason to confine them. Plus, if murder was truly an option, she would have done so by now. She had plenty of opportunities. Maybe, if all goes well, these vampires would finally leave them the fuck alone! Hell, perhaps after some intense and expensive therapy, Pam’s life could eventually return to normal.
Yet, how could it? She hadn’t forgotten that Ally had been bitten by that creep. And now, Ally was visibly sick and could never return to the life she had prior October 31st. She would never finish her degree in Pharmacy, but most importantly, she would never see her family again. Pam refused to believe Ally’s parents would accept her new life. Geez... Had Nancy Korman even realized that her daughter had gone missing? What about Pam’s parents? And Trish’s? She could imagine flyers being printed and posted all over the city.
“Trish, do you have any wiggle room? Can you free yourself?”
“From the ropes? No, I already tried. I’m tightly secured.” Trish pointed out.
“Shit.”
“And, even if we could free ourselves, do you really think we could take those on? Look at them! They’re huge!” Trish said, motioning her head towards the goons.
“So, we have to wait and see if that nut-job comes back for us?” Pam whispered incredulously.
“Benedict might come to our rescue...”
Pam let out a loud scoff. The larger goon looked towards her, hissing at the trio. Pam glared at it and stuck out her tongue. Screw those idiots. She didn’t care if she was disturbing their game of dice. The larger goon, surprised by her reaction, shrugged and returned to his game. He rolled the dice and then let out a loud triumphant cheer. Well, at least, someone was having fun.
Trish inched a tad closer to Pam and whispered very softly. “Don’t be so negative. They have a special bond. I trust Ally.”
“Truly, Trish, sometimes... Okay, if their bond is that special, then why haven’t we heard from him in almost four days!? Can’t you see? He’s marrying Moira! She’s on her way to the ceremony! He used Ally! He wanted one last rump in the hay before spending the rest of his immortal life with a lunatic.”
Ally, who had been silently listening to their conversation, burst into tears and tried to quietly weep in her corner.
Damn it!
Although Pam was skeptical of Benedict, never would she had said those words if she knew Ally was awake. In all honesty, she wasn’t even quite sure how she felt about Benedict. Emotions were running high; she couldn’t trust her feelings. She was just upset, scared, and worried about their welfare. Who knew? Maybe Benedict wasn’t that bad. All Pam can say for sure is that she had no intention of hurting Ally.
“I’m sorry, Ally. I didn’t mean it. I’m just upset and—”
“You’re right, though. Where is Ben? I can barely deal with this transformation. I need him more than ever! And yet, despite his absence, I feel in my heart that he will pull through. We do share something special. I know it!” Ally croaked through tears.
“He will come, Ally. I’m certain of it.” Trish chimed in.
But, Ally barely heard her. Time was moving so fast, and it seemed like nobody was coming to their aid. They were at Moira’s mercy. Either they waited for her reappearance or decided to take matters into their own hands. Even if Ally managed to summon enough strength to untie herself, she knew she could never have enough vigor to fight off the goons. She could barely keep her head up. She felt utterly powerless and beaten down.
And if things were not as difficult as they already were, she had the unpleasant, constant reminder that she was hungry. Famished, even. Her appetite grew stronger with each passing moment. It took all the courage she could muster not to give in to temptation. She had to remind herself that she loved Pam and Trish. They were not to be used for her own satiety. She had to fight, to hold on, and to wait for what surely would be a miraculous moment when Ben finally arrived to save them. He would come. He had to come. He waited a long time for her, and they were bonded. She had to trust in their love. Yet, time was ticking and there was only so much of it left. Eventually, she will be forced into throwing in the towel.
She turned her head to the left and took notice of Trish’s beautiful, slender, and elongated neck. She could hear the wonderful melody of blood gushing through her arteries. Swoosh, swoosh. Swoosh, swoosh. If only she could inch her way towards it, by wiggling and scuffling, closing the distance between them... No! Damn it! She shook her head violently and let out a small whimper.
“Are you alright, Ally? What’s going on?” Trish asked, alarmed.
“I’m f-feeling sick, again. I can’t focus... I’m s-so exhausted... It’s just getting so hard to...” Ally mumbled off.
“What do you mean? What’s getting hard?” Trish questioned.
Ally sighed, embarrassed over what she was about to say. “I’m very hungry... I’m sorry, but I am. I can’t help myself—”
“SILENCE! No talking!” The larger of the two goons barked.
He marched menacingly towards them and kicked one of Ally’s leg, driving his point across. Pam and Trish gasped when they heard broken bones but Ally barely flinched. She could already feel her legs regenerating, and the initial pain faded before she had time to react. Still, her eyes fumed, as she glared at the monstrosity who dared assault her. What has she ever done to this goon? Why were they so loyal to Moira? She decided that maybe she could reason with it. Try to placate it with her pleas.
“Listen, big guy, I need to be separated from my friends. Can you please untie me and place me in that corner over there?” Ally motioned with her head. “I’m too weak to escape, so you won’t have to worry about that. Please, I’m begging you, I won’t cause you any trouble.”
The large goon’s mouth gaped opened, and for a hopeful moment, Ally believed that she may have gotten to it. Could it be that behind those blood-shot eyes, and dull, grey elephant skin, this beast actually had a heart or even a conscience? Ally’s eyes pleaded with it, but slowly his mouth crept into a horrific smile. He simply chuckled, clearly amused by her desperate attempt. He didn’t bother responding to her demands and simply returned to his game, snacking on whatever repugnant, spoiled flesh that his kind deemed tasty. Of course, it was silly of her to assume that she could possibly persuade this behemoth to care for her problems.
As Ally pondered over the next steps to take, she noticed Trish fidgeting tirelessly from her constraints. Amazingly, and very slowly as to not bring attention to herself, she scooted a few inches towards Ally. She was heedless of the danger this very action could pose.
“What the hell are you doing?!” Ally hissed. “Get away!”
“Shhh! Do you want them to separate us?”
“Yes! Clearly! Didn’t you hear? I literally just asked it to do that!”
“Hush! You’re hungry. So, allow me to help.”
“Have you lost your fucking mind!?”
“Look,” She whispered, urgently. “Don’t think that I’m not totally spooked by the idea of a vampire sinking its teeth into my neck, ok? I can assure you that I’m absolutely terrified. But, you know what’s even scarier? Losing you.” Trish said, staring directly into Ally’s eyes. She was serious. Trish was not going to let Ally die on her watch. If she needed a little blood to satisfy her cravings, then why not volunteer for the cause? To Trish, this was no different than donating to a blood bank. Albeit, a little more intimate.
“Thanks, Trish, but I can’t. You’re an awesome friend, but there’s no way I’m going to drink your blood. Honestly, I rather die.”
“What are you two whispering about?” Pam interjected.
“Mind your own business, Pam.” Trish replied, surprising her friends with her answer. Usually, the happy-go-lucky type, Trish was quite aggressive and adamant on this viewpoint. Undeterred by their reactions, Trish bravely stretched her neck to Ally. “It’s obvious you’re losing control, just take a small sip. What other choice do we have? Hopefully, a small quantity of blood will be enough for you to feel better. Then, we can strategize on how to get out of here. Do it now, before I lose my courage.”
“I don’t know how this shit works! You’re acting as if I’ve done this before. Did you forget that I am in mid-transformation? I’m not even a full-fledged vampire!” Ally exclaimed. She was utterly divided. Part of her wanted nothing more than to drive her newly formed fangs into Trish’s delicate skin. Yet, she couldn’t shake the feeling that committing such an act was a betrayal of their friendship. Ingesting, even the tiniest amount of Trish’s blood, seemed selfish. Ally chose to be a vampire. Trish had not. And, what would happen to Trish? Would she turn into a vampire, as well? How could she put Trish’s well-being in jeopardy when she should be the sole person accountable for her actions? It was not Trish’s problem that she was now starving for blood.
“Ally, can’t you see? I don’t care! I would happily become a vampire, even if it means losing everything that was once dear and familiar to me. I just don’t want to lose you. I love you.”
“Ditto,” Pam added. “When you are done with her, you can have some of mine.”
Both girls tried their best to approach Ally, while the goons continued to play their game. Although the goons were aware of the whisperings, they were so engrossed with their diversion, they didn’t bother threatening them into silence again. The trio was free, for now, to do as they wish and attempt their plan.
With Trish’s neck only inches from her face, Ally decided that she would give into temptation. She needed a plan, however. She couldn’t just try to do this without some serious thought. She quickly decided that she would only pierce Trish’s skin and suck her blood for about 5 seconds, tops! Then she would pull away and everything would be fine. Five seconds could not be long enough to transform her, right? How long did it take Benedict? Damn it, she couldn’t remember. As splendid and as wonderful as that night was, it remained foggy, at best.
She sighed, knowing she didn’t have an unlimited amount of options at her disposal and leaned over. Immediately, she noticed Trish’s hesitation. She flinched but quickly regained her composure, shaking off her fears and straightening out her neck.
Now or never, Trish reflected.
Ally opened her mouth and moved towards Trish.
Immediately, tears started to well in her eyes. She was so scared, yet so desperate. She closed them, permitting the drops to roll freely down her cheeks. Now, the deafening pulse of Trish’s gushing blood filled her mind. Any other thought, whether it was about Benedict or her childhood adventures with her friends, were now blocked off. At this very moment, she only had one purpose.
Feeling the warmth of Trish’s skin near her face, Ally inhaled, savoring and enjoying Trish’s sweet fragrance. It filled the room and bombarded her senses. She knew she was finally losing her self-control. Her cravings, now too strong to ignore, were taking over. At last, she would give in to temptation.
“I’m so sorry...” Ally whispered, brokenly.
As her fangs hovered over her skin, Ally was knocked out of her trance when a loud crash caused Trish to pull away. Ally turned towards the noise and watched as the cabin door flew open.
Standing in the doorway, soaked and visibly upset, was Moira.
