313- Blood, Instinct, and the Claim
POV Seraphine Valerian:
I couldn't think clearly and just accepted everything. Slowly they began to disperse. Zuleica locked up the whole house, when the two guards armed themselves on the porch. And she helped me calm down more, drinking tea.
Only after a hot shower did I finally put on a white cotton nightgown and settle into my bed. The elderly woman came to say a prayer, spoke comforting words, asked me to call her in the next room if I needed anything. Then she turned off the light and left.
I released the breath I was holding, shaken, without forgetting him. What power was that? What kind of creature was he? A hybrid? A demon?
In the darkness of the room, I fumbled under the pillow, checking if the pepper spray and dagger were there. That didn't relieve me. I remained terrified, hair standing on end.
I kept my eyes on the closed window, where a tiny sliver of light entered through a crack. My heart beat strongly and I curled up, until I felt exhausted. I closed my eyes, recalling all my father's warnings. They weren't illusions.
Minutes dragged on and I couldn't sleep. That man wouldn't leave my head. No matter how I tried, it seemed like hours in that situation. And perhaps it was, for I lost track of time, mind racing, questions ceaselessly mingling.
Out there and in here, everything was silent. A faint smell of smoke from the dying bonfire came, as I began to cry softly. I had just lost my father and was already going through this. I didn't even get to finish burning his things, to say goodbye properly.
Then I heard it. A groan, a dull thud outside. My heart raced even more and I strained my ears, trying to perceive something wrong. Stillness. I almost convinced myself it was imagination, when another sound followed. Something dry, muffled. From the living room or the door.
It couldn't be. Maybe it was Zuleica, unable to sleep either.
Tremors invaded me and I knew I couldn't get up and turn on the light. I couldn't see anything in there. I had to prepare for the worst.
I grabbed the spray with my left hand, ready to use it. The fingers of my right hand closed tightly around the dagger's handle. I breathed steadily, remembering the teachings from my Krav Maga classes. How to catch by surprise, how to defend and attack.
Surely I was overreacting, for everything fell silent again. I imagined him entering there, big and strong. I would be no match for him. But if I wounded him, I'd gain time to run, scream, get help.
"Calm down. It's nothing." I repeated this mantra, immobilized. I was on my side, lying with my back to the door. I stayed that way, so he wouldn't see the dagger and would think I was asleep. That's when it happened.
A woman's moan, of pain, coming from beside me. Something falling to the floor. Zuleica. No. It couldn't be.
I almost screamed in despair and terror. The hairs on my body rose, fear paralyzed me for a moment. Even more so when my bedroom door opened. I gripped the handle, knew I would hardly get out of there alive. Maybe the elderly woman was dead.
And the Roma on the porch? What if it was Zuleica coming to check on me and I hurt her?
That doubt vanished when I heard a very low growl, approaching. And I felt a different smell, like earth. And blood.
"Dad! Help me!" I screamed in thought. Unsure whether to attack immediately or keep pretending. Whether he would maul me like a beast or take me with him. Then, when a hot breath stirred my hair near the nape of my neck, I knew I couldn't wait any longer. The creature was there.
I couldn't see in the darkness, which made everything harder. I followed my instinct, react to survive, fight for my life. Guiding myself by his nearby breathing.
I turned as fast as possible, already pressing the pepper spray button where I thought his head was, without stopping. I raised my other arm and brought it down with all my strength. I felt the blade sink into flesh and, when the growl came aggressive and loud, I screamed.
I kicked hard, and my foot slammed into solid muscle. He barely moved, and when I tried to get up and run, I was struck violently, his arm knocking me to the ground. Waves of pain shot through me as the side of my head and my elbow hit.
He growled again, furious, a sound mixed with pain. The open door let in the light from the living room, and I saw his massive silhouette in the shadows, staggering slightly as he seemed to pull something from his chest. Maybe the dagger. I didn’t stop to find out, nor did I wait. I crawled past him, got to my feet, and ran, seizing the chance.
The terror was shredding, but it flooded my blood with adrenaline, and I bolted through the door as he growled louder, a terrible beastly sound.
The living room door was open, and I jumped onto the veranda. I screamed again when I saw the two bodies there, blood across the ground like torn dolls. I didn’t think, I leapt down the steps, almost twisting my foot as I landed wrong on the dirt.
“Help me! Help!” My voice came out shrill as I ran past the nearly extinguished bonfire. Then I heard footsteps behind me and knew I was lost.
There wouldn’t be time for doors to open for me. In pure survival instinct, I didn’t stop for anything, screaming as loud as I could in panic, moving forward. Just that.
I saw the trees, the darkness of the forest. I wanted to turn back, pound on doors, escape from there. But the growl gave me no choice.
I threw myself into the vegetation, hands out in front, guiding myself by the faint light coming from the village that outlined the first trees.
Where to? My God, where to?
I gave everything I had, counting on the possibility that the creature was slower because of the silver wound or that I had struck its heart. But the sound of leaves being crushed behind me ended my hopes. And everything worsened when the darkness swallowed me.
I scraped against a trunk, stumbled, the pain barely felt through the rush of blood and the desire to survive. But I screamed when the breath came too close and claws sank into my hair.
It was like grabbing a doll. In seconds, my desperate voice was cut off—I was pulled and then hurled against a tree.
My head struck violently. Pain exploded.
I spun. As I lost consciousness, I saw the massive shadow over me, and a thread of hope appeared when another shadow emerged. The gypsies—they were coming to save me.
My vision failed. Everything spun wildly as I collapsed to the ground. Sounds, growls, screams. Somewhere, a fight, a struggle. The monster attacked my savior, and I wanted to scream, to call for help, but I couldn’t.
My father had been right all along. I saw nothing more.