During the next day at school the first thing Rose wanted to do was find Sage, and apologize for her boyfriend’s unexplainable behavior.
As soon as she got to school, she found him already by her locker. “Hello, Sage,” he began to walk away. Rose only figured he wanted to talk to her alone, or Get her alone, the thought of that made her shiver. Then a voice came to her head, in memory, “He wants more than what he’s been telling you. He’s just waiting for the right time,” she shook off the warning and followed him.
As soon as she caught up with him, and he slowed down, she spoke first, “Listen, Sage I’m so sorry about the other night. My boyfriend seems to think you’re out to get me.” She told him.
He said nothing. “Sage, are you alright? You’re so quiet today, and it’s not like you,” She informed him.
“Yeah, I’m okay, I guess,” he said nervously, looking over his shoulder at the clock.
“Are you sure you’re all right?” she asked him again hoping he would tell her he was.
“You’re boyfriend’s coming. I should go, before I get my ass kicked,” he said.
“Hey, she said meeting his eyes in reassurance, “No one’s gonna kick your ass,” and she took his hand and squeezed it tight.
“He has every right to kick my ass, especially with what I am being forced to do.” The thought of that sent shivers down her spine.
Her boyfriend came then, and then Sage let go of her hand. “He wants to talk to you,” he informed her.
“Okay,” bye Sage,” she shouted after him.
She met her boyfriend’s eyes, and said,” Hey,” she greeted him.
“Hey, he told her, we need to talk right now,” he informed her.
“Then speak, talk to me,” she okayed it.
“We need to break up, for your own good,” he informed her speaking quickly.
“What? Why?” she demanded.
He didn’t say anything, so she spoke again.
“Something’s wrong with Sage,” she said, “and if what you say is somehow true, it’s Sage. He was looking behind me and could not focus on just me when I was talking to him,” she informed him.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you,” he was speaking calmly now,” he’s not the same Sage you have always known,” he hoped that what he just said would sink in, but it didn’t.
“I don’t believe you, and please I want to find Sage afterschool to see if he’s okay.” She pleaded with him.
“No, his tone was an angry one now, and he could see how much it was hurting her, so he lowered his voice. “That’s exactly what he wants,” he told her softly, “and he won’t stop till he gets it. Come with me. I want to show you something,” she followed him. She would find Sage afterschool later, she said to herself.
“Meet me at Lunch, and wait for me in the hall before you go in,” he directed her.
“Okay, see you there,” she promised him.
When the bell rang for Lunch, she was out of English class first; she walked slowly, down the hall waiting for Alex to come.
When she turned around, she hoped to see Alex coming, but it wasn’t Alex, it was Sage and he was advancing toward her. She quickly began to walk away, hoping he hadn’t seen her. But she quickly realized he had, because he said her name. “Hello, Rose,” his smile didn’t look right; it looked twisted and ugly, and mean.
“Hello, Sage,” she said, but her voice broke as soon as he got close to her. She froze not daring to run. She said nothing for a while; at least she didn’t dare say what she was thinking. She said it anyway though, “What do you want? What do you want with me?” She demanded.
He only smiled, and laughed evilly.
“He hasn’t told you?” he asked her.
“Told me what?” I asked him, nervously.
“Apparently not,” He said reassuringly closing the little space between them he twisted her long black hair around one finger.
“”Where’s Alex? Where is he?” I demanded.
He ignored my question.
I continued,” What have you done?”
He said something, but didn’t answer my question. “He hasn’t told you about his secret yet, has he?” He asked.
“No, but what are you talking about? We don’t keep secrets from each other,” I assured him, as if I knew everything.
She began to pace worriedly. “Alex was right about you,” she took a deep breath and continued, “You’re different now,” she pointed out.
He was silent, but he was still behind her, a knife drawn to her throat.
“Come with me,” he ordered, “or he dies,” he promised her, his voice coming off as a threat.
“No!” she yelled, I won’t,” and in the next moment he grabbed her by the throat and waist and threw her over his shoulder.
He then whispered into her hair,” Don’t worry it will all be over soon,” he promised her.
“He’ll never stop looking for me!” she informed him, “he would never leave me.”
He saw someone coming, and it was one of Alex’s friends.
“Hey Sage, where are you taking her?” he asked him.
He whispered a warning to her, “Don’t say anything, and keep quiet.
She said nothing. He did all the talking, “she’s late for Lunch.” Alex’s friend whose name Sage couldn’t remember told him.
“She’s sick,” he told Alex’s friend, “she needs to go home,” he emphasized the word home.
“I don’t believe you,” Zach said to Sage, “hand her over,” he demanded in a shaky tone.
“Are you really afraid of me?” he asked Alex’s friend.
He didn’t answer Sage’s question. ”Hand her over,” he said even more sternly than before.
“And if I don’t, what are you gonna do about it?” He challenged him.
Zach still said nothing, so Sage spoke. “You know, maybe I won’t kill you. In fact I could use you for something.”
Zach shuttered, as if he wanted to say something. “Tell me, do you want to die?” he asked Alex’s friend.
“Of- of course not,” he stammered at the thought.
“Do me a favor,” he demanded.
“Yes, anything you want as long as you don’t kill her,” he compromised.
“I’m not making any promises,” he told Alex’s friend.
“What do you want me to do?” he asked Sage.
He answered almost immediately, “Give his friend the note, but tell him not to read it. Then come back here to me. Tell him you don’t feel well,” he ordered him.
His hand closed around the note Sage had given him. “Okay, I won’t let you down,” he promised him.
“Hey Claude,” Claude looked at him, “give this to Alex, and promise me you won’t read it. I have to go home, “I think I’m gonna be sick,” he yelled and headed for the Cafeteria door.
A few moments later he came back through the Cafeteria door. “Okay, I did what you asked, now let her go,” he told Sage.
Sage shook his head, in denial. “I never made any promises. Come with me, she’s gonna need you. You wouldn’t want me to hurt Alex’s girl, would you?” he asked Alex’s friend.
“Stop, okay fine, I’ll go with you,” he promised Sage, “but only because Rose needs me,” he warned Sage.
He had already taken her, she was already gone but he didn’t know that yet until he got closer to the Cafeteria door. “Maybe she’d already gone in, when she realized he wasn’t coming. At least that’s what he hoped for.
He went into the Cafeteria and immediately started looking for Rose. His friend Duke spoke, “Hey Alex, there you are! Have you seen Zack?” he asked.
“No, I haven’t. Did he not come to Lunch?” Alex asked.
“Well, he did but he left and he gave me this note for you.” Duke said, and handed over the note.
Alex unfolded the note, it was from Rose. It read:
Alex, What you have said to me, has never become so real. My eyes are now opened, I know now that what you’ve been saying is true. He’s gonna kill me, but maybe, just maybe if I do what he wants, he might let me live or at least let me go.
Signed,
Anonymous

P.S. You know who I am, and you know what I want. Come and find me. And you never know if you do what I say, I might let her live.
He refolded up the note, and put it in his right front pocket.
“So Rose never came into the Cafeteria?” he asked Duke.
“No, I saw her with some other guy, though,” Duke informed Alex.
“What did he look like?” Alex asked Duke.
“Tall, with dark black hair cut up to his neck and an odd looking eye color,” Duke replied.
“What was he doing with her?” Alex asked Duke.
“Can’t say, though I did over hear him say, he had to take her home because she was sick. Zack was with him.” Duke said.
“Damn,” Alex yelled, “he’s gonna kill her, and Zack is with him, he must’ve needed Zack for something.” He whispered to himself.
“Duke I have to go, will you tell them I went home sick? This is important. I would tell you what’s going on, but the less you know the better off you are,” he warned Duke.

Rose’s head hurt, a lot. I didn’t know where I was, I didn’t recognize the place and I couldn’t move, though I tried. I was chained to a brick wall, and I was throwing all my weight against the chains, hoping to be freed or at least get someone’s attention. I started to yell,” Let me out! Please tell me what you want!” I begged them, hoping someone would answer me. “I wanna go home!” I started to cry, when no one answered me but a voice stopped my tears.
“You can’t go home,” a voice informed her, making her look at him. It was a boy around my age, and he had scars all over him, but I wouldn’t know that till later.
“You can’t go home,” he said again,” even if you do what he asks, he’ll never let you go,” he informed her.
I was ignoring him now, and started to yell again,” Let me go, please, I won’t tell anybody,” I promised him.
“Quiet, he might hear you, and he has quite a temper,” the boy warned her.
I threw my weight against the chains again. I heard footsteps approaching me, now.
I met my abductor’s eyes, and he was waiting for her to speak. “Please undo my chains, I won’t run away,” I promised him. He placed his hand firmly on her throat, and forced her to look at him.
“You’d better not,” he warned her, dropping her head.
“I promise,” I told him, shuttering by his icy voice, and he cut me loose.
He gripped me tightly by my arms, and retied them in rope, he put a loose cloth bag over her head and last but not least, a gag was shoved in my mouth so I couldn’t scream, or speak.
Then I began to cry as he dragged me away, my hands still tied, a cloth bag still pulled over my head, and the gag still in my mouth. He stopped in his tracks, when the boy spoke: “Please don’t hurt her,” he pleaded with his abductor. I was crying softly now, and my tears soaking the blindfold that was covering my eyes. He was walked around me, slowly pacing. He suddenly stopped and wiped away a tear from my face slowly with his tender, loving hand. I held my breath until I knew his hand was gone. His words broke the silence first and this was the first time I heard his voice: “Don’t cry, your tears are of second nature to me,” his voice sent shivers down my spine.
He then abandoned me and walked over to the boy, and looked him in the face for what seemed like forever.
“How is she of importance to you?” he directed at the boy, breaking the long silence.
“I protect her till I am dead, because she is not me,” he said simply.
Our abductor was deep in thought, “Maybe I should put you to use now. Or maybe I should finish you first,” he said his voice icy.
I tried to speak through the gag was still in my mouth, he walked over to me and took it out of my mouth. “What are you gonna do to him?” I demanded.
“Wait and see,” he said, as a grim smile stretched out on his lips, as he walked toward the boy, once more.
He grabbed the boy up from the ground by his shirt collar, and pushed him roughly forward toward a wooden door, which he opened and closed quickly behind him. The wooden door had solid holes all the way through its wood, from thinking about it made her shiver.
Once I knew they were safely inside, I got up from the cool cement floor, and walked over to the closed door and looked through one of its many holes. I could hear them clearly, and they were talking back and forth trying to make a deal.
“Let the girl go, in exchange for me,” the boy offered.
“I’m not finished with you, yet,” he informed the boy,” not until you do one last thing for me.”
That was when he called my name. As soon as I came out, I walked obediently toward my abductor. He then grabbed my long, black shoulder length hair, and removed it from my neck and pushed me in the boy’s direction. “Go on, and do it,” he demanded, gesturing toward me.
“What?” the boy said in confusion.
“Go on, and do it,” he said again.
The boy hesitated, and the man advanced toward him. “Do you want to die?” he asked the boy.
The boy didn’t answer so the man hit him once in the face.
I couldn’t help it, I yelled, “Stop it!” He looked at me.
“Or what, what’s in it for me?” he asked me.
“What do you want?” I asked in a shaky tone.
He came closer to me, no longer pacing, and he whispered in my ear: “If you do what I ask, then maybe I’ll let him go.” I shivered, at his promise that seemed so empty.
I was getting impatient now so I yelled,” Tell me what you want!” I demanded.
“Go to him,” he demanded. She obeyed him, without hesitation.
“Do you know what I am?” The man wondered aloud, as soon as my back was turned.
“I don’t know,” I replied truthfully.
“You must know,” he insisted, “Your boyfriend’s one, too,” his words made me shiver again, but I still had no idea what he was talking about.
“One what,” I pressed encouragingly.
He just smiled, and his smile was as evil as his poison.
The boy whispered so only I could hear him,” I’m so sorry. I tried to spare you, but if I didn’t do what he asked he would never let me go,” He said sadly.
I picked up his hand and felt his smooth, but scarred arm, he flinched at my touch.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized, almost instantly for my behavior.
Then he took my head in both of his hands, and whispered, “I had to, sorry please understand,” he pleaded with her. Then he made me look at him again,” I have no choice,” he informed me, then he put his teeth against my neck, and bit me, and it was some of the worst pain I had ever felt in my life, the pain of the change and all the victim’s withering souls’ he had ever taken was a part of me now.

Zach was back at school as soon as he was set free.
“I’m so sorry, I really am,” Zach started to cry, but Alexander interrupted him.
“Where’s Rose? Where did he take her?” he demanded, shaking Zach desperately.
“No, no you don’t wanna see her now. I did something, but he made me_” he broke off.
“Tell me where she is!” his eyes were bloodshot, and filled with terror like he hadn’t slept in days.
“I don’t- I don’t know_” Zach stammered.

Alexander’s fist was clenched, into a tight ball of anger, now. “I should’ve told her! I shouldn’t have left her blind! Damn, she loved me! Did you have something to do with her kidnapping, tell me now, or I’m gonna get pissed, and someone’s gonna get hurt!” he threatened him.
Zach said nothing, and Alexander punched his locker.
As for me I was looking at my abductor from behind my hair hoping he wouldn’t see me doing so. I was yelling at him in anger, “I hate you for this!” I informed him.
“Oh please, get used to it! You’re one of us now,” he told her as a twisted smile stretched across his lips.
“You said you were gonna let me go,” I reminded him.
His next words were a slap in my face. “Guess what, I lied. Promises can be broken like a soul can be taken,” he said his voice cold, with no emotion left in it.
His words made my face turn chalky white, even though it already was.
“I said I was gonna let one of you go, and you chose him,” he pointed out.
I started to cry, “I did what you asked, every last thing,” I told him.
“Not everything,” he told me.
“What more do you want?” I demanded.
“I want you to kill him,” he told me.
“No, no you’re crazy, I won’t do it! But I won’t let you do it yourself!” I yelled.
Then I put a rusted knife in his heart, or tried, but he knocked it from my hand and I fell to the floor.
My abductor walked slowly up to me and getting to his knees, he grabbed my arms so I couldn’t hit him and threw me backwards, and I fell to the cement floor, and hit my head.
I got up quickly; not letting him see me weakened and rubbed my head trying to soothe the bump that was already forming there.
“You do what I say!” he said in a demanding voice.
“Go find him, and put this rusted knife in his heart,” he ordered.
“Why are you doing this to me?” I said as tears came to my eyes.
“It’s what we need to do to live,” he informed her, matter- of-factly.
He then forced the rusted knife back into my hand, and my fingers closed around it.
“Are you gonna let me go now?” I asked him.
“Long enough for you to do what I asked,” he promised.
“No. I won’t!” she objected, “I don’t care if you never let me go,” she told him.
She tried to stake his heart, with the rusted knife again, she missed again.
“Give up,” he spat at her.
I spit in his face and shouted,” Bite me,” you deserve to rot in Hell,” I threatened him.
He hit me hard in the face, so that I was spitting blood.
“What, you gonna hit me, just like you did to that boy?” I accused him, and my words struck a chord in his heart and made him stop.
“What did you just say?” he asked me, his face turning red, with anger at my accusation.
“You hit the boy,” I said slowly moving away on my knees and hands, “and you bruised him, he’s got scars and pain that will never be healed,” I informed him, “Just let me go,” I pleaded with him,” I won’t tell anyone. What more do you have to lose?” I wondered aloud.
He didn’t listen to me, so I snapped the ties with my strong arms.
I picked up the knife, again for the final time and my abductor just froze, as I pointed the rusted knife directly at him.
As I came closer to him, he backed up to the corner of the living room, where he pleaded,” Please, please don’t kill me.”
“Oh, you beg and plead when you’re the one about to die, but you don’t give a damn about any of the others you selfishly killed. And they probably said the same thing you’re saying now. How many? How many did you kill?” I demanded, “If you don’t tell me, I will kill you with no more or no less mercy than you showed every last one of them,” I threatened him.
There was a shuffling of small feet, of a teenager, approximately sixteen years-old of age with long, black matted hair, and her face was covered in dirt. “Please, please help me,” she was speaking to me, and it had probably been a while since she had seen a human face other than his. “Where’s my mom? Please help me find her,” she begged me.
I lowered my rusted knife, but didn’t dare to drop it. I turned to him again,” How long has she been here?” I demanded.
He smiled his poison like smile, and replied, “A while,” what is she to you?” I demanded again, threateningly, sliding the knife through my hand as if I was deciding just what I wanted to do. He began to sweat, but other than that he didn’t seem nervous.
“My daughter,” he replied.
She looked closely at the girl, then at herself in a nearby dusty mirror.
A perfect replacement, she was the girl’s perfect replacement.
His Daughter backed away toward the doorway.
I whispered so only he could hear, and it was a threat,” I’ll kill her if you don’t let me go. She is sick, I can smell her weakened blood, I told him sliding the blade between my fingers, I slowly made my way toward the girl.
I grabbed ahold of the girl before she could run away, and pushed her in front of me, my arm around her throat, as I juggled the knife in my free hand.
“I go and she lives. Or I stay and she dies. Pick one,” I said impatiently, “just like you made me do,” I pressured him.
“Nothing to say,” I said in surprise, and brought the knife to his Daughter Camilla’s throat.
“No, wait! He yelled, losing all his strength.
I removed the knife, and looked at him, “Oh, I said with surprise, then continued, “What’s it gonna be?” I demanded, losing my patience once more.
“I’ll let you go, as long as you don’t hurt her,” he promised her.
I smiled, satisfied though my skin was pale with a chalky complexion, you could see the happiness in the red eyes.

I ran all the way to school, before he could change his mind about the deal.
I got there just in time to hear Alexander and Zach arguing,” You were involved, and now she’s gone! He started to cry, but his tears stopped, when he heard my voice. “What are you talking about, I’m right here,” I informed him.
“Oh my god, Rose!” he yelled.
I ran to him, and put my arms around him in a long awaited hug.
“I’m right here, babe,” I reassured him.
The bags from under his eyes disappeared when he saw me.
I pulled away from him, and looked at Zach, in silence.
In the next moment, I walked up to him and hit him across the face.
“Ow, what was that for?” he demanded.
“What was the meaning of that, Rose,” Alexander asked me.
“Tell him, tell him, you son of a b****!” I demanded.
When he didn’t I grabbed him by his shirt collar and rolled up his shirt sleeves, which covered the scars.
The scars weren’t there.
“The scars they were right there!” I shouted in disbelief.
The scars, the same scars that belonged to my Master, the one who gave me the bite, I thought to myself.
“You don’t believe me?” I exclaimed, “Unbelievable! You’re my boyfriend, you’re supposed to trust me,” I told him.
“I know but what you’re saying sounds crazy,” he informed her.
“Crazy, I sound crazy?” I yelled,” You don’t even know what he did to me,” I pointed out.
“What I’m saying is the truth,” I told him, but I didn’t dare show him the bite in public.
In the next moment I ran away to the girl’s bathroom, crying I lay on the floor, and remembered everything: The wooden door with the many holes, possibly bullet holes, the cool basement floor, the chains that kept me contained, the blindfold, the boy with the long rugged, scars, and especially him. There was a loud knock on the door, and he tried to turn the knob, but it was locked, and he knocked on it again,” Rose, open the door,” he pleaded, “I’m sorry, do you want to talk about it?” he asked me.
I didn’t say anything, but got up and silently opened the door to let him in.
Then I sat back the floor, and he next to me, he took my hand in his.
He walked up to me as his darkness closed in on me, from behind my eyelids.
I squeezed his hand tightly to make sure he was still there, tears fell from my eyes, but stopped as soon as the last of the memories faded away.
“What did you see?” Alexander asked me in wonder.
“Everything, but there is something I have to show you first,” I informed him.
I let go of his hand, and removed my shirt collar, and showed him the bite mark, in the shape of a crescent moon.
As soon as he saw it, he gasped, “Oh, Rose!”
“Do you believe me now?” I asked him. His eyes said it all.
”Are you a vampire, too?” I asked him.
“Yes,” he told me, “and I’m sorry I never told you. I was gonna the day you were taken away,” he informed me.
“Is it over now, is it really over?” I asked him.
“I don’t know,” he admitted, slowly.
A black rose lay on my door step.
I accept it like a gift.
I don’t know what could come of it.
Black like death and red with blood, red with secrets of those before me
. Red with innocence lost in his beauty.
My finger pricks, blood drips, and my innocence is lost
Like those before me, he’s taken it…
The end, or is it?