You May Hold Me but I Am Not Your Slave

I am floating. I know I am. My body is not connected to my mind. We drove silently into Beth’s home town. The night surrounded us in her blanket and the lost gangs on the street called out to the harlots walking by. Home sweet home. My conversation with Saul ended about a half hour before we even entered Chicago. The tension in the car grew even more serious, we were set out to find and kill. Well, I’m doing the finding part and Saul is all up for the killing.

We pulled up to the flat complex and both got out. I stood by the closed car door and looked up at the front door. We meet again, I thought to myself. This will be the second time Saul and I take Beth away from here. Saul walked up next to me, placed his arm around my waist, and casually led us up to the door. My heart pounded. My hands cramped. My head fell heavy. Every step we took near the source of war tightened the knots in my stomach even more. We didn’t bother knocking, and strolled in rather odd.

“Why are you so comfortable?” I asked as he laced his fingers in mine.

He shrugged.

“Well, shouldn’t we be like….sneaking around so we-I mean you- can kill things that try to kill us?”

“Haha! My girl, they aren’t even in this realm. Beth’s house is a portal. They obviously aren’t going to use the same tactic they did with you; they knew this was the first place we would look.” He sounded amused as if he gloated about winning something.

“Realm?”

He smirked and looked down at me, “You really thought all of those fairies, demons, vampires, werewolves, elves, mermaids…it goes and on and on, but you thought they lived amongst the Alive and Well?”

I opened my mouth to protest, but yeah…I did kind of think that.

He chuckled and pulled me in close against him, “I need you to not let go of me no matter what force pulls you away, got it?”

“Sure…”

“Aaliyah, don’t let go of me.”

“Okay yeah.”

He breathed in heavily and let it out like a pissed off bull.

“Okay! I won’t let go of you no matter what force tries to pull me away!”

“Thank you.”

“Whatever.” I mumbled fisting his shirt.

He whispered dark words while is tongue rolled around each syllable. His body crouched as did mine, but he held onto my arm screaming the foreign language. I closed my eyes when a blinding light filled the open slits and a constant wind blew all around me. A suction clipped onto my back and tried it’s best to strip me away, but Saul’s grip grew so tight that my arm actually began to grow numb. My hair was everywhere and strange smells danced into my nostrils. I didn’t dare open my eyes, for I could already see the different colors flash through them. The suction on my back became a piercing pain down my spine, making it pop in places where it shouldn’t. I screamed as the feeling climbed up to my neck…choking me as if two hands were clasped around it. Digging my fingernails into Saul’s arm I opened my eyes against the harsh wind, and looked around; flashing blue, green, purple, and white lights surrounded us. Accompanying those lights was Saul’s voice, but this all ended so abruptly it scared me. We crashed into a stone wall and landed in a puddle. There was not an ounce of light to give me any source of where I was.

“What the hell just happened?” I asked briskly into Saul’s shoulder.

He shifted uncomfortably, “Erm, can you please get your nails out of my skin?”

“Sorry.” I retracted my nails from him and stood up, but didn’t move. For all I know there could be a 100 foot drop 2 feet in front of me.

“We are in Shayelinday, the other realm to the Alive and Well, but home for creatures like you and me.”

“So, what the hell just happened?”

He shuffled and stood by my side, “This way,” he took my hand and led the way with his vampire night vision, “That, my girl, was the entrance way to this realm from the other world. It’s painful at first, I know. But you’ll get used to it.”

“I’ll get used to that? What makes you think I’d get used to some random suction on my back!?!”

His hand flew over my mouth when he opened a door, letting a small sliver of light pour in, “Be silent.” He growled against my temple.

That voice.

That instruction.

That demand.

I bit my tongue not wanting to argue back and risk being found and killed, but what he said stung a little. It’s like it doesn’t matter what happened between us on the beach a couple nights ago, he will always be that man who got what he wanted no matter what he had to do. He holds no sympathy.

He took my forearm and dragged me out of the room and into a torch lit hallway. The air was thick and musky, and the flames were bitterly dark purple. Literally, the flames were purple, “Things are different in Shayelinday.” He muttered turning the corner toting me as if I were his suitcase.

I’m not going to be escorted like this, “Get your hands off of me.” I spat yanking my limbs away from him. I shook my hair and walked ahead of him. I am not going to take his crap.

I expected him to pull me back and that is exactly what he did. My back crashed against the wall and his hand clenched onto my jaw, forcing me to look at him. “You think this is the best time to act like this?”

I opened my mouth to answer his question.

“Save your sarcastic remark for another time. I told you not to let go of me, but you are ripping yourself away from me. Stay by my fucking side. You can die if you let your fucking ego get in the way. I came here to save a little girl from the man who damaged the girl I love. What did you fucking come for?” he threw my face to the side lightly as he let go of me. I can still feel his fingers on my skin, and they trailed down to my hand. He took it slowly and raised it to his lips. After he kissed each knuckle he let me walk by his side on our search for Beth. My body was tense and eager to get away from his. I could feel my cheek bones sting and I knew tears will form, but I am strong enough not to let them flow.

I slowed my walk so that I was behind him, but once we rounded another corner and huge staircase sloped down to a group of people…actually lots of ugly demons. Saul turned into me back me up against a wall and crouched down in front of me with his arm guarding me. “Beth is down there.” He whispered looking around the corner.

I almost shrieked with joy, but her little giggle that rang in my ears killed it; why is she laughing?

“I have a plan.” He looked over at me and sized me up, “I think it will work.”

I nodded not wanting to talk, for if I do I might scream Beth’s name.

“We need something to lure Daniel away from him so we can get to Beth. We need something to cause so much commotion that he’ll actually stop and think about something other than Beth. Aaliyah, my girl, you’re the bait.”

Is he serious?

Is he really risking losing me?

I love Beth.

But Saul, what is he talking about? Only four words filled my head in pure rage, venom, and disgust as I stood up and walked to the staircase. He reached out to me quickly, “Aaliyah!” he whispered alarmed.

I descended the staircase with all the enemy’s eyes on me, “I’m not your puppet.” I whispered back; I knew he could hear me perfectly clear.