The Vampire Hunter's Daughter: Part I Read Free Page B

bathroom.
    The possibility of a bathroom almost painfully reminded me that I hadn’t peed at all since I woke. Slowly, I lifted myself into a sitting position. My arms screamed out in pain and refused to support me. Pushing the covers aside, I placed my bare feet on the hardwood floor and immediately wished I had some socks. The floor was freezing.
    After a slow shuffle to the door, I discovered it was, indeed, a bathroom. Thank goodness.
    On the way to the toilet, I had passed the mirror and immediately wished I hadn’t looked. My image was hideous. My eyes were all sunken in and dark underneath, my hair was all matted and greasy, and the handprint bruises on my arms were beginning to do that thing where they turned green and yellow. I had several bruises on my legs too. I noticed them after I sat down to pee.
    When I came out, I decided to be nosy and look around the rest of the bedroom. Maybe the dresser had some socks in it. I opened one of the drawers and found a ton of socks in various colors. I chose a plain white pair for myself and shut the drawer.
    One of the picture frames on top of the dresser caught my eye. I picked it up to get a closer look. There, sitting on a bench beside an older woman and staring at the camera, was a girl about my age. As a matter of fact, she looked so much like me that she could have been me.
    My mother.
    I couldn’t help it. I burst into tears and sobbed like a two year old. I rubbed my hand over the picture and let my tears fall. I wanted to see her again so badly. Knowing that was never going to happen was more than I could bear. My legs lost their strength, and I fell onto my knees, still holding the picture.
    I hated those who had her killed. I can’t say for sure I had ever really hated anyone before. Without a doubt, I was going to avenge her and kill that man they all claimed was my father. He would never have me on his side.
    She died saving me. How am I supposed to live with that kind of guilt?
    I missed her so much already.
    The bedroom door opened. I didn’t want anyone to see me sobbing on the floor. Crying was weak, and I didn’t think any of these vampire hunters would be found crying on the floor of their rooms. I quickly wiped away the tears.
    “Are you OK?” asked a male voice from behind me. “What are you doing on the floor?”
    I tried to get up and fumbled because I was still holding the picture. I felt warm hands gently circle my waist to help lift me up.
    “I dropped this picture off the dresser and slid when I bent to pick it up,” I told him. I turned around and found myself staring straight into those emerald eyes that had saved me from Eli and those other goons.
    He nodded. “Well, are you all right? You look like you’re crying. Did you hurt yourself?”
    “No, I’m OK. It’s just… these bruises, my… uh, my whole body is kind of bruised.”
    He turned his lips up into what almost looked like a sneer. “Gotta get toughened up now. You're going to have a lot more bruises than that after you start training.”
    While I was busy looking surprised and thinking he should have been a little bit more sympathetic, he gave me a little push toward the bed to get me moving.
    I climbed back in the bed, and he sat in the chair that the old man had used. I still had the picture of my mother in my hand, so I placed it on the nightstand next to the lamp.
    Finally, annoyed with this guy enough to ignore his cuteness, I curtly asked him, “So are you going to tell me who you are?”
    He tilted the chair back a little bit and rocked it. “My name is Drew.”
    “Why are you here, Drew?”
    “I live here.”
    I shook my head in frustration. “No, I mean, why you are here in this room?”
    “Luke told me to come in here and talk to you about where you are and what we do.”
    “Well, start talking then.” It was painful, but I defiantly crossed my arms over my chest.
    He narrowed his eyes. “You don’t have to be rude.”
    “Huh?” Against my will, my