The Scarlet Dagger (The Red Sector Chronicles, #1) by Krystle Jones
Authors: Krystle Jones
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resolute wham . Aden appeared behind the door. “This is only temporary, until we… sort some things out.”
My hands were loosely clasped in my lap, my back stooped over, as I stared blankly at the floor, vaguely registering what he was saying.
He turned away. “I’ll leave you to your thoughts,” he said quietly.
When I awoke from my shock-induced coma and looked up, Aden was gone. I was alone, save for a single female guard humming outside my cell.
Seconds turned into minutes, minutes into hours as the night (or whatever it was; I had lost all sense of time in this place) dragged on. Meals were brought to me, simple, human things like oatmeal and fresh fruit and milk, but my appetite had vanished. The plate grew cold and the guard at last removed it, leaving me once again at the mercy of my emotions.
Shock gave way to anger, anger to despair, as I switched from pacing and lying down, to screaming and pounding my fists against the chaffing stone walls so hard they bled. Drained and defeated, I slumped to the floor, biting a hole into my lip as the blood from my torn skin mixed with the silent tears pooling beside my head.
***
That cell became my sanctuary. As I mourned and accepted the loss of my brother, the extinguished flame inside me rekindled, tiny but burning all the same. A constant stream of thoughts tumbled through my head, from my brother to the recent events, to pondering how I fit into this world, if I still did. Clearly the vampires didn’t trust me – and why should they? I wore the Black Cross, branding me a hunter for life, however short that may be – but my vampire blood made me the sworn enemy of the human race, and therefore, what was left of my family and my friends. I had become a walking paradox.
My troubled thoughts held more worries than just the loss of my brother. Going off the information Aden had given me, the humans had much more to fear than the monsters that roamed the Red Sectors. I wondered more than once about the difference between the two types of vampires, how one became less of a man and more of an animal, and if it was choice or if they were born that way. Regardless, both vampires were incredibly dangerous, especially if my prediction came to pass. The humans deserved to know, to somehow be warned of the impending Armageddon.
Leo would listen to me. As long as I knew he was safe, then I’d gladly die for the risk of telling him.
An escape plan didn’t come together very easily. I supposed I could wait for the Scarlet Guard to find me, but seeing as no one had any clue this place even existed, I doubted that was going to happen any time soon, and time was a precious luxury I couldn’t afford to waste. If anyone was going to get me out, it would have to be me.
I rarely saw Aden. When he did stop by my cell to deliver some sort of instructions to the guard, he caught my eye, some emotion I couldn’t quite place dancing behind those vivid blue orbs. Then I would break his gaze and scowl as he walked away, chuckling.
I was never truly alone. There was always a guard posted a few feet away, usually the woman I’d seen when I had first been dumped here. Sometimes, when it was very still, I could barely pick up the soft crying of a girl through the walls of cinderblock, though I had to listen carefully, even with my enhanced hearing. I wondered who she was, and what she had done to end up here. She sounded very lonely. My heart went out to her, and I wished I could comfort her and tell her she wasn’t alone.
My appetite had finally returned, and when the guard let herself into my cell – which she never did on her first few shifts – to hand me my lunch, I snatched the sloppy BLT off the paper plate and took such a large, hard bite I nearly ripped the sandwich in half. (I had been counting the days by the number of meals I had received. A total of three days had passed, or so I estimated.)
My taste buds had
My hands were loosely clasped in my lap, my back stooped over, as I stared blankly at the floor, vaguely registering what he was saying.
He turned away. “I’ll leave you to your thoughts,” he said quietly.
When I awoke from my shock-induced coma and looked up, Aden was gone. I was alone, save for a single female guard humming outside my cell.
Seconds turned into minutes, minutes into hours as the night (or whatever it was; I had lost all sense of time in this place) dragged on. Meals were brought to me, simple, human things like oatmeal and fresh fruit and milk, but my appetite had vanished. The plate grew cold and the guard at last removed it, leaving me once again at the mercy of my emotions.
Shock gave way to anger, anger to despair, as I switched from pacing and lying down, to screaming and pounding my fists against the chaffing stone walls so hard they bled. Drained and defeated, I slumped to the floor, biting a hole into my lip as the blood from my torn skin mixed with the silent tears pooling beside my head.
***
That cell became my sanctuary. As I mourned and accepted the loss of my brother, the extinguished flame inside me rekindled, tiny but burning all the same. A constant stream of thoughts tumbled through my head, from my brother to the recent events, to pondering how I fit into this world, if I still did. Clearly the vampires didn’t trust me – and why should they? I wore the Black Cross, branding me a hunter for life, however short that may be – but my vampire blood made me the sworn enemy of the human race, and therefore, what was left of my family and my friends. I had become a walking paradox.
My troubled thoughts held more worries than just the loss of my brother. Going off the information Aden had given me, the humans had much more to fear than the monsters that roamed the Red Sectors. I wondered more than once about the difference between the two types of vampires, how one became less of a man and more of an animal, and if it was choice or if they were born that way. Regardless, both vampires were incredibly dangerous, especially if my prediction came to pass. The humans deserved to know, to somehow be warned of the impending Armageddon.
Leo would listen to me. As long as I knew he was safe, then I’d gladly die for the risk of telling him.
An escape plan didn’t come together very easily. I supposed I could wait for the Scarlet Guard to find me, but seeing as no one had any clue this place even existed, I doubted that was going to happen any time soon, and time was a precious luxury I couldn’t afford to waste. If anyone was going to get me out, it would have to be me.
I rarely saw Aden. When he did stop by my cell to deliver some sort of instructions to the guard, he caught my eye, some emotion I couldn’t quite place dancing behind those vivid blue orbs. Then I would break his gaze and scowl as he walked away, chuckling.
I was never truly alone. There was always a guard posted a few feet away, usually the woman I’d seen when I had first been dumped here. Sometimes, when it was very still, I could barely pick up the soft crying of a girl through the walls of cinderblock, though I had to listen carefully, even with my enhanced hearing. I wondered who she was, and what she had done to end up here. She sounded very lonely. My heart went out to her, and I wished I could comfort her and tell her she wasn’t alone.
My appetite had finally returned, and when the guard let herself into my cell – which she never did on her first few shifts – to hand me my lunch, I snatched the sloppy BLT off the paper plate and took such a large, hard bite I nearly ripped the sandwich in half. (I had been counting the days by the number of meals I had received. A total of three days had passed, or so I estimated.)
My taste buds had
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