Chapter 1: Captured

Elena's P.O.V

A gasp escaped my lips as I was thrown onto the cold, hard ground, before the black cloth covering my face was hastily removed with impatient hands, making my hair fall around my face in a tangled mess.

I tried to pick myself up into a sitting position, though my body protested even second of the movement, every single muscle aching in pain. I coughed hard and wasn't all that surprised when I saw blood splatter onto the black marble floor under me. 

I was covered in cuts and bruises, but I wasn't that bothered by the physical injuries, I was more concerned about the reason for my abduction.

But before I could raise my head to look at the face of my abductors, I felt someone's hands on my body, pinning me down to the ground hard. I tried to struggle against their grip, but their strength was much more than I had anticipated.

"Relax dear. I don't want to hurt you. I brought you here simply to discuss a…business proposal." A voice spoke from somewhere in the room, and without even looking at his face, I could feel a shiver of dread run down my spine.

But when I finally lifted up my head to look at the man who had spoken to me…my blood ran cold in my veins as fear gripped my heart in its icy fingers.

Demitri Ivanovo. The vampire King.

One of the ruthless rulers of the night, he was feared and respected by several of the supernatural beings. No one dared to mess with the Vampire King, because he would make sure that the entire clan paid for their one mistake. He was the kind of monster that mother's scared their children with during their bed-time stories.

But this monster wasn't a story, or a myth. He was very, very real. And he had been rumored to be one of the most devastatingly handsome men on the planet. A devil with the face of a god.

Seeing him now in person felt so unreal and confirmed those rumors that I had been hearing since I had joined the Hunter's Guild. 

"Where are my manners?" He gave a smile that chilled the air around me, as he looked at his side, his deep red eyes meeting one of his men. "Let the pretty woman go. She needs some space. Someone get her a glass of water, you all messed her up big time."

He made the current situation seem so…normal. Like beating people up and abducting them and then transporting them to the middle of nowhere in the trunk of a car was something he did on the daily.

The hands holding me down till now, let me go immediately, and struggled to sit up once again, spitting out the blood that had been accumulating in my mouth. Which…may not have been the best idea ever, since I was in the den of bloodthirsty creatures. But this ginormus throne room with its old Victorian décor seemed to be anything but a den.

"Don't make it seem like you suddenly care about what happened to me!" I said through clenched teeth, and realized later that maybe I did have a death wish. "What's this business proposal you want to discuss?"

Trying to resist might only get me ripped apart by the claws of a blood sucking demon. They would crack me open like an egg-shell and suck me dry before I can even land a lethal blow. But from what I was guessing of this grand gathering of monsters…I wasn't getting out of this mess as easily as I had hoped.

Not to mention that the hope had died as soon as I had watched the face of my abductors.

"Ah! I love a no-nonsense kind of woman." He clapped his hands together in glee, his gaze fixed on me in a way that made another shiver run down my spine. "If only you weren't a hunter…"

"If only we could skip the chit-chat and tell me what you really want, then we would have been done with this and I would be on my way." I spoke before I could keep my stupid mouth shut. 

Fuck, Elena! You want to die that badly?

"Feisty? I've met plenty of your type." He said with a small sigh. "Anyway, let's get to the point, shall we? I need you to kill someone for me."

He said it so casually as though I was his personal assassin, ready for his beck and call.

I frowned. He wanted me to kill someone for him? What happened to the Vampire King being the high and mighty of his realm? If he wanted to kill someone…he had plenty of lackeys who could take care of his job for him. Then why me?

Is he scared about confronting this person himself? Or is there more to this little façade that I was missing? I tried to think of whom the Vampire King would want me to kill…a rogue vampire? But it wasn't my specialty… 

"And who are we talking about?" I decided to ask aloud. 

"Vincent Blackburn." There was this bitterness to his tone when he hissed out that name…as if the name itself was poison.

The name sounded oddly familiar and I tried my best to remember where exactly I had heard it…but it finally clicked, I couldn't help but feel horrified. 

"The Lycan King?" I asked in bewilderment. Was he nuts?

Of course he is scared of the lycans. They're said to be the strongest hierarchy of wolves. Even the werewolves know their place when it comes to lycans. No one messes with those ravaging beasts. 

And now, this man wants me to kill not only a lycan, but their king?

That's a huge death wish. 

I shook my head. "No, I can't do that."

"Why hunter? Are you scared? "He teased with a smile on his face. A smile that spelled trouble. 

Did he really think provoking me would get his job done? And why on earth would I do it anyway?

"He isn't a rogue." I told Demitri. "I hunt down rogue werewolves, not lycans. This is out of my jurisdiction."

He laughed and the sound resonated within the walls like a haunting symphony. It made my skin crawl; made my ears bleed. It wasn't the sound of joyous laughter…but a taunting melody that made me want to run.

"Jurisdiction? Very funny hunter. From what I heard…you've earned yourself a reputation of barely sticking to your jurisdiction." His tone became serious as he leaned forward in his chair. "You're to kill the lycan king and bring me his head on a silver platter."

To say that I was scared would be an understatement. Not only was I captured, but I was now being given the order to kill the Lycan King? Why? And what exactly made him think that I would do such a thing for him without any rhyme or reason? 

"I can't and I won't." I told the Vampire King, forcing myself to look into his cold dead eyes which held no emotions. "Killing the Lycan King will disrupt the entire lycan kingdom. And besides, there is no reason for me to kill him. He is perfectly sane and hasn't caused any trouble."

"So righteous, little hunter?" Demitri laughed at my attempt to thwart his plans. "But how about you take a look at what's at stake before you make that decision?"

At first I didn't understand what he meant, but then I heard a muffled sound…the sound of a body being dragged into the room. And right then, the huge mahogany doors flung open and a girl was dragged into the room by two of his aids, who wore black suits.

"Take off the bag." Demitri said to his aids, since he knew that my curiosity was peaked. "Show her."

And then he turned to me. "Now darling…how about to take a look and see if you can still refuse me?"

And then, the bag was removed from the girl he had brought into the room…and I felt my breath leave my lungs.

My sister. He had brought in my sister. She didn't seem hurt though, but he had her hands tied behind her. Her eyes were puffy meaning she has been crying.

"Elena!" Malory whimpers and tried to get closer to me but one of the aids grab her by the hair and yank her back, causing her to yelp in pain.

"NO! Let her go you bloody bastard!" I bared my teeth at him, rage coursing through my veins, but all Demitri did was laugh at my face. "Release her at once!"

Immediately, one of his aids that were beside my sister, bent his head behind her neck and open his mouth that his fangs glistening only a few centimeters away from her skin. My sister's eyes widened in horror as I watched the man draw close.

"Stop!" I screamed, reaching out to her with my hands, but I was once again slammed down onto the ground, completely immobilized by Demitri's men.

The man raised his head and moved away from my sister, finally making me breathe a sigh of relief.

"You have six months to finish this task, Elena." Demitri's words sounded like a knell. "If you don't kill Vincent within that given time…then you will have to watch your poor little sister become a blood slave and serve us forever."

"NO!" I screamed, and suddenly, the hands holding me down loosened, on purpose.

I didn't waste another moment as I struggle to drag myself across the room, closer to my sister. Once I was at arm's reach, I drew her into my arms and hugged her tightly to my body, letting her know that I was here for her.

"It's okay." I reassured her, even though my own voice shook. "It'll be alright! I promise."

"E-Elena…" Malory clung to me for dear life.

"Enough with the family reunion." Demitri flicked his wrist at his aids. "Take her away." 

I let go and whispered into my sister's ears, just as the guards approached. "I'll be back and it's going to be alright. Just cooperate for now."

I watched them drag my twelve year old sibling out of my sight and I clenched my fist to prevent myself from attacking the aids that were dragging her out like she was some kind of animal.

"Six months." Demitri reminded me, because he knew that now, I would do anything he asked me to do.

Now came the most difficult part of my life…hunting the Lycan King.