Long way home

For the next few days. Kurt tried to meet her time and again. But she won't. Her parents were initially urging her to meet the brother since an enmity with such an influential person was sure to have a negative effect.

But then doubting that their meetings were one of romantic nature, they switched sides.

Initially, they didn't bother trying to know the nature of their meetings because Anais didn't meet him inside her house that often. She avoided it as much as possible.

Just the first two times were the times they met inside. Other times Anais went out to meet him giving some excuses through the backdoor.

Froote covered for her even though he disapproved of her meeting with the brother.

Oh, he knew what kind of meetings they were having.

But now it seemed Kurt wasn't bothering to secrecy the last few days. Rumours were starting to fly and the family's reputation was at stake.

So, her parents insisted that Kurt marry her. She had listened in on them. Eavesdropping wasn't a task only maids could do.

She knew Kurt didn't love her as she did but the revelation and admission still hurt. Also, the silence she was getting from Kurt was unbearable, she willed herself to trust her instinct.

After all, they knew each other for three years now and he didn't ask her hand in marriage. But Anais wanted to get married. What women did not?

Kurt had ceased all pursuits and communication after her parents insisted that he marry.

Her mother had granted her permission to meet Hattie again since she sulked in her room all day. They walked together and updated each other on their life. Hattie's love life was blooming for the first time and Anais's was drowning.

When it was time to leave, Hattie saw her to her carriage. Hattie lived far away from Grayols, so she couldn't materialize directly. So, she had taken the carriage out hoping to get some time to herself and think.

On the ride, Anais had fallen asleep. She woke up with a start. She looked outside to see that they had crossed Basin City and the coachman took them to East. She frowned

"Why are you heading that way. We are supposed to go North, right?" she asked the coachman.

He slowly turned around for what felt like ages and viciously smiled at her and she sucked in a breath. The man sitting before her was not her coachman!

"Who are you?!" she screeched

But the man did not answer her. Instead, he loosened the reins and gave the horse more freedom to gallop faster taking them farther away to an unknown destination.

"Answer me! Who in the devil's den are you?"

Checking the door she found that it was locked from the outside. So, she banged with all her might on the carriage door trying to make a break for it.

Even though she was successful in breaking the door, the horse was going faster. If she jumped, she was sure to sustain injury.

So, she decided against it. She wished she could just materialise but because of the adrenaline coursing through her body, she was unable to.

Without thinking she reached out and tried to throw him over from his seat. But she found it was near impossible. He was quite strong.

So, Anais resorted to crawling and hitting him. At one point she knocked his hat over and made a fist in his hair pulling with all her might. He screeched due to the pain.

Which direction they were going both had no clue.

Then a brilliant idea hit her. She quickly withdrew her hands and bunched up her multiple layered skirts and kicked him repeatedly through the carriage willing for the man to slip from his seat. But then he grabbed her legs and yanked her forward.

The ball in the court changed and now she had to hold onto the carriage tightly. It felt like her legs were going to dislodge with the might he pulled.

" Urghh, let go of me, blockhead!"

But suddenly the hands on her legs were gone. She looked around to see that the coachman was no more but the horses were coming to a stop.

Whatever happened with the guy she decided she could not let the horse stop, so she climbed out of her seat and took control of the horse making a clicking sound in her mouth to urge the horse to trot.

She turned around briefly unable to hold in her curiosity. She was surprised to see Kurt brawling with the disguised coachman. Was he following her?

Kurt was suddenly thrown back with his arms bent in angle but he easily got up and corrected himself and jumped over the coachman. By god, She had never seen the brotherhood in action.

Turning back, she concentrated on the road ahead. She had nothing to worry about now besides reaching home fast.

She was far into the East by now. So, instead of turning the carriage around, she decided to take another way and reach North.

After going about ten miles, she felt a presence behind her. She turned her head around slightly to see Kurt silently sitting inside. He was very still.

How did he materialise so neatly inside a moving carriage? That too after a fight? 'His control is so wonderful' she thought.

"Who was the guy? I could feel how strong he was but he gave off no scent."

"Shapeshifter" he uttered

"Why couldn't I sense him then?" Anais was puzzled

"Because he masked his scent" he replied and then they fall back into silence. Only the sound of horse stride cutting the lone night. After a long time, Kurt suddenly spoke up.

"Did it happen before?"

"Yes"

Silence greeted her as she continued to control the rein. He didn't ask her for the rein of the horse like others might. And they didn't talk for the rest of the ride.

Kurt made sure to see her to the doorstep and she wordlessly went inside and closed the door.

She did not inform her parents of the events that transpired that night. Yet the news of her attempted kidnapping somehow reached her parent's ears by the next morning and so she went on hiatus. Completely locked out from the outside world.

She felt her room close in on her. She had no outside interaction. Sometimes, she walked in the backyard garden with Irvine.

Irvine was soon to be sent to a women's college where she would reside until she graduated. She was eager to go there, eager to embrace a simpler lifestyle. But it wasn't going to be easy.

Days passed by like that. A special request was sent to the brotherhood and they were looking for the culprit.

Kurt bought in the message that they were looking but there was a dead trail. The best they could do was send a message to all the vampire hives about a hybrid.

And this time Kurt did not ask to meet her. It hurt.

She never went to meet Ezra for the advance money either. Her life had suddenly no goal. It was bland and tasteless. She found herself appreciating the little interaction and silly adventure she had in the past.

It was on the 20th day that it happened. When she was finally taken away it was the 20th day of house arrest.

She was sleeping peacefully when her windows were thrown open, a heavy gust of wind blowing into her room. She was startled when she woke up to the sound. She went to the window and stretched her neck out to check. She surely felt a presence.

Before she could understand what was happening, black hands reached out to her taking her by surprise and pulled her out through the window and above in one swift motion as if she weighed nothing. She hit the wall of the house hard and passed out.

***

Next, when she woke up, she was in a dungeon. Her mouth gagged, her feet chained to the wall and hands bound behind her back. She was in a bad position lying on her front in a corner.

Her eyes welled up with tears. She couldn't sit up from this position, it hurt. It hurt bad. With much trouble, she turned on her back and let out a sigh. The pain wasn't gone.

The shackles on her feet were twisted as she turned and it didn't allow for much space so she was hurting. But she could sit up now.

So, she did just that. She tried to dematerialise but found herself unable to. The dungeon was suppressing her power or maybe it was the shackles.

Shackles were the reasonable answer for her inability to dematerialize but she was certain the dungeon was suppressing her power. She felt helpless. She did not know how long she sit there nor did she scream.

She knew she was trapped here and whoever heard her asking for help won't be interested in helping her. So, she waited. The silence was deafening.

Finally, she could hear the opening of a door. It was very far but she was a vampire so her senses were sharper than a human.

She could feel a male enter the dungeon though she didn't see him. She tried to concentrate and she struggled to do so due to her reduced power. But as the male continued to walk closer to her, she could sense what it was.

"Shapeshifter.."