3 Brianna

"Hmmm," was my mother's prompt response. "Very well then."

The remaining clothes crashed into the tiles. Without another word, she marched to the middle of the room. Hand raised, she waved it in a circular motion. A black dot appeared before her. She leaned in and whispered something to it. Upon hearing what she said, the dot swirled until a large black circle stood before her. She twisted to look at me, a devious smirk on her lips. "Our battleground. Can't ruin sweet little Treviso, can we?"

I swallowed the lump stuck in my throat. "No, ma'am."

As if expecting us to follow, she stepped into the darkness. The black hole swallowed her whole.

"After you," father ushered, being a little more cautious.

As I sauntered forward, my heart drummed against my ribcage.

I could do this. For my freedom.

Into the black hole, I went, in the middle of a vast field I appeared.

Low cut light yellow grass with specks of dandelion decorated the rectangular-shaped field. While several sky-scraping trees sat on the outskirts as if they were the fence, bordering from somewhere else.

Mother was right, it did appear to be a battlefield.

Father strolled unto the field, unfazed by his surroundings. When he came out of the black hole it swirled behind him, closing itself up until the black dot reappeared for a minute before it vanished.

"Well, let the best woman win." A soft chuckle escaped his lips before he retreated to the side of the field, under the shelter of a fluffy tree.

"One more thing." Mother lifted her finger. Her light pink eyes glowed a darker shade. When her fingers snapped a man emerged in between mom and me.

Darn her for using a teleportation spell.

Both his hands were in his hair, scrubbing his scalp. With each scrub he took, white suds covered his work. The aroma of ocean breeze floated with the wind while a soft whistle accompanied it. Water dripped from his head and slid down his broad back. It took him several seconds to figure out he was no longer at his previous location. When he did, he swirled, giving us a full view of his birthday suit. His fit, muscular…

He noticed us through half-opened lids.

"What the fuc—" He saw mother and straightened his words. "Mrs. Jones," his eyes met father's, "Mr. Jones." He rested his soapy hands on his hips, but then it darted to cover his manhood.

Father's laughter grew louder than before. Mother rolled her eyes. Another snap of her fingers and a green towel fell from the heavens and landed on the man's head.

Using one hand, the naked man managed to get the cloth secured around his waist. A scowl sat on his face.

"Oh, suck it up, Brian. Be grateful, you're our guest."

Mother's statement did nothing to cool his discomfort. He folded his arms across his chest and glared at us.

"What's going on?" he mouthed in my direction.

My shoulders bounced before mother came back into view.

"You might want to step out of the way, son." Father's amused smirk brightened his face. "Are you ready?" His arm rose with each word he spoke.

"As I'll ever be," came mother's immediate response, ready for a fight. Her right foot went forward, left foot back, back arched, eyes on her target. Even her arms were angled at ten o'clock.

At the sight of Mom's glowing eyes, Brian fled to the side of the field.

A curt nod was all I could have given.

My fangs grew longer, power swam in my veins, ready to burst free.

I had to win this matchup.

"Fight!" Father's command rang out. His arm sliced through the air and dropped to his side.

I charged, but Mother seemed faster. A puff of smoke greeted me where she had been. My ears perked, tracking her breathing. Nothing. Her heartbeat never found my ears. No sound came from her footsteps. Not even her scent was recognized. Nothing. It was as if she no longer existed.

Darn!

I turned, confused. The smoke got thicker, spreading further over the field. I was blinded by the darkness, trapped by the fog.

What the heck?

"Brianna," Brian's voice pierced through the fog. His heartbeat irritated.

A whisper of a spell cleared my vision.

My eyes found Brian who seemed to be trying to escape a white oak dagger. The weapon copied his pace. The faster he moved, the quicker the dagger glided through the air. He was then tripped by something, but it never stopped him or the pace of the dagger. He crawled backward, away from the weapon, but it chased after him.

Mother was still nowhere in sight.

My feet struggled to move. The ground grew into a mud bath. The more I fought to get free, the more tangled I got, sinking further down the muddy pit.

Brian stopped moving and the dagger caught up to him. His chest rose and fell to the rapid beating of his heart. His feet kicked slower, the closer the weapon got to his chest.

"Why don't you move?" I cried out. "Keep out of its way until I can get free."

His eyes stayed glued to the weapon. "I can't move. I'm stuck."

Shit!

Spell after spell was cast, but it did nothing to lessen the tragedy we faced.

Brian's pleas got louder. "Brianna!"

"I'm trying!" My waist down was buried beneath the ground. There was no more hard dirt for me to hold on to.

When Brian discovered I was of no help, his interest was turned to Father. "Mr. Jones, make it stop."

A petition which fell on deaf ears. Father stood uninterested in helping. He paid more attention to his wristwatch than he did us.

Brian's fingers found refuge in the grass as the dagger pierced his flesh. A soft whimper left his trembling lips.

No! I never wanted this. This was not a fair fight.

"Mother!"

The dagger drove further into his chest. The stench of blood flowed with the wind.

If it was any other dagger it would have been okay, but it wasn't. Though it did put its victims in a slumber, they never woke from it.

"Mother," I repeated louder.

She then decided to reappear beside her husband. A vicious glint shone in her eyes; a matching smirk on her lips.

This was it. I had lost.

My struggling halted. "Mother, please," I pleaded.

"Please, what?" She demanded. Her hands placed on her hips, awaiting my response.

There was no way out. The minute I surrendered, I would be stuck. Stuck with an unwanted future, stuck with the same problems I ran from. Yet, if Brian died, I would never forgive myself.

The tip of the dagger disappeared further in his chest.

Did Brian matter more than my future?

His heart pounded. Sweat beaded his forehead.

Yes, he did. He was mine. I created him. I was his Sire. We were linked forever.

The dagger kept thrusting itself further down.

My eyes squeezed shut as my next words wounded my heart. "You've won. I will join the High Council."

Nothing happened. My words of defeat did nothing to cease our suffering. I sank further into the earth while Brian faced his doom.

Mother got us where she wanted us: broken.

For the first time since the match started father intervened, "Miranna?"

"Oh, for heaven's sake." The snap which followed echoed through the field.

The dagger along with the mud pit vanished.

Brian flopped down on the grass. Blood leaked from his wound.

He was okay.

The cool air-dried the mud to my skin and clothes.

"Now," mother's voice was confident and calmed as ever. "Your punishment for accepting a battle against me."

Wait, what? Ugh!

"You're going to attend Rosewood University. After all, you did get expelled from the last school. This will help you to learn some manners."

My lips part, a rebuttal heavy on my tongue. She arched a brow and I swallowed any words. "Yes, ma'am."

I collapsed on my back. White clouds drifted across the sky.

This was not the end. I still had a chance at happiness. I would never stop until I had a chance to be who I wanted. To be me.