Chapter Twenty-
'Please Take Back The Love I Gave Her,
And In Time The Grief May Pass'
It was now five in the evening. So far Isaac had taken Melissa to a theatre show she had wanted to see, shopping (her buying everything she ever wanted or needed with his money), a fairground and now they were at a tattoo parlour in which Melissa was choosing one that would sit on the back of her shoulder and look perfect.
"So you've narrowed it down to these seven now?" Ike asked. To be fair it was more selective than when they had first arrived.
"Six now. I've just decided the rose is tacky." Melissa replied. "And I've chosen yours."
"Mine? Melissa, you must be joking." Isaac replied.
Melissa grinned at the man who worked there. "I'm wearing him down."
"So I can tell." The guy laughed, who looked like he had practised his profession on himself throughout most of his life.
"Come on Ike! Even the goddamn Backstreet Boys have tattoos!"
"And you want me to follow in their footsteps? I'm ashamed of you." Isaac smiled. "Anyway, don't get the snake, it's ugly."
"Yeah, you're right. How about this one?" She held up a picture of a symbol.
"What's the symbol?"
"It's the symbol of night time and mystery, found in spell books. I just remembered it."
Ike smiled. "Will you get magic powers or something?"
"No, not that I know of. But it's sort of fitting for me, don't you think? I'm going for it."
"You sure?" The man working there asked.
"Yep. And Ike you're watching."
Isaac grinned. "Does the mighty all powerful woman need her widdle boyfriend to hold her hand?"
Melissa pulled him by the hand so the man couldn't hear. "I hate needles!"
"You? Mistress of the night sky?" Isaac was amused by this.
"It's not funny, they freak me out." Melissa shuddered.
"Fine then, let's go scar your skin."
An hour later they were sitting in Hyde Park that was slowly dying down of life as it drew closer to the sunset. It had a sort of peace that was not expected in London, an extremely busy and crowded city, so it seemed almost a secret to them. Isaac and Melissa were now laying in a grassy patch amongst the trees. They had been talking about everything and nothing and Isaac knew he couldn't feel any happier. This was just what he wanted on his last day in that time and place; just being with Melissa and not caring about a thing, not even his fate awaiting for him at midnight tonight.
"Melissa?"
"Hmmm?" Melissa awoke from her daydream that she had fallen into as Ike had stroked her hair.
"Don't you ever wish for humanity again? Like for time to go forward and to have pain?"
Melissa thought about it for a second. "I did, once. Of course I did when I was your age. I mean I had a crummy human life what with being an peasant and living in a world where nine out of ten kids don't live over the age of two. But, yeah, I guess I do think about it from time to time."
"I'd love one day where I'm normal, like really normal."
Melissa sat up and looked at him. "Ike, you're a nineteen year old rock star, I thought you wiped 'normal' from your vocabulary with the Paramus Mall situation?"
"I mean me being normal, not everything else."
"Oh, well, maybe the Millennium will bring surprises. Like some sort of full moon reversal thing where we can become human again?"
"That would be cool." Isaac smiled and looked at the sun almost touching the ground below it. After they'd watched the sun set they'd head home and then he'd spend time with the family when they would see him ask a question to Melissa a million fan-fiction writers had written in the past.
"Ike, you wanna watch the shoulders? Not that it hurts I'm just making sure it's not gonna smudge or something."
"Sure." Isaac stopped. "You wanna head back after sunset?"
"You wont be able to."
Both of them turned around to see one man they both knew too well. Melissa felt anger boil up, she never thought she'd see that man again. She promised herself long ago she'd kill him next time she did.
"What d'you want now?" Ike demanded.
"Isaac, don't you remember today? It's almost time to go." He nodded towards the sun.
"I have until midnight!"
"What's he talking about?" Melissa asked.
"Nothing Melissa, Okay?" Isaac replied.
The man creased his eyes at Melissa and looked her up and down. "Melissa? Is that what you go by now? Long time no see. How's that little boyfriend of yours?" Melissa didn't reply. "Oh yes, poor lad couldn't handle a couple of hunters, no-one's loss."
"How dare you talk about him like that you monster!" Melissa grabbed a piece of wood and ran for him. The man merely smiled and threw something at Melissa. She screamed and fell down. Ike ran to her side and the burn marks from the Holy water had already started to show.
"Weak vampire. Ike, did you hear midnight? Because I'm sure I said until sunset. It doesn't matter anyway, you'll be gone from this world in a few minutes, if that." He left without a trace once again.
Isaac tried not to let his mind think of what he had just been told. "Melissa, are you Okay?"
Melissa nodded slowly. "Ike, what is he talking about?"
Isaac swallowed. "I have to go with him, back to where this all started."
"Why?"
"Because if I don't he'll kill you, and everybody else I know."
Melissa shot up as if revived all of a sudden. "Oh no he won't! I'll go and get everyone and we'll get away from him before he comes..."
"Melissa, I can't. What am I supposed to tell them?"
"We'll think of something but right now we'll..."
Isaac grabbed her hand. "And then what? We'll run for the rest of our lives? Melissa, I've thought of everything we could try but it wont work."
Melissa pulled her hand away. "Ike, I'm not letting you just give up like that! We can't let those bastards win!"
"There's nothing I can do Melissa! If I don't go they'll kill them!"
"But if you do go you'll become a monster! Is that what you want?" Melissa yelled.
"Would you rather be dead?"
"I can take care of myself Ike!"
"But my family can't. Either I go or they'll kill them or worse." He let that thought linger for a few seconds. "I can't protect them forever and they'll find us soon enough. They're nothing I can do."
Melissa felt tears running down her cheeks. "So what? You're just going to leave me? Leave your whole life for one that doesn't even include a soul?"
"What else can I do?" Ike asked sadly.
Melissa held onto Ike as she cried. She couldn't believe this was happening. She had finally found somebody she was happy with and would spend her long life with, and he would leave her forever in a few minutes.
"Melissa, you have to tell Tay and Zac to... Just tell them I'm Okay and you can tell my parents if you like. Just please don't make them worry, whatever you do." Ike said quickly.
Melissa nodded. "I promise. Ike, I'll find you, I swear. I'll get you out of there and do what I can, I promise." She saw the sun had almost disappeared. She began to panic. "Ike, you can't leave me. Please, you can't do this to me, just like Connar, you..."
It was too late. He had already vanished into the wind. She was in shock for a few seconds before she screamed out. Her curse was to live a life of misery. Everybody she touched would fade away from her, she would never love. She was to live a monster's life with a soul that needed love. She would never receive it in her long life though, eternity was never that kind.
Two Nights Later
In all fairness he knew he should be upset but Zac was forcing himself not to cry any more. His family would start to suspect why he was thinking the worst, like he knew what had happened to Isaac. Zac knew all right, he knew everything. There was nothing else they could do. Isaac was a real monster now. He had become the same as those demons that had ruined his life in the first place. He didn't want it to happen, no, but it had happened. Personally Zac would have preferred running than Isaac giving in, but he knew Ike had done it to save them. At least Zac could live with the fact that even though Isaac would never come home it was for a good reason. A very good reason at that. He couldn't believe he would never see his brother again, but he knew he had to accept it. He knew in the back of his mind that one day Isaac would have to leave because of what he was, but not this soon. Not when everything seemed fine, not when everybody, especially Isaac, was happy. It was too much for Zac. He just wanted two nights ago to have never happened.
Melissa was a wreck. It was not surprising seeing as for the second time she had lost the man she loved with all her heart. She was fragile already but being broken hearted twice, by faults she could only blame on herself, had made her impossible to talk to. She was torn up on the inside, you only had to look at her to know that. Whatever Zac was feeling he knew she was feeling about ten times worse. She had only just survived ninety years of heartache and now it seemed she would never love again. She was the last person to talk to Isaac and she hated that. She regretted ever meeting him now, she hated knowing she used to and still did love him. All she wanted was for her one true love to come back but it would never happen.
Zac sighed quietly. He just wanted to go home now, he never thought he'd miss Tulsa so much. He wanted his brothers and sisters so at least he wouldn't feel lonely. They were coming to England later that day but Zac knew it wouldn't help. It would help very little to be more accurate. Zac's mom, Christopher, Ashley and Melissa had been with the police for most of the morning. Taylor was in his room and despite knowing he needed him right now Zac didn't want to see him. He was afraid that together they would work out how this was all their fault. How all of this could have been avoided if they had done something differently. Zac felt more tears welling up and this time let them flow down his cheeks. He hated this. He hated everything Isaac was before and now he hated ever asking Isaac about it. He wanted to be in the dark, then he would have some positive thinking inside of him. He didn't want to know anything about vampires or monsters anymore. He just wanted to think that maybe Isaac was fine, and not some evil monster with no soul.
Finally he got up as he heard footsteps. His mom, friends and once sister-in-law-to-be were probably back and Zac didn't want to look a wreck for them. They were worrying enough as it was without him making it worse. He wiped away his tears and breathed slowly. He opened the door to his room.
Zac didn't have a chance to run. They had already grabbed him. He tried to scream but nothing came out. He felt a hand over his mouth and struggled for freedom. He suddenly felt a pain shoot through his arm and cried out. He felt himself grow heavy and was dropped to the floor. He moaned quietly and felt his arm. Blood covered his hand and felt himself being dragged somewhere. He didn't care where, he was too weak to fight back. Wherever he was he knew he was getting fainter and fainter. The lights around him hurt to look at. Slowly Zac let himself drop off and fall into a sleep he felt he needed but knew wouldn't help him in any way.
Taylor had let himself out an hour ago. He had left a note for Zac but knew he wouldn't read it or much less care where Taylor was. Zac was trapped in some sort of bubble where he knew he had to except fate but couldn't. He was blocking out every other distraction and just trying to work out this mystery. Taylor wanted to scream right now. He too knew he would have to accept fate but was also pretending it wasn't so. Isaac hadn't gone back with those monsters, he was missing. Missing like a human would be. Taylor still had some function inside of him that made him think all of this had been an illusion. Isaac wasn't a vampire and never had been. He hadn't become a monster, no, Melissa had made that up. Isaac had run away or had been taken away or something, anything but the real truth. Anything that made him feel better he'd believe. It was complete idiocy to ignore the truth but Taylor refused to see what was real. He wanted so badly to believe in everything but the truth so he could have hope.
Taylor walked into the hotel room, not even noticing how dark it was. He finally snapped out of his world as he stumbled over something. That something seemed to make a noise. Taylor was sure he had heard it but it couldn't be so. He searched the wall for the light and as it snapped on he felt an urge to throw up before he ran to his brother's side.
Zac moaned weakly as he was shook awake. A small puddle of blood had formed from the bite marks. Taylor was holding in every fear as he frantically tried to stop the bleeding. Zac didn't make a sound as he did so but looked desperate to. It just wouldn't come out. All Taylor could hear was small moans but ignored them completely. He had to get them out of there.
Taylor practically picked up his brother. Zac could barely function his voice so Taylor knew he'd have to help him in every possible way. Zac was trying his best to walk but he was stumbling too much. Taylor was staring at the door the whole time. He was determined to get there. He had to make it there. He knew those monsters had gone yet they had to get out. There had to be away from that place before they returned. As he thought this Zac fainted and Tay had to pick him up again. He was a ghost white and shivering feverishly. Taylor had to get Zac away before he could help him.
They had hardly reached half way across the room before they were ambushed. At least twenty vampires were in the apartment. They surrounded the two of them.
Taylor wrapped his arms around Zac, holding him close. "Don't you dare touch us." He whispered.
All of them pounced at once. They went for Taylor and before he knew what was happened, he had been taken down. He saw Zac being taken from him and tried to get up. They knocked him out with one kick before doing the same to Zac. They had orders to take them away and no others. There was nothing either of them could do, they were about to embark on the same fate as their brother.
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