Chapter 7

Roderick woke me up in the morning. I fell asleep in the corner of the tent, with my legs pulled up to my chest, and my body laying to my right, I cried myself to sleep. He shook me, and for a while I thought it was Chane staring at me with those beautiful eyes, but then my vision cleared and I saw his white hair and I knew it was Roderick. “What?” I moaned, and stretched as he shook my shoulder again.
“Chane’s back.” He said. I jumped up and ran out the door, and nearly knocked myself over to find myself bouncing off the door, and back onto the floor. I got back up, and opened the door and looked around for him. He wasn’t anywhere. “He’s asleep.” He added, shutting the tent’s door.
“So? I want to see him!” I said excitedly. He held my shoulders and pushed down on them to keep me from jumping up and down.
“No, he just got back. At least let him sleep. You never do…” He said. I looked at him, questioning. I walked with him by my side, and sat on a stump; he did the same. “He tells me everything. You would be surprised about how much I know about you.” He explained. “You lived with your parents; you had one brother, who was murdered last week. You are 17 years old. Your mom is overprotective. You hate news reporters, and liars. Your friend was murdered a few days before your brother’s death. Your mom and dad have been having problems since you were gone-“
“I don’t need you to tell me this. Chane can explain when he wakes up.” I snapped. “I- never mind.”
“You what?” He asked.
“I never told him about a lot of that stuff you said… I guess there is proof he was watching me.” I shuddered.
“Marina is a bad liar. She would easily be caught if she told a lie.” He said, looking at the snow in the ground. “I wonder what would happen if she lied to you.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, looking at him, leaning over to look at his face.
“Well- your human… you have a much less developed mind, than us of course. Shape shifters are smarter than a usual human; their brain isn’t twice more developed than an immortal. But- theriomorphs are somehow not as smart… they tend to use their actions before they think, and that’s why Avril is the only one in this country. If more theriomorphs came here, they would die off in less than… I don’t know… a month?” He explained. My jaw dropped as he continued explaining.
“You see, theriomorphs have to act according to their laws. The first law is not to murder and, or consume their own kind. This is an advantage because if she changes you into a theiromorph then she wouldn’t be able to kill you; unless of course if she wanted to break the law, and be sentenced to death. The second law is that they can’t communicate with humans. The third law is that she cannot kill less than 2 humans at one time, so that if she has trouble hiding the body, she can transform another body into a theiromorph and then they are practically part of the crime scene, but when she creates them she must kill them before she breaks the fourth law. The fourth law is she cannot bring herself to create more theriomorphs unless she is in Asia, where all the rest of their kind is created.” He explained.
“Avril has already broken a law!” I gasped. “She spoke to my mom at the hospital when she was trying to frame me.”
“Then all we have to is lure her to Asia, so then she will be sentenced to death.” He said, looking at me. “Thank you Liza.” He said, hugging me then getting up.
“You’re coming with us?” I asked, getting up and following him.
“Yes, so is Marina.” He said, continuing to walk toward the camp.
“Roderick- one more thing… how are you supposed to kill her?” I asked. He stopped and turned around.
“Ugh… I guess you must know.” He sighed. “To kill a theiromorph, you take a knife to her heart, and cut it out. The hardest part is getting her to stay still- she will not die if you just take her heart out. Once you have her heart, you must crush it, so that she turns to ashes; when she dies she will be nothing but sand.” He said, turned around and continued walking.
I froze in the snow and gasped. “It’s way more complicated than I would expect… isn’t that how you kill a vampire?” I struggled.
“Vampires don’t exist.” He laughed and disappeared into a camp tent. I ran after him and found Chane, sleeping on the ground.
“Chane!” I ran, stumbled to my knees, and hugged him. He instantly woke up, twitching as soon as he felt my hands around his waist.
“Be careful…” Marina hissed loudly behind me rushing over to Chane’s body and pulling me away from him.
“Stop it!” I cried as I struggled to kick Marina from behind me.
“Marina let her go! Now!” Roderick thundered, making Marina shiver in fear as she ran to the corner of the tent as she dropped me on my head. I rubbed my bleeding head and whimpered in pain as I sat up. Chane crawled over next to me, and tended to my wound.
“Are you okay?” He whispered, using his hand to heal the back of my head.
“Now that I can hear you speak, yes.” I murmured hugging him as he pulled away. Tears burst from my eyes, disobeying my command to stay where they were. Roderick and Marina exited the tent, Roderick scolding Marina for hurting me so badly.
“Shhh… it’s okay.” He whispered, hugging me back. “I’m here now.”
“Where did you go?” I said hesitantly.
“To check up on your parents, they are planning on getting a divorce and parting ways until you come back for them.” He struggled to say.
“No, they can’t- I-I have to stop them.” I cried. “They can’t do this just because of me…” I buried my head in his chest, while he stroked my back.
“Shhh… I’ll bring you to them tomorrow. Today we must start moving back to your town.” He whispered calmly into my ear.
“But what if Marina gets them first?” I cried. “I will have nothing left…”
“That’s not true.” He said.
“Huh..?” I said in confusion.
“You’ll always have me.” He said, kissing me. I closed my eyes, and hugging him close to me. I stopped crying, and as he pulled away he hugged me back. “I love you.” He whispered.
“Thank you…” I whispered. He took my hand and pulled me off the ground, wiping the tears from my cheeks.
“Come on.” He said, pulling me out the tent door and pulling me west, back in the way of my town.
“Roderick said that vampires don’t exist, then why does everyone say they do?” I asked, while we walked out of camp. Chane started laughing hysterically. “What?” I said.
“Vampires? I don’t even know where humans got the idea- unless it’s from some stupid movie that caught on quickly.” He laughed. “Dracula, Edward, Emmett, Jasper, Rosalie, any others I should know about? Well- anyway you are still referring to something unreal, and made up.” He continued laughing. “Human entertainment these days…” He mumbled.
“Oh, okay… well what races actually do exist?” I asked.
“Shape shifters and theriomorphs exist, and if there was another race I am sure I wouldn’t know about it… witches, ghosts, zombies, vampires, and werewolves… don’t exist.” He sighed, taking my hand once again. I shivered in fear.
“But how do you know that they don’t exist?” I shuddered.
“Vampires did exist, but were wiped out when a comet hit the Earth in the 1900s, I don’t know when or where exactly. The light completely burned their flesh, and soon the ground was filled with ashes. Witches were all hung before anyone could really recognize them as what they really were, undead wizards. Ghosts are not real for all I know and care for; zombies are undead, and no one notices them anymore. Zombies were always in movies and were made up after witches had vanished. Werewolves, they are just another bedtime story to make you have nightmares and cry you to sleep.” He explained.
“Oh, I see.” I said, moving closer to him in fear that he might fade away if I said I never really believed in any of them at all. He looked at me in confusion.
“What are you thinking about?” He asked.
“What do you mean? I thought you could hear my thoughts.” I said.
“There is something blocking my way into them… it’s like a shield. It’s giving me a very awkward feeling.” He said, still staring into my eyes. I looked around, looking for some sign of relevance to his words. A rustling sound came from the bushes; I turned around and stared into them. “No, she can’t come near the camp… it’s impossible.” Chane whispered. Avril jumped out, to find me hiding behind Chane. “What are you doing here?” He screamed at her.
“You are outside the barrier… I have right to be here. There is no law about being outside the barrier.” She laughed coldly. I stared into her eyes with hate.
“What do you want from me!?” I yelled, stepping in front of Chane, with him grabbing my wrist, warning me not to go any closer.
“What do you mean dear?” She said, now focused on me. “I just want to meet this little girl I have learned so much about.” She said, staring into my eyes, her body now turning into a beautiful young girl looking similar to Madison, and Jess combined. Her hair was a curly brown with blonde highlights, like Jess’s brown curly hair, and like Madison’s blonde. Her body was slim, and with tan skin that made her green eyes stand out, which looked like Jake’s. I struggled to stay where I was, and not to run up and attack her.
“What did you do to them? Why do you look so similar?! What is your problem with me and my family and friends!?” I screamed loud enough for it to reach the camp. Roderick, Marina come over here! I screamed in my thoughts. Chane put his arms around my waist and pulled me away from Avril, and then taking my wrist again and creating red marks on my skin which burned where he held me. I held back my whimpers as I saw Marina and Roderick appearing on each side of Chane. My eyes burned in fury and stared into Avril’s eyes which now were darting around in the direction of the army of shape shifters now surrounding her. She let out a hiss as one male grabbed her wrist and pulled it around to her back as another female did the same with her other hand.
“What do you think you are doing!?” She hissed at Roderick.
“You have broken one of your three laws.” He thundered, now bending her to the ground and using a wire to keep her hands together painfully, causing her bleed when she tried to pull herself out of them. “You have spoken to a human; at the hospital and right here in front of your enemies. Thanks to Liza, we have won in your own game, Avril. It’s over.” He yelled.
“No! No! No!” She screamed; throwing her head around as her eyes flamed into a fire red color. “You little lairs! I was speaking to Chane just now! You have no proof!” She screamed. They carried her away and put her into a tent; that had steel bars, and wires around the cover. Chane held me tighter in his grasp, hugging me.
“Ow…” I whispered in pain as he released my wrist.
“Sorry” He whispered when everyone left, we started walking back to my town.
“It’s okay I suppose.” I murmured, rubbing the black and blue marks on my wrist. He stopped and took hold of my hand and pulled to his lips to kiss the bruises. I giggled, and hugged him passionately. He held my hand and I found that there were no bruises anymore. “Thank you…” I added.
“You’re welcome.” He laughed and continued walking hand in hand with me.