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Advica POV

Being a Human sucks in general. Being Human in this kind of situation is the worst. First, I can't see in the dark, but they can. And they take advantage of that, shoving me toward walls, low ceilings, and big rocks on the ground. I, on the other hand, talked back, mocked them, and made sure to anger them as much as I could. I tried to get rid of my hand's bidings after being pushed, again, against a stone wall, and I get punched in the face out of nowhere.

"I said stop trying, you stupid...OOF" Second, my strength is way below their level. I was trying to knock him off of me, but apparently, my leg barely nudged his chest. Earning me another punch in the face. Third, I don't heal as fast as them. But they don't seem to care. I've been collecting bruises and cuts from the moment they took me. And that's bout a half-day ago.

"You know what? I've had it. No food for you until we get back with the next merchandise! Let's see how stubborn you'll be after starving for a couple of days." He spat, knocking my head against the cold wall, making me almost lose my consciousness. He took advantage of my momentary dizziness and pulled my hands up, replacing my rope restrains with metallic ones.

"Do your worst, Idiots!!" I taunted him. His response was a mean kick to my ankles, making me grunt. I heard him kick something else before he closed what I suppose was a metallic door. He mumbled something to his partner before they both walked around for a bit, and then finally away.

I took a deep breath, feeling somehow relieved that they were gone. But that was a big mistake. As soon as the foul smell filled my lungs, I started puking. Then I fell into a vicious circle. Trying to catch my breath, inhaling more of the nasty smell, then vomiting again. So this is how I die! From lack of breathable air!

"Breath with your mouth", a soft but tired voice spoke to me. No matter how soft it was, it startled me into a fit of coughing and vomiting. The voice repeated the same advice a couple of times before I could comprehend the instruction. And when I did as told, it did help a bit.

"Hi," I finally managed to squeak after a couple of minutes of dry heaving. "Human?"

"No....we're not" a heavy silence fell, making the darkness thicker.

"Vampires?" I asked, looking around. If they were, I should see their glowing red eyes in the dark, but I didn't. It could be that they weren't vampires or simply that I was looking straight at a wall.

"Not all of us," A male voice almost spat out. He sounded as tired as the girl, but still had the energy to deny the accusation. Only a werewolf would feel insulted to be lumped up with a vampire. For a Human like myself, this kind of sensitivity sounded ridiculous. They're both the same to me.

"So vampires, werewolves, and a Human," I paused, taking small breaths through my mouth. The pounding in my head was making it hard to focus. "Sounds like the start of a lame joke."

"Humans." Another female voice added. "There's another one in your cell, but not for long." I frowned, trying to see anything in the dark. But I didn't see anything as expected.

"What do you mean?" I leaned my head back on the cold wall.

"She's...dying." The first voice said with the same softness. "Did they hit you too?".

"Yeah!",

"How bad? I don't smell much blood from your way." Another guy asked with a hint of concern in his voice.

"You sound disappointed about it, vampire." The werewolf from earlier spat at him but got no answer.

"Nothing big, just a busted lip and small cuts on my wrists. What happened to her?" I answered, trying to dissipate the tension. There is no point fighting when we are obviously all prisoners in here.

"I think she has internal bleeding. Did they hit you too?" He kept asking.

"mmm, one of them was quite a darling." The smell was suffocating me.

"Which one?" His interrogation reminded me of Boris. Always needing to know every single detail. My heart squeezed, thinking about him. He must be furious by now. I'm even sure that he had his 'I told you so' speech ready for when he'll find me.

"Leave her alone leach!!" Another voice growled, but we both ignored him. There was no point in explaining to him or getting into arguments.

"The wolf. The other one was too much of a coward to even get close to me." I whispered back. There was no need to waste my energy when they could all hear me.

"Are you hurting anywhere else?" The soft one asked me.

"My head, I think I have a concussion......." Another wave of dizziness took over me. I closed my eyes, waiting for it to pass.

"Then you should stop talking and try to sleep a bit." The second female said in a commanding tone. I would've sassed back, but the headache got worst. "I would've said stay hydrated and eat something, but you kind of burned that bridge."

"Are you mad at me or something?" I asked her, trying to distract myself from the pain.

"No, I..... I didn't mean....." She stuttered, taken aback by my question. More like how calm I sounded, asking my question.

"She's just worried about you." A third male voice added. "I'm Sean, by the way. The other ones are Lilly, Billy, and Ed" This one was a pacifier for sure.

"Hi Sean, I'm Advica. What about you guys?"

"Eve, from the Moonrow Clan."

"Jozef, from the Mesiac clan."

"Moonrow and Mesiac Clans? Who would dare?" These two were part of the oldest and most respected clans. Only an idiot or a suicidal fool would dare offend them.

"What are you talking about? How can a Human know about the vampires' clans?" Billy or Ed yelled in an angry tone. My head! I wanted to yell back at him to shut up, but I had no strength left for that.

"That's none of your business, pup!" Jozef yelled back at him. And the nausea was back. I'm going to throw up again!

"Guys..." I could barely speak. Their loud voices were vibrating inside my head. "Guys, please....." thankfully, the darkness embarrassed me before I could vomit anymore, relieving me from the pain and discomfort.

I did it again. I disobeyed Boris and ventured out alone. It's not that their presence bothers me or that I didn't like them or their company. It's just that once in a while, I liked to go out on my own, without anyone breathing down on my neck, and glare away everyone on my path. I just wanted to be the average invisible girl in the streets. The one that walked by without gathering any kind of attention.

I roamed around the busy streets, bought a few books, and watched a street performance. When the sky darkened, I knew it was about time to head home. I went to the train station and waited patiently for the train to arrive. It was rush hour, and I knew that I had to push my way inside one of the cars. The train arrived, and the passengers stood by its doors, waiting for it to open. I was about to do the same when I saw him.

He was leaning tiredly on one of the poles by the window. His smooth dark skin was glowing under the dim light. My heart started beating fast, very fast, when he opened his eyes with a frown. His eyes, how do I describe the color of his eyes? It reminded me of a glass honey pot facing the sunlight. It was a beautiful contrast with his ebony skin. I stood there, dumbly staring at him until our eyes met. I was instantly sucked inside the pools of his beautiful eyes.

I felt prompted to go to him. I had this painful need to get close to him, to touch him. I took a step closer and tried to reach out, but the stupid train started moving. His eyes widened as he leaned closer to the window and kept eye contact with me until the train disappeared inside the tunnel.

I was tempted to run after him. Something within me urged me to. I couldn't let him go. I needed to stop him. I squeezed my books tight against my hammering chest. What was that? This is so strange. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't sense the presence behind me. A hand grabbed my shoulder and yanked me back.

"Princezná!" I woke up with a jolt. "Advica! are you alright?" Josef's voice was laced with worry. It took me a couple of seconds to remember where I was and what happened to me.

"Yes," I swallowed my saliva, trying to illude the thirst away. The dizziness was still there, and the pain spread to the rest of my body. "How long was I out?" I secretly hoped that the two days were already over. I need to get out from here.

"Too long! We thought you were gone too." Lilly's voice was a bit sad.

"Too? is she .." I couldn't finish. I didn't know the girl, but I felt bad for her and all her loved ones.

"Yes. A couple of hours after you passed out. How are you feeling now?" I wanted to say 'disgusted' by my own smell, but I had no right to utter those words. I'm sure they are going through hell with their heightened sense of smell. I'm even ashamed that my vomit and urine were added to the nauseating mix.

"Bad," Is all I could manage to say before fainting again. This time I didn't dream of the mysterious man. I dreamt of home, of my overbearing but loving family. I was hiding in my room again, trying to avoid their eyes. I groaned, feeling how hard my pillow was. Was it another prank from the boys? I fisted the pillow, trying to soften it a bit. But It didn't change a thing. It actually made a sound. I blinked a couple of times before finally noticing the heat and sound coming from within. A rhythmic sound. I jerked away only to be brought back to the hard surface.

"Easy there! You're safe now." The unknown voice said in a hushed voice, holding me tighter. I blinked again, realizing that I could see. It was nighttime, and I was OUT. I took a deep breath enjoying the pure clean air. It instantly eased my headache.

"What happened? who are you?" I asked as we passed other people. Some were wearing black-on-black outfits and moving frantically around, and some were sitting down assisting oversized wolves. My eyes fell on a couple of vampires sitting next to each other. Their glowing red ones clocked my mine with a meaningful look. We were saved!

"We are enforcers from the ......" The man frowned, a loss of an adequate explanation.

"A wolf's pack?" I nodded toward a couple of wolves running around.

"Yes?" He put me down on a sleeping bag and started inspecting my face. His frown deepened, and I didn't know if it was because of my knowledge of his kind or because of my state. Oh Goodness! Of course, it was because of my disgusting state.

"Can I have a change of clothes, please?" His grey eyes met mine. "You should get one too. I'm so sorry!" I've never felt this ashamed in my life. The man stared at me for a couple of seconds before smiling softly.

"I have four kids. Believe me when I say that I've been through worst than this!" My eyes watered from the embarrassment. He meant to make me feel better, but being compared to kids was making me feel worst. Not a couple of seconds later, someone dropped a change of clothes next to us. He gave me water first. The man wrapped a light blanket around me, then skillfully helped me change.

I winced when the material rubbed against my raw wrists. He apologized and started inspecting them. The cuts were not that deep, but still, it was very painful. I was about to ask for any kind of painkillers when I felt a looming presence approaching. I lifted my head, watching the figure get closer before halting. Despite the darkness of night, I saw it. The shock in his honey-like eyes could only mirror mine. It was the mysterious man on the train. His face looked older, harder but still, it was him.

"Enforcer Wilson?......... Sir, is there a problem?" The nameless guy next to me called out to him, but...Wilson? didn't react. He took a step closer, his eyes roaming my face and body, inspecting everything. He took another step, then squatted down. He slowly reached for my face, caressing the bruises I knew were there. The firework exploded all over my body. His simple touch reset my body. Long was gone the pain and discomfort.

"Mate!" Hearing Wilson's single word, the wolf next to me jumped away as if I was some kind of deadly disease. Then the whole area turned into chaos. I have abruptly yanked away from his touch, bringing the pain and nausea back. It took me a couple of seconds to realize that I was in Eve's arms while Josef stood protectively between me and the now growling mob of wolves.

"Let her go vampire!" Wilson's voice sounded cold and menacing. "Let her go, and I promise to return your corps to your clan in one piece." Josef hissed in response to his menace.

"Back away, wolf! She's not yours to take." Eve stated calmly as she stroked my head. I hid my face in the crook of her neck, fighting the tears. This is a mess, and it won't end well for any of us.

"She's his mate! She more than his to claim!!" The nameless wolf yelled at her. The growls multiplied. "There's just two of you against all of us! It won't be hard to take you down."

"Blood is on the way. LET. HER. GO" Wilson's voice was deadlier. Josef laughed dryly at him.

"Blood! Don't insult me! We're not some newborn vampires needing blood every single day! We could survive for weeks before needing a single drop, you ignorant pup!" The insult was met with more growling.

"Than what is it that you want with her, leach!!" Eve tightened her hold on my shaking body before she spoke calmly.

"You can't claim an already claimed female. Go against the law and face the consequences." Everyone stilled at her declaration. "Are you ready for a war, wolves? Do you want me to remind you what happened at the last one?"

"Who claimed her?" His voice was strained. I dared to turn my face and lookup. He was standing in Josef's face, easily towering over him. His eyes shifted toward me, sensing my stare. My heart squeezed at the amount of pain and hurt in them. "I see no claiming mark on her!"

"And you won't see one! she's ..."

"Please stop," I pleaded with them. My tears were running freely now. "My head hurts, please.." I placed my head back on Eve's shoulder. She kissed my head and patted my back gently.

"Gentlemen! I suggest we finish this discussion later." She helped me lay down and covered me with a blanket. "She needs rest and medical assistance. We will go with you to your pack, and we'll stick to her side until her clan lord comes to get her." I heard a growl, but she didn't let its owner talk. "Any complains, demands or challenge would have to wait till then." A heavy silence fell, following her words.

"You will go willingly to the royal pack with us?" Wilson asked septically.

"Royal pack?" Josef sounded surprised. He paused for a minute before adding, "Even better! It would make it easier to discuss the joined investigation." He sat down, still shielding my view from the others.

"What joined investigation?"

"Aren't you curious how all this happened? The kidnappers were a mix of werewolves and vampires." Josef turned around, checking on me. My eyelids were getting heavier every passing second.

"Is it true?" Wilson asked and was answered with a yelp from the shifted wolves.

"We need to join hands to see through this mess. I suppose a royal enforcer like yourself would know his priorities." Another heavy silence spread after the vampire's words.

"Fine! But she stays where I can see her all the time. AND NO DRINKING FROM HER!!" Eve chuckled next to me, making Josef laugh too.

"Oh, believe me when I say we won't. And don't go thinking that it's has anything with you." Eve said between her giggles. To the others, they looked amused, but I knew that they were way far from it.

"What is it then?" The nameless wolf asked, voice filled with curiosity. I wanted to look at Wilson and make sure he was understanding how grave the situation is, but I couldn't lift my head. I was going to faint, and I wasn't going to fight it.

"Because if anything was to happen to her, we, as everyone present here, we're going to face a fate worst than death." Eve's voice sounded like a lullaby to my ears.

"Who's her chosen mate?" Again his voice was filled with pain, making my heart hurt for him.

"I'm not a chosen mate," I mumbled, earning their attention. I wanted to be the one to tell him about our twisted fate. I took a deep breath, refusing to open my eyes. I wasn't ready to face his reaction. The coward in me even wanted to cover her head before spouting the dreaded word.

"I'm a protégé."