"Oh okay. Well do you need anything?"
She shook her head, keeping her eyes on his huge hands.
He squeezed once more and stood up, "If you do just text me. I'll have my phone beside me."
"K."
He walked to the doorway, "Hanna."
She looked up, meeting his eyes for the first time.
He smiled softly, "You're a really good friend."
He walked from the room.
She watched as he closed the door. Tears filled her eyes again. She felt silly crying for a boy she tricked into liking her, meanwhile her friend had just lost her father.
She waited until Giselle was completely asleep and she slipped her leg out from under her. She crept to Aleks's room.
She knocked lightly, "Aleks?"
She turned the knob and poked her head inside, "Aleks you here?"
She glanced around the room but he wasn’t there. She closed the door and crept to his bathroom. She knocked and opened the door, "Aleks?"
She sighed and walked back to the door.
"Tsk Tsk Tsk."
She froze facing the door. The voice was unmistakable.
"My love did you really think I wouldn’t find you? I will say I'm disappointed you're creeping around calling for that wanker."
She turned, "Marcus you scared me. Seriously you have to leave."
He sat outside the window smugly.
She felt anger welling inside her, "You're going to get me into trouble."
He leaned in the window grabbing her arm and dragging her to the windowsill.
"Hanna no one can tell me that I can't see you. These Roses are brain washing you."
She tried to pull back but he pulled her through the window. She screamed as he jumped to the next building. He grabbed on like spider man.
She clutched to his chest screaming. The cold air of the night pushed at her, as if tempting her to jump. She knew she could survive the fall but she dreaded the pain. She looked down to see the ground below and screamed again.
"Hanna for the love of god and all things holy. Stop the screaming. I have very good hearing, it's annoying."
She gripped him, feeling her fingers slipping.
He made a few strategic jumps and landed safely on the ground. When her feet touched the ground she collapsed to the cement.
She touched the cold wet cement with her fingers.
"Oh thank god."
"Hmph, I saved you not him." He grabbed her arm.
She tried to pull back but he dragged her to a black car. She saw the bowler hat in the front seat. Marcus threw her inside the car and climbed in as well.
The smell of him was there instantly. Her instincts kicked in as she savored the scent of him filling the car.
He grabbed her face, "You will not cry for that wanker Aleksander one more day. I see even a glimpse of sadness and I will burn the entire building down. With Hellfire. Even Lorri wont live."
His tone frightened her but the dead look in his eyes scared her even more.
Henry drove like a madman through the dark streets.
"Marcus I wasn’t crying for Aleks."
He grabbed her face again closing her mouth, "Oh please, I can see the tears. I saw you creeping in his room. You looked upset. I've smelled him on you. He's told me all about you and he."
She cringed, "You're hurting me."
He seethed, "I haven’t even begun Hanna."
She tried to pull back but his mouth was on hers. His teeth raked her lips. It was a savage kiss.
She hit him feeling her strength filling her. He bounced against the opposite car door grinning.
"I like it when you fight Hanna. If I recall you liked it too."
Tears filled her eyes, "You're not listening to me. I don’t love Aleks, well no more than any woman. Every woman feels that way about him."
"I don’t want to hear your excuses. No more lies."
She grabbed him, "You fucking idiot Lorri is going to come for me."
He laughed, "Lorri will think you betrayed her. Like you did me."
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing, "Betrayed you?"
"With Aleksander."
She groaned, "Marcus he took the elixir. I'm like a sister to him. Believe me. He loves a girl named Giselle, her father died today. I was looking for Aleks to tell him to go to my room to comfort her. She fell asleep in there."
He flexed his jaw staring ahead as if unmoved by her words.
"Marcus you have to believe me. Nothing has happened. I like my training, I like being a Rose. I'm done in a couple weeks. I get to go home soon. Please take me back before they suspect something."
He sat stoic. She hated him.
She growled, "You stubborn ass."
"Hanna I have a special place for you. We will live there together." His eyes focused on her bracelet, "Minus that thing."
She gulped, "Marcus the distance has been good for me. I see now there is a difference between love and lust." She tried to tread carefully, "If I loved you my Siren side would be faded. It's stronger than ever."
She didn’t see his hand move but she felt the impact as her head was knocked into the window. She saw stars as she was pulled into him.
His anger seethed though his fangs, "You love me Hanna. You're confused."
He pushed her back into her seat. She looked at him once last time. Quickly she grabbed the lock on the car door and flipped it up and opened the door simultaneously. She rolled from the car. She got up instantly and ran. She ran as hard and fast as her legs would allow.
Her inner anger filled her with enough rage to carry her. She felt the beast's senses starting to fill her. She looked at the building next to her and leapt hard and fast. She scaled the building using her hands and feet. She got up to the roof with a leap. She sprinted across the roof leaping to the next building. She knew he was stronger, faster and more determined than she was. It was futile but she also knew her cell phone was in her bra.
She speed dialed the first number in her call list.
"Yeah?"
"SAM I'M OUTSIDE RUNNING ON THE ROOFTOPS! MARCUS IS CHASING ME! HELP ME! TELL LORRI!"
"Hanna?"
"SAM HELP ME! HE ALMOST HAS ME!"
She prayed he would care enough to help her. Her legs pumped as she zigzagged across the city leaping from building to building. In the moment she assumed would be the end of her life, her heart ached for one face. One face, in the crowd of men she held in her mind, stood out. She ignored it, desperate to get away.
She could feel the beast desperate to come out. Her body and mind were strong enough that the beast was nothing compared to her. Instead she forced its strength to work for her, driving her on, forcing her to ignore the pain.
Her sock feet were starting to burn, she knew they were bleeding and leaving a trail of Marcus's favorite snack to follow.
She face palmed herself. It was like Hansel and Gretel but leaving dog treats for a hound to find them.
She looked down at her phone ringing. The cold wind rushed past her. She answered the phone.
"Hello."
"What do you see?"
It was Lorri, pissed couldn’t describe her tone.
"I don’t know I can't stop running. I'm in bare feet and they're bleeding everywhere. I'm running across rooftops. He's chasing me and he has Henry."
"Son of a fuck. Try to notice something Hanna."
Hanna looked seeing golden arches, "MacDonald's and a subway station beside it."
"Got you. Be there in three. Run straight for the next two blocks, try to get to the ground level."
Hanna hung up the phone and looked down. The huge buildings were ending. She jumped down onto a small church. She heard the snap in her foot and winced. She slid down the roof.
"HANNA!"
She looked behind her to see Marcus chasing her. His face had changed to the angry monster she'd only ever seen once.
She gasped and jumped from the roof. The broken bone in her foot made her scream.
She ran hobbling, he would have her any minute.
Her feet were almost dragging along the pavement. She felt sobs filling her throat as she looked ahead of herself.
Marcus stood two stores away. Somehow he had gotten in front of her. He wore a sickening grin on his face.
"My love why are you running from me? I'm here to help you."
She shook her head, "You want me to be yours, like a possession not a person. I will never be yours. I never was Marcus. It's not love."
She reached down gripping the bracelet. She noticed the many people on the busy city street ignoring her. She pulled the bracelet off, letting it fall to the ground. The shells smashed everywhere.
"Miss are you alright. Let me help you."
"Miss, no let me help you."
"Fuck off buddy I got her first."
"No. Let go of my girlfriend."
They surrounded her. The humans became a barrier. It was a petty pathetic move but she was desperate.
Marcus laughed as he started throwing them aside.
Every step he took he removed another human, as she backed away from him five more surrounded her. She felt their hands on her. She felt them grabbing her arm.
Their greedy fingers pinched her skin as they ripped at her clothes, in an attempt to get her to come with them.
The wall of humans grew. She felt herself getting swallowed up in it. The beast tried to rage its way to the surface. The strength of her crushed it, sending it back into the dark.
She pushed back, sending people back a few steps but again they would swallow her up.
She felt a hand on her arm, it grabbed her hard, pulling her more forcefully than the others.
She turned her head to see Sam.
Her Sam.
He pulled her to him as she shoved people out of the way and collapsed into his arms. He lifted her up and flashed outside a dark black SUV.
The door was open, he placed her inside and jumped in with her.
"Hanna are you alright?"
Most of her clothes had been ripped from her body. She looked like she had changed again.
