Vivian stood looking at the window in her bedroom. She could do it, couldn't she? The woman moved to open the window, sticking herself out to look down. It was a far fall, and it made her stomach clench with panic just thinking about jumping out the window. But how else could she escape this hell?

It was the following day and Vivian had taken to pacing around her room. She was antsy, she needed to do something, anything. Ezra's words hadn't left her mind and she didn't sleep last night. All she could think about was the different ways Ezra was going to kill her if she couldn't escape from this mansion. And Kit, oh gods her heart hurt when she thought about how this would affect Kit. He would be wrecked, having another thing he cared about destroyed by Ezra. She had to escape, she had to.

Last night, while she couldn't sleep, she had watched the guards outside, watched the way they moved and when they switched positions. There's about a two hour gap where there's no guards in her area during the early morning hours and Vivian knew that would have to be when she made the run. She would find the concrete road that led them here, run down it, and hopefully flag someone before anyone noticed she went missing.

It was only a matter of how she got out the window. She could rip the sheets and tie them together, creating a rope, but she doesn't know if that would actually work or something she's just seen in movies. There was no visible way to climb down, and the only way out seemed to be jumping. Which Vivian really did not want to have to do. But she would have to, that's how she would escape. Maybe with a broken arm or a broken leg, but she would escape.

When Alice knocked on her door, it was about dinner time, the maid walking into the room. She held no tray of food.

"What is it?" Vivian asked, knowing there had to be a reason she was just standing there. "The Master has asked to see you again in the library."

Vivian felt her heart drop, knowing she would have to face the horrifying vampire before making her escape. He couldn't find out about it. Vivian released a breath, knowing she had no choice. "Let me pick out a dress." Vivian said, turning to go towards the wardrobe. This time she picked out a dark red dress, the bodice just as tight as the others. They did her hair, and she was ready to see Ezra.

Alice led her down the same path they used yesterday, traveling to the library. Vivian was a bundle of nerves when they arrived, the maid opened the door and ushering Vivian inside. Ezra was in the same spot he was in last time, the chair to his left empty. Vivian took in a breath, and began walking towards the vampire. He didn't say a word as she sat down next to him, the man absorbed in a book. They sat there like that for a while before Ezra finally closed his book.

"So Vivian, tell me," Ezra began, looking over at her, "what was your childhood like?"

The woman blinked. "My childhood?"

"Yes."

"But why?"

"I want to know what kind of life you have lived up until now, I'm very intrigued."

Vivian didn't know what to say. Where did she even start? "It wasn't good." Vivian began, looking away from Ezra. "My dad left when I was ten and my mom died when I was sixteen. I was put into foster care after that, separated from my siblings and forced from family to family. Not all of the experiences were good ones, I was... it was really hard with some families." The women went on, letting the truth spill out, knowing that there would be no other choice with Ezra. "I didn't have much of a childhood, not really."

"I see. Were you born in Lake Ashton?"

"No, Texas actually."

"Texas? Really?"

Vivian shrugged her shoulders. "My mom moved us around a lot after my dad died."

"Where else have you lived?"

"Uh, Ohio, Wyoming, Colorado, and then Oregon. My mom died while I was here, so the state took me in." Vivian explained, feeling strange talking about this, especially with Ezra. It felt wrong. "Why are you asking questions like that?" Vivian asked herself, getting a raised eyebrow from the vampire.

"I'm intrigued by you. Not many humans catch my attention but you have, so I'm interested in your small human life." Ezra said, sitting forward in his chair. "Although I still don't see why my Christopher loves you."

Vivian felt her cheeks flush. "I-I'm sure he doesn't-."

"He does." Ezra cuts her off, eyes narrowing. "I don't know why but he does."

The woman sat quietly, unsure of what to say. He did that a lot to her, making her speechless in the worst kind of way. The vampire sat back in his chair, opening up his book. They sat in silence for a while, the only sound being the tapping of Ezra's foot against the ground. It made Vivian tense, forced to sit here besides Ezra, the real monster.

Ezra again closed his book and turned his attention to Vivian. "Your mother, tell me how she died."

Vivian felt her throat closing. "She... she got into a drunk driving accident."

"Really?"

"Yes." Vivian nodded her head, the memory of the cops showing up at the small apartment her and her siblings were living in with their mother. Of taking them away from their home.

"She had a shorter life than most humans, didn't she?" Ezra asked, placing his book down on the table between them.

"Yes, she did."

"That must have been painful for you."

"It was." Vivian hated the way this conversation was going.

"And your father left you said? Why?"

The woman shook her head. "I-I don't know. My parents... they fought a lot."

"Sounds like you had a very rough upbringing." Ezra said, sitting back in his chair. "My Christopher also had a rough upbringing. He had to leave his family when he was ten, just like you, and came to live with me. Christopher was an aether reservoir, you see."

Vivian felt her stomach drop. Kit was... he was an aether reservoir too?

"I had to take him in, the poor thing. His family didn't like it very much, so I killed them. You could say he lost his family at a young age too." Ezra spoke with no remorse. It made Vivian sick. "He didn't like living with me very much, I could never understand why. But then he was turned..." Ezra goes quiet for a moment, "which was never meant to happen, for when he died, the excess aether left him, and he was just another human turned vampire. Nothing special. I was upset with him, so I locked him in the dungeon for... oh quite a while. He left shortly after that, and I let him go. I don't know what he's been up to since then, and I am thrilled to have someone in my presence that does."

Vivian shook her head. "I-I don't know a whole lot about Kit." She said, reeling from this new information about Kit. "He doesn't really talk about his past."

"He doesn't?"

"No."

Ezra looked genuinely confused. "Why ever not?"

The woman shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know."

"You seem to not know a lot, Vivian." There was a threat in his tone, and Vivian felt it.

"I-I'm sorry." She said, unsure of what else to say. She racked her brain for things she did know about Kit, anything that could satisfy the vampire sitting next to her. "I-I do know he enjoys reading, and he works for Niccolo as an officer."

"He works for Niccolo?"

"Yes."

Ezra's eyes narrowed. "What else?"

Oh gods. "H-He doesn't like to drink blood from people, he helped kill Niccolo's uncle."

"Stop." Ezra cut her off, hand going up. "He helped kill Niccolo's uncle? You mean Vincenzo?"

"Yes." Vivian replied, wondering if she messed up again.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

"Why would they kill Vincenzo?"

"He was turning humans into rabids and setting them lose in Lake Ashton, hoping to throw Niccolo out of power."

"Fascinating." Ezra said, his eyes widening. "I was wondering why there were so many rabids when I visited Kit." The vampire wondered aloud, looking away from Vivian. "That changes a lot." Ezra stood up from his chair, Vivians eyes following. "You may go back to your room." Without another word, the vampire leaves the library, Vivian sitting in silence.

Alice slowly walks over to her. "Shall we return to your room for dinner, Miss?"

"Yeah." Vivian says, a little dizzy. She stood from her chair and followed Alice out of the library and back through the halls to her room. When she went inside, she found food had been set out on one of the tables within the room.

Vivian enjoyed what she decided was going to be her last dinner here. She couldn't stay anymore, she couldn't. She would escape in the early morning, by jumping out the window. She had to, it was her last option. Vivian couldn't stand the dresses and the interrogations with Ezra, wondering when he was going to finally kill her. And she promised Kit she wouldn't get killed by Ezra. She had to escape.

Staying up that night, Vivian steeled her resolution. She could do this, she could. People have jumped from second story windows and survived and she would do the same. After Alice had left her for the night, Vivian changed back into the clothes she arrived in. She sat in a chair facing the window, watching the sky outside. As soon as the sun began to color the darkness, Vivian would make her run.

Vivian felt herself falling asleep at moments but would snap right awake. She would not let herself miss her opportunity. It felt like forever until finally dark blue began to brighten the sky, Vivian feeling the panic swell in her stomach. She just kept telling herself she had to do this, she had to escape.

The sun finally began to greet the sky and Vivian was up. She went to the window, opened it up, and scanned the outside. There were no guards in sight, the outside quiet. Vivian stepped back from the window, prayed to whatever gods were above, grabbed the window, and threw her body outside.

She felt herself falling, and could see the ground coming up on her quickly. Vivian braced herself for the hit, landing on her feet but falling forward, rolling into the snow. She laid there for a moment, her world spinning. But then she remembered she had to escape, she had to run. Vivian got up off her back and rolled onto her hand and knees, pushing up. She instantly fled, running towards the forest for cover. When the trees swallowed her, Vivian couldn't help but feel a tiny tinge of surprise. She did it, she actually did it. But now was the real escape.

Vivian took off in the direction she assumed the concrete road would be, and began running. She didn't find the road for a while, Vivian almost losing hope that she was going the right way, but then she saw it through the trees, and her heart swelled. You're almost there, almost there.

Staying in the woods, Vivian ran alongside the road, snow crunching under her feet. Hopefully she would be far enough away by the time they spotted her footsteps in the snow. The woman ran for she didn't know how long, her legs beginning to burn. She slowed her pace down a little, but continued at a brisk walk, refusing to stop. She had to get away, to get as far as she could from the mansion before they discovered her missing. It would be a few hours before Alice came to deliver her breakfast, and that would be when they discovered the open window and the footprints running to the woods.

Branches stuck out and cut at the skin of her face, making her suck in a breath. Still, she didn't stop. She had to find the main road, someone had to drive past. This all had to work. Her life depended on it.

The sun had begun melting the snow and made it slippery, Vivian almost falling a few times as she slipped in the slush. It made it harder for her to run, so she had to slow her pace as she moved alongside the concrete road.

The forest was completely silent around her, no sound of birds or squirrels running around. It was like the forest was dead. Vivian felt eerie being out here, knowing there would be vampires coming for her eventually. But she would be gone by then, someone would have offered her a ride and she would be gone.

After what felt like forever of trudging through the snow, Vivian finally came upon the main road. She wanted to drop on her hands and knees and kiss the damn thing. She made it! Now all she had to do was wait for a car to come by. But she didn't want to stay close to the concrete road leading to the mansion, so she began walking back towards the town they passed on the way over here.

Vivian began to get very, very cold as she walked, having no coat or sleeves really. Whatever adrenaline that was pumping through her earlier had disappointed the farther she got from Ezra's, allowing the cold to seep into her bones. She walked for a long time, teeth chattering and form shivering. But still, she walked, she couldn't give up, not yet.

A sound came from the forest to the left of her, and Vivian froze, looking into the trees. She could swear she saw something moving. It made her jump out of her skin, Vivian instantly beginning to run.

"Vivian!" A familiar voice called out behind her, and she stopped dead in her tracks. Turning around, she watched as Kit ran towards her.

The woman wanted to collapse on the ground, but instead began running towards the vampire. The two collided, and Kit's arms took Vivian into a fierce embrace. Vivian felt warm and safe, the whole overwhelming experience hitting her and causing her to break down into tears. Kit soothed her, rubbing her back and saying "You are safe, you are free." She was alive. Vivian was alive. She sobbed against the vampire.

Kit released her then and bent down to pick her up, lifting by her back and knees. She was swooped into the air, the vampire carrying her. She didn't say anything, still too caught up in her feelings about being stuck in that hellish mansion. "I have you." Kit said, his voice low and calm.

They walked for a moment, Vivian beginning to calm down as they approached a car. Inside she could see... was that Viktor? As they got closer, the figure inside stepped out and the witch was there.

"Is she injured?" Viktor asked, moving toward them.

"No."

"Quick, bring her to the car." The witch rushed out, leading them back to the car Viktor walked out of. Viktor opened the back door while Kit gently placed Vivian within the car. "Are you coming with us?"

"No." Kit spoke again. He stood next to the car, facing Viktor. "I have to go finish this."

Viktor and Kit were both silent, the two looking at each other. "Are you sure?"

Kit nodded his head. "Yes, stay with her. Please."

"Of course."

"Kit, wait!" Vivian called out as the man began to move away. He stopped. "Where are you going?"

The vampire turned back towards the car. "To kill Ezra."

"You can't!" She said, motioning to get out of the car. But Kit was quicker and blocked her path. He was so close then, she could reach her hands out and grab him, so she did. Kit's eyes widened but he didn't move away. "Please, stay Kit."

It looked like the choice was killing him, his voice strained as he spoke. "I have to do this Vivian, please." The vampire almost sounded like he was asking her permission. That he couldn't do this unless she let him go. "I need to do this."

Vivians heart beat rapidly in her chest. She knew she had to let him go, that this was something Kit had to do. Using her hands, she pulled the vampire closer to her and pressed their lips together. It was a desperate kiss, a hungry one that Kit fed into, his mouth working in sync with hers. Heat spread across her body, hands shaking where they held onto Kit. Then she was pulling away, her breath against his face. "Come back to me, please."

Kit reached out for her then, taking her face in his hands. He looked deep in her eyes, like there was something hidden there. "Yes, anything for you." He whispered before pressing one final kiss to her lips, and then disappearing back into the forest around them.

✩

Kit ran towards the mansion with the feeling of Vivians lips on his. It warmed his body. Which he needed for whatever was ahead of him. The plan had gone smoothly, Niccolo, Kit, and a group of other vampires attacking the manor at sunrise when the others would be unguarded. As soon as they entered the mansion, Kit went to look for Vivian, but he couldn't find her anywhere. That was when he began tracking footsteps he saw outside in the snow, the size looking like they could have belonged to Vivian.

When he found her, walking along the side of the street in nothing but a t-shirt and sweatpants, his stomach dropped. He had found her. She managed to escape on her own. It was completely baffling to him but it didn't matter because he found her, he found Vivian.

And now it was time to take care of Ezra. His sire.

He got back to the mansion in no time, the fighting finishing up. Kit joined in on killing the last few guards before he began looking for Niccolo. It took a while for him to find Niccolo, Kit searching what felt like the whole manor. It was the last door he opened that he spotted Niccolo, bloody and wounded but alive, surrounded by other wounded vampires. Then Kit's eyes traveled down to the figure kneeling besides Niccolo and his blood ran hot.

Ezra.

"Oh you finally made it back." Niccolo said, stumbling over to Kit. "Thanks for your help." There was a sarcastic tone to his voice, but Kit couldn't focus on that.

All he could look at was Ezra kneeling on the ground next to Niccolo, absolutely torn to pieces and bound by silver chains. Kit couldn't breathe for a moment, didn't believe his eyes. His sire, kneeling on the ground, wounded and bloody. Kit couldn't move.

"He put up a good fight." Niccolo said, pointing to Ezra. "Nearly killed me."

Still, Kit didn't look away from Ezra, and before he could think about it, he was moving towards his sire. No one tried to stop him as he stood in front of the vampire, breath stuck in his throat.

Ezra looked up at him, something like rage in those hateful eyes. "Christopher." The vampire said, but it was strained and sounded wrong, like his vocal cords had been cut. "Or should I call you... Kit?"

Kit's body moved on its own accord, reaching out and breaking through Ezra's chest to grab his worthless heart. His sire looked at him, wide eyed for just a moment. Then Kit ripped his arm out, taking Ezra's heart with it. His sire let out a choked noise before going limp. Kit watched as his body glowed a bright red before disintegrating into nothing but ash and dirt.

Ezra, nothing but ash and dirt.

Kit took a stumbling step backwards, staring at the pile of ash. It was over, Kit thought, staring down at his hands. He had done it. Ezra was dead. After years and years of torture and pain, Ezra was dead. It didn't feel real. It felt like he was in a dream, one he didn't want to wake up from.

The vampire looked up to Niccolo, who just stood there, staring. "You killed him." Niccolo said, looking down to the pile of what used to be Ezra. "How does it feel?"

Kit just stood there, eyes moving between his hands and the pile of ash on the ground. He did it. Ezra was dead. His mind couldn't process it, after living with the pureblood tormenting him for hundreds of years, he was gone. Just... gone. Kit was free.

He took in a breath, feeling his face begin to buzz with the realization. He was free, something Kit never thought would happen to him. He assumed Ezra would be there for the rest of his existence, however long Ezra allowed that to be. He never thought he would outlive Ezra, let alone be the one to end his life.

"I-I do not know." Kit answered, looking back at the elder vampire. And it was true, because the vampire didn't know what to feel at that moment, besides numb and shocked.

"Is the girl safe?" Niccolo asked, moving towards the door Kit came through.

Kit watched the vampire move. "Yes, she is with Viktor."

"Go to her."

"What?" Kit breathed out.

"It's over Kit. You killed the bad guy, saved the girl. Now go be with her." Niccolo turned and left then, the rest of the vampires slowly following. But Kit couldn't move, he looked back to the spot on the ground where Ezra's ashes lay. It really was over, wasn't it?