Him

Getting out of the clinic had been an endeavor. Mia insisted on doing everything she could before she let us leave with the half-asleep Rosie.

I assured her repeatedly Rosie would be well cared for in a place she felt more comfortable in but it'd still took hours to get Mia to let us leave.

Even if what she'd done had been for the best I felt bad making Rosie jump through so many hoops. Admittedly healthy hoops, but it's not like I wouldn't have made sure she showered and drank enough water there.

And Derik and I are vampires. She didn't need to be hooked up to all those machines, we would have heard if her heart or breathing was off.

And even small tasks like showering, changing, and eating a small snack could be exhausting after major injuries or anything else you need time to recover from.

As soon as Derik had managed to get Rosie out of the clinic she'd passed out in the back seat and didn't wake up when we parked. I'd carried her inside and set her in one of the guest rooms without her stirring once.

Thankfully her back was numbed and I was careful so it shouldn't have hurt her back any.

Derik had written her a short note about where she could use the bathroom, how someone would bring her food, and that she was welcome to lock her doors and she had no work to worry about.

He'd also written about where our room was and to come there if she had any questions or anything she needed.

Which as simple as it seemed would be a very jarring experience for a pet. It's odd to have few rules or be treated as a person after a while. And I'd only been a pet for three years, imagine what it's like to be a pet for five years or even your whole life.

Not that I'd really had the whole pet experience considering most pets spend less than three months total in pet shops. And I'd only had two masters not counting Derik in three years since I bounced around pet shops instead of staying and getting bought.

I'd taken the hottest shower ever and changed into PJ pants and one of Derik's shirts about half an hour ago.

Now I'm just staring at the mirror. I'm not sure why, all I can feel after everything is an uncomfortable hollow feeling in my chest and how heavy my eyes are.

It was like my body had given up on giving me emotions and instead decided I'd be better with nothing.

But I hated the empty feeling you get after too many emotions. It made me feel alone and no matter how much I grasp for any hint of emotion my mind just won't do it.

It was like someone hit a refresh button and I was buffering. Like the only thing there was to do was feel the emptiness until I fell asleep and see how I felt in the morning.

I hate it when that happens. Like what, I missed my chance to understand and accept my feelings so now I'll just never know as a punishment?

Not fair. Not even remotely.

When I finally came out of the bathroom Derik was sitting on the bed with a worried expression. Forcing a smile I sat next to him. I got tucked into his side and rested my legs on top of his.

Being around him didn't over shadow the hollow feeling but it lessened it a bit, made everything seem more normal.

"Hey, how are you holding up?" He asked gently.

"I... don't know. I feel numb," I admitted.

"Why did you never tell me about Rosie?" He almost sounded hurt.

"I... I could hardly think about her. It hurt too much, I couldn't talk about her to myself nonetheless someone else. Besides it's not like you've ever told me all your deep dark secrets." I cleared my throat staring at his hand somehow gently clutched in mine.

I shouldn't have said anything about him not wanting to share with me. If he didn't want to he shouldn't have to, but it felt a little hypocritical. And it hurt my feelings he didn't trust me but that doesn't mean I should push him to.

"I... you're right. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to hide things from you, there are just some things that..."

"It's okay, there are some things I hope you never learn about me and I shouldn't stop you from being the same. Besides, you're not my pet anymore so you don't owe me any answers." When I looked at him he was smiling though most of it didn't touch his eyes.

"I guess we don't know each other as well as we think, huh?" I remarked but I smiled. The numb feeling was a little less overbearing and it was easy to think about him instead.

"I don't think you have to know someone's past to know them. I might not know what you've been though, but I do know you. I know your personality and your smile. I know what you like and what you hate, I know what you value and what you don't care about."

I couldn't describe the look on his face, couldn't do it justice. But there was this look in his eyes, just as soft as his smile. And I couldn't tell you how it made me feel.

My eyes teared up and a goofy smile overtook my face. Whatever that look was it made me melt. And I don't mean the horrible tears on my face for no reason. It felt like melted chocolate.

Soft and sweet.

And that feeling covered the worst of the numbness. It let me fall asleep peacefully and feeling safe. For a little while at least.

***

["I've heard about hybrids being different. Is that true, are they stronger?" When I lifted my eyes I saw a man with too long pitch black hair. His eyes were a bright golden but held none of the kind things the color yellow was associated with.

They were angry. Almost vengeful. But that's not the part of his expression I was worried about. The anticipating smile, the same one my first master had.

The same crazed look when he hurt you.

But I wouldn't let it shake me. *I'm a Regional's daughter and a rare hybrid, there is no way I will be scared of a regular vampire. I will destroy him if he so much as hits me, just like all the rest of them.*

And he would pay for the things you could tell from his eyes alone he'd done.

"Yes...they are significantly harder to kill than a werewolf or human." My vender sounded worried about losing his sale. Like he really thought he'd never be able to sell me.

You can always sell a hybrid, if for no other reason because vampires are curious about them.

"Perfect, I'd like to examine her." *I hate that smile. That's the 'I'm going to enjoy torturing you' smile and it pisses me off.*

"Of course." The vender unlocked my cage and dragged me out. Thankfully this one was smart and had decided against whipping or beating me.

I stood easily on my feet with the only injuries on me healing bruises. Which was nice because it made me feel like I'm showing the customer that I'm strong and he'd regret buying me.

With an excited smile on his face the customer walked around in circles examining me. Occasionally he poked at me or moved my dress to get a better look at me. Which I responded to with an intimidating growl.

"She is a little temperamental, I apologize." The vender gave me a 'knock it off' look.

"Not to worry, I think I've got a way of keeping her in check," the customer dismissed annoyingly.

He seemed to take particular interest in the bruises on my legs healing almost noticeablely while he walked around me. After what felt like far too long he nodded to himself and stood in front of me again.

"This is the one they talk about, right? The hybrid they call Karma?" He inquired.

"Yes, she's built quite a reputation."

"Perfect, run and get the forms, would you?" The customer had hardly gotten the words out before the vender scurried off.

I glared at him. *There is no way someone knows who I am and still wants me for any good reason.* Usually I don't worry when people say they have a way to control me but the look in his eyes was anything but comforting.

Far sooner than I was comfortable with the vender was back. My new owner excitedly signed the forms while I stared anxiously at the papers.

"Wonderful, enjoy your purchase!" The vender chirped.

"Oh, I will," the customer assured.

With a tight collar strangling my neck I left the pet shop with much more confidence on my face than I felt.

***

"I've decided I'm changing your name. It's Bitch now," my owner announced brightly. I growled lightly at him and he hit my arm hard enough I heard it crack frighteningly before a horrible creaking pain split my arm. Every tiny movement burst pain from my arm like a thousands of pins shredding my arm.

Thankfully it felt like just a fracture. *It still hurt like hell though.*

But after two years even though the pain hadn't lessened at all my outward reaction was small as I brought my arm closer to myself grunting, though tears came to my eyes I refused to cry holding them back just like the pain.

Without skipping a beat my owner walked humming down into what I assumed was a basement. It was darkly lit and smelled stale. At first I thought it was like my first master.

That there'd be a room of his personal play things for when he got bored. I was wrong. What I saw couldn't compare to that. I couldn't decide which was worse but this one scared me more.

I was thrown into a room. Every wall was thick metal and the door was no different. It looked like a place they'd keep a vampire. Steel walls and doors a foot thick, and a glass viewing portion that must have been two feet thick and was likely bulletproof.

But that wasn't the part I was worried about. The viewing glass let me see into a different room. A room full of every kind of torture tools you could think of.

Blades, needles, whips, pliers, blunt weapons, irons, acid, saws, nails, iron maiden, bands to painfully stretch you out, weights wired so if you put them down they'd hurt you, cattle prods, hot wax. If you could hurt someone with it, it was there.

And then there was my owner standing by a girl hanging from her hands tied to the ceiling. She was obviously drugged out of her mind and he smiled at me dangerously.

And that girl was Rosie.

"I figured it out, your weakness. You protect these girls; you could just get up and walk away but you never do. You kill the people that treat them badly when it could be none of your concern." The crazed look on his face made me look between him and Rosie.

"AHA, I got it right. So here's the plan, she's the reason you're going to listen to me. You're going to do whatever it is I ask without complaint, or she's going to pay for it. Oh, and I made her special just for you, bubbly, excited, child-like. Someone I know you'll want to protect."

"And if you don't, oh well. I'll still get the joy of watching that light in her eyes slowly die. Seeing her will break down into nothing." I growled loudly, I hated that cocky smile on his face. *Damn it.*

I was stuck and I knew it. There were weak spots to my room but if I even attempted to use them it would be over for her in a second. Maybe there would be some time when it was safe to break out but no time in the near future was I getting out without killing Rosie.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Bitch." He gave me a threatening smile and padded from the room.

As soon as he was gone I looked at Rosie closer. I couldn't risk him thinking she meant more to me than any other pet but I so desperately wanted to protect her.

For now, she looked well taken care of. For a pet. She didn't have any injuries except a tiny needle hole in her arm. Her clothes were perfectly intact and even seemed relatively clean.

She wasn't in any means a healthy weight but for a pet she looked fed. Even if her white dress hung off her figure like it had no place to perch. Even the bags under her eyes were light and her hair was washed.

But her good condition didn't make me relieved.

I was glad she got a little bit where she could start to relax but her being healthy was concerning. The only reason a man like that would treat her fairly was so it would hurt that much more when she was treated like trash again.

I wouldn't let anything happen to her. I couldn't. Not after she was the only person to treat me normally in years.

*I can't fail again. I can't fail her like my parents.*

I just stared into that room for hours. I couldn't sleep, couldn't risk it, just listening to any tiny noise anywhere near Rosie's door. If I was human I would be actively fighting sleep as my eyelids felt like sandpaper.

But for me sleep is more of a luxury. Humans need to sleep for almost eight hours sometimes but I didn't need as much as I actually got. Maybe two or three hours a night but that's all I need.

After a while Rosie woke up.

She looked around her obviously confused and straightened so not as much of her weight was on her shoulders. Just imagining how stiff and sore her shoulders were gave me sympathy pains.

Then her eyes came to mine. She didn't look accusing or even scared over our last goodbye. That made it almost harder to see what would happen to her.

Tears welled in my eyes and my cool calm exterior crumpled. I said the only thing I could think. The thing playing over and over again in my head.

"I'm so sorry." I said it over and over again. It was the only thing I felt capable of thinking.

"What's going on Fall?" She asked in a tired confused little voice.

"They're-they're going to u-use you to make me-me do what they wa-want. I'm s-so sorry, Rosie," I cried holding my arms around myself.

"Oh..." That was the only thing that came out of her. She stared at her feet with a blank expression.

"Hey, Bitch!" *Oh no. No, not yet. Please just give me a little more time to think. A little time to wipe how much I care off my face.*

I forced all evidence of tears off my face and tried to clear all the distress from my face. I replaced my expression with sympathetic indifference the best I could but I knew it wasn't good enough to fool a vampire.

I could only hope I covered enough of it. Enough for him to think I only cared about her as a regular pet.

"Big day, so many options, so little time. Just how durable are hybrids? I think today I'll start seeing what's different about you." He beamed happily and I showed no outward reaction.

Wheels scrapped across the floor in the hallway. Water splashed and boots clicked. Whatever he's planning is already starting.

Mild annoyance was the only thing I let stay on my face.

"Now behave for my men or we both know what happens." I tried not to show anything on my face but my jaw set and I suppressed a growl.

There were worse things for him to think I felt other than angry.

Two very large men brought in a large tank of water. They want to drown me, or at least dunk me, by the looks of it.

"Problem, Dearie?" My owner asked smirking.

"Yes, Master. I'm not sure how you plan on holding me in there. I'll try not to resist but after I run out of breath I might not be able to help it." I tried not to anger him with him standing right by Rosie.

I forced my voice to stay humble.

At the beginning of the sentence he looked angry but by the end of it he looked more confused than anything else.

"You think you can resist two full grown vampires?" He laughed, I didn't.

Suddenly the big guys in all black seemed a little less confident. They glanced at each other nervously.

"Very well, since you're trying so hard to be good I'll add two more people. I don't want you to purposely breathe under the water, I want to time how long you can stay conscious." He started tapping on his phone before he even finished talking.

I quickly nodded in agreement to hold my breath before he changed his mind and punished Rosie. *I just hope two more is enough.*

It didn't take long for two more burly guys to appear. *God I'm nervous.* Even if I couldn't die from drowning being held under water was a terrifying concept.

"And start!" My owner yelled. Without another second my head was quickly dumped into the tank and held there.

Trying not to panic or even breathe was hard. I wanted to be perfectly still for as long and possible but I didn't like being forced under the water.

I also worked not to lose any breath. Neither of which was easy. It didn't seem to take long before my lungs hurt.

They burned and screamed until my lungs were raw and fragile. They convulsed painfully as they reflexively tried to bring in air. But there wasn't any. Water filled my lungs swishing around and doing nothing to stop the awful spasming of my lungs.

It burned worse than fire, like fire dancing inside my chest while electric currents jolted through the tender thin membrane of my lungs.

My body jerked uncontrollably and I felt the water around my face move violently but I couldn't force my head above the water no matter how hard I failed to escape the pain and instinctual panic as my body started to numb and feel weak.

After a while all the movements I made felt far away and fog seemed to settle over my brain. I couldn't think and all my muscles felt weak.

The only fuzzy thing my mind could still focus on was the need to move and the water in my lungs I couldn't cough up. The subtle burn in every part of me was hard to hold onto.

Everything escaped me like water through my fingers.

***

I woke up coughing and spitting up water as one of the vampires harshly hit my back. I was freezing and soaked, my lungs hacked up so much water I questioned if they could even hold that much. Even when my lungs emptied I couldn't stop coughing as the painfulraw spasms refused to stop until my theoat felt dry even after the recent near drowning. Not to mention the pounding ache exploding throughout my skull as I tried to keep what little the shop owner gave me for breakfast down nauseous and dizzy.

In short, I feel like hell.

"You are turning out to be quite interesting." Following the sound of my owner's voice I saw him sitting next to Rosie.

I gave him a slightly confused look still struggling to not draw in as much air as possible. I hid some of the pain I felt but showed some of it to make him happier.

"Even with four of them, vampires were struggling to hold you. Honestly you held your breath so long I was starting to get bored," he looked at his watch, "a whole thirty minutes before you even started to struggle. Another ten before you actually lost consousness. I wonder if that durrability applies to other things."

The malicious smile on his face made me shudder as I looked at Rosie's anxious expression. *I can't get out of this.*