Chapter 23
Jack
My hands are bound tightly and lifted above my head by a chain.
My feet are spread wide and are shackled at the ankle.
I can’t move or fight if I wanted to. And fuck, does that piss me off.
I don’t know how much time has passed since I’ve been taken prisoner, but every once in awhile I’m brought a stale piece of bread and some dirty water to drink.
I haven’t seen that bitch, Melinda, since she instructed her lackeys to take me.
From where I’m at, though, I can sometimes overhear them talking.
Tonight, they plan on kidnapping Lydia to use as a sacrifice, thus enacting a curse on this land that transmutes all our collective power and life force into Melinda’s grasp.
That fucking cunt bag not only wants to hurt Lydia, but all of us here at Nightmare Acres.
She’s already started distributing a sleeping potion amongst the monsters and that scares the hell out of me. If everyone is out of commission, then how the fuck are we supposed to stop her?
They’ve gathered the last of the ingredients needed for their ritual and are counting down the moments, devising a plan on how to get Lydia alone.
The thing about Nightmare Acres is that it’s rife with spilled blood.
Making it a powerful place for her to conjure the curse.
Blood magic alone is already more potent than regular magic, from what I gather from their whispered conversations.
But since there’s so much that has seeped into the dirt over the years, it’s the perfect conduit for Melinda to kill us all.
Taking our immortality would render her unstoppable.
There’s nothing I can do to stop it, and my worst fears of having another person I care about taken from me are coming to fruition right in front of my eyes.
To pass the time, I keep my brain busy with memories of my children.
Mary’s first steps. Nathaniel’s first word which was, ‘Dada’.
Then my thoughts shift to ones of Lydia.
How much I’ve fallen for her in such a short time.
The fact that this witch wants to use her for her own sick, power-hungry agenda fuels me with rage.
Whatever powder she used to subdue me also made it impossible to transform into my monster form, though, I keep trying periodically. It’s got to wear off at some point, or at least I hope it will.
The chains sit tightly around my wrists, and I can no longer feel my arms. I just hope that Maverick and Hendricks will keep her safe.
As if I conjured them with my thoughts, I hear the two vampires just outside. The witches, unfortunately, hear them as well.
There’s a scuffle, a shout, and then nothing.
It takes several minutes before I see two large bodies being dragged into the same cell, and all hope that I had of us getting through this are dashed.
Maverick and Hendricks are strung up just like I am with their wrists bound above their head and legs spread and clamped at the ankles.
They’re passed out, their heads lolling and eyes closed.
Hendricks is sporting a black eye and split lip from where his lip piercing once sat.
Blood dribbles down his chin, pooling onto his shirt.
Maverick isn’t much better off. His nose looks broken and he’s sporting a burn across his bare chest, along with claw marks that he must have sustained in the fight with the werewolves judging on their subtle healing.
It seems to take hours before they become conscious. And when they do, they’re angry as hell.
“What the fuck?” Maverick yells, looking around frantically. “What happened?”
“The witches happened,” I say, seething with fury.
“I fucking knew it!” He roars.
“The hell did my shirt go?” He asks.
“Must have lost it in the fight,” Hendricks murmurs. He spits and then groans.
“What the fuck do they want with us in here?” Maverick asks.
“It’s not just us that they want,” I tell them.
“What do you mean?” He asks.
“They’re planning to take Lydia to use for a curse. This witch, Melinda, has all the witches under some spell, making them act like her flying monkeys to do her dirty work. She plans to kill Lydia tonight and siphon all our powers and life-force for herself.”
My words land like a bomb detonating.
Both Maverick and Hendricks try pulling at their chains, but it’s no use. We’re stuck.
“How the hell are we supposed to get out of here and help her?” Hendricks asks, still trying to pull his hands free.
“I don’t know.”
I wish I had the answers or a way to warn Lydia. The familiar feeling of despair clings to my chest. I’ve failed us all by not eradicating Melinda in the first place. Had I made sure I had the right witch, we wouldn’t be here right now.
It’s all my damn fault.
Maybe everyone would have been better off if I’d died all those years ago.
“Jack!” Hendricks yells and I realize they must have been talking to me, but I missed it.
“What?”
“Did they say anything else? Anything you can remember that might have been helpful?”
“The only thing I can tell you is that Melinda is the same witch that gave me a tonic that first turned me into the monster I am now, the night my family died.”
They look as stunned as I felt.
“Didn’t you kill her?” Maverick asks after a heavy moment.
“I thought I did. Turns out that it was her sister. And now we all might pay for my mistake.”
“This isn’t your fault, Jack. It’s hers.”
I hear his words, and on some level, I know it’s true, but I can’t help but beat myself up for this. The last thing I want is for any of us, but Lydia especially, to pay for my fuck up.
“How are my little prisoners doing?” Melinda’s voice asks as she appears from the shadows, and I wonder how long she’s been sitting there. Watching. Listening.
Her long silver hair glistens in the torchlight.
“Fucking bitch!” Maverick yells. “Get us the fuck out of here!”
“Tsk. Tsk. Is that anyway to talk to your captor?”
“When I get my hands on you, I’m going to rip your head off and drain your blood from your whole body. I’m going to make it hurt so much you wish you were never born!” Hendricks screams.
“Temper, boys. Really. So barbaric. Such a shame really, I always liked you two Ricks. I’d thought about keeping you on as my bodyguards, but now I’m not so sure.
It seems you might be more of a nuisance than anything, and I can’t have that.
Enjoy your last few hours on this earth, boys.
I’ll be sure to say hi to Lydia for you. ”
She leaves, and Maverick and Hendricks scream out to her calling her every insult under the sun. It’s no use though. We’re fucking trapped and our girl is in danger.