Playing Prey In A Dangerous Game

Lilyanya dressed carefully that day making sure that Sebastien didn't think that something was wrong. She decided to do this at night since it almost everyone would be at home sleeping. Leaving her room quietly and walking out the front door, she left a note on her pillow for him just in case. It simply said she was going out to meet a friend to hang out with for a little bit. She was wearing a long black dress that had a slit up to her thigh on both sides and it was backless with a pair of high heeled shoes, her coat was a simple black. Her make-up was immaculate, she looked dolled up that made her feel good.

Anya was walking proud as she crossed where she knew he would hang out sometimes, then headed to a park that would let out near her home. She walked with careful steps standing proud and hoping that the trap would spring so she could be free of the man who stalked her. It was ten minutes before she exited the park and walked across the street. She couldn't smell the trappers but she knew they were there, they would protect her from him. Reaching her door she unlocked it and pushed it open then closed it behind her. She didn't lock it simply because she knew they would need a quick way in, then she took off her coat and hung it up on it's peg.

Anya walked into her living room and looked around finding nothing out of place. She took out her wand and waved it over the lamp that sat on the end tables. Light flared up in the living room then she lit the fire place as well, then she stopped. She saw a book sitting on one of the chairs was a book she didn't recognize and as she went to go look at it there was movement in the corner of her eye. Turning quickly she saw the man who stalked her since she was turned standing five feet away. He was smiling and in his hands he had a long knife in one hand the other held rope.

"Hello Anya, I've waited a long time for this. We can do this the hard way or the easy way, but regardless tonight you'll die. Then my assistant and I will be out of this country no one will ever be the wiser, I should have killed you when I had the chance. Mmm but your blood was as sweet as honey and I wanted to savor it  but of course we had to get interrupted." The man said as he watched her with careful eyes.

Anya was rooted to the spot by him just being in the same room, she couldn't say one thing as she watched him. In the back of her head she was screaming at herself to run away to get away from him as fast as she could.

Orpheus had planted himself and his men outside of Anya's home and had managed to follow in the shadows. When it appeared that she would be heading home, he signaled to his associates, led by Norman. Orpheus and Norman snuck around the back of her home and entered through the back door as they had arranged with the young woman.

As soon as Orpheus entered the room, he could smell the presence of unfamiliar vampires. He looked to Norman, who sensed it as well. Norman dipped his head and overturned a coin, signalling their associates to burst inside at any point. With that in mind, they stepped into the living room, finding that they completed a perfect triangle, as they were equal distance from both Anya and her attacker.

Orpheus tilted his head. "Hello," he said, a polite smile unfurling on his face. Typically, vampires knew his face, if not his name. "My name is Orpheus Grimm. Is there something I can help you with?"

That should shake him, if he was a vampire of any merit.

The man looked at Orpheus then back at Anya, "Tut tut Anya, you should know better than that. I don't do well in crowds and you know that. You brought the famous Orpheus Grimm into my game and you know I don't share well with others." He said grinning as he began playing with the knife in earnest to distract the men that surrounded them. "I want you to leave Orpheus, the woman is mine to do with as I wish. She bears my mark on the back of her neck, I made sure of it when I turned her. Not even she knew about it, I do have to say though if you kill me you'll just have another just like me. If I die my assistant will finish what I came here to do. She will still be hunted no matter what, you'll have to find him and execute us both in order for her to be free." He turned to look at him grinning maliciously.

Anya had watched Orpheus walk in but she wasn't able to move no matter how much she wanted to. When he pinned her with his eyes she felt like he was going to make a move towards her. She waited until his eyes were fixed on Orpheus she walked backwards towards Orpheus' men. She wanted out of that triangle and out of the mans line of sight. She wanted to run but she forced herself to slowly walk towards those men. Anya knew that the only way she was going to survive was for those men who chased her to die. Then she could truly feel freedom and she could breathe without fear of being killed. When she saw his head turning back towards her she stopped moving, she was inches from then men who surrounded them. She kept her face void of any emotions because she knew that the man in front of her would be dead before he touched her. She trusted Orpheus with every fiber of her being that he would protect her from the monster that stood twenty feet from him.

Orpheus did not like being ignored, and the fact that the vampire before him knew of him and still chose to disrespect him in such a manner greatly upset Orpheus. The Grimm patriarch had planned on entering the home with the intention of trying to enlighten this strange vampire on the ways of survival. What point was it to kill another vampire, when they had the option to band together and kill humans for their bloodlust? But if the man was just as disrespectful as he was idiotic, Orpheus felt less inclined to spare his life. It seemed he would be a useless ally.

"You're a fool," Orpheus explained, "if you think killing Anya will do anything for her. She has connections, and her murder will not pass without investigation. And now that I am here, with my associates, there are witnesses. And it is almost a joke to consider the idea that you could possibly overcome me, let alone three of my associates."

Right on cue, two vampires burst through the front door. The vampire was now flanked from behind and the front by two pairs of vampires. Anya was creeping towards Orpheus and Norman and Norman glanced her way, assuring her she would be protected on reaching them.

Orpheus tilted his head. "And if your assistant is anything like you, I'm sure he will be just as easily disposed of. This is your last opportunity to abandon this foolish errand and leave the country."

The man grinned and turned completely towards Orpheus. "Ah the woman may have connections but she should have known that just because she's now immortal that i would allow her to live. Witness' can be easily disposed of, or even bribed that to look the other way. What is she to you Orpheus? An inexperienced vampire with no connections besides knowing you. You should really aim higher when it comes to finding people you should be protecting. She's a nobody and she's definitely not one who will be missed if she does die." The man smirked at Orpheus then looked over at Orpheus' associates.

Anya saw that the man was completely distracted by Orpheus she quickly moved back towards the men. She hid behind the nearest one her hands were shaking as she watched everything. Hearing all his words she stopped shaking from fear and now it was from anger. She saw something that Orpheus could use to kill the man. Picking it up slowly she took a deep breath and looked right at Orpheus. "He's not going to leave so long as I'm alive. If I'm correct about this he won't allow me to live because he feels that since he created me, it's his right to end my life." Anya said proud that her voice didn't shake in the least bit. She looked over at the man who stalked her for the longest time, "Je ne ai pas peur de toi plus longtemps . Je suis libre." She smirked at him as she threw Orpheus a stake to kill the man with. "Au Revoir monsieur."




((Translation of the French: I'm not afraid of you any longer. I am free. the second is Goodbye sir.))

Orpheus could not believe how stupid this man was. How they had not had to deal with this simpleton before, Orpheus could not imagine. The guy seemed like a problem-magnet. He could feel Norman bristling next to him, and he could see the agitation on his assistants' faces, clearly unsettled and indignant that someone would assume that Orpheus Grimm could be easily disposed of. These men who had been sort of at Orpheus' mercy for so long felt the rage grow within them to be so horribly disrespected.

But Orpheus kept a cool head. "Easily disposed of," Orpheus repeated. Eye narrowing. "Use your words very carefully now."

But he continued on. And suddenly, Anya spoke. Orpheus did not look her way, leaving her to push forward with her bold statements. Orpheus knew Anya was just another vampire who needed evidence and proof that she could liberate herself, could believe she was one of the supreme race. She handed him the stake and he approached the vampire man, slowly, menacingly. "I care because she's a vampire - we are supreme. But we do not need weak links." And a hand shot out to grab the man by the jugular and hold him there. "This is for the betterment of our race." And he plunged the stake towards the man's heart.

The man looked at Anya and said, "You'll be next." Those were his last words at the stake plunged into his heart. He turned to stone as Anya looked over at Orpheus to see what was going to happen next.

Feeling the need to sit she found a chair behind her and settled herself into it. She wrapped her arms around herself and immediately felt weird in her clothes. "How long will it take to find the last one?" She asked her voice just barely a whisper. Then her mind remembered a bit of information when she first came in the house. Getting up and going to the chair that held the book picking it up. It was a fairly old copy of Bram Strokers' Dracula, she shook her head remembering the book. Opening the cover she saw a letter inside it was fairly old and worn like it was read many times. She didn't want to look at the letter let alone read it, taking it out of the book then setting the book down. "This man did this for a reason I know it's because it was done to him. I don't care though, I just want them gone from my life so that I never have to fear going outside." Anya said as she walked over to the fire that was lit holding the letter in her hand. "Since this was in that book, I'm gonna guess as to why he created me then tried to kill me. He was bitten against his will by a vampire so he felt that if he did the same with someone else then killed them. That he would be able to cope with what happened to him." Looking at the letter she threw it in the fire and watched as it was swallowed by the flames.

"What's the next plan? We won't be able to use me as bait again if the other man was watching everything." Anya said wrapping her arms around herself again.

Orpheus drove the stake deep into the man's heart, his fingers bruising the man's throat as he held him in the spot. The vampire coughed and flinched, and Orpheus watched the light leave his eyes... He stepped back and Norman did the honors of waving his wand. The stone figure cracked and disappeared, leaving the room more silent and somber than it had been the moment before, as everyone became painfully aware of the suffered loss. The man was an idiot, was poorly intentioned, but he was one of them. The four men stared at the empty spot for a long moment.

"Too bad," Norman finally said. "But what are you going to do?"

Anya spoke and the men turned, looking curiously at her. Orpheus gave her a kind grimace and he said, "I do not know. We will try, Anya, I promise you." She got up and began speaking, causing Orpheus' expression to contort.

"Those reasons..." he shook his head. It made no sense. Anya was making a big jump, but she was also proving that the man that had turned her was an absolute idiot.

"We will track him down," he assured her. "Don't worry about it. You'll be safe. But if you feel unsafe, we can set you up in a room at Margham."

((Margham Castle is Opheus' estate))

Anya sat down on the chair near the fire her shoulder sagged in defeat. She braced her elbows on her knees as she put her face in her hands. She was tired and angry, angry at the second man who wanted to cause her harm. She raised her head after a long while then stood up, "I know you will Orpheus. If you have something else to do I don't want to inconvenience you in any way." She said as she looked around the room looking for anything else that was left. Looking over at Orpheus she wondered what he was going to do next.

"I know, it may take a while because he's been forewarned about everything. I just have to be extra careful he doesn't follow me to where I'm staying." Anya said softly as she looked about the room then sighed softly. "One day I'll be able to live here without fear of being hunted." She walked up to Orpheus and smiled softly. "Thank you for everything you have done for me this far. I owe you far more than I'll ever be able to repay in this life." She gave him a small hug then a kiss on the cheek in thanks. She then walked towards her bedroom to grab something when she stopped and looked curiously at something. Taking out her wand she said, "Lumos." The end lit up as she saw the dirt marks from two sets of foot prints. They didn't go any further from where she was at but lead to the living room. Shaking her head and putting out the light she headed to grab her cloak from the peg she left it. She needed air and knew the only way was to step into the night.

Anya stood on the steps of her home looking around at the blankets of snow and ice. She didn't know what to do but one thing was for sure she was protected by some powerful allies. She never thought that she would find such vampires willing to help her for no reason at all. She thanked her lucky stars that Fiona found her that day in the park and that Orpheus was willing to help her. Going back in the house to talk to him she slid her hood off. "Orpheus? I have a question I need to ask you." She looked at him her look serious and hopeful. "Will you teach me to protect myself?"