claudia | embry call

sixteen : thirst

Claudia's throat burned more than her body had when she changed. She slumped against the concrete wall, wishing for a cool relief but feeling nothing. It had been over a month since she turned, since she last fed. Claudia remembered the day clearly, and she regretted it ever since. She'd killed someone, and there was no getting around that. However, she'd quickly decided that she'd rather be starving than killing innocent people. She could hear Victoria pacing on the wolf above her, occasionally sending small dust clouds down into the dark basement. The only thing she could hear besides Victoria was the faint, thump, thump, thump of her heart.

Her heart beating was the reason Victoria locked her away, the reason she wasn't allowed to feed. Shortly after feeding, her heart had reignited, and the blood she'd drank began to course through her veins. Not all of it, but enough to keep a slow, steady heartbeat. Victoria had tried to drink it out of her, but it was to no avail. Injecting more venom did nothing, either. Frustrated, and terrified, Victoria locked her away when they reached Seattle. Claudia was strong enough to fight back or the first two days, but after that, her strength waned. Eventually it became tiring to stand, so she stayed in her dark corner. She'd also begun to sleep again, but only for a few hours every few days. Still, it was something.

Her sight had diminished, as well as her hearing. It was as if the blood had reignited her humanity, but took away the only good things about being a vampire. Her skin had also begun to heat up again, but it wasn't much hotter than the basement she was stuck in. She'd tried drinking her own blood after a few days, but found it to taste like poison so she had to spit it out. The door the basement opened, and she saw Victoria appear in front of her again.

"I don't understand you." Victoria's voice was somehow more frustrated and angry than it had been the day prior. "You're unlike any creature I've ever met." Victoria crouched next to Claudia, her frozen finger lifting Claudia's face by the chin. Claudia stared back into Victoria's blood red eyes, not missing the low hiss that came from her mouth. "Your eyes aren't red anymore. They're like those Cullen's." She said their name with disgust in her voice. "Amber, not quite gold. Have you been eating rats or something?"

"No." Claudia's voice was just as weak as she was. "I haven't eaten anything." Claudia felt a snap in her leg, and she cried out. It would heal in a few hours time, like all of her injuries did, but that didn't make it hurt any less. "I swear!"

"Hmph." Victoria moved back, studying Claudia. She mumbled something Claudia couldn't hear.

"Victoria!" Riley's voice pierced through the house. "Are you down there?"

"Riley, come here a minute." Victoria was standing again, a few feet from Claudia. A boy entered, Riley. Claudia had never seen him before, only heard his voice. He was creating an army of newborns for Victoria, so she could attack the Cullen's. "Did you get what I asked?" Riley eyed Claudia uneasily before nodding, producing a ziplock bag with red fabric inside. Victoria snatched it from him, opening it and inhaling deeply. "Perfect." Victoria purred, shutting the bag and giving it back to him. "Keep that close, and closed. We don't need it quite yet." Riley nodded, looking down at Claudia.

"What is this?" Riley asked. "That girl you told me about?"

"Yes, it's her." Victoria looked down at Claudia as well. "She's unlike anything I've seen before. And I think, with the right...motivation, she could be useful to us."

"How?" Riley looked back at Victoria. "There's no way she'll survive with the babies."

"No, no. She'll be our little secret." Victoria grinned. "Come on, we'll go hunting and I'll tell you all about my plan." Riley nodded, glancing down at Claudia one last time before following Victoria out. Both doors shut and locked behind them, leaving Claudia still trapped in her concrete room. Claudia laid her head on her shoulder, her eyes rolling back as she entered her mind. In the month she'd been locked away, she learned more about her gift. More importantly, she learned how to use it on herself. She would always go to the same place, the beach by her house, and always at sunset.

Everyday it was different, different colors painting the sky and water, different rocks on the beach, and different clouds in the sky. However, one thing was always the same. Embry was always sitting next to her. He never spoke or moved, just sat there with a small smile, staring out at the water. That alone was enough to keep her going.

————————

Bright, warm light made Claudia stir. She opened her eyes, her amber irises rolling back to the front of her head. She looked around, realizing she was on a couch, in an unfamiliar place. She sat up, looking around. It was the cabin Victoria was staying in, the one she'd only briefly seen her first day before Victoria threw her into the basement.

"Finally." Claudia looked ahead of her, seeing Riley. Victoria was nowhere in sight. "She's hunting. And we decided to give you a little freedom."

"What?" Claudia asked, her hands tightening on the cushion beneath her.

"You're not leaving, obviously." Riley scoffed. "But Victoria wants to trust you. So, if you can be a good little vampire and do what she tells you to do around the house, maybe she'll let you join me and the others in Seattle. But only if you listen, you got it?" She nodded. "Good. Oh, and no feeding either. If we find out you've been drinking blood, you're dead." She nodded again. Riley wandered off, likely to wait for Victoria, so Claudia's eyes whirled around the house. It didn't look too strong or hard to escape, but she was too weak. Then, she heard a small squeak. She looked, seeing a rat running along the wall. She sighed, moving quietly from the couch. She couldn't let Riley and Victoria win, she couldn't let them control her.

There was only one thing Claudia vividly remembered from being human, and that was Embry. Her heart hurt when she thought of him, so she knew what she had to do. She had to get back home, and she had to do it fast, before Victoria could attack the Cullen's. She needed a plan.