I could feel myself blushing. At the same time, I felt warm inside. Because this was the first time that Ingram had shared something about his self. “Ingram-“
I wasn’t able to finish my sentence when I heard a loud sound from the car’s roof. I was still recovering from shock when a man suddenly fell on the hood. I screamed when he pressed his face on the windshield. The car swayed.
The stranger was very much alive and he was looking at me and Ingram with a creepy grin on his face that I had goose bumps when our eyes accidentally met. His eyes were different. They were red. My heart pounded. I had never felt this terrified my whole life. Even if Ingram was now driving fast, the stranger never fell on the ground.
Ingram cussed and held my hand while his eyes remained on the road. “Brianna, listen to me-“
I quivered when there was another man who smashed the window beside me. I didn’t know how it happened but he was able to run as fast as the car. Just like the first guy, his eyes were red, too. I gulped. What kind of creatures were they? And why were they following us?
“I will stop the car. Whatever happens, promise me never to step out, Brianna. Just stay here,” Ingram calmly said when he glanced at me. He drove faster than before. Despite the situation, I found myself admiring him for not losing his composure. “I will keep you safe, I promise.”
I shook my head. “No. Let’s just call the police or you can stop by the nearest station and-“
“The cops won’t be able to deal with them but I can. I need your answer now, Brianna. Give me your word.”
I nodded even if I was still worried. “I-I promise.”
Ingram looked at me and smiled. “That’s my girl.”
I NEARLY jumped off my seat when the men began smacking the car louder than before. I didn’t have the chance to respond when Ingram suddenly stopped the car. Because of the strong impact it created, the guy on the hood was thrown away. But he recovered fast and when he approached the car, he was no longer alone. There were now three men who were after us.
Ingram quickly kissed me on the forehead. “We will survive this, I promise,” he whispered before stepping out of the car.
I froze when I saw how the men surrounded Ingram right away. All of the red-eyed men were wearing black leather jackets. And they were as tall and as muscular as Ingram. He looked like they knew them. Just like him, the men had foreign features, too. Did they all come from the same country? What did Ingram do for these guys to hunt him?
I covered my mouth with my hand out of shock and despair when I saw how they punched and kicked Ingram. My tears fell down as I glanced around. There was no one else on this highway. There was no one I could ask for help. Why was this happening? Why now? And why in this place? My hands were still shaking when I searched for my phone inside my shoulder bag. I sniffled in despair when I found out that it ran out of battery.

I tried to search for Ingram’s phone, too, but I couldn’t find it. I was still panicking when I turned towards Ingram’s direction. He was now kneeling on the ground while the men kept on attacking him. They were just in front of the car that’s why I could see them clearly. And with every attack, I could hear the painful sounds Ingram was making.
That’s why I was surprised when he stood up and the men suddenly flew as if they had been tossed away. One of them was able to get up quickly and jumped into the light post and walked through the electric wires as if it was the most natural thing to do. I had to blink many times to make sure that I was seeing the right thing, but it was real. What stunned me more was the fact that Ingram jumped towards the man’s direction. The two men followed afterwards and they all fought there.
They had moved too swiftly that I lost track of what was happening. Before I knew it, Ingram was already in front of the car. There were now traces of blood on his cotton shirt. Blood was also dripping from his neck and arms. I hurriedly went out of the car and came to him. I could no longer see the men from earlier.
“What happened? Who are those guys? How did you manage to jump that high? You even stood and fought on the electric wires, for crying out loud! I don’t understand-“
“It’s complicated,” he said and evaded my eyes. “I will explain it to you next time. Right now, it’s best if we’d get going.”
He assisted me towards the car but I pushed his hand away. There were so many questions in my head. And I won’t calm down until I get the answers. “That was dangerous, Ingram! We almost died! What is going on? I need to know the truth.”
He looked straight into my eyes. “You really want to know? Fine. I stopped the time. I dealt with those men on my own. They were sent by Sullivan who was playing a trick on me. He sent regular Knights which meant that he didn’t want me to die yet. Because those Knights still had no idea about what the real battle is. They were sent to inform me that Sullivan was able to follow my traces. He’s now in this country. He’s my greatest enemy, you see. When the Knights had weakened, I burned them so they wouldn’t have a chance to heal themselves. It’s in their nature and mine as well. Because we’re Vampires, Brianna. That’s the truth.”