2. Running from Hell.

Elena.

"Run, keep running, you can do this. Don't look back, just keep running." I told myself repeatedly. 

Escaping wasn’t easy. I had planned it for years but never had I found the courage to actually do it. But tonight I had to escape from the nightmare I’d been born into. I had had enough, I wanted to be free from the shackles, I needed some hope.

My father never cared. He knows all that I go through and always turned a blind eye, he was never a loving father, he had always allowed the family to treat me like I was nothing even though I was his daughter. Family didn't matter to him not my mom, not me. My father only cared about profits, it didn’t matter that I begged him to listen.  

Despite being the leader, the Alpha of the Amato Pack, despite being the feared leader that he was, I was always nothing, I was just a pawn in the cruel game. I had no choice, no will. No respect. No love. I had nothing. 

My engagement to his beta hadn’t been my choice either, neither was the marriage that happened today, none of it got my permission, they didn't think any of it needed my addition. For years, I wished my father would put a stop to the violence against me, but it never happened. He watched and allowed Salvatore to do whatever he wanted with me. I was just a toy for pleasure and for pain. 

I ran as fast as I could, despite knowing that they would soon catch up with me, I tried to summon my wolf, if I had any but I had never shifted, not even once in my whole life even when I had a powerful alpha as a father and a great late Luna as a mother so I had no choice but to run as fast as my human legs could take me. I had to escape at any cost. I had to focus. I'll deal with the trauma and pain later.

Survival comes first.

The floor was constantly attacked underneath my feet, dry leaves crunched under my feet and big trees, leaves and logs seemed to appear out of nowhere as if to try and stop me. But I could still hear them. I had to stop to catch my breath before my lungs gave out on me.

 My rough hair was matted with some dirty liquid, my arms and legs all bruised and cut and my clothes already looked like rags, dirty and tattered. I knew I definitely looked like a leaking pipe but I had to keep running. After running for more minutes, I wiped the sweat from my forehead, exhausted. My long legs gave up from beneath me and collapsed. 

My heart started racing and I knew I had to keep going so I started to run again. 

I needed to run for my life. I needed to survive, my life depended on it.

"Stop!" I heard a voice yell behind me before I then heard the sound of gunshots in the air followed by loud growls from shifted werewolves, a way to scare and threaten me which meant that I now had a lesser chance of survival but that didn't stop me, I just kept going. 

Going deeper into the woods, I forced myself to move quicker as I kept taking different turns hoping to confuse the people chasing after me. I pushed harder, running until my body felt like it was breaking. After a while, I bumped into a tree that had some thorns and I was soon bleeding. It cut into my stomach and started to hurt so badly, but I kept going. Only my escape mattered at the moment, not the blood, nor the pain.

I kept running into the darkness until the screams of the men and gunshots faded away. When I was sure that I couldn’t hear them anymore, I stopped and leaned against a tree, although my senses were still heightened in case of any impromptu danger.

 I knew I had to rest even though my safety wasn’t guaranteed yet. My heart was pounding so hard and my legs were shaking too much for me to continue. 

But as soon as I saw a street light almost close to me, I was immediately gingered and so I began to run towards the main road feeling hopeful. I soon got to the road and started to walk by the sidewalks down the roads, houses began to come into view. 

I saw a car speeding towards me and started to wave it down hoping that I'll get picked up by a good Samaritan, this world can't be full of just cruel people afterall.

When I saw that the car wasn't reducing its speed, I jumped onto the road without fear. The car came to a halt and as soon as I was about to move towards the driver's window and ask for help, he zoomed off leaving me dumbfounded. 

I was about to cuss him out when I saw Salvatore's men walking up and down like they were in search of something or someone, which was me, of course. So I had to run towards the nearest house and hide. While hiding, two men in suit came out of the house and walked towards a car all the while speaking to eachother in low tone. 

When I saw that it seemed like one of the men was going to get into car and drive off, I got an idea as I quickly ran as quietly as I could to the car, opened the door of the backseat and immediately got disappointed as it didn't open. 

My hope was shattered but I took a leap of faith and tried the booth which surprisingly opened so I quietly slid in and then I closed the booth as quietly as I could immediately I was in.

After few minutes, a door opened and the engine started. My head throbbed and the pain I was feeling felt like someone had put a knife to my skull. I leant my head against the rug in the booth and squeezed my eyes shut, wishing the pain would go away. 

But at the same time, I felt somewhat hopeful and safe, at least, for now.

After what seemed like several hours to me, I almost felt like I was going to die due to how much time it took the car to get to wherever its destination was but soon, it finally came to a stop. I heard the door being opened and someone stepping out, but to be on the safer side, I waited for more minutes before I then decided to get out of the booth, having gotten enough silence. 

But the moment I silently opened the booth, what greeted me left me in awe. I was in a freaking mansion if not an estate. The beauty and bigness of the house left me shocked. I had lived in big house my whole life but non of them ever compared to this and that was enough to make me get even more scared. 

I wanted an average life, rich people had shown me over and over again that they were wicked, brutal and unreasonable humans. I was already sure that the house I was in at the moment had nothing good in store for me, so I surveyed the huge gates at the entrance and felt so sad when I saw three men guarding it.

It didn't seem possible for me to be able to escape. Before I could even try to think about what to do next, the men sighted me.

"Who are you? What are you doing in here?" One of them asked as they all started to run towards me. I insantly started to run towards the house, somehow glad that the compound was that big as it gave me an edge to be able to have some headstart.

I wheezed as my burning lungs gasp for air. My legs felt numb and unsteady, painfully sore. My throat felt very dry, so uncomfortably dry. My flimsy gown and long red hair clung to my body, no different that if I had ran through a rain-storm. Well, it could be termed that.

My heart was beating so fast and my vision turned blurry with panic. I felt them behind me closing in, their steps sounded hard and angry. My pulse drummed in my throat. My breath came out in short pants, fear surrounded me. I increased my pace as I was able to pass through the door at the entrance of the house.

I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, amongst sofas, cushions, tables and along the stairs till I got to the third floor. Despite running to escape the men on my tail, it wasn't impossible for me to still notice the little details in the house.

It was very welcoming from the open door to the wide hallway. Upon the walls were the photographs of children, about two, obviously so loved. The house was like a kaleidoscope of memories, of photographs adorning the walls, each of them conjuring the emotions of those sweet eternal moments.

The floor was an old-fashioned parquet with a blend of deep homely browns and the walls were the greens of summer gardens meeting a bold white baseboard. The banister was a twirl of a branch, tamed by the carpenter's hand, it's grain flowing as water might, in waves of comforting woodland hues. Under the lamp-shine it was nature's art, something that soothed right to the soul.

The house was filled with many doors and stairs, it seemed so unending. Gunshots flew in the air, and soon, I could even hear breaking of bones that signified to me that they were also shifters and it only went further to convince me that I was definitely in the wrong house, one that was sure to be the end of me if I should get caught. 

The men that were after me seemed to double as more shouts filled the surroundings, barking instructions and growls filled the air as I ran not bothering myself to look back again. When it seemed like I was almost at crossroads, I chose one of the doors before me and ran into the room, closing the door right behind me.

The mansion was very big, way too big, might I add. It was very evident that It would take them some time to find me. 

I slowly moved away from the door and walked towards another door in the same room while trying to calm my breathing. When it was evident that I could finally breathe normally, and my gasps no longer filled the room, I looked up to take in my environment in the dim light as it was quite dark since the curtains were drawn allowing only a little light from the window.

It was a bedroom, the biggest one I've seen in my entire life, not that I've seen many since I was mostly indoors all my life but judging from the fact that my father is said to be one of the wealthiest Alpha's then I think its pretty okay that I'm this shocked cos this was way bigger, the entire house was much more luxurious. There was a huge circular king sized bed in the middle of the room with nightstands on either side. There were over three couches that looked like something from a Palace at a part of the room.

The room also had usual things like a desktop and desks although there are unusual things like a coffee maker, an acoustic guitar, a brown safe sitting on one of the tables and a camera simply begging to be used.

I snapped out of the stupid trance I was in as I suddenly remembered that I was running away from my own death.

Who cares about a stupid luxurious room?

I ran towards the door I was walking to before I got carried away and as soon as I opened it, my eyes felt very much blessed, yet again. The bathroom seemed like something out of a dream. It had a enclosed glass bathroom, a circular bathtub, cabinets that seemed simply too much and even a damn chandelier swung from above lighting up the whole bathroom and giving it the royalty feel. It was simply magnificent but that wasn't problem as at now.

I looked around trying to find a good spot for hiding, one that I would never be found until I can find a way out but just before I could get one, I heard someone at the door and my breath picked up. The door opened and then closed, quietly.

Soon, footsteps could be heard coming towards me as I kept looking to and fro trying get anywhere, anything at all to hide in. I soon found one, the bathroom and I rushed into it, hoping I was as invisible as I thought I was.

But as I looked ahead of me outside the bathroom, my eyes widened in panic. 

My dirty feet had left marks while I walked in here and before I could think of doing anything, the bathroom door got opened and in came a man.