He didn't give her time but swung the lantern he held in his hand right across her face for the metal to ring on her head with a loud sound that blinded her vision for three seconds before it came back with the pain that she felt. 

Her head hurt and she cursed the man. The man spoke, "Did you not listen to what I was saying about you being a weakling? This is why women are stupid and are good for nothing. Why did you even come here in the first place? A council is no place for a woman but this gets back to you not being normal. I wonder what the council would say once they found out that is if you are still alive."

She tried to escape again but just as she took her step forward towards the door, he pulled her back by her arm to swing right across the racks which shook slightly in termor. 

"I think I am enjoying this. The more you struggle the more I can keep it as your lasting memory," he chuckled, holding her by her throat, he lifted her up and then threw her across the wall. Vivian flew at the wall and with a crash slid down on the floor. 

She could feel her sides hurt her just like it had when she was at the snow mansion. Picking herself up she looked up at him. This part of the storage room had light as the walls reflected some of the lights from the top which had the lanterns burning and spilling down the stairs. 

"Why are you here?" she asked him, "Killing me would do you no good," she said and before another word could come out of her mouth. The man stepped right on her hand which had been resting on the ground making her scream. Vivian could feel the pain coursing from her hand through her entire body. It was as if he had broken the bones in there which were being crushed as he stamped on it further. 

"Scream to your heart's content. No one can hear anything outside. It is a place that has been built to hide secrets," he smiled, "If you're talking about your husband, the Duke. I am not scared of him. I have people who will back me up. The man is already in the list of being 'to be killed', it should only be a matter of time before he joins his dead family."

Vivian's eyes widened. 

"Did y-you kill Maximillian Gibbs?" she asked him, holding her breath not only because of the answer that she waited for but also due to the pain that she felt from her hand. The switcher moved his feet away for her to only realize the pain when she tried to pick her hand up. 

The lantern that he had used to hit her, had disturbed the flame which he now placed on the ground with a clanking sound. 

The switcher came near and she couldn't go far knowing the man would catch up to her to only do more damage. She had to think of what to do while keeping him occupied before she could escape from this storage room in time. Walking to her, he sat on his legs with his back hunched looking at her.

"Wouldn't you like to know," he said. They were close, too close in distance that she could see his eyes from where she sat. Dutan was a normal average vampire who had red eyes but this man here. It wasn't exactly red. There was a hint of white colour in there that moved in his eyes when his eyes blinked closed to open again, "Yes, I killed him. He was one of the difficult vampires to kill. Cocky I must say."

"Why?"

"So many why's yet you don't answer any of my questions," he placed his hand on her thigh, his hands moving up and down on the clothes that she wore, "I must say, you are a beautiful woman. Humans and naturally very beautiful but you, my dear are exceptional."

Vivian had to bite down the bile that came to rise at his repulsive touch on her but she didn't move. She sat there like a statue. 

"How is it?" he asked her and just when he squeezed her thigh in a much aggressive way, Vivian unable to sit quietly any longer leaned forward to the man's astonishment. But what he didn't expect was to her to bite him right on his neck with her fangs out and tearing out the flesh.

"Argh!!"

He had to use his strength to push her away, like a parasite being removed, he pushed her across the smooth floor where she slid back. Vivian had to spew the blood out of her mouth along with the little flesh that she had torn out from his body.

Her mouth was covered with blood, her clothes having drops of it being spread around while the man held his neck in pain, "You little ungrateful bitch. I was going to spare your life longer," in anger he came forward and just as he did, Vivian got up and ran to the lantern. Picking it up, she used the full force and hit his head right to the skull of his head, resonating the sound for a second where he staggered back. 

Vivian wiped the blood on her mouth with the back of her hand. She stared at him as he stared at her with anger and curiosity, "You aren't like the half vampires I have come by. Are you?"

"I never said I was," he tilted his head in question. His eyes glaring at her, "Why don't you find it out yourself?"

The man smirked, touching the side of his head he looked at his hand to see blood. Vivian could smell the smell of iron that came from the blood in the room. It wasn't coming from her but had surrounded the room, "You are costing my body. I will have to take yours once I am done with you."

"Try it," she challenged him and the man came right at her. 

Most of the councilmen and the few women who had come to know her hadn't known her thoroughly before the time she had joined here to work. For women of the higher society, they would have taken her to be a trophy pretty wife but there was more to what met at the surface of the eye when it came to Vivian. 

During her time when Leonard had gone to Valeria on council work to find out the deaths that had taken place in the lands by the switchers, Nicholas had entertained her. Not by just books or chess or by mere talks, he had given her lessons when she had shown interest in the fights.

Though it wasn't much she had been and had read books on how to fight different creatures which many except for Leonard didn't know of. After all, he was the beloved husband who had supported her intentions. He knew she would need it someday where it would come handy. Secretly explaining her in the study room and trying it in the bed until they were left breathless and made love to each other. 

The switcher didn't like being taunted. Especially not by a woman. He had decided to play with her but now he didn't care and if he did it was only that he wanted to tear ever arm and leg of hers for behaving high and mighty before he would kill her. 

He swung his hand coming right at her but unlike before where she had taken the hit, she dodged it. The more aggressive he got the easier it was to expect his attack. She pulled the lanterns handle, twisting it easly with her hand before she ran it through the man's shoulder. 

But it seemed that the man had willingly taken the hit so that he could catch hold of her. Holding her by her neck he rammed her against the wall. Vivian scratched the man's hands which were of no avail until she ran her nails against his face. Running it as deep as she could before he could place his fingers on her chest to pull out her heart. 

Her nails though short and kept had come in handy where she was able to dig into his face, where red lines of blood dripped down. 

That wasn't enough though as the moment he moved his hands away from her, with the same speed he caught it back to squeeze and hold her pinned on the wall. But Vivian was having none of it. She kicked him with her boot hard enough to have him fall on the ground. 

"How is it possible?" he finally asked her as she heaved for breath along with him. 

They might have been vampires now but a day or two before Vivian was a human and this man was a switcher before taking Dutan's body for his own. 

"You turned to a pureblooded vampire," he laughed, his eyes livid with excitement, "This is wonderful. Wonderful news for me where I can take to be a pureblooded vampire that can last for months and years."

Vivian noticed the way his movements had gone slow. It seemed like a doll that had been working fine with manipulation now was getting broken internally where it was failing to function as before.

"I am a pureblooded vampire," she said, taking the lantern. She used the strength to beat the man over and over again as he cowered trying to prevent her from doing the damage but he seemed far gone. Not physically but mentally out of the mere thought of using her as his next body. For a moment it felt as if he had gone insane. His sanity slipping by his mind before it restored back as before. 

He caught hold of the lantern and took her by her head to ram it against the floor. Vivian could almost see stars if it weren't for the pain that she felt that throbbed where her head had contacted the floor. 

"Pureblooded vampire? How is that possible...the transformation of a human goes to a half-blooded vampire? Are you trying to mock me," he pushed her head and she had to roll over the floor before kicking his chest again to get him off her. They again went on to it until finally, Vivian found the advantage where she pinned the man by chocking his neck in a lock to have one of her hand on his chest where her fingers pressed deep for him to have his eyes widened. 

If there was one thing she had learnt from Leo, it was mercy was not be served easily to anyone. It wasn't supposed to be served to anyone because criminals never deserved it. 

"Argh!" he screamed when she pushed her fingers deeper without a second thought. Her fingers digging in deeper within seconds to find his chest, "Don't we can-" she didn't wait for him and pulled his heart out.

As she did this, her surroundings started to change as if ink being dissolved in clear water where she came to see the sight of the switcher killing Dutan. He pulled the councilman's body in the early hours of the morning where the sun must have not even hit the sky behind the clouds. 

His body was beheaded, blood being left behind on the snow before he dug the man in the forest. As he cleaned the area, Mr Gibbs arrived to see him. 

"What are you doing?" asked Maximillian to the switchers surprise to see someone to have caught him as he had come far from the council building. This was the place where no one came to. Unfortunately for Vivian, her vision of the past memories broke when a box that hadn't been pushed back in the rack fell with a thud to bring her back to the storage room.