To His Hell and Back-Chapter 271: I Cannot Trust You-II

Donna and Arabella had gone deeper into the forest when Arabella found a stone that had turned into a cave. From outside it appeared like any other large boulder but there was actually a hole in the back, hidden by the bushes which allowed them to enter. Fortunately the both of them had a rather smaller figure, easily allowing them to fold inside the hole and hid themselves using dry leaves.

As Donna was about to put the rest of the leaves, Iliza walked into the hole, squeezing to the corner and hugged her knees together.

Frowning Donna clicked her tongue, "Get out," she ordered Iliza. "Get out. Now!"

Iliza glared back at her, her pride was shattering and her face was bright red from embarrassment but she didn’t want to die yet. She had turned into a stone and was about to become one with the walls when Donna began to shift, ready to pull her out even if it was by physically.

"It’s fine Donna," Arabella held her wrist and stopped Donna. "It’s a good place to hide now but if we keep screaming, it would only bring the wrong attention."

"Damn it," Donna sat down with a huff. She continued to help Arabella barricade the place, making it one with the rest of the bushes around them.

"How do we mask the scent of blood?" Donna then whispered to her, "Wouldn’t they be able to spot where we are if they smell our blood? I’m not wounded but earlier I helped someone and now my clothes are covered with it a little."

"I think it should be alright," muttered Arabella, "The smell of blood is already strong here."

"How do you know that?" Donna asked innocently which made Arabella to blink.

She pursed her lips, "I heard from the Crown Prince."

"Ah so now you’re bragging," Iliza spoke from the side which made Arabella to sigh.

She didn’t want to deal with Iliza at all. It wasn’t because she still held a grudge against Iliza for what she had done, not that it was wrong if she ever feel hatred toward Iliza for what the girl had done to her, but that wasn’t who she was. No matter how she was hurt, Arabella couldn’t feel hatred to the person who had hurt her. Anger, yes but hatred?

Her heart was far too weak to handle the burden of hating someone and she wished she would rather not see the person and avoid them like a plague than to hate them and recall what they had done to her for the years to come.

Arabella turned her face away, continuing to speak to Donna instead, "He told me that the vampires have keen senses but in a place where there are many of it, their senses turn dull. Just like how they could heart loud heartbeat from fear but a normal heartbeat wouldn’t rang much bell to them."

"I see, so if they had been in an environment with a lot of blood, their sense of smell grows weak too."

Ignored by the two, Iliza clutched to her dress angrily. She wanted so much to yell at them but she didn’t want to attract too much attention either or be caught by another vampire yet again.

She looked at Donna and Iliza, reasoning to herself that although the two of them were about to make her explode from anger, they were two good decoy she could push if a vampire caught them again.

"It’s funny isn’t it?" Iliza then whispered which made Arabella to raise her eyebrows. "To think that the perpetrator of this entire hunt is with us now. If the other humans knew about this, maybe they’ll murder us."

Donna turned toward Iliza and her face quickly turned icy, "Perpetrator?" she asked. "Of this hunt?"

"Well," Iliza shot Arabella a look, trying to hide the smugness under her words, "Because she is a monster that the Queen decided to kill of us. You don’t know about this Donna but she is a monster. A monster who could kill the younger sister of her own lover and a monster who wouldn’t die even after being killed. A monster like you who only caused the death of everyone in this for-"

SLAP

A sharp crisp sound of the slap rang to the ears like an arrow.

Iliza’s head snapped to the side, her mouth left half open in stunned silence as she tasted the iron flavor of blood inside her cheeks. Arabella’s hand still hung in the air for a moment, trembling— not with regret, but with restraint. Her fingers slowly curled into a fist as she lowered it.

Iliza touched her cheek, eyes wide, as if the sting of the slap hadn’t registered until the silence returned. "You—"

"That’s enough," Arabella said, her voice calm but firm, her kind demeanor changed into one filled with pure anger. "Say what you want about me. But don’t you dare use your fear as an excuse to twist the truth and poison someone else’s mind."

Donna didn’t look surprised. Her arms crossed, she watched Iliza coolly, no trace of sympathy in her expression.

"She saved your life, Iliza," Donna said flatly. "If it wasn’t Bella who had slapped you, I would have done it in her stead and I promise you that I will kill you with the slap."

"You’re crazy!" Iliza’s face was marred in rage as she snapped at Arabella, the bitterness in her eyes didn’t waver. "You don’t understand. People are dead. They’re hunting us like dogs. And she— she’s the reason the Queen started all of this!"

"Do you want to know why we’re all here— why we’re being hunted?" Arabella snapped, cutting Iliza off mid-word. "Or should I remind you of what you did?"

Her voice trembled with fury as she continued, "You’re the one who told them I killed Princess Marissa. You’re the one who spread that lie— told everyone I was some kind of monster. That I can’t die. That I don’t deserve to live. Did you forget that, Iliza? Let me remind you— you killed me with your words. You made them fear me. You turned the vampires against me— vampires who were already on edge, already looking for a reason to hate humans."

Her eyes burned. "You handed them that reason. You stirred a boiling pot until it overflowed. And now we’re all drowning in it. Now innocent lives have to pay for your mistake when we could have prevent it."

Arabella stopped for a little and saw how Donna’s eyes had widened in shock and terror.

She turned back at Iliza, adding her final thoughts, "Do you want to know who the monster is?"

"It’s people like you who could easily blame others. People like you who caused others their misery and always excuse it because of your weakness and fear. You know what, Iliza? I am scared of death, Donna is scared of death, no one walks on this land not fearing death. But have you seen us all throw others weaker than us to a pit of fire just because we want to survive? We don’t. Because we know that once we do that, we are no different than a monster."

Donna chuckled with anger. She pressed her thumb on her forehead and sneered to Iliza, "How funny. You sold your friend, your humanity and what? The vampire you so revered sent you here to die. How laughable it is to see that you now suffer the consequence of your own action, Iliza. When you die, I’ll make sure to write what you have done on your gravestone."