Vlad's POV
A few gentlemen pull away the curtains to show the party floor. We make our way down the stairs to where the dance floor, food table and a contest of Trick or Treat Auction for the best food that was brought to the party. I have to admit that I like how the entire party is set up with the fog machines, black candles, pumpkins, decorative skulls with some flowers that are dead in poison mandrake jars. There is at least one hundred and fifty or more people at the party tonight.
I cannot help but to sense every heart beating. I sense many of their bloods raised in excitement or relaxed from already being drunk or just dull from being bored from the party. I manage to contain most of my senses in being around a crowd like this one. If I had not held countless Balls in the 1600’s to appear like a normal man in that time to find anyone I desired to feed on, I would not be able to last the night in the room. I close my eyes for a moment to calm my hearing senses and focus on the one thing I want to hear, Mina.
I lightly smile in how Mina is admiring how the party is looking so far. It is nice to see her smile compared to when she learned that Michael is here. Mina and I talk about the costumes we are seeing like Cat Woman, Salt & Pepper, Wonder Woman, Superman, Mulan, Daenerys Targaryen, Iron Man, Captain America, Witches, even someone attempting to dress up as me, Dracula. I cannot help but chuckle in the pitiful black cloak, fake fang teeth. I’ll never forget the countless people that have tried to pull me off for Halloween nights. I would love to tell how wrong they are.
Other than that, everyone looks really good in their costumes. The DJ playing for tonight is playing some music by Jay Gordon, ‘Slept so long’. They have a buffet table for everyone to enjoy. There is even surprisingly an open bar. Some of the tables are filled with black and orange designs for the theme of Halloween. I even see some carved pumpkins with candles inside them to help light up bits of the entire room. It’s turning out to be a wonderfully designed party. I notice a few judges going around the party for the costume contest.
I glare at Mina, whispering to her, "You are the most astonishing and beautiful woman I have seen, Mina." I pull her hand to me and kiss it gently on the top.
She smiles and says, "You’re the most handsome, charming and thoughtful man I have ever meet. This will sound strange to say but I feel the need to say it. You’re a glory, Vlad. I want to live in the painting you described at the park a while back for as long as possible tonight with you."
I smile in her words to me and respond back, "That makes two of us. And I’m a glory?"
"You seem like a glorious man worth having in my life." She whispers in my ear. Her eyes are glowing the same way when she first saw me at the flower stand. She mentally prepares herself for everyone to see us, including Michael.
"Are you ready, Mina?" I ask.
"With you, yes." We smile to each other before we enter onto the floor of the party.
Michael's POV
I talk to some men from my work firm. They’re talking about how the party turned out and the women dressed up all sexy. We look to see what people are dressed up as. I see a Mask of Zorro, Superman, and Batman. It would be turning out great if she is to show up like I was informed that she would. I know and will get her back; one way or another. I am doing all of this to get Mina, I want her back. There hasn’t been a moment when I haven’t thought about her. She is a precious jewel. I will keep her forever. I’ll do whatever I can to make sure that she hears me out when she arrives. She has to come sooner or later.
The DJ starts to play the song, 'Slept so long' by Jay Gordon when some people enter the party. Suddenly my attention is drawn to the entrance as is everyone else's attention. My eyes widen when I see her. I see Mina in a bridal white dress that is showing off her body figure well. I love her long blonde. She has never looked better. I cannot help but smile in the thought of her coming home with me tonight. However my thoughts come to a halt to see that she is not alone! She is with another man!
This man with her is wearing a suit that went with her costume dress. I huff at the look of this man like she belongs with him when Mina only belongs with me. He is tall, dark with black shoulder length hair. I admit that he is impressive looking. But I never expected her to be with someone at the party, according to my informant. I want to be rid of the man especially with the way she is smiling at him.
They walk down the stairs. Several people are staring, whispering about how they looked. The man is holding Mina's arm in his. The small train of her dress is flowing gently down the steps. They reach the bottom that a few people speak to them about their costumes and some people being from Mina’s workplace.
I see Mina introducing the man to her coworkers. This man sucks up to them by grabbing their hands and kiss on the top of their hands or shaking their hands. Each woman blushes at him. The more I see her smiling, the more I want to rip the man’s head off. I will not allow her to be next to another man, let alone smile to one.
I grab a champagne glass and drink it all within a few seconds. I put the glass on the table and fix my suit of being a priest for the night. I begin to make my way over. But they walk away from the crowd to the dance floor. The man goes over to the DJ requesting a song. The DJ agrees and stops playing the song, switching it to the song he requested.
The song is called, ‘All I need’ by the artist, Within Temptation. Some of the people start dancing to the song. The stranger extends his hand to Mina. She grabs his hand. He spins her around then pulls her back into his arms. They slow dance to the pace of the song. I feel so betrayed by how she is acting around him. She does not stop smiling at him. I’ve never seen her smile to me that way. What does this guy have that I did not have?
They sway back and forth on the dance floor. Her long blonde hair glows in a sort of way while the dress moves in the flow of their dance. The man's cape flows nicely when he dances with her. They could not take their eyes off one another throughout their dance. The man spins her around a few times before she is back in his arms when the song stops.
Many clap for them when they finish dancing. This sickening man dares to dance with my woman in front of others just sickens me. He grabs two glasses for them to drink. He hands one to Mina. Mina takes a sip. The man leans close to Mina, whispering something. She starts laughing at whatever he said to her. I want nothing more than to kill this man when I see that they are holding hands.
I walk over to them. Mina sees me. I see her face goes fairly pale white at the sight of me coming. I’m not surprised. I like how she looks when she sees me; I know that I stop her heart when I do everything in my power and time to see her. Her next response is something I do not like and she will be dealt with about it. Mina grabs onto this monstrous man.
"Hello, Mina. I was wondering when you would arrive. You look like a jewel as always." I tell my love. The man with her stares at me like he has seen me before. I extend my hand out to him. He glares at my hand for a moment then he grabs mine shaking it. "Michael Ozturk. And you are?" I ask him.
"Vlad Tepes." His hand grip gets stronger on my hand for some reason. I groan in feeling some of my knuckles cracking in how tight his grip is. Before I can say anything, he lets go. Vlad takes a sip of his drink. He continues to stare at me. His look is almost as if he wanted to kill me where I stand. It makes me wonder what Mina has told him about me already. It does not matter because Mina is coming home with me.
Vlad's POV
I stare at Michael in amazement that he is the exact reincarnation of Mehmed, the once friend and Sultan back in 1442 that turned into my greatest enemy when he wanted my son, Ingeras. Mehmed, the ruthless, sickening man who wanted one thousand boys for his army. I resisted his order to give up my son and the other thousand boys which leads me to where I am now in my long life.
I tried to protect my people from him and his army. But the Turks were heartless monsters that craved blood without question because they did not know any other life. They killed without question and died without compliant because of how young they were taken when they were children to be in the army. Mehmed’s father remained with that traditional practice until Mehmed ended that practice until my son came of age. In just sensing his body emotions and looks toward Mina, I already know that means that Michael is the exact same way. Michael is staring at her the way I stare at a lamb I am about to drink then drain dry. It makes me realize how sickening I must look when I am hunting for blood.
I keep myself together then break the awkward silence between us before Michael attempts to speak to Mina again. "Great party so far. What do you do for a living, Michael?"
"I am a District Attorney for Romania. I heard many were coming so I figure I would come to see Mina. Appear with a bang." He says with a smile on his face knowing that people are watching us.
I mumble under my breath saying, "You always did things with a bang, Mehmed.”
"What did you say?" He asks with a tone of command but bit anger in his voice at me.
"Nothing at all; we’re just enjoying the party." I tell him and we stare at each other.
I cannot help but to realize something. Here we are again in another life, enemies of course. A part of me still would gladly do everything over again to disobey Mehmed and destroy everything in his name in order to protect the things and people I love.
I say with no self control toward him, "I will crush you."
"What?" He asks me because he did not entirely hear me because of the loud music and people talking all around.
"What?" I immediately say in response.
Michael and I stare each other down. I sense that he wants to kill me for being near Mina. I slightly smile knowing I can kill him and make sure no one would ever find his body. Mina breaks the silence between us saying, "Another time, Michael. We have many guests to greet." We both set down our drinking glasses then walk away from Michael.
I hear him whisper to himself, "I will make sure there is another time. Nothing will keep us apart." I turn to look at him. Michael walks away to greet other guests at the party, just to keep up his image.
My attention draws right back to Mina. She is scared down to her very bones by Michael. We head to the outside garden filled with roses. I cannot help but smile of being back in this garden. Mirena loved picking roses from this garden especially around Easter. I knew I could always find Mirena here out of all the places in the castle centuries ago. Mina and I walk the garden. The garden is lite up in lights and with many flower bushes of red roses.
I look at Mina as she remains quite, almost like she is shutting herself down in being around Michael for that short amount of time. I gently grab her hands and say to her, “Mina, look at me please.”
Mina struggles to look at me with her eyes filling up with tears. She has trouble inhaling and exhaling. I have to calm her down because I do not like seeing her like this. She does not deserve to feel scared, especially over that blood bag of a man.
“Do not worry about him, Mina. He only sees you as a jewel that he must show around to impress everybody, maintain an image. But you are not a jewel. You are so much more than that. You are like the sun…”
Mina stares at me, curious to why I think she is like the sun. “I cannot fully explain it myself, Mina. However I know that you are like the sun to me. You are warm, and bright that even the thought of you makes me smile."
Mina smiles at me with some tears in her eyes, crying a bit more than before. I feel like I made things worse for her in my words, "You are not supposed to be crying, Mina. I am sorry if my words affected you."
She tells me, "No. No, Vlad. Your words made me happy. I promise. You bring me joy and happiness whenever I am around you. I am glad you are here.”
I feel like she wants to say more that I ask her, “And?”
Mina looks down for a moment then our eyes met together. “I am starting to believe you are a blessing from GOD. And I do not want to lose you now; maybe not ever." She tries to keep herself from sobbing in saying these words to me. “I know that sounds stupid to even think this even with the amount of time we have known each other.”
I rest my hand on the back of her neck, smiling in her words to me right here in the very same garden Mirena once stood with me. I cannot help but to feel like I am human again… The feeling of being nervous and excited all at once that Mina already feels like this toward me. I rest my forward against hers, listening to her heart beat. It calms my senses unlike any other has. I do not know how Mina does it to me.
“I feel the same way, Mina...” I softly tell her.
She buries her face in my chest. I embrace my arms around her after she does this. We stay in each other arms for a while. I sense that she would rather stay right there than go back to the party. I do not blame her one bit; I would rather stay in this spot than go back to that crazy, poor excuse of a human that looks like Mehmed. I will end up tearing his head off in front of everyone.
Eventually we see some folks walking toward the main area of the party. I hear the DJ announcing that they are going to reveal who won the costume contest. I figure we must at least hear who won then head back home. I think this is a lot for Mina to handle in a night. “Wanna see who won the contest then head back to my house?”
Mina shakes her head yes before I wipe the tears off her face. I extend my arm out and she takes it. We walk back into the main room of the party and stand among the crowd waiting for the answer of who won the contest.
The main judge comes up to the stage, clearing their throat. The judge speaks into the microphone, saying, "We have many great costumes tonight but one stuck out the most. One I never thought I would see here tonight. It is so simple, elegant and caught everyone's attention. It is my pleasure to say that the winner is Prince Derek and Princess Odette from the Swan Princess couple." The announcer points to us as does a bright light so others can see us.
Mina is shocked that we have won the contest without even trying to. I smile to her. We both walk up to the stage. The judge gives us a sort of crown that we won t he contest. Mina and I smile to the crowd that is clapping for us. I start to realize that my crown has some silver in it when feeling the stinging sensation against my head. I bring Mina down from the stage. Mina talks to her coworkers for a moment, they give her congrats about us winning tonight. I manage to take off the crown and find the closest trash can, tossing it before anyone notices.
We stay at the party for another half an hour to dance. Mina asks me what happened to my winner contest crown. I told her that it sadly broke with no choice but to toss it. Mina does not question it while we continue to dance together. After another ten minutes, it is getting late. I want to get Mina home because I know she has to go to work in the morning. Mina tells her coworkers good night then we head outside. I call for the carriage driver to come pick us up. We wait for the carriage to pull up.
Mina tells me that she has to go inside and use the restroom real quick and she will be back. I wait for the carriage while she goes inside. The carriage driver manages to get through some of the crowd of where he is picking us up at. The driver gets the carriage up to the entrance safely. I pet Dimitru, knowing he is doing well for the driver and his horse.
I wait a few minutes for Mina but she is not back yet. I wonder if the bathroom is packed with others needing to use the bathroom also. Suddenly I feel like something is wrong. I use my senses to find her. My hearing senses go right to the bathroom inside. I growl by what I see inside the bathroom. Michael is in the bathroom, confronting her. He has her against the wall and against her will!
Mina is trying to fight him but he is stronger than her. Michael starts to pull up her dress then unbuckle his belt to forcefully take her. Mina screams, "Somebody help me!!! Vlad!!!!"
Michael places his hand over her mouth so no one can hear her. She lets out a muffled scream. I snarl without hesitation and run so quickly that I use some of my vampire speed to get to the bathroom door. I try to open it but the door is locked from inside.
I back up snarling when I feel my eyes turn from brown to red. I feel my anger boil inside me as I kick the door down with one kick. Michael is caught off guard and in shock when he sees me. He looks at the busted down door.
"You!" He lets out in anger.
"Yeah! Me!” I grab Michael by the arm and throw him across the bathroom with my strength. He flies out of the bathroom to the entrance of the castle doors. People jump in fright of what they are seeing. I can hear the sound of his arm breaking from the impact of his fall to the ground.
I look to Mina asking, "Are you alright?"
She's in shock to see what I had just done. But Mina does not question what she saw with the door or Michael because she looks at Michael in horror when she breaks down crying. She nearly falls to her knees but I immediately take her in my arms as she lets out a sort of wailing cry of what Michael tried to do to her.
“He is not going to hurt you, Mina. He’s not going to hurt you. I will kill him before he lays another hand on you.” I repeat to her over and over again. “It is ok, Mina. You’re going to be okay. No one is going to hurt you.” Mina continues sobbing louder than before.
A few people enter the bathroom and it is some of Mina’s coworkers. They surround us in shock, wondering what has happened. I stare at Michael as he is crying out in his arm being broken, knowing that he cannot try to turn this in his favor. I growl in anger then yell, “He tried to rape her!!!!”
Many hear my words about Michael. One of the workers of the castle ask, “What is going on here?!”
I know that Mina’s coworkers have Mina. I make my way to be standing over Michael, wanting to drain him dry. I point at Michael, yelling with hatred, “He tried to rape her!!! Call the cops now!”
The worker does not hesitate to go for a phone as do some others that are witnessing to what they are seeing. I go back to Mina in seeing that her friends are hugging her while she is crying so much. I notice that some of her hair extensions are on the bathroom floor. I sense the tension of what happened to Mina along with all of her crying right now.
After about ten minutes, Romanian police pull up quicker than I expected her to do. The police come in and get Michael on his feet, hand cuffing him. Michael tries to stare Mina down but I block his view of Mina by standing in front of her. They shove Michael into the back of their vehicle. The police get statements from those who witnessed what happened before they get Mina’s statement.
I stand off to the side, listening to Mina tell the police what happened. “I enter into the bathroom when I hear the door slam. I turn to find him locking the bathroom door. Before I could say or do anything, he says that I am going back with him wither I like it or not.” She is shaking pretty bad when she goes into more details. “I told him that I am not going anywhere with him and he is nothing longer a part of my life. That is when he pushed me against the wall, unbuckling his belt telling me that he is going to have me one way or another. I screamed out for help but he….”
I walk over to her and place my hand on her backside, rubbing my hand on her back to see if it will help calm her down to finish her statement. She struggles to inhale and exhale in finishing what happened. “He used his hand to cover my mouth as he began to lift up my dress to try and force himself into me. But that is when the door was kicked down by Vlad. He ran over, ripping Michael from me. Michael landed on the floor, must have broken his arm when he hit the floor.”
The cops finish their questions with Mina. They want to question me next but I ask them if I can have a minute alone with Mina. They allow it and walk over to get more statements of other folks at the party. I leave Mina alone for a minute so I can make a phone call to my handler, Luke. He answers within the third ring like always.
“Is everything alright, Vlad?”
“Yes, I am ok. But there is something I need you to look into. See if you can quickly find a lawyer that will get a restraining order within a day or two or the latest by the end of this week for Mina Barnes against the District Attorney Michael Ozturk.” I tell Luke.
“Ok, I’ll get right on it. Is there anything else that may be needed for whatever is going on?” Luke asks me.
“Make sure the lawyer has a strong case against Michael if this does get taken to a judge. I want to make sure that he will be buried down so much that he will be buried eight feet down instead of six feet in his coffin.” I snarl in anger of replaying the sounds of Mina calling out my name when he nearly took her.
“Vlad, do not go ripping his head off yet. I will see what can be done and let you know when I have something. In the mean time, make sure that Mina is safe for the next week. It is best that she is not left alone if he manages to get off. See if you can stay with her or she stays with you. Be careful. Talk to you soon, Dracula.”
I lightly smile when he calls me that. He is the only one I allow to call me Dracula since he says it with no sarcasm ever. Plus he is a good friend and knows full well who I am. He is more than just my handler. He is the closet family friend I have in my life. “Have a good night, Luke.” He ends the phone call. I place my phone back into the inside pocket of my costume.
I turn to be standing before Mina in seeing her use my cape to keep herself covered and warm with how chilly it is at the time of night. I slowly approach Mina, knowing that the presence of a man needs to be slow and easy because of what Michael almost did to her. I am about three feet from Mina when asking, “Mina, is it ok if I take you back home?”
Mina freezes in my words when her eyes go directly to the car that Michael is in. I wonder what else he has done to Mina. I shudder in terror that I will make things worse if I ask this but I have to know. “Mina, is he the one your mother mentioned in your phone call?”
She shakes her head yes quickly. I recall some words she did from that phone call. I try to contain my anger in asking, “Has he hurt you mentally and physically, Mina?”
“Yes…” Mina tries not to cry answering me.
I growl in anger that he has done more to Mina before she met me. “Oh, hell no! You are staying with me tonight or I am watching over you at your place, do you understand me?! I will not ever let him touch you again. I will help you in any way I can to make sure he never does anything to you again.”
Mina remains shivering as I stay within two feet of her. I realize that Mina is colder than she should be. I look around to find a blanket nearby. I grab it and gently place it over Mina’s shoulders. Mina brings the blanket closer to her, telling me, “I cannot stop shaking. I’m so cold.”
“It is the shock of tonight’s events, Mina.” I tell her, giving her space.
I hear Mina’s coworkers heading over to Mina. I tell Mina that I will be back over so we can head wherever she wants to go for the night. I go over to the police to give my statement. They ask me the basic questions then get my side of the story. But with some changes with how I quickly I got from the entrance to the bathroom then kicked down the door in one go.
“I waited for her after our carriage pulled up. I notice how long she was gone. I got worried. I went to the bathroom. I notice the door was locked. I started hear Mina screaming and Michael in the bathroom. The moment he stopped her screaming, I had no choice but to bust down the door to find him about to rape her as easy as it is drawing his next breath. I use the force necessary to get him away from Mina. He must have broken his arm when he landed on the ground.”
“Yeah but his arm was completely shattered upon impact according to the EMT. It is hard to shatter the bone with a man of his weight and build. You must really work out, Mr. Tepes.” One of the officers respond to me.
“Adrenaline kicked in and I used what force was needed against Michael. I did not mean for this to happen but it did.” I tell them.
They stare at me in fear that I can do that sort of damage. I knew exactly what would ease them for any questions that are already rushing through their minds. I go into the inside pocket of my costume showing them my ID. They see my ID. It shows that I was in the army. One of them takes my ID to check it out. I manage not to smile because I know they would find normal things, nothing out of the ordinary of my background. My handler, Luke is one of the best people in making ID’s for supernatural beings like me that look normal for the human world. It was worth every penny to get all of the ID’s and passports I have if I ever had to leave in a hurry of being exposed as a vampire.
After my background checks out, they give my back my ID, informing me that they will keep us posted if Michael manages to make bail. I tell them to have a good night along with no holding back on giving Michael a hard night with what he has done. I walk away before they could say anything else. I go over to Mina, sensing that she is ready to leave the castle.
I walk over when she is having a hard time standing. I instantly pick her up in my arms. Mina is ok with me being this close to her. Her coworkers tell her good night and to text them tomorrow with how she is feeling and all. I am glad that Mina has people in her life that care for her. I carry her to our carriage. The driver opens the door for me. I enter into the carriage easily with Mina still in my arms.
“Where do you want to stay tonight, Mina?”
She tells me while trying not to cry, "I don’t want to be alone tonight, Vlad. I don’t want to go home either. Can I stay with you?"
“Of course, Mina.”
I look to the driver and tell him to head back to my house as fast as he can. He closes the door and urges the horses into a canter away from the castle. I keep Mina in my arms the entire way, trying to calm her nerves. We do not speak most of the way. We only hear the sound of the horses’ hooves pounding against the road and their heavy breathing in trotting the way back on this foggy night it has turned into. Mina quietly cries in my arms. I rest my head on top of hers, letting her know that she is safe with me.
I mentally pray to GOD that I was there in time before Michael succeeded in having his way with her. I fear how much worse things would be if I did not make it in time. I am unsure if Mina would even endure through it if he did rape her. I whisper to Mina, “Go ahead and shed some tears, Mina. Just let it all out.”
Mina buries her face into my shoulder, crying more until the carriage finally arrives at my house. I help Mina out. I inform the driver to head to my stables to care for the horses; I will pay him tomorrow morning for his job tonight of driving the carriage. He agrees before driving the carriage away from the house.
Mina and I enter into my house. I lock the door behind me to help Mina feel safer. I show Mina to my bedroom and start to small built in gasoline fireplace several feet across from my bed. I grab Mina two blankets for her to use instead. Mina still has tears rolling down her face. I see that she is moving herself back and forth, trying to get herself to stop shaking. I leave her alone for a minute so I can see what clothes I have that she can use for the night. I see a big black cotton shirt that she can use if she wants. I grab it and slowly sit next to her.
“You can use this shirt for tonight. If you are up for it tomorrow, we can go by your place to keep a change of clothes for you.” I set the shirt close to her.
She heads into my bathroom to change into the shirt. She comes back out, with her normal short blonde hair, no jewelry, just her coming back over to sit by the fireplace. She wraps the blankets around her again. I was sure that she did not want to be close to another man right now. I am about to stand up but stop when she grabs my hand. I see that she wraps her hand around mine.
“I am such a mess, Vlad. I am sorry so that you are in the middle of all of this.” She tells me still shaking. I pull my hand away from hers then gently rub my hands up and down her arms, trying to help her calm down.
“There is nowhere else I would rather be, Mina. And you can stay here as long as you need to.”
I move my hands to softly cup her face, kissing on her forehead. Without another word spoken, she buries her face into my chest; staying in my arms until she finally calms down. I gently pull her into my arms, carrying her to my bed. I set her down on my bed and lift up the covers for her. When she gets the blankets to her liking, I sit down beside her.
I cannot help but to stare at her. Her glamorous makeup is messed up from the amount of crying she has done. I still think that she is the most beautiful woman in the world; putting the rest of the world to shame. I tell her to get whatever sleep she can when I stand to my feet to adjust the lights in the room to be dim.
I go into my closet and change into my sleeping clothes of a white shirt and soft black pajama pants. I brush my teeth then walk back into the bedroom to feel Mina’s eyes watching me.
“Penny for your thoughts?” I ask.
She sits up in the bed. "Thank you for everything, Vlad. I do not know how I can repay you for everything that you have done."
I walk over to her saying, "You do not have to worry about anything, Mina. You do not have to repay me at all." I grab her hands gently and kiss both of her hands. She smiles at me then she leans her forehead against mine.
After a few moments of listening to her breathe, steady heart beat, I know she needs to get some sleep. I grab a blanket, going over to the love seat I have across from my bed by the gasoline fire place.
"You do not have to sleep on the couch, Vlad." She tells me.
"It is ok, Mina. I want you to have a good night sleep. It is ok." I tell her when sitting on the love seat. I start to cover the blanket over me.
"Please do not sleep in the chair, Vlad. I don't want you to." Mina whispers to me.
I gaze at her when her voice is almost begging me not to sleep in the chair. I stand up and go over to the bed. I slide under the covers with her. Mina cuddles up next me when I wrap my arms around her. Mina sighs in relief of how good it feels to be in my arms right now.
Maybe within a few minutes, Mina falls asleep in my arms. I admire her sleeping face until I start to stare at her neck. Normally when I see someone's neck this close, I start to get all sorts of hungry but I am not this time. The voices are not taunting me like they normally do. I smile knowing that GOD is giving me the strength to let me have a normal night's sleep with Mina.
I soon start to feel my eyes lids close and the last thing I see is Mina sleeping decent after all that happened. I smile to myself that I am going to fall asleep with Mina in my arms. I silently pray to God, "Thank you for giving me this chance to help Mina tonight. Give her the strength she needs to face whatever may come next." I fall asleep shortly after praying these words to GOD.
