“They sent me with this,” Alistair said, holding out a small silver box in his hands.
The guard looked down at it warily and flipped the lid to reveal a massive syringe filled with blue, transparent liquid. Another snarl rumbled through me and he went a few shades paler.
“You know him?” the guard asked, studying Alistair closely.
He hesitated, looking my way with that cold blue gaze, before he nodded.
“Maybe he’ll let you get close, then,” the guard suggested, his voice raspy with fear. He looked me up and down, then swallowed audibly.
I could smell his sweet, sticky fear on him and it just made me want to tear into him all the more.
Alistair, on the other hand, didn’t seem the least bit concerned. It was maddening. The rage sizzling inside me made my fur stand on end as I stared down the approaching vampire. It might’ve been smarter to try to lure him close in by playing nice, but I was too blinded by anger to control myself. I couldn’t help but snap in his direction again, the growl rumbling in my chest boiling into a full-blown roar.
He stopped just far enough away to be out of my range, but closer than most would have been comfortable with. The judgmental glint in his gaze fanned the flame of my rage.
“Funny, but I would’ve thought you’d at least wait until the end of the semester to go feral.”
I strained to reach him, the steel holding my head and hands still bending and twisting. I knew from the sound of metal groaning that I was close to breaking free.
And Alistair was my new target.
My dwindling human side suddenly struggled toward the surface of my consciousness, hellbent on getting out and shifting back before I could turn the vampire into dog food, but the beast was too powerful. I was simultaneously enraged and terrified. Terrified for the first time in my life, maybe. I didn’t want the death penalty, which I’d surely receive for killing another student, even if I wasn’t fully in control of my own body.
And I didn’t want to hurt Bells. For some crazy, stupid reason, she seemed tolikethis guy. He made her smile once in a while, and her smile was the most beautiful thing in the world. If I killed him, she’d probably cry, and I couldn’t bear the thought of being the reason for Bells to cry.
I stopped struggling, but the hatred in my eyes didn’t fade. Neither did my snarl.
One instant, he was standing still, studying me carefully. The next, he’d moved without my even noticing and plunged the long ass needle straight into my jugular. I was too pumped full of adrenaline to truly register the pain, but another roar of pure rage echoed through the room. He darted out of the way just in time to avoid the snap of my jaws.
Damn vampires. Fast as rodents.
The pain in the side of my throat started as a biting sensation that quickly escalated into fire, coursing through my blood and lighting up every inch of my flesh. I couldn’t hold back anymore. Bellowing in agony and rage, I broke free from the stocks with a twist of my head and cleared the room in a single leap. I grabbed Alistair by the throat and pinned him against the wall, roaring in his face, the beast wanting him to be afraid before he died.
He didn’t even blink.
No!my human side shouted in the back of my mind, clawing at my consciousness--our consciousness--struggling to break free. Maybe it was just the drugs, but somehow, my humanity got a foothold.
I slowly began to shift back, my muzzle receding into my face and my fur growing sparser and sparser until I was no longer covered in a white coat. My body shrank down, my bones creaking and snapping painfully as they took on human shape. At the end of it all, I was left buck naked, panting hard, still holding Alistair against the wall.
He just stood there, like he was either oblivious to the hands around his throat, or just didn’t care.
After what seemed like forever, he finally asked, his voice slightly strained from my grasp, “Are you done?”
I released him and backed up, my shoulders still heaving. I whipped around and stared down at the guard, who was trembling in his boots as he held his stun stick like it was an assault rifle or something else equally useful. They’d sent the wrong damn guard to watch me. That or they were pulling a sick prank on him.
“Give me back my clothes,” I growled.
The guard didn’t move. Alistair glanced his way, then mine, and left through the door. A second later, he returned with my folded clothes and dropped them at my feet.
“Get dressed,” he said in that flat, monotonous voice. “Bells needs us.”
I hurriedly put my uniform back on. I didn’t bother to adjust my tie or straighten out my rumpled shirt as I stormed out the door. I assumed the guard would stop me if I wasn’t allowed to leave, and he didn’t. That or he was too scared.
“Where the fuck wereyouwhen Bells needed help?” I muttered as I made my way down the hall, letting my instincts lead me to her. She was in the hospital wing, which scared the shit out of me.
“I had patrol duty,” he answered without turning around. If I didn’t know better, I’d think there was a hint of guilt in his voice, but that was giving too much credit to a bloodsucker.
It was rare even for upperclassmen to be given a shift that put that much responsibility in their hands, which just made his Mr. Perfect routine all the more annoying.
