I felt uneasy, unsure of her in a way I hadn’t felt since our first encounters.
She had set me up to be hunted by President Minerva and had attacked Rylan. Her behaviour had been entirely unpredictable, unstable, and regardless of her reasoning and excuses, she had betrayed me—betrayed us.
And in that moment, I realised that I was truly frightened.
I felt truly in danger—no naivety to protect me. I knew what Selene was capable of when fully in control of herself. I couldn’timagine what her vampire instincts could unleash if she fully lost control.
I was so still, a deer who had scented a hunter.
I didn’t take my eyes from hers as I raised a hand to my neck and applied pressure to try and lessen the pain.
“What’s wrong with you?” I asked after a long tense silence, where she only looked at me and I could not tell what she was feeling or thinking.
I decided to try to stand, to create space from us, scared of what would happen when she snapped back into motion.
As I slowly and dizzily stood up from her lap, I wobbled on my feet as darkness crept at the edges of my vision, threatening to consume me. But I saw the sense return to her eyes as I almost stumbled and fell. She reached out to try and steady me, but I pushed her hand away as I collapsed back into the opposite side seat.
“Percy,” she licked her lips as if only just tasting my blood and opened her mouth to speak a few times, a bewildered look across her perfect features.
“I’m sorry. It’s been too long since I last fed, my instincts have been heightened. I shouldn’t have drunk from you now,” she apologised.
I could see her trying to compose her words as the bloodhigh took effect.
Her expression changed to something pleading. “Come back to me,” she instructed, reaching her hand out into the space between us.
“No,” I said, “You can’t have any more. That was enough,” I told her as firmly as I could, trying to keep my head fromnodding backwards and focusing enough to keep my attention on her. I was aware of every move she made.
“I won’t take anymore. I promise,” she said, and had the audacity to giggle in that enchanting way that usually left me enamoured and unbalanced, but in the moment, it was only worrying and angering.
It was like she didn’t understand what had happened, like she was unaware of her loss of control, of how dangerous the situation was.
She leaned out of her seat, the distance between us so small that she could reach me without needing to stand.
I attempted to protest, to try to twist away from her, but my movements were lethargic, and each one caused my head to pound in protest.
She took hold of my wrist, pulling me out of my seat and across the small space until I fell, unsteady, into her.
She quickly maneuvered me like a doll until I was straddling her hips.
“So spirited, is my little pet, hmm?” she laughed. “It’s quite cute.”
Her hand gripped the back of my head and forced it down and to the side, revealing one of her bites.
I couldn’t stop her, and tears streamed down my face. Fear overtook me, and I could barely form the words of my pleading.
“Please, Selene, don’t,” I begged.
She ignored me and leaned forward, her nose pressing painfully against my inflamed skin. Inhaling deeply, she released a deep, satisfied groan.
“You smell so good,” she said before I felt her tongue, warm and wet against my skin.
I braced myself for another bite and wondered briefly if this was how it would end. If she drained me to death, would she be killing herself too?
“Stop,” I tried again, weakly. But she did not stop her attentions.
After a few dreadfully fearful moments, she began to produce a deep growl, the type that was more of a purr. The sound, the vibration passing from her to me, was soothing as it signalled a lack of aggression.
Selene only purred when content. And as my fear subsided, I realised that she was cleaning my wound delicately, careful not to cause me unnecessary pain. I made myself as near to limp for her ministrations as I could, allowing her to tilt my head and apply the same treatment to her second bite.
