4. HUNGER
PART 1
ONE
PHOENIX
I rununtil my lungs scream for mercy, and only then do I stop, doubling over with my hands braced on my knees. But it’s not enough. It’s never enough. The rage inside me is a living thing—snarling and clawing at my ribs from the inside out.
So I straighten, alone in the endless stretch of forest with nothing but trees and silence for miles.
And I scream at the top of my lungs.
Still not enough.
I scream again, brace my arms out in front of me, and charge at full vampire speed toward a towering oak.
The impact when I hit it sends shockwaves through the ground. Roots tear free from the earth with a wet, ripping sound. The tree tilts, groans, and topples sideways.
I leap onto the trunk as it falls, riding it through a cascade of smaller trees. Branches crack and splinter. Birds shriek and scatter. The forest floor rushes up to meet me.
I jump off just before impact, grabbing the branches of the nearest tree to break my fall.
When I finally land, I’m sweaty, breathing hard, and my hair is plastered to my face with leaves and twigs tangled in the strands.
Still, the rage inside me sits just beneath my skin—barely banked. Simmering.
I scream one more time for good measure.
Back in my real life—back with Grandfather and his endless mind games—I’m never allowed to lose control. Even raising my voice a fraction could be interpreted as disrespect. And disrespecting Grandfather could get me hurt. Or it might get someone else hurt.
I collapse onto the ground, head buried between my arms.
Maybe it’s over now. He’s lost his leverage over you.
But even as I think it, I feel my face crumple. Because I can’t imagine ever being truly free of Vlad Dracul’s control. Not really. Not when he’s had centuries to perfect the art of manipulation, and I’ve only had nineteen years to learn how to survive him.
I’m mid-pity-party when a distant sound stops me cold.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
I go still.
Oh shit, there’s another heartbeat out here. With me. In a place where I’m supposed to be completely alone.
And it’s far larger than any animal’s.
Dammit. How did I miss it?
In the city, human heartbeats create a constant cacophony—white noise that’s always there in the background, pulsing through every building and street. But out here? Right now?
There’s just a single heartbeat besides my own. Even most of the forest creatures have fled after that tree I just demolished.
It doesn’t take much focus to zero in on exactly where it’s coming from.
Far too close.
I whirl around, scanning the treeline. At first, I see nothing. Then?—
