What theyhadn’ttold me was that it felt like I was coming out of my bones, that my mind was rearranging itself and splitting, and that thebeastinside me, as it awakened, was a vicious, monstrously wrong thing.
There was nothingrightabout this.
There was only a sense of doom, as sublime as it was. A doom I would gladly die within. Because I’d known the moment her blood had met my tongue, that sweetness a gift of the gods, I wouldneverbe right again.
I could never be.
It was loud in my mind. I could hear my heartbeat and hers. I could hear the rushing of my blood like a symphony in my veins. The gentle breeze in the garden felt amplified as it threaded through my hair and over the backs of my flared wings, a touchalmost too severe. My wings…I hadn’t realized they’d come around her, cradling—or trapping—her against me, as if I was afraid she would flee from this.
My senses were overloaded. I heard a door of the keep closing; I heard the deep call of alyvin, howling in the forest miles away; I heard the clatter of cobblestones of the South Road being laid, even this time of night.
It was almost too much, and so I focused on Erina’s scent to ground me.Divine. My hand tightened in her hair, pulling her head to the side even more. I needed to be closer. My body was throbbing. My cock felt like steel, pushing against the tight seam of my pants. I rocked against her and heard her gentle, intoxicating mews. They only fueled my need for her more.
Growing greedy, I drank more deeply as her heart sped, a harsh pounding I could feel even through the thick material of my vest. There was a maddening hungry need to replace every drop of blood in my body with hers. I felt my strength rise, could physicallyfeelmy body growing, pressing against the structured material of my clothes.
Her body bucked against me, a moan tumbling from her, echoing in the confines of my wings. I felt her pleasure. I couldtastethe orgasm as it speared through her, sharp and aching. I could taste her wildness and her innocent disbelief as she came apart in my arms.
And still, I neededmore. Never before had I been this close to a berserker rage, but the strength was addicting. I understood my ancestors’ need to bring theirkyranasto battle. This strength was dangerous and deadly. I felt drunk on it, just as much as her blood.
“Kaldur,” came my name.
I latched on to that word, at the weakened and tired sound of her voice.Fuck,I thought.Too much.
With a sharp groan, I managed to tear myself away. I flung myself back, crushing starwood bloom vines beneath my feet.
No,I thought in panic, and so I launched myself into the air, hovering above them a few feet as I caught my breath, her blood dripping from my fangs. I licked them, not wanting to waste a single drop, as my eyes focused on her below.
She’d fallen to her knees and was staring up at me, her face cast in moonlight. Her cheeks were flushed, her lips parted as she panted. Her brown eyes were so glassy they appeared like mine: silver. A stream of blood ran down from her neck. Her hair fluttered around her face with every gust of my wind, keeping me hovering.
She was beautiful.
I cursed, a maelstrom of emotion swirling in my chest. Disbelief. Lust. Resignation. Ecstasy.
Guilt.
I lowered myself in front of her. I’d taken too much, and her only true meal today had been at breakfast.
I bit down into the pad of my own thumb as I kneeled in front of her. The venom mixed with my own blood, and then I smeared it over the two small wounds at her neck. In mere moments, they stopped bleeding. I licked at my thumb as she stared at me, her gaze half-lidded.
Not speaking, I gathered her into my arms. My eyes caught on the contract as I stood, and I swiped it from the moon dial, shoving it into my pocket before I launched myself into the sky.
Erina didn’t react to being in midair, except for a slight tightening of her hands on my vest. I was worried. She was quiet, too quiet. How much had I taken? I couldn’t be certain—I’d been too lost—but I was reassured by the pinkness of her cheeks.
Still…
The garden grew small below us, illuminated by moonlight and the trail of golden and blue orb lights I’d had installed to light the pathways. I flew toward the South Wing, toward the balcony of my own private rooms, keeping lowerto the ground and going slower than I normally might, in fear that I might scare her.
When I landed on the balcony, I pushed open the door with one booted foot. A fire had been lit, likely by Maudoric, and I placed Erina carefully on the plush chair in front of the hearth.
She shivered—and I wrapped a thick throw over her shoulders, tucking it in around her—though I was relieved by the shy smile that crossed her lips when I was done.
“Thank you,” she said, her voice paper thin.
My lips were pressed into a firm line. My fangs wouldn’t retract, and I felt them bite into the flesh of my bottom lip. I snagged my Halo orb—a hovering ball of soft light—when it strayed too near and sent a Com message to Maudoric before releasing it.
I kneeled in front of the chair.
“Are you all right?” I asked, my jaw tight as I studied her. I didn’t know what I felt, but I would dwell on that later once I saw her well.
