My throat began to burn, tightening.
“I will ask you one more time, a chance for peace. Answer carefully; it will mean your life.” His lips were just above mine. “Give yourself to me.”
“You are not asking.” My throat strained, a slight whistle from the constriction. “And you will continue to make demands of meuntil I find a way to put an end to you and all those like you, you foul beast.”
Silas sighed and trailed his thumb over my lip, smearing his blood over it like a ceremonial balm.
I coughed, unable to keep my eyes from watering, burning. The dry air made it harder to fight the asphyxiation. He just stood there, watching out of morbid curiosity, some cruel experiment.
“You could have had it all with just two simple words to grace your lips.” He gave a coy smile as I began to breathe heavily. “It would be so easy. All you’d have to say is—” His shadow overcame me as he leaned over, his cheek against mine, his mouth by my ear. “I’m yours.”
I managed a laugh that sounded more like a cough, a gag. “Not even... in death... would I utter those words.” My breath was raspy, tears clouding my vision and warming my cheeks as they began to numb.
He trailed his lips from my ear to my cheek, tasting the tears before they hovered above my own. I leaned up, the antidote just out of reach, but he leaned away. I was going in and out, his eyes blurring and focusing in my vision.
“Please...” I mouthed but couldn’t speak anymore.
He cupped his hand over my mouth and kissed the back of his hand.
My body slumped, the stars in my eyes clouded, and all I could see was light and shadows. Even with a limp body, there were still arms grasped possessively around me.
All I could do was breathe out, and then the feeling of his lips on mine, faint like a daydream.
“Can you taste it, Alina? Your life dangling on the tip of my tongue?” His words were almost a hiss, yet the tone was begging to possess.
It was clear to me then that Silas had learned nothing in my absence. He was one of those men I would say was not dissimilar to a hound, in need of clear boundaries. Luckily, I knew how to deal with animals. How else do you set boundaries other than with threats?
If he was so set on using force, then I would not shy away from doing thesame.
18
THE CREATURE
Just that single interaction was enough to fuel me, rekindle the excitement of what I came for in the first place.
The way her lungs struggled in the cage of her corset, her skin radiating that palpable heat, the delicious scent of herpanic. Who knew what I needed was just a bit of fun?
Everything was sogood. I couldn’t really describe it better thaneuphoria.
As I lay in bed the next morning, the sheets were softer, the floral scent of the room was stronger... I even dreamed in full color that night.
The only thing I regretted from the night was the fact that I did not taste her. The bartender made for poor-quality fare, a bit flat for my tastes. A familiar lurch in my stomach festered now that she was back in my life. It had taken the better half of a year to be able to hold down blood that was not hers. I craved it like opium straight from the pipe. I could feel the need settling in again, though hopefully this time I would not need to feed on anyone else for long.
As I rolled over, something hard poked against my cheek. I mumbled under my breath, but I soon forgot my irritation whenI picked up the hard piece. As I held it between my fingers, my heart stumbled strangely.
A tooth.
Afang, to be specific.
There was a tinge of inky blood at the root, insinuating it was fresh from someone’s mouth.
My tongue ran across the roof of my mouth to check if it were mine, but it was not.
I sat up, unable to pull my attention from the tooth before I noticed the glass cup on the nightstand containedmoreteeth. I would have thought it was a vision, borne of being hungover from some type of nightmare.
I went to put the tooth in the glass with the rest of them but then felt a granular rustling on top of my sheets.
This has to be a joke.
