“Shit—”

I somehow find the strength to roll from my bed, a loud thump following. “Leave, fucking get out of here!” I grab my phone,Fucking two hundred missed calls?! Over a thousand messages. Syd!!

“Oh my Gods! Phiny!” She’s at my side in the matter of three strides and rolls me onto my back. “You... You’re so pale!”

“I’m always pale, you dimwit. Leave, Syd, and pretend like you got lost, damn it!” I groan out, my arm wrapping up and over the side of the bed.

She’s not moving, and truthfully I didn’t expect her to. Plus, Kairhyse doesn’t seem to be an idiot, he probably hears me telling her to go. He’s a creepy stalker, not a deaf stalker.

If he touches her, I swear I’ll pop his head clear off his shoulders. Just like I did with Mathas.

Suddenly, and without warning, Sydni is stripping her clothes. I immediately close my eyes, “Listen, you’re pretty, princess, but I don’t want to see you naked.”

“Feed, Phiny. I know you don’t like me like that, but you need to. Have you seen yourself?”

No, I haven’t, but I don’t need to. I understand what is happening to my body, and at some point, my horns will begin to protrude, and that damn tail will slither its way above my ass. It’ll be when my skin will peel, and I’ll become a weird-looking alien thing.

“Phiny, feed, it’s fine.”

She thinks it’s because I don’t find her attractive,pfft, how wrong she is.I’ve always told her that she may be pretty but I could never touch someone like her. It isn’t because of the type of person she is, because I’d ravage her pussy just like I would the next. No, it isn’t that I don’t find myself attracted to her, it’s because I wouldn’t wantto hurt her.

“Put your Gods damn clothes back on, Syd, I’m not feeding off of you!”

Damn it though, I can smell her through her panties.No, no, I can’t. I would not be able to stop. I would kill her, I know I would.

I take a shaky breath, “Thank you, but put your clothes back on.”

“Did you... just thank me?”

There is no way I can banter with her right now, so I just nod and rest my forehead against the mattress. I’m honestly not sure what I’m going to do.

Buzz. Buzz.

“Break that phone for me...” I hope she doesn’t take me seriously because I can’t really afford to buy a new one. I’m grateful she only grabs it and looks at who the message is from.

Her eyebrows pull together, “It’s an unknown number.” She hands it to me, and with a trembling hand, I read it:

Unknown Sender [18:56]

I owe you for not killing me.

I’m far too exhausted to find a way to type, so I press down on the mic and say, “Fuck you.” And send the message on its merry way. It doesn’t take but a second to see those three dots pop up, showing that he is typing back.

Unknown Sender [18:56]

Let me in and you can feed, but I’m not allowing anyone else in to do so. Send your friend home.

Who… in the fuck… does this guy think he is?

Sydni looks at me, thankfully she is putting her dress back on. She’s worried, and I don’t blame her. I’d be worried too. The last time I was like this, I had just been shoveled out of my crypt. She has never seen me so drained, and I had hoped never to let her.

Ihatethis guy. I fuckinghatethis guy so much.

I hold no self-pity for myself because I deserve this just as much as the ones I’ve killed deserved to die. But I’m so close. I can’t roll over and give up. Not after everything I’ve been through. What is a little bit of humiliation in letting this Vampire help me?It wouldn’t be the worst thing I’ve done to myself, so who cares…

Pushing down the mic again, I seethe, “If you fucking touch her, I will kill you, slowly.”

The concern on Sydni’s face as she leans toward me makes my skin crawl. I shake my head, I don’t want her to touch me. If she does, I know exactly what I’ll begin to do, and I’m terrified I won’t stop.