Page 12 of Ashvale: The Vampire's Thrall

The glower on his face didn't ease as he threw me a sour look. "Lunch for those of us who actually need real food."

"Shame," I said, snapping my teeth at him as we reached the door in record time. "I was starting to feel snacky."

I nearly stumbled when a sharp sensation rolled through me and I looked at him in surprise. Because that hadn't been irritation he'd felt at the snap of my teeth—it had been something else, something even stronger. Lust.

And he thought he wouldn't beg for me?

ChapterSix

"This is probablythe worst tour I've ever had," I remarked the next day as Hayes strode past open doorways and snatches of lessons reached me. I’d spent the remainder of my first day at Ashvale sleeping and testing out my new speed and strength before crashing in the evening, exhausted. "Don't you need to be in class right now?"

He threw a scowl at me over his shoulder and I rolled my eyes as he continued his strong pace down the corridor. Our footsteps reverberated slightly, like an echo travelling being consumed by the stone walls, eager to absorb any glimmer of life it could get. I tilted my head as we rounded a corner and the sound of drum-like heartbeats thudded around me. It was strange to be one of the few dead things in a place otherwise filled with life. Or if not quite life, then at the very least blood.

Just thinking the word made me swallow harshly as my jaw ached. I hadn't even realised I'd stopped in place until a shockingly warm hand wrapped around my elbow and eyes filled every inch of my vision as I sucked down rapid breaths I no longer needed.

"Leonora."

I blinked, unsure when I'd move closer to him. "Yes?"

There was a wariness in the set of his shoulders, the slant of his mouth as he dropped his hand. "You need to focus. Don't let the hunger consume you."

I nodded vaguely but my eyes had found the throbbing pulse in his neck. “Sure.”

“You’ve made waves since you arrived as it is, what with being undead at eighteen, so the last thing you need is to draw more attention to yourself by draining me dry right now.”

Draining him dry? We weresoon the same wavelength. “Uh-huh,” I muttered.

"Something's not right," he muttered but I was too lost in the smell of his warmth to pay much attention. "You shouldn't still be this hungry. What did they do to you?"

My eyes lifted to his as my hands curled into fists. "What do you mean?" This was important. I had to focus.

"The hunger in the beginning," he said, his frown taking over his whole face as spoke in hushed tones in the middle of the corridor, moments of space between us. Easily eliminated. I almost smiled, anyone looking out of their classroom would likely think we were together with the way our heads were bent towards each other. “It’s been two days since you woke up, so it should be fading by now.”

I pinched my palms with my nails in an effort to refocus.

"That hunger drives you to feed and repair the damage of your death. The greater injury, the more blood you need to complete the transition."

Shit. "You're saying I haven't finished the transition yet?"

He shrugged, stepping back from me. "Maybe. Either way, you need blood. A lot of it and soon, before your survival instincts kick in and we find the student body becoming significantly smaller."

I followed when he moved deeper into the castle, the corridors seeming to grow darker the longer we walked. Less windows, I realised. "And if I take everything I need from you?"

"You'll probably kill me," he said, matter-of-fact.

"So, what? Humans? Other living vampires?"

A flash of emotion down the bond came and went too quickly for me to make sense of it and I watched his face closely. Did the thought of me drinking from someone else irritate him?

"Living vampires would be better than human blood, our blood is richer. But in this case, you need something else."

What else was there?

He didn't answer the unspoken question until we arrived at a door that was vaguely familiar. No heartbeat sounded from beyond the wood. The only sound was our footsteps, catching up to us like we were being haunted by our own souls.

Hayes knocked on the door, his mouth a flat line that had me on alert. Whatever was about to happen, he didn't like it.

The door swung inward of its own accord and I raised an eyebrow when I saw a familiar desk and the undead vampire sitting behind it.

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