Page 64 of The Hunt
“It’s not a matter of sexuality, Eugene,” I assured him. “It’s a matter of complete devotion. You won’t see gender when you look at Eras. All you’ll see is the one living creature you will do anything for to make him happy.”
“Uh, yeah, that sounds like he’s going to turn me gay.” Eugene looked at Eras. “I mean, it wouldn’t be so bad if he looked more like Oanen or Fenris. Can I pick a different future gay master?”
His snarky humor enraged Eras, who gripped my shirt tighter. I heard a few seams break under the strain and glared at Eras.
“Look at me, Eras. Do I look well-fed? I’m the Academy joke for a succubus. How could a joke possibly steal a meal from you, someone who’s been hunting since before I arrived? Unless you’re saying that you’re worse at feeding than I am.”
His face flushed scarlet as his friends laughed.
“The first skill we learn is to hide our true natures from our prey. I think, living out in the human world, you’re better at that than any of us will ever hope to be. You want me to believe it wasn’t you that night? Prove it. Take a hit off of Eugene. I’ll even prime him for you so you don’t have to work so hard. I mean, stealing a meal is what you’re good at.”
“There’s just one problem with your logic,” I said with forced calm. “You claimed that someone wiped your memory of the feeding. Even if I fed from Eugene, you’d have no idea if it was me. In order to pursue this, you’d need to get your memory back first, and I hear that’s messy business. Unless your memory wasn’t really wiped, and all these accusations are just to stir up a little trouble. But then, I’d have to ask myself, why would you do that? Unless you’re trying to get Megan home sooner like the mermaids.”
Doubt flickered in Eras’s eyes.
“You don’t want that, do you? There’s something else that you’re trying to hide. Something that would get you into trouble if anyone found out. Something that Megan sensed that night in the bar.”
Eras confirmed that the straws I was grasping at actually had substance when he immediately released me and stepped back.
“This isn’t over. I’m going to regain my memories and prove it was you. Then you’ll never get your mark and be stuck in this place until you slowly starve to death. Enjoy that picture of your future, succubitch. I’m watching you.”
He shoulder-checked me as he walked away, and I stared after him and his goons. His reaction had confirmed he was far from innocent, and I couldn’t wait for Megan to come home.
“Thanks, Eliana,” Eugene said. “I was a little nervous when they grabbed me.”
“You should still be nervous. Feeding is allowed in school since Adira and the Council don’t consider feeding on a human’s sexual energy harmful to the human. But it is. Trust me on that.”
“Okay. Can I ask why he wanted you to feed from me? I mean, didn’t you already do that in the pool?”
I shook my head.
“I almost fed on you. Remember what Eras said about priming you? Well, you were primed then. Try not to think about that, though. You don’t want any of those old feelings to resurface.
“As for why he wanted me to feed…well, he thinks another incubus or succubus stole a meal from him. Each of us has a unique energy signature when we feed. He would have sensed it at the time his meal was stolen. That’s why he’s trying to get others to feed while he’s around. And that’s never going to happen with me.”
“Why?”
I smiled sadly at Eugene.
“Because what I said is true. I’m the Academy joke. The starving succubus. I don’t feed. At least, not anymore.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?”
I shrugged.
“That’s what all the adults in my life are saying. But I feel fine, so who’s to say?”
“Well, that’s an interesting admission,” Adira said, stepping out of the pool door. “Would you like to repeat that to your mother, or shall I?”
“Do whatever you want, Adira. You will regardless.”
She canted her head and studied me for a moment.
“This new attitude doesn’t suit you.”
“I think it suits me just fine.”
“I wonder what your father would think. Perhaps it’s time he and I had a long conversation.”
