Read Limerence II for Free Online Page B

into the air around her. Small scratches are on her arms and neck, her bottom lip puffier than the top one.
    “She’s a fighter.” Donny smiles proudly.
    “A fighter?”
    “Yes, most humans come willingly, not realising what they are letting themselves in for, ready to give themselves to a world of darkness, longing, and lust. They assume it will be all romance and blood, like that stupid teenage movie that is so popular in the human world. They never think that they will just be the lunch.” He laughs. “But this one,” he turns and smiles at her proudly, “she’s a fighter. What you can taste in her blood is fear, fear and anger. This blood hasn’t even been flavoured, it’s a delicacy all on its own.” He licks his lips as he stares at her with a salacious look.
    I drink the rest of the blood, and my skin feels hot and flushed, almost like I need to fan myself. “That’s—she’s . . .” I struggle to find the words to describe her—to describe the taste of her blood.
    “Delicious. Yes, I know.” He pats her knee, his hand going a little too high up her leg as he continues to stare at her. Her eyes, which are glaring straight ahead, move just a fraction and I frown.
    “Donny, did she . . . ?” I stare at her harder and move to stand in front of her, watching as her pupils dilate ever so slightly. The humans brought here for . . . well, dinner , don’t move. They are sedated and unaware of what is happening to them. But this redhead seems to see me, I realise as I stand closer to her, leaning over the counter to within touching distance. My hand reaches forwards, but I purposely don’t get close enough to actually touch her, for I can see in Donny’s protectiveness of her that he wouldn’t like that.
    “Yes, she’s aware. Not by much, and madness will take her soon, but the more aware she is, the better she tastes.” He looks back at me, his face full of glee. “Clever, right?” he says proudly. “The more fear and anger she has, the tastier she will be.” It’s then that I notice his fangs are out, his own greed and madness taking hold of him. He stares longingly at her, and I can tell that if it weren’t for his total control he would have drank her dry by now.
    I stare from the fiery-haired woman to him, feeling for the first time something akin to guilt for what we do to these humans; the families that we ruin by taking these poor people and stealing their lives—their blood. The others are not aware once they are brought here, once they are our food source, but this woman is more than aware of what is happening, and she is frightened by it—by me.
    I cock my head to the side, moving in and out of her view. Her eyes are fixed on me almost pleadingly, and a single tear drips from the corner of her eye. She is frozen in place, and will never leave here alive, and she knows it. It’s strangely fascinating, to know that she is aware of her impending death. I frown hard, almost forgetting what I came here for, my fascination in her drowning out any guilt I may feel for her mortality.
    I’m sure that a year ago I would have been horrified by this. Hell, I would have been horrified by any of this—vampires, Bastions, blood—yet I am accepting of it, as if this were always meant to be. But to so casually stand by and watch an innocent be stripped of not only her blood and dignity, but her mind also . . . well, that’s just cruel.
    I look back to Donny with a nervous laugh and a shake of my head. “That’s extremely clever, Donny,” I say and smile widely at him. “Can I have another glass of her?” I lick my lips greedily.
    Sure she’s aware, and frightened, but that doesn’t stop her tasting so damn good.
    *
    Donny did know where I could paint: a teaching classroom that wasn’t used anymore. The coven used to be bigger before the Queen waged war with the infamous Mr San. Now only a handful of rooms are used, and they don’t teach half the things they used to.
    The room is dusty