Aris, and his entire team, have appeared as though from out of nowhere. They’re all breathing hard and brandishing weapons, and at first, I think they’re here for me, until they start fighting with the man who grabbed at me.
Turning, I realize there’s more than one—and, in fact, more than six—of them, all pale and gaunt, fighting against the team. It’s mesmerizing to watch them trade blows and duck under potential hits.
But I can’t stay. Clearly, these people only bring trouble.
As I turn to go back to my motel room, I feel a cool hand again, this time pulling me in close. Like in an old-fashioned horror movie, the man lowers his mouth to my neck and bites me. Hard.
I cry out, meeting the eyes of a short man with black hair. His eyes widen, and he races toward me, striking the man who just bit me before turning and catching me in his arms.
My vision fades in and out, stars dancing over the backs of my eyelids.
“—what?”
“She was bitten,” someone says, their voice too fuzzy and far away for me to understand.
“Oh, Gods.”
“We should just put her out of her misery.”
“Oh, yeah, are you the one going to do that?”
There’s silence, and my heart hammers away in my ears, blocking out sounds and rocking my entire body.
“—she could turn into a vampire. For humans, it’s a fate worse than death.”
“It is death,” another voice says, moving closer to me.
“Maybe she won’t turn. Maybe they didn’t quite get her. Ado, what did you see?”
“Spare her,” someone says, and I think it might be the man who caught me.
I pray they all agree with this directive, because once again, I am losing consciousness, the world fading away as I listen to lunatics, who think I’ve been bitten by a vampire, try to decide whether they should “put me out of my misery.”
Chapter 4 - Percy
“It’s so fascinating,” Maisie says, drawing out my blood and tucking it away into her medical kit. “To see how these two substances interact together in the shifter body. I’m going to have to take a few more samples. If the testing goes well, I may be able to publish a paper on the subject.”
We’re down in the compound. After giving me some pain meds and stabilizing me, Maisie brought a wheelchair and wheeled me all the way to the clinic, saying it would be easier to care for me with all her equipment.
“You know, Maisie,” I say, my head lolling to the side. Pain is radiating from the wound on my side and through the rest of my body. “I’m starting to think you’re the vampire, with how much blood you’re taking from me.
I mean it to be a joke, but her face crumples as she looks over me, shaking her head.
“I’m so sorry about all this, Percy,” she murmurs, reaching up and taking my hand. “Just feels like you can’t catch a break, you know? It’s just one thing after the other with you.”
I laugh weakly, giving her hand a squeeze before letting it go.
“Life’s a box of serums and venoms, or so I’m told.”
Instead of laughing, she just gave me another weak, watery smile, then left the room quickly. Based on her expression, I’m starting to think I might not make it through this. I can feel the venom worming its way through my body, nosing into my veins and spreading out. My lungs feel tight, but I don’t know if that’s more about the venom or my anxiety over the whole thing.
If I’m being honest, I’m not that afraid of dying. I’ve stared it in the face too many times to harbor a fear of it. What I am afraid of is letting down the people around me, leaving them behind.
Right away, I think of Veronica. Despite the fact that it’s been years since we were together, I can’t keep her from coming to mind. She is the one biggest regret of my life. I shouldn’t have left her the way I did—disappearing into thin air. But every time we were together, I got closer and closer to forgetting myself and doing something that could seriously hurt her.
There’s a reason humans and shifters can’t be together romantically—our bodies are not physically compatible. With penetrative sex, a shifter could potentially cause serious damage, or even kill, a human. Pursuing a romantic relationship with a human is reckless, and unethical.
And that’s why I didn’t tell the team about what happened between Veronica and me all those years ago. I’d asked for a sabbatical, to stay in New York City and hang out with my cousin—which was true, she did live there—but it was all so I could spend more time with Veronica.