Page 7 of Hollow Nights

“You know, for a human, you’re pretty accepting about this whole demon thing.” I waited for an answer, unamused. “Call it a fun little perk. A cosmic joke. I can feel pain but never really die. You could cut my head off and I’d still live. That’s how powerful my blood is.”

“Could it heal anyone? Even humans?” I genuinely wondered.

“Aren’t you just a curious cat?” He leaned down, examining me closely. “Yes, I suppose it can.” His eyes fell to my skin, examining the many cuts and forming bruises from him chasing me earlier. “Would you like me to use it to heal you, Libra?”

I scoffed. “You didn’t exactly give a confident response.” Axelle’s smile dropped as he released a low snarl.

“Why don’t you drop to your knees and let me show you just how confident I am?” His voice was deep and threatening yet tempting. An odd mix.

“What?”

“You heard me. If you want me to heal your wounds,” he pressed his forehead against mine, “kneel.” My eyes burrowed into him as my body trembled, slowly dropping to one knee,then the other. “Good.” He leaned back, removing his jacket. His body was surprisingly alluring, covered in large black tattoos and piercings. It was menacing yet attractive, taking me back.

Axelle wasted no time as he raised his arm above my head and placed a single claw from the opposite hand against his skin. “Now, open wide.” Without a second thought, I did as I was told, my mind in a weird haze as he pushed the claw deep into his forearm, thick, black blood running from his body onto me.

I gasped, the hot liquid startling me as it dripped down my face, running down my forehead and cheeks and into my mouth, pooling. I coughed, choking on the bitter taste, trying to remain still. Every ounce of my body wanted to resist his blood, but that curious part of me took control as I remained on my spread knees, taking it.

Axelle removed his claw and pulled his arm back as the deep wound began to instantly heal. He walked towards me, my head barely reaching his waist as his hand grabbed my chin, tipping it up to look at him. I tried to hold his blood in my mouth, unsure of what to do, the bitter taste causing my stomach to churn.

“Swallow.”

He wanted me to drink his blood?

His hand squeezed my jaw harder. “Swallow every last drop of me,” he snarled. My body tried to resist, but I did as I was told, swallowing the hot liquid. It burned, the thick blood running down my esophagus. I coughed, spitting up small, black clots as my stomach twisted and turned.

“W-what did you do?” I gagged, turning to the sink, almost sick as I tried to rinse my mouth and clean my face.

“Calm down. It won’t kill you.” He put his leather jacket back on. “You’ll just feel a littleoff, but as you can see,” he pointed to me, “it’s working.”

I glanced down at my body, the cuts and bruises gone, as if never existing. I examined myself closer, checking everywhere as I realized he was right; his blood had healed me.

“Got to say, I really enjoyed the sight of you on your knees, your mouth wide open, just waiting for me to fill it,” he teased. “What other little games do you think we could play or keep ourselves busy with?” I rolled my eyes, annoyed.

“Look,” I tried to clear my throat, turning to face him, “if I’m going to be stuck with you, the least you could do is leave me alone and clean that fucking mess you made. My room looks like a horror movie.”

He huffed. “Fine. I’ll clean the walls and floors, but I’m not leaving you alone, and I’m sure as hell not doing your damn laundry.”

I grabbed a handful of his chain, yanking it as his head followed and I glared back up at him. “Want to bet?”

He grinned, way too amused by my temper. “Whatever you say, fleshbag.”

Chapter 3

Libra

“Can you please just stop touching everything!” I quickly caught the jewelry display, placing it back on the shelf as I untangled the pendant necklaces. “You act like you’ve never seen any of this before.” I groaned, trying to keep an eye on Axelle as he moved to another shelf.

“I guess I never really cared before.” He tapped the side of a quartz sphere. “But now,” he turned to face me, “knowing you can see me makes everything that much more exciting.” He flicked the sphere from the shelf, grinning as he watched me lunge to catch it. I bent down, grasping it just in time, exhaling with relief.

“Motherfucke—” Axelle whipped my ass with his tail, the pain shocking me as I shot up and turned around, my cheeks burning. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” He beamed with pride, retrieving a crystal generator from the nearby shelf.

“Couldn’t help myself. You should really be more careful bending over in those little skirts of yours. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve tugged them to avert prying eyes. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy the show, not to mention the easy access?—”

The tug I felt the other day… That was him?

“Well, now look at what we have here!” Axelle pushed his hand towards the back of the shelf, retrieving a giant crystal penis. “Now that’s almost impressive.” He beamed, tossing the large crystal back and forth between his hands like a weightless toy.

“Axelle, stop!” I jumped towards him as his tail picked the crystal up, raising it high. I tried to jump and grab it, but I was too short, even in my platform boots. “Sterling will be here any minute, and the last thing I need is having to deal with you!”

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