Page 18 of Thanatos' Craving

Fuck.

I was, I truly was. I’d gone mad, let emotions I had long buried deep come to the surface. It was her. She was doing this to me.

My bones warmed at the thought of bringing her back with me. She would fit perfectly in the confines of my home. She was my type of light that I needed. Like the moon.

Like the moon. Yes, a moon. She was my moon.

Fluffy nudged my arm, breaking me out of my trance. He whined, pulling on my robes with his sharpened teeth.

I couldn’t think straight. Not with her sitting here, staring deep within me. She opened the damn flood gates. There was no going back to what I once was.

Now that I have seen her, could nearly taste the essence of her soul on my tongue, I wanted her to be close to me. The female that does not fear Death.

I would make sure no one would ever find her. Not even her mate. She would be my secret, my hidden desire, my oasis in all the darkness.

Mine.

I straightened my shoulders, leaning closer to her. “Mortal, I have a proposition for you.”

“Juniper,” she coughed, “that’s my name.” Blood pooled in the corners of her mouth.

I have spent so much time thinking, I let her suffer like this, but this fire crackling, exploding inside me, had to be dealt with.

Ah, but Juniper. It suited her. Her muted red hair, her ferocity to fight back at her attacker. She was not weak in the slightest. I knew she would accept the deal I was about to give.

“Do you want to live?” I rasped, leaning close to her ear.

Fluffy nudged her hand and whimpered.

Juniper’s eyes fluttered, but her eyes bore into the blackness of my hood. “Yes,” she muttered.

My hands shook, excitement thrummed through my bones. The will to live. That's all I needed in order to keep her alive.

I knelt down, my wings surrounding her body as I scooped her up into my arms. Her body was cold, my robes now stained in her blood.

She didn’t protest while I held her. Instead, she laid her head on my chest, tiny puffs of air barely escaping her lungs. “Do not worry. Keep your will strong, and we shall save your body.”

She hummed in reply, and I spread forth my wings. Fluffy leaned his body beside me as we whisked away from the alley.

Chapter Six

Thanatos

Icradled Juniper in my arms; I felt the warm stickiness of her flowing blood soaking my robes. The sight of her pale face, drained of color, pierced my ribcage with a sense of urgency. The faint sound of her labored breaths echoed in the darkness, intermingling with the pounding of my own panicked breath. Time slipped through my fingers like sand, every precious second slipping away as her fragile mortal body teetered on the edge of life and death.

Her body could still die, and her soul would linger in the lifeless body until it withered into dust. Then her soul would turn into a spirit, a ghost, as many humans would call it. They are hard to retrieve, a pain for my reapers to bring to their resting place, but I wouldn’t let that happen to my Juniper.

In my rush, I carelessly neglected to press my wings close against my body, which resulted in a chaotic cascade of ancient tomes and delicate relics to tumble from the excessively cluttered table. The soft thud of the books hit the ground mixed with the delicate clinking of the relics, filling the air with a symphony of unintended chaos. The musty scent of aged paper and the faint aroma of ancient ink wafted through the room, adding to the disarray.

Fluffy whimpered, his trembling body pressed against my leg as I carefully placed Juniper on the plush ebony couch. The deep crimson stains from her blood saturated my robes, their dampness clinging to my bones. Yet, amidst the distress, I remained resolute, refusing to succumb to panic. I held onto the unwavering belief that her wounds would mend, her heartbeat would persevere, albeit at a slower rhythm.

“My friend, fetch Hypnos,” I ordered Fluffy.

His ears perked up and his body slinked around the various pieces of eclectic furniture and raced out of the cave.

Hypnos, my twin brother, and I were thick as thieves. He would keep his mouth shut and would tell no one of the treasure that I held. If he did, I would know. He was my twin, my confidant, my only friend. In fact, he would most likely help me hide my new treasure from any questionable gazes that came our way.

I willed clean gauze and wrappings to tighten around her abdomen. It was an almost fruitless endeavor to stop the bleeding. It was internal, and I did not know the inner workings of a mortal and how to heal sinew, veins, and muscle.

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