Compromised Vampire Slayer Ch. 02 (Patreon)

August 11, 2020

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Damn.

After a night of torture from my bones breaking and resetting, a hot shower truly felt like heaven. I ended up just sitting on the floor and letting the water run over me for what seemed like forever. I didn't even care if the concrete was dirty or covered in unseen germs. All that mattered was the hot water cascading over me.

Tristan returned after a while, only to turn right back around and walk out again. I was a little surprised he didn’t demand I turn the water off, but I was too emotionally numb to care at the moment. I was at least glad the scalding hot water seemed to have an infinite supply. I couldn’t get it hot enough, but it at least never cooled down.

Eventually, he reappeared again, keeping his eyes averted much to my surprise, to ask me if I was hungry. It was only then that I realized my stomach had been gnawing on my insides, begging me to give it attention. How was I even still hungry after eating an entire…Pig? Goat? Deer? Cow?

I wasn’t even sure what it was, but it should have been enough to last me an entire month, not serve as a small snack.

I finally popped open my soap and washed myself as thoroughly as possible. Once I was dressed, I met him outside the shower room, only to have him instruct me to leave my shampoo and conditioner inside.

“You can get it later,” he said simply.

I complied before following him down the wide concrete hallway, trying to memorize the way as we made several turns.

I felt nervous about being back above ground, largely because I was afraid the sunlight was going to hurt me. I kept forgetting I wasn’t that kind of monster, but I also didn’t want to discover that I actually was, by bursting into flames. When we exited a different closet than before, I hesitated before walking in front of a window.

Tristan noticed and smirked at me, but didn’t comment. He was being exceptionally patient, which made me slightly uncomfortable. I was afraid it would be jarring if his demeanor became threatening again. Granted, I realized that other than trying to feed me to a vampire, he had never actually done anything to physically hurt me. Suffocating me had only caused me extreme discomfort, but after last night that seemed like child's play compared to what real pain felt like.

Honestly, my agonizing transformation put a lot of things in perspective. Nothing seemed as serious compared to that torment.

Beyond the sunlight, I was also terrified that I might want to eat a person if I saw them, remembering my thoughts from last night. I couldn’t afford to lose control like that though, or else Tristan would probably be forced to kill me. At the very least, I didn’t want to make him regret deciding to keep me. It was the only reason why I was still alive.

When we got to one of the three banquet halls, there was already food waiting, with enough meat to feed ten people. I hesitated before sitting down. I was literally drooling, and my stomach was writhing around in pain, but I didn't want to assume it was for me.

Tristan rolled his green eyes and sat down across from me. “Just eat, Autumn.”

He didn’t have to tell me twice. I leapt into the chair and began scarfing down anything I could get my hands on, choking repeatedly as I tried to swallow large chunks of meat whole. Much to my surprise, he largely ignored me, not seeming concerned by my multiple near-death experiences while I ate. Granted, it wasn’t like I ever choked for long.

After I had eaten five times as much as I would have on a normal day – not a normal meal, but five times what I would have eaten in a day – I finally decided to ask about my appetite in between bites. “Why am I so hungry?” I wondered desperately. It was like nothing I did would make the hunger go away. How was it even fitting in my stomach?

Tristan finally looked up at me then, his emerald eyes sympathetic. He wasn’t eating nearly as much as me, but he was eating a lot slower. “How much do you think I weigh?” he asked curiously.

I stared at him as I tore off the meat from a chicken leg. “Probably a lot more than you look,” I admitted, remembering how it felt to have his weight pressed against me. “You look like you’re at least two-hundred pounds of solid muscle, but two-hundred pounds isn’t enough to make me feel like I’m being crushed to death.”

He smirked at that. “I’m just shy of five-hundred,” he stated matter-of-factly. I paused long enough to gawk at him. He continued. “When I transform all the way, my body grows to be larger than a horse, maybe as large as two horses. Although, I’m actually pretty light compared to what a normal animal would weigh at that size.”

I set the steak in my hands down, feeling self-conscious about weighing that much. “So I’m going to get bigger,” I finally managed.

He nodded calmly, evaluating my expression.

"I guess that's why your snout looked more like a lion than a wolf last night," I added. I then elaborated when he looked at me in confusion. "You must have just transformed partially." Granted, that much was obvious since he was still mostly human-sized too.

He nodded in agreement but didn't say anything. After a moment, he seemed to figure out what had me worried. “Not your human form," he clarified. "That will stay the same size. You’ll just be more dense on the inside, but outwardly you’ll look the same.”

I nodded somberly as I took another bite of the meat in my hands, trying to control my pace now.

He rolled his eyes again, but didn’t comment on it. Instead, he changed the subject. “Rowan wants you to kill your friend tonight,” he said hesitantly.

I gawked at him again. “While he’s awake?” I asked breathlessly. My eyes widened when I realized he was serious. “But he’ll kill me!” I exclaimed. I then quickly looked around to make sure no one heard me, but I hadn’t seen a soul since we had come up from the basement…well, more like, dungeon.

“You’ve never fought a vampire while they were awake?” he asked curiously.

“Of course not,” I hissed. “No human would stand a chance.”

But I supposed that meant I really was a coward, killing vampires while they slept. How had I ever thought I was a badass? It wasn't like it was hard to do. Maybe it took a little courage the first few times, or a strong desire for revenge. But, once you realized they really weren't going to wake up easily, you found yourself only fearing the initial search for their lair, knowing that getting caught might mean your death.

“Ah, but you aren’t exactly human anymore, are you?” he replied.

I stared at him as I considered that. “Are you going to be there?” I asked hesitantly.

“You’ll have an audience,” he admitted. “Rowan will want to see you do it himself.”

I groaned as I started shoving more food in my mouth. Now my hunger was combining with my anxiety. I had done a decent job of avoiding being a stress-eater most of my life, choosing to workout instead, but that was being thrown out the window now.

“How do I do it?” I finally asked between bites.

He stared at me in disbelief. “You’re a hunter and you’re asking me how to do it?”

I rolled my eyes at him, swallowing what I had in my mouth. “Obviously I know how to do it if I have a wooden stake, but you can’t honestly be saying that you’re going to trust me with one in front of Rowan.”

His eyes hardened then. “No, you’re right about that.”

I tried to swallow the sudden lump in my throat that had nothing to do with food. “Then how do I do it?” I repeated quietly, hoping to move the conversation along.

He unexpectedly stood up and walked around to my side of the table. I gasped and tried to pull away when he grabbed my right arm in his grip. He gave me a look to tell me to stop struggling and I complied immediately, dropping my gaze as he held up my wrist. Much to my surprise, he began gently tracing my fingers and the bones in my hand.

“W-What are you doing?” I gasped, feeling uncomfortable from the sudden tenderness in his touch.

“Tell me if this hurts,” he finally said after a moment.

I winced in preparation, only to find his squeezing on my wrist mildly uncomfortable. I looked up at him to see he had a slight smile barely touching his green eyes, though his lips were flat. As I met his gaze, I felt my arm begin to tremble the longer he held it. “S-So are you going to tell me?” I finally blurted out, trying to end the silence.

He held my hand up to his body, palm facing towards me, and rested my knuckles just underneath his ribs. “Easy,” he said simply. “You rip his heart out with your bare hands.”

I stared at him in disbelief as he finally let go of my hand. “And what’s stopping him from doing the same to me?” I asked seriously, trying not to visualize what he had just said. Could I really do it? Could I really rip my friend’s heart out? Even if he was a vampire, could I kill him in such a gruesome way?

And was I even physically capable of it?

“His arms will already be restrained, so all you have to worry about is his teeth.” He paused. “The most important part for Rowan is that you look your friend in the eye when you do it.”

I groaned as I grabbed the cloth napkin with my greasy hands and held it up to my face. “Why are you doing this to me?” I complained, sincerely distressed.

He rested his hand on the top of my head, the warmth sending shivers down my spine. I was glad my now flushed face was already hidden. Tristan cleared his throat. “Because getting to survive doesn’t come without a cost here. Everyone pays, including me.”

I nodded slightly in acknowledgment, waiting for him to remove his hand. It wasn’t until I sucked in a ragged breath that his palm disappeared. I peeked out of the napkin to watch him return to his seat across from me. His expression was reserved…with possibly a hint of grief, probably thinking about his daughter or wife, or both.

“When was the last time you saw her?” I finally asked after a moment, tentatively biting into another slab of steak.

He looked up at me in surprise. “My daughter? I saw her earlier this morning.”

My eyes widened in shock. “Oh! I assumed…” I paused, realizing I shouldn’t assume anything.

He nodded somberly, the pain of her captivity evident in his expression. “Maybe I’ll introduce you,” he said tentatively.

I chewed slowly as I thought about that. “Actually, I would very much like to meet her,” I began cautiously, not wanting to upset him by provoking his obvious protectiveness. “If you’re alright with that,” I added.

He held my gaze for a few seconds, forcing me to look away with flushing cheeks. I wasn’t trying to react to him, but his emerald irises were absolutely gorgeous all on their own, never mind his face. I had to remind myself that he might be the one to kill me if Rowan ever decided to change his mind. Even if Tristan didn’t want to do it, I knew he would. Because it was either me or his daughter, and I suspected he had already stuck his neck out for me a lot more than he was comfortable with, in order to keep me alive this long. If I messed up, he wasn’t going to risk his daughter suffering for it.

Despite what he had initially led me to believe, Rowan seemed to be very upset he couldn’t break me in his unique way that he reserved for female hunters. If the way he had grabbed my chest was any indication, I suspected I knew exactly what that entailed.

The longer I thought about it, the more I realized that feeding me to Nate was probably Tristan’s way of showing me mercy. Because even I would have agreed that those horrifying few minutes would be better than hours, days, weeks, months of whatever Rowan had in store. I didn’t fully understand why being a werewolf protected me from him doing it anyway, but I was thankful Tristan had given me a chance. Thankful that he had risked his daughter’s safety for me.

When Tristan didn’t respond to my comment about wanting to meet her, I decided to break the silence. “I’m sorry,” I whispered.

“For what?” he asked curiously, not seeming upset. “For asking to meet my daughter? I was the one who brought it up.”

“No,” I sighed and leaned back in my chair. “For everything. For putting you in this position in the first place.”

His expression darkened slightly. “And what position is that?”

I looked at him apologetically, hoping he wasn’t getting the wrong idea. “Look, I can put two-and-two together. I realize you saved me from a fate worse than death by biting me. And I realize that placed you in a difficult position. You risked a lot by making that decision. So, I’m sorry for that. But I’m also very appreciative of you saving me, so I promise I’ll be good.” I paused. “Or I guess I’ll be bad? Whatever you need from me to prevent harm from coming to your daughter.”

His eyes softened slightly, and he looked away for once. The vulnerability disappeared quickly. “Do you expect a thank you?” he asked sternly.

“N-No.” I held up my hands defensively. “I’m telling you, thank you. I owe you my life. And a lot more really. I just want you to know I realize that. I understand what you did for me. I understand the burden and weight of that decision.”

“I wish you didn’t,” he whispered, the vulnerability returning. He still wouldn’t meet my gaze.

“Why?” I asked just as quietly. Why wouldn’t he want me to know what he had done?

“Because Rowan might still change his mind.” He looked at me then, his expression reserved now. “Which means I might still have to kill you.”

“I know,” I said gently. “And if you do…” I looked away. “I understand.”

He scoffed. “Why?”

I stared at him in shock. “Well, because you did your best. You did what you could to save me. At least you bought me an extra day, or maybe a few days.” My expression darkened this time. “And at least you protected me from what he might have done otherwise.”

He nodded slowly, confirming what I already knew, before gesturing to my plate. “Keep eating. You’re probably going to need to sleep within the next hour to digest all that, and then I’ll take you to meet my daughter when you wake up.”

I looked at him in confusion. I was already feeling tired, not having slept in probably almost twenty-four hours now since it was almost 3 PM, but I couldn’t imagine him waiting until tomorrow morning to introduce me. Not to mention I was supposed to kill a certain vampire as penance. “You’re probably going to have to wake me up,” I suggested. I then quickly realized how ridiculous that was. “Or rather,” I clarified. “Just let me know what time and I’ll set an alarm.”

He smirked at me. “You won’t need an alarm. When the sun sets, you’ll wake up automatically.”

“I will?” I asked in disbelief. “But won’t that be too late for your daughter?”

He shook his head. “Rowan has her on a nighttime schedule of course. She’s up all night and sleeps during the day.” He sighed heavily. “Nothing I can do about it.”

“Oh.” Poor kid.

Unexpectedly, my head began to swim, and I had to rest it on the table. It was like all my exhaustion decided to hit me at once with such force that consciousness was now a thread I was barely hanging onto.

“Or,” Tristan said in amusement. “I’ll just carry you to your room now.”

“No, I can walk,” I said urgently, trying to pick my head off the table. I failed miserably.

He came around to my side again and began wiping off my hands and face with the cloth napkin. “Or I’ll just carry you to your room now,” he repeated.

I sighed in reservation, unconscious before I could even respond.

*****

I woke up just as fast as I fell asleep. One second I was out, and the next second I was hyperaware of my head laying on Tristan’s chest with my body curled up against his side. As I bolted upright, my embarrassment quickly shifted to anger when I saw that he was awake.

“What in the hell?!” I exclaimed. I punched him in the side as he tried to roll away from me. I was pretty confident I hurt my hand more than it hurt him. It was like hitting a brick wall.

He sat up and glared at me. “I didn’t put you there,” he snapped. “You were on the other side of the bed when I fell asleep.”

I gawked at him in disbelief. “Why in the hell are you even in the same bed as me?!”

He shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Clearly you don’t understand the nuances of me being responsible for you now.”

I crossed my arms over my chest defensively. I then lowered my voice, but kept my tone harsh. “No, I certainly do not. What in the hell does that have to do with our sleeping arrangements?”

He looked up to hold my gaze, his green eyes unexpectedly melting away my anger. “You won’t be able to leave my side for a long time – possibly never.”

My eyes widened in shock as I considered that. I looked around urgently, seeing that most of the objects in the room were masculine, except for my stuff lying in the corner. The stuff he had said he dropped off in my new room.

“This is…” I hesitated, unwilling to say it briefly. “Our room?”

He sighed heavily and got up to stretch. “Trust me, I’m much less thrilled about it than you are. The last thing I need is some woman messing with my shit.”

I huffed in annoyance, but didn’t respond. I’d just have to start sleeping on the floor, or figure out if we could get another bed in the room. Although, if he was worried about me escaping while he was asleep, then I wondered if being in the same bed was the entire point, so that he could sense my movement if I got up.

But then, if that were true, why didn’t he stop me from cuddling with him? Then again, why did I end up like that in the first place? You didn't just end up on a man's chest without some effort. It wasn't like I just rolled over and was there. I groaned in annoyance at myself as I considered that my subconscious mind had betrayed me.

Tristan ignored me as he began searching in his nightstand for something. I noticed he had changed clothes, but he wasn’t wearing pajamas like I might have expected considering I assumed this was supposed to be the normal time of day when he slept. Instead he was wearing a lighter shade of jeans and a navy-blue shirt. The digital clock on the nightstand showed that it was just before 8:30 PM. I glanced out the window to see that the sun was gone, but it was still slightly light outside.

Damn. He wasn’t kidding when he said I would wake up the moment the sun disappeared below the horizon.

“How long have I been asleep?” I wondered.

“About five hours.”

Five hours? Why did I feel so rested after only five hours?

“How long did you sleep?”

He glanced at the clock. “Just under three.” He looked back at me as he stood up. “Usually two to three hours will be enough for you from now on.”

I just gawked at him, my gaze following his broad back as he headed to a door that led to a private bathroom. A now shared private bathroom. He didn’t even bother closing the door, but at least the toilet was out of sight.

“Hey,” I called out, feeling like silently listening to him take a piss was even more awkward. “I haven’t used the restroom in like…” I tried to do the mental math. How long was I in the basement? “I guess two days? Is that normal?”

“Depends,” he replied, his voice a little muffled. “Nothing is normal for you right now. Your body will act oddly until it’s finished adjusting.”

As he finished up, the sudden sound of the sink made me sigh in relief.

Thank all that was holy that he actually washed his hands afterward! That one thing would have been enough to make me swoon over a man had I allowed myself to be interested before. Hygiene was even more important than a person’s appearance to me. Maybe that’s why he was disgusted when he saw me covered in blood earlier that morning. Although, he certainly didn’t seem bothered by it when I got it all over him while he carried me to the shower.

When he came out, he stopped in his tracks when his gaze focused on me. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

I quickly put on my poker face. “Like what?” I asked seriously. Like hell was I about to tell him I was attracted to his personal hygiene habits. Neither of us could afford to cross that line anyway. If there was ever a time for me to keep myself distant from someone, now was that time. It would only make everything harder in this situation. Make the decisions he might have to make more painful too.

He shook his head. “Never mind. Do whatever you need to do to get ready. My daughter should be getting up for the night in the next fifteen minutes.”

I nodded, getting out of bed to look through my things. Really, I didn’t feel like I needed to do much. I brushed my teeth and ran a brush through my hair, but otherwise I was set. I had only worn my clothes for a few hours, so I didn’t feel like they needed to be changed. It felt more like I had taken a nap than slept for the night, though I felt more rested than my usual night of sleep.

It wasn’t until I was giving myself one final once-over in the mirror, that I noticed something strange. I immediately leaned closer, wondering if I was hallucinating, and then wondering how I could have missed it.

“Hey!” I exclaimed in sincere shock. “M-My eyes! They’re green!”

“Yep,” I heard him say in the bedroom.

I examined them more intently for a moment, realizing they were the same exotic and enticing shade as Tristan’s, before marching over to the bathroom door. “Don’t ‘yep’ me,” I replied with more sass than I intended. “When in the hell did my eyes turn green? And why?”

He shrugged, messing with a smartphone – a phone I forced myself to ignore. “They were already changing colors when you woke up after I bit you.” He paused, glancing up at me. “Most werewolves have lighter colored eyes. It’s one of the genetic aspects that changes when you become one.”

“Oh,” I said simply. “So, what does that mean? That if someone has brown eyes, then they definitely aren’t a werewolf?”

He shrugged again. “Let’s just say that, when it comes to hiring humans, Rowan only hires people with brown eyes, even though I’d know if someone was a werewolf.”

I gawked at him. “So I literally wouldn’t have gotten the job if my eyes were a different color.” Damn, talk about hidden job requirements. But then, I distinctly recalled that Mr. Lancaster’s eyes weren’t brown. Did that mean he wasn’t human either?

Tristan sighed in response to my spoken comment. “Are you ready?”

I hesitated, realizing he wasn’t in the mood to talk about this subject, before nodding.

Following Tristan out of the room, we began navigating through a series of hallways on the second floor. He led me into another closet with another secret passageway, except the stairwell in this one went down three flights of stairs with no exit to the other floors. It was a direct route to what appeared to be a second-level basement that was furnished just as ornately as the primary mansion – completely the opposite of the first-level dungeon.

The vampire’s lair.

Unlike the other one, I was fairly certain the bulk of this basement wasn’t underneath the actual house. Instead, it seemed to stretch out under one of the yards. As we walked down the brightly lit halls with wooden walls and decorative paintings, it was hard to believe we were at least thirty feet underground, if not more.

Tristan stopped in front of a fancy wooden door and knocked lightly before cracking it open. “Raelynn,” he whispered.

“Daddy?” a young voice called out from the darkness inside.

I gasped in surprise when a little girl with blonde hair appeared in the doorway with a huge grin on her face. She was absolutely beautiful, her skin pale and flawless…

Her eyes bright red.

It felt like someone had punched me in the gut when I saw that Tristan’s daughter was a vampire. No wonder he couldn’t just run away from this. No wonder he was willing to become a monster for her – because she was a monster now too.

I had never personally experienced what it was like to love a child, but I knew it was a powerful emotion. I knew you would do anything for them. Because that was why I was alive. My parents hadn’t just died with me getting lucky. I was alive because they protected me with their own lives. Because they would have done anything, anything, to keep me alive.

“Who’s this daddy?” Raelynn asked in a polite and curious voice.

He glanced at me, eyeing my expression carefully. I composed myself and cautiously dropped down to my heels to be just below her eye level. “Hi there. I’m Autumn. It’s nice to meet you.” I tried to do my best to smile, but I wasn’t sure if I pulled it off successfully.

She grinned at me. “You stink like daddy.”

My eyes widened in surprise. “Oh.” It took me a second to realize she wasn’t suggesting I needed a shower. I glanced up at Tristan’s reserved expression. At least now I knew why Rowan might keep his hands off me. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. I wasn’t even sure if I should be apologizing.

She shook her head. “No, I think it’s good. My daddy doesn’t have any friends.” Her crimson eyes narrowed slightly, her voice becoming adorably chastising. “You are going to be his friend, right?”

I nodded slowly, glancing up at him again. “Of course,” I began hesitantly. I returned my gaze to her, trying to think like a child. “Your daddy is kind of like my hero, so of course I’ll be his friend.”

Tristan shifted uncomfortably, but his daughter’s grin widened. “Good! Then you can be my friend too!” Unexpectedly, she leapt at me and wrapped her arms around my neck.

I froze solid, afraid of Tristan’s reaction, but also nervous about having a vampire so close to my throat. After a second, when she didn’t let go, I met his gaze and slowly placed one of my hands on her back to gently rub between her shoulder blades. Her body wasn’t exactly cold, but it wasn’t warm either. “Of course,” I choked out. “I’ll be your friend too.”

“That makes me so happy!” she squealed as she pulled away. “It’ll be nice to have a girl to play with. Daddy’s not very much fun.”

“Oh, he’s not?” I asked teasingly, trying to loosen my own nerves. It must have helped Tristan too, because he rolled his eyes.

She shook her head, her golden hair bouncing everywhere as she did so. “Nope.” She held her small hand up to her mouth then, as if she were trying to tell me a secret. “Daddy’s horrible at playing dolls.”

I laughed unexpectedly, the imagery really getting to me. “Somehow that doesn’t surprise me,” I admitted, grinning up at him – my first genuine smile in a while.

He rewarded me with another eye roll, and cleared his throat, speaking to his daughter. “Actually sweetie, we may have to come by a different time. I just wanted to introduce you to Autumn for tonight.”

Raelynn pouted. “Aww, but daddy! I’m bored, and she seems like a lot of fun!”

I tried to evaluate his expression, wondering if we really had to leave or if he was just worried about me feeling uncomfortable playing with his vampire daughter. I decided it might be the latter. “Surely, we can spend a little time with her,” I suggested.

His eyes widened in surprise, and he gave me a strange look.

Raelynn chimed in right away. “Yeah, daddy! You work too much!”

Tristan swallowed uncomfortably and glanced away. “We will stay for a few minutes then,” he said firmly.

Raelynn squealed in excitement, and dashed back into her room, flipping on the light as she did so. I stood to follow after her.

Tristan’s warm hand rested gently on my shoulder. His expression was reserved again. “You don’t have to,” he whispered.

I shook my head, reaching up to softly rest my hand on his. “It’s fine,” I whispered back. “She’s important to you…” I paused and looked down at his chest to avoid his gaze. “So, she’s important to me too.” I then quickly ducked out from his hand before the implications of what I had just said began to weigh too heavily on my mind.

What I thought was her bedroom was actually a series of interconnected rooms, with the doorway being more like the entrance to a spacious apartment, the main space like a living room filled with toys. I didn’t want to pry into their lives, but as I played dolls with Raelynn on the floor, she began telling me everything on her own. She often used the dolls to illustrate the people in her stories.

It was shocking to discover that she understood the situation perfectly. She had to behave and obey Mr. Rowan’s rules or else it could get both her and her daddy killed.

She also remembered her mother, who died five years ago when Raelynn should have been three. But that was just another piece of the puzzle that wasn’t making sense. She definitely looked like an eight-year-old, but I was quickly realizing something was off.

“Raelynn, how old are you?” I wondered hesitantly. She had been so open with everything that I felt like it was okay for me to ask some questions now. Not to mention Tristan hadn’t bothered trying to stop her from sharing. He just sat on the couch and patiently watched us play together on the floor.

“Twelve,” she said matter-of-factly. She then sighed. “Daddy told you I was eight, didn’t he?”

In hindsight, I realized I should have known. Vampires didn’t age. I glanced at him, deciding to lie. “Well, no. You do look young, but you seem so mature.”

She nodded in agreement. “Mommy died when I was seven, and Mr. Rowan made me evil like him when I was eight.”

“Evil?” I asked in disbelief. Vampire or not, she was one of the most innocent little girls I had ever met. “Who said you were evil?”

Unexpectedly, she glared at me, her bright crimson irises intense. “I kill people,” she said firmly.

“Oh.” I tried to recover. “Well, honey that doesn’t mean you’re evil,” I offered, though I knew that objectively that was a lie. “You can’t help it.”

She shook her head, her expression suddenly somber. “I enjoy it too,” she whispered.

“Oh.” I paused again. “Well, I guess I’m evil too,” I admitted, trying to make her feel better.

“You are?” she asked in surprise, her expression hopeful.

“Yep,” I said cheerfully, feeling super awkward about what I was about to say. “I killed a girl last night. And then later on, I fantasized the entire time about wanting to eat her.” I laughed without humor. “So even if you are evil, you’re not nearly as evil as me.”

Unexpectedly, she leapt on me again, holding me much tighter than previously. “I really like you,” she whispered next to my ear.

I wrapped my arms around her fully this time. “I like you too,” I agreed. “And I’ll do my best to come play with you as often as I can.” I hesitated then, afraid I might not be able to keep that commitment. “Well, I’ll try at least,” I promised. “Mr. Rowan might still change his mind about me hanging around.”

I supposed she understood the situation too well. She was almost a teenager, after all. She knew that me not hanging around meant I’d be dead.

Raelynn gasped and pulled away, looking up at Tristan. “Daddy, can’t you make her the Luna, so she can stay?”

I looked at her in confusion, before looking up at him too. His expression was reserved.

“What’s a Luna?” I finally asked, when neither of them spoke again.

“Daddy…” Raelynn pressed. “I really like her. I don’t want her to die. I want her to come play with me every day.”

“Maybe,” he finally offered. He sighed then and stood up. “We really do have to go though. We should have left thirty minutes ago.”

I glanced up at the clock hanging on the far end of the wall. We had been playing for almost two hours! It was already almost 11 PM, and I had somewhere to be soon – to do something I really didn’t want to do. I quickly got to my feet too as Raelynn dashed over to hug her father.

“Thank you for letting Autumn play with me, daddy!” Her tone became more serious. “Please make her the Luna so she can stay.”

He patted her gently on the head. “Sweetie, it’s more complicated than that. Doing so might actually make Mr. Rowan want to get rid of her more.” He quickly continued when she made a face, looking up to lock eyes with me. “But I promise, I’ll do my best to keep her.”

I couldn’t stop my face from flushing in embarrassment in response to that. I immediately looked away from his emerald gaze and headed out the door. A tug on my shirt caught my attention. I turned around to see Raelynn had silently run after me.

She held her arms out tentatively with an innocent expression on her face.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” I exclaimed, realizing that our last hug apparently didn’t count as a goodbye hug. I dropped down to my heels and pulled her into an embrace.

“Come play with me again soon,” she whispered.

I nodded and stood back up, patting her on the head. I didn’t want to remind her that I couldn’t keep that promise, but I would at least try.

Chapter 3 >>