Irene was still taking deep breaths, trying to keep the burning in her throat under control.
"Has your pain passed?" Lucas asked, walking with slow steps beside her.
"A little," Irene said, feeling as though even her voice had changed. "My throat is burning..." She couldn't help but sound desperate.
After she had taken the glass from Vera's hand and drank it as if begging for it, everything seemed to have changed. The colors of the world... the sounds...
But the greatest change was within herself. She was already fair-skinned, but that innocent pinkness on her face was gone. Inside her green eyes, red veins had begun to expand, trying to take control. Her lips were crimson, though whether that was from the blood she drank remained a mystery. Lucas had cleaned the drop spilling from the
