Thirst

INTO THE DARK

There it was. The figure...

And now she could see exactly who it was.

Perched on the sill of the open window, his dark silhouette cutting into the midnight sky, was Samil D'Amadeo.

Watching.

Always watching.

Like he's always done.

He was watching her now, his dark eyes gleaming in the shadows.

And before before Juanita could even open her mouth to scream for Cherry, a blur of motion cut through the room.

Samil was instantly over the bed.

With terrifying, supernatural speed, his large, strong hand clamped firmly over her mouth, muffling her cry into a dull gasp. His other arm pinned her wrists together against her chest, restraining her before her brain could even register the physical threat. He was ice-cold, his heavy chest rising and falling as he leaned over her.

"I know you have several questions right now," Samil whispered, his voice a low, commanding rumble right next to her ear. "But if you want answers, you are going to be quiet and cooperate with me. Do you understand?"

Frightened, her heart hammering against his palm, Juanita nodded rapidly.

Samil didn't release his grip. Keeping his hand firmly over her mouth, he slid his arm beneath her knees and lifted her off the mattress as if she weighed nothing. Before she could protest, he plunged backward, flying straight out of the open window into the freezing night air.

Juanita’s eyes widened in sheer, paralyzed shock. The wind whipped her wild hair across her face as they soared over the rooftops of London, the city lights a dizzying blur below them. He was holding her tightly against his chest, defying gravity.

Within seconds, Samil dropped through the air, landing with a silent, heavy thud on the concrete of a dark, abandoned alleyway near the edge of campus. The moment his feet hit the ground, he released her.

The second her feet touched the pavement, Juanita turned on her heel and made a frantic run for the street.

Blur. Samil appeared directly in front of her, his supernatural speed cutting off her exit. He grabbed her arms, pinning her back against his chest. Juanita thrashed violently, kicking and pulling against his iron grip, her frantic screams completely muffled as his cold palm clamped over her mouth once more.

She tried to tap into the magic—she desperately tried to summon the violent purple light that had blown her bedroom door apart—but now, of all times, her powers refused to spark. She was completely powerless in his arms.

"Struggling is pointless, dove," Samil murmured against her hair, his grip unyielding but careful not to hurt her. "You cannot escape me. So, are you going to continue this, or are you going to let us have a conversation?"

Juanita stopped fighting, her muscles trembling with exhaustion. She glared at him through the dark and nodded her head.

The moment his hand left her face, Juanita spun around and violently shoved his chest, breathing heavily as she backed away. "Who the f**k are you?! What the hell do you want from me?!"

"Finally," Samil said coolly, completely unfazed by her shove. He casually slid his hands into the pockets of his dark coat, his pale features striking under the moonlight. "The questions start. I know you have powers, Juanita."

"Yeah, no s**t! Because you're a f*****g stalker!" she sneered, her voice shaking with a volatile mix of anger and terror.

Samil took a step forward, the shadows of the alley wrapping around him like a cloak.

"You asked who I am. I am Samil Leon D’Amadeo. And I am a vampire."

As the words left his mouth, he pulled his upper lip back slightly. Two lethal, glistening white fangs slid down over his teeth, his dark eyes shifting for a fleeting second into a piercing, unnatural crimson.

Juanita stared at him, a sudden, hysterical sensation bubbling up in her chest. First, the terrifying visions of blood and executioners. Then, her hands shooting purple lasers and vines growing on her walls. Then, her bubbly best friend revealing she was a witch. And now, the arrogant, devastatingly handsome literature boy was a literal vampire.

She burst out laughing. It was a loud, hysterical, completely unhinged laugh that echoed off the damp brick walls of the alley.

"Well, s**t," Juanita gasped, wiping a tear of sheer disbelief from her eye. "I've certainly lost my f*****g mind! This is it. I'm crazy. How the hell is any of this real? What the hell is happening?"

Samil watched her, a low, genuinely amused chuckle escaping his throat. "Hard for an atheist to believe anything out of the ordinary, huh?" He stepped closer, extending a pale, elegant hand toward her. "Come. Let me take you somewhere."

Juanita eyed his hand like it was a venomous snake, backing up a step. "So you can kill me? Oh, hell nah! You literally just kidnapped me out of my bed!"

"Juanita," Samil said softly, his voice dropping into a deep, mesmerizing register as he stepped into her space. "If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it a long time ago."

Juanita backed up until her spine hit the cold, damp brick wall of the alley. Samil didn't stop. He closed the distance until he was towering over her, his freezing, powerful aura pinning her in place. He raised his hand, his long, pale fingers gently tracing the curve of her cheek, his touch sending a violent shiver straight down her spine.

They locked eyes, an intense, suffocating friction snapping between them. Samil’s piercing eyes looked like they wanted to utterly consume her, his fangs glinting in the dark.

"Come with me," he whispered.

The words felt like a siren call, wrapping around her mind and dragging her under. Every logical instinct her father had ever drilled into her screamed at her to fight, to run, to realize that this man was a vicious predator who could tear her apart.

But looking into his eyes, feeling the inexplicable, compelling pull in her chest, Juanita’s defenses crumbled.

Slowly, helplessly, she nodded her head. She stepped away from the wall, and went with him into the dark.