Black Swan

Hunger

In the car, there was silent tension as Lucas's hand hovered near Selene's thigh, and a small temptation that never quite crossed the line. He wanted to push her dress up so badly, and feel how soaking wet she was, he could literally feel the heat coming from her p***y. Would she let him finger her in his car? Would she spread her legs and guide his hand where she wanted it or let him f**k her in the backseat before ripping her throat open. The air inside the sleek black vehicle was thick with s****l tension as his chest heaved up and down. Selene sat quietly, her pulse thrumming in her ears, breath shallow. The scent of his cologne had enveloped her. It teased her senses like the feeling of running in a dream, and she hated how familiar it felt.

When they pulled up to her house, bathed in the soft amber glow of the porch light, Lucas didn't move at first. He just stared, his eyes gleaming like gemstones in the dark. His gaze was hot and intense, almost as if he wanted to devour her right in this seat.

"Invite me in," he said, voice low and rough, as he leaned toward her, like he was about to kiss her but only reached her ear.

His lips stopped just short of brushing her cheek. She could feel his breath, cool and teasing the shell of her ear. He wasn't going to kiss her though. Not exactly. He was breathing her in, savoring the scent of cinnamon and vanilla. Lucas felt his restraint unravel thread by thread, and for the first time in years, desire and hunger became indistinguishable.

"I'd make you feel things you've never felt before," he continued. He could do it right now, he could bite her throat right here...right now. The aorta vein pulsed quickly in his sight, calling out to him. But what was stopping him? Why was he prolonging this?

Selene froze. Her heart thundered in her chest, and something primal almost urged her to surrender, to reach for him, to close the gap. But instinct and unease curled like cold fingers around her spine.

"Thank you for the ride," she said hurriedly, forcing her voice to sound firmer than she felt. "But I've got to get inside."

She opened the door in one swift movement and stepped out, power walking to her front door without looking back. Her hands shook as she fumbled for her keys.

Behind her, Lucas exhaled a curse.

"Damn it."

He gripped the steering wheel, knuckles white with tension. Her rejection wasn't just a bruise to his pride—it was something deeper, something tangled in centuries of solitude and silence. Something he wasn't supposed to feel. He was only suppose to kill her, and make this easy. But the way she looked in that dress, her smell, it was making him crazy. Throwing him off his game.

The car engine purred back to life, and Lucas drove off into the night. He needed to be home and clear his mind.

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At the Harrison Estate, the flickering candlelight painted monstrous shadows across the walls of Liam's room. It was an opulent space, decadent and timeless, draped in velvet and gilded gold. But the beauty did little to mask the horror within.

Zara's blood painted a gruesome trail across the marble floor, her crimson dress soaked and torn. She crawled, trembling, fingers slipping against the slick surface as she sought safety under the bed. Her breath came in short, panicked gasps. Her mascara had bled into her cheeks, and her voice was hoarse from screaming.

From behind her, Liam laughed a cruel, sadistic chuckle. "Oh come now, sweetheart," he purred. "You were begging for my attention just an hour ago. Don't go shy on me now."

She whimpered, dragging herself further beneath the massive four-poster bed, trying to press her body into the smallest space possible. But he followed, amused and unhurried.

He crouched, emerald eyes glowing, fangs descending. "Found you."

In a blur, he yanked her out. Her scream fractured the silence like glass. More blood seeped from the twin punctures in her neck and into his hungry mouth, and her body went limp in his arms. Liam pressed his lips to the wound, licking the blood that still ran hot from her veins.

The door burst open with a crash. "Well, glad to see you've done something right, for once," Lucas drawled. He stood in the door frame, his frame rigid, eyes blazing from his own lack of completing his task.

Liam lifted his head lazily, blood around his mouth like a child covered in chocolate. "What? Still haven't done what you're supposed to? She's a f*****g traitor, get your head in the game. What's a couple of meaningless humans anyway...it's like a billion of them anyway."

Lucas stalked forward, eyes flashing. "Yeah, well, that 'meaningless human' happens to smell f*****g amazing...I was this close to f*****g her and taking her out. You think you can cover this up?" he asked, gesturing to Zara's limp body.

Liam rolled his eyes and sighed. "Of course, brother." Liam had plans for Zara that his brother wouldn't know or like. Watching Lucas leave, he licked the blood off his fingers and, with a dramatic flair, then sank his fangs into his own wrist. Crimson droplets welled up instantly. He crouched and tilted Zara's face toward him, forcing her to swallow the oozing crimson liquid.

Her throat moved, just barely. She was barely conscious, barely breathing.

Liam lifted Zara with surprising gentleness, cradling her in his arms as if she were a sleeping bride.

"I'll see you tomorrow night, child," he said, flashing a grin to Zara's body. Then he turned and vanished to go down to the basement, his laughter echoing down the hallway.

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Back at her house, Selene stood in the shower, water cascading over her skin like rain. Her heart hadn't stopped pounding. Something about Lucas terrified her—not in the way monsters did, not the kind of fear she felt in haunted hotels or empty cemeteries. It was something deeper. Something thrilling. Something dangerous.

She closed her eyes and leaned her forehead against the tile.

Images of his face lingered. The way his hand felt on her thigh. The way he looked at her like he was starved. She touched her neck, where she could swear she still felt his breath. She shivered. She had no idea how deep she was already in.