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Jaded Wolf 17
Despite my efforts not to, I kept staring. I was seated over the edge of what Sofia called a counter, watching her as she made her way around the kitchen in a light yellow dress clinging to her curves at just the right places. She was making her breakfast – two pieces of bread that she stuck in a contraption she called a toaster. She retrieved a bottle of strawberry jam and a slab of butter from the “two-door refrigerator,” which was apparently a cooling closet for food.As she began dabbing butter over one piece of toast, her emerald green eyes rose to meet mine. She stopped what she was doing and stared for a couple of secondsI found it rather unsettling to have her look at me that way. I couldn’t even understand why. She’s just a girl, Novak. When have you ever been so riled up over one girl“What?” I asked her“Thank you… for rescuing me this morning. I was pretty sure nothing would stop the guards from turning me into their breakfast.I didn’t answer. She was my responsibility.
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“It’s a cellphone. You use it to call people, text them. A communication device.” He once again laid his eyes on Sofia. “I’m sure your teenage lovely here is perfectly capable of teaching you how to use it.”He brushed the back of his hand against Sofia’s jawline and she instinctively moved away from his touch. Of course, that only amused Lucas. The moment I saw this, an unmistakable fury boiled up within me. I tried to control my temper.“I’d appreciate that you not touch her. As I’ve already made clear this morning, I do not like it when others mess with what is mine.” There was an edge to my voice – one that I knew my brother was very familiar with.The amused expression on Lucas’ face disappeared and the atmosphere immediatelytensed.“And if I continue to take liberties with her, what exactly will you do, Derek? Would you really go against your own brother for her sake?”I knew what he was playing at, testing my loyalties, but I knew how to play this game. I wanted to believe that
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Samuel grinned at me. “Looks like we have a new princess.” He then pushed the door open to reveal the other girls.“Sam, dude,” the other guard said, “I don’t think making friends with the prince’s muse is good for your health.”“Relax, Kyle. She’s alright.”I raised my eyebrows and gave them a funny look. I was going to like those two. I stepped inside the girls’ quarters, not quite knowing what to expect. Four pairs of eyes fell on me as I entered. I was surprised to find that they all looked relieved to see me.I realized I didn’t even know their names and they didn’t know mine, but it was almost as if we were long lost friends, because all four girls began throwing their arms around me.“Are you alright?”“What did he do to you?!”“He didn’t… force you, did he?”“Do you know what they’re going to do to us?”“Will we ever get home?”“Have you seen what’s outside? Is there any way we can escape?!”Question after question came at me before I could even come up with a single answer. I
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“The prophecy was that your reign alone can provide our kind true sanctuary. The Blood Shade has been a sanctuary for a limited number of our kind, but it isn’t yet a true sanctuary until we either find all vampires a safe haven and manage a way to survive without the need of humans or…”“Or what?” I asked, casting a stern look at my sister.She said the blood-curdling words I knew she would say. “We have to end the shadow hunters once and for all.”“You’re talking about war and bloodshed that we can’t even imagine. How long has it even been since the Shade’s guards have been in actual battle?”All I got from both my brother and sister was silence.We continued our trek through the island, leaving the issue hanging in the air. It weighed heavily on me for the rest of the time I spent with them. To say that I wasn’t burdened by what I was told was a lie. I didn’t understand why I had to stand as the leader. I was younger than a lot of the men there. That they would look to me for guida
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There was no hesitation on my part. The darkness in me took over. I was beside the woman, pulling her against me with my arms and sinking my teeth into her neck.The taste of fresh blood, pumping through her veins by a living beating heart, was invigorating. I drank, determined to bleed her dry.I kept on telling myself through all those years that I hated being a vampire, but it was who I was and as I drank from this woman, there was no escaping it.I sucked the blood out of my young victim and just as I was about to drink the last drop – the one that would cause her heart to stop beating, a moment of clarity came to me.For reasons I could not understand or even comprehend – and I wasn’t sure I even wanted to – I realized that the whole time I was holding this beautiful stranger in my arms, feeding on her, it felt like I was betraying Sofia.***SOFIAIt was impossible not to know that Derek had already arrived at the penthouse. I and the girls – Gwen, Ashley, Paige, and Rosa – were
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To that, I didn’t know how to respond. I missed Ben so much. There wasn’t a waking moment since I got there that he wasn’t at the back of my mind, that I wasn’t wondering what he was thinking about or how he was dealing with my disappearance. I wondered how many of the humans they took here were separated from loved ones. To my relief, Derek didn’t seem to be interested in a response.“My father was a farmer,” he began. “That’s what we did before we became this. We farmed wheat and grew vegetables. It was a humble existence, but we were happy. Then one night, my father and Lucas were out in the city to trade our goods. Vivienne and I went out for wood. When we returned, our mother was dead, her blood sucked dry.”I swallowed hard as I listened and imagined how that would’ve felt.“Vivienne swore it was a wild beast. They ridiculed me but I knew it was a vampire. I was just thirteen at the time, but I was so sure that a vampire murdered my mother, so I found a way to join the shadow hu
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DEREKShe looked so peaceful, so serene, so innocent as I carried her to her bedroom and laid her on her bed. No other woman – and believe me when I say that I’d been with many – had the same effect that Sofia Claremont had on me. She was fragile and vulnerable, and yet strong and resilient at the same time. She’d only recently entered my life, yet it felt like I’d known her for ages.It was strange the way I felt about how she listened to me and tried to ease my mind after my tempestuous outburst. I was grateful, but at the same time, I was mad at her. Inside the music room, she listened to me give in to my passion for music. She listened until exhaustion and sleep stole her attention away from me. Lying on the cushioned wooden bench inside the music room, she was a feast to behold, with her dress hiking up those long, milky white legs of hers, her locks of red hair cascading down the edge of the bench and her pink lips slightly parting as she breathed. My stomach clenched just looki
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SOFIAEverything happened in a blur. I was aware of it all, and yet, I wasn’t. It was almost like everything was happening to another person, and yet it was me. I felt Derek’s strong arms beneath me, carrying me.I heard his conversation with Vivienne before they both decided to take me to see Corrine the witch at the Sanctuary. I saw the agitation on Derek’s face, the intoxicating scent of his natural musk filling my nostrils as I snuggled against him.I was conscious of it all, and yet at the same time, I was stuck in a memory, still reliving every sickening sensation it induced.I was lured to sleep by an enchanting melody and awakened from it by a horrific nightmare.His hand was clamped over my mouth and his full weight was rested on top of me, constricting my breathing. I felt his free hand hike up my thigh and when I flinched, he chuckled vehemently, amused by my weakness.“I will have you someday, Sofia,” he whispered against my ear. “You will bring me so much pleasure and onc
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