“Hybrids don’t exist, Laura.”
“Yeah, well—” Something slithers over her foot, and she shrieks. “Ohmygod! Get it off me!”
I roll my eyes as Laura, the short one, shakes her leg, but the slimy creature doesn’t dislodge. As it expands and doubles in size to engulf her foot, its stench hits me, wet like fallen leaves stuck together after a storm, with a hint of decay hiding underneath. It’s a common nuisance in the thickest forests of the wilds, but these women likely don’t venture outside pack territory. A quick wash would scrub it right off . . . if we were near a body of water. Laura’s boot sizzles as the creature’s slime eats through it. Her eyes flash green and she shifts into a doe, ripping her clothes as her limbs snap and twist. Hertransformation is fast—meaning that she comes from a powerful line despite her weak form—and she kicks all four legs as soon as she can, leaping into the air to buck the creature off. It grows rapidly, undeterred as it consumes her hoof within seconds. Her shrill cry pierces the air as she stomps and digs her hooves into the earth, but the black slime continues to swell, crawling up her leg in record time before oozing over her rump. The smell of rotting flesh and fur fills my nose.
Her friends stare in silent horror as Laura falls to the ground with a whimpered cry, her body attempting to shift back to human form but failing. Neither of them lifts a finger to help, both of them frozen in place as Laura dies before their eyes.
The vampire they were mocking sheds from the tree and sneaks up behind them to jump on the brunette’s back. He sinks his fangs into her neck. She shouts, clawing his face as he drinks from her wound. Any injuries he sustains heal rapidly, making her attacks useless. “Get off me, fanger!” His grip tightens as she struggles, digging his sharp nails into her arms until they puncture.
More slime creatures slither through the underbrush and cling to both her feet and ankles, leaving her screaming and her flesh sizzling. “Veronica!” Tears stream down the injured woman’s cheeks as her blonde friend, the only one left unharmed, narrowly dodges and flees to safety. “Don’t leave me!”
The vampire bites over and over again, the wet pull of flesh as he tears off a chunk of her neck bringing his victim a swift death. Her blood sprays and her eyes turn glossy before she collapses, and the vampire, careful to avoid touching the scavenger slimes, disappears in the blink of an eye. The air ripples as magic camouflages every part of him, including his scent.
His victim’s body is quickly consumed beside her friend’s rotting corpse, the slime dissolving them merging to form a single acidic blob.
I swallow the nausea rising to the back of my throat.Thatis the danger the wilds pose. At any moment, you can be attacked by creatures thriving in the realm’s rotting lands—or worse, plagued by a sickness that eats you from the inside. Forests become hollow shells of bark. Witches choke on their own blood as their ancestral soil turns black as soot. Oceans become acidic and kill the life they once sustained, transforming those too stubborn to die into something unrecognizable. Shifters migrate from sacred lands to shelter their packs, and vampires flee to escape whatever terrors haunt the night.
No one knows when or where the rot began, but we all know how it ends.
Magic won’t survive, and neither will we.
Taking a mate—or joining a pack—isn’t a solution, but it shores up enough power that we can survive another day.
Veronica shifts in the distance, the quick crack of her bones preluding the thud of heavy footfalls as she flees. Another fast shift, like her friend. The three of them must have come from neighboring packs, yet Veronica left them behind without a second glance.
I make a mental note not to join her pack, no matter how desperate I become.
Taking a breath and trying not to gag at the stench of rotting flesh, I listen for any other nearby threats. The black ooze bubbles as it devours its meal, but the only other sounds are the rustle of dry grass in the wind and chirping birds overhead. My shoulders drop as I relax. So long as I’m careful, I should be able to avoid mistakes like theirs, the most damning of which being assuming that a target isn’t dangerous, even if outnumbered. If they hadn’t been distracted by the fledgling vampire, they couldhave smelt the acidic slime before it got close enough to touch them. Carelessness and overconfidence led to their deaths.
Two traits I don’t wish to inherit.
The wind shifts directions, and the heavy scent of blood washes over me.Shit.The vampire. He didn’t run away like I’d hoped. I listen for him, but without a heartbeat, they’re harder to track. Taking steady breaths, I remain calm and turn around.
He’s standing a few feet away from me.
If it weren’t for the blood smeared across his lips, I wouldn’t know that he’s the same vampire. Taller now, with a fuller body and sharper bone structure. Not a single shred of adolescence hangs from the lean muscle wrapped around his limbs. Thick thighs fill the black slacks hanging from his hips, and his crisp white button-up shirt hugs his torso, its fabric remaining pristine despite his recent meal. Silken hair flows over his shoulders and down his back, longer than mine but a similar dark shade . . . and probably softer to the touch, I’ll admit.
Vampires are notorious for their vanity.
He studies me closely as well, his crimson eyes shimmering like rubies beneath the bright light above. With the pad of his thumb, he wipes a streak of blood from the corner of his lips and offers me a confident smile. “You smell different than the others.” His voice caresses my skin like the softest velvet, and a shiver rolls down my spine.
I shouldn’t meet his gaze, but his eyes glitter unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. It’s hard to look away. “You were a boy moments ago.” The sudden change in his appearance is alarming.
The hairs on my arms rise as he tilts his head to the side. “A parlor trick.” His smile is frozen in place. “Shall I show you?”
“No thanks.” I draw a dagger from my boot and brandish it in front of me. The magic etched within the blade hums as the runes activate, giving its edges a soft orange glow. “I’m notfond of illusions.” Even the one we’re standing in makes my skin crawl.
“Pity.” The vampire clicks his tongue. “They can be so...” He ignores the weapon in my hand as his gaze travels down my body. “Diverting.”
Heat pulls at the base of my spine. There’s no mistaking the tantalizing gleam in his eye. “You like to play with your food,” I guess, tamping down my accelerating heartbeat. Icannotbe seduced in the middle of the fucking trials—by a vampire, no less—or I’ll gladly invite the earth to open up and swallow me whole. “Come at me, and it’ll be your last fucking meal,” I warn, baring my fangs.
He hums softly, amused. “A taste, then.” Lifting his arm, he taps the small of his wrist. “Here.” His chest expands as he takes a deep breath, drinking in my scent.
I do the same, taking a deep breath and instantly cursing myself for it. He tastes like shadow and smoke, dripping down my throat to fill my lungs. My next breath is shallow as I try to exhale more than I inhale.
His wicked smile curves like the tip of a knife. “Allow me a drop of your blood, and I’ll ensure that you pass the trial.”
Like I’d ever believe that.
