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She turns just as he lunges. She lets out a scream as she stumbles, falling hard against the stone. He’s on her in a second, teeth bared, hands already reaching to tear into her. She manages to strike her arm forward at the same time he leans toward her, slicing her blade across his arm. He recoils, a scream of agony tearing from his lips as he lurches to the side, holding his arm. Poison, I suspect, from that kind of reaction.

She is quick on her feet as she reaches for another weapon, increasing the distance between them. I can’t take my eyes off her.

‘I knew you’d follow me,’ the woman snaps, eyes narrowed at the vampire. ‘What do you want from me?’

‘I just want a taste,’ he sneers, dragging his tongue across his lower lip. ‘Your blood … it’s … overwhelming. I can’t focus on anything else.’

Her lips flatten into a line, and I can visibly see the rage simmering in her eyes as she glowers at him. ‘I know you won’t stop at one taste, you psycho bloodsucker.’

He barks a laugh, running his tongue across his teeth, as if his mouth is watering just from looking at her. Honestly, I can’t deny I’m not feeling the same sort of magnetic tug, but I’m older than this vampire, and despite being this hungry, I can control the urge.

‘You’re probably right about that.’ The vampire grins cruelly.

He snarls, lunging for her, and she flings the knife at him. It’s precise, sinking into his neck. He growls in anger. She turns to run but there is nowhere for her to go. The metal door heading down the tunnel is bolted, and since she fell through the ground – which is technically the ceiling for us – there is no way for her to climb out of here.

‘Cupcake,’ I call out in a sing-song voice. ‘I’ll kill him for you, if you let me out.’

The vampire pivots, blinking at me, as if only just realising I’m here. He must really be in bloodlust right now. I smile, waving.

‘G’day,’ I greet him. ‘Nice to meet you.’

‘Who are you?’ He pauses, staring at the cell I’m in. ‘What is this place?’

‘I don’t know why you’re both asking the prisoner this question. Hello? I’m the one who’s trapped.’

An overpowering scent slams into me with a brutal force, making me stagger back. My eyes snap to the woman, who is looking in horror down at her hand, which she just grazed on the wall in her attempt to get out. She now has an open wound, and a hungry vampire breathing down her neck.

Her blood smells potent and delicious and with one breath, I forget how to be still. It’s rich, complex – copper, sweetness, sunshine – more vivid than anything I’ve smelt in years. My throat tightens and my fangs break through my gums, aching.

Hunger curls around me like a physical touch, and I swear I can taste it in the back of my mouth. I grip the stone wall behind me until I feel it grind under my fingertips. Focus. It takes everything I have to stay upright.

I’m not some fledgling beast. I’m not ruled by hunger. Not anymore. But something about her blood tempts me to give in and let instinct rise. I could easily take her in my arms and sink into that pulse, that warmth, that rush of life that she carries so carelessly close to me. I could take it. I could take her, but I swallow down the hunger and it painfully passes through me, ebbing away as reality sets in around me.

The smell is still there, hanging in the air like a memory I can’t shake, but I’m myself again as my fangs retract with a snap and I step back from the bars.

‘Fuck,’ she whispers, realisation sinking in of what she’s just done.

The vampire is on top of her before she has time to run. He flattens her onto her back, baring his teeth at her neck. She screams, the sound echoing around the small room.

‘Get him to me!’ I roar at her.

After a moment of thrashing, she lodges another blade into his hip. He howls, dropping onto his other side.

‘Now!’ I shout.

She leaps to her feet, running toward me. Her chest is heaving as she stares at me with wide eyes, not knowing what to do.

‘Here,’ I say, pointing to the bars in front of me, the one space I can reach my hands through.

‘You’ll kill me,’ she whispers, looking frantic, stopping just out of reach. Honestly, she shouldn’t trust anyone in this room, but at the moment, I’m the best choice she has.

‘Who is looking less likely to kill you right now?’ I ask her.

The vampire grunts, shoving to his feet, and then he is moving. She darts in front of me, backing right up against the bars. The vampire launches at her, and I move. The smell of her blood makes my ears ring and my vision turn red at the edges, but I refuse to let it overrule me.

‘Now,’ I say, and she leaps out of the way.

I strike. My arm lashes through the bars and I grab him by the throat, slamming his head against the iron with a sickening crack. He shrieks, attempts to pull away, but I’m stronger. I twist my hand, his bones crunching under my grip. He crumples, collapsing to the floor, as if he weighs nothing.