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Instead of the short but fiery redhead, I found a tall, statuesque woman staring me down, her skin an eerily pale white, eyes a shade of green I’d never seen before. Her long dark hair fell in wild, tumbling curls to her waist. Strange for the fashion of this village. Women here wore their hair pinned back, out of the way, because they needed to be able to work. This was an extravagance.
“My apologies. I thought you were my secretary.”
She smiled, her beauty startling and unnerving all at once. I gripped the pulpit hard enough that my knuckles turned white.
“Father, I hope I’m not too late to make my confession.”
Technically confession was at a set time every day to help prevent these impositions on my personal time, but I couldn’t turn her away. These people had been without for so long; the least I could do was sit and offer her absolution.
“Of course not, my child. Please come in.”
That smile again. As though she had a secret she’d never share with me. “Thank you.”
“What is your name?”
“Aisling O’Connor. And you’re Father Caleb Gallagher, the talk of the town. The prodigal son returned.”
She practically glided across the floor as she approached me, ignoring the confessional booth, her focus trained on my eyes.
“Aisling... Shall we continue our conversation in the confessional?”
Her palm was on my chest before I could blink, alarm bells ringing in my head. “No, Father. I don’t think so.”
“What are you playing at?” I gripped her wrist, trying to keep her from touching me.
“Immortality.” She licked her lower lip, then bared her teeth at me, fangs glinting in the candlelight.
This had to be a trick. A hallucination left over from the nightmares that plagued me since my illness.
“The only immortality I seek is given by the Lord Almighty.”
“Aren’t you precious,” she breathed, her eyes taking on a feral glow. “I think I’m going to keep you. I’ve always wanted a priest for my collection.”
I backed away, but she gripped my shirt, and try as I might, I couldn’t break her hold. “Release me.”
“I think not. My, my, I had no idea priests could be so... handsome. Tell me, Father, are you as hard everywhere?” She slid her free hand between my legs, cupping me, making my stomach turn.
“This is a house of God. You are not welcome here if you mean to defile it.”
“I mean to defileyou. Now you have one more chance to come willingly. I can make it feel so nice, Father. So nice indeed.”
“No. Demon.”
Her grin turned wicked, her eyes hardening. “Wrong answer. Now I’m going to make it hurt.”
Before I could move, her eyes bore into mine, and I felt as if I was falling.
“Stand very still. I’m going to make you mine now, Caleb. And then you’ll never tell me no again. But I’ll punish you for that later.”
I heard her words as if they were floating down through water. I didn’t want to obey, but my body was locked in place. Held captive by her evil spell. Panic and fear raced through my blood as half-formed prayers flitted through my mind.Father, please. Save me. Do not let her do this to me.
With fingers cold as death, she traced the line of my collar. A sneer curled her upper lip as she tore the white band off my throat and tossed it to the floor. “I bet you’re going to be the sweetest I’ve ever had. I can smell your virgin blood thrumming through your veins.” She inhaled deeply and let out a shuddering, sensual moan. “I’ll take that too. You’ll be mine in every sense of the word.”
“No,” I whispered, fighting through whatever spell she’d put me under.
Her low chuckle was the last thing I heard before she struck. Fangs I’d tried to deny existed ripped through my flesh and sank deep into my neck.
I floated on a sea of pain and despair as darkness clouded my vision. I think I screamed, but I wasn’t sure. I wasn’t aware of much of anything outside the agony of her bite. Just as suddenly, she released me. I sagged to the ground, my legs incapable of keeping me upright after losing so much blood.
