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“Fine.” He let out a heavy sigh. “As you know, Salenia fell in love with a mortal man—Vener. What you probably don’t know is that she gifted him immortality long before he became a vampire.”
My eyebrows knitted together. “How? Like made him into a god?”
“Of sorts.” He tilted his head to the side. “He had many of their powers. However, after decades at Salenia’s side, he grew restless, or so the stories say.”
“Where did this information come from?”
“Writings, journals, and documentation collected throughout history.”
“Is that all here?”
“No, it’s all kept up north, in archives underground.”
I nodded slowly. “So, Vener grew restless.” I urged him to continue. “Then what happened?”
“He fell in love with someone else.”
I shook my head. “Typical.”
“Her name was Anastasia, and she was mortal. Those who wrote about Vener say he loved Anastasia so deeply, most believed they were soulmates.”
“Nowthatis a myth.”
Something changed in his eyes. “Not everyone thinks so. It’s said that there is the perfect person for everyone, and for Vener, that was Anastasia. They understood each other deeper than anyone else.”
My stomach knotted. “So I assume that’s why Salenia cursed Vener?”
“Yes.”
My mouth fell open.
“Salenia was furious and cursed them both with an ancient spell. Their hearts darkened as the curse took hold, and they found themselves driven by their base instincts and hidden desires. They were driven by a hunger for mortal blood and realized normal food was unable to sustain them like before. Without blood, they would die. Anastasia loved her family more than anything, but when she refused to consume blood for a month, she went into a frenzy, losing all control, and killed her entire family, draining them all.”
“After that, she attempted to take her own life, lost in grief, but no matter what she did, she couldn’t die.”
I imagined the bloodied scene and pain Anastasia must have felt. I’d always respected the gods, but Salenia had certainly earned her reputation as ruler of the underworld.
“Salenia used all the dark energy created from the bloodshed,” he continued, “to create the underworld. She made a place where immortals could go, so they could die. Then she killed Anastasia, and her soul went into the underworld where Salenia reigned. It was a prison for Anastasia, Vener, and Salenia, so they wouldn’t be at peace upon their deaths. She waited for Vener to die, expecting him to also take his own life out of grief for Anastasia, but he didn’t.”
I shifted against the bed, leaning back against the pillows. “Vener wanted revenge.” I calculated.
Draven blew out a tense breath. “She underestimated the nature of mortals.”
“That we’re fucked up?”
He snorted. “Something like that.”
I looked up at the ceiling and bright lights, creating spots in my vision. There were thousands of vampires now. “Vener must have given the elixir to entire villages, and Salenia cursed them all?”
“No.” He swallowed thickly, bobbing the lump in his throat. “This is the part they keep out of history, and for a good reason.” He paused, and if I hadn’t known Draven better, I’d have said it was for anticipation. But I think he just didn’t want to tell me.
“I promise I won’t say anything.”
“I know.” He puffed out his cheeks. “Okay, so he found a way to make others like him.”
I leaned forward. “How? Did he use the same curse?”
He shook his head. “There’s a way for the sangaree Vampires to make other vampires. After years alone and refusing to die so as not to give Salenia what she wanted, he grew curious about his blood. He realized it healed mortals of most injuries, so he would almost drain his victims, then give them his blood so they wouldn’t die.”
