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He slicks his fingers in the red juices, pulling free a meaty slice of the beet. The vegetables liquids dribble over the floor between us, and when they touch my lips, they continue down my chin.
But the sweetness is divine, so similar to fruit I can hardly tell the difference. I suck the chunk away from his finger, licking over his flesh.
The action is more intimate than I expected.
Ren scoots closer, another slice of the beet already between his fingertips. I open my mouth, preparing for him to slide his skin between my lips.
But instead, the door flies from its hinges, crashing to the ground inches from where we sit.
12
Ren
Onemomenttheworldis quiet, with nothing to fret over except the crimson stain on my mate's lips and her thundering heart, and the next brings utter chaos.
The shelter's entrance splinters to pieces, the wood landing a few feet from my mate. My instincts kick in, and before my brain catches up to what's happening, I have Thea in my lap, my arms caged around her.
An ear-splitting shriek deafens the air as a creature enters the room. It takes me a moment to realize the beast is simply a maddened dhampir. He’s both tall and broad, chest bare with thorn-covered vines wrapped around the pale muscle. His hair is matted; his teeth blood-stained. The only thing familiar is his wild, rage-filled stare.
A stare aimed at my mate.
I separate myself from Thea, sliding her to the floor as I brace myself for the impact of the massive body racing towards us.
He slams into me, his teeth biting into my shoulder on impulse. I grit through the pain. “Thea!”
I wrap my arms around the male’s chest, locking them behind his back. Using my body as a cage only infuriates him further, and his teeth dig deeper. I hiss though the pain.
At this angle, it’d be easy for me to dig my own fangs into his neck until his head rolls to the floor.
But I don’t want Thea to witness my brutality. She’s a strong, powerful maiden. Her abilities can take care of this quickly, without gore.
“Thea, drain him!”
I can feel the thrum of her heart as it quickens.She’s hesitating.
The dhampir struggles harder, his movements straining me backwards. If she waits any longer, I’ll be forced to-
We become weightless, and I realize the beast has stopped struggling. He’s limp, floating an inch from the floor. A dark, misty string of black smoke simmers from between his lips, leaking through the air and drifting behind us.
Slowly, I release my hold on the male. When he doesn’t flex, I take a step backward, twisting to check on my mate.
Thea is a sickly green color, her eyes narrowed in concentration. A tiny pearl of sweat glistens between her brow, gently sliding down her skin.
“Thea?”
My throat squeezes as I watch her fight this invisible battle.
The stream of darkness creeps closer like smog, absorbing into my mates glowing skin. She inhales deeply, allowing the madness to soak into her lungs.
I count to three seconds before I’m close to losing my sanity. Before, even with the three maddened, this process took less than a second's time. I step toward her just as the dhampir collapses to the ground, his body shaking the house.
Thea sprints forward, worry lining her features. I open my arms to comfort her, but she blows right past me.
She slides to her knees beside the fallen male, her hands roaming over his chest.
“What are you doing?” I speak between clenched teeth.
Confusion. Betrayal. Fear. A combination of all these things filter through my mind as I watch her delicate fingers move over his chest, up and down.
