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Its hand stretched out to her in desperation. It was unmistakably the same one from last night, only making it abundantly clear that he was here for her and making a big appearance, which was strictly against the bylaws.
The Elders would never allow this to go unnoticed.
I wasn’t sure why I did what I did or how I got to her as fast as I did, but I found myself standing over Freya as I pushed her to the ground and out of reach from the deathwalker, who was attempting to drain her, or so it looked like.
I had noticed he was taking his time with her, letting her life force drip into him like he was either savoring her taste or trying not to kill her. And while I didn’t know much about deathwalkers, I knew they were typically quick when they werethisstarved. Thisdesperate. They were like ravenous lions when in a state of desperation.
However, the idea of his hands on her, when I wanted that myself, drove me to a rage I didn’t know I could have. It was making me lose sight of all the questions I had.
I peered into his sunken eyes and forced a single thought into his head, staring at him rather intensely as the words slipped out of my lips and danced to his mind, “You’re too hungry to move. Too starved. You’re starving todeatheven.”
The last word hung in the air, cutting the tension in the room.
His eyes flashed in fear, hands clenching his stomach like the words I had whispered became a reality, and I watched as his face flushed white almost instantly. “What have you done?” He cried, his face rapidly falling to dust.
I had never been this close to a deathwalker. I never knew what starvation looked like on them before. But perhaps that was a blessing because as I watched this deathwalker crumble before me, I almost couldn’t keep from grimacing.
It was as if his insides were being sucked out. His eye’s depressing inward as if all he was left with were sockets. The hint of bone poking through his thinly veiled skin as the smell of rotting flesh grew stronger and stronger. He clawed at his neck, skin tearing off like cheese in a desperate attempt to keep himself from dying, but he had no hope of survival. No one could fight the urges of a succubus. No one could resist the compelling words of one either. It was our beautiful curse, one that I was rather good at.
“You can’t have her,” I said rather aggressively. My body braced hers as if I was her shield. Perhaps it was because I wanted her so badly or because I knew how fragile humans were, but I felt the need to protect her, at least from everyone except myself.
Though, I knew I was no better than the deathwalker. I didn’t care about love or her feelings. My entire reasoning for wanting her was selfish and lustful.
“If I don’t bring her back with me, they will come for her.” The deathwalker’s skin peeled from him, crumbling off in larger chunks this time. “They will kill whoever it takes to get to her.”
“Who?” I demanded.
“The ancients.” He stumbled to the ground, disintegrating into a heap of skin particles and dust.
Chapter 7
Freya
I felt uncomfortably cold lying on the white tiled flooring of my building, my eyes peering up at the checkered ceiling that I had never really noticed before today. A few stains circled the vents as if they had leaked at one point.
Oddly enough, the thought of it- as random as it was- drowned out the strange chill that seemed to riddle my body like I had just gotten over the flu or some viral infection.
Out of instinct, I started laughing at myself. “I must have gotten whatever virus that man had,” I said, trying to justify what had happened. I wasclearlysuffering from a delusional fever.
Yes, a fever.Fevers could cause hallucinations.That’s right.
My muscles ached slightly, more so around my neck, which I tried to rub off, and my head spun, reminding me of last night. Reminding me of how much I hated myself for drinking that much.
Maybe that was what this was: a fever dream from drinking. Is that possible?So there, I had at least two rational explanations.
I tried to pick myself up off the ground, my toes wigglingto heave myself up, but it seemed impossible as my knees wobbled back down like limp pasta. A tingling sensation spiraled up my legs as if they had lost feeling. And for a split second, I had forgotten about the security guard. I had forgotten about the strange potato sack of a man that turned to dust before my eyes.
My eyes flashed to the pile of sand lying beside me. I could still smell it. It was feint, but the smell of burnt flesh wafted in the air, making me dizzy just thinking about it. It was as if the memory of him dissolving into nothing had been framed on the back wall of my mind, playing repeatedly as I tried to grasp the idea that this was really happening.
It felt like waking up from a bad dream, trying to separate it from reality.
My head was suddenly ringing, blocking out the stampeding footsteps and shrieking cries around me, and the light shining in through the windows blinded me momentarily until I got my footing. As I slowly leaned up, I began to realize that the light and sound spiraling around me seemed to come back loudly all at once, snapping me back.
At that moment, I concluded that it was no dream, that this was actually happening to me.
There before me was the body of the security guard, his eyes continuing to blame me as they sunk in his face while his mouth gaped open.
Looking at him now, I could feel my hands trembling. I glimpsed down at them, watching them shake uncontrollably, questioning what I had done. Questioning why this monster of a man was intent on finding me. But the more pressing question that circled my mind taunted me.
