Part 4

"Where are they?" Patrick asked Annie as he noticed she was the only one left in the room.

"Where is who?" Annie replied with a playful smile, slightly drawing back the heavy, thick curtains.

"Annie..." Patrick muttered her name as he brought a hand to his forehead, rubbing his temple.

He knew Annie's behavior all too well; in fact, this wasn't the first time she had done something like this. She couldn't bear the sight of Patrick with another woman, especially not with a mere, ordinary human. Since the day he saved her, Annie had devoted herself entirely to him, even though her feelings were never reciprocated.

"Stop feeding on scraps and take me. Make me yours."

"Get out..." Patrick responded, now even more overwhelmed.

"Why did you save me? Wasn’t it because you wanted me?" Annie asked with vehemence as Patrick leaned against the wall, as if his body had suddenly grown heavy.

Annie was incapable of empathizing with Patrick’s true feelings. His mind, his soul, and his heart were tormented by the bitter memories of the past—memories that had scarred him for eternity, coursing through every inch of his being, leaving him in torment every night, feeding his demons.

For that very reason, he had a reminder of those moments prominently displayed in the center of his bedroom—a reminder of what it was like to feel alive, to love someone with all his soul, and to destroy with his own hands the very thing that had once filled his existence.

On top of a gothic piece of furniture, adorned with subtle and elegant floral designs, stood a small display case holding a woman's necklace. It was a delicate white gold choker. From it hung a teardrop-shaped blue gemstone with faint silver glints, surrounded by countless white filigree resembling olive leaves.

This precious item was what kept Patrick from forgetting the past, and even when his heart ached, he could only look at it and be taken back to those memories.

"Are you still thinking about her?! She’s a whore who abandoned you..." Annie began to shout, noticing that Patrick couldn't take his eyes off the beautiful necklace floating delicately atop the piece of furniture. But she couldn’t finish her rant, for in the blink of an eye, Patrick had grabbed her roughly, throwing her against the wall, one hand gripping her neck, the other, engulfed in ethereal fire, close to her face.

Illuminated by this glow, which slowly spread across Patrick’s body like a torch, his clothes began to burn away piece by piece. His green eyes took on an inhuman hue, a nearly luminous shade of blue, and the fury emanating from his expression was that of a beast about to devour its prey.

Annie froze, unable to respond, unable to react. Patrick’s strong arms pinned her against the wall, preventing any movement. But that didn’t matter to her; for the first time, she felt that if she said or did anything, her life would be in grave danger.

And as Patrick leaned closer to whisper in Annie's ear, his fangs grew noticeably sharper.

"You know nothing about my life. You know nothing about her... I am being very patient with you," he whispered in a broken voice.

Then, with a swift motion, he stepped away from her, leaving her paralyzed against the wall. Shrinking with nerves and stunned by her beloved’s reaction, for in all the centuries of her life, she had never seen him react this way. Never.