The delicate clinking of armor being fastened woke me. Fratera was already on his feet, preparing to resume our journey. Beret had taken the final watch, so I assumed he had been ready for quite some time, and… I could not see Pero. I was about to sit up, still drowsy, to find out where she might be when my arm suddenly felt so heavy that I froze. I had seen and felt the weight pressed against me, but only now did I truly register it.

I found Anela nestled comfortably against me. I tensed instinctively. I no longer remembered—or only very vaguely remembered—welcoming him into my arms. I was even surprised to feel tired. No matter how long or short it was, my sleep was always restorative. Yet I found myself more exhausted than I had been when I lay down, as though… as though I did not want my rest to end. That was absurd. Anela being in my embrace could not possibly change anything, could it?

Fratera caught my gaze and glanced at Anela’s body. He did not say a word, but a mischievous smile—far more like something Beret might wear—curved his lips. We could see how each of us was beginning to influence the others. I could also imagine Anela’s embarrassment if he woke and found us like this. His sleep surprised me as well. It was currently deep enough that the sounds around us had not stirred him. Did he… feel the same confusion I did?

I tried to withdraw the arm trapped beneath Anela’s body, but to no avail. His “pretty face” furrowed, and he rolled over, imprisoning me more tightly against him. My mouth went dry at the thought of biting the back of his neck from this position, my appetite awakened by having him so close, and I let my gaze travel over his body. He was strong. One could see it even beneath his clothes—a body accustomed to battle. His suppleness was visible even in sleep.

His back was solid, and my chest brushed against it with every breath. Yet… I discovered something else about him, something more intimate and terribly sensual. Perhaps I was losing my mind, though that would hardly have surprised me. I genuinely felt beyond reason whenever Anela was near. The curve of his lower back was so pronounced, so mesmerizing, that I wanted to slide my hand over it and deepen the arch. And then what? What might I have done once his deliciously rounded backside was entirely exposed to me?

What was I even thinking? Did I truly desire him in that way? Disturbed, I pushed him lightly to free my arm, even if it meant waking him. I sat up as memories of earlier flooded my mind. I remembered Anela’s lost, vulnerable expression when he had come to ask me to hold him. Such an unusual request could only have been made because something had shaken him deeply, but what?

Anela woke in turn and sat up beside me. He did not appear embarrassed. Of course, he had no idea what thoughts had crossed my mind or what Fratera had witnessed only moments earlier. He rose and began preparing as well, even putting on his armor despite its condition… The surprise upon my face was mirrored by Anela and Fratera. Beret returned with Pero and brought our astonishment to an end with his gruff voice.

“I did what I could with your armor. I would hardly be worthy of being the Duke of Darkblood if I could not hammer an ugly dent out of a breastplate!”

He was proud of himself. Anela thanked him, and Pero came to sit beside me while I put on my own armor.

“Anela taught me the basics of fighting this morning!” she exclaimed, equally proud of herself.

I noticed the tangled state of her hair and tore off a small strip of cloth lying in one of the bags. I crouched behind her, gathered her unruly red hair, and tied the makeshift ribbon around it.

“It will get in your way less during a fight,” I explained.

“You look as though you are accustomed to doing that,” Fratera observed.

When I saw Anela’s questioning gaze settle upon me, I opened my mouth before I had time to think.

“I have sisters. They often used me for menial tasks.”

I… had not intended to speak about my life, yet one look from those blood-red eyes had been enough to make me reveal myself. I did not understand. What was happening to me?

“Sisters? I have always heard that you were an only child,” Beret said in surprise.

“How many do you have?” Anela asked with interest.

Unsettled, I lifted my head toward him before quickly averting my gaze. I was beginning to foolishly believe he possessed some power that compelled me to tell the truth. Instead, I finished fastening my armor and answered only once my sword was properly secured.

“I have four sisters.”

I deliberately neglected to mention that I also had brothers, allowing the others to take over the conversation. Fratera admitted that he was an only child, as were Anela and Pero. Beret had one younger brother. Fratera dared to ask whether he was as coarse as Beret, and the latter burst out laughing, declaring that his younger brother was his exact likeness. We all laughed together. Beret alone was already quite enough, but two of him?

The atmosphere was lighter that day. Nearly three days had passed since we encountered that Nightmare, and aside from a few bloodfeasts, nothing had happened. Fratera, Pero, and Beret were instinctively more relaxed, though I could see that Anela remained vigilant. His eyes constantly searched our surroundings, yet despite his caution, he still managed to converse with us naturally. Our discussions, though spoken in low voices, drowned out the song of the red whistlers.

“About… earlier,” Anela murmured, “I hope I did not make you uncomfortable.”

I had not even realized I had approached him. Evidently, I had done so without thinking. I had even slowed my pace so that I could walk at the back beside him. For what purpose? My own behavior toward him would only leave me more confused. The faint blush upon his cheeks made my breath catch for a brief moment. I wanted to bite his prominent cheekbones as well.

“You trained Pero, did you not? What upset you so deeply? You seemed… vulnerable.”

“Forgive me. I… spoke with Beret. His words proved painfully true. Selene, I am sincerely sorry for behaving this way toward you. I know I am being cruel, but I cannot seem to stop myself.”

His voice was so soft and quiet that I had to lean closer to hear him properly.

“Cruel?” I asked. “When have you ever been cruel?”

He seemed surprised by my question, but I was equally surprised by his statement. I could not have been more serious. When had he shown cruelty? If either of us had been cruel, it was me.

“I ask you to kiss me and hold me even though I know I am incapable of offering you anything lasting. I have the unpleasant feeling that I am toying with you.”

A bitterness like bile rose into my throat, and I swallowed.

“I enjoy it. I enjoy your embraces and your kisses. They are not things I am accustomed to receiving willingly, yet something compelled me to want them from you. I know of your… ‘feelings,’ but I continue asking you for tenderness and desire.”

I stopped and seized his wrist. I allowed the others to walk a little farther ahead, then leaned toward Anela, greatly diminishing the space between our bodies and our breaths. Even the smallest distance separating us felt unbearable to my body. I could see no purpose in having one if it was not firmly joined to his in one way or another.

“You surely do not understand what you are doing when you ask such things of me,” I whispered. “But you want them.”

I let my nose brush against his. I captured his warm breath, the only air I truly felt the need to inhale. Surely it was more vital to me than anything else, or why would I crave it so fiercely? Anela mirrored me, tempted in the same way, his eyes lowered toward my lips.

“I have never felt this before, Selene. I feel unsettled beside you, but it is an exhilarating kind of confusion, and I feel safe.”

He tried to press his lips to mine, but I drew my head back, clenching my jaw to help contain my impulses. My breath had already grown short merely because of our proximity. At first glance, it should have provoked nothing in me, yet a palpable tension ruled between us and threatened to make me lose control. I stepped forward until our bodies met and let my lips graze his cheek. His intoxicating scent flooded my body, and I curled my hand around his throat, both to restrain myself and to have something to hold on to.

I wished he would flee far from this place, far from danger, but I realized that his departure would drive me mad. The thought of him leaving made my grip tighten around his throat, yet he did not protest or attempt to free himself. I bit the rim of his ear, and his moan sent a jolt through my loins that drove me to force him backward until he struck a tree. I pressed my body against his, frustrated by the armor separating us, my thigh wedged between his. His hands, softer than I would ever have expected from a warrior, came to rest upon my wrist.

The gesture was not meant to push me away, nor was it even a silent request for me to stop. No. It was far more than that. He caressed the flesh within his reach, and I understood that he accepted me—that he accepted the violence I had concealed behind mischief, that darker thing I kept hidden, and that he would be capable of accepting much more. His burning breath made me shiver, and I straightened to face him, my lips only inches from his.

“Do you want more, Anela? Even if I assure you it is not a good idea?”

He gasped and seemed to redouble his efforts to tear his gaze away from my lips. I knew how much effort it demanded of him, for I felt the same violent pull toward him. His blood-red eyes locked onto mine, nearly drawing a roar of pleasure from me.

“If… you are willing to accept my selfishness, then I want more,” he assured me.

He wet his lips, and the urge to sink my teeth into such soft, yielding flesh twisted my stomach.

“And what are you asking for, Anela? Say it,” I snarled like a starving beast.

“Kiss me.”

I pressed him more firmly against the tree and descended upon his lips, forgetting where we were and every circumstance surrounding us. God, nothing mattered anymore now that I was tasting him. The more his saliva filled my mouth, the more I craved it. I felt genuinely intoxicated. I was discovering an entirely new way to desire someone, and it was driving me mad. No. He was driving me mad. My hand left his throat and slid over his cheek before settling at the back of his neck, holding him there to ensure our kiss would not end.

He sucked on my tongue, and just as I had done to him a few days earlier, his teeth sank into it. I tasted my own blood flooding my mouth, but he showed no displeasure. Unsettled, I slowly ended the kiss and stared into his eyes. He licked his lips with such indecent delight that I felt my cock throb with pleasure. Not only did he understand my desires, he wanted to share them with me. This being was so… divine. He pulled my face back toward his, and I had only enough time to see his tongue emerge before it was already inside my mouth. Taking it as an invitation, I bit him in return.

His blood, its exquisite flavor bursting across my tongue, mingled with mine. Unlike the first time, he neither recoiled nor startled. He allowed me to savor him fully. Once again, I realized that my eyes were closed. It was impossible for me to keep them open whenever I kissed him. I felt carried into another world, one too intimate to allow the real one to interfere. I wanted to see nothing. I only wanted to feel him.

Yet the outside world made itself known again.

“Hey! You can continue that tonight, somewhere out of sight!” Beret shouted. “There are children here, and we still have a long way to go!”

I released Anela’s lips and looked for Beret, still lost in the haze of pleasure. Anela, as red as a consanguine, cleared his throat and made me step back. He ran a hand through his hair and over his face, trying to regain his composure. He still did not dare meet my gaze, and in truth, I would not have known what expression to wear. My passion was devouring me from within, as was my appetite, and I felt torn between them.

A shrill scream and a muffled gasp restored our composure at once. Anela rushed toward Beret at an incredible speed, and my eyes widened when my gaze fell upon him. His stare was vacant with shock, and one of his arms had been severed from his body. No. It had been torn away and lay upon the ground. The scent of blood flooded my nostrils as Beret collapsed to his knees. Pero, brought down by terror, crawled across the ground in an attempt to get away.

Anela had only managed to take a few running steps before he was stopped. Something knocked him to the ground and dragged him away with brutal force. I threw myself toward him and caught his hand, bracing myself against the trunk of a tree to keep him from being carried off.

“Take care of them. Keep them safe,” he had just enough time to tell me before releasing my hand.

Powerless, I watched him being dragged away until he vanished into the woods, leaving me alone with Beret in agony, Pero paralyzed by terror, and Fratera in shock.

Anela had been pulled into the depths of The Damned, where my eyes could no longer see him—where my body could no longer serve as his shield.