Chapter 48

I slowly pull my dressing gown back around my body, my legs trembling as i struggle to stand, slightly embarrassed by my own behaviour. But Mihai barely seems to notice that i am uncomfortable as he wraps his arms around me and lifts me from the floor, throwing me over his shoulder as i giggle nervously.
“What are you doing?” i ask, clinging to his shirt as hard as i can.
Fuck, I'm going to fall, i can feel it.
“Taking you back to our room so we can both shower.” He says, smacking my bare ass as he climbs up the stairs, “Unless you’d like to stay covered in another mans blood.”
I take one last look at the body before it disappears from view, and decide that he’s right, i don’t want to stay like this. It was fine five minutes ago when i was distracted by Mihai, but now it is starting to creep me out.
What the hell is wrong with me? When did i become ok with having sex near dead bodies?
“Don’t feel guilty, love.” Mihai says softly, “You are changing every single day as your body adapts to becoming the new you.”
“You would say that.” I tease, “you just got fucked in a pool of blood, that must be a kink for you.”
Mihai slaps my ass, causing me to giggle louder, “I think you’ll find that it’s you who has the kink, little hunter.”
I frown, slapping his back, “I’m not a hunter anymore, remember?”
A part of me is sad about it, but mostly, I’m relieved. I knew I was never meant to follow that life from the very start, but I was trying to make my father happy. The man I thought was my father.
He’s nothing to me now, he’s just the man who ordered my mothers death. Though there is one question that keeps swimming around in my mind, did my brothers know? Did they know that she had an affair with a Nati lord? Is that why they hate me, because I have done the exact thing that she did?
I suppose it doesn’t really matter if they hate me or not, I was never the sister that they wanted me to be. I was just a disappointment to them, especially after failing to make my first kill multiple times.
My first kill was a hunter, I wonder what they think about that.
I hope it makes them angry.
“I’d love to know what you are thinking.” Mihai says, adjust me as he opens the door to the bedroom.
I was so distracted I missed the entire walk back. I’m never going to remember where to go if I don’t pay attention.
“I hope my brothers are angry.” I say, wobbling a little when he places me onto my feet. “I hope they hate me as much as I hate them.”
Mihai raises a single eyebrow, “I don’t think that you hate them, Mae, I think that you feel hurt.” He says, “but in a few years, when the council is gone, you may want to rebuild that bridge.”
I shake my head, anger bubbling inside of me, “it was Sean who sent Amber to kill me, I don’t think we can come back from that.” I laugh coldly, “they’re going to die, just like the rest of the hunters on the council.”
Mihai’s eyes turn black, “you didn’t tell me that it was your brother who ordered the kill, I assumed it was the council.”
I shake my head, slipping out of the nightgown. “The council wanted me alive, so did my father, probably to make an example of me, just like they did to my mother.”
I search the nightgown for the blade, my eyes widening when I realise that I left it down in the dungeon. Fuck.
“I left my knife down there.” I say, heading for the door.
He grabs my arm, stopping me, “you can’t go back down there without any clothes, leave it for now, I’ll get one of the guards to collect it.” He says, pulling me back towards him. “It’s only a knife.”
“It isn’t just a knife.” I snap, ripping my hand away from him, “it is the difference between life and death.” I head for the door again, “I have to get it.”
“Mae stop.” Mihai growls, lifting me up and throwing me back over his shoulder, “you are not going back down there.”
I growl, struggling as hard as I can, kicking him in the balls so he drops me. “Why the fuck not?” I snap, my hands on my hips as I stand over him. “Why can’t I go get it?”
“Because they are already cleaning the space as we speak and it would have gone in the fire.” Mihai growls, rising back to his feet. “Jesus, you didn’t have to kick me.”
“What do you mean it has gone into the fire?” I ask, my eyes wide. “I take that knife everywhere with me.”
“I know you do.” he sighs, “and come the morning I will get you a new one, I promise, but you can’t go back down there yet, it isn’t safe.”
My suspicion rises, “why isn’t it safe, Mihai?”
He sighs again, rubbing a hand down his face, “Only the masters can be down there once the hounds are set loose.”
Ok, I’m even more confused. What the fuck do dogs have to do with anything?
“They’re dogs.” I say with a scoff, “I know how to handle a dog.”
“Mae, you aren’t listening to me.” He scolds, backing me against the wall and then closing the gap between us. “The hounds are trained to eat anyone but there masters and that means you, and me.”
My eyes round at the edges, not just because of his words, but because he is so close that I can smell the blood on him, and it’s making me hungry.
I wasn’t bothered about it before, but right now my throat is burning, and I can’t concentrate on anything but the smell.
I wonder what it tastes like.
I lean close, taking a long inhale through my nose and then pressing it against the dip between his shoulder and neck, sliding my tongue along the sensitive flesh.
Mihai moans, his hands at either side of my head as he leans closer, enjoying the feel of me devouring him. I don’t think he’s going to like what comes next, but I can’t help myself, he smells so good.
“It’s ok Mae, you can bite me.” He says softly, pushing my head down against his neck.
I growl deep in my throat and bite down as hard a so can, blood spurting into my mouth, the oddly thick liquid strange at first as it goes down, but the more I swallow, the more I want.
It’s addictive.
I want it all.
Will I ever be able to stop?