Her Harem

or the soft rustle of the curtains in the breeze. I blinked rapidly, trying to make sense of my surroundings. I'd expected to find Kai beside m

trembled, but th

lf to ignore the rush of panic that threatened to overwhelm me, but it was hard to shake the hol

the night before had been real, the intense connection I'd felt with him. But now, it w

skin I couldn't escape. My mind raced, spinning with questions I didn't have

wn felt empty, as if it were holding its breath. I could hear the sound of my footsteps echoing off the cobbled streets,

loneliness of the town. My thoughts spiraled as I made my way to the only inn in town. The

ted me with an unsettling smile. "You've come to stay, then?" T

the feeling that the woman knew far more than she was letting on.

ath our feet. As we passed through the dim hallway, my eyes flickered to the strange, old trinkets on the

s. "Have you heard the stories about Raven Holl

ated, my mind not entirely f

wolves. The cult. They all still linger here, you know. You can feel it, can't

an by wolves?" I asked cautiously. "I

has been here for centuries. They still roam these woods at night, watching, waiting. But it's

o laugh it off, but the old woman's words had a particular gravity.

low and urgent. "The shadows of the town... have tee

all. I had come here to get answers, but instead, it seemed I was

k, squinting at me. "Stay inside after dark. Do not vent

ft me there, in the center of the room. I did not know what to thi

silence almost suffocating. I quickened my steps down the barren road, my mind

e corner until one stepped forward, a sly grin on his

nd playful. "But where do you t

ing on my skin. I attempted to ignore them, but then, th

was beating in my chest. I attempted to dodge around him, bu

he said, tightening his hold. "You'

as I fought against him, but his hold was stronger. As I was

" it said, l

space, and presence, that it was almost too much. His light skin appeared to

?" one of the men mut

n't flinch. "I s

d assailant by the throat and shoved him against the brick wall.

with me?" the man aske

anding in stunned silence. With one last thrust, the man

and they ran off into the

what I had just seen. The stranger faced me,

, his voice low yet carrying

behind me, low and dangerous. I looked back and found Ka

," Kai growled, his eyes flick

mpire's lips. "Oh, bu

"I warned you about

me, his expression softening for the barest moment before ha

nched. "What

rom me. "Pure," he said, his voice

thundered in my chest. The vampire's statement sent shock waves through me, stunning an

ld anger. "We'll see about that," he muttered, although

and emotions. What had started off as an ordinary night had qu