The images before my eyes began to waver. The world grew dark, as if a fog had fallen suddenly over the Earth and everything around me grew misty and out of focus. Fires burned around us, and I realized that they were torches, hooked along a row of pillars.
For a moment, they looked like glittering stars.
The haze drifted away, and I realized I was in a large hall, like an ancient tomb or temple devoted to the gods of old. Turning my head, I saw that I wasn’t alone, that Markos was by my side. I was kneeling next to him and I looked down at myself. Completely naked, fresh blood dripping down my breast, I scrambled trying to figure out where I was injured. It didn’t take long for me to come to the conclusion that I wasn’t hurt. It was someone else’s blood. Had I killed someone? Had he?
I breathed in nervously, drawing my bottom lip inward so that my upper teeth scraped against it. I cried out at a sudden pain and drew my hand up to my mouth.
My teeth were too sharp. I’d cut my own lip with them.
“Clumsy, warrior,” Markos purred, and my body roared with arousal.
Where the hell was I? What was this?
“Look at them all,” he said softly, and I did. I looked out into the hall and it was full to bursting with naked women and men. They mulled around, as if they didn’t know what to do and Markos scoffed beside me.
“Kneel!”
Every single person in the temple fell to their knees.
“Look at them all. Humans were meant to submit to us. They crave subjugation. They once demanded freedom, but don’t you think it’s better this way, Kassandra? Because of you, they have a new kind of liberty. Now they serve the two of us,” he continued, and I looked on in horror.
Markos pointed to a petite blonde woman in front of him and crooked his finger. She came to him without a single complaint. He petted her cheek gently and she cooed at his attentions. Gripping her upper arm, he pulled her to him and she laid her head on his shoulder, exposing her neck to him. Like she was asking for it.
The vein throbbed in her throat and I could smell her. The iron in her blood called to me, as though it was a delectable piece of dark chocolate that begged for me to take a bite. I salivated at the scent and I began to have trouble quieting myself.
With horror, I watched as Markos leaned forward, baring his teeth as he met my gaze. He wasn’t just a criminal, he was true evil.
He was a vampire. He was a devil and his evil ran deeper than I could have ever known.
Blood dripped down her throat, a red so stark against her paleness that it burned into my memory and I knew I would never forget the sight. I should be disgusted and terrified for my own sake, but as I watched him drink deep, I decided that I wanted a taste too. I craved her blood just as much as he did and I knelt there, petrified with shock.
Markos reached out to me, beckoning me to come forward and have a taste and I screamed.
Arms reached for me and my vision blurred between the temple and my office. Somewhere off in the distance I heard Nicole’s voice screaming, Lynn’s kind tone trying to calm the situation and I knew all was lost.
“She’s insane. Get her out of here.”
“She should be committed. This isn’t the first time this has happened,” Nicole said ferociously.
“She’s lost her mind.”
I screamed bloody murder, feeling Markos’ pull more strongly than ever.
“Get her out of here. There’s PTSD and then there’s bloody fucking nuts.”
“It’s not safe for her to be here. She shouldn’t even be let free into the public like this.”
“I can’t even send her home. She’s too far gone,” Lynn screeched.
The great hall full of naked, kneeling humans faded away completely and I was left staring into the concerned, panic-stricken faces of my coworkers. A large group of men held my arms and legs, keeping me still.
I didn’t even know if it was real. I didn’t know if I was actually in the real world or if Markos had forced me into his.
I’d seen his teeth. I’d seen him bite a woman and even worse, I had wanted to bite her too. Had he turned me into a vampire? Was I a monster just like him?
Right before my eyes, he appeared. Behind him, Lynn and Nicole stared at me, unsure what to do with me and he just grinned. He had won.
I was the only one who could see him.
He was consuming my mind and there was nothing I could do to stop him.
Someone came up beside me and I felt them stick a needle into my throat. The pain was sharp at first, but then it dulled as the fluid pushed into my veins and then, everything went dark.