SURVIVE (THRIVE: Book Two)

Chapter 40- Bloodlust

I stay curled up for hours, unable to do anything but feel the cold against my skin while the dark thoughts circle, trying to consume me whole. I try to fight it, I try not to let pessimism do what it does best, but I'm losing the battle. Artemis stays quiet, respecting that I want to be left alone despite not knowing what's going on. I know that she is worried about me, right now we don't have anyone else. Just two lonely prisoners waiting to be taken away, never to be seen again. Today, I have learned a lifetime's worth of things in the matter of an hour, maybe two. First, there are two families that have called this island home for a thousand years, the Eternal ones and now the Ancient ones. Second, I have a half-brother who came into existence as a result of a tragedy, and right now, he desperately needs my help seeing the truth. The longer that I think about it all, the more my head starts to hurt.

"Dinnertime, lovelies," Sterling says as he comes down the hall, holding two bowls of food. The sound of his voice sends a chill down my spine, and as far as I can tell, it makes Artemis feel even worse. He was her friend, and now all that was left was a madman in the shell.

"Don't call us that," Artemis states angrily as he slides one of the bowls under the gap in the door.

"Oh, please, don't start with this again." Sterling rolled his eyes as he moves to my cell. Food is the last thing on my mind right now, and the smell of whatever it is just makes my stomach churn.

"Sterling, right?" I ask, and suddenly he looks at me, seeming intrigued.

"Yes?" he asks curiously.

"You're clearly not the person that you appear to be. I'm curious, what's your real name?" I ask confidently. Suddenly, his eyes and his smile grow wide as he kneels down to meet my gaze.

"Ah, so Tatia told you? Or was it Kai? It doesn't really matter I suppose." he states as he takes a step back, taking a bow "Lucius, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, miss." he says politely.

"I prefer that over you traipsing around with my best friend's name." Artemis scoffs.

"Yes, well..." Sterling says as he tilts his head back, resting his fingers on his chin "If it's a comfort for you to know, he put up a good fight before finally giving in," he explains, smiling twistedly. Suddenly, Artemis launches herself at the bars, reaching out to claw at him, but he is just out of reach.

"I'll kill you!" she screams, but he casually steps back and starts to chuckle as though this reaction was funny.

"Calm down, what's done is done already. No need to get so feisty." he shrugs as he turns back to look at me. I begin to shudder in fear as he stares at me. I knew what they did to possess the bodies, but hearing him laugh about it was just disgusting.

"Leave us alone," I state angrily, not backing down as he begins to study my face.

"Speaking of feisty, you're definitely an interesting one, princess." He smiles as he reaches down to unlock the cell door. I try my best to maintain my composure as he pushes it open and steps inside.

"Back off." I order loudly, but he doesn't seem to care.

"You know, despite the trouble, I'm glad that I decided to take you in." he states as he begins to corner me "Your scent was far too sweet to pass up." he smiles as he reaches for my arm. I try to pull away, but his strength is like nothing that I have ever seen before. Suddenly, he uses his sharp nails to cut into my arm, slowly inhaling as he studies the slow stream that is beginning to drip down. As his eyes begin to turn deep red, he latches on, sucking the thick, warm blood from my veins. I scream in pain as he claws into me, holding on tighter as if afraid to let go while he consumes a part of me.

"Let go of her!" Artemis screams in terror as she rattles the door of her cell. I can feel myself growing dizzy as he continues, my lips becoming icy and my head beginning to sweat. Instinctually, I release a powerful wind that throws him back against the bars. I quickly grab my arm, trying to stop the bleeding as I watch him stumble to get to his feet. Artemis seems completely in shock.

"Well, well, well, your name does truly suit you after all." he smiles as he regains his composure, wiping away the excess blood from his lips. Slowly, he begins to approach me again. I try to fight back, but I'm far too weak and I trip back against the wall. As I begin to fall, he catches me, easing me down to the floor as I try to stay awake. Suddenly, he pulls a strip of gauze from his pocket and begins to wrap my arm, as if he had known that he was going to need it.

"Get away from me," I mumble, but it's no use.

"Don't worry, princess, I wouldn't want you bleeding out on me now." he smiles as he leans over to kiss my forehead, his eyes returning to their original shade of green "That would be such a waste of something so succulent."

"You're disgusting." Artemis sneers at him as he closes the door to my cell.

"You're not the first person to call me that," he shrugs as he puts his hands in his pockets, slowly making his way down the hall "And I'm sure that you're not the last."

"Sociopath," Artemis mutters as she watches him turn the corner and leave. As soon as he's gone, she rushes to the edge of her cell "Are you okay?" she asks worriedly.

"Still alive," I say as I raise a thumbs up in the air, letting my arm fall back to the ground. I feel faint, but the last thing I want to do is fall unconscious in this place "You know, he mentioned the smell of my blood before, but I can honestly say that I wasn't expecting that." I sigh.

"I wasn't expecting you to blast him across the room like that. How did you do that?" she asks, intrigued.

"It's... complicated. Too much is freaking complicated." I sigh exhaustedly.

"Oh... well, he seems to have taken a liking to you already." she sighs as she slumps back "He even gave you a pet name, that's cute."

"What?" I ask, confused.

"He kept calling you princess." she states "Are you sure you're okay?" she asks nervously.

"Yea, I just... that's not a pet name." I sigh as I roll my head to look at her "Since there's no point in hiding it now, there's something that you should probably know about me."