The Blood of the Soul

Blood of the Heart

A/N: Okay, so listen, I know I said it might be a while until I updated again, but I forgot that my brain won't let me rest until my characters are in the comfort part of the hurt/comfort soooo here you go! An early little treat for you all.

A/N: As per usual with my fight scenes, there's some gore and (lots) of blood.

Theo

Every cell in Theo's body ached. His muscles might as well be disintegrating into the frigid metal table beneath him for how much strength he had left. Simple leather straps bound him—a cuff around each limb—and any other time, Theo would've been able to break through them instantly.

The weakness was spreading, pooling beneath the curve of his spine—no. It was blood. Blood was seeping from gashes along his chest, his arms, his legs.

Theo wasn't sure how long he was fading in and out of consciousness, but each time his mind snapped to attention, it was to the sharp sting of a knife dragging across recently closed wounds, reopening them and spilling even more of his blood. Theo grit his teeth and let the pain anchor him to the moment before it slipped away.

A blurry face formed at the edges of his vision—the witch.

Theo wished she'd come a little closer so he could dig his fangs into her throat.

"All you have to do is tell me exactly where the slayer and that little sister of his is." Narada trailed a knife across his skin, opening fresh wounds. "You were smart to use a burner phone so we couldn't retrace your steps, but I have other ways of finding them."

Theo didn't have to ask what they were. "You'll have to kill me first."

Narada's eyes flashed darkly. "You sure about that?"

Despite the exhaustion weighing heavily in his bones, Theo managed to bear his fangs and hiss.

"Suit yourself." And then she dug the dagger deep into Theo's chest, past his ribs, until the blade grazed his heart.

Theo gasped and sputtered around the agony lancing through his chest.

"A little birdy told me that your heart was faulty when you were a human. What a shame it would be if it suddenly stopped working."

Being tortured and bled out wouldn't have been all that bad except that Theo had failed. Narada knew that Liam and Mia were still alive and had probably sent more demons to hunt them. He wouldn't be surprised if word of the reward money had reached Staten Island by now. It was all Theo could do to force air into his lungs and hope with every fiber of his being that Liam had gotten on that train with Mia and left without looking back.

Theo strained against the cuffs, fighting through the weakness as he glared at Narada.

"Go ahead. Kill me."

Narada dug the blade in a little deeper, the tip of the blade piercing his heart. Sheer agony built in his chest, drawing a gasp from Theo, but then the witch withdrew. The pain didn't vanish, but the pressure lessened.

"Did you know that there are only four ways to kill a vampire? Of all the demons, you lot are the most indestructible." Narada stalked behind him, and even when Theo twisted against the restraints, he couldn't keep an eye on her. So when a warm breath cascaded over the side of his face, he flinched away from it, fighting at the ends of his tethers.

"Do you know what they are?" Narada cooed.

"I don't care which one you pick as long as you put me out of my misery sooner than later, witch."