Page 4 of Dark Souls

Take A Bite

T he grey skies were starting to drizzle, setting an already gloomy scene as Sienna parked up on the side of the road that ran through the dense woodland. I opened the door, pulling my leather jacket tighter over my chest as I stepped around the car and towards the commotion ahead. Several unmarked SIA cars were obstructing the narrow road and police tape blew in the breeze. Two ambulances were parked near the ditch where the police custody van had swerved off the road and collided with a thick tree trunk.

It was a car crash. Why would the SIA be involved in that? Sienna fell into step next to me and gripped my elbow, halting me from getting any closer.

“Wait here a minute while I speak to Raiden,” she ordered before storming towards a group of agents, one being my uncle’s very large and muscular back. The moment she caught up to them, he slung his arm over her shoulders, kissed her lips, and then peered directly at me. And fuck, did he look annoyed.

Lifting my chin a little higher, I gave him my most innocent smile as he stormed towards me, Sienna jogging to keep up with his dominant strides.

“Why am I not surprised to see you here? Until you’ve had the training, you should not be getting yourself involved, Ilaria. This shit is not nice and you shouldn’t have to see it.”

“This was my arrest so it already involves me, Raid,” I answered calmly, causing his silver eyes to shine with irritation. “And please, I’m hardly squeamish. I won’t embarrass you in front of your agent buddies. So, what happened? Where’s Eddie?”

He rubbed his stubbled jaw as he placed his other hand on his hip. Knowing my uncle hated being the centre of attention, I was ready to make a scene if he refused to tell me what was going on. He grumbled something under his breath before he started walking towards the edge of the forest, beckoning me and Sienna to follow.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you. The police who were escorting him said a male figure appeared in the middle of the road and they had to swerve to avoid hitting him. They crashed into the tree and were knocked unconscious, so they didn’t see a thing. When they came around, they found this.”

As we walked deeper into the forest, the rain fell heavier and it was harder to see clearly, but soon enough, there was a group of people around a taped-off crime scene. Sienna let out a gasp before she turned her head away in revulsion and I froze next to her.

Holy mother of Moses. There, with his arms tied around the back of a tree trunk, was a naked Eddie Hughes covered in blood with a gruesome hole in his chest where his heart once was. But that wasn’t the worst of it. The killer had cut off his dick and shoved it in his mouth. The man had died with his rapist dick shoved down his throat. Oh, the irony.

Unable to help myself, my shoulders shook and I slammed my hand over my mouth to muffle my laughter. Raiden and Sienna both glared at me with complete bewilderment, which only made me laugh harder.

Sienna’s eyes widened in horror as she hissed, “Don’t laugh! This is a crime scene!”

I flapped my hand at her as I tried to contain the giggling fit brewing by drawing my lips into a thin line and holding my breath.

“Care to share with the class?” Raiden asked, folding his beefy arms over his t-shirt and staring at me with slight amusement.

“Oh, come on!” I chuckled, pointing at the castrated corpse. “Can’t you see the symbolism? You have to admit he got what he deserved.”

Raiden exhaled a deep breath, his jaw ticking as he glanced back at Eddie. His shoulders shuddered in disgust as he muttered, “Still a horrific way to go. Whoever did this has one too many screws loose.”

“You think this is the same person who killed Sylvester?” I turned my attention to Sienna. “It has to be, right? It’s almost like they are sending us a message.”

“It is definitely not a coincidence.” Sienna sighed. “But why target Eddie? This was definitely planned. The killer went out of their way to get to him, which makes me think…”

Her eyes locked with mine and filled with concern. I already knew what she was going to say because it was exactly what I was thinking.

“The killer was still there that night. That they saw what happened between Eddie and me.” A shiver rippled down my spine. I knew I was being watched. I could sense someone in the shadows, but I thought I was just paranoid; the adrenaline was causing me to overthink things. I should have trusted my gut.

’ What did I tell you? Always trust your gut!’ Rue scolded me in my mind.

“So we have a psychotic wannabe hero on our hands?” Raiden ran his hand through his wet black curls as he glanced back at the body which was now being carefully untied from the tree.

“Where is the heart? Was it bitten?” I couldn’t hide the excitement in my voice. This was the thrill I was chasing. Being a predator by nature, the hunt to catch this killer unlocked a dark, twisted obsession in me and I knew it was too late. I was sucked in. I wouldn’t let this go until I knew who they were.

Raiden shook his head. “Can’t find it. Perhaps our Hannibal Lecter ate it.”

I frowned, disappointed, but Sienna’s curse under her breath drew my attention away. I glanced over my shoulder to see who she was staring at and noticed Archer’s car arriving.

“You better go, Ilaria. And don’t you dare breathe a word of this to anyone,” Sienna ordered. For a split second, I wondered if I had time to snap a quick picture but I knew that would go down like a lead balloon, so I kept my mouth shut and nodded before dematerialising behind a puff of smoke once more.

Appearing inside my family home in Oregon, which could be referred to as a palace from its sheer size alone, I ripped off my soaked jacket and hung it on the coat rack before heading through the large white foyer. My black jeans and Metallica t-shirt were also drenched and clinging to me like a second skin as I headed upstairs for a warm bath. My mind was still swirling with thoughts about why the killer would have gone to such extreme measures when Eddie was already in custody that I didn’t hear my mum’s voice from the bottom of the staircase until she’d called my name at least twice. I spun around, my hand on the banister as I blinked down at her in a daze.

“Sorry? What did you say?”

She cocked her head, her long raven hair flowing behind her as she studied me with a frown. Her magenta eyes sparkled, catching the light of the grand crystal chandelier above us. My mother was a stunning woman. She was effortlessly beautiful, with so much grace and regality it just made you want to sit and stare at her for hours in awe. We were nothing alike. Opposites, in fact, with my icy white hair to her jet-black. She had the perfect figure, womanly and curved in all the right places that oozed so much femininity but also undeniable strength, whereas I was extremely petite, making me look fragile and vulnerable when I was anything but. I could be jealous of her big boobs, shapely hips or toned body, but I learned a long time ago it would be pointless. I should be grateful for the body I had and not compare myself to others, especially not one of the most beautiful women on the planet. Once I found my style and started blocking out others’ opinions of the way I looked, I found I was actually pretty comfortable in my own skin.

“I said, where have you been all day?”

“Oh. I was at the castle. And then I…” Fuck. I hated lying. And she would most likely find out eventually because Archer reported most of the confidential cases involving our people at their weekly briefings, but it was also not my place to say anything about the case.

“Hey, Princess!” My dad came hurtling down the stairs, skipping two at a time and causing a distraction for Mum. He was shirtless, which is just about standard around here, and made entirely of muscle, being a pure-blooded wolf. He nearly sent me flying when he planted a quick kiss on my forehead before darting past me and towards her. “Sorry, can’t stay. I said I’d do a border patrol around the pack. Is it raining out?”

“Oh-uh,” I glanced down at my damp clothes, but my dad was already too wrapped up in my mum to care for my answer.

“Fancy a run with me, my Queen?” he asked, sweeping her off her feet with one arm wrapped tightly around her waist. She giggled like a bloody schoolgirl when his mouth sucked at her neck. I groaned and rolled my eyes, turning to dart back upstairs and leave them to it.

Honestly, I was no prude. But the amount of public displays of affection I’ve had to bear witness to was sickening. Everyone in the family, except my brothers, has found their mates, which means constant kissing, smooching, caressing, cuddling, eye-fucking across the room, you name it. And they have zero shame! Zero! I mean, my grandparents have a bloody red room of pleasure, for Christ's sake. It actually makes me want to vomit in my mouth. Don’t get me wrong, I love that they all love each other so much. But when you’ve seen your own parents and grandparents making out at the dinner table far too many times, you start to want to stick pins in your eyes.

“Ilaria! Dinner at seven! Both your grandparents and Calli and Niko are coming, so dress appropriately, please,” Mum shouted after me between her giggles from my dad’s nuzzling . Oh goodie. More loved-up couples.

“Only if you act appropriately,” I shouted back, which only caused them both to laugh louder and my dad to whisper something in my mum’s ear that had her blushing like a beetroot. Lord, give me strength.

Entering my room, which was in the west wing of the palace, I flung my t-shirt over my head and threw it in the laundry basket before unbuttoning my jeans and peeling them down my legs. Cold air lashed at my exposed skin and I froze. My French doors leading onto my terrace were wide open, the sheer black curtains dancing in the breeze. What the—

I never leave them unlocked, let alone open. Walking forward, I poked my upper body out onto the terrace to see if anyone was out there, not caring that I was currently standing in my lacy bra and thong. I frowned before closing the doors and flicking the latch down to lock them from the inside. Leif, my warlock brother, was the only person I would ever find randomly hanging out in my room when he was bored because he had no sense of boundaries, but seeing as he was currently in another realm with my wolf brother Lorcan, I couldn’t hazard a guess as to who would have been in here. Maybe one of the omega maids?

Deciding not to think too much about it, I made my way towards my bathroom to run a bath. It was only when I walked back into my bedroom to grab a change of clothes that I noticed the pink box with a black ribbon tied neatly in a bow sitting on my bed. Happiness swelled in my chest as I zoomed towards it with a smile. Leif had been portalling letters and small objects to me from the Heroux realm that he knew I would like. So far, I’ve had a unique collection of crystals, writing quills and some exotic flowers which gave off intense perfume scents.

Without stopping to read the note folded under the ribbon, because I’m the kind of person who opens the present first and reads the card after, I untied the silk bow and lifted the lid of the box. A loud gasp left my lips as I jumped back, dropping the lid on the floor. Blood rushed to my ears, causing them to heat as my eyes widened with shock. Settled in the middle of a satin cushion was a human fucking heart. And from the smell of blood that had my fangs tingling under my gums, it was pretty fresh out of a body.

“What the actual fuck!” I shouted, lifting my head to look around my room. Was this some kind of prank? A sick joke from Sienna or Raiden because of my interest in the case? Or Ronnie? Leif wouldn’t send me a human heart, would he? I mean, I wouldn’t put anything past my mischievous brother, but this just wasn’t his style.

Bending down, I retrieved the lid I’d dropped and took off the folded note.

Seeing as you enjoyed the last one so much. Here is one just for you, Snow Angel. Take a bite. I dare you. H x

Oh my god. Oh my godddd.

This was Eddie Hughes’ heart. And somehow, without meaning to, I had just caught the dangerous attention of a predator.

I pushed around the overcooked meat on my plate with my fork absentmindedly as I stared into space while my family’s voices droned on and on in the background like white noise. The last thing I wanted to eat was this, when all I could think about was the bloody heart upstairs in my bedroom, causing my fangs to tingle with sensitivity under my gums.

’You’re not seriously going to let it go to waste? ’ Rue huffed.

‘We’re a vampire. We drink blood. We don’t eat organs!’

‘I bet it would taste delicious, though. And it is a gift. It would be rude not to accept it.’

‘It’s a human heart, Cruella! What kind of psycho gifts someone a human heart?’

‘I think it’s sweet.’ Of course, my demon was practically swooning.

I blocked her toxic thoughts out and tried to focus on what the hell I should do next. I knew what the sensible thing would be. Tell my parents and report it to the SIA. Let them take the heart and the note as evidence. But what would that really achieve other than their hysteria? They’d all overreact, no doubt by demanding I was always guarded, tighten up security on the palace and fret over the smallest things. They’d be even more protective of me than they already were if they knew I was now the centre of some crazy killer’s attention. And any chance of finally persuading them to let me work for the SIA would be obliterated.

Maybe I really was more messed up than I thought because I knew a normal person would feel some level of fear, or at least anxiety, over the situation. But all I felt was a thrilling buzz. This could be the opportunity I’ve been looking for. The SIA has clearly been on his trail for a while, so if I could capture this killer myself and bring him to the SIA, they would have to take me seriously. I’ve been trying to rack my brains around how the hell he got into the palace grounds, let alone into my bedroom without being seen. There are security cameras around the premises but not inside our home. Once I got a chance, I’d go through the archive and see if I could catch him in the act. I’m also presuming he’s a he. There is just something about the way he operates that gives off masculine vibes. And the note… it felt almost flirtatious rather than threatening.

“Ilaria?”

I blinked, clearing my mind as the concerned faces around the table came back into focus. “Yeah?”

My mum’s dark eyebrows pinched as she frowned at me and my dad narrowed his green eyes. My grandparents from both sides of the family were now all staring too, which forced me to straighten in my seat, put down my fork and give them the most reassuring smile I could muster.

“Your Grandpops asked you a question,” Mum repeated. “What’s got into you today? You seem so distracted.”

I shook my head, peering over at the bulky frame of my Grandpops to give him my attention. “Sorry Pops, what did you say?”

“I was just asking if you’ve heard anything from Lorcan and Leif this week?”

“Oh. Um, not for a few days. Leif sent me a letter telling me all about the coven he is staying in, how much pussy he’s getting and dick he’s sucking. Apparently, they love their orgies in Heroux, so I doubt he’ll ever want to leave—”

“Ilaria!” My mum scolded me, her cheeks turning crimson as my dad choked on his beer and my grandparents all tried to keep a straight face.

“Yeah?”

“That is not an appropriate topic of conversation for the dinner table!”

“But Pops asked and that is—”

“Yes, but we have guests who I am sure would rather not hear about the sexual exploits of your brother while they eat their food.” Mum gave Calli and Niko apologetic smiles, which caused me to huff back into my seat. Really? Who are they all trying to fool? None of them would be accepted into a nunnery.

“I’m sure Calli and Niko are well aware of Leif’s antics. It’s not like it’s a secret. And besides, their daughter has two mates. Leif won’t be the only one having threesomes in Heroux.”

Grandpapi nearly spat his wine across the table and Calli, Neve’s mum, pinched her lips together to suppress her laughter at her mate’s whitening face. My mum kicked my leg under the table while my dad lowered his head into his hand and groaned. Neve would kill me for it, but everyone knew I said things how they were. I don’t know why they all look so surprised.

“It’s fine. We are all adults here. I am sure Neve is having a great time,” Calli offered, smiling at me with mirth dancing in her eyes as she patted Niko’s hand to calm him.

“Changing the topic then.” My Grandma Maddy laughed. “What’s new with you, sweetie?”

This was the moment I should have come clean about the heart beautifully presented in satins and bows in my bedroom by a twisted maniac. My pink eyes darted between all their expectant faces as I chewed on my bottom lip a little.

“Nothing much.” I shrugged my shoulders.

“Still not dating anyone?” Grandma pressed, her mischievous grey eyes sparkling as my grandpapi noticeably tensed next to her.

“Still waiting on that miracle,” I muttered, pushing my plate away slightly.

“What about Ronnie? He seemed nice.”

“He’s just a friend,” I answered with nonchalance but my eyes locked with Grandma Alina’s. More like a Feck Buddy; a friend I occasionally fuck or feed from. She was the only one who knew about my little arrangement with Ronnie, seeing as she was technically my therapist, and agreed it would be a good idea to keep Rue under control by providing her with live feeds from a willing participant.

Grandma had trained to become a psychologist before she even found out she was a wolf and met my Grandpops. They were now retired from their Alpha and Luna duties. She devoted her time to therapy sessions for supernaturals. You’d be surprised just how many of us needed it and I wasn’t ashamed that I had been having weekly sessions with her since I was a child, mainly to help support me with my mind-reading abilities. The world was a pretty fucked up place without being able to see directly into people’s minds, so add that little nugget, and I was a walking poster potential for mental health issues. Before I could control how I read people’s minds, my parents worried about me a lot. They tasked my brothers with acting as my personal bodyguards because I freaked people the fuck out when they realised I could hear every little thought. Mixing that with my lack of empathy in most situations and inability to stand for anyone’s bullshit, I often rub people up the wrong way. It was a heavy burden and one I wanted to learn how to control for my own sanity. That’s when Grandma Alina suggested weekly sessions with her to help me cope or, to be honest, just provide a safe space to vent without judgment. I’ve always been a very private person, so it hasn’t been easy to talk about my feelings and emotions. But she had worked hard to gain my trust over the years and I knew everything I said to her in our sessions stayed just between us.

“And let’s keep it that way. No dating until your soulmate.” My dad nodded at me before my mum shook her head at him. “I like Ron. But not for my little princess.”

I rolled my eyes. Here we go again.

“No one will be good enough in your eyes.” Mum chuckled, threading her fingers into the back of his hair. “But she will meet her soulmate one day and you will have to be nice. All of you will.” She moved her gaze to my grandfathers in warning.

“We’ll be nice,” Grandpapi said with a haunting smile. “We’re always nice.”

“Yeah… okay.” Grandma Maddy laughed. “Remember how you reacted when Ruby brought Ezra for breakfast?”

“That was me being nice.” Grandpapi smirked. “He’s still breathing, isn’t he?”

“Only because Ruby saved my ass from you.” Dad chuckled, leaning back in his chair. “And you’d known me since I was born, practically helped raise me and still tried to kill me when you found out I’d marked your daughter.”

“Yeah, you were lucky I liked you.” Grandpapi laughed.

“I honestly feel bad for whoever your soulmate is, Ilaria. Having to impress this lot,” Calli directed the attention back to me.

“Which is why, if I ever do find him, I shall never bring him home to meet them and we shall run away together into the sunset. Or maybe it would be just my luck that my soulmate got stuck in a condom,” I joked, smiling sweetly as I pushed my chair back from the table, which caused their faces to drop. “May I be excused?”

“You’ve barely eaten anything,” Mum said.

“I’m not very hungry. I’m meeting up with a few friends from the Academy later so I need to get ready.”

I didn’t miss the way all their expressions morphed into surprise at that announcement. Christ, it’s like they all think I’m anti-social or something.

Rue scoffed, calling out my bullshit. ‘I’d call it pro-solitude.’

“Who are you meeting and where?” Dad asked as I made the rounds, kissing them all goodbye.

“I told you, just a few friends. Harrison, Rhys, the twins, etcetera. In town.” It was true. Even though I would class them more as my brother’s friends, I had plans to meet a small crowd later this evening in a bar in town.

“Okay, well, have fun and be good. Love you,” Mum commanded as I exited the dining room.

“Love you all to death,” I shouted over my shoulder in a sing-song voice before leaning back against the wall outside to catch the hushed conversation they were having about me.

“That’s promising,” Mum whispered, clearly surprised I had ‘friends’ who weren’t classed as a sibling or Neve.

“Hmm, I don’t know. She’s never mentioned hanging out with them on her own before.”

“You need to ease up on her, darling. Give her some freedom,” Grandma Alina was speaking to my dad.

“I know.” He sighed. “I just worry about her even more now her brothers have left this realm. She’s never been without them and—”

“And it’s good for her,” Grandma Maddy interrupted. “It’s about time she was able to spread her wings a little. As much as you men don’t like to acknowledge it, she’s not a little girl anymore. She’s a grown woman and she’s a badass, too. Out of the triplets, I’d always put money on her being able to handle herself the best in a dangerous situation, so I honestly don’t know why you all get so worked up about her safety.”

Grandmas- I bloody loved them.

“You know why.” Grandpapi lowered his voice an octave. “She is more impulsive and reactive than anyone else in this family. She is the first pure-blood vampire since my father and has his power running through her veins. I do too, but thankfully my warlock side balances out the darkness.”

I closed my eyes, tilting my head up to the ceiling. He was talking about my grandfather, Lucius Romano.

“But she is nothing like Lucius. She puts in the work every day to make sure of it,” Grandma Alina argued.

“I never said she was. But I can feel how strong his blood is in her. My father wasn’t always as sick and twisted as he was at the end. But once he gave into his darkness, there was no way back for him.”

“I just hate that Ilaria has to fight so hard against her own nature all the time,” my mum said.

“But the point is,” Grandma Alina argued. “She does. So, perhaps a little faith and allowing her to live her life is in order. Trying to keep an eye on her because you’re all scared of what she might become if you eased up on the reins a little will only cause her to rebel.”

Is that what this was all about? Fear? They were all terrified I would end up like Lucius Romano if they left me to my own devices.

I pushed off the wall and headed upstairs with my mind made up. I would prove to them all I was more than capable of looking after myself and I could do it without turning into some demented villain they all feared I had the potential to become.

Entering my bedroom, I paced along the side of my bed, staring at the pink box as if it was about to give me all the answers I was searching for. Grabbing my journal out of my rucksack, I folded my legs under me as I sat down in my armchair in the corner of the room and started making a list of new information I now had because of this little delivery.

1. The killer saw me and Eddie in the alleyway.

2. He must have overheard me saying that Eddie was thinking about shoving his dick down my throat - hence the symbolism of his kill. (He has a dark sense of humour - I kinda like it.)

3. Took the heart like so many of his other kills but offered it to me - why? Some kind of message? A warning? A threat? A… loving gesture?

4. He was able to get into the palace without being seen. So, either he can teleport, create portals or shapeshift.

5. Name begins with H.

I placed my journal down and strolled back over to the box. Rereading the note filled me with certainty. This wasn’t threatening. It was an invitation. He wanted me to engage with him. To meet his sick fantasy and show him I was just like him. I lifted the heart delicately from the box, squinting my eyes to study it as I held it in front of my face. The blood had nearly dried up now so the urge to bite it was just a dull ache through my veins. What were my options here? Engage by meeting the killer’s request and bite the heart or potentially anger him by refusing to play his game the way he dictated it. Or maybe a bit of both?

Licking my lips, I peered out of my balcony door windows. Was he watching me? A pleasurable shiver ran down my spine at the thought. Why did it make me feel so alive? Why was it so exciting? Ah shit , s talker kink activated. Opening my balcony doors, I stepped out onto the terrace. The cooling autumn air swept my hair back as I looked out across the edge of the Blood Moon’s lush, dark green forest mixed with orange, crisp leaves of maple trees on the outskirts.

Crouching down, I took my blade out from the side of my boot and cut through half of the heart. I tilted my head back and squeezed the organ until the remaining blood dripped from it into my open mouth. Then I placed the heart on the ledge of the balcony and stabbed my knife through it before stepping back. My gaze swept out across the trees in the distance as I licked the rest of the blood from my lips. It was a defiant act but one I thought he’d appreciate.

“Thanks. But no thanks!” I politely declined before turning back into my room, leaving the stabbed heart outside for the lunatic to see. If it was still there in the morning, I’d have to get rid of it but I had a feeling he was watching. Hopefully, that would be enough of a clear message. I wasn’t scared of him, but I also wasn’t anything like him either.