Page 58 of The Forsaken Vampire

I took off at a sprint, trying to maneuver through the uneven snow back to the inclined path. He might be faster than me, but the snow was a barrier for both of us, and if he slipped once, I would be able to take the lead.

I’d barely made it ten feet before he grabbed me and yanked me back toward the horses. “I already said you can’t outrun me.”

“Why are you so freakin’ fast?”

He gave me another shove, forcing me back toward the horses.

“What are you?”

He ignored me and continued to drag me back to where the horses waited.

“Answer me!” I had no idea what I was up against. He wasn’t human, but he wasn’t one of the Teeth. He wasn’t Necrosis either because I’d seen him naked countless times, and he had no spots.

He ignored me as he positioned me in front of the horse. “I don’t owe you an answer.”

“You tricked me into fucking you for a week—”

“I didn’t trick you into doing anything you didn’t want to do. You can’t rewrite history because you’re embarrassed. You fucked my brains out because you wanted to, sweetheart. Now, get on the damn horse.”

My palm struck him across the face, moving before I could even think about the action.

He took the hit and gave a quiet sigh of annoyance.

“I should have stayed with Ethan.”

He took a moment before he looked at me again. “Nice guys always finish last, don’t they?” He grabbed my hips and turned me around before he lifted me and forced me to spread my legs over the saddle.

The second I had the reins, I dug my heels into the horse to take off. But the horse didn’t move.

Aurelias took his time mounting the other horse, a subtle smile on his lips. “Let’s go.”

* * *

Aurelias rode his steed hard through the snow, heading inland away from the coast. He didn’t head south toward HeartHolme, and while I’d never been there in person, I knew only one thing lived in this direction.

The Teeth.

Once the light left the sky, he directed the horses into a clearing and dismounted.

I tried to take off again, even if that meant running into the darkness, but my horse was worthless. That meant I had to mount the other horse when Aurelias wasn’t looking.

Aurelias tied him to a tree, executing a series of knots like he knew exactly what I was thinking.

I dropped into the snow and immediately searched the area for old branches to make a fire.

“No fire.”

“I’ll freeze out here—”

“Then you’ll have to get close to me.” He took my horse and secured him the same way at the tree.

“Yeah, I’ll pass.”

“Fine by me.” He grabbed a short shovel from the saddlebag and removed the snow in a small area before he dropped a bedroll on the earth, even though it was probably just as cold as the snow that had been on top of it. “Rest for a few hours. Then we’ll take the horses on foot.”

“In the dark?” I asked incredulously. “That’s the stupidest idea I’ve ever heard.”

“Then maybe I’ll die, and you’ll be free to go.”