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PROLOGUE

SELENE

T he grass, wet with the morning dew, tickles my bare ankles as I skip through the meadow. I can see our house as I crest the small hill. It’s not far away and if I run, I can make it there in time for breakfast. I glance down at my bare feet, coated with mud, and frown. Mother wouldn’t be pleased if I walked into the kitchen, dragging dirt across the floor.

As I reach the edge of the pasture, I bend over, ducking through the boards of the fence. My nightgown catches on a small, splintered piece of wood. My brow furrows as I grab a handful of the cotton material and tug on it. It doesn’t give at first and I scowl, pulling harder until it breaks free, tearing the bottom hem of my dress.

I sigh, glancing up at the house before turning away. Everyone will be waking up soon, and it wouldn’t be the first time that my parents find my bed empty. They think that I sleepwalk and I let them keep believing it. If they knew the truth of where I really go in the middle of the night, they might never let me out of that house again.

The truth is, sleep has always been my enemy. It never finds me easily, so every night, after everyone else is tucked away in their beds, I go out in hopes of finding it.

I walk through the damp grass until I reach the driveway. My muddy feet leave a trail as I head toward the stable. The light is already on as I slip in through the massive barn doors. A few of the horses poke their heads out over their stall doors, nickering as I walk down the aisle.

My father breeds and trains racehorses. It was a family business that he took over from his father, and it has brought him great success in life. He’s a smart and calculated man who always weighs his risks before rolling the dice. My father is a ruthless businessman, and he treats what he does exactly as that. A business. It’s not a hobby. I’ve seen him with the horses—he doesn’t enjoy them as a novelty like some people do.

It was his way to the top and now that he built this empire, he sits on his throne like the titanium god that he is.

Gregory, one of our stable hands, is busy at work mixing the horse feed inside the feed room. He doesn’t notice me as I creep past the door. I overheard my mother telling my little brother, Abel, that one of our barn cats had kittens the other day. That’s what I’m here to see.

My night wasn’t successful in the woods, and the monster inside of me is still awake.

My footsteps are light and quiet as I walk to the very end of the aisle, slipping into one of the empty stalls that we use for storage. I know that animals like to have a quiet, secluded place to give birth, so I check all the corners and smaller spaces in the stall. My frustration builds and I grow irritated as I come up empty-handed.

I let out a defeated sigh and start to walk out of the stall, when I hear Gregory at the opposite end of the aisle as he begins to make his rounds. My body stills and I pause in the doorway. The horse in the stall across from me pokes its head out, letting out a loud neigh. The sound is like sandpaper on my eardrums, and I glare at the forsaken creature.

Tilting my head to the side, I drag my gaze from the horse’s head, traveling down its long neck. I wonder how much blood a horse’s body holds. And how long would it take for it to bleed out? I can’t break a horse’s neck with my hands, but if I could get my hands on a knife, I could slide it along the artery in its throat.

As I contemplate my next move, I hear a rustling behind me, followed by a soft mew. Jackpot. Spinning on my heel, my eyes scan the small space, looking for where the sound came from. Then I see movement in the middle of the stall, tucked away between two boxes are six little kittens.

I drop down to my knees, tucking my cold, bare feet underneath me as I shove my hand into the crack, reaching for the small bodies. I’m feeling around blindly, unable to see as I move my hand, searching for the softness of their fur.

The anticipation builds and I clamp down on my bottom lip with determination. If I don’t find something to play with soon, I’m going to burn this entire barn to the ground. And just like that, the universe bows to my threat as I feel my fingertips land on a ball of fur.

Wrapping my fingers around the kitten, I pull it out of the crack. It’s light in my hands with eyes still plastered shut. The kitten doesn’t make a sound and doesn’t move. Holding it up in front of me, I give it a swift shake, willing it to come to life.

It doesn’t.

It lies there limply in my hands, already fucking dead.

“What are you doing out here?” Gregory questions me as I sit in the middle of the stall with the dead kitten in my hand. I glance up at him, watching as he stalks around, circling me like a shark in the ocean.

I shrug, half ignoring him as I give him a blank stare. “Couldn’t sleep.”

“Where are your parents?” he asks, his circle slowly growing smaller as he nervously glances over his shoulder. “Do they know that you’re out here?”

I shake my head, dropping the dead kitten onto the floor beside me. It’s damaged goods. The little creature wasn’t supposed to be dead already. It wasn’t supposed to die that way. I wanted to be the one to extinguish the light in its soul, to watch the life drain from its eyes as it took its last breath.

It’s sick, I know. I know that something’s wrong with me, but for me—it's all that I know.

It's normal.

Gregory grunts as he drops onto his knees in front of me. His thick, fat fingers reach out as he wraps a strand of my midnight-colored hair around them. “You’re a pretty little girl. You know that, don’t you?”

I narrow my eyes, my jaw clenching as I cock an eyebrow. This isn’t the first time that Gregory has made an advance at me. He’s been known to have a wandering eye and I’ve caught his gaze on me a few times before. I always brushed it off, because I never really thought he would follow through with his advances and his little comments.

“I see the way that your body is growing up,” he groans, fisting his cock through his dirty jeans as he drags his other hand over the front of my chest. He pauses, his palm cupping my small budding breast. “I just want a taste, before your innocence is gone. You trust me, right?”

I stare back at him blankly, my lips clamped shut as my hands curl into fists. He takes my lack of response as me willingly giving him consent. Abandoning his dick, he brings both of his rough hands to my small body and lifts me to my feet as he rises. He lifts my nightgown, gripping my thigh with one hand as the other pinches my nipple.

My teeth bite into my bottom lip as I clamp down, tasting the metallic tang on my tongue. I don’t want this. I don’t even know what is fully going on, but I know that I want it to stop. I didn’t tell him that he could touch me like this.

Keeping my teeth locked in my lip, I take my fist and drive it into his crotch. Gregory yells out, pushing me away as he cups himself through his jeans. “What the fuck?”

I pull my teeth from my lip, my mouth curving up into a smile. As I run my tongue over them, I taste the blood and flash a grin at Gregory with a mouth full of red. He stares at me, eyes widening with anger as he holds onto his junk.

Glancing beside me, I grab an old horseshoe that sticks out of a box and inch closer to Gregory. “Your daddy isn’t going to believe you if you tell him about this.”

He doesn’t need to worry. My daddy will never hear about this; I’ll never tell a single soul.

I shake my head, feigning innocence as I giggle lightly. Gregory cuts his eyes at me. “There’s somethin’ wrong with you, kid.” His nostrils flare. “Go back to the house before your parents come lookin’.”

“I will,” I nod, my mouth closing around my teeth. My lips curl upward as a sinister grin forms on my face. “I’ll go back there soon.”

“No. You go back ther—” Gregory stares, but his words are cut short as I take the horseshoe in my hand and drive the hard piece of metal into the center of his throat. A garbled yelp slips from his lips as he crashes onto his knees. “Wha—what th ? —”

He can’t get the words out. He can’t catch his fucking musty breath. I stare down at him, my lips stretching wider as I lift my arm. In one swift swing, I bring my hand down with such force that the metal U in my grip crashes into Gregory’s temple, causing him to lose his balance. The blow instantly knocking him out as he collapses onto the ground by my feet.

I follow after him, the thrill slicing through my veins, electrifying my body with the endorphins that rush through me. This is what I was looking for. This is what the monster inside of me needed.

This is everything.

My little legs straddle the sides of his chest as I stare down at his fat, round face. There’s a small trickle of blood coming from the minute wound on his temple. My eyes follow the crimson color as it stains his skin. I’m mesmerized by it as I press my finger against it, feeling the warm, sticky liquid as it clings to my fingertip.

A smile touches my lips as I grab the horseshoe with both hands, lifting my arms above my head. I bring them down in a flash, driving the metal into his face. Starting at his forehead, I repeat my actions over and over again, delivering blows to every inch of his skull. Gregory remains unconscious, blood filling his mouth.

Blood splatters from his face, droplets covering my hands, face and nightgown. I’m caught up in the moment, lost in the frenzy as I bash his face in until it’s barely recognizable. Gregory gurgles, choking on the crimson liquid that he’s drowning in.

I pause, watching as he gargles one last time, a sputter falling from his lips as the blood spills over. Tilting my head to the side, I watch as his chest falls still and life leaves his body. My hands and arms are coated in the sticky, red liquid. It warms my skin, the monster inside me licking its lips.

“My little moon.”

My father’s voice catches me off guard. I never heard him enter the barn and I'm not sure how much of this he witnessed. I don’t feel any guilt or remorse. I’m a blank fucking slate as I glance up at him in the doorway. I don’t know how I'm going to get out of this…

My father stares down at me, his eyes wide. I watch him carefully as he exhales deeply, like a weight has been lifted. It’s as if he can breathe easily now. He tilts his head to the side, his lips curling upward into a sinister smile. “What did you do?”