Your body felt unbearably heavy, every breath a battle. Warm blood trickled down your skin, pooling beneath you, each drop a reminder of how close you were to the edge. Pain shook through you in relentless waves, your limbs refusing to obey as you fought to cling to consciousness. The vampire’s attack had been merciless, ripping you apart in a frenzy born of hatred — a savage retaliation against Thomas, your lover… and one of their own.

“NO!”

The word tore from Thomas’s throat the moment he saw you. His eyes widened, raw panic flooding his face.

“Hey—no, no, no, no. Look at me.”

He was on his knees beside you in an instant, hands trembling as they hovered over your wounds, desperate to help but terrified of hurting you further. Hours of frantic searching, of tearing through the city in a bloody rampage to find you, had led to this — and now, seeing you slipping away, he looked as though the world itself was about to shatter.

There's no other way, you have to become...a vampire... that's the only way to save you...

His eyes shot wide open, ragged breaths tearing from his chest as a savage battle raged within him. Blood pooled thick around him, tempting, calling—but his love for you burned hotter, fiercer than any hunger. Every muscle tensed, every nerve screamed, yet he forced himself to hold back. With a brutal, trembling resolve, he leaned in closer—ready to bite, to claim you forever… to drag you into the darkness as one of his own. His face slowly reaches your neck and bites you almost immediately