Adrian
This was getting worse.
Far worse than I expected.
I drove through the empty streets in silence, one hand gripping the steering wheel tightly while Nyx sat beside me.
Quiet for once.
But not calm.
I could hear her heartbeat speeding up every few seconds.
Fear.
Anger.
Panic.
And underneath all of it…
Hunger.
Still there.
Still growing.
I glanced at her briefly.
She was staring out the window, jaw tight, fingers clenched together in her lap.
Trying to stay strong.
Trying not to fall apart.
It was pointless.
The moment she saw what waited at that house…
Everything would change.
"You're thinking too loudly."
Her head snapped toward me instantly.
"What?"
I looked back at the road.
"You keep tapping your fingers when you're anxious."
She immediately stopped.
Interesting.
Even now, she hated people noticing things about her.
"You really think they're there?" she asked quietly after a moment.
I already knew who she meant.
The faction.
The ones hunting her.
"The fact they found her this quickly is concerning."
"That doesn't answer my question."
No.
It didn't.
Because the truth was…
I didn't know.
And I hated not knowing.
The scent around Nyx had changed ever since her awakening.
Stronger now.
Older.
Impossible.
It didn't make sense.
Nothing about her made sense.
A seventeen-year delayed awakening should've been impossible.
A vampire child surviving among humans unnoticed should've been impossible.
And yet…
Here she was.
Sitting beside me.
Alive.
Terrified.
Dangerous.
My grip on the steering wheel tightened slightly.
Someone hid her.
For years.
But why?
"Adrian."
I looked at her again.
She hesitated before speaking.
"Earlier… when that vampire came…"
Her heartbeat changed again.
Faster.
Nervous.
"He said something about war."
Of course she remembered that.
Smart.
Too observant for her own good.
"It's complicated," I answered.
She glared immediately.
"I'm starting to hate that word."
A faint smirk almost appeared on my face.
Almost.
"There are different vampire factions," I explained finally. "They don't agree on how things should be handled."
"And I'm involved because…?"
"Because everyone wants to know what you are."
The silence after that felt heavy.
I could practically hear her thoughts spiraling.
"You keep saying that," she whispered. "Like I'm not even a person anymore."
That…
Unexpectedly irritated me.
"You are a person."
She laughed bitterly.
"Really? Because from where I'm standing, I sound more like some dangerous experiment."
I didn't answer immediately.
Because the worst part was…
She wasn't entirely wrong.
The car slowed as we reached her neighborhood.
And the moment I saw the street…
Something felt wrong.
Too quiet.
No lights.
No movement.
Nothing.
Nyx noticed it too.
Her breathing became uneven instantly.
"No…"
I stopped the car before she could throw herself out of it.
But she was already moving.
"Nyx…"
She ignored me completely and ran toward the house.
Damn it.
I followed her quickly, senses immediately alert.
The front door was open.
Broken.
The scent of blood lingered faintly in the air.
And fear.
Human fear.
Recent.
Nyx froze in the doorway.
"No…" her voice cracked softly.
The house was destroyed.
Furniture overturned.
Glass shattered across the floor.
And worst of all…
Empty.
"Mom?!" Nyx shouted desperately, running further inside.
No answer.
Only silence.
I scanned the room carefully.
There were signs of struggle everywhere.
But no bodies.
Which meant one thing.
They took them alive.
Nyx turned toward me, panic written all over her face.
"They're gone…"
I already knew that.
But before I could say anything…
My eyes landed on the wall near the hallway.
A symbol.
Painted in blood.
And the moment I saw it…
Every instinct inside me turned deadly cold.
Impossible.
Because I recognized that symbol.
And if it was really them…
Then Nyx was in far more danger than she realized.