Unveiling The Vampire's Omega (Bound By Blood, Freed By Love)

Chapter: 8

TALON:

Haunting dreams kept me wide awake, my mind racing and my feelings raging out of control. The past chased me, a relentless reminder of my sins. Another day had slipped by, and I remained trapped in this cold, lifeless cave, hidden away from the world... and from myself. What was I supposed to make of life at this point? I was alone—truly, pitifully alone. When my mother died and my uncle took me in, I thought my fate had changed, and that my life would soon begin to make sense. Yet here I was, still alone.

My eyes bleed with emotion, and these feelings control me. They ruin me.

If I hadn't bitten into Altair, I would still be locked away in that room, left to my solitude, which now seemed more preferable than this. At least then, I had little Bryn, who often came to talk with me by my door.

"Altair," I muttered, my breath shaky. "Are you alive?" I wondered aloud, but I couldn't feel anything from him—not a thing.

Where there was once a beat in my heart, there was now only a hollow cavity—empty and lonely. My thoughts were muddled, yet every detail of that awful afternoon remained vivid in my mind. I could still hear his screams echoing through the thick forest behind us, the waves carrying his broken sobs. His cries filled my ears as he screamed for help... for his Birth Omega, for his Double-shifter fathers. The fear in his voice felt too real, stabbing at my very being. I was on the brink of letting go, but then I was flung into the sea, with my uncle's sharp claws slicing through my ribs. But at that moment, the only true pain I felt was that of Altair.

It was all too familiar, just as it had been before that fateful afternoon. What made it worse was that my uncle didn't care if he hurt me; he did what needed to be done—protect his son. They had neglected me and locked me away when they thought I was a threat to the child, even before he was born, terrified that I would hurt him or, worse, kill him.

But they weren't wrong to worry. They weren't wrong to have locked me up like a wild beast.

I had indeed brought their deepest fears to fruition. I had hurt Altair.

I didn't deserve this life, this second chance.

But why? Why was I given a second chance?

Then I remembered: he's here.

I turned toward the entrance, and just in time, John arrived, a freshly baked meal and a bottle of rabbit blood in hand. So meticulous, so good to me. I often wondered why he went against his entire family to keep me here for so long. Three weeks had passed since he brought me into this cave, and I hadn't left or seen the sun since.

With no desire to leave this place, I settled into my routine, biding my time.

After that dream in which Vale had appeared to me, I hadn't seen him or felt Altair's heartbeat since. The absence of that connection terrified me more than anything ever could.

John walked into the clearing and began placing his offerings on the stone slab I had made into my bed. His eyes remained fixed on his tasks, and he wouldn't glance my way until the table was set. Then he brushed his hands on his pants and looked up with a smile—his routine.

"I made this myself. I hope you like it," he said, gesturing to the baked potatoes.

He had been feeding me both blood and food since the beginning, and though it took a while, I could feel my strength returning, albeit slowly.