The Mafiaso And The AD 1024

Gift and a Curse

Donte's PoV

As I made my way back to the hallway, the silence was heavy, the kind that made your instincts sharpen.

l'd dealt with the group planning the ambush, but something in the air told me things hadn't settled.

I turned the corner, expecting to see Amara where l'd left her, but the sight before me was far from whatl anticipated.

Bodies were scattered across the floor, their faces drained of colour, eyes wide open in terror.

And there, at the centre of it all, was Amara.

She stood over the last man, her fangs embedded in his neck.

Blood dripped down her chin as she held him up effortlessly.

The scene was brutal, almost animalistic, but what struck me more was the look on her face-she was completely in control, yet there was a feral edge in her eyes.

"Amara," I called out, my voice cutting through the carnage. She didn't react immediately.

Instead, she seemed to savour the moment, pulling her fangs out of the man's neck with deliberate slowness.

The body fell to the ground, lifeless, and she licked the blood off her lips with a smirk that sent a chill down my spine.

I had known she was powerful, but seeing it firsthand, seeing the aftermath of her wrath-it was something else entirely.

In a blink, she used her vampire speed to appear right in front of me.

I didn't flinch, but it took everything in me to maintain my composure as her dark, intense gaze met mine.

Her eyes had a gleam of satisfaction, and the remnants of her hunger still flickered in those crimson depths.

"Is this what you wanted?" she asked, her voice low, almost teasing, but there was a hint of something else-vulnerability, perhaps. I stared at her, trying to read the

composure as her dark, intense gaze met mine. Her eyes had a gleam of satisfaction, and the remnants of her hunger still flickered in those crimson depths.

"Is this what you wanted?" she asked, her voice low, almost teasing, but there was a hint of something else--vulnerability, perhaps.

I stared at her, trying to read the woman before me.

She was a paradox-a tribrid, a force of nature, and yet, she was still someone trying to find her place, her balance.

I reached out, brushing a thumb over her lips to wipe away the last trace of blood.

"You went beyond what I expected," I said, my voice firm but not unkind. "But you handled it."

Her eyes softened slightly at my words, and she nodded.

There was a silence between us charged with the gravity of what had just happened.

She was dangerous, yes, but that danger was exactly what made her invaluable.

"Let's get out of here," I said finally, stepping back. "We've made our point tonight."

She nodded again, the smirk fading into a more serious expression.

As we walked down the hallway together, I couldn't help but think that bringing her into my world had changed everything.

She wasn't just another asset-she was a game changer.

And with that kind of power by my side, nothing would stand in our way.
But l'd have to keep an eye on her, too.

Because as much as I trusted her, there was always that edge, that line she was willing to cross. In this world, it was both a gift and a curse.