Vampire Residence

VII

A flicker of hurt passed across the woman's face at Eleanor's words, a brief moment of vulnerability. But then her expression hardened again, her face becoming an emotionless mask. She didn't say anything more.

In her rage and desperation, Eleanor almost felt a pang of guilt for the hurt that had flickered across the woman's face at her words.

This woman, this stranger with a strange language, had made the unthinkable decision to condemn her to a half-existence that was nothing short of nightmarish. And now, the woman dared to look at her as if she was the one who was the victim.

She could feel the change within her, the unnatural strength and the hunger. It repulsed her and made her want to lash out.

"Save me? You doomed me," she hissed, her voice shaking with anger and fear. "Look at me! Look what you've done to me!"

The woman remained silent, her cold gaze unwavering.

Eleanor wanted to hurt her, to make her feel even a fraction of the pain and despair she was feeling. But her own body was beginning to betray her- her teeth were aching, and her vision growing sharper.

The realization that she was starting to become a vampire was a hard pill to swallow, and she was finding it increasingly difficult to control her anger. The woman's indifferent demeanor was only fueling her rage and her frustration that the woman didn't even seem to regret her decision.

"Why did you do it? Why would you condemn someone to this hell?"

The woman still said nothing, only watching her intently. But there was something in her eyes now- a flicker of something that might have been regrettable.

Eleanor couldn't hold back anymore. "Answer me! Why would you do this to me?"

"Because I have been watching you."

The response was unexpected, the words sending a shiver down Eleanor's spine.

"Watching... me?" She echoed, her voice quivering slightly. "Why?"

"Because I care for you."

The response was so unexpected that Eleanor was stunned into silence for a moment.

Care? This woman... cared... for her?

The very idea was almost laughable. How could she possibly 'care'? They had barely met, and now... now...

...Now she was being turned into a monster.

Her anger flared up again as her mind grappled with the incongruity of the statement.

"How can you care for me," she spat out, "When you have condemned me to this... this abomination?"

"I could not just stand there and watch you die!"

The woman's voice echoed with an underlying ferocity that sent another shiver down Eleanor's spine.

The woman's words were so sincere, so... desperate... yet they only added to the confusion churning in Eleanor's mind.

The anger and the hunger boiled in her chest, competing for control. Her mind was in turmoil; her emotions were all over the place.

She wanted to hate her, to blame her...

...but there was also a part of her - a small, irrational part of her - that wanted to believe her. They wanted to believe that this stranger, this woman she had just met, did care for her.

The thought was as confusing as it was repulsive, and her mind rebelled against the very idea.

She opened her mouth to respond, her emotions threatening to boil over. But no words came out. Her mind was frozen, paralyzed by the conflict of anger and confusion.