Give Me Blood

Chapter 10: A Stranger or An Enemy Pt.1

A stranger or an enemy.

(William's POV)

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I have always taken pride in my ability to make smart decisions quickly. Now I feel my pride has become a burden to the people who rely on me most.

Responsibility was a heavy feeling at its worst. Falls into your lap like a brick. I will admit that 'a leader' is not a title I would have searched for in another life.

But despite my feelings I have, in this life, lived long enough to see my decisions change the lives of people with similar fates to mine. I've seen courage, friendship, happiness and hope from people who woke up expected to follow a certain path--expected to act like hungry killers.

Countless fates shifted because of the newly paved road I created for others to follow.

My reflections may sound of some form of smug appetite for fame and recognition, but I assure you, they are not. My only wish is to see vampires live freely. Without the fear that others will fear them or hurt them because of what they are. What they have become.

And so, when I see the hunter get hurt in my territory it makes me question if my dream will stay just that. Fully aware that she was a human who has seen the worst from our kind.

It also didn't help that her scent was driving me insane.

The second I received that call from Jake concerning the escaped newborn I knew that this had to be the cause of the scent. Later I find out I smelled the blood all the way from the training grounds, which was miles away from where I had found her.

Following the trail I was sure the hunter had been critically injured. You can imagine my surprise when I see her calmly standing next to the dead body of the newborn with only a moderate cut on her hand to justify the pungent aroma.

I've had enough exposure to human blood where sight and smell haven't made me lose control in a millennia. Being a doctor for a century has made such cravings easy to manage.

The long-forgotten dryness in my throat as I tended to the wound on her hand felt nostalgically excruciating. It could be I was more sensitive as I hadn't fed in some time. But even when I went without blood for over a year I had never felt like this.

What was she?

Glancing at the young hunter I couldn't help but feel ashamed for having these thoughts when I was the reason she had come here in the first place.

Too many people were relying on me to be letting slip-ups like this happen. I needed to get my head straight.

Bandaging her palm was what I focused on instead of the sickly sweet smell that she was emanating. What made me even more determined was when her hand recoiled from my touch. For some reason that action made me more annoyed than it should have.

She hasn't said much to me ever since we met. Not even a wince of pain had crossed her face as I cleansed her wound. Made me wonder if this was a normal amount of pain for hunters these days.

Her probing stare was hard to ignore. I had to laugh slightly when I eventually locked my eyes with her unwavering ones.

"I am not a ghost. You can't see through me no matter how hard you try." I say taking a second to look at her myself.

She looked tired, but somehow still on alert. Her light brown hair was scattered messily around her shoulders with a few leaves stuck in the strands. I suppressed my urge to pick them afraid she might block my approaches again, for the third time. Her button nose fit perfectly with her full lips that had lost their color from the hold. And even though here brows were slightly furrowed they made her stare even more striking. Even in her disheveled appearance I could tell she was, simply put, pretty.