Was he going to protect us?
I wasn't sure whether I could trust him. After he kidnapped me and tried to take my heart, my trust in him had been shattered. He was going to kill me.
Then again, trusting a magical being in the first place was foolish.
But something strange was happening to my body. Lately, especially since he kidnapped me, I had been feeling an attraction toward Kongar. It was ridiculous, but that strange tingling sensation I felt whenever he touched me had grown stronger. And now, even his gaze was affecting me.
"Vampire King Valen must have learned of the prince's death," Soren said.
We left Prince Lucas's body in the forest and were walking toward the pack house. The others would take care of it.
"Of course he must have," Arkan said in his deep voice.
He was still in his Lycan form. Strangely, even in this form, I found him attractive.
Get a hold of yourself, Kayra.
What was happening to me?
"He must have felt the bond break," Arkan continued.
"The bond?" I asked.
"Vampires can't have children—"
Kongar cut Arkan off before he could finish.
"Because they're dead."
Arkan let out a threatening growl toward Kongar.
"Then how do they multiply?"
When Arkan heard my question, he turned to me.
"Through a blood pact—"
"They force them to drink their blood, then break their necks," Kongar said, cutting Arkan off again.
Arkan stepped forward with a roar.
"Why are you still here?"
"I told you I have to protect you," Kongar said, pointing at Arkan and me.
"Kayra doesn't need your protection," Arkan said, stepping closer to me.
"What about you?" Kongar winked at Arkan.
"Hrr…"
"Maybe he could be useful," I said.
When Kongar suddenly appeared beside me, I moved closer to Arkan.
"I'm very useful," Kongar said, bending down in front of me. He made that strange gesture of his. "You can use me any way you want."
Then he leaned closer to my ear.
"Any way…" he whispered.
I quickly covered my ear with my hand. My whole body tensed, and the coldness of his breath made the hairs on my body stand on end.
I couldn't let myself fall under his spell.
No.
"What's your purpose?" I demanded.
Arkan tensed beside me instantly.
"Did he do something to you?"
"Survival," Kongar said calmly. "That's my purpose."
I frowned.
"Are you going to survive by blowing into my ear?"
At my words, Arkan growled and began swinging his claws at Kongar. But Kongar skillfully dodged them.
I left the two of them there and started walking toward the pack house. Their constant fighting was exhausting me even more.
I didn't know how long I had been tied up in that dirt-covered place, but I felt like I was starving to death.
"Luna is leaving, Alpha," Soren said as he came over to me.
I bumped into Kongar when he suddenly appeared in front of me. As I pulled away, his scent filled my nose.
Damn it! He was starting to smell good too.
Just as I was about to take a step back, Kongar wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me even closer. Then he lowered his head toward my foul-smelling hair and… sniffed it.
Why?
What was he after this time?
"I'm sorry," Kongar said.
What?
Was he really apologizing… Kongar? Or should I call him Kutay? Because Kongar had always cared about me. I guess I had missed him.
"You smell so good," he said, taking a deep breath.
He was definitely after something.
As soon as I pulled away from him, Arkan attacked Kongar as usual. By now, it had become routine for them.
"Hah—"
I quickly covered my mouth to stifle my laughter. As annoying as they were like this, they were also funny. They looked like two grumpy friends.
Could they actually be friends? Why am I thinking about this?
"Do you find us funny?"
I jumped when I heard Kongar's voice right beside my ear. He kept appearing out of nowhere, like some kind of ghoul.
"Who are you?" I asked.
Kongar frowned.
"I don't understand."
"You're Kutay, aren't you?" I asked.
Kongar studied me for a moment. Then he slipped his hands into his pockets and looked into my eyes. His jaw was tense.
Had my question bothered him?
Good. I didn't regret it one bit.
I crossed my arms in front of me and met his gaze.
"The soul inside your body is Kutay's, isn't it?" I continued.
"Yes."
"Then should I call you Kutay?" I asked.
"No," he said. "Kutay is dead…"
He stood before me as that familiar smile spread across his face.
"… Kongar was born."
---
As soon as I arrived at the pack house, I headed straight to the kitchen. I took out whatever I could find in the fridge. The pack's cook offered to prepare something for me, but I didn't want to trouble him at this hour, so I grabbed a few things left over from dinner and had a quick bite.
Then I went into the bathroom in my bedroom. I needed to get the dust and dirt off me.
After drying myself off, I put on the short white nightgown Arkan had bought for me and dried my hair. Luckily, this place wasn't completely cut off from the modern world. At least when it came to technology.
Should I call my friends? I wasn't even sure if they were worried about me. But how could they have left me alone in the forest like that? I still couldn't forget that moment.
Had they really not cared about me at all?
"Kayra."
I snapped out of my thoughts when I heard Kongar's voice in the room.
What was he doing here?
"Are you okay?" he continued. "My heart was aching."
He was still calling it "my heart."
I let out a deep breath and opened the door. Kongar and Arkan were standing side by side in front of me. Arkan had transformed back into his human form and was fully dressed. They both looked me up and down at the same time.
I frowned at their behavior at first, but when the butterflies in my stomach came alive, I couldn't hide my surprise.
When Arkan noticed Kongar staring at me, he swung his hand toward him, sending Kongar crashing into the wall.
Then Arkan shouted.
"I'll gouge those eyes of yours out!"
I was exhausted and just wanted to sleep. I ignored them and walked toward the bed.
Just as I was about to get into bed, Kongar was sent flying toward it. I noticed him at the last moment and stepped back. Then Arkan jumped onto the bed, landing on top of Kongar.
They were going to ruin my soft, comfortable bed.
"Enough!"
They both stopped and looked at me at the same time when I shouted.
I angrily tucked the strands of hair that had fallen over my face behind my ear.
"I want to sleep," I said, trying to keep my composure.
Kongar pushed Arkan off him, making room beside him, and patted the bed with his hand.
"Come on, let's sleep," he said with a grin.
I wearily shook my head in refusal and lay down at the very edge of the bed.
"Get out of here," Arkan whispered. "We're going to sleep."
"I'm going to sleep too," Kongar whispered.
They just wouldn't stop.
I quickly turned around and faced both of them.
"Either be quiet and go to sleep, or get out of the room," I said. Then I reached over to the nightstand, turned off the light, and lay back down.
I felt someone wrap their arms around me from behind. When I turned around, I found myself face-to-face with Kongar. My eyes widened in surprise, and my heart was pounding as if it were about to burst out of my chest.
"My heart is beating so fast," he said, running his hand along my cheek. "Is it for me?"
My heart beat even faster at his last words. Kongar must have felt it too, because he smiled. It wasn't his usual strange smile. There was a warmth in it.
"Stay away from my Kayra!"
Arkan pushed Kongar to the other side of the bed. Then he took Kongar's place and wrapped his arms around me from behind.
When he pressed his whole body against mine, I was left breathless. The desire inside me began to grow stronger.
Arkan slipped his hand beneath my nightgown, found my breast, and began caressing it. Unable to control myself, I began rubbing myself against him.
"You haven't forgotten about me, have you?"
The moment I heard Kongar's voice, I pushed Arkan's hand away from my breast.
"Ah!"
"What happened?" Arkan asked anxiously.
The area between my breasts hurt. Right where my heart was.
Kongar suddenly appeared beside me.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"It's nothing," I said, trying to brush it off. But when Arkan ran his hand over that area again, I hissed in pain.
Arkan sat up beside me, pulled the neckline of my nightgown down a little farther, and saw the wound.
"What are these?" he asked. His voice had deepened.
The four nail marks Kongar had left on my skin had all scabbed over. The wounds he had made on my body when he tried to take my heart.
I lifted my head and looked at Kongar, who was silently watching us. His face was blank and expressionless. He didn't take his black eyes off my wound for even a moment.
"Did you do this to her, you bastard?" Arkan shouted.
Kongar didn't answer. He clenched one hand into a fist. Then he turned his gaze toward me. His eyes kept shifting between yellow and black.
He turned away as black smoke surrounded him.
And he disappeared.