Chapter 3: Empty

The city flew by beneath her. Buildings gave way to orange groves. The sweet smell of their blossoms mixed with the humid air. She kept moving, traveling further from the people she loved. The people she'd almost hurt. Not hurt, worse. 

Kal tried to make sense of everything that had just happened. No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't. She didn't understand how her reaction to Seth had been so different from when she was alone with Cherry. His scent had been so strong, but it was almost like she didn't exist. I was going to kill him, and for some reason, I didn't. How did I end up outside? She placed her hand against her chest; the pain still lingered there.

Little by little, civilization began to creep up—first houses, then buildings. The humans below hurried from one store to another. Finally, too tired to keep moving, she landed in the back of a dark alley and watched them walking past its well-lit entrance. The groups of men talking about work, the women laughing about nothing. The working professionals were trying to regain the youth of their college years. Yet, even here, surrounded by people, she was alone.

She let the misery wash over her that she could have ended his life there and then. With the despair came hunger, the hunger that had been a constant companion for the past six months. She pulled her legs into her chest, resting her head on her knees, and sobbed.

I can never go home again, not after that. Not when I could… not when they saw me. The real me. The monster.

A few feet away, a man stumbled down the alley. He must have been on his way home from a bar. Or on his way to a different bar. She could smell the alcohol from there. He hummed softly to himself as he went about his business. She couldn't see, but there was the sound of running water. Gross. Only when he finished did he look to where she was sitting. His lips curled into a grin when he saw her.

"Miss? Are you okay, miss?" He asked.

Kal didn't reply. She watched him, not lifting her head from her knees. Pulling her body smaller, she hoped he'd go away. But he didn't. He came closer. Maybe he thought she hadn't heard him. 

He crouched down, placing one hand on her arm. "Excuse me, miss, do you need any help?" 

She pulled away and backed into the corner of the alley. There was no light here. Pitch black. Hidden from the street by a dumpster. No one could see them. He probably thought the same thing as he followed her into the darkness, his dirty hands reaching for her face. Surely he'd had way too much to drink.

"Please leave me alone," Kal grabbed his wrist, stopping him from touching her.

"I jus' wanna help." He slurred.

She pushed his hand away, and he stumbled, reaching for the wall. His palm scraped against the rough bricks, filling the small space with the scent of his blood. Her need was immediate, feeling the dull pain of her fangs. No one would see. Would know. I could take only a little. He did say he wanted to help. 

She pulled him back into the corner. One hand pressed tightly against his mouth, and the other wrapped around his arms so he couldn't fight back. She could hear the sound of his heart racing. She pressed her lips against the soft skin of his neck and paused."Thanks." 

She drove her fangs into him, the warm blood filling her mouth. Letting herself get carried away by the torrent of memories that now connected them. All the things he'd wanted to forget by drowning them with alcohol. And all the happy things. They relived those memories together, and for that brief moment, she felt happy too.

He'd stopped struggling, his legs no longer kicking against the slick concrete. Take a little more. He'd stopped fighting. More won't hurt. His heart was slowing. There was no more. He was going to die. I killed him. Kal let his body fall to the floor. She hadn't meant to take so much, but what's done was done. She scrambled to the other side of the alley, no longer wanting to be near him. 

Wrapping her arms around her knees again, she stared at the lifeless body and thought about how that could have been her brother. It was too dangerous for her to be around humans anymore. Maybe it's better that I'm locked up, like the monster I am. 

Kal shook her head. Nothing about that was better. I just need to learn control. And I'm not going to learn it there. In that place. Where they force me to kill.

"What a mess you've made." The masculine voice was soft, almost like a whisper. 

She hadn't heard anyone approach. Kal looked up, growling as their eyes met. Those same green eyes as the night she died. How had he found her?

He took a few steps closer. Hissing, she backed into the corner. There was no way out of the alley but up. She was sure he'd follow. He took two more steps, slowly moving closer. Kal scrambled to her feet, ready for a fight.

"Go away," she growled.

"I'm afraid that's not possible." He took another step.

She knew she couldn't fight him, couldn't win. He was like her. He'd helped make her. She'd rather die than go back there. He danced around her as she tried to fight, her swings connected with nothing but air. His soft laughter was infuriating.

"You could come with me. Let me help you." He said.

It's his fault I'm like this, his fault I'd almost hurt the people I love. 

"You've helped enough," she spat.

"Hard way it is."

He was so fast. She was falling to the floor, unable to move. Unable to see.

Everything went black.