Chapter 53 – Bound by Blood

A sharp pain pierced Elena's neck, quick and precise, like the sting of a blade. She gasped, her body jerking instinctively, but Leon's arms tightened around her, anchoring her in place.

The initial shock melted into something deeper—an odd pull, a warmth spreading from the bite, curling through her veins like fire laced with ice. Her fingers clutched at his coat as a strange dizziness overtook her.

She had expected it to hurt more. She had expected something more violent. But there was something else—a sensation so foreign, so intimate, that it left her breathless.

Leon groaned against her skin, his hold trembling as he drank.

Elena felt it then—the bond snapping into place.

Her vision blurred, the world shifting around her. It was as if something inside her cracked open, an invisible thread weaving between them, linking her to him in a way that was irreversible.

She could feel him—the hunger that had consumed him, the desperate need to hold back and not take too much. But beneath that, there was something raw, something that terrified her more than the bite itself.

Leon wasn't just drinking her blood.

He was claiming her.

A deep shudder ran through her body. Her heart pounded against her ribs, and for a moment, she thought it might be too much—that she might lose herself completely.

Then, just as suddenly as it had started, Leon ripped himself away.

Elena staggered, her knees giving out beneath her. Before she could hit the ground, he caught her, cradling her against his chest. His breath was ragged, his entire body shaking.

He had stopped himself.

The thought barely registered before her vision flickered. Everything felt too much. The air, the light, the sound of her own pulse hammering in her ears.

"Elena." His voice was hoarse, strained. His thumb brushed against her cheek, his touch no longer cold.

Her head lolled against him, exhaustion pulling her under. "Leon…?"

He exhaled sharply. "You shouldn't have done that."

A weak, almost delirious smile curled on her lips. "Didn't… have a choice."

Her fingers curled into the fabric of his coat, her body too warm, too heavy. The dizziness was overwhelming, the world fading in and out.

Leon's grip tightened. "You'll be fine," he murmured. But there was something in his tone—something that sounded like guilt.

Elena barely processed it before the darkness swallowed her whole.