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Moveerously near But I denied the beast inside and raised one eyelid, peeking underneath my arm, fully aware of where I was and as at stake

A man sat in the seat across from mine, which had previously been e toward "

I quickly took stock of hts of the bank, I could see Keen’s head leaning on Casper’s shoulder through the space between their seats, and if I focused, I could hear their slow, steady breathing The world outside was as dark as a closet, not even a glint of light The only sound I could hear on the entire bank was soft snoring, and the air was filled with the war blood

"You awake, love?" The h his teeth, a little louder this time The cloth of his jacket whispered as his hand reached forat him

He lurched back and fiddled with his watch chain as if trying to hide that he’d been on the verge of touching a strange woood-looking for a Pinky But there was so, a certain looseness of morals to be read in his narrow shoulders, too-short trousers, and cruel, yellowing grin Had I been anyone else, this felloould have been trouble

As it was, I was the trouble

"Just wanted to talk, love" He winked "Everybody else is asleep, and I thought you ht like some company, as they say"

"Really? I was fairly certain you were about toperson, actually" I s my lips carefully pulled down over too-sharp teeth

He had the absolute gall to look injured "I would neverled his eyebrows as high as his boould allow and held out a tarnished flask

I glanced around, throwing out all of my senses Everyone else was unconscious, which was probably why he’d sought me out in the first place

"Come close, and I’ll tell you a secret" I pursed rin widened, and his eyes took on a predatory gleam that I unconsciously er that erous as it was

I scooted into the corner and patted the space I’d just vacated, which was still war body He took a sip from his flask and sidled across the aisle to slide in besidehis salesman’s valise in the other seat, where it advertised Stephanie’s Superior Sea its way up ht had settled on the plush bench I let his fingers wander, curious at the feelings it aroused

As a young princess, I had been kept far away froar Snow Ball, no one had dared to touch me improperly, much less tempt me into the shadoithI had heard ruha had toldOther than Casper’s kiss, which I still didn’t really understand, I knew very little of what passed betweenups the laces under his chin to loosen his hat So inconvenient, the way these Sanglish Pinkies kept themselves all laced up, their pulse points covered in sirl, you are," he said approvingly as his hand caressed love and my flesh

Finally, I pulled out the last of the filthy laces and pushed back his hat The s--had he even heard of bathing? The stench probably didBut underneath the stink was the true sh his hair and nibbled his ear, and he sucked air in through his teeth His hand jerked up tointo the flesh For a few brief seconds, I let his hand angle farther upward My legs were crossed tightly, but it was fun, defying his urgency to pry them open I licked a line froular vein nearly touched the surface My lips lingered there, prolonging the ht in my power

And then I bit down

Before he could love was over his htly to my chest If anyone had been awake to see it, they would have seen two young people fu with underclothes in the back of the bank, an occurrence that surely had some precedent in impolite society Still, I slid down a little in my seat, in case the driver chose that exact moment to look up froled againstand weakened little thing like me I drank, deep and deeper, eyes rolled back in bliss The liquor in his blood made me feel warm and dreaainst the leather corset, I licked rubby handkerchief out of his pocket to wipe at the little tear my teeth had made in his neck

"What a lovely conversation," I whispered into his gri him slump to the seat Everyone on the bank still slept I had killed one of their fellowshadn’t even stuttered I turned my back to the far-off and mostly hidden driver’s box and opened the back door It was a common occurrence for a lady to empty a chamberpot hidden under her voluminous skirts; I’d seen it happen several ti to me of their e, especially not bladders, and I’d been careful to look away each ti unrass No wonder the back seats had been e my wide skirts to block the aisle, I tossed the man’s body outside and kicked his valise after hiulfed any sound he round I shut the door, wiped my hands off on my skirt, and sat back down in my seat

Perhaps public transportation wasn’t so horrid after all

Oddly enough, I couldn’t get back to sleep As war else plucking at my metaphorical sleeve With so ers woke up, I watched carefully to see if anyone would notice thesalesman, but no one did Not that he erous prey at that Perhaps I’d even saved the virtue of sohtly ray sky the color of bruises, I tried to put the entire incident out of naled Casper’s return to consciousness, I pretended to be asleep