The vampire lands were close, only an hour or two of travel from here. I could slip away during training, make a run for it, feed on whatever I found, and return before anyone noticed.
But if I got caught leaving camp, they'd ask questions. And if I got caught in vampire territory by actual vampires, they might kill me on sight for being affiliated with executioners.
The alternative was worse.
Feed on someone here. A staff member, maybe, or one of the support personnel who cooked and maintained the camp. Someone whose disappearance might not be noticed immediately.
But if I got caught...
'You'd be executed,' Katarina finished my thought. 'Publicly and brutally, to send a message that the Order doesn't tolerate traitors.'
I rolled onto my side, staring at the wall.
'Don't worry, darling,' Katarina purred. 'When the time comes, I'll make sure you survive. One way or another.'
I wasn't sure if that was comforting or terrifying.
The sound of footsteps outside made me tense. Then the tent flap opened, and Sarah stepped inside.
She looked exhausted from the day's travel, her face flushed from exertion and heat.
Her brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and dirt smudged her cheek.
"Finally," she sighed, dropping her pack near her bedroll. "I thought that last stretch would never end."
I sat up, giving her space as she began to settle in for the night.
That's when I really noticed her for the first time.
Sarah wasn't the fragile, delicate type. She was athletic—toned muscles visible in her arms and legs from years of training. Her body moved with the confidence of someone comfortable in their own skin.
She wore the standard traveling clothes—a fitted tunic and pants that hugged her form. And as she reached up to untie her ponytail, the motion pulled the fabric tight across her chest.
Her breasts weren't massive, but they were perfectly proportioned to her frame. Plump and round, straining slightly against the tunic's fabric. The kind that would fit perfectly in someone's hands.
I looked away quickly, heat rising to my face.
'Oh, this is interesting,' Katarina purred in my mind, amusement dripping from every word. 'The little human girl is quite attractive, isn't she?'
I ignored her, focusing on my bedroll.
Sarah pulled her hair free, letting it fall around her shoulders in waves. Then she reached for the hem of her tunic.
"I'm changing," she said casually. "Don't look if it bothers you."
She didn't sound embarrassed. If anything, her tone was almost... playful.
I should have turned away. Given her privacy.
But I didn't.
My eyes tracked her movements as she slowly lifted the tunic, inch by inch, revealing toned abs and smooth skin. She pulled it over her head, and suddenly she was standing there in just a simple cloth binding that wrapped around her chest.
The binding was designed to support, but it still left very little to the imagination.
Sarah stretched her arms above her head, arching her back slightly. The motion made her breasts lift, and I caught myself staring directly at them.
She noticed my lustful glare.
I saw the exact moment her eyes flicked toward me, catching my gaze.
A small smile played at her lips.
Instead of covering herself or showing embarrassment, she turned slightly, giving me a better angle.
"Hot day," she said, her voice taking on a sultry edge. "I'm probably going to sleep in just this tonight."
She bent down to unlace her boots, and she bent ever more slowly, knowing I was watching. Her ass lifted as she leaned forward, the fabric of her pants pulling tight across her curves.
She took her time with each lace, letting me watch.
'She's teasing you,' Katarina observed with obvious amusement. 'And you're falling for it. How adorable.'
My mouth had gone dry. I tried to look away, tried to focus on literally anything else, but my eyes kept drifting back to her.
Sarah kicked off her boots, then stood and reached for the waistband of her pants.
She hooked her thumbs into the fabric and pushed down slowly, bending at the waist as she slid them over her hips.
Her movement was exaggerated, giving me a full view of her ass as it was revealed.
She wasn't wearing much underneath—just simple undergarments that barely covered anything.
The pants pooled at her feet, and she stepped out of them gracefully before turning to face me.
Her body was now on full display. Toned legs, curved hips, flat stomach, and those perfectly sized breasts barely contained by the cloth binding.
She stretched again, this time more languidly, almost like a cat. Her hands ran through her hair, lifting it off her neck, and the motion made everything shift.
"Much better," she said, her voice was soft and warm.
Then she knelt beside her bedroll, but instead of lying down, she first got onto her hands and knees.
Her ass was pointed directly at me, a nice, round, and firm ass.
She stayed like that for a long moment, arranging her blanket with unnecessary care.
Then she slowly lowered herself down, settling onto her side.
She didn't cover herself with the blanket. Sarah had one arm propped under her head, her body evident in the dim light filtering through the tent.
"You okay over there?" She asked, her gaze meeting mine with unmistakable mischief. "You look a little... tense."
I swallowed hard; my throat was tight.
Every instinct in my body was screaming. Not just vampire hunger, but something else. Something that was overwhelming me.
I'd experienced Katarina in that vision—the blade's memory of pleasure and dominance. But that had been different, like a dream.
This was Sarah. A real woman, right in front of me, very clearly inviting me to look.
To want her.
And I wanted her.
My body was responding in ways I couldn't control, heat pooling low in my stomach, my cock hardening despite my attempts to think about literally anything else.
'Poor thing,' Katarina cooed in my mind. 'You're going to have a challenging time sleeping tonight, aren't you?'
Sarah shifted slightly, rolling onto her stomach. The motion made her ass lift, the curve of it perfectly outlined.
She glanced back over her shoulder at me, smiling seductively at me.
"Goodnight, Vlad," she said softly.
But she didn't cover herself.
'Who says I'm sleeping, Katarina?'