Chapter 2
Logan woke up with a scream that never left his throat. His body hurt in places he didn't know existed. He was stiff, arched against a cold, damp floor.
The room was dark. He tried to breathe and the air entered too strongly, too clearly. He smelled everything. Everything was too much.
Wet earth. Rust. His own dried blood. And something… sweet. Flowers. Flowers that shouldn't be there.
He brought a hand to his chest. It wasn't beating. Or maybe it was, but not like before. It was slow. Heavy. As if his heart had forgotten the human rhythm.
He didn't understand.
He didn't understand anything.
His head rang with a sharp noise.
He tried to move. The world spun for a second and then stabilized with a terrifying clarity. His hands obeyed too fast. Too perfect.
His eyes observed everything… too clearly.
What happened? he thought to himself.
The rain… the alley… the pain…
Something on his neck.
Fire in his veins.
Darkness.
And now this.
He backed away until he hit a wall. He touched it. He felt every pore of the concrete as if he were reading it. He closed his eyes tightly.
No. No. This isn't happening. Wake up. Wake up.
—Come on… —he barely whispered.
Then the pressure appeared.
A soft weight in the center of his chest. It wasn't pain. It was… presence. As if something was warning him that he wasn't alone. That someone was watching him. A tingling followed it.
A strange sensation in his head.
—Easy… you're safe now.
The voice was soft, close, as if it had always been there.
Logan opened his eyes sharply.
She was leaning against the opposite wall. Intense red hair. Pale skin that barely glowed in the dim light. She was beautiful… She looked at him with a calm he didn't feel.
He didn't know who she was.
But he recognized her.
In some impossible way, he recognized her.
The weight in his chest increased. It became warm. Almost pleasant. As if his body was saying: she is important.
Logan tried to speak. His throat burned.
—W-where…? —was all that came out. Hoarse. Broken.
She took a step toward him. She didn't really walk. She was simply no longer far away and suddenly she was close. The sweet scent of flowers wrapped around him like a blanket. It calmed him and made him dizzy at the same time.
—You're confused —she said, her voice low, almost a whisper—. It's normal. Everything is new. Everything is… too much.
Logan shook his head. He wanted to ask what had happened to him. He wanted to scream. He wanted to run. But the words didn't come. Only broken thoughts.
My heart.
It doesn't beat.
I don't breathe and I don't drown.
She smells like flowers and she shouldn't.
This isn't… real.
The red-haired woman slowly knelt in front of him. She didn't touch him. She only looked at him with eyes that seemed to know everything.
—You don't have to be afraid of me —she said—. I brought you here. I took care of you while you were… changing.
Changing? Logan thought.
The word echoed in his mind.
The weight in his chest intensified. But now it was different. It was a pull. Toward her. As if his body had already decided she was the answer to everything.
—Why…? —he managed to murmur.
The redhead lowered her gaze for a second. When she looked back at him, her eyes seemed wet. Hurt.
—I have enemies, Logan —she whispered—. They've been chasing me for a long time. They want to kill me. I didn't know what to do… I was alone. I saw you that night and… I felt you were different. That you could understand me. That you could help me.
She paused. Her voice trembled slightly.
—I didn't want to hurt you. I swear. But if I hadn't… you would have died anyway. Someone would have found you. Someone would have killed you. I just… gave you a chance.
Logan stared at her. His mind spun.
Die?
Enemies?
Help her?
Everything sounded insane. Impossible.
But she looked so fragile in that moment. So in need.
And he had always been the one who helped. The one who took care. The one who carried other people's weight.
The floral scent surrounded him more. The pressure in his chest became almost pleasant. As if his body were telling him: yes, she needs you. That means you matter.
—I… I don't understand —he finally said, his voice breaking—. I don't know what I am now.
She slowly extended a hand, leaving it suspended between them.
—I know —she replied—. And you don't have to understand everything today. Just… trust me a little. Please. I need you, Logan. More than you can imagine.
He looked at her hand.
He trembled.
Did she know him?
The weight in his chest pulsed hard. But he interpreted it as connection. As destiny. As something he had always been waiting for without knowing it.
He took her hand.
Cold. Perfect.
She smiled softly. Relieved. Grateful.
The hunger came then. Brutal. An emptiness that twisted his insides and burned his throat.
Logan gasped and brought his other hand to his neck.
She squeezed his hand gently.
—It's hunger —she said—. Come with me. I'll teach you. You're not alone in this.
She looked into his eyes.
—You'll never be alone again —she said warmly.
He nodded without thinking.
Because he didn't know what else to do.
Because she needed him.
Because, for the first time in his life (or what was left of it), someone seemed to truly need him.
And that was enough.
—W-what's your name…? —Logan asked, insecure.
Her eyes shone, a carmine warmth that drove him mad.
To Logan, they were the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen.
—Victoria… —she answered.
A warmth that shouldn't exist climbed through his cold body.
What is this? he thought.
His entire body grew restless.
Was this love?
—I'm Logan… Logan Marrows! —he stammered.
Victoria only gave him a sweet smile.
She tightened her grip on his hand.
He felt electricity run through his body.
—I know… —she replied, her gaze warm.
---
Suddenly everything changed. They were no longer between walls. The forest surrounded them, damp and alive. Logan didn't know how. The night world exploded with impossible details: every leaf whispered, every drop of dew shone like a diamond.
But nothing was as intense as Victoria's scent. Wildflowers, honey, something eternal. It followed him like a promise he couldn't ignore.
They walked among the trees. She went ahead, light, almost floating. He followed without questioning. He couldn't. Every time he tried to think, the weight in his chest pulsed stronger, warm, comforting.
It's her, he repeated. It's her.
Victoria stopped beside a deer feeding, unaware of the danger. The animal lifted its head a second too late. She hunted it in an instant, without cruelty, without sound. She held it with supernatural ease and offered its exposed neck.
—Drink —she whispered—. Just a little. It will calm you.
Logan stepped back. The metallic smell of blood hit him like a hammer. It disgusted him. It attracted him. It terrified him.
The weight in his chest screamed, strong, almost painful.
But Victoria's scent mixed with everything, wrapped around him, calmed him. She looked at him with those carmine eyes that seemed to hold the entire universe.
—You're not alone —she repeated—. I'm here.
Then Logan knelt.
He drank.
The world stopped.
The emptiness filled with warmth, with strength, with stolen life. When he pulled away, he was panting. Blood stained his lips. He looked at his trembling hands, waiting for horror, waiting for guilt.
But he only felt relief.
A relief that burned from the inside.
—Am I a monster? —he whispered, his voice broken.
Victoria approached. She wiped his mouth with her thumb, slow, almost affectionate.
—See —she said—. You're not a monster. You're just… different now.
Logan lifted his gaze to her.
And the weight in his chest finally calmed completely.
For the first time since he had awakened, he smiled.
Not knowing that this calm was the deepest trap of all.
To be continued…
Author's Note:
This story is told from Logan's point of view.
What he feels, understands, and believes does not always reflect the truth of the world around him.
His emotions, choices, and bonds are shaped by his own perception… and by things he does not yet understand.
Thank you for reading. The story is still in development.🖤