Eternal shadow of the heart Episode 4

Vlad’s POV

She should have run. Any mortal in her position would have. She should have screamed, fled, begged for her life. But Isabella didn’t. She stepped closer, her eyes blazing with courage and with something far more dangerous: desire.

I wanted to retreat, to vanish into the shadows where my hunger and my heart could no longer threaten her. But centuries of loneliness had dulled my restraint. Her presence was a magnet, pulling me closer with every heartbeat, every breath, every flicker of emotion I could not name.

“You don’t understand what you’re asking for,” I whispered, my hand trembling as I reached for her. “You could be destroyed. I could destroy you without meaning to.”

She smiled. “Then I’ll take the risk.”

The audacity in her words made my chest tighten. I had lived through centuries, seen empires rise and fall, watched mortals fall in love with things they could never comprehend. And yet here she was, mortal, fragile, human—and unafraid. She wanted me, all of me, including the parts that would kill her if I ever let go.

I crossed the line that night. My hand brushed her neck, grazing her pulse. Cold. Warm. Alive. I could smell her, taste her, feel the life that pulsed through her veins, and it was intoxicating. My fangs itched to sink, my body ached with the hunger I had denied for so long.

And yet… I hesitated.

“Vlad…” she whispered, her voice trembling but steady. “I trust you. I’m not afraid.”

The words tore through me. She didn’t just want meshe needed me, in a way that defied reason. The centuries of pain, of solitude, of careful avoidance, all collapsed into that one moment. I had a choice: pull away and keep her safe, or give in and risk everything for a fleeting eternity of closeness.

I chose her.

I kissed her again, deeper this time, my fangs brushing her skin. She didn’t flinch. She didn’t pull away. Instead, she leaned into me, trusting me with a bravery I had never seen before. And in that surrender, I felt something shift inside me. The hunger was still there, the darkness still threatened, but so did something I hadn’t felt in centuries: hope.

Hope that maybe, just maybe, I could protect her. Hope that maybe, love even for someone like me was possible.

When I finally pulled back, our foreheads resting together, I whispered, “You’re mortal, Isabella. I should have stayed away.”

She looked up at me, eyes shining in the silver moonlight. “Maybe,” she said softly. “Or maybe we’re exactly where we’re meant to be.”

I didn’t answer. Words would fail. Only the silence spoke, heavy with danger, heavy with desire, heavy with the promise of what was to come. And I knew, with a certainty that both terrified and thrilled me, that our lives would never be the same again.

Because once you cross the line, there’s no turning back.

Continue reading Episode 5