*Selene’s poV*

My head felt heavy as I tried to gain my consciousness back. I had been quite reckless a while back and the last thing I remembered was Fang carrying me somewhere. While my body struggled with itself, I slowly started regaining my senses. 

“What a waste,” I heard Hailey’s voice, “how did I forget about her abilities?” 

A gentle sway cradled me before I felt my back touch a seemingly soft surface. I tried fluttering my eyes open when I caught sight of Fang’s back faced towards me. “She is safe and that is what matters,” a raspy voice followed in answer to Hailey’s obvious irritation. It wasn’t hard to tell that was Fang talking with her. 

I could see the blurred figure of Hailey as she sat down forcefully on the couch, “Yeah, yeah, like she could die with the gifts she has.” 

My eyes shut themselves again before I blinked them open again and tried to sit up. A low grunt left my throat because of the sudden movement in my body. Fang twirled light speed back to me and sat on his heels, “Lay down.” His broad hands gently caressed my neck with one and pushed me back to sleep with the other. My eyebrows furrowed as I tried to make out the surrounding. It looked like a room, a lavish one at that. It was only a given that the soft surface I laid on was the bed. 

“Wh-where are we?” I asked, still squinting my eyes by the brightness of the lights in here. 

Hailey huffed, “Nice, you educate her now. I will go out for a stroll. Call me whenever she is ready for the journey again.” 

“Stay right where you are,” Fang hissed. 

Hailey crossed her arms over her chest, “Or what? You better not go all Alpha with me, okay.” 

“You are too loud,” I commented. For some reason, my senses were heightened right now. I felt everything was a little too much than usual. It made me wonder whether it was a drug rather than being a poison. I could see things brighter and hear things louder. Not to mention, there was this scent of ember that cloaked my nostrils and I did not have to guess who it was, “Fang, please keep a little distance. Your scent is suffocating.”

Fang did as he was told while a burst of laughter crackled throughout the room before it was muffled. Fang covered Hailey’s mouth, “Keep shut, she is in aftereffect.” 

Hailey raised her hand in defence before rolling her eyes. She slumped back on the couch while Fang made his way to the window. His eyes cautiously checking for something when there was a knock on the door. Fang made his way to the door, carefully unlocking it. There was heavy footing inside the room and my eyes darted to the lobby where the door was. A known figure emerged and my eyes went wide, “What the…” 

“Master,” the man bowed while getting on one of his knees, “this humble servant seeks your punishment for the blasphemy-“

“Wait, wait,” Fang patted his back, “Give the antidote first.” 

The man nodded before unlatching a pouch from his waist and handing it to Fang. I creased my brows, “What is happening?” Because the last I remember, this man was the goon hired by that lady to get even with me and Hailey in the tavern. The one I did not even fight because I collapsed because of the poison overdose, “Wasn’t this guy coming after us a while back?” 

“Deep apologies, master,” the man touched both his knees to the ground, “I am ready for your punishment.” 

Fang sat beside me, “Ignore him for a few seconds.” He slowly helped me get up and sit straight. His hand held me tightly while he put two more pillows behind me and let me lean. Fang was way too gentle with me, a side I had never seen in him and neither expected. I stared at him while he looked at the bowl in his hand which he used to carefully make me drink the antidote. I was expecting something bitter. It was surprisingly sour and better to swallow. 

I turned to Hailey because there was literally no one else to share my shock with. 

Hailey had pursed her lips, almost tired of cringing. When our eyes met she shrugged, “don’t look at me for your answers, he has been like this since you were injured.” 

I took a deep breath before looking at Fang who was now adjusting the bedsheet. 

“Hey, Fang,” I called out to him and he hummed, “Is everything alright?” 

“Yeah,” his answer was concise, unlike his usual self, who was ready to throw me to the wolves and then come to my rescue. He was more… could not even think of a proper word to describe him right now. Caring was it? That wasn’t Fang. Maybe just something I never noticed about him?

I shook my head to clear my thoughts before they went haywire again. 

“Um, maybe you could let me know what is the deal with that man,” I asked. 

Fang did not speak as he pushed a thermometer in my mouth, “Hold that in there. I will be back.” He went off saying that leaving me, Hailey, and the man hired to almost assassin us alone in the room. 

My mouth shut because of the thermometer, I turned to Hailey. For a second I removed it out of my mouth and turned to Hailey, “What happened?” 

Hailey rolled her eyes, “Stupidity, nothing else.”

My lips pursed in a thin line as I held the thermometer back in my mouth. I turned to look at the man kneeling in front of me and mumbled, “what is the deal with this guy?” 

“It was Fang,” Hailey replied, “He used his blood noesis to make this guy your servant. Though I would warn you, it only stays a maximum of 3 days. So exploit this arse as much as you want till then.” My brows crinkled looking at Hailey and she was now drinking water out of the glass jug directly. “We went to the hospital with you. Talk about dumb,” Hailey sighed. 

“What is dumb about taking an injured person to the hospital?” I mumbled, with the thermometer still in my mouth.

Hailey kept the jug of water down with a thud, “nothing is wrong with an injured person but why would you take a healed person there right? To be more specific, someone who closed their wound right when the doctor was examining them.” 

“I don’t get it,” I drawled on my words in confusion. 

Hailey got up from her position, “Come on, Selene. Do I need to tell you what you are capable of?” She stressed the ‘I’ with quotation marks with her fingers. 

I shifted on my bed towards her, “You don’t understand. My abilities don’t work in human form!” 

Hailey rained slow claps for my statement. She sat beside me on the bed and pulled the thermometer out of my mouth. Her eyes looked at the temperature. “Go tell the doctor that who, without hesitation, drew almost a gallon of your blood for himself.” She kept the thermometer on the other side where I hear crockery. Hailey closed the distance and whispered, “Will you look at how healthy you are even after that doctor almost sucked your entire life out of you?” 

I shook my head, “There must be a problem. I think it must have happened unconsciously.” 

“Maybe,” Hailey leaned back in the bed. She felt uncomfortable with her sitting position before she reached out for a pillow behind me. It almost had me hit my head as I glared at her. “What?” She returned my glare, “There are only three pillows in this room, no need to monopolise.” 

I rolled my eyes before looking at the kneeling in front of me. This was not how I had expected it to turn out. 

Somehow I had started learning to master my abilities and my blood noesis but activating it unconsciously at the wrong moment. Maybe I had already activated it when I suffered the injuries but it must have sped up when I had fainted. Whosoever this doctor was, I needed to get hold of him. If he uses my blood for any cause noble or not, the word was bound to spread because not everyone can keep their mouth shut. I had to stop it before it reached the castle. 

“Don’t worry. Fang already took care of the doc,” Hailey said, as if reading my mind. 

I turned to her eyes wide, “what do you mean by took care?” 

“Well, Fang smelled your blood, so rushed into the examination room. Might I add you were partially naked there? So you see Fang grabbed that doc-” Hailey subtly tried to divert the conversation but I intervened with a shocked scream. 

“Partially what?” 

“Naked,” Hailey answered casually, “At least, that is how I saw you when I came in.”

Goddess Luna! Why do you do this to me?

Hailey just continued with her chattering, which my brain was finding hard to comprehend, “Fang killed the doc, clear on spot. Made this guy hid his body and-” 

“Fine, I get it,” I said in a low voice. 

There was too much to understand right now but I had grasped the situation pretty much. My eyes landed on the guy kneeling in the room. I let my headrest on the bedrest, “What to do with this one?”

Hailey hummed, “You’re his master, do as you please.” 

When I turned back to her, she suddenly popped the thermometer in my mouth. I opened my mouth in reflex, feeling the heat, “Hey!” 

Hailey shut my mouth swiftly and I heard the door clicking sound.

“I am going to check a hideout of the Cermesi clan,” Hailey whispered, “This dagger is a promise that I will return to you. This is my royal ring sorta thing, so better not lose it.. I hope you can hold Fang here till then.”