THE AWAKENING

“She needs meat,” a sharp voice sounded from a distance. “She will not survive the mating if she does not eat.”
“She is in no shape to mate, Koris,” another voice snapped. “She knows nothing of her heritage and has had no one to teach her
our ways.”
“That is unfortunate, but the fact remains...her body knows what it needs. Her temperature is elevated, her skin is beaded with
sweat, and her tits are enlarged. The time is now.”
Cassidy struggled to regain consciousness and opened her eyes blearily to find two men — no, check that, two very large men
— standing over her.
They wore all black and seemed almost indistinguishable from one another. Their muscles bulged from beneath tight T-shirts and
narrowed to lean hips.
Hanks of black hair, almost too long to be fashionable, dusted strong shoulders and impossibly dark eyes stared into her soul.
Oh, and she was lying on her bed, naked.
“Oh my God,” she managed to squeak as she attempted to cover her breasts but she felt weak as a kitten. “Help me, please! I
need to go to the hospital,” she implored the handsome strangers, hoping for some shred of decency in either of them. “Please,
I’m very sick...I think I might be dying...”
They ignored her plea but the one named Koris shot the other a knowing look, saying, “Prop her up. She will need sustenance,”
before leaving the room.
“Hush, Cassandra,” the other said, coming to sit beside her. “My name is Jandin. We are here to help you.”
Her body had begun to shake. “H-how? What’s wrong with me?”
He smoothed her damp hair from her brow with a surprisingly gentle hand. “What do you remember of your childhood?” he
asked.
“What? Why are you asking me about my childhood? Didn’t you hear me? I’m very sick. I think I have food poisoning or
something. I could die if I don’t get to a hospital!”
“You’re right. You could die. But there is nothing that humans can do for you.”

Humans?
“Are you crazy?” she asked fearfully, tightening her grip across her breasts. “Why am I naked?”
“Because you tore your clothes off,” he answered.
“I would never do that,” she whispered but a foggy part of her memory recalled doing exactly that. She’d been burning up. The
clothes had felt as if they were scratching against her tender, sensitized skin.
“You have entered your Breeding Time,” he said as if it were the perfect explanation when in fact, it was total lunacy. “The
females of our species...if not bred properly, become inflamed with an internal fever that can consume them if not cared for.
Normally, a female would be guarded and under protection, but we did not find out about your existence until your body started
sending out signals. Then we followed your scent.”
“You’re the one who has been watching me,” she surmised fearfully.
“Yes. Koris and myself. We had to ensure that no one from the rival clan claimed you first. Breeding females are rare. Especially
ones from your bloodline. Claiming you would be a coup for either clan.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Cassidy exclaimed, scooting away from him. “I was raised in rural New Jersey in a
subdivision with normal parents. I was high school valedictorian and editor of the school newspaper. I dated the quarterback and
came to college on a full-ride scholarship. Nothing about my childhood is remotely close to anything that you’re talking about
because you’re crazy!”
“You were adopted,” Jandin stated flatly.
She stared. How did he know that? She swallowed a lump of fear. Who were these people?
“And you may have lived a normal, human life but you are not, in fact, human. You are the most revered in our species because
your kind are so rare these days. You are also still a virgin. I can smell it on you. It’s intoxicating.”
She startled, frightened that he knew such private details about her, but even more terrified because somewhere deep inside, his
words rang with truth.
“I wanted to wait until marriage,” she whispered.
“No, your body knew to wait until the Breeding Time and simply convinced your brain to go along.”

Koris reappeared with something bloody on a plate. A wave of nausea followed as she fought with the urge to swallow it whole.
“Do not fight your hunger, Cassandra,” Jandin warned, motioning for Koris to come forward with the plate. “Your body needs the
sustenance to survive.”
“Survive what?” she asked.
“The breeding.”
“I don’t want-“
“Hold her down,” Koris instructed and Jandin grabbed her hands and held them above her head. She tried to scream but her
voice was weak and unable to do much more than mewl with fear.
But as much as she struggled, the smell from the meat began to do weird things to her resolve. Suddenly, it smelled like heaven
even though it looked repugnant.
Koris plucked a juicy chunk of the raw meat from the plate and brought it to her mouth. “Eat,” he commanded sternly. Her eyes
filled with tears but her mouth reluctantly opened. He placed the meat in her mouth and her jaws snapped shut as she closed her
eyes in sudden relief.
Her body leapt at the blood and meat sliding down her throat. Strength returned to her limbs and the pounding in her head
receded.
“More,” Koris said, pushing more meat into her mouth, which she eagerly accepted. He continued until the plate was empty.
Cassidy eyed the pooled blood remaining on the plate and Koris smiled at her plaintive look in her eyes.
He tipped the plate and blood trickled into her mouth. She lapped at the liquid with cheeks burning with shame but she almost
felt normal again.
Her hunger pains had abated but she was wholly conscious of the fact that she was naked and alone with two handsome men.
This couldn’t be more awkward. Without the excruciating pain crushing her insides, she was left to face the fact that nothing
about this situation was remotely normal.
And they were still holding her down, captive.

Were they going to rape her? What kind of rapists force-fed their captive before doing the deed? Nothing about this situation
made sense. Even as horrific as the situation seemed, she didn’t feel the men were there to harm her, which was confusing.
Under normal circumstances, strange men breaking into her apartment would’ve sent her into a panicked tailspin.
But before she could voice an objection, that terrible heat began to rise in her body again, scaring her more than the fact that two
men were in her apartment, holding her down.
She began to writhe against the bed, unable to stop herself. “What’s wrong with me?” she asked, her lower region aching and
pulsing with a strange need that she couldn’t define.
“We’re running out of time. We need to get her back to the clan,” Koris said, concerned.
Jandin released her hands and felt her forehead. “Damn,” he swore softly under his breath. “She’s already gone into second
phase. She won’t make the trip.”
“I told you we should’ve grabbed her last week,” Koris growled.
“We didn’t know if she was going to phase,” Jandin shot back. “Some breeding females never actually reach their Breeding Time,
you know that!”
“Don’t talk over my head,” Cassidy said, groaning as another wave of aching desire washed over her. “Help me! Bring me more
meat!”
“More fuel is not what you need,” Jandin said grimly. “You need to be bred.”