Chapter 190: Vampire Luna

The old hunter walked into the room with heavy, confident strides. He pulled out a heavy wooden chair across from me and sat down, his broad frame filling the space as he looked me up and down. A faint, amused smirk touched his rugged face.

"How are you doing this morning?" he grunted, leaning back slightly. "I trust you had a good night's rest down in the cellar."

I didn't utter a single word in response. I kept my jaw tight and my gaze fixed blankly on the polished wood of the table. He let out a low hum, unbothered by my cold silence, and pulled a large serving bowl toward his side. He heaped a massive portion of food onto his plate and began eating with calm, deliberate bites.

The room fell into a heavy, suffocating quiet. Ava hovered nervously near the counter, her hands wringing the edge of her apron while I sat frozen like a statue, staring directly through the table.

After swallowing a mouthful of bread, the Butcher set his fork down with a sharp clack and broke the silence. "Well, you passed the test. At least for today. You and your girl are free to pack your things and leave whenever you please."

I remained completely still, refusing to acknowledge his words or give him the satisfaction of a reaction.

He paused, narrowing his dark eyes as he studied my hard, stone-cold expression. "What? Look at you sitting there like a wounded animal. I made you stronger, girl. You survived something that would have broken a lesser hybrid. You should be sitting there thanking me, not glaring at me like I stole your soul."

My breath hitched slightly, but I kept my mouth shut, my fists clenching so hard under the table that my knuckles turned white.

"I did what I did because it was the right thing to do," he continued, his tone dropping into a serious, heavy rumble. "I couldn't just let you wander out into the world completely ignorant of what you are. Having to navigate this hybrid curse all alone without training is a death sentence. To be completely honest with you, I didn't want to get involved at first. I wanted no part of this mess. But then I sat back and thought about it... and I realized it wasn't just random luck that brought you straight to my doorstep."

He leaned forward, resting his thick forearms against the edge of the table as his piercing gaze locked onto mine. "Maybe it was your mother Juliana's spirit guiding your steps. Maybe it was the Moon Goddess, or maybe it was just pure fate. But I know for a fact that it wasn't something ordinary. I realized you desperately needed help, and if I turned my back on you, no one else in this world was going to step up. You would have ended up dead in a ditch within a week."

A sudden, white-hot fury exploded inside my chest. I raised my head slowly, my dark eyes flashing with lethal anger as my voice cut through his speech like a razor blade.

"Shut up," I snapped, the words dripping with pure venom. "Just shut your damn mouth."

The old hunter paused, his fork hovering halfway to his mouth as his eyebrows lifted slightly in mild surprise.

"I don't need your pathetic pity talk," I growled, my raspy voice rising as the fire inside my throat flared up. "I have been through a thousand times worse than your little basement, and I have survived every single bit of it on my own since I was a helpless child! I have lived through literal hell my entire life!"

I leaned forward across the table, my jaw clenching so hard my teeth ached. "So don't you dare sit there and pretend that locking me inside a filthy, smelling cage for twenty-four hours means you did me some grand favor! Don't you dare act like you just saved or changed my life!"

A sharp, mocking laugh tore from my throat as I glared straight into his eyes. "You didn't do shit for me! If you hadn't locked me in that cage, I still would have found a way to figure it out on my own. That is what I do. That is what I have always done my entire life to survive!"

Ava gasped softly from the corner of the room, covering her mouth with trembling hands, but I didn't care. My rage was completely out of control.

"What exactly do you want from me right now?" I spat out, my top lip curling back in pure disgust. "Do you want me to drop down on my knees right here and suck your balls as a sign of appreciation? Is that what you're waiting for?"

The Butcher's face hardened, his smirk completely disappearing as his eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.

"If that is what you are looking for, or if you're trying to manipulate and guilt-trip me into thinking I owe you my life, you have completely failed," I hissed, pushing my chair back so hard it screeched violently against the floorboards. "I would rather starve to death and eat grass off the dirty ground than ever open my mouth to t

ell you thank you."