Fang settled back down onto the couch. The shaking, I noted, had stopped. His panting, too, stopped.
I suspected, on some level, that his body had expired...that it was now being fueled supernaturally by the dark entity that had entered him. I also suspected his soul was now trapped in this supernaturally vivified body. Forever.
"His mortality ends," said Hanner next to me. "And his immortality begins. Everyone should be so lucky."
Fang was closed off to me. Our connection was forever severed. I had mixed feelings about that. My connection to Fang had been turbulent, at best. At times, it had been comforting. To know that I had instant access to someone who seemed to legitimately care for me - and perhaps even love me in his own way - was a rock I had relied on for many months now.
Except that Fang always had an ulterior motive. Considering how the man had grown up and issues he'd dealt with, his ulterior motive would surprise no one. That he stalked and befriended and ultimately loved a real vampire should be of no surprise either.
I had seen more than enough of Fang's mind to know the man was single-mindedly obsessed. His desire to be a real vampire trumped anything, perhaps even his love for me.
As I looked at him now, lying there quietly, I noted that the wound in his neck - the wound I, myself, had felt just the night before - had already healed.
Yes, his desire to be a vampire had trumped even his love for me.
"Why did you do it?" I said to Hanner, without looking at her.
"I saw his potential, Samantha."
"He's not stable," I said.
"I'm not looking for stability. I'm looking for potential."
I nodded, understanding. "His potential to kill."
"So much potential."
"That's why you turned him," I said, looking at her. "To kill for you."
She calmly looked up from Fang and at me. She held my gaze. The fire just behind her pupil flared brightly. "He is his own free man, Samantha. But I am sure he will show his appreciation when I am done revealing to him all that I know."
"You're doing this because I shut down your operation," I said. "You're punishing me. You're stealing my friend - "
"I'm giving him everything you wouldn't, Samantha."
"You'll create a killer."
"He will be tamed, Sam. Even the worst of our kind can be tamed."
"Or what?"
"Or they are removed."
"You mean killed."
"You cannot kill what's already dead, Sam. The entity within will simply withdraw, sacrificing its existence for the betterment of our kind."
"And when the entity withdraws?"
"The body will perish. Instantly."