I knew.
You watched me from the shadows,
eyes flashing in the dim light as
I swayed with the music.
You tracked my every move,
a cobra caught in a snake charmer’s thrall,
my pulse hypnotic
even in the cacophony of life all around us.
You followed me out the backdoor
and into the sudden quiet of the alley,
and I had to laugh. Your eyes flew wide
when I turned to face you with a knowing smile.
Like I didn’t recognize a vampire when I saw one.
You were so hungry, I could see it
in the way you quivered as I approached,
your teeth glinting white as a bared my neck to you.
Take it, I begged.
Just take it and make the darkness come.
And you did.
And I was free.
take it [poem]
Larissa Lee 