A crushing wave of silence saturated the space around Arabella, churning the air in her lungs sully.
As though a set of invisible hands squeezed around her neck, she wished for nothing more than to gasp for a cleaner breath, but Katherine's eyes on her discouraged the young woman from acting on her most desperate needs.
"Are you alright?" Katherine's voice finally shattered the muteness that had engulfed the room.
"Yes!" Arabella had practically sung her answer, "I am," she added in a tamer tone, conscious that her first response might've been too fervid.
"Your heart isn't resting," the vampire had called out her lies without even doing so.
Katherine's traits had hardened. There wasn't the trace of her usual lively charm which didn't help Arabella's anxiety in the least.
"It's just been a very long day and…," she averted her eyes away from Katherine's, "I do feel quite tired,"
