Something about the I'm sorry incensed him even more. Part of him knew that it was a sincere and heartfelt sentiment, that Eric really and truly meant that he was sorry he'd done what he'd did, and understood what had gone wrong. But the anger was on top of everything, and the anger heard it as flippant.
"Sorry?" He raised an eyebrow. Fangs were out already due to the level of his ire. "She's afraid, Eric. Of me."
Ariel was afraid of vampires, and he'd assured her that they were horrible creatures. He'd shown her pictures of them and ... oh god. It was all so awful.
He'd never wanted the mermaid to be afraid of him. She was a sweet and gentle soul who deserved to be happy always. They had bonded over the both of them being supposedly mythical creatures. Macklyn loved her because he'd never thought he would have the chance to meet a real mermaid, and because she was the purest of innocent. Harming her was like tromping over daisies in malice.
"And what if she tells anyone else? It could get back to Peter, Eric. Peter is a real danger to both of us."