Page 2 of King of Moon and Claws

“I’m sorry. We’re closed. You’ll have to come back tomorrow.”

A low chuckle sounded from the brute in the middle. Elora immediately stepped back, putting distance between herself and what looked like a sudden and immediate threat.

“Where ya going?” the man on the left hissed. He curled his lip in disgust and the glint of a fang had Elora gasping.

Vampires!

With a flurry of her skirt, Elora turned on her heel and ran as if her life depended on it. She didn’t even make it out of the room before she was tackled from behind. Fear clogged her throat, and she could do little more than whimper.

With every ounce of strength, Elora swung a fist that collided with the brick wall that was one of the assailants’ chests. Why were the vampires after her?

“What do you want?” Elora cried. She tried to scoot away, but the three of them closed in. She wasn’t a fighter. She had no idea how to protect herself.

She looked around frantically for a weapon, any weapon. Even the mop would do. But it was on the other side of the room.

Terrified, Elora tried to push past them, but all that did was get her shoved against the wall, which knocked the breath from her lungs.

Gasping, she clutched her chest, searching for a way out. As the vampires advanced once more, Elora tried to run. Strong fingers wrapped in her hair and yanked her head back, causing her to scream in pain.

She was shoved between two of them, back and forth, back and forth, before she realized they were playing with her, toying with their food. Bile rose in her throat as her terror reached a new level.

“Please,” she begged. “What do you want?”

“Enough,” one of them snapped. “Let’s go.”

He grabbed her arms and pulled her toward him. Her scream was cut short by a thick, calloused hand placed over her mouth. There was a sharp, hot pain in the back of her head, and then she knew no more.

TWO

ELORA

Elora woke on a cold, hard floor with a headache that threatened to overwhelm her. With a moan, she carefully touched the back of her head to find an egg-sized lump and dry, crusted blood.

“Where am I?”

No voice came from the surrounding darkness to answer her question. Slowly, she pulled herself to a sitting position, but every movement caused a searing pain in her skull. It took another minute for her sight to come back into focus, but once she realized she was a prisoner in a cell, she panicked.

“Can anyone hear me? Someone, please help me!”

She dragged herself to the iron door, pounding on it with all her might. Still, no answer was forthcoming.

“Hello? Please? Is anyone there?”

Using her hands as her eyes, she felt around the room. The ground beneath her was nothing but dirt. The walls were slimy, and the room smelled of decay and mold.

Hours passed and still no one came. Her heart pounded so hard, she was afraid it would explode. Terrified and with no idea why those three vampires attacked her, she sat in the corner of the dungeon and drew her knees up to her chest.

The cold seeped into her bones. Shivering, Elora wrapped her arms around herself and tried to keep warm. Her stomach growled and hunger became her sole focus until thirst set in. More and more time passed and still no one came. No food or water was brought. There was no blanket to wrap around her shoulders to ward off the chill.

There was no way to judge the passing of time. Finally, exhaustion and fear took over, and she fell into a restless sleep. She had no idea how long she slept, but the sound of the door unlocking jerked her awake sometime later.

She jumped to her feet, causing another wave of pain to assault her. Elora pressed herself against the wall as if every inch worth of space she created between herself and the unknown person on the other side of the door would keep her from harm.

The door flew open, banging against the damp wall behind it. Light flooded into her prison, temporarily blinding her after being in the dark for so long. Using a hand to shield her eyes, she tried to see who stood before her, but all she could make out was the outline of a tall, slender body.

“Who are you?” she screamed. “What do you want with me?”

A low chuckle was her only response. Her eyes took a few more seconds to adjust to the light that poured in through the doorway, and the tears that streamed down her face from the sensitivity it caused made it even harder for her to see.

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