Page 3 of Angel Of Darkness

Her body slumped as her knees buckled. Keenan’s wings stretched behind him even as his muscles tensed.

“Grade Fucking A,” the vamp muttered, and he eased back. Why stop feeding? The vamp planned to kill her. Keenan knew that. Nicole St. James was dying tonight.

Nicole’s hand rose to her throat. Her fingers were shaking. “Y-you’re not real...” Her eyes never left Keenan.

“Oh, I’m damn real.” The vamp swiped the back of his hand over his chin. “Guess what, sweet thing? All those stories you heard? About the vamps and this city? Every damn one of them tales is true.”

Nicole didn’t look at the vamp. She kept her eyes on Keenan as she inched her way down the alley. With every slow move, her hands pressed against the wall.

“You gonna run?” The vamp laughed. “Oh, damn, I love it when they run.”

Yes, he did. Most vampires did. They liked the thrill of the hunt.

“Why don’t you help me?” Nicole yelled at Keenan, and the wind took the words, making them into a whisper as they left the alley.

That was the way of Pirate’s Alley. Sometimes, no one could hear the screams.

The vampire seemed to finally realize his prey wasn’t focused on him. The vamp spun around, turning so that he nearly brushed against Keenan. “What the fuck?” He squinted into the dark even though a vampire had excellent night vision. “Bitch, no one’s?—”

Nicole’s footsteps pounded down the alley. Smart. Keenan almost smiled. Had she ever even seen him? Or had her words simply been a trick to escape?

The vampire laughed once more, then he lunged after her. Four steps and the parasite leapt at her, tackling Nicole to the ground and keeping her trapped in the alley. Glass shattered when she fell—a beer bottle that had been tossed aside. She crashed into it and the bottle smashed beneath her weight.

“You’re gonna beg for death,” the vamp promised her.

Perhaps. Keenan slowly stalked toward them. He lifted his hand, aware of the growing cold in the air. The stories about death’s cold touch were true. Nicole’s time was at hand.

“Please, God, no!” Nicole cried.

God had other plans. That was why an angel of death had been sent to collect her.

The vamp’s hands were at her throat. His claws dug into her skin. The scent of decay and cigarettes swirled in the air around Keenan.

“Flowers,” Nicole whispered. “I smell...”

Him. Angels often carried a floral scent. Humans caught a trace of that scent all the time, but never realized they weren’t alone.

The vamp sank his teeth into Nicole’s throat again. She didn’t even have the voice to scream any longer. Tears leaked from her eyes.

Keenan knelt beside her. The first time he’d seen her, he’d thought...

Beautiful.

Now, covered in garbage and blood, still fighting a vampire, still struggling to live...

Beautiful.

It was time. His hand lifted toward her and hovered over her tangled hair. His fingers were so close to touching her. Just an inch, maybe two, separated them. But...

He hesitated.

Why couldn’t someone else have come into the alley this night? A cop? A college kid? Someone to help her. And not someone who was just supposed to watch her suffer.

A fire burned in his gut. She didn’t deserve this brutal end to her human life. From what he’d seen, Nicole had been good. She’d tried to help others. His jaw ached, and he realized he’d been clenching his teeth.

His gaze drifted to the vampire. It would be so easy to stop him and take one more monster from the world.

Forbidden. The order burned into his mind. He wasn’t supposed to interfere. That wasn’t the way. Wasn’t allowed. He was to collect his charge and move on. Those were the rules.

---