Page 8 of Crimson Mourning

“Still, it would suck to be a familiar for long,” she sighed and dropped her head.

We entered the kitchen. The cooks prepared large vats of human blood for distribution, and I was there to oversee the delivery of it. Julia’s color went from red to green as the smell invaded her senses.

“I didn’t,” she choked. “I didn’t think it would smell this bad.”

“Most don’t,” I said and handed her a mask. As the lead familiar, I carried a supply of them with me at all times.

“Thank you,” Julia gasped, and wiped the new tears streaming down the sides of her face. “You would make a great elite, Michelle,” she added. “I’d follow you anywhere.”

I nodded and led her through the kitchen. We had duties to fulfill, but as she resumed chatting as we inspected vat after vat, I noticed something.

My jaw ached. Somewhere along the way, I’d started to chew my gum a little harder than before.

CHAPTER NINE

DAMON

“Damon!” I heard Cassie scream.

I rocketed my eyes open in time to see my wife disappear into the darkness of the night. Glass poured in from every-which-way, cutting and shredding as the shards blasted into me, tearing into my skin, but it wasn’t the glass stopping me from pursuing after my love. An object punched through the driver’s side window and smashed into my skull, sending searing waves of pain and nausea through me as my head jetted in the opposite direction from the blow, bringing my body with it.

Unconsciousness swirled around me as I was dragged from our car onto the concrete driveway.

“Tell Davon we said hello,” a voice taunted me.

I’m a pure vampire. My mother and my father met, fell in love, and conceived. They were vampires. My father was from the leadership lineage of clan Shaye and next in line to rule at the time of my birth. It was through his direct actions that the vampire nation was established asthedominant force in the world, and what was the reward for his efforts? He was murdered. Poisoned with animal blood by faceless cowards. Myfather was a great man, and I loved him very much. His name was Davon.

Instinctually, I rolled to my right. Whatever had smashed into my head, now slammed against the driveway where I had been seconds earlier. Whoever these bastards were, they were aiming to decapitate me and end this quick. I would give them an altogether different outcome.

I fought the overwhelming urge to disintegrate into a sea of black. Passing out was not an option. I threw my right foot out as violently as I could in the direction of where I’d been, and connected with the fucker’s head as he attempted to return to a standing position. His scream from the blow told me I’d done damage, and as I staggered to my feet, I pressed my palm to my temple. My head pounded with the force of a thousand racehorses, and I needed it to stop as soon as possible if I was to survive.

A massive pair of arms wrapped around me from behind and squeezed, lifting me off my feet and trapping me in a deadly bear hug. Ignoring the raging throbs in my head, I swung back as hard as I could, ramming it into the nose of my attacker. His death grip loosened, and I used the extra space to thrust my left elbow into his stomach. He dropped me back to my feet, and without hesitation, I spun on my heels and drove my fists into his core in a succession of blows, causing him to drop to one knee. I circled around and placed him in a rear-naked choke hold. Channeling all of my pure blood strength, I squeezed as tight as I could and leaned back, until the sickening pop and consequent loss of balance, followed by a geyser of blood let me know I’d accomplished my goal and ripped the foolish head from his shoulders.

As the blood from the decapitated body continued to gush forth everywhere, some of it landed on me, causing me to note its warmth.

“Human!” I roared. “Someone sent humans to kill me?”

The insult was worse than the injuries. If I were to die, it was most certainly not going to be at the hands of a couple of sheep. I was a lion and deserved only the final death reserved for an apex predator.

I reached and grabbed the nearest wrist of the body before me, extended my fangs, and sunk them in deep. Human blood would allow me to regenerate quickly, but there wasn’t much remaining inside this pussy. I was able to draw enough from him to slow the banging in my head and clear my vision. My body still ached, but I could function well enough to finish what I started.

I eased to my feet and walked over to the first bastard who dared laid hands on me, passing by the object that smashed the window and bashed my head. A long metal bat, made from silver. Stupid.

“Dumb motherfuckers,” I called out as I approached. “Silver does nothing to a vampire. You’ve read one too many comic books.”

When I reached him, his breathing was shallow and rapid. His final death was moments away as the side of his head was caved in, no doubt from my kick.

“Useless,” I said and spat onto the ground in front of him. “But you can yet be reborn. I can save you, by granting you the gift of joining the elite. But only if you tell me who ordered you to kill me?”

The human gingerly raised his left arm as he lay on his side, blood pouring from his open wounds, panting as he moved. I thought he meant to point me in the right direction, but instead, he exploded his own fist into his cracked skull and through his brain. He used his last ounce of strength to final death himself. No human was that loyal to their vampire master, unless their mind had been controlled.

“Thralls,” I concluded.

The practice of creating thralls was an ability of only a few, but frowned upon by all in vampire society. Even so, there was one vampire I knew of who cared nothing for the humans he’d enthrall, or the vampires who would judge him for it.

Lawrence,I thought to myself.I’m coming for you.

CHAPTER TEN

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