Filed To Story: Chasing the Rejected Luna's Heart (Clara & Liam) Book PDF Free
I could tell from the bemused look on his face he was calling my bluff.
When enough time had passed, the one to my right spoke up, suddenly right behind me, close enough that he could easily reach out and grab me if he wanted. He just didn’t need to. I was trapped and they knew it as well as I did “What are you waiting on?” he asked in mock confusion. He snapped his fingers suddenly as if a realization had just occurred to him. “Oh, that’s right. There’s no mark on you. You bitches can only shift when you’re mated.””Good point,” their leader said smugly, his eyes darkening as they roved me hungrily. Even though I was wearing a jacket and jeans since it was a cold night, I felt naked and vulnerable.”Pretty serious design flaw, if you ask me.”
Another surge of rage rocketed through me, and the adrenaline was enough to push me over the edge and make me try to run. I didn’t even get a foot away from them before one of the others grabbed me, wrenching my arm behind my back hard enough that if I gave any resistance, my shoulder was going to pop out of its socket.”Where are you going in such a hurry?” he taunted, his voice slightly accented with a southern drawl. Guess they banded together based on a lack of moral principles rather than region. “We’re just trying to have a conversation.””That’s right,” the leader said gruffly, standing in front of me now. He grabbed my chin and forced me to look up at him, his fangs visible as he sneered down at me. “It’s rude to walk away without even excusing yourself. Maybe we should teach this stray some manners.”
That was the final straw. The rage got the best of me and I spat in his face. The other one gripped me tighter, yanking me back as their leader wiped his face, his lips curving into a hard frown. Pure spite now mingled with the hunger in his gaze as he looked down at me like something he had scraped off the gutter.”You little bitch,” he seethed, rearing his hand back to strike me across the face. My head whipped back fast and hard enough that my brain hit the back of my skull and the ring on his right hand, set with a big red jewel, drew a bead of blood on my bottom lip to match. “You’re gonna regret that.”
The guy behind me released my arm, and I was straining enough that I immediately fell to my knees. Before I could get back on my feet, he grabbed me by the ponytail and yanked me onto them, jerking my head hard to the side in order to reveal my throat. It was a vulnerable position for anyone, let alone a she-wolf, and I cringed at the knowledge of what he was seeing.”Hey, check this out,” he said, curiosity entering his tone. “Look at that scar.”
The leader was still fuming, but he leaned over to get a better look and his eyes widened. He looked at me, then turned my head to the other side. “There’s two of them.” The bite marks had healed marginally faster than a human’s wounds would have, but since the mark was destined to remain unfinished, I could only hope they would eventually fade like any other scar. They were visible enough now, though, and I could see the wheels turning in the vampire’s head.”She is marked,” he muttered in confusion. “Doesn’t smell mated, though.”
I swallowed hard. Maybe their confusion would buy me some time, or at least an opportunity. I knew I had to act quickly as soon as it presented itself because I wasn’t going to get another one.
While they were still deliberating over my liminal state of ownership, I used what little leeway I had to turn around and knee my immediate captor as hard as I could in the groin. He let out a pained groan and I didn’t even wait to see what the others were doing before I took off running.
I barely made it a few steps before I felt a hand grab the back of my jacket and yank me off my feet. The next few seconds seemed to happen across an eternity as I sailed through the air until my head finally connected with the brick wall, and time went back to its usual pace. Everything went black, and the next thing I knew, I was on the ground, surrounded by boots. I rolled onto my side, but the sliver of moonlight visible overhead was the only thing I could see clearly. My vision was dim around the edges where my attackers lurked, and I couldn’t quite regain mastery of my motor control enough to make another escape attempt.
Someone was talking. The leader, maybe. His voice was low and garbled like it was coming from underwater. Not a good sign. Halfway through a sentence of seeming nonsense, he cut off abruptly with a strange gurgling sound, like he was choking on something.
I heard the sound of a skull cracking against concrete, newly familiar to me.
What happened next was a series of events that had to be linked, even if my semiconscious mind was too fractured to connect the dots. All I knew was that one moment, all five of them were looming over me and the next, they had scattered.
I managed to roll over and pushed myself up, even though the world was spinning so violently it was hard to tell which way was up. I found myself face-to-face with the leader, his blue irises slightly out of alignment, a sight that shocked me until I realized they were contacts. His real eyes were an even more unbelievable crimson beneath them. His eyes were wide and unblinking, but there was no light in them. I realized his neck was folded at an unnatural angle, one hand beneath him as if he had tried to catch his fall.
He was dead.
* * *
Part of me was convinced I was dreaming. Usually, my nightmares weren’t quite as vivid, but I was exhausted. This took things to a whole new level of fucked up, though. One moment, I went from fearing for my own life and the next, there was a dead guy staring me down a few inches away from my face.
A scream welled in my throat, but it was like there was a hand clenched tightly around it again, making it impossible to take any but the shallowest of breaths. There were screams all around me, but they seemed distant, just like the dead guy’s voice had a moment earlier.
There was someone else in the alley now. Two of the guys were running, but there were still three others, not including the big guy. The newcomer had the remaining two cornered, and was muttering something in a low voice that could’ve made milk curdle.”Get out of here,” he snarled. “If I see any of you again, you’re going to wish you ended up like him.”
My vision was still blurry, but I could make him out from behind. He had long black hair, but it was impossible to tell how long it was, since it was tucked into the back of a dark jacket with a high collar. He was built like a wall, tall enough that even Damon would probably look normal standing next to him. Like the others, he didn’t have a scent.
No, that wasn’t quite right. There was a faint essence in the air, some kind of spice I had never smelled before. It was pleasant and rich, and it wrapped around me like a blanket, making everything warm and fuzzy.
Or maybe that was just the head injury. Probably that.