Death Wish (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #5)
Trina M. Lee
Chapter One
Feeding the bloodlust was the only way to control it. It was a sad but true reality. The euphoric high led to an inevitable crash and burn. I could either accept that or fight it until I lost all control.
When the bloodlust got bad enough, I made my way to a seedy part of town and browsed through the selection of pimps, johns and gangsters. The harsh truth was there were far more of them than one might assume.
I lingered in the darkened doorway of an abandoned building, watching my chosen victim. He was a known thug with a reputation for collecting debts owed to one of his drug-dealer pals. I could only imagine how many knees he’d shattered in his time. He seemed like fair game to me.
I was about to make my move when I felt it. My senses blazed. I became keenly aware that I too was being hunted. Now that was interesting. No sooner had I reached out metaphysically to locate my stalker than I was knocked to the ground. My head hit the pavement and pain shot through my skull. Stealthy. They didn’t usually get so close before I felt them.
“I didn’t think it would be so easy.” My attacker snarled down into my face. His breath was rancid. He stunk of death and old, rank blood. “If f**king had a smell, you would be it.”
So gross. I lashed out with blast of raw energy. It launched him through the air and slammed him against a parked car. I was on my feet in a leap, ready for more.
“If that’s a line, pal, I ain’t biting.” My hands grew warm as power pulsed through me, waiting for release.
He was faster than I expected. His speed was impressive, allowing him to dodge the psi ball I’d tossed before he barreled into me like a bull on a rampage. I braced for it but didn’t have time to avoid impact.
My back hit the wall of the abandoned building hard enough to knock the wind from me. He fought to get his hands around my throat. The vampire then banged my head against the hard, brick structure. A growl spilled between my lips, and I bared four vicious wolf fangs.
“So you’ve got a little bit of fight in you. Well, let’s see it, hot stuff.” He tightened his grip on my throat, choking off my air supply.
He was still mocking me when I slapped him with another surge of power. It threw him on his ass, giving me time to follow up with a kick to his face. I leaned over him, holding a psi ball ready.
“Want to tell me what that was all about?” I hit him with the roiling gold and blue ball. The resulting shriek was music to my ears.
“Someone wants you dead, bitch.”
The vampire couldn’t have found a better way to break my focus. Finding his moment, he took advantage of my confusion. He brought both hands together and smashed them like a giant fist into my face. I tasted blood and saw stars. I hit the ground hard as he threw me down.
“So what else is new?” I muttered, picking myself up.
Someone sent this jackass after me? Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised, but I was. I didn’t go looking for trouble, but it always seemed to find me. I couldn’t let this guy make it back to whoever sent him. Not in one piece anyway. I needed answers.
We squared off, each successfully blocking the other’s attacks. He didn’t seem to have much in the way of metaphysical ability, but he threw a hell of a punch. I didn’t have the staying power a vampire had; I would tire before he would. I struggled to focus my concentration. It was difficult with a flurry of fists he threw in my face.
I misjudged his next move, and he gained the upper hand. All of a sudden, I was flat on my back looking up at the starless city sky. Fangs grazed my throat, spurring me into action. Gathering my power close, I directed it with enough force to make his head snap back. He crashed through the pane of a nearby bus stop shelter. The sound of shattering glass drew little attention. Nobody in this neighborhood cared about an altercation unless it involved them.
My would-be killer’s attitude changed abruptly. As he got unsteadily to his feet, we both noticed the giant shard of glass jutting from his stomach. That had to hurt.
A scream tore from him as he jerked it free. Blood poured from the wound. It was unlikely to be fatal. He was undead, so it would take more than that to kill him. Still, it seemed to be enough to get him rethinking this entire situation.
I advanced on him, and he began to back away slowly.
Hell no. He was not running away from me.
He turned to bolt as I threw myself at him. We went down hard with him taking the worst of the impact. I was done playing. His lack of offense made it easy to center my focus. I grasped his energy, feeling his stone cold heart as if I held it in my hand. And then, I squeezed.