The Dawn of Darkness: A Paranormal Romance

by K. E. Radke

  My foot slams against the door, and the door frame splits apart. The broken door swings open and I cross the threshold, skimming the foyer and the living room beyond it. No glowing skeletons. No blood. And it’s silent.

  Blood pulses in my ears and I feel like there’s a jackhammer in my chest. I swiftly creep forward through the living room and peer at the stairs leading to the second-floor, unsure which direction to take.

  It’s in here. I can smell it.

  Closer to the stairs, I gaze down the hall toward the den and master bedroom and inhale sharply. A smeared, bloody handprint grabs my attention and my feet move closer to it on their own. Passing the den, something shifts in the room and I automatically veer in the same direction.

  Selena’s terrified face cowers from my light footsteps. Her eyes are closed with tears streaming down her cheeks. Both hands are over her mouth to muffle the whimpering she can’t hold back.

  A barrage of pops invades the silence. Faster than before. Almost like a groan of bones tired of grinding against each other. It echoes around me and my eyes lift to the ceiling unable to pinpoint it.

  “Where is it?” I whisper to her so low, I don’t think she can hear me.

  She shakes her head unable to respond.

  “Stay here, your mom is right behind me,” I promise and continue to move down the corridor to the master bedroom. Bloody footprints running away from the room stain the floor. The trail disappears inside of it.

  A low growl rumbles throughout the house. Wet, smacking noises make my stomach churn because I know that sound. Pops and cracking bones filter loudly from the room, followed by a swish of footsteps. The rotting meat odor mixes with dirt and wet grass and blood.

  It’s definitely not human. But it’s not a demon either.

  Near the entrance to the master bedroom, I slink tightly against the wall to stealthily peer inside. A light breeze ruffles the curtains framing the window across the space. The bed is made, pillows tucked under the comforter.

  I scan the length of the room and breathe evenly. Angling myself, I carefully lean forward and step further inside the room with my hand tightly wrapped around my gun.

  A trail of broken glass and fragmented chunks of wood leads to the back wall. Red liquid stains the ground like a new decorating trend. The French doors leading to their patio are obliterated. Parts of them still hang from the hinges.

  An uncanny glow of a walking skeleton stands right outside the new giant hole in the wall with its back to me. Translucent skin is stretched thinly across its bones. My joints hurt listening to the rhythm of pops as it shifts with ease. The flow of movement sounds like sandpaper rubbing on wood.

  Satisfied slurps make me cringe and the creature changes position to reveal Miguel on the ground. He twitches uncontrollably, blood bubbling from his lips. His gaze finds mine, and he breathes in sharply and closes his eyes.

  The first bullet lodges in the Baykok’s head. Anguished shrieks reverberate through me, and I can’t help covering my ears with my hands. It rears its glowing head, searching for its new foe.

  Black eyes peer over its shoulder and I quickly shoot it again in the chest to distract it for the few seconds I need to grab my silver knife. The impact pushes it back a few steps, and it tilts its glowing head at me. A cracking noise erupts with its moving maul, the sound buried by the inhuman growl it releases.

  Fast as a whip, it nocks an arrow and I sideswipe it seconds before it hits me.

  “I’m going to need a lighter,” I yell at no one in particular, hoping Rowan or Valentina can hear me.

  With the silver knife in my hand, I sprint across the room, dodging another arrow. The creature lunges at me after it misses, meeting me halfway. The blade slices through the thin layer of skin hitting bone. It doesn’t flinch, and a fist collides with my chest, knocking the wind out of me as I fly across the room.

  Gasping for air, I hit the wall and slide to the floor, rolling out of the way of another arrow. Between a groan and a cough, I holler, “Silver is a no go.” I scramble on my hands and feet so I’m not an easy target.

  Rowan bolts over the threshold with something metal in his hands and swings at the Baykok. The creature rotates, the metal bat strikes its side, and the ear-splitting howl vibrates my bones. He swings at its head, missing.

  On my feet, I pull out the last of my arsenal and spray it with holy water. I ram Rowan out of the way of another arrow that lodges itself in the wall behind me. The creature roars, rattling the walls, and nocks another arrow.

  Rowan rolls to the side and kicks at its boney legs, knocking it on the ground.

  Poisoned arrows.

  I pull the arrow from the wall, and race to the creature’s side, stabbing it in the heart—or where the heart would be if it were human. A boney arm collides with my feet and I land hard on the floor. Something wraps around my ankle and I try to kick it off.

  Rowan appears above me and swings the metal bat down on its head, caving it in. Sludge sprays across my face and I hear a match strike.

  Someone is pulling me back while I kick at boney finger’s death grip around my ankle. As soon as my foot is free, I pry off the hands around my torso.

  Luis curses in my ear. “It’s just me.”

  The Baykok screeches as Rowan stands guard at its side to make sure the flames engulf it.

  Through the fire, Valentina is kneeling beside Miguel’s motionless body. The light of life in his eyes extinguished.

  I slump against Luis, tears forming against my lashes.

  Chapter 17

  Gabriel

  “D

  o drop in whenever you feel like it,” I sarcastically greet him. My fangs spill over my bottom lip lest my new guest decides to get handsy. The last thing I want to do is fight, so I flip on the nearest light switch. It illuminates the closet and I step inside of it.

  “That is what I did,” the Boogeyman replies.

  “Still learning sarcasm, I see. I’m on my way out.” The tiny suitcase on the bed is full of clothes. I finally convinced myself to leave Miami.

  “There’s trouble on the Boulevard.” He’s straight to the point, lacking any decorum.

  “I’m touched you thought of me at the first sign of trouble,” I say amused, and expect him to disappear since I’m obviously not at the root of it.

  He stands motionless in the room. The dark moves around and through him like smoke. I can’t tell if he’s devouring the shadows, or they’re swallowing him whole.

  “It’s a pity heroes never get a day off. I wouldn’t want to hold you back from all the fun. If you don’t mind, you can see yourself out.” If he’s waiting for me to exit the closet, it’s not going to happen. I grab the watch box and the last few shirts I need, pretending to ignore his presence.

  The hair on the back of my neck is still standing, so when I look up, I know he’s still here. He fought Jenissa at her best, and she barely got away alive. Between my burned fingers and claw wounds, I’m a dead vampire if he decides he doesn’t want me around anymore.

  Oh, well isn’t that interesting. The room isn’t filled with tension because awkwardness is already in place. He’s not here to attack me, otherwise, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.

  “Do you care for the girl?”

  My eyes snap to the dark void where his face should be. “It doesn’t matter now because you killed her.” I snarl convincingly and assume he’s speaking about Jenissa. Her scent is everywhere. The Boogeyman can sniff out a vampire, but not a lie.

  “She is alive because you saved her.” His glowing red eyes pierce the dark room and I look away. Those eyes are deadly. They see everything you don’t want them to if he captures your gaze.

  Pretending I don’t know what he’s talking about, I say flippantly, “Why are you here?”

  “I want you to save the girl.” He doesn’t have to say Amelia’s name.

  Someone else did see me in the alley.

  “Go save her yourself.” The conviction in
my voice is abysmal, even to my ears. “If you’ve forgotten, I don’t save people, I drain them. Considering where you stand, you probably need a reminder.”

  “I do as the master says. You know this.”

  “I highly doubt your master said defend the humans.”

  “Shall I take you to him so you can ask?” he challenges and knows I will never agree to that. Masters are kept a secret, for fear of becoming targets of someone who wants their very own Boogeyman to boss around.

  “You are wasting precious time if you’re going to save her. For all you know, she could be dead already,” I taunt him to make him leave.

  “She will be.”

  “Now would be a good time to go and save her,” I emphasize each word to him as if I’m talking to a child.

  “She is where I cannot go.”

  My burnt hand automatically makes a fist and I wince. “No one will harm her as long as the Ruger boys are hunting.”

  “Leonard.” The name is like a foreboding threat.

  Safe under the bright light in the closet, I go still. Just for a moment. Long enough for the name to make an imperceptible impact. Something he does not miss. My eyes narrow automatically, and I keep my gaze averted by folding a shirt I don’t plan to take with me.

  Leonard is brutal, even for vampires. There’s a finesse to draining humans and covering our tracks. A delicate balance to keep our worlds apart. Fear is our preferred method. It ripples over them like an essence calling to us. Strangling our prey little by little like a noose until they fall right into our arms.

  A euphoric moment when they realize they cannot escape.

  It’s what we live for.

  Leonard uses love and solidarity to trap his food source. Taking advantage of a human’s vulnerabilities and naming his community as the solution. His community is the first wave of the welcoming committee.

  A flock of people recruiting the weak and helpless throughout the cities they travel in. There’s no better way to trap a person than to steal them away on dreams they never fulfilled and call it an adventure. Leaving everyone and everything they know behind.

  And the few who can’t conform, or decide to leave the community, find themselves dependent on Leonard and everything he provides. The troublemakers are his favorites. He tells his flock he released them and moves to another city immediately, leaving John and Jane Does in his wake with no one to claim their bodies.

  The blame for deserters always falls on his shoulders. He was not enough to keep them in his spiritual circle. His sorrow invigorates his most devout followers. It makes them work twice as hard to grow his flock.

  A true wolf in sheep’s wool.

  Leonard hides in plain sight, and a lot of vampires believe he will be our downfall.

  That has not stopped others from copying his genius method. The only difference is their cults typically end in a colossal massacre.

  That is not a fate I want for the woman I can’t get out of my head.

  You do not care. She is nothing to you.

  “Do you even know what you’re asking?” I narrow my eyes. If I intrude without an invitation from Leonard, there will be hell to pay.

  “I do.”

  “Where is your hunter? Surely he’ll—.”

  He cuts me off. “They are away.”

  “Someone else will save her,” The words aren’t convincing either of us.

  “Did someone save her from the vampire before?”

  “You’re welcome,” I snap harshly. The claw marks on my back itch.

  “Do it again.”

  “Monsters do not save humans. We torment them. Maybe you should talk to the Reaper if you’re so concerned. Maybe she’s destined to die.” Even as I say it out loud, I have to keep myself from wincing.

  “She is destined to die if you do not save her,” he declares and disappears. The argument is over.

  “Damn you back to the hell you crawled out of! At least tell me where to find her!” I yell at the empty house. No point in delaying the inevitable. Amelia tempts me in ways I don’t understand. And the shadow man knows my weakness. A lethal piece of knowledge to use against me.

  On my way out, I avoid destroying the house. Shredding a shirt gives me a cloth to wrap the wound on my hand.

  It takes me a few minutes to run the distance between the house and Sunshine Boulevard. The first place I check is Steak N’ Bake, but remember it’s her day off. Hustling through the crowd, I peer in the window at Sipsys. My caffeine addict isn’t among them, so I scan up and down the street.

  “I can turn that frown upside down.” A woman with a lot of cleavage makes sure I see everything she has to offer and walks backward for a bit to make eye contact. I’m tempted to follow her and forget about Amelia. Why can’t I?

  “I’ll hold you to that,” I reply roguishly. Short blond hair accentuates her sharp chin. My eyes travel over her collarbone and neck, but something tells me I might end up by her inner thigh.

  “Join us for a celebration!” A voice sings sharply in my ears. Three women are prancing around and shoving papers at everyone. The one who’s supposed to give me one forgets, staring deeply into my eyes instead. My new sultry friend gets one. She drops it the moment they hand it to her, and I snatch it out of the air.

  Leonard is holding out his welcoming arms in the middle of the page. The announcement seeks individuals that are tired of working for the man and want a chance to succeed with free medical benefits.

  The address at the bottom of the paper explains why the Boogeyman recruited me. His jurisdiction tends to run the length of Sunshine Boulevard unless someone like Jenissa comes along and maims three men.

  My hand crumbles the paper, and I lose all interest in the charlatan in front of me. I trudge down the Boulevard after the three prancing adults that reek of marijuana.

  Sidling up to the closest one, she startles me by wiping her nose against my arm. Disgusted, I almost pull away from her when I realize she’s inhaling deeply. “You smell like Christmas morning. Hot chocolate, cookies, and roasting nuts.”

  Closer to them, there’s a mix of body odor, weed, and perfume. The young lady caught in a Christmas memory is the epitome of the seventies. Flowers are weaved into her blond braids. A bright, orange sundress barely covers her bronze skin. She even has red, bloodshot eyes like she was plucked right out of the disco-loving era.

  “You remind me of sunshine, something I haven’t enjoyed in ages,” I say in a teasing manner. She blushes at the compliment and notices my hurt hand tucked across my abdomen.

  Gesturing to it, she asks concerned, “Did the doctor wrap your hand?”

  Her voice takes on a tone women often use to talk to babies. I stop myself from cringing. She’s loud enough to call attention to us. And I pretend not to notice her friends creep up behind me like they caught their prey.

  I frown at my hand. “I can’t see a doctor. No insurance. But I read online to stay out of the sun when you have a severe burn.” They don’t even have to set the trap. I already stepped inside of it.

  All three women instantly close in on me like sharks circling to feed. Friendly smiles. Sympathetic glances at my hand. But they can’t hide the resolute purpose in their eyes.

  A brunette gently trails her fingers down my arm and tsks. “We can get a doctor to look at it for you. We believe everyone should have the right to medical care.”

  She exudes a bossiness that reeks leader of the trio. The other brunette is holding all the flyers, too nervous to be left on her own to pass them out. But shy enough to be forced to come along and do all the work without a complaint. Her features are small and mousey. No one will probably notice she’s missing…

  If they weren’t so determined to recruit me, I could have easily used the allure to convince them to do whatever I wanted. They’re as pliable as play-dough.

  To make sure I can’t escape, the two talkative ones grab an arm on either side of me. The mousey brunette follows sullenly behind us.

  We
stop at an Audi and the one driving reluctantly lets go of my arm with promises of a doctor and a celebration. The hippy coaxes me into the SUV, shuts the door before the mousey brunette can get in, and forces her to sit up front. She’s too busy talking about the building Leonard borrowed from a church to hold their party.

  Vampires are forbidden from walking on blessed grounds. It’s an invisible barrier we cannot cross. Churches usually fall into this category, but if Leonard is hiding in the building then I have nothing to worry about.

  The bossy brunette drives into a shadier part of town and tries to distract me from noticing the long drive away from the Boulevard. There’s not a moment of silence, and I lose all my patience.

  When we pull up, I spot Amelia’s beat-up Corolla near the entrance to the building. The rust bucket is enough evidence to stop me from breaking everyone’s neck out of spite.

  It’s a commercial building with a temporary welcome sign. Leonard’s allure is hovering over the entire parking lot. The effect doesn’t work on vampires, but his is so strong it nauseates me. Or maybe it’s the smell in the SUV. Hygiene is not a priority for one of these women.

  I hoped to trap the mousey brunette, but she runs into the building the moment she gets out of the vehicle. My door refuses to open. Child protection locks. I turn toward the blond and slide over the seat to get out. The bossy brunette is at her side, but I only need one.

  I pretend to hit my burned hand on the seat and yelp. They both tell me not to move until the pain eases. The hippy ends up keeping me company, persuading her friend to go ahead. Leonard doused the entire area like a male cat, it’s not hard to convince her.

  The blond is only trapped by my allure because she was sitting right next to me.

  Sliding back to my original spot to make room for her, I say wickedly, “Whatever will we do to pass the time?” Her eyes find mine, and she hops back in and shuts the door.

  She straddles me and slips her tongue in my mouth. It juts in and out like a sharp blade, and when my lips try to trail along her jawline to get to her neck, she pulls my face towards her and devours my entire mouth. If I needed oxygen, I would have passed out.