I stood still bracing myself for an eventual blow. I let them move around me so I was surrounded. Sébastien stayed where he was. A few more of his kind stood between us. As if they could stop me from reaching him. Instead of focusing on them I looked to the brunette girl who’d growled. “You have something to say?”
“If you were smart, you’d have a less noticeable look.” No doubt she was referring to my hair.
“But blood is my favorite color.”
She lunged at me, as did another behind me. My reflexes quicker than theirs I bent at the knees, my heels keeping me balanced. I lunged forward so my hands rested on the pavement, and swung my foot outward behind me, my heel making contact with the vampire’s abdomen and slicing him as I brought my foot upward until it finally came in contact with the girl’s temple. I jumped up as a few more came at me. Some moving to grab weapons from the floor of the alley, others using brute force.
A large male with long blonde hair thrust his fist toward my face, but I grabbed it with my open hand and pushed it backwards. Another quickly threw a chain around my neck from behind, pulling me to his body. A flash of Massimo broke into my mind as the chain threatened to cut off my windpipe. I remembered his touch, the way he smelled.
I grabbed the hands that held the chain, using his strength I lifted my body from the ground and planted both heels of my shoes into the male in front of me. He stumbled backward but kept coming. My ankles rested on his shoulders, on either side of his neck. Another flash of Massimo entered my mind, with each move of my body.
My grip on the chain tightened as I gasped and drew the man at my feet closer. He stopped at my knees and grabbed hold of me. He opened his mouth to take a bite of my thigh, but I crossed my ankles, elbowed the man behind me and twisted my body, flipping the three of us. The chain fell but remained tightly gripped in one of my hands. The snap of bone told me the long-haired vampire would not be getting back up. No amount of blood would fix that wound.
The man that was behind me stood. I remained on all four, ready to pounce. A slight shift in another to my side alerted me of his intentions, and a blonde girl between the two stepped forward. I looked at the vamp who had held the chain, feeling the metal beneath my skin. He wore gloves. No wonder.
I launched myself up, bringing the chain in the air hitting him across the face, his skin slid away as if it had been laced with acid. Silver and iron, deadly metals to creatures of the night. The girl advanced, reached out, and stuffed her hand into my hair, pulling me toward her by my head.
“What a bitch move.” I backhanded her with the blade on my ring, slitting her throat, then pulled the dagger from between my shoulder blades and impaled her in the chest for good measure. More moved toward me. It was a song and dance. Twist, turn, slice. Jab, punch, kick, slice. Just when I thought it was done, one of the three still standing with Sébastien moved in front of me. He moved the length of his long coat from in front of him and produced a sword. “A bit medieval, but I’ll go with it.”
The male held it with two hands in front of himself. His knees bent, his eyes trained on me. He moved the blade side to side, and I held my dagger, tip facing my elbow tucked close to the underside of my forearm. He moved to the side, slicing the air next to me. A flash of Massimo’s hands on my backside entered my head. I shook it, only to catch the edge of his blade in his next movement. Again, a vison of Massimo breathing heavy against my ear. Blood drained from my bicep. The sting of the cut disappeared as the wound began to close. Another swipe of the blade, and I could hear Massimo whisper into my hair. My vision started to blur. I stumbled backward and landed heavy on my rear. My hands landing in a puddle of blackened blood. I looked up at my assailant.
“Maybe next time.” Sébastien said smugly. “Ravana.”
Massimo
I saw her. She didn’t look like she needed help, she seemed like a very competent hunter to me. Then she stumbled. Her eyes clouded over. She missed her mark, though it didn’t look like she even aimed.
I was watching purely out of fascination. Until I felt a wave of nausea form in the pit of my stomach when she landed on the pavement. I launched myself from the fire escape above her, landed on my feet in front of her and reached a hand out.
“Need a lift?”
“Massimo?” She seemed to have a vague recollection of who I was. That was comforting at least.
“I was watching above. Thought I’d get a nice show. You must be having an off day.” I chuckled slightly until I saw the male with the blade come nearer. His master stood far off, stepping backward ever so slowly. “Is this guy bothering you?”
“I don’t need help from a vampire.” She spat on the ground. Red ran where it landed inside the black.
I looked back at the male brandishing the weapon. “You’ve not played fair. I bet you were hoping it would have worked to your benefit. Let me assure you, that wouldn’t have worked either.”
My mysterious redhead looked up at me. Her green eyes still clouded. “What are you on about?”
“You’ve been poisoned, love.”
She rolled her eyes, reached down between the crevasse of her breasts and produced a vial. She pulled the dropper free and let a small dollop land on her tongue. By the time she twisted the top back on the vial her eyes had cleared, and she jumped to her feet, replacing the bottle.
“Thanks, but I would have figured it out eventually.” She wiped the blood from her hands on the front of my black shirt. Then landed a kiss on my lips long enough to take the dagger I had sheathed at my waist. “Have a seat. You might very well get your show.” She lifted the dagger in front of her face as if to say thanks.
Her body moved languidly. Once she was positioned in front of the man with the sword, she broke the speed barrier. Each hand held a dagger, yet landed in the ground as her legs came up and wrapped around his neck. He was forced to drop the blade to use both hands to pull at her thighs. I could remember what that felt like, having spent time in that position myself.
I watched as the rest of her body flew up and both daggers went hilt deep into the male’s neck. With another movement, her legs were free of his shoulders, as she used the daggers to hold her weight and bring her feet back to the ground. I only blinked for half a beat but missed how his head came free of his body.
“Your friend back there is getting away.”
She looked back at me. Her eyes glowing green, unnaturally so. Her voice became feral, and her sharpened teeth broke free. “He always does, the coward.”
I was taken aback when I saw her fangs. Like she’d landed me a punch in the gut. A hunter, like I once was, turned. I’d never thought I’d ever find her. Yet, here she was. Obviously aware of what she was, but completely unsure of who or what I was. It was no wonder I couldn’t get her from my mind.
Her hand flew out at me, offering my dagger’s hilt. I took it and found the blade of hers caressing my neck.
“What have you done to me?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“If I could have sensed what you were, I would never…” Her resolve broke for just a moment. “What happened last night, when we…” Again, she choked on her words.
“Not as memorable for you as it was for me, love.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“I would use your name, if you had one.”
“Moon. Ravana Moon. I am not your love, I am not even your equal.” She moved her blade and turned away, walking ever so calmly out of the alley.
She may not have thought she was anything to me, but I was convinced more than anything, that she was, and soon, very soon, she would be aware as well.
The Ravana Moon Series
The Darker Side of Me
Hide & Seek
Dirty Little Secret
Truth or Dare
Short Stories
The Hunter’s Curse
Iron Maiden
Tangled web
Blood Moon
About the Author
&nb
sp; S.L. Perrine is a wife to a mechanic and mother of four crazy teenagers (3 are boys) who eat her out of house and home. While raising her children, she has obtained three degrees; Associates in Art and Criminal Justice is among them. She now works to feed this bunch as a Registered Medical Assistant in a private physician's office in the city she currently resides. She is a native of Schenectady and Saratoga Springs, New York, having spent equal time growing up in both cities.
“Authors write stories to fill the world with imagination for those who have a hard time finding their own.”
~SL PERRINE~
The Hunter's Curse (Ravana Moon #2.6) Page 2
