Boy of Blood

by Megan O'Russell

  “The Outer Guard won’t come,” the man said. “Maybe you don’t know they blew up the bridge, just like you don’t know werewolves run the city now.”

  “One.” Raina wriggled a finger over her shoulder, beckoning T forward.

  “Oh god, she’s counting!” A chorus of laughter surrounded them as the wolves came closer.

  “Two.” Raina pressed the silver box into T’s hands.

  “Vampers are so cocky,” the man sneered. “You really think you can beat a whole street of werewolves?”

  “Three.” In one, fluid motion Raina grabbed the knife that had been tucked into T’s belt and slit the wolf’s throat.

  Before the man hit the ground, Raina threw T’s knife, hitting the wolf that was farthest away right in the eye as she dove toward another, sinking her own knife between his ribs as though he were made of air.

  “Anyone else?” Raina asked politely as she pulled her knife from the wolf’s chest and raised it to his neck making an incision just the right size for her to eat from. She lowered her mouth and took a long drink, never taking her eyes from the other wolves as she easily supported the dead man that had become her second supper. “No one?” She wiped her mouth on her sleeve. “I forgot how disgusting wolves taste. Someone bring the pregnant girl her knife.”

  A girl in the back walked to the man who lay face up on the street with a knife sticking out of his eye. Shaking, she grabbed the hilt and pulled. The faint squelching noise made Nola shiver more than the cooling night air had.

  Still shaking, the girl ran forward, placing the knife at T’s feet before sprinting away.

  T picked up the knife and walked over to the first of the wolves Raina had struck, wiping the blood onto his shirt before sliding the blade back into her belt.

  “All set?” Raina asked, turning back down the street. “If anyone follows us, I stab them in the heart and make sure they don’t get up.”

  She led them calmly away, not looking back until they rounded the corner and were out of sight. “We need to run, and no one can fall behind.”

  “What?” Nola turned to look back at where they had left the wolves. “No one’s following us.”

  “I just knifed three wolves in the middle of the street,” Raina said. “We’re leaving a trail of body-shaped breadcrumbs behind us along with a pack of pissed off wolves. We need to put as much distance between us and them as we can. So we run.” She looked at T. “You need me to carry you, baby machine?”

  “I’m fine,” T said.

  “You fall behind, I’m carrying you. You fight me on it, I’ll kill you myself,” Raina said.

  T’s nod hollowed out the last of Nola’s courage.

  “This way.” Raina set off down the street.

  Keeping running.

  Nola took a deep breath and followed. She could easily keep pace with T, and Beauford ran in the back as he had done in the woods. She watched Raina’s hair streaming behind her, a shimmering flag Nola had to follow if she wanted to get out of the city. She didn’t study the buildings where the fronts had crumbled almost entirely away. She didn’t stare at the corpse someone had left to bloat in the gutter during the heat of the day. All she could do was follow the blur of scarlet and purple.

  The backpack rubbed her back raw, and every time it slammed into her spine, it seemed to steal some of the precious air her lungs were working so hard to use.

  “Give me the pack.” Beauford’s words were uneven as they ran. “It’s slowing you down.”

  “I can do it,” Nola panted, her gait faltering as her body begged her to give up the extra weight.

  “It’s not about what you can do, it’s about surviving.” He grabbed the loop at the top of the pack, stopping Nola in her tracks. He pulled the bag away from her and had it on his back before she could catch her breath enough to argue.

  “Now run,” Beauford said.

  Side by side they sprinted to catch up to Raina and T.

  The sky was fully dark now, and its darkness was easier to see as they made it closer to the outskirts of town. Here there were no torches or streetlamps to light the decaying buildings. The people who were out in this part of the city didn’t roam in packs or sit on stoops. The few people they passed either moved nearly as quickly as they did or shambled in the deep shadows.

  When Nola’s lungs burned so badly it felt like they might burst, one of the shamblers appeared at the end of a street, moving toward the center of the road as though waiting for them.

  Raina pulled her knife and drove it into the person’s chest as they ran by. Nola’s feet caught the uneven pavement beneath her, and she tumbled forward, catching herself with her hands. Beauford looped an arm around her waist and hoisted her to her feet, not letting go until she was running on her own again.

  “She killed him,” Nola panted as they ran past the person.

  But a brief glance told her that it wasn’t a man but a woman. A shriveled woman whose gray hair matched her skin. Angry red splotches and terrible black sores dotted the woman’s face. A zombie. Raina had been right to kill the poor woman.

  “T!” Beauford’s shout pulled Nola’s attention back to the road ahead of them. T limped, favoring one ankle as she tried to keep up with Raina.

  “I’m fine,” T panted.

  Raina turned and raced back to T, scooped her into her arms, and was running again without breaking her stride.

  They had to be near the end. Surely, the edge of the city would come soon.

  Inside her shoes, Nola could feel the skin on her feet tearing. Her legs felt like lead, spots danced before her eyes, but she had to keep running.

  “Halt!” the shout cut through the night.

  Nola faltered for a moment, just long enough for Beauford to smack into her. She pitched forward again, but Beauford grabbed her, dragging her into the shelter of a stoop as a string of tiny pops pierced the night.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  “Magnolia Kent, are you hurt?” a voice shouted.

  “The Outer Guard found us,” Nola whispered, sure Beauford knew what was happening but needing to say the words aloud so she could feel them in her mouth. They had only been out of the domes for a day, and the Outer Guard had already found them.

  “Magnolia Kent,” the voice shouted again. “Are you hurt?”

  “She’s fine,” Raina shouted, “but you won’t be if you don’t get out of our way.”

  “Magnolia Kent,” the voice shouted again. “Are you hurt?”

  “I’m fine.” Tears stung Nola’s eyes. “None of these people hurt me. They would never hurt me.”

  “Magnolia, come down to the end of the street slowly.”

  “Promise you won’t hurt them!” Nola shouted. “Promise you’ll let them leave, and I’ll come with you.”

  “Nola, no.” Beauford grabbed her wrist. “Going with them won’t make things any better for us.”

  “But it might buy you some time.” Nola leaned around the edge of the steps. “Promise me you won’t hurt them, and I’ll do whatever you want.”

  “Fine,” the guard called quickly. Much too quickly for an order to have been decided upon.

  “Run,” Nola said. “I’ll try to keep them busy. Get as far away from here as you can.”

  “We can’t just leave you with them.”

  “You can and will. The Guard’s guns can do worse then sedate people. Get to T and get out.” Nola stood and walked out to the center of the street. Beauford had the pack. She was glad he had taken it. Maybe it would help the others survive on their way to Nightland.

  Moving as slowly as she dared, Nola headed toward the end of the road. Two men in Outer Guard uniform faced her, guns raised.

  “Two?” Nola coughed a laugh. “They only sent two guards to take me back?”

  “There are Outer Guard all over the city, Magnolia. We’re just the ones that found you.” The guard’s face was hidden behind his helmet’s visor, but Nola imagined him smiling. Captain Ridgeway would be so proud of
the guards who captured the runaways.

  “Two alone won’t be able to stop the ones I’ve got with me.” Nola paused in the middle of the street. “You should have followed us quietly, waited for others to come.”

  “We have guns,” the other guard said. “They have none.”

  “She doesn’t need a gun.”

  No sooner had the words left Nola’s lips than a whizzing sound came from the shadows, and two knives sank into the throats of the guards. Both men gasped and gurgled as they fell to the ground.

  “Found a way around the coat problem.” Raina stepped out of the shadows. “I mean, coats that block weapons, what fun is—”

  A howling scream from the end of the street cut off Raina’s words.

  “You think you can murder us and get away with it?”

  A group of thirty wolves rounded the corner, the girl who had given T back her knife at the front of the pack.

  “You think you can walk down our street and we’ll let you disappear? Shouting to tell us where you were, that was so helpful. Naïve, and deadly, but terribly helpful.”

  “I’m surprised it took you so long to catch up.” Raina smiled, backing away from the wolves toward the downed guards.

  “No, you don’t get your knives back,” the girl growled, crouching in a frighteningly animalistic way before leaping forward with a howl.

  Beauford grabbed Nola’s arm, pulling her forward as the wolves charged. Raina ran ahead of them. She would reach the knives before the wolves could reach her, but the pack was right on Nola’s heels.

  “No!” T screamed.

  Nola glanced over to see three big male wolves backing T into a corner.

  “Please!” T begged. “Please, I’m pregnant.”

  Nola heard the wolves laugh as something heavy collided with her spine, knocking her to the ground. But the heavy thing was pulled away as Beauford bellowed, “Leave her alone!”

  As Nola scrambled to her feet, Beauford punched the wolf in the face, but there were more of them coming.

  Nola ran as fast as she could, all thoughts of fear gone. Most of the pack had gone straight for Raina, who fought the snarling mass, a knife in each hand.

  Nola ran past the wolves to the two bleeding Outer Guard. Each of them still held a gun in their limp hands. Her fingers trembled as she grabbed them both.

  Her father had let her hold his gun years ago, taken her down to the training room to fire it.

  The safety was off.

  She pulled the trigger, trusting the clip of tiny silver needles would still be loaded.

  Pop.

  A needle shot from the gun, missing the nearest wolf by a foot.

  Pop, pop, pop.

  The wolf who had knocked the knife from Raina’s left hand fell.

  Pop, pop.

  Another wolf fell.

  She aimed farther away to the wolf that had Beauford pinned to the ground.

  Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop.

  A silver needle sank into the man’s shoulder, and he fell on top of Beauford, who pushed the man off him and ran toward T.

  Nola aimed for the wolves that had surrounded T.

  Pop, pop, pop, pop.

  Needles sank into two of the wolves, but Beauford had closed in. She couldn’t risk hitting him.

  She looked back at Raina.

  Pop.

  One of the wolves looked behind as the man fighting next to him fell. His eyes locked on Nola, and he charged.

  Nola raised the gun to shoot again.

  Click.

  The first gun was empty, but before Nola could lift the other, the wolf leapt, striking her in the chest and knocking her to the ground. Her head cracked on the pavement, and stars swam in front of her eyes.

  “You stupid little girl.” The man pressed on her wrists and dug his knee into her chest. She still clutched the loaded gun, but she couldn’t move her hand to aim it.

  He let go of her arm and raised a knife high in the air. Nola aimed and pulled the trigger. A silver needle disappeared into the man’s neck a moment too late.

  The filthy blade sank into Nola’s stomach. Pain like fire soared through her as a scream tore from her throat.

  The man toppled sideways, wrenching the knife from her flesh as he fell. Nola screamed again as the pain doubled. Her shaking fingers found the warm blood that seeped from her stomach.

  “Help,” Nola croaked. “Help.”

  But Raina was still fighting three of the wolves, blood coating her back.

  I hope she survives. I hope the three of them survive.

  “No. No!”

  Someone was screaming from down the street, farther away than Nola could see.

  “Nola!”

  The stars above shimmered in and out of being. Blackness pulsed at the edges of Nola’s mind.

  “Raina!” Beauford’s voice shouted.

  There was a scream of pain, and then another.

  I hope that’s not me screaming.

  “Nola.” Beauford’s face swam into view as he pressed hard on the part of her stomach torn by the knife. The pain tripled.

  She wanted to tell him to stop, there was too much damage to press it away, but the pain had made it impossible to form words.

  “Nola,” Beauford shouted. “Stay with me, Nola.”

  “You’re okay.” T was there, her face bruised, but she was alive and breathing. “You’re going to be okay.”

  Nola smiled.

  There was more shouting, more fighting. They needed to run.

  “Nola!” Beauford shouted again.

  It took Nola’s eyes a moment to focus on his face. He looked frightened and pale in the moonlight.

  “Nola, we need to know,” he spoke slowly as though determined for her to understand. “Nola, ReVamp or death? We need to know what you want us to do. Do you want the shot? Nola, Nola!”

  The sound of her name being shouted followed her into darkness.

  “Nola!”

  Escape Into Adventure

  Thank you for reading Boy of Blood. If you enjoyed the book, please consider leaving a review to help other readers discover the series.

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  As always, thanks for reading,

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  Megan O’Russell

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  Discover the New Nightland in Night of Never

  About the Author

  Megan O'Russell is the author of several Young Adult series that invite readers to escape into worlds of adventure. From Girl of Glass, which blends dystopian darkness with the heart-pounding danger of vampires, to The Chronicles of Maggie Trent, which opens the gateway to a hundred magical realms.

  2019 has led Megan on a new publishing journey, which will see thirteen projects released within the year including the Girl of Glass series, The Tethering series, The Chronicles of Maggie Trent, and The Tale of Bryant Adams. To be the first to hear about new releases, free short stories, and giveaways, sign up for Megan's newsletter here.

  Originally from Upstate New York, Megan is a professional musical theatre performer whose work has taken her across North America. Her chronic wanderlust has led her from Alaska to Thailand and many places in between. Wanting to travel has fostered Megan’s love of books that allow her to visit countless new worlds from her favorite reading nook. Megan is also a lyricist and playwright. Information on her theatrical works can be found at RussellCompositions.com.

  She would be thrilled to chat with you on Facebook @ORussellauthor or Twitter @MeganORussell, elated if you'd visit her website MeganORussell.com, and over the moon if you'd like the pictures of her adventures on Instagram @ORussellMegan.

  Also by Megan O’Russell

  The Girl of Glass Series

  Girl of Glass

  Boy of Blood

  Night of Never

  Son of Sun

&nbs
p; * * *

  The Tale of Bryant Adams

  How I Magically Messed Up My Life in Four Freakin’ Days

  Seven Things Not to Do When Everyone’s Trying to Kill You

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  The Tethering Series

  The Tethering

  The Siren’s Realm

  The Dragon Unbound

  The Blood Heir

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  The Chronicles of Maggie Trent

  The Girl Without Magic

  The Girl Locked with Gold

  The Girl Cloaked in Shadow

  * * *

  Sweet Romance Novellas

  A Midsummer Love’s Dream

  Nuttycracker Sweet

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