Free The Last Human (Vampires Rule # 1) by Rocky Grede

leaves a red trail behind it.
    My mouth falls open in shock as I realize what it is. I watch in horror as it
continues to roll, eyes still open, blood oozing from the wound
where the head seemed to be cleanly sliced, white hair still up in
a bun. I feel bile building up in my throat as I stare at the
librarians head. The wrinkled head comes to a standstill, resting
motionless on the floor, the lifeless eyes stare blankly forward.
And then, a growl pierces the silence.

Chapter
Nine
    It is not the snarl
of a Vampire, nor is it the hungry growl of a wolf. It is a sound I
have never heard before, a sound out of this world. It sends a
trickle of cold sweat slithering down my neck and a shiver to
resonate through my body like the plucking of draw strings on a
guitar, drawn and brittle in tone. My mouth suddenly feels dry as
if all the liquid has been drained and sucked out, leaving behind
nothing but crisp skin.
    Elis yanks me backwards into the aisle. My yelp gets
caught in my throat as I stumble on my feet, but Elis keeps me
upright with his strong grip on my arm. I glance around, at the
others, to see the new guy visibly shak ing, his bottom lip trembling.
    “ Move it!” Elis hisses at the other Articos. They grab the new guy by his
arms and start to sprint down the aisle, before taking a right and
disappearing from view. I jump as I hear several blood curdling
guttural snarls and growls, and the sound echoes off the library
walls. Elis pulls me in the same direction the others took off, and
we both break into a run.
    My heart hammers in my chest, thudding like the
beating of drums . A rush of
adrenaline erupts through my body as I run with Elis at my side,
his hand still around my arm in a vice like grip as if he is
worried he might lose me if he lets go. Up ahead, I see the others
disappear down a hallway. I turn in that direction, but Elis pulls
me back and directs me into a different corridor.
    The sharpness of the turn makes me trip over my feet,
and I totter on the spot. Elis
drags me for a few moments before stopping and releasing his hold
on my arm. I back up against a wall and slide down to the floor. My
breaths are ragged as I try to get my breathing under control. Then
the thought strikes me.
    I look up at Elis, “Maxwell,” I gasp. He didn’t come with us.
    “ My duty is to protect you, not Maxwell,” Elis
says, and he drags me back to my feet . “We need to get out of here.”
    He starts in a run and pushes me along until I start
sprinting on my own, my lungs burning with every stride as they
pump oxygen. We turn into another hall way, one side of the wall
is paneled with glass,
stretching to the ceiling, and giving us full view of the outside.
Elis comes to a halt and turns to me. I double over, spent and
exhausted.
    “ What the hell was that thing?” I say, standing
back up straight, but my legs wobble underneath me like jelly. “And
why di d we split up from the
others?”
    “ Questions later,” he says, then pauses, and
glances sharply at the glass panel. At first, I’m not sure what has
his attention, but then my eyes widen as I see a black shape
hurtling towards us through the night sky, its arms stretched out,
and legs tucked in. I don’t get a chance to scream as it blasts
through the glass, shattering it, and sending shards shooting in
every direction. I duck, and fall to ground as glass explodes
around me, showering all ov er
the place like hail stones.
    I roll across the floor, avoiding most of the sharp
fragments, and glance up just as the black shape lands several
meters in front of us, blocking the entrance on the other side of the hallway.
    It is crouched on the floor on all fours. Its skin,
coated in a black fur, is laced with strands of shimmering white.
Its large head is bowed, a narrow snout protruding
tow ards the ground.
    And then, it looks up, lifting i ts thick head in our direction.
    My breath catches in my throat as fear twirls through
my body, whirl winding all the way to my