Free The Girl With Red Hair (The Last War Saga Book 1) by Michael J Sanford Page A

nostrils flared as she caught the scent of warm urine hitting the floor at her feet. More accurately, it was fear that she smelled, and it only served to increase her vigor. Hairs stood out from the back of her neck and she breathed in the girl’s musk.
    She leaned back to take in the full vision of her prey. Restrained and frightened, the girl looked small and helpless, and Maira knew she had full control. The rest of the house remained silent. She dropped the dagger to the girl’s neck and leaned in for the kill. As the dagger pierced the girl’s skin and the blade got its first taste of blood, Maira was hit with a charge of energy. The life in this one was strong.
    “Mama,” the girl said, tears running freely down her freckled cheeks. “Mama, please don’t. I’m scared. Mama .”
    Maira paused and felt every muscle in her body constrict, paralyzing her. No, said a different voice within. Not this one. She thought for a moment that it was His voice, condemning her choice to disobey, but then she recognized it as her own.
    The girl squeezed her eyes shut and began whimpering. Maira tried to press the dagger into the soft flesh. She hungered for a taste of the vibrant life that swirled within the small human. But she couldn’t. Her muscles would not obey her mind and the strange voice that sounded like her own continued to shout from the darkness. No, not this one. Not this child.
    Slowly, she lowered the girl to the ground and pressed her into the open room. She leaned forward, dagger still at the girl’s neck. The tremor in her hand was real.
    “Go to bed, small one, and do not make a sound.” She said it with such sweet venom that the girl immediately stopped her sniffling and nodded, wiping tears from her face. She turned and walked stiffly to her bed, climbed beneath the blanket, and lay as a corpse.
    Maira backed out of the room, shutting the door with a soft click . She brought the dagger to her lips, tasted the blood, shuddered, and spat it out. No, not the children. Never the children.
    Her eyes shifted to the room at the far end of the hallway and her mind sharpened once more. Her muscles bunched with sweet anticipation, and that haunting echo of her voice faded to nothing. She needed to feed now more than ever.
    The door opened abruptly just as Maira was reaching for the handle. Instinct kicked in and the dagger was in Malic’s throat before his eyes could tell him what he saw. A force like lightning shook Maira’s body as every bit of life was wrenched from the farmer and channeled into her. In one movement, she dropped the body to the floor, shut the door behind her, and was upon Laira, hungry for more.
    The woman woke with a start. Straddling her waist, Maira leveraged her weight into the woman to keep her pinned, and leaned down. Her tongue ran the length of Laira’s cheek. The life within her seemed limitless. Her body quivered.
    “Please, don’t,” Laira gasped, her voice a harsh whisper. “Whatever you want, just take it. We have some Imperial coin. It’s yours. A strong horse too. Just don’t hurt my family.”
    Maira smiled, her face illuminated by moonlight. She almost laughed. “I will give you a choice. I will take just one more life from your family this night. The children I have spared and your husband is already dead.” She paused to savor the look of pain on Laira’s face. “You or your son, Alexander.”
    Laira stared back in terror for several moments. Maira enjoyed every tumultuous heartbeat. Perhaps she did have patience after all. She knew the end result anyway. No mother would sacrifice a child for their own life, especially not one like Laira. It was merely a game. One she had played at and lost.
    Laira shook her head and tried to retreat into the straw bedding.
    “I said choose, ” Maira hissed, patience quickly disappearing. “Your child’s life or your own. If you cannot choose I will take both.”
    Laira’s lips trembled and something desperate shone in her