Free Fading Darkness (Bloodmarked #1) by Alicia Deters Page A

where the most recent vampire attacks were located, or according to
the news, malicious acts of violence , and I started with them.
    There were still people leaving the downtown
bars, so I had no trouble finding my first kill. I found her stalking an inebriated
couple who were stumbling down the sidewalk searching for the next available
cab.
    She stayed to the low lying rooftops and as
she sprung, I leapt and snatched her out of midair by her throat throwing her
to the ground under me. I landed easily with my feet at her sides. There was no
time for pleasantries with too many witnesses out tonight, I dragged her up by
her neck and threw her into the shadows of the alley.
    After a battle cry and a few choice words,
she charged me, and I drew the knife I had grabbed from my kitchen on the way
out and tossed it in the air. I raised my hand above my head waiting for the
blade end to come back to me, and I carefully plucked it from the air. In the
same swift motion of my arm, I sent it sailing at her rapidly approaching
figure. It sank into her heart just feet away and her midnight ashes were the
only thing that hit me. They swirled around me like black smoke before
disappearing into the night air. That was hardly the fight I needed. With anger
still pulsing threw my veins, I ran to find more. I had to have more.
    I spotted a couple more tracking a very loud
bunch of spirited people near Citygarden. I tackled one to the ground in front
of a sculpture that looked like a giant bunny. He grabbed a handful of my hair
and slammed my head against the side of the sculpture. I staggered but regained
balance in time to avoid the next blow. I took the second punch to my stomach
and landed a right hook to his jaw. I never stopped moving. Using all the speed
and strength I had, I circled him, lashing out on him at every possible
opportunity. A flash of black eyes and bared teeth, and I could tell he wasn’t
happy to take such a bad beating.
    I, however, could feel the smile on my face
growing as I used his face as a speed bag. But I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied
until I found the one responsible for the display in my apartment. The other
vampire was waiting nearby watching, waiting for his chance at me. I finished
the other one off in anticipation for the next.
    He stepped out from behind another
sculpture, and he taunted me to make the first move. “Come on, honey,” he
egged.
    “I’m not really in the mood for foreplay
tonight,” I responded icily.
    He didn’t hesitate as he came at me like
freight train at full speed. He was huge and very sure of himself when he
moved. He faked a move to my right, and as I went left, he countered and landed
a punch across my left eye. He kept coming and as he grabbed two fistfuls of my
jacket, he shoved me up against a sculpture. He slid one hand to my throat, and
I began choking and gagging. My eyes became less focused as the swirling stars
cluttered my vision when the dizziness began to set in. I kicked at him hoping
to land one where it would count.
    It must have made him mad because he lifted
me from the statue and slammed me to the ground. My head smashed into the
concrete, and those remaining stars exploded into bursts of light. The pain
reverberated against the inside of my skull, and I heard the sound of my own
whimpering as my fingers curled with agony, nails biting into the inside of my
palms. Before it had time to heal itself, I felt another blow to my face, and
another. He didn’t let up, and I realized I was now on the receiving end of
anger.
    Okay, yeah, I did come out here to kill him
and every other vampire, but I think I earned my right to be even more pissed.
I wasn’t about to let him win. This was my fight. It always has been.
    With both eyes swollen shut, I had to rely
on other senses. When he pulled away from me slightly, probably readying
himself for another big blow, I twisted out from under his massive body and
sprung lightly to my feet with all the remaining energy I