Free The Bite of Vengeance by Connor Wolf

fall.
    Maria walked on; she seemed oblivious to me following her. As she walked, a dark passage loomed on the right. It was a shortcut, and she did not appear to want to waste any more time than necessary.
    I followed her down the alleyway. Now was the time to strike. She must be silenced. I knew you would find me soon, but I would gladly accept the punishment if it meant my own clan back in Venice would survive. I brought my hands to my lips and let out a short breath. The sound reverberated around the alleyway. It was the whistling sound a pigeon made. At once, ten men of my own clan appeared as if from nowhere and jumped Maria.
    My plan used surprise as our advantage. But this didn’t work out. Maria overthrew us immediately, almost as though she had been forewarned of the attack.
    â€˜That’s impossible,’ I thought to myself, ‘how could she have known?’ Maria fought her way out of the ambush. One of the men leant in for a bite. She grabbed his jaw and pulled. It ripped clean from his face. She threw it away as he crumpled to the floor. She kicked him into the other vampires, knocking them over in the process. Maria fled, but not before I had joined the battle. She hesitated for a fraction of a second, recognizing my face. I used this to my advantage, landing in a powerful slice to her face, with my hand. Blood spattered the wall behind Maria, my hood slipped down.
    Her flawless face turned from shock to anger. She struck me in the chest with almighty force, cracking one of my ribs. I doubled over as pain seared through my body. Maria took her chance and ran at the speed of a bullet, sending many vampires soaring as she went.
    The six remaining vampires pursued her, though none were capable of matching her impressive speed. Maria stopped, turned, and smacked a pursuer in the face, sending him smashing into a large house and through the other side. Despite her strength, she became outnumbered as a small number of vampires from my clan, joined the battle. Maria flipped and kicked her way free time and time again. Many had been killed, and I was beginning to doubt his plan. She could not be stopped. She was too powerful. I ordered a retreat to my men; I would face her myself and sped up the dark Italian street, where Maria had fled to. Three decided to follow me. Maria slowed down to face him.
    This was my plan. I knew she would want revenge. She wanted it so badly that it would cloud her natural instinct to sense a trap. Me and my vampires shot round a corner and braced ourselves, when I ordered the retreat this was part of the plan, they would detour to this corner. Maria followed, but they were ready. A dozen vampires jumped on her, forcing her to the ground. Even twelve against one barely managed to subdue her.
    She struggled against a dozen pairs of iron hands, but could not break free. Finally, they managed to talk to her, and she was told that she would be taken as a result of nearly exposing the vampires. Unable to fight off these elite vampires, she surrendered. Maria was taken to a hidden underground prison made of twelve-inch thick, titanium walls. And there she lay, unable to avenge her children, awaiting the rescue of her beloved husband. The clan-queen had been reduced to nothing more than a petty, weak vampire. Maria could not wait for freedom. She swore to take revenge against the Venetian clan. She would kill me.
    The night was still young when I headed back towards Venice. I knew I would be tortured in the end. When I returned, I was surprised to hear the clan-king had been spotted in Venice. It could not be so soon. I sent Zaichari out to see if the rumours were true. I waited, praying that it was not so. But deep down, I knew my time was up, and I would die at the hand of Roconn.

The Pope’s Party
    Roconn spoke to Klomano with an icy voice. ‘Where is she?’
    Klomano quivered under Roconn’s penetrating stare. ‘My lord, I’m sorry, but I cannot tell you.