Free Kela's Guardian by B.J. McCall Page B

the stake. She kicked her feet and grabbed the cross, her hands closing around it just as the chain snapped. Cold, boney hands grabbed her arms. Vampires!
    Kela reacted with the only weapon she had. She bit Vakkar’s hand.
    He tasted like a turd, but she didn’t let go.
    He spoke in a language she didn’t understand. Baring his pointed teeth, he bit her in the neck. The vampires bit her, sinking their sharp fangs into her arms and shoulders. Her blood turned to liquid fire, burning her insides. Her jaw slackened, releasing his hand.
    Vakkar climbed off her and clawed at her hands. His nails tore through the leather gloves and cut her skin, but Kela focused on the cross and refused to let go.
    Then thunder cracked and the feeding vampires released her. Streaks of lightning clashed with flashes of fire. The vampires retreated.
    Kela rolled onto her side and watched Ansara battle Vakkar. Black fire swirled around the demon, deflecting the barrage of white fireballs Ansara threw at him. When Ansara dropped to one knee, Kela feared the worst.
    Ansara extended his hands and streaks of lightning flew from his fingertips. Eight bolts slammed into the demon. Vakkar’s protective black fire disappeared. Ansara drew his sword and ran at Vakkar, stabbing the demon in the heart.
    Vakkar imploded and a cloud of black ash hung in the air, then fell to the pavement.
    Relieved, Kela tried to stand, but her legs wouldn’t hold her. She felt lightheaded and as weak as a newborn kitten. High-pitched shrieks signaled the return of the vampires. Sword slashing, Ansara cut a swath through the bloodsuckers. Heads flew in all directions.
    Ansara rushed to her side. “Thank the heavens you’re still alive.”
    Kela saw the fear in his eyes and knew she was in bad shape. Kela opened her hands. “I still have the cross.”
    “You’re a warrior at heart.”
    Shaking uncontrollably, Kela asked him to call an ambulance.
    “Earth medicine can’t help you.” He removed her shredded gloves and closed her hands around the cross. “Hold it tight and draw its power into your heart. Your father understood its protective power. That’s why he gave it to you.”
    He ran to her car and opened the back hatch. When he returned, he scooped her into his arms and laid her out in the roomy back compartment.
    “Focus on the cross,” he said before slamming the hatch closed.
    Within seconds the vehicle was moving fast. Kela closed her eyes. Her mind drifted and she saw her father’s face. She knew death hovered, waiting to take her. She clutched the cross to her chest. She had to trust in Ansara and the power of the heavenly forces to save her.
    Her father smiled and his image faded to black.

Chapter Five
     
    Ansara prayed all the way to Kela’s apartment and he was still praying when he laid her upon the bed. She’d been bitten in several places and had lost a lot of blood. The wound Vakkar had inflicted to her neck was turning black with demon infection. The cross’s power had kept her alive, but if the infection spread to her heart she’d turn into a vampire.
    Decapitating Kela with his sword would keep her from turning and save her soul, but she’d be lost to him forever. His duty was clear, but his heart wouldn’t let him draw his sword. He had one shot to save her life.
    Ansara pulled a rectangular field kit out of the side pocket of his pants and removed a coiled length of narrow tubing. Attached to each end was a long needle. The divine blood of warrior angels made a guardian strong, invincible against mortal weapons and vampire bites, and protected them against demon infections. Blood transfusions between guardians had been used as cures for demon infections, but would it work for an Earthling?
    If the cure failed, Kela might transform into a very powerful vampire or die in horrible agony.
    The sure cure was decapitation by the sword, but Ansara loved this beautiful, brave woman who had fought Vakkar and his vampires with only her wits, her