Is it? I don’t know anymore.
Javelin lifts his head, his nostrils flaring as he inhales deeply. “He’s up ahead.”
Narrowing my senses, I can smell a human approaching us. Male. I frown as the victim comes into view. “Who is he?” He’s running with a shuffle; a large paper bag clutched to his chest. Even from here, I can hear his breath, frantic, ragged.
“Looks like he’s already met Vivienne,” Javelin whispers, a smirk twisting his features. “She likes playing with her food.”
“No.” I shake my head. “This man isn’t a gangster. We leave him alone.”
Javelin looks up at the sky, exasperation painting his face. “She already hurt him, Wilder, give me a break. Leaving him this way would be cruel.”
I don’t see how letting someone live is cruel, but then the stranger draws closer, and it hits me like a crashing wave.
He’s already bleeding. Blood coats his left leg, leaving a trail that, no doubt, Vivienne is following.
Thirst roars inside of me, even as panic and grief roil in my stomach.
We’re going to kill this man.
We.
Us.
Me.
I shake my head, but I can’t speak, the words lodging in my throat.
The human halts, his senses finally alerting him to the fact that he’s not alone. His gaze finds us, and a whimper of agony bubbles up in his throat. “Please,” he says. “I know that to your kind, there isn’t much that separates me from another human, but I have a child. She needs to be looked after. Please. Let me go.” He’s still clutching the paper bag like a lifeline. I can smell metal and the faint scent of bread. Groceries.
This man is a father. He’s trying to provide food for his child.
“I—” the words catch, and I swallow hard. I’m shaking. “I, uh—”
Vivienne appears out of the shadows, the sparse lamplight glinting dully off her piercings. “There’s not a lot here,” she says. “One human won’t be enough to sate all of us.”
“It’s never enough,” Javelin calls back. “But it sure is a start.”
The man sobs, shrinking away from us. He’s trembling so hard I’m surprised the bag hasn’t torn. “I need to get back.”
“We can take you back home,” Vivienne croons. “Why don’t you lead the way?”
The man snaps his mouth shut, looking at the woman with wide eyes.
Sick. This situation is sick, and I want to drink so badly. I take a step forward and turn away with a groan.
I can’t do this.
But I want to do this.
That’s when I see him.
An elf.
He’s tall. Slender. His hair glistens silver-blond, and he has eyes that glitter gold. He’s dressed in elven uniform, and his gaze is trained on Vivienne. I see him, but my attention is now very much focused on the glaive he carries, the point gleaming.
“Stars,” I breathe.
Javelin inhales sharply beside me. He sees the elf, too.
The elf explodes into motion. He charges Vivienne, hefting the glaive and shooting it forward.
The lance is a line of silver light as it flies through the air, finding its target.
Vivienne didn’t even have time to scream. The spear plunges into her chest, and she staggers back with a gurgle.
Javelin turns and runs.
I hesitate.
The elf has already closed the distance between himself and Vivienne, and grabbing her by the shoulder, yanks the spear out of her broken body.
I’m sprinting, the city blurring as I run for my life. Stars know if the human will make it out alive.
Vivienne sure didn’t. I can’t bring myself to mourn her, even though I also can’t blame her.
The thirst makes us do terrible things.
Does the human get to live? I don’t know. I may never know. If he does, he’s the luckiest man on the planet. No one should have come out of an encounter with three vampires alive.
Then I remember the blood that coated his leg.
Did Vivienne bite him?
Stars, I hope not.
Though maybe he’ll just be killed, anyway.
This is the elf who killed a human to lure his prey. I remember now. Near Journey’s Stop, I saw the human he’d used to attract vampires.
A human beheaded, blood flowing freely.
Hours later, right before sunrise, I stagger home. I spent the night running throughout the city, making sure my scent trail is a muddled mess. Elves have a heightened sense of smell, but not as strong as a vampire’s. He shouldn’t be able to find me now.
The door is locked. I pound on it. “It’s me,” I snarl. “Open up before I break down the door.”
There’s a faint scuffle on the other side. Then the lock turns, and with a creak, the door opens.
Cecil peeks out, his eyes watering. “You’re alive. Thank the stars.” His voice cracks, and he opens the door wider. “I was worried about you. Javelin’s been back for ages.”
Javelin is curled up on the sofa, face pressed into a pillow.
“Let me guess,” he mumbles. “Vivienne is dead.”
“How could you tell?” I say, my voice harsh. “Was it the fact that eleven inches of steel ripped through her heart, or was it something else?”
Javelin swears. “Those elves think they own us. That they can do whatever they want.”
“None of this would have happened if you and that stupid girl would have just listened to me,” I say. Anger burns in my chest. “These days, Cecil’s the only vampire with half a lick of sense.”
“You’re saying it was my fault the elf attacked us?” Javelin lifts his head and glares at me.
I step forward and haul him off the sofa. “Yes!”
Javelin snarls and pushes me in the chest. “Get away from me.”
Gripping fistfuls of his hair, my muscles heave as I smack his head against the wall. “I let you join us!” I roar. “You agreed to follow my rules. We hunt who I say we hunt. You’ve been pushing that rule ever since you joined.
