[book one]
The game was simple: A contest comprised of three unique challenges, designed to test a human's strength physically and mentally, their personality compatibility, and their chance of survival.
The prize was excruciatingly tempting: The ch...
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"OH," SOPHIE SAID distantly. Her mind didn't seem able to process his words. "Oh, that's nice."
Then he lunged at her.
Sophie screamed. Her body moved on its own accord as her instinct took over. She dove to the side and rolled until her feet were pressed against the ground again. As the vampire hunter whirled around after her, she jumped, and narrowly escaped a clawed punch.
When she landed, she bolted like a rabbit caught by a hawk.
The stone hallways seemed to rush past her in blurs, but she found that if she really focused, it became crystal clear. A million thoughts swirled around inside her mind like a chaotic tornado; she could hardly concentrate. Her senses blared throughout the mess, intensified by her adrenaline.
She could feel that the hunter was right behind her. She could hear the sound of his footsteps over the thunderous roar of her own. Something else pounded in the air around her. It sounded like her heart, throbbing behind her ears, but it wasn't. It wasn't anywhere near her own.
Her shock slowed her. She could hear the vampire hunter's heart.
She inhaled, and the scent of grass and purified water blasted her nostrils. There was something else too. It was musty, and had the faint hint of bleach.
A clawed hand raked across her shoulder. Sophie cried out. Her legs seemed to give up as the pain splintered through her. She tripped over herself and crumpled to the ground. Her uninjured shoulder slammed against the grass covered earth. She skidded to a stop several feet from the edge of a fountain.
She groaned and struggled to stand. She dimly realized that she'd managed to find that courtyard again, where she had found Alex's body. Alarms screamed inside her head.
The hunter loomed over her. His bulky body blocked the moonlight that streamed in from overhead. A strangled hiss burst past her lips as Sophie scrambled back. Her back slammed against the edge of the fountain. She had to fight. She knew she had to fight. But he was twice her size, and she wasn't a vampire. No matter what Eli said, she couldn't possibly be.
She lashed out and punched at his arm as he reached out. His fingers curled tight around her throat, and then he lifted her into the air. She choked. Air refused to fill her lungs, and she couldn't breathe. The pressure around her throat hurt, and a familiar ache started to burn in her gums. She gasped desperately and yanked at his fingers, trying with all her might to land a solid kick to his chest.
He smiled up at her. His eyes were clouded with darkness and hatred. "Time to die, little vampire."
Somehow, Sophie managed to pull one of his fingers upward, toward her mouth. She chomped down hard.
The vampire hunter screamed.
He dropped Sophie like she was a flat-iron. Water splashed around her, and she found herself submerged within the fountain. The water filled her mouth, her lungs, and it burned. She jolted upward and coughed. Her chest pounded as she struggled to inhale enough air.
