THIRST

Chapter Nineteen: Dark Predator (Setekh)

Day 365

Last evening in December

New Orleans, Louisiana

My last meal took its final breath as I cradled the boy in my arms and closed his eyes. His blood was healthy, young and virile. Over the last few months, Payne had been sending me young men who were either runways or strays. And for every life that I took, my body slowly became stronger again. From the floor of the northeast corner of the room, my eyes remained focused on the door, waiting for the precise moment to strike the first guard that walks in and draws his sword. It's all in the timing.

Footsteps echoed down the hallway as four male voices drifted through the cracks in the cell door. I laid the boy down as I shifted into a crotch while the darkness swallowed me whole and my breathing ceased to a halt. A key was inserted and the lock disengaged as the door swung open. Four guards crossed the threshold each with their swords drawn and a torch in hand. I turned my back on them as I slowly crawled up the wall and willed my fangs and claws to lengthen as I hovered directly above them, ready to strike.

Striking fear into their frontal lobes, the handles on their blades shook rapidly as beads of sweat broke out on their foreheads. I could hear their heartbeats pounding as one as they glanced around the room, searching for me. But little did they know I was right above them. Like a black widow spider. A gust of window came into the room via the small window on the wall as the torches quickly went out. One by one the men panicked for I could see it on their faces as they all tried to run out the door.

They struggled together; their bodies wedged in-between not just themselves as a group but by the door as well. I dropped from the ceiling landing softly on the balls of my feet as I sprang into action and punched a hole through the chest of the first guard I saw. Blood spewed outward like an explosion as the guard looked down at my first. He fell to the ground, his sword landing in my hand as I took it and swung with all my might, cutting down the other two men like wheat. Well, that's three down, one to go.

Splatters of blood drizzled down my face and chest as I slowly turned and faced the final guard who cowered in the corner, trembling with fear. I stalk toward him as his cries for help filled the tiny cell. I reached for his throat as I held him up, putting him at eye level. I licked my lips for I was hungry for fresh blood again. His carotid artery pulsated rapidly beneath my fingers as I breathed down his neck, making him shiver.

"Oh, god! Please!" The guard whimpered. "I don't want to die."

"I'm sorry. But the decision has already been made."

"No! Wait! I have a wife and kids."

"And do they know what type of man you really are? I must say, Jerold, I find it hard to believe that you actually find the time to sleep next to your wife and not have nightmares about the people you bring in here for me to kill."

"All they know is that I protect and serve Prince Payne."

My voice dripped with venom at the sound of his name. "You will not speak that word to me again. After tonight, Payne will no longer rule over Louisiana because death will come for him. I will come for him."

"But that would be suicide. The main guard patrol along the outer and inner walls of the castle. Should you get caught the guards will not hesitate to kill you."

I lean in and nip at his neck with a fang as a trickle of blood oozes from the small hole. The guard whimpers as he makes one final attempt to plea for his life. "Do you know who Prince Payne actually is? He's a vampire. A creature of the night. And if you think for one second that I too am a vampire, then you are mistaken."