The Trouble With Slaying

The Trouble with Consequences

I flailed, trying to switch the stake from my pinned right arm to my free left. The girl bit down harder and I screamed again as I felt the bone grind beneath her teeth. Shaw attempted to come to my rescue and grabbed her shoulders. She wrenched my arm along when she turned to look at him, flinging the stake from my grip as she tore another scream from my throat. She lifted a foot and kicked Shaw square in the chest, sending him flying backwards into one of the shelves and bringing it all down with a crash.

She turned her attention back to me and clenched her jaw, snapping my arm. I screamed in pain as she let me go, trying to struggle away. She sat down astride my chest and grabbed my chin in a small clawed hand.

"My daddy screamed like that too. Remember? You were there. You remember what they did to him?"

I panted and grabbed her wrist as she lifted a hand, eyes wide as I watched her point one clawed finger at my face. She slowly pressed against my hold until she was threatening my left eye.

"They blinded him."

I struggled with all my strength to push her away, tried to pull my face from her grasp and turn away. I gasped as a gunshot rang out, deafening me and making me blink in surprise as a spray of blood went blasting from the side of the girls head. She went slack as the bullet through her brain killed her and I hurriedly shoved her away.

Shaw coughed as he finished kicking free from the mess and I could hear him searching. "Where's the damn stake? Seth, where's the gods damned stake?!"

I grunted as I rolled and tried to keep my arm still as my eyes strained in the dark. Both flashlights had been dropped and at least one was broken. The other was buried under junk and barely illuminating anything. I searched for where I thought it had gone.

"I can't find it." My heart stuttered when I heard an angry hiss. The girl was coming back already. Undeath would only make her stronger and a bullet wouldn't stop her this time. "Shaw, I- I don't know where it went!"

"Fuck!"

I scrambled to find my feet and get away from the Vampire girl. She was going to come after me with a vengeance now, whether Shaw had been the one to kill her or not. I struggled to breathe through the panic as glowing red eyes blinked open and turned towards me with a dangerous hiss. I could hear her gathering herself to charge and braced for claws and fangs to rip into me.

The red eyes widened right before a rush of wind blew past me. Then a shadow collided with the girl and it sounded like a pair of alley cats fighting, hissing and screeching as they rolled and clawed.

I choked when the back of my collar got grabbed and struggled to keep my feet as I was yanked out of the way and shoved back towards the trap doors. I glanced back as I stumbled towards the faded light, watching Liam disappear into the darkness. Then Shaw was staggering into the light and herding me up through the doors.

I winced as I made it out into the dawning light and held my arm against my chest. The pain and fear was making me light headed. Shaw wheezed as he followed me up, took one look at me, and grabbed the back of my neck to shove my head between my knees.

The move jostled my arm, making me yelp, but he didn't let up. "Breathe deep newbie. I'm not carrying you back to the bus. Or wherever we crash for the daylight hours." There was a slight pause where I tried to catch my breath and then... "What are you lookin' at?! Get outta here or I'll shove your heads up each others asses, then we'll see how much staring you do!"

I snorted and glanced towards the opening between the two buildings, catching sight of the two pedestrians hurrying out of sight. "You're a real charmer."