Legacy (Lycan Series: #4)

X

LUX

I had killed before.

The first time was when I was twelve. A vampire had entered our home in Ireland, one whose blood was lilac and dripping on the carpet of the foyer.

It was when I had returned from my first summer in New York with Mom. She was knocked out with Stark from the nonstop flight we took. I was up past my bed time, stealing a late night snack.

Standing in front of the vampire, I had realized I was about to become his late night snack.

He'd phased forward, teeth sinking into my arm. I remember feeling the air being sucked out of my lungs as his took a pull of my blood.

And I remembered the pleasure, the high of the bite. It was something I didn't understand. I was scared of what I didn't understand.

So I took the kitchen knife I used to cut the homemade brownies Mom and I had baked once we returned, and I jammed it throughout his spine between the vertebrae, straight to the heart.

Just like Stark taught me.

The amount of blood woke Stark up. He'd thrown me across the foyer, Mom catching me in her arms to set me down and lock me inside their bedroom as a horde of vampires flooded into our cottage.

I remember crying, screaming, wishing I was out there to help them. But instead I was here. Stuck in the room. My training amounting to nothing as a door separated me from my parents and death.

This was how I felt about Tempest.

Gone. In an instant. Separated from each other.

My arm was broken. It would take ten minutes or so to heal, minimum. Which meant I'd have to face the creature while wounded.

I kicked the car door out. The cab driver was dead, his neck snapped at an odd angle. Bracing myself, I used my left hand to release the buckle. My shoulders dropped down to slam against the hood of the car. I slowly wriggled out. Glass pieces dug into my gray shirt, the red blood dampening to maroon.

The creature was on the other side of the car, heading east. I clamored to my feet and scanned the area left and right. There were no trees in sight. Just fields of grass- small flowers and plants.

"LUX!" Tempest bellowed. "RUN!"

I looked back just to be kicked over the length of a football field by another demonic creature. The stench of miasma leaking from those two were insane. There were much bigger, more malicious than what I had ever encountered before.

Their arms were slender and long, reaching down to the floor despite having the height of a flag pole.

I scrambled for any bit of power to brace my fall. I couldn't risk breaking anything else if I wanted to stand a chance.

The grass rose tall, weaving in a basket to catch me before rolling me over onto the concrete. My legs were shaking when I stood up and glanced at the creature.

"Lux Xerxes... you will answer for your kind's crimes."

The voice pierced my ears, dropping me down to my knees as it echoed violently. I shrieked as the creature moved closer to pick me up.

"Hell awaits you."

The stitching of his mouth snapped open like coils at their breaking point. Green gas exhaled from his pried jaws.

All my training flew out of the window. Tears flooded down my cheeks as the creature drew me closer.

"Help," I cried out, clawing at the creature with my one good hand.