Page 2 of Night's Reckoning
Ben released his hold, and the choking man clutched his throat as Ben quickly drew his fist back and aimed for the temple. His fist made contact, the man’s head snapped to the side, and he fell in a solid thunk.
Ben quickly rifled through his pockets, grabbing his wallet and the knife and gun in his waistband. He felt for an ankle holster but didn’t find one.
Shoes? He needed shoes.
Damn. This guy’s were too small.
“Topo, where are you?”
“By the door!”
“Luca?”
Nothing.
Ben looked at the man he had to guess was Luca. He’d wake up eventually, and he would deserve the massive headache.
Now with one hundred percent more weapons, Ben crawled on top of the stack of pallets and surveyed the warehouse. His head was throbbing, but he needed to eliminate the human threat and avoid the vampire.
He’d have to climb down eventually to reach the door. He crawled over two more stacks of pallets and dropped to the ground. Three more humans and he’d have a clear shot.
The second man nearly walked into Ben. He turned in to the alcove where Ben was waiting and his eyes widened, but Ben put the knife to his throat before he could yell.
“Shhhh.” Ben put a finger to his lips. “The baby’s sleeping.”
The man cocked his head, confused. “Wha—?”
Crack. Another fist to the temple. Another snapped neck, and the human fell to the ground with his eyes rolling back.
And his shoes were still too small. What was with these people? Did they all have miniature feet?
Ben kept the knife out. There were three more wandering around, not counting the vampire.
Where was the vampire?
He had the door in sight when he nearly ran into two of the men. One reached for his gun, but Ben kicked it before the man could raise it. He muttered a curse and reached for his knife while Ben dodged the other man’s grasp.
They weren’t expecting Ben to be so fast. They thought they’d wounded him. They’d thought he was broken.
Gotcha, suckers.
Silence was useless now. The men were shouting as he fought them off. He grabbed the unarmed man by the shoulders and brought his face down to his knee. Ben felt the spurt of blood from the man’s nose.
The scent of blood lay like bitter copper in his mouth. His own skin was broken. One man rolled on the ground, holding his hand to his face as blood poured out, and Ben turned to the other man, who was now a little more cautious. It was the original ringleader, Stefano, whose throat was still red and raw from the vampire grabbing him. He was bent to the side, still limping.
His voice was hoarse. “Who are you?”
Ben touched the corner of his split lip and flinched. “No one important.”
Before Stefano could ask another question, Ben brought his foot up and swiftly kicked him in the gut, knocking the man to the ground. Then Ben walked over and kicked Stefano’s temple, snapping his neck to the side and making his eyes roll back.
Ben examined the two men on the ground. Making a swift decision, he grabbed Stefano’s shoes and slipped them on his feet, leaving the laces untied. They were a little big, but they were better than nothing.
He ran for the door. He was nearly home free when the vampire appeared.
She appeared a few yards away from Ben, moving so quickly he nearly didn’t see her. She stomped her foot on the ground and a crack split the floor. Ben’s foot fell into the earth and he felt the pulse of power as the dirt tightened around his ankle.
Earth vampire. He added that to the file.
