Featured Title
Thirst of Youth
Preston J. Sexton
Excerpt Heat Level: Violent
Book Heat Level: 4
Buy at: www.roguephoenixpress.com
Elena stood in the doorway of the store and stared
out. She
took a deep breath, apologized one last time to the cashier, and stepped
outside. She turned first to her left and then to her right.
Elena was
relieved to see the women were gone. Unless she took a shortcut through a long
alley, about another half mile lay between the convenience store and her
apartment. The alley trailed behind a group of apartments two blocks from the
convenience store. Again, she felt the cold rush of fear cramping her
joints as she attempted to speed up her pace. Elena refused to turn
around. She knew her pursuers stalked closely. If she looked over her
shoulder, Elena would have known the two women were within an arms reach.
They moved
with the wind, silent and with little effort. At any moment, the devious
strangers could have snatched her. Their instincts made them patient for the
exact second when Elena’s body was at its ripest. The point in time when her
heart pumped erratically and her life’s energy was so full of horror that when
they bit into her flesh her vital fluid would spill into their mouths as
uninhibited as water from an overflowing dam. It was all part of the
game to them, a strategic element of the hunter. They consumed the fear
radiating from Elena’s body.
Once she reached the alley, it was a straight shot
to her front door. Elena forced herself to believe she had reached a
semi-safe point in her journey. If anything were too happen, she presumed her
screams would echo amongst the walls, encouraging one of the tenants in the
apartments above to call the police. Turning the corner into the alley, she
glanced over her shoulder to determine the distance separating her and the two
menacing women. The two anomalous strangers had disappeared into the darkness once again.
Elena saw the
small light from the front porch of her apartment. A quarter of the way into
the alley, she began to hear a sound similar to whispers all around her.
She marched
through the darkness observing everything that hid in the shadows.
Her eyes
filled with terrifying illusions. Every box, garbage can, or heap of trash
became a threat. There was no one there. She turned toward her apartment and gazed
intently into the beacon of light. She sauntered steadily, nearly running.
Elena’s ears
filled with the unnerving ring of whispers. The whispering grew
louder, sounding more and more like hissing, or the unmistakable rattle of
someone shivering. She looked over her shoulder again.
This time two
shadows appeared behind her at the corner where she entered the alley.
She heard
their laughter as they moved closer and closer. A powerful gust blew by.
Suddenly a
blackened figure appeared next to Elena shoving her to the ground.
As she rolled
on the cool pavement kicking and screaming, the two women grabbed her legs,
reeling her in like a hooked salmon. The women’s eyes were darker than the darkest
night, resembling black shiny marble. They bore into Elena’s
soul. Both
hissed--exposing there jagged demonic fangs. When Elena felt the icy
fire of pain arch through her body, she knew she was going to die. The monsters
moaned as they cut into Elena’s limbs, ripping away the firm flesh.
She closed
her eyes as the demons sucked blood from her wounds.
She tried to
scream. Her muscles cramped from the lack of blood flow.
She grew
weaker and weaker. The two ferocious women continued to pull tissue
away from her legs.
Cars drove by on the narrow street in front of
Elena’s apartment. No one heard her screams.
Suddenly the
two beasts relinquished their bloodletting. Both ran off giggling
playfully as a man approached. Elena’s tears blurred her vision.
She silently
thanked the mysterious man for arriving before the two demons had eaten her
completely. She lay paralyzed. Droplets of blood escaped from her mutilated
legs--pooling
underneath shredded tears at the back of her arms. She whispered for the man
to help her. Elena could not see him clearly. As he moved cunningly
toward her, she realized his soothing eyes hypnotized her.
Something
about him made her feel relaxed even after all that had happen only seconds
before. He kneeled close to her. Softly grabbing her hair, he yanked her head
back exposing her neck. She could feel the warmth of his sharp fangs as
they pierced her skin. Elena struggled to breathe as the man sucked harder
and harder. Slipping in and out of consciousness, she tried to reach up to pull the
man away from her neck. His thirst drained the little strength Elena had
left. She heard
him purring as her eyes closed. When she opened them again, the man had
disappeared. In the humid heat of the summer night, the chill of death coursed
through Elena’s young body. She took two slow gasping breaths and then
she breathed no more. Elena lay lifeless--eyes wide open, fixated on
the small light on the front porch of her apartment.
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