Page 48 of Marked By Him

I gave him a single nod, a show of gratitude.

He nodded back as he stood there watching. Waiting for any sign of another threat on that side.

My attention went back to the man in front of me. “Not today, you’re not.” And then I took my knife and shoved it into his stomach, pushing upward with all my strength until my hand was smothered in his blood.

He gurgled and gasped.

A familiar sensation jolted through me as I pulled my knife from his gut. This satisfaction… this thrill… was the next best thing to the feeling of sinking my cock into a tight cunt. How fucked up was I that violence had the power to make me feel alive?

I watched as he hunched over, then tumbled to the ground.

“Anyone else have something to say?” I asked as I held my knife in the air.

The other four men rushed forward with their teeth bared and eyes glaring with rage. Silas, Ezekiel and Isaiah raised their knives and charged back.

They wanted blood.

So did we.

All around me were the sounds of struggle. Roars of anger. Howls of pain. Lungs seeking air. Flesh connecting with flesh. Skin crushing bone.

A sharp, stinging pain pierced my right side. The first warm trickle of blood trailed over my skin. My knife hit the dirt with a thud as I clenched my waist. Thicker, heavier blood seeped through my shirt and onto my palm. One of the men—this one short and stout with tattoos of tear drops on his face—muttered a curse under his breath as his eyes blazed into mine. Whatever he said, it wasn’t a language I knew.

My fists struck his hard jaw. The bone crunched beneath my knuckles. Fiery pain shot from my hand all the way up my arm.

The man dropped to his knees and I grabbed him by his hair. My fist dug into thick brown strands as I dragged him across the grass and dirt toward the stream.

His knees scraped the ground. He clawed at my arms, trying to force me to let go. “They’re going to kill you anyway,” he threatened, as if it made a difference whether he lived or died.

I knelt beside him when we reached the edge of the stream. The water rushed over the rocks. I knew from experience that it was ice cold.

“You mean the vampires? You know, I don’t even blame them for what they are. Not really. They were infected without a choice. But you—” I shoved his head into the water, then yanked it out and he gasped for air. “You choose to betray us, to betray God and worshipthem.” Blinding wrath boiled inside me. “You deserve this.” And then I pushed him back into the water.

His body struggled and fought to break free. His hands gripped at my forearms. His body tensed. His muscles flexed, then froze.

He was my third kill of the day, and I was immune to remorse. I would kill again and again if it meant keeping my people safe—keeping Eve safe.

I held tighter, pushed his head in deeper.

Until he went limp.

I pulled him out, just like I’d pull the other guy out before I went back home. We didn’t need the decay of dead bodies polluting our only source of water. I tossed him on the ground next to his friends.

Isaiah, Ezekiel and Silas stood in front of me, looking over their kills. Their chests heaved. Blood soaked their shirt and pants.

“Do you really think there will be more of them?” Silas asked as he wiped a hand over his face, smearing blood instead of cleaning it off.

“I think we have to fight to survive, whatever it takes, whatever that means.” I straightened my posture, taking back my role as leader. “But God is with us. We’ll always win.”

25

Eve

Everything had changed.

I had changed.

I brought my hands to the bruised part of my throat and ran tentative fingertips over my skin.

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