The Vampire Always Bites Twice | Wattys 2022 Grand Prize Winner

46

His foot collided with my pelvis. Hard. Yeah, should've seen that coming. I doubled over. A throb instantly settled in my gut. But the greater pain came from the burn of the silver against my neck, my own reflexes nearly severing my head off—we heal, but we don't come back from that one. Small tremors coursed through my neck when the chain caught my muscle. Was like an electric shock zinging through me.

Cabroni drooled. I fought hard to stay upright through another onslaught of his fists. Least I didn't need to breathe. He hit me hard. Furious. Till there was no trace of air left to even get knocked out of my lungs. Everything inside me burned and ached. A fist struck my side. Sharp cracks reverberated through my ribs. I coughed. Blood should've come up. Barely a trickle, black and tarlike, dribbled from my lips.

"Stop it!" yelled Isla. "Like he said, you got the money!"

The mongrel kept a firm hold on her throat. Caught his eyes for a moment. Just a single second before Cabroni landed another firm punch to my sternum. He was daring me to move. To fight back. Defend myself. Cause if I did, he'd tear his nasty claws into her.

Cabroni grabbed me by the hair. He yanked my face up to meet his. Could hardly see him, up close, my one eye so swollen. My vision started to double. Suddenly two of his stocky wrists danced in front of my eyes. The scribbled, cursive tattoo on his skin dancing and twirling. Arabella.

He leaned in close.

"Chica's cash flow problem was work. This is personal. You stay the fuck away from my wife, sucker," he seethed into my ear. His breath was foul. "Or I'll fuck you up so bad, you'll—you'll fucking—you'll be so fucked up."

"Eloquent," I managed.

A wolf howled. No, shrieked. In pain.

Cabroni released me, turning sharply.

She did it. Son of a bitch, Isla actually did it. She stubbed her cigarette out in somebody's eye socket.

The injured beast snarled. He clutched his eye. Blood and pus and ash seeped out through his fingertips. Freed, Isla kicked him in the groin, toppling him over.

Cabroni barked and lunged for her.

"Run, Isla!" I shouted.

The garrote wasn't easy to shrug off. I jammed one heel back and nailed the wolf holding me right in the knee. It snapped. Hope he appreciated flamingos. Instead of letting go of the chain, he fell backward clutching it. I grabbed it (shit, shit, shit that burned) and pulled. Hard. Hard enough to save my head, breaking the necklace in half. Hard enough I also managed to nearly sheer off the tops of all the fingers on my right hand. They hung from my knuckles like slugs dangling from leaves.

Fannngs.

I gagged.

But no time to recoup.

I pounced on Cabroni.

His blood was awful. Downright toxic. Didn't care. Wrapping my myself around his back, I fisted his beard in my left – now good – hand and tugged. Opening his neck. I bit down. Deep. Forced my way through his muscle and tendons. Forgetting, of course, I'd already lost a fang.

Cabroni screamed. His blood blistered as it trickled into my mouth. I didn't swallow. Isla would have a joke about that, wouldn't she?

The other werewolf, the one who'd held me before, dug his claws into my back. He tore mercilessly as my flesh. This poor jacket.

I hissed. Released Cabroni's neck from my mouth and spit his blood into the other wolf's eyes.

Cabroni took advantage. He swung an arm around my neck and flung himself backward onto the pavement.