Blood in the Sand (BOOK 1)

-ELEVEN-

"...We should keep moving," Joey sighs despondently.

As we get to our feet, there's a slight radio signal! You could almost feel the hope ripple through the team.

"...Does anyone copy?" Merwin gasps over the airwaves.

"Merwin!" Joey cries out.

"Holy shit, he's alive!" I let out a relieved laugh.

"Where are you?" Rachel asks him.

"I'm two hundred meters from the door," Merwin tells us in a strained voice. "Bearing three-twenty...but I'm injured. I need help-"

AJ vaults over the wall, and we follow suit, fighting to Merwin's location. The fire must have weakened their hides because our bullets were more effective than before.

"This is the location he gave us," Jason realized. "But where is he?"

"There!" Salim shouts. "What the hell-"

Merwin was being held by his throat by what looked to be a humanoid vampire!

"That's the same one that almost killed Nick!" Rachel snarled.

AJ slung her rifle on her back, and as she ran up to the two of them, she pulled out one of her knives with Salim on her heels. The rest of us covered her as more vampires gathered around us. With a grunt, AJ plunges the blade through its heart. Salim pulls Merwin away, and AJ finishes it by removing the knife from its chest to decapitate it.

"Holy shit, AJ!" I gasp.

"It's dead," is all she gives me.

She's not looking too well. We need to find a way out and we need to find it now.

"I've got you," Salim assures Merwin, who gets his bearings again.

"Are you alright?" Joey asks.

"Thank you," Merwin coughs. "I'm good, Joey. Let's get the fuck out of here!"

We run towards the exit, and more vampires pour out of their cocoons. I empty my clip and load another one, not wasting any time. AJ is slowing down, and I holster my gun to hold her up as we get to the surface. Aftershocks from the explosion caused the temple to cave in around us.

We see the two ropes by the waterfall.

"You go first," I tell AJ. "We'll follow."

I nod for Jason to climb with her, followed by Nick and Rachel. Salim climbed up with Merwin, and Joey and I were about to follow when we heard something on the other side of the waterfall.

"What the hell is that?" Joey wonders.

"I don't know..." I whisper.

Even though we needed to get the fuck out of there, I felt rooted to the ground. Staring at that spot. Every cell in my body is screaming at me to stay there. That if I turn my back, I'm dead. I barely had time to react as two vampires leaped from the waterfall to attack us!

I recognized them as the other unit slaughtered in the tunnels. I'm knocked to the ground, and I'm rolling around with the thing, trying to avoid being bitten. I hear a faint grunt and snarling before I see Joey run up to me and kick the vampire off me into the ravine below!