Kiss Me Deadly

Chapter Nineteen

Sharp, fanged teeth slide out from under his chapped lips.

A predatory smile gleams in his eyes.

Of course it had to be a shapeshifter. I groan.

My right foot shuffles backwards, crunching dead leaves under the sole of my boot. The beating in my chest quickens and my breathing hitches.

What was I thinking? I'm weak; out of practice. This shifter will eat me alive.

The fear clouds my brain as I try to think of an escape plan.

Come on now, Viridian. Think, Ryder's voice is suddenly in my head. His voice is the same as it always was when he helped train me; soft, low and firm. I can almost see his icy blue eyes analyzing my every move.

Automatically, I listen and give Danny a once over. He may be the youngest of the three, but he is still much bigger than me. Damn shifters and their rippling muscles.

Use his height to your advantage. You're smaller, quicker. Strike fast. Don't give him the chance to grab you, Ryder advises in my head. I nod once sharply, just like I used to and move before I can psych myself out of it.

I slide the dagger out of my boot and clutch it tightly in my hand as Danny the shifter charges me. It's sloppy of him. Shifters instinctively go for a direct attack, one I'd been expecting. I duck at the last second, getting a swipe at his ribs in. He presses a hand to the wound and growls when his hand comes back bloody.

"You're going to pay for that," he threatens through a mouthful of fangs. There's anger in the way his hands clench into fists.

"We'll see about that," I shoot back. My grip on the blade's handle tightens. I let out a shaky breath.

Watch out, darlin', Ryder cautions in my head just as the shifter's muscles tense. His claws rake across my face before I have a chance to move.

Hissing, I press a hand to the stinging flesh and find my skin touching a warm, sticky substance. Blood.

The shifter gets in another good swipe to my chest before I can react. the pain is sharp and stinging, but I move past it, just like my parents taught me to. Looks like the years of abuse and orders came in handy after all.

The shifter backhands me and I fall to the ground with a cry of pain. I land hard on my side and wince when a sharp pain shoots through my hip. Use the weakness, darlin', Ryder commands loudly. I can practically see his icy blue eyes flashing.

Danny the shifter approaches slowly, his walk relaxed, cocky. "Is that really all you got?" he mocks brazenly. I grip the blade tighter. My knuckles begin to turn white. "I thought the daughter of Fenrir and Katrina Steel would put up more of a fight."

He crouches down behind me and I can hear his teeth elongating. "But you're not such a bad ass after all, are you?"

I grit my teeth.

One.

Anger burns hot in the pit of my stomach.

Two.

His hot breath is at my ear, heavy and moist. "You're just a scared little girl."

Three.

I whip around and plunge the dagger hilt deep into the shapeshifter's chest.

His eyes go wide with surprise. A wet gurgling sound leaves his parted, bloody lips.

"Do I look scared to you?" I ask darkly, head cocked. I pull the blade from his chest with a wet 'schlck' and his body falls limply to the ground.

"Danny?"

I look up sharply.

The other two shifters -the dirty blonde and the tall one- stand just yards away, staring in fury at the dead shifter laying at my feet.

Claws grow.

Teeth sharpen.

Snarls sound.

"Damn," I curse.

I stand and point my now blood soaked blade.

The sounds of rage echo in the night as the shifters run at me with my death in their eyes.

I stab and slash and jab but they keep coming with teeth and claws and fury.

My dagger is ripped from my hands and I'm shoved to the ground with enough force to shatter my bones.

The tall one puts a knee on my chest and I can feel my ribs begin to give.

"I'm gonna watch you die slow, bitch," the shifter snarls in my face.

His large hands wrap around my throat and squeeze.

I claw at his hands, lungs aching for air, to no avail. Ryder's voice in my head is frustratingly silent.

My vision begins to blur.

My heartbeat begins to slow.

And something inside of me breaks.

Claws burst from my fingertips and anger bubbles and boils over within me. I sink my claws into soft flesh and tear. And I keep tearing as my mind goes numb and my thoughts fade into a distance hum.

I will not die.

I will not let them kill me.

I am a whirlwind of blood and pain and death and when I've finished with my reign of terror, the aftermath is catastrophic.

I tremble as I stare at the gruesome mess and put a hand over my mouth.

I am a monster.

I scramble away from the mess, stumbling and falling many times on my way back to the facility. Leilani is there waiting for me. Her eyes go wide and her jaw drops when she sees me.

Distantly, I wonder what I must look like. Broken and bruised. Tears streaking through the blood and grime on my face.

I open my mouth.

Close it.

Tears and blood mingle and drip onto my lips.

"I'm sorry."

I breathe in.

And the world d i s a p p e a r s . . .