You Fight For All The Wrong Reasons

I gasped and jolted to my right, pulling away from both Cam and whatever had grasped my neck.

“What is it?” Cam’s expression was a mixture of worry and hurt, as if he has done something wrong. “What’s wrong?”

I scanned the landscape behind me, body trembling. “Nothing,” I breathed. “I thought I felt something…” I traced my fingers over the spot where I had sensed those cold fingers. Was my mind just playing tricks on me? It had felt so real.

Looking as startled as I felt, Cam took my shaking hand in his cool one and slid out of the truck bed. “We should be getting a move on anyways.”

“Right,” I murmured. I was still staring nervously out the window as we pulled away.

It was a quiet ride home. I was tired, yet jumpy from the encounter. Cam’s concerned eyes wandered over to me a few times. I returned his glances with a quick smile, but he didn’t seem satisfied.

A weird sighing noise broke the silence. We bumped and skidded along for a few more seconds, until Cam quickly hit the breaks. “Flat tire. How convenient…” he muttered as he stepped outside to get the spare tire out of the back.

We were in a quiet, sleepy neighborhood. No lights were on in any of the houses. In fact, we were the only signs of movement in the entire place. It gave me an eerie feeling. I pushed open the passenger door to go outside with Cam, but froze. The same icy fingers I had felt at the fireworks, I felt for a second time, on my shoulder now.

Whatever it was, it sure was strong. Ridiculously strong. It pulled me from the passenger side to the back seat in less than a second. I screamed and kicked around in the darkness, but the enemy was still hiding in the shadows. I panicked and screamed again, feeling helpless.

Something heavy landed on my chest, knocking the air out of me. It felt as if a truckload of bricks had been dumped on my chest. Moonlight poured in through the car windows, giving me a clear view of the other creature in the car with me.

I immediately wished I hadn’t looked.

Hair so blond that it hurt my eyes to look at it, thin lips, hard pale skin, and dark, unforgiving eyes. Those eyes bored two holes in me. It burned to meet their intense stare.

I had found myself face to face with a blood-thirsty vampire, once again.

Somehow, my fear had given me some sort of energy. I could breathe again, and oxygen was circulating through my blood once more. Taking the vampire off-guard, I rose up and shoved him off my chest, then kicked him away from me, which unintentionally opened the door behind me at the same time. Why had that been only latched? I fell out of the car and landed on the sidewalk.

“Audrey!” Cam was standing right above me. I jumped to my feet. “Vampire,” I said breathlessly.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him again. I twisted around, but I was a second too late. The vampire grabbed my wrists and yanked them behind my back, hard. I could feel him wrenching my arms into an impossible position. The burning in my shoulders explained all that. I screamed in pain. If I didn’t know better, I would have said that he was pulling my arms out of my sockets.

The only strength I had now was my legs, but that wouldn’t help me too much in this situation. I couldn’t transform into a wolf. Not like this.

I was entirely dependent on Cam now.

Suddenly, I was pressed against the car. I couldn’t see, I couldn’t breathe. Something shattered and hit me. My body stung.

Then, all the pressure lifted. The two vampires were farther away. I opened my eyes, but it burned to do so, so I shut them again and remained in a little huddle on the pavement.

Whatever was going on, I hoped Cam was winning.

I don’t know how long I was there on the ground, but eventually all the noise ceased. “Audrey!” It was Cam. I opened my eyes. It didn’t hurt this time. Cam was helping to my feet. I staggered and clung to his arm. “He’s gone,” Cam whispered, holding me close.

A strange look crossed his face. He let go of me.

“Cam?” Even my own voice sounded weird and distant. “What’s wrong?”

“You’re gonna be okay, baby.” Why was he backing away from me when he said this? “You’re gonna be okay…” And his face became a blur and faded from view.