Vampires Realm Prophecy 01 - Child of Light

flexed her fingers again and he looked down at her hand, frowning at it and cocking his head to one side as he did so. When he lowered the crossbow a fraction, she bolted for the alley.
    She had made it out of the other side when she felt something impact in her shoulder. She didn’t stop running as the pain erupted and every vein in her body felt as though it was filling with ice cold liquid.
    She stumbled and fell, landing hard on her knees and left hand as she tried to stop herself from damaging the stone in the amulet she wore. Her head ached and spun, the world spinning with it as her mouth turned dry. She swallowed repeatedly but it had no effect. Pushing herself up onto her feet, she clutched at her head as it swam and her stomach turned, making her feel like throwing up. She cringed as the points on her shoulders, stomach and chest began to burn and the ice in her veins was replaced with a fire.
    When she moved her arm, she felt the dart in her shoulder and reached over, trying to grab hold of it but failing.
    She was hot, too hot.
    She wiped her brow with her hand, stunned to find sweat coating her palm as she brought it away. She turned around, her eyes shifting in and out of focus as she tried to see if the hunter was nearby. Her senses were off the scale, as though a million people were surrounding her but not at the same time. She couldn’t concentrate on anything but the intense pain that ebbed and flowed through her.
    She had to get to Valentine. He’d know what to do.
    Pushing onwards, she clung to the walls of the buildings as she made her way back to the hotel at a painstakingly slow pace. Everything was getting darker, as though a black film was coating her vision and was getting worse as time drew on. She was barely conscious and had to force herself to keep her eyes open and keep moving. Her limbs were heavy as she approached the turning that led to the hotel. She felt numb, cold and hot at the same time. She reached again for the dart she could feel in her back and then pressed herself into the wall. She rubbed her back against it, gritting her teeth and crying out in pain when it didn’t shift the dart. It just hurt.
    She looked up to see the hotel sign and forced herself to keep heading towards it. She stumbled through the lobby, ignoring the calls of the concierge and staff when they saw the state she was in. She needed Valentine.
    Valentine would save her.
    Fumbling with the little buttons in the lift, she tried to focus on them as they swam in front of her eyes and she pressed the one that she thought corresponded to her floor. When the doors opened, she fell out into the hall and tried to stand but found she didn’t have the strength.
    She was so tired, so very tired. She just wanted to sleep. She crawled along the carpet, heading for the door to their suite by following her muddled senses. She could smell Valentine. She could smell his blood. He would fix her and make the hurt go away.
    Reaching the door, she clawed herself up into a standing position and pressed her hand into it. Her head spun and she barely managed to stop herself from passing out as the world around her twisted and distorted in front of her eyes.
    Mustering up the strength, she managed to bang her fist down once on the door before slipping into unconsciousness.

Chapter 15
    Valentine paced the length of the room, his hand balled into a fist and pressed against his mouth as he waited. She couldn’t have been gone long. Mathias’ phone call had woken him about two hours after the sun had set. Stupid girl. Why had she gone without him? He knew where she’d gone and he couldn’t bear the thought of her going to see them alone. Why?
    He sighed heavily and let his hand drop to his side. He winced when his shoulder throbbed with pain. Had she gone without him because she was under some kind of misguided belief that he wasn’t fit enough to go out into the night? He’d had injuries worse than this before and had still managed to fight.
    Where was she?
    He glanced at the clock again. It was almost three in the morning. If she had left shortly after sunset, then she had been gone a long time.
    He had to find her.
    Grabbing his jacket, he headed for the door and stopped dead when a weak knock sounded. He opened the door and dropped his jacket as Prophecy fell into his arms. He collapsed to the floor with her, cradling her gently as she writhed against him. She was burning up. He pressed his hand against her forehead.