CHAPTER SEVEN
From her medical training, Nora knew without a doubt that she had severed the man's jugular. Black blood was spurting from the gaping wound in his neck as the man dropped to the ground.
Black blood?
But Nora had no time to wonder if her eyes were again playing tricks on her.
The other man was coming at her, his knife raised to strike. Nora ducked as the blade whizzed through the air. Screaming, she scrambled towards the mouth of the alley and burst out into the street.
Footsteps pounded behind her. She couldn't afford to look back and slow down. He was going to kill her.
“Run!” Nora shrieked to the old woman. She hoped the old woman would be able to escape while she lured the brute away.
But the brute was faster and stronger than she thought. She could see his shadow falling in front of her, but his shadow looked...decidedly non-human.
Her curiosity got the better of her and she risked a glance back. She couldn't even cry out as her eyes widened at the bizarre, terrifying sight.
The man's shape was lengthening and contorting as he lunged forward. His limbs seemed to melt into his torso and his face began to flatten so that his ears, nose and cheeks disappeared. Only his eyes and a yawning, fanged mouth remained.
He wasn't running anymore. He looked like he was gliding or swaying, or sliding towards her. He was no longer a man. Maybe he never was.
He was a snake, a giant black serpent.
“No!” Nora screamed.
Nora tripped and landed hard on the ground. She felt something coiling around her leg and she jerked violently and tried to scrabble away.
“Help! Help me!” she shrieked, clawing desperately at the ground as she was being dragged backwards.
Nora heard frenzied shouts and turned to see the old woman running at the serpent with a broken umbrella. “Damn Slayor!” the woman yelled. “Let the human go!”
Damn Slayor? What the hell was a Damn Slayor?
The question flashed through Nora's mind as she scrambled up and watched the Damn Slayor rear up and lurch towards the old lady. With a flick of that long tail, the serpent sent the feisty old lady smashing into a wall.
Then the serpent turned his yellow, glowing eyes on Nora. The old lady could wait. He had seen Nora drive a broken bottle into the neck of his partner. Nora was the bigger threat to him, and the longer she stayed alive, the more trouble she would cause him. He was going to finish her off first.
The huge snake opened his mouth wide and Nora saw fangs, long, sharp, curved fangs coming straight at her.
“No, no…!”
Nora braced for the excruciating bite. But the pain never came.
The Damn Slayor jerked back suddenly and swung its huge, ugly head away from her.
Hissing and spitting, the snake twisted round and Nora saw the hilt of a knife sticking out from the snake's body.
Something glinted, and Nora saw another blade flying through the air. The knife stabbed into the snake's belly, and Nora only heard a whirring sound before she saw another knife whiz towards the snake and slice its tail right off.
Nora saw black blood pour from the snake as she got shakily to her feet.
“Stay down,” a voice ordered.
Nora assumed the voice was talking to her. She turned towards that deep voice and saw a man running towards them. He was tall, and even in the dim light, she could see that he was ruggedly handsome. His sandy hair was cropped short, really short like a soldier. Every muscular inch of him screamed military. The way he held himself, the swift, silent way he moved, even the way his eyes locked onto his target hinted at his military training. Nora had no doubt that this man was a soldier, a trained killer. He had throwing knives in his hand, and his silver eyes shimmered as he took aim at his enemy.
“Another Damn Slayor,” Nora groaned.
Just who were these people? People with glowing eyes who could turn into snakes.
Pushing herself up, she stumbled away as another knife whistled past her. She heard that handsome stranger or Slayor, whatever he was, swear in a language she had never heard before.
She didn't care what he said. She wasn't staying down, and she wasn't staying here. Not in this fucking twilight zone.