P R E L U D E

Blood swells in my hand, rivulets of bright crimson trickling across my palm and splattering onto the grass.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Like tiny rubies slipping, glinting red in the moonlight. I suck in a breath between my teeth, hissing at the stinging sensation that soon accompanies the open, gnarly gash on my hand. My fingers throb and I begin to feel lightheaded.

Across me, the outcasted vampire stands tall and cold, crimson eyes glowing and a knife in his hand speckled with blood. My blood.