Bound by Sin: The Beginning of a Prophecy (Prophecy #3) by Stevie J. Cole

sharp nails stuck into the back of my biceps and he growled loudly.
    I heard Brooke stir behind me ; the covers that were dangling from the end of the bed shifted as she sat up. A shrill scream pierced through the silence, followed by the sound of her feet slapping across the floor, running toward the bathroom. A loud thud echoed off the walls when she slammed the door shut, the lock clicking behind her, her deep breaths of terror still audible behind the thick wood.
    I glanced over my shoulder to make sure she'd actually made it into the bathroom , and the vampire maneuvered his way out of my hold, flying across the room and slamming his body against the bathroom door. The sound of the wooden frame splitting echoed in my ears, along with the crackling screams of Brooke. I dove at the creature, gripping his throat in my hands. Squeezing as hard as I could, I felt the tendons in his neck pop and his bones crush underneath my hold.
    His eyes pulsed open and his lips formed a crooked smile. "You can't keep her safe," he said, laug hing, "no more than you can kill me."
    My h ands gripped his throat harder, until my fingers met. I could feel the blood rushing through me, rage setting my body on fire. My teeth gritted against each other and each breath I released was glazed with a growl. I shook him, his head banging against the door, and with each knock of his body Brooke screamed. He laughed harder. "Whenever you tire, I'll get her. When you turn your back I'll swoop in and steal her from you, just as you stole woman from man and set this damn curse in motion. She's not yours. She doesn't belong to you. The darkness – she belongs to the darkness; a cold, damp grave – that's where she belongs. She’s marked to be the devil’s bride."
    Those words caused me to see nothing but a flash of red. Howling, I tossed him down to the floor. He swung at me, his fists meeting my face with a hard punch. He attempted to roll over and out from underneath me, but I grabbed his shoulders, picking his entire body up from the ground and slamming it back down with such force the floor shook beneath me. "You're wrong! She's mine. Mine. If I h ave my way, death will never find her, damnation won’t touch her, and the devil knows nothing of the wrath he’ll face if he tries to steal her from me!"
    Another burst of pompous laughter bellowed from him. “You’ve not the slightest idea what you’re up against.”
    Snapping his head to the side with one hand, I leaned down next to his ear and whispered, "You inferior demon. There's things you don't know. Death can still claim you.”
    I watched as his eyes searched the room, fear setting in, and causing his body to quake underneath mine.
    "Only the Fallen are truly immortal. I'm not only the reaper of mankind." My mouth laid against the skin of his neck, gliding over his slick sweat before my teeth tore into his flesh. Ripping it from his neck, I pulled away, spitting the mangled piece of skin into the floor. "No one takes what is mine!" I quickly placed my mouth over the oozing wound and sucked in his blood. The thick, putrid liquid poured into my mouth, clots running down my throat. Unlike mortal’s blood, the blood from these cursed beings tastes like death, rotten and sour. His hands closed around my throat as he tried to stop me, but I quickly swallowed back his blood, taking from him his strength. Within moments, the venom of death seeped into him. Completely drained of his tainted blood and the curse that pulsed through him, he stilled.
    "Mine!" I said in a low voice before rising from the floor and running to the bathroom.
    I lay against the cold exterior, flattening my palm against the door. "Brooke, love. You can come out. It's safe."
    I heard her crying.
    "Love. Please come out,” I begged, wiping the thick blood from my mouth.
    Just as the knob twisted, a sharp pain shot through my chest. My heart palpitated, quivering several times before it beat again. My stomach turned, burning as