In Darkness We Must Abide (The Fallen King, Episode 8) by Rhiannon Frater Page B

Armando settled his amber gaze on her. “We both know that won’t happen.”
    Taking a sharp step forward, Nelly glowered at Armando, her power beating against him like dark waves. “Then at least we’ll have the pleasure of killing his little albino whore.”
    Rankling under her words, Armando ’s tone was sharp and threatening. “Leave now. Abandon your assignment to kill Vanora. I’ll let you live if you go. Go find a new life with your boy toy.”
    Nelly scoffed at his comment. “There is no life for us with Aeron ruling the vampires. You and I both know that. I will not yield to you or any of his other offspring.” Nelly’s nostrils flared as she spoke, her fangs visible behind her red lips. “Killing his favorite son will be just the beginning of my vengeance against Aeron.”
    Drawing a silver blade from the sheath attached to his forearm and hidden in his sleeve, Armando let out a sorrowful sigh. “Sadly, you will die tonight, so your vengeance will have to be taken up by another.”
    Nelly attacked immediately. Faster and stronger, she pummeled him with cruelly placed blows with her fists and heels. As was her style, Nelly was intent on breaking his body to smithereens before administering a killing strike. Nelly liked to hurt more than kill. Armando dodged the worst of her attack, lashing out at her chest and throat. His blade nicked her skin, drawing blood, but the cuts were artificial. He was miserably aware of Vanora ’s car sailing deeper into the night with the other vampire close behind.
    Cold fingers with the strength of steel gripped his throat and Armando barely had time to slip into a wisp of shadow before they tightened. The redhead was fast, strong, and brutal. Every bone-crushing impact of her strikes sent red lightning flashes of pain through him. He sensed Vanora disappearing deeper into the darkness. Anger filled him as he realized every second Nelly delayed him put Vanora more at risk.
    A massive long-haul truck rumbled along the highway with several cars in its wake. Armando darted past them, a mere flicker of darkness, with Nelly close behind. To stay and fight may mean Vanora’s death. Instead he pursued Robert, the other vampire, and Vanora’s car. He sailed through the night, following the road. Nelly pursued, attempting to overtake him, but falling short. Armando was faster in the air. Weaving through the trees, he kept his concentration on the pulse of Vanora’s power that called out to him like a beacon in the night. Her aura still clung to his fingers where he had touched her and he hoped it would not dissipate before he found her.
    Nelly crashed into him, sending them both sailing through a billboard looming over the road. Armando twisted about in the air, grappling with the other vampire. Fingers hooked like claws, she lashed out at him, attempting to wrench his heart from his chest. His silver dagger deflected her attacks, slashing deep into her hands and forearms. Her cold blood arced through the air. Though he feared using too much of his power too quickly and burning out, he knew he could not defeat Nelly if he held back. Shifting in and out of misty shadows, he spiraled around her. Reforming just long enough to bury his silver dagger into her, Armando inflicted as much damage as possible. Her long nails raked the air, attempting to catch him. Maybe it was fear, or love, or just sheer desperation, but Armando managed to evade her lethal swipes.
    The last of Vanora’s presence faded from his senses just when Nelly managed a stunning blow to his lower torso. Wrenching flesh and muscle from his body, she howled with delight as his blood flowed. Her victory was short lived. Armando had sacrificed a wound in order to deliver a brutal blow. As her claws tore out his side, he punched his silver dagger through her temple and deep into her brain. Armando rode her body to the hard, cold ground below, crashing through the shrubs. Jerking the dagger free, he immediately shoved it