Night School by Mari Mancusi

to the ground. I stamp my foot down on his wings, so he can’t get up, then reach down and slice one clean off. He howls in pain as blood fountains from the wound, splattering my legs. It’s all I can do not to puke in his face.
    “Behind you!” I hear Corbin shout and I whirl around, just in time to dodge an arrow spinning in my direction. It misses me and pierces a nearby tree trunk. From a few feet away, I see Corbin take the archer down.
    I glance around frantically for Sunny, but can’t locate her in the fighting and confusion. I pray she’s all right—that the other Alphas have protected her or led her to safety.
    Suddenly I hear a fairy shriek. I look up and realize one of them has taken flight again, preparing to dive-bomb Corbin. The Alpha is busy helping Peter with another fairy and doesn’t see him coming. Realizing I have to do something, I leap into the fray, tackling Corbin and throwing him off target. A moment later, the fairy slams into me instead, the force knocking the wind out of me. He rolls me over, his sword slicing at my stomach, and I scream in pain.
    Corbin responds. On his feet already, he stabs his sword into the fairy’s back. The fairy falls on top of me, his weight crushing my wounded stomach. Corbin kicks him off, and kneels to examine my wounds.
    “You’re bleeding badly,” he says, his voice betraying his fear. “I need to get you out of here.”
    “No!” I protest weakly as he picks me up like a baby in his arms. “I can’t ... Sunny ...” Pain stabs at my belly and I moan in agony.
    “You won’t do her any good in this state,” Corbin scolds. “The other Alphas will guard her. Now stop struggling.”
    I give in. The pain’s so fierce I can barely manage to take a breath, never mind start fighting again. Corbin runs through the bushes, carrying me as if I weigh nothing at all. A few moments later, we reach a small cave, tucked into the hillside and hidden by green, leafy vines. If you didn’t know to look for it, you’d never find it in a million years. A perfect hideaway.
    “Inside,” he instructs as he lowers me gently to the ground. I manage to drag myself in and then collapse onto the cool dirt floor. He bites his lower lip. “I should stay ...” he hedges.
    “No! Please!” I beg. “Go back. Make sure my sister is safe!”
    After a moment of indecision, he finally nods and disappears. I can hear his quick footsteps through the brush and pray he’s not too late. If only Sunny and I had that telepathy thing twins always seem to have in the movies. Then I could know for sure that she was all right.
    I won’t die myself. After all, I’m a vampire. But let me tell you, that doesn’t mean my stomach doesn’t hurt like a freaking mother. I try to put pressure on the wound to stop it from bleeding, but it doesn’t seem to help. I’ve already lost a ton of blood. And without any Blood Synthetic to replace what I’ve lost, it’s going to take me a long time to heal.
    I wait for what seems an eternity, my mind racing with worst case scenarios. I see Sunny’s bloodied body lying twisted and broken by the burned-out fire. I see her tied up and taken away—dragged back to fairyland to become their captive queen. Oh God, why did I have to go and get hurt?
    I freeze at the sudden rustling in the bushes outside. A moment later, Corbin pokes his head into the cave and I let out a sigh of relief. “It’s just me,” he says, crawling in alongside of me, having to duck from the low cave ceiling. He shines a flashlight over my body. “How’s your stomach?” he asks, his voice laced with concern. Gone is the big, bad Alpha arrogance he displayed earlier. I guess a near-death-by-fairy experience will do that to a guy.
    “Sunny ... ?” I manage to question hoarsely.
    “She’s fine,” he assures me. “They found her hiding in a nearby bush and are taking her back to school. She’s got a few cuts and bruises but that’s it. I think she’s more scared than