Chapter 35

Previously: Claire turned Eve and Shane after François nearly killed both of them. Claire passed out before Eve and Shane wake. Michael sees all of them, and calls Amelie. Upon arrival, Eve and Shane wake with blood thirst. Once their needs are satisfied, their concerns turn to Claire. Myrnin arrives and deems Claire dead. After arguing with Shane, they take her away, leaving the trio to deal with their grief. Upon the next chapter, Claire is on her way to avenge her parents deaths. Her and Pennywell battle it out, leaving Pennywell staked. She comes upon Bishop and fights for her life. However, blinded by her anger, Claire ends up with severely hurt by a shard of wood. Despite her life threatening injury, she manages to make a make-shift circular saw. Finally, in the midst of Bishop's victory rant, she manages to decapitate him

I don't own the Morganville series...Rachel Caine does!

I slumped.

Legs no longer supporting my weight, I flopped to the ground in exhaustion.

Bad idea.

The small, but painful, shard of wood shifted in my chest. Knowing keeping it in was not a solution, I took a deep breath, held it, and yanked the wood out with a sharp tug. I released the gust of air in my lungs with a high pitched scream. I threw the infernal piece of wood across the room. I was about to inspect the wound when I heard a strange, but familiar hollow thunk.

I gazed in the general direction of where I threw the shard. Even my sharp eyes could see where it landed or what cause the odd sound. Curious, I gathered what was left of my minimal strength, and heaved myself of the ground with a agonized groan. I hobbled over to where the crushed chair lay, completely obliterated to pieces but no bloody pieces. I looked over to my right, away from the pile, and to the table that once held Bishop's cup of blood. Peeking out from behind the table was a speck of white, I pushed aside the table with some effort and gazed at the mysterious white object.

Turns out, it wasn't a mysterious object at all. It was a everyday mini refrigerator with a small microwave on top. A thought popped into my head just before I dove for the refrigerator's handle. Inside the refrigerator was a vampire's heaven. At least a non-picky vampire. It was full of bagged blood, varying types from O positive to AB negative . I stared in disbelief for a long time before I snagged a bag and tore it open furiously.

Sensational tingles surged through my body. I was on cloud 9. I felt everything but nothing at all. It was beyond anything I've ever experienced. It's amazing to feed on a live human but having blood fill your body and letting it heal every scratch, every bruise, every cut... everything, is a different experience all together.

It was gone all too soon but it wasn't long before I had another in its place. And another and another and another before I was so filled with blood I thought I would bust. As full as I was, it was an amazing to feel no pain, no hunger and no weakness. I felt as though I could take on a army and come out unscathed. As unrealistic as that was, it was how I felt and I never wanted it to change.

I was so lost in my feelings and enlarged ego, I had forgotten where I was. I raised my head a stared around in wonder. Now that my head was no longer clouded with hunger, anger and pain, I could truly see the damage that was done unto this room. Bookshelves lay broken and obliterated, books lay scattered about the room with their pages strung across the contained space. Candle wax dripped from the surfaces they were set upon to the floor or onto the books lay below it. All in all, it was safe to say that this room was more than trashed. However, the true cherry on top was the headless body that was lifelessly slumped on the wall.

I stood slowly with the power of the bagged blood coursing through my veins. I sauntered over the body, no longer scared of the monstrous soul that was resided in it. I stared at the body for a long while, taking in the details that would be forever engraved into my mind. His was pressed and pristine jacket was now torn at the collar and the buttons hanging by mere threads , leaving his white dress shirt in plain view. Or, should I say, once white shirt in plain view. It was now stained with dark, thick, metallic looking blood. The blood of a 1,000 year old vampire now put in his place.

I expected to feel an overwhelming wave of triumph, victory, satisfaction, pride but I felt...nothing. No smugness in killing one of the strongest vampires in the world. No pride in protecting my town from this man. No satisfaction in knowing that this...thing will never kill again. Never steal a family away from a child again. I felt no of that.

I felt sorrow, anger, and sadness.

It had taken someone centuries to kill this man. To finally put an end to killing spree. No one tried hard enough to get close to this man because of fear. Fear for their own lives, fear of dying for a cause. Amelie could've ended this long ago. She won against him but she let her irrational thoughts get the better of her. Because of her, my parents are dead. Because of her, my friends will never again live human life. Because of her, I have killed and destroyed the one thing I savored more than anything. My humanity.

Because of her, I had lost the fight for my humanity.

OKay... I WILL post an Epilogue after I get through finished writing it. You have questions about the story, and I will give you answers.

You just have to wait another year. JUST KIDDING! Maybe a week, if that.

This was just a bridge chapter...not very fun, not much of anything, except a little thing to tell you that I'm not done with this story just yet. A week, swear!

~*Tiff*~