Page 53 of A Vow of Shadow and Blood

The night erupts into chaos as the others begin running. Parents drag their children away, trying to run through the grass, tripping and tumbling along the way. Screams fill the air, but it’s the cry of the little boy on his knees, hovering over his mother’s body that tightens my stomach.

“Mama, please wake up! Mama, wake up!”

I try to move toward him, but I can’t. My eyes land on Tori’s, and I see the same guilt reflected there as she stares down at the boy in sheer horror. We will be dragged back to the bloodhouse and punished for our crimes, but what we have left behind is unforgivable.

My eyes dart around frantically as humans scatter, desperate to flee vampires moving at speeds they can never outrun. Limbs are torn from bodies, and hands plunge into chests, ripping out hearts and casting them carelessly to the ground. The screams of desperation rip me apart. Another child is torn from their mother’s arms, forced to watch as a vampire sinks his fangs into her neck and tears out her throat. I desperately want to look away, but I force myself to watch. This is all my fault. I caused this. My need to save Willow put a death sentence on every head here, so I don’t get to look away.

This is not your fault. Vampires are monsters. This is what they do.

They never would have found them had I not been here.

Perhaps, but you are not in control of their actions.

I wish I could believe him.

The vampires slowly return, dumping crying children in a pile like sacks of potatoes. They huddle together on the dusty ground, their cries painting the dark sky. One of them looks to me for help, his hazel eyes pained as he searches the darkness for his mother’s corpse. I pray to the lost gods that he will never see the still body with the chest ripped open. It’s a nightmare he shouldn’t have to live with, though I doubt he’ll ever forget this night.

The last of the vampires returns from the shadows with a crying baby in his arms, its tiny body covered in the blood of its mother. He rocks the infant in his arms, cooing, but the screams don’t stop as though it can sense the loss of its mother.

Amabel moves slowly toward the group of children.

“Stay away from them.” My voice is hoarse, and it’s only then that I realize I’ve been screaming.

She ignores me and looks down at the children.

“Silence.” The command is so forceful that they instantly fall silent. Their fear is palpable in the air. Even the baby’s crying ceases. “There is no need to cry. Today is the start of a brand-new life, and you will be grateful for it.”

A child in the middle stands to her feet, her face thunderous as she challenges Amabel in a staring competition before spitting on the floor at her feet.

“You killed our parents. We’re not going anywhere with you.”

The slap comes so fast, I gasp. The child flies across the sandy ground, clutching her face with her hand.

“No,” Tori screams out as she fights against the hold the vampire has on her, but her efforts are futile. “Don’t you fucking touch her again.”

The girl immediately stumbles to her feet, and I’m so proud of the fight she has left. She is trying to be their protector, and I admire her persistence. Her small fists curl at her sides, and she growls in Amabel’s direction.

“Such insubordination at your young age,” she says. “Don’t worry, it can easily be broken.”

“I’m not scared of you,” she sneers.

Amabel takes her in curiously, and I don’t miss the hint of admiration that creeps onto her face.She’s a monster.

Yes, she is.

“No, you’re not, are you?” She turns to glance at the other children, all still huddled on the ground, their eyes wide with fear. “But they are, and for every rule you break, they will be the ones to suffer.”

The light instantly dies in the girl’s eyes, and I see the moment she understands the threat. It’s one I’m all too familiar with. It’s the reason I learned to survive all these years.

Amabel smiles as she recognizes it too, and I promise to find a way to kill her for that one act. She turns to one of the vampires, its red eyes glowing hungrily in the darkness.

“Take the others and deliver the children to the orphanage.” The vampire nods. “And make sure they are cleaned up, only the Gods’ knows what filth they might be carrying. Make sure they are tested.”

The vampires herd the children as I would imagine one would with animals, pushing them through the darkness and out of sight. With the children gone, I can think of nothing but the horrors they were just forced to witness.

“You’re a vampire.” It’s not a question.

Her mouth curves up into a wicked grin as she relishes in my horror.