Darkus Knight by Ashon Thadon (best romantic novels to read TXT) 📕

“How?” his cohort asked.

Baritone sniffed the air again. He growled and without a thought, he ran towards the window and jumped out.

Lucas landed right on the hood of a car when he did his suicide leap out the window. Even he had fully charged before he jumped, the fall did hurt him. He rolled off the hood and landed smack on the concrete sidewalk. He heard people yelling “call an ambulance! That guy just jumped off the roof!”

Lucas could hear a hundred voices buzzing in his ear as he tried to get up.

“Don’t get up! You hurt!” He heard voices giving orders but he was paying them no attention. He felt hands on him either trying to help him up or getting him to lay down.

“Ahhhhh!” He heard more screams and now people were dispersing and running.

Lucas was on his feet and he turned around to see a large and dark creature with sharp canine teeth and razor sharp paws standing on the same hood Lucas just rolled off.

The creature was growling as salvia was dripping out the folds of it’s’ mouth.

“Run!” Lucas could hear onlookers still yelling but keeping a relatively safe distance.

“So I guess no more games,” Lucas said to the creature.

The creature’s yellow eyes were looking right at Lucas as it’s’ tail started to wag in anticipation of devouring its’ prey.

Lucas could hear more yelling and feet movement around him as well as sirens approaching. Lucas looked for his suitcase. He did jump with it but it flew away from him when he landed on the car. Lucas saw the suitcase on the trunk’s edge of the same car the creature was on the hood of. Lucas eyed the suitcase then the beast. The canine monster glanced at the suitcase too and knew what was in it and that Lucas could not get his hands on it. However, that was Lucas only hope.

Now Lucas studied a lot about this breed. This type of animal acted on reaction and response. Lucas knew he had to do something in order for the creature to do something. If Lucas moved towards the suitcase, the monstrosity would attack. That same reaction would happen if he ran which is what the beast really wanted. It thrived on chase and conquer. Plus Lucas was worried about the creature’s back-up. There were two of them. This one turned but the other could still be in human form. And since he didn’t see either of one of the killers before one of them turned, he didn’t know what right plan of action to take. But right now he had an extremely large and aggressive wolf staring at him and the police that were on their way were not going to be any help. In fact they would be casualties.

Lucas inched towards the trunk of the car and the animal growled louder. Lucas took a deep breath. Now or never. Lucas reached for the suitcase and the animal jumped off the hood towards him. Lucas managed to grab the suitcase just in time before the wolf advanced on him. Lucas used the suitcase as a shield as a clawed paw almost missed his face. Lucas managed to use the suitcase to push the beast off of him. Lucas started running.

Lucas almost ran into a police car but didn’t stop. The officers got out of the car to detain him when a huge wolf came charging at them. The officers aimed their guns trying to shoot at the monster but to no avail.

Lucas got down the block and put his suitcase down. He pulled out his two firearms from their folds as he saw the beast come charging down towards him.

He aimed and started shooting.

Lucas woke up in a cold sweat. His breathing was heavily irate. His eyes were bloodshot red and his fangs tingled. He was in attack mode but he wasn’t in a battle with a massive deranged werewolf, he was in his bed. It was just a bad dream.

Lucas focused on controlling his rapid breathing and looked at the lump beside him under the bed covers. A head was poking out from the covers snoring ever so softly. Lucas looked at the love of his life. She was still beautiful even her sleeping state. He wouldn’t trade her for anything in the world even his life.

Lucas’ breathing was slowly coming back to a normal pace. He scanned the room. His senses were going off like crazy. Something didn’t feel right but he didn’t see anything wrong or out of place.

Lucas got out of bed and stretched his arms. That dream was intense. It felt so real. Well, it was real. The event really happened, six months ago.

Lucas looked at his sleeping beauty. She was worth all the nightmares in the world. It was because of her that event happened in the first place. She was his failed contract.

Lucas had committed a lot of atrocities in his life. He never gave much thought to any of the mayhem he caused. His heart was as cold as ice. After all he was a vampire. But not those typically sick vampires that have to drink blood and feed off of both mortals and animals. No he was a different type, a different form, a different sect. He despised those other kinds.

Lucas knew he was still on the run. He couldn’t go back to his job as a ‘cleaner’. He knew by now that his contacts were informed of his misdeeds. So Lucas had to come to the conclusion that all his former clients were tainted and if one did hire him for another job, it was probably a set-up.

Lucas mostly did contacts for his hominid clientele but sometimes he would be paid to eliminate maybe a blood sucker or a lycanthrope in human form. He didn’t care as long as the money was right and it didn’t go against his code. She went against his code. He thought maybe it was because she was a woman but he had killed women before either by straight taking their life or their essence. However, for whatever reason he couldn’t kill her.

Every being has rules even the Dark of Night or the Unkind. One of the rules was you could never kill someone of your family, society or pack without direct permission from the Elders or an Alpha member. So if you wanted to eliminate someone from your particular clan for whatever reason, you couldn’t do it yourself or it would be your head on a platter or a stake. That’s when Lucas came in. He wasn’t connected to anything. Mortal, vampire or Lycan was fair game for death at his hands or his weapons. His trusted Colts had the ammunition for every occasion. Contaminated hemoglobin explosive caps in the bullets for his blood sucking friends. Silver coated bullets were for the bad dogs of the pack. And of course, a regular Parabellum bullet would do for any human. He was set to handle any situation and he was successful. He never had a problem, never had a setback, well until now.

Lucas did have friends. He knew another vampire that was like him but that person still followed the rules of the fanged family he was born under. At first the family his friend Vincent belonged to didn’t know what Vincent was. Vincent, like Lucas, never had the Thirst, well not for blood. Vincent’s family found that out soon after he drained his first victim of their life force without drawing one single drop of blood. While Vincent used his talents to help the family, Lucas felt like a reject and left.

The only drawback to Lucas’ powers was that he can only absorb human life energy not vampires or lycanthropes. Both Dark of Night and the Unkind were immune because their essence wasn’t as pure as mortals were. However, absorbing energy left a toxic aroma at the place the transaction took place. The odor smelt retched to humans but intoxicating to werewolves and vampires. They felt drawn by it.

Lucas still was trying to understand his powers but unlike the Thirst, he didn’t need to feed unless he really needed it.

“You up?” the woman in his bed said waking up and looking at Lucas staring at her.

“Yes,” Lucas said and kissed her on the forehead.

Lucas could not kill her. It was a decision that forever changed the outcome of his life. But looking at her, he knew he made the right decision. But looking at her belly was where his doubt took place.

Lucas knew now that his last contact wouldn’t need his help eliminating her. She had broken a cardinal rule, never outbreed. The Alpha would soon be aware and then there would be a hit out on both of them. She had been with someone outside of her pack. She was carrying a hybrid child and that was looked down upon from all sides.

It was Lucas who would now be the hunted…but by who?

He needed help just in case.

“Let’s get ready to go,” Lucas ordered. “I have to reload anyway.”

Lucas ran into the room and closed the door quick behind him. He pressed his body against the door and started slow breathing.

“They fucking everywhere!” said Jennifer, his wife, who was already in the room expressed. She was cuddling her little baby boy who just stared at the door like it was last gate of defense.

Lucas just nodded and continued breathing. He held two Colt Anaconda .44 Magnum revolvers firmly in both hands. Each chamber contained a sterling silver bullet custom made by Lucas’ uncle before he met his demise by a night breed. Now he held the two weapons of death like a last memory of his uncle.

He heard the growls before he even sensed them. They were coming closer because they could sense him as well. More importantly, they could sense the little boy. Lucas looked at the kid his wife was holding in her arms and knew that the creatures outside really only wanted him.

“Give us the boy!” Lucas heard the strong baritone of the Alpha member of the pack from the other side of the door. ‘He is an abomination that must be destroyed.”

“You know I don’t take orders from your kind,” Lucas barked back and he meant every word.

“You will meet the same fate as Manchester,” the Alpha stated back, another growl escaping his lips.

Lucas breathed harder at the mention of his uncle. He gripped his two firearms tighter.

“Do you really think those puny bullets could stop us?” the Alpha snarled with a laugh.

“As long as it stops you, then I’m all good with the outcome,” Lucas snapped back.

The Alpha let out a serious of grunts and runts and Lucas heard the herd getting closer to the door.

“Your family has deserted you,” the Alpha said inching closer to the door. “They too do not want that abomination.”

“Fuck you,” was Lucas reply. “Or do you want me to growl and bark that saying so you and your mutts