Vampire Hunt (Kiera Hudson Series #3) Read Online Free PDF Page A

could see the farmhouse someway off in the distance. The warm glow of lights seeped from the windows and smoke tumbled up out of the chimney. I imagined sitting by the warmth of that fire, curled in a large comfortable chair and falling into a deep, refreshing sleep. Not only was I tired and cold, but also incredibly hungry. I couldn’t remember the last time that I had eaten anything and I wondered how many days Luke, Potter, and Murphy would last without blood before they started craving for it.
    Murphy beckoned us into the barn and closed the door behind us. We sneaked to the back where Luke and I lay on the large piles of hay next to each other. Isidor sat against the barn wall. He pulled the baseball cap down over his eyes and cradled the crossbow in his lap. Murphy sat by the barn door as if on guard and Potter sat beside him.
    “How are you doing?” Luke whispered in my ear.
    “Tired,” I said, resting my head against his chest.
    “Try and get some sleep,” he hushed and gently stroked my damp hair.
    Listening to the soft beat of his heart, I looked across the barn at Isidor who was already asleep. His knees were drawn up, and his hands laced together with his head resting against them like a pillow. Then I heard the gentle sound of Luke’s breathing and I knew that he had fallen asleep. Trying not to disturb him, I rolled onto my back and stared up at the large wooden planks that formed the underside of the barn roof. I wondered where Kayla was and I hoped that she was safe. Where had Phillips taken her? What had he done with her? Then I turned my thoughts to Sparky and it still hurt me to think of how he had betrayed me – betrayed all of us. How hadn’t I seen it coming? I was meant to be able to see things, right? But I was glad of one thing, over the last week or two, my eye had stopped bleeding. I still got the visions – if that’s what they were, but no blood and I was grateful for that. When the visions did come, they seemed more controlled. They still came suddenly and when I least expected it – but somehow I seemed to be able to have power over them. When they came, it was like I was looking through the lens of a camera, which I could pan, tilt, and turn three hundred and sixty degrees. I was able to focus the images too – almost as if I could zoom that lens in and out.
    The nightmares came too, but they were less frequent now –all of them portrayed twisted glimpses of an apocalyptic future where Vampyrus had over taken the cities of the world. I still didn’t know if these nightmares or visions were snapshots of horrors yet to come or just my fears and anxieties manifesting themselves inside of me. And it was with these thoughts charging around the corridors of my mind that I fell asleep.

Chapter Five
    The crying at first was faint. A gentle sobbing that dripped into my unconsciousness like a tap that hadn’t been turned off probably. I moved through the darkness, one careful step in front of the other. The walls of the corridor were covered in pale green wallpaper that hung in long, tattered strips. It was spattered with dark patches of mildew. My trainers made a whispering sound as I passed along the corridor. Although I was in complete darkness, I didn’t need the aid of a torch or lantern to see my way – I could see perfectly in the dark now.
    Moving forward, I followed that sound – the one that sounded as if someone was being hurt. With my heart racing like a trip hammer in my chest, my breath came out of my mouth in short shallow bursts.
    “Hello?” I called out, my voice echoing back at me from down the corridor. “Is anyone there?”
    “Help me!” a voice came back, but it sounded as if it came from behind me. Spinning round, I saw just the briefest glimpse of something large move in the darkness behind me.
    “Who’s there?” I called out.
    Whoever it had been didn’t make a sound. Wringing my hands together, I retraced my steps and headed back down the corridor