The Darkness by Nina Croft

Chapter One
    Thunder crashed overhead, and flashes of crimson lit up the night sky, bathing the city of London in a blood red glow. Darius Cole breathed in deeply, his nostrils flaring as he caught the acrid stench of fear drifting up from the alley ahead.
    He’d been stalking his prey for an hour, but he was growing bored with the chase. Besides, this close to mid-summer, the nights were short and dawn was approaching. He needed to finish this soon. With that thought, he loosened his control on the blood-thirst. It rose hard and fast, flooding his body, and beneath the blood-thirst, the Darkness struggled to break free. He’d sensed it often in the past week, lurking in the recesses of his mind, and for the first time in his long existence, he welcomed its presence.
    Darius.
    A voice whispered through his head, soft and low. He recognized her instantly and rage surged through him. Then he shook his head. It was nothing but his imagination playing tricks on him. Again.
    Gina wasn’t here. Why would she be?
    She’d left him twice now, the last time only a week ago. If she’d wanted to talk to him, she could have done so then, face-to-face. Instead, she’d fought beside him, and when the fighting was over, she’d walked away without a backward glance.
    The lightning flared again, and he caught sight of his prey cowering in the shadow of a parked truck. Darius stalked forward, no longer troubling to keep under cover. The young man’s face was slack with fear, his eyes glazed, but it aroused no pity. Instead, the Darkness clawed its way a little closer to the surface.
    Reaching out, Darius clasped one hand in the greasy blond hair, jerked back the head and exposed the line of the throat. He breathed in the rank scent of terror oozing from the skin, and then he lunged. His fangs sank into the flesh and he fed convulsively, gaining no pleasure from the act, but unable to stop as the Darkness gripped him.
    Darius, no! You cannot take the lives of innocents.
    Her voice was clearer now. This time he couldn’t deny it. He raised his head, inhaling, as though he would scent her perfume on the warm night air.
    Nothing.
    Still, his fangs retracted, and the Darkness receded. He relaxed his tight hold, and the man slumped to the ground. Darius glanced down at him. “He deserves death,” he said. “He’s a pimp and a drug pusher.”
    But not at your hand.
    He nudged the still form with the toe of his boot. The man stirred, his eyes fluttering open. Crouching down beside him, Darius stared into the terror-filled gaze. “Forget,” he murmured, his power flowing out to bind his victim’s will. “Now, go.”
    For a moment, the blond man peered up at Darius, his eyes unfocused, then he staggered to his feet and lurched away.
    â€œThere,” Darius said, “still alive. Happy, now?”
    No, not happy.
    Then she was gone.
    He whirled around, searching the surrounding buildings, not quite believing she had left him, again. But she was close. He sensed it with every beat of his heart. She was here, in the city somewhere, and he would find her.
    He raised his head and screamed up at the night sky. “Where are you?”

Chapter Two
    â€œJust two more days,” Gina whispered into the phone. “Give me two days, then I’ll come back on my own. I swear.”
    She held her breath as she waited for her sister’s reply. In the background, she could hear the howling of dogs, and her whole body tensed.
    â€œWe don’t have two days,” Regan said. “I’ve tried, but I can’t stop this. You used the earth magic and blacked out the sun. Only you can restore the balance.”
    Regan was the oldest and most powerful of her sisters, and Gina had prayed that somehow Regan could put things right. Now the last of her hope died. “I had no choice.”
    â€œThat changes nothing.” Regan’s tone was harsh, but beneath that, Gina