_ Am I dead?

Agony ripped through me as the vampire's claws tore into my flesh. A scream tore from my throat, choked by the vice grip around my chest. His grip on my shoulder tightened, the skeletal fingers digging deep, drawing more than a scream from my throat.

Blood.

They gushed down in plentiful amounts. I forgot how to breathe in that instant and my lids began to shut when a voice shouted from what seemed like a distance to me.

If it was close or far, I had no idea. I was too beat to be sure of anything at the moment.

"Leave her alone!" Hollered the voice. "All three of them, let them be!"

The vampire holding me recoiled, his head snapping towards the source of the voice. To my greatest surprise, his grip slackened for a brief moment around my neck, just long enough for me to stumble free. Then, with a growl, he threw me aside and scurried off into the shadows.