Page 75 of Blood & Claw

The thin man cursed and rushed her again, his friends closing the net.

She spun, slashing at his chest. Her aim was off though, and her blade ripped through his cloak instead.

And then, he caught her right arm, his hand clamping down.

Crimson washed across her vision, and she twisted in his grip. Her free hand struck upwards, fingers splayed, straight for his throat. That was better. Her hands moved faster than a blade.

“What the—”

Her nails dug into his skin and raked downwards.

He screamed, released her, and reeled backward, just as Dale burst from the ale-hall.

Things moved quickly after that.

Iron slashed, and grunts followed.

The man she’d ripped down the throat still tried to fight her, one hand clutching his neck where blood seeped through his fingers, the other stabbing at her viciously.

However, after a few tries, he started to back away.

Ailsa’s focus narrowed then. His mounting fear fascinated her.

Each retreating step he took drew her after him.

She wanted to see how much further she could push him.

She hacked with her knife once more, and this time she found her mark, cutting him on the thigh. Closing in, she opened up his arm.

Bleed!

She was dimly aware of Dale still taking on the other two just a few feet away, and out of the corner of her eye, she glimpsed figures emerging from doorways, light blooming behind them.

The fight had drawn the locals. Faces pale and pinched, they watched the skirmish unfold.

Recovering his nerve, Ailsa’s opponent lunged for her again. He’d not be bested by a woman. Or humiliated by one.

Dodging the swipe of his blade, she ducked under his guard and thrust upward. The point of her thin blade punctured his lower chest and drove between his ribs. The force of her attack nearly ripped the dagger from her hand. It wasn’t easy to puncture flesh like this, to push her way through sinew and bone. Yet a wild strength filled her.

Snarling, she drove the dagger home.

Her opponent roared in her face, spittle flying.

Her other hand struck upward once more, her nails raking.

His roar ended in a scream, cutting off as he fell backward. The moment he was on the ground, Ailsa yanked the blade free of his ribs, but instead of using it to finish him off, she leaned forward, slashing the fingernails of her free hand across his already ravaged throat. Again and again.

Sitting upon his heaving chest as his fists tore at her, she watched him die. Watched blood flow.

Ravenous hunger punched her in the gut then, making her gasp.

Feed!

Fighting the urge, she tore her gaze from his throat and looked up.

She realized then that Dale had already bested his opponents. Both men lay sprawled in the dirt, dark blood pooling under them.

Dale stood tall, panting. His gaze wasn’t on the outlaws he’d just slain, but on her. Wide-eyed, he stared at Ailsa as if seeing her for the first time.