Page 17 of Peacemaker

These vampires had huge, red mouths, wide and gaping, and they were full of fangs.

The police could do nothing but try to ward off vampires with blades and shock batons—they couldn’t use their guns with humans milling about, any more than Shane could use Betty.

Policemen died.

People died.

Swinging Silverlight, I waded into the battle.

But her light didn’t hurt them.

It didn’t hurt them at all.

They were starving. Not mad, or sick, or full of infected rage. Just hungry, mean, and ready to fight.

And my sword’s halo did not hurt them.

Her blade did, though.

They turned from the humans and almost as mindlessly as infecteds, they advanced on me, eager to kill me so they could go back to eating.

“Shane,” I yelled.

“I’m here, baby hunter.”

We faced off against the advancing vampires as from tall buildings on either side of us, humans watched. Scared but fascinated, I had no doubt.

A man screamed, and Shane and I charged the vampires. They were fast—so fast—but killing vampires was what we did. We’d been up against fast vampires before.

We could handle them.

And they fell, their hunger unappeased, confusion in their faces even as they became piles of bone and dirty clothes.

They did not turn to ash, but I had no time to be stunned by that.

One lone vampire streaked after a human who was half a block away from him, and he would have reached her in a few short seconds had I not released Silverlight. She whirled through the air after him, and not even the vampires were as fast as my sword.

She sliced through him and even before he hit the pavement, she was back in my hand.

And that felt good.

The pandemonium felt good. Wrong, but good.

Maybe I wouldn’t admit that to anyone but myself.

In the end, with a swiftness that was startling, the vampires were gone. And though even my kills remained to litter the streets, they were just as dead as the piles of ash Silverlight normally left.

People flung themselves at Shane and me, and I had a second to send Silverlight back inside before sobbing, terrified humans knocked me off my feet in their desperation to reach someone who could protect them.

“I’m alive,” a man shrieked, before bursting into loud, shocked tears.

Then a large hand burst through the crying humans, yanked me through the air, and set me on my feet.

The half-giant.

“Leo! What are you doing here?”

“We thought you might need some help.”