Revenant's Kiss | ONC 2022 Shortlister ✓

P R O L O G U E

The blast of Jonathan's siren ringtone snapped me out of a dead sleep with a flinch. I shifted onto my elbow with a racing heart, glancing at the clock sitting on the bedside table.

1:18 AM.

Who could possibly be calling at this ungodly hour?

Jonathan yawned sleepily behind me, untangling his arm from around my middle and reaching for his phone.

"Who is it?" I asked softly as I turned onto my back and looked over at his sleep-softened face.

He squinted at the blue light of his screen. "My brother."

I pushed my tangled hair from my face, chewing my lip as he answered the call. It couldn't be good if David was calling this early. My pulse quickened some more when Jonathan sat up abruptly.

"Okay, we'll be waiting. Be careful." He pulled the phone from his ear and stared down at me. The fear on his face only freaked me out more. "Baby, we've gotta pack some stuff and go. LycanZ has made its appearance here. It's turning the town into a bloodbath and David's coming to pick us up."

If I've ever been more scared in my life, I couldn't remember it. My limbs were frozen for a moment before I crawled from the bed and grabbed the large tote I kept packed and ready in preparation for a day such as this. "Where's he taking us?"

"Away." He tugged on a pair of jeans over his boxers and slipped into a shirt he pulled from a hanger in the closet.

I couldn't help but watch him. Even though we'd only been married for a month, I still thought he was the most handsome man alive. There was no one else I'd rather spend these troubled times with.

His soft touch on my arm drew my attention to his shadowed face. Both of his arms held onto my shoulders and he looked down at me with affection. "Whatever happens past this point, just know I love you. Okay, babe?"

"Okay." I accepted a deeper breath than before. "I love you too."

He kissed my forehead with the softest of smiles. "Finish gearing up in the living room?"

I nodded, holding onto the tote strap on my arm tightly before following him downstairs. As many times as we'd gone over this, I should've been more calm and confident in our ability, but I wasn't.

Fear of the unknown tangled around my chest like giant icy fingers. Police sirens whined outside and the muted pop of gunfire only made it that much harder to breathe.

Jonathan turned the TV on and we stood in front of its bright face with mixed feelings. A female reporter with what looked like blood and dirt scattered on her white blouse stood in front of the sheriff's office, microphone in hand. Behind her, people were screaming and running as cars crashed and caught on fire. Primal howls and cries mixed with gunshots and the shriek of squealing tires.

"Chaos reigns as LycanZ infects Little Rock at an alarming rate. Revenants are everywhere, slaying everything in their wake. Find shelter immediately, and whatever you do—"

From out of nowhere, a bloodied male with golden eyes pounced on the reporter and ripped at her back with clawed hands. He bit into her neck and jerked his head back, tearing open her flesh like a rabid animal. He growled, and my skin ran cold as he leapt forward and knocked the camera over.

"Oh my gosh," I exclaimed in a half whisper, bringing a hand to shield my lips. The heat of tears burned my eyes and I shook my head. So many were dying so quickly. How could Jonathan and I possibly survive this?

"Daytona." Jonathan captured my face in his hands, smearing away the tears on my cheeks with his thumbs. "It's gonna be okay—"

The sound of shattering glass made us both jump as a female revenant busted through the window above our couch. She tumbled across the leather cushions with a guttural cry and landed on all fours on the floor. Her clothes were torn and bloody, and her yellow eyes glowed in the darkness.