Excerpt:
Donovan’s
cell phone pinged. He pulled himself into a small alleyway, away from the
stampede trudging back to their workplaces after lunch, and leaned back against
a building to read a text. His face screwed up in confusion. The text read, The
first thing we do, let’s kill all lawyers! Starting with you!
“What
the bloody hell?” he muttered. “Is this some kind of joke?” Donovan’s eyes
surveyed his surroundings. He gazed right, then left. It did not appear that
someone had made him the focus of their attention. Everyone was scurrying
about, like mice in pursuit of a big cheese. “Must be Finley,” he said. “Finley
is always plying me with lawyer jokes. He thinks he’s funny.”
Donovan
shrugged. Not funny at all. He left the alleyway and re-entered the mass
migration on the sidewalk. He approached the crosswalk at Michigan and Superior
and emitted a snort of frustration as the light changed and the crosswalk
filled with cars. He was bumped hard by someone behind him. Donovan was forced
to step into the street to regain his balance. A cab rushed by and narrowly
missed clipping his side. Donovan jumped back onto the sidewalk.
A woman
screamed and Donovan jerked his head around, trying to see what all the fuss
was about. The woman was pointing at him. Donovan frowned and turned away. God
save me from simpering females who saw the last issue of City Magazine. Donovan
had appeared on the cover after being named as one of Chicago’s most eligible
bachelors. Since then, he had learned that the female population was comprised
of women of questionable morals and distressing behavior. He was growing weary
of the attention. While his colleagues thought it a wise marketing strategy, it
had brought him nothing but unwanted female attention. He had become prey.
Vampires
were predators. They stalked their victims. Sometimes, they pursued them with a
vengeance. That was why he had joined the legal profession. His predilections
were well-suited to that particular world. Now, his role had apparently shifted
and he was not pleased.
Someone
tapped Donovan on the shoulder. “Sir? Are you alright? You’re bleeding. It
appears someone stuck a knife into your side.”
Donovan’s
mouth gaped and he turned toward the man who had spoken. Then he looked at
where the man pointed. There was indeed a knife sticking out of his left side
and a stream of his blood was flowing onto the sidewalk. He had a very high
threshold of pain. He hadn’t felt the knife thrust into his side. If it wasn’t
so appalling, he would be embarrassed. Donovan opened his mouth to reply. Then
the pain in his side exploded and his vision dulled. Slowly he slid onto the
sidewalk as if he planned to sit on the curb.
Then
everything went black.
Thanks for hosting "First, We Kill All the Lawyers" today! Happy Holidays!
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