MOON-KISSED BLOOD

POV: Aria

The coffee machine burst just as my shift was supposed to end.

Hot liquid and glass flew everywhere. I jumped back, my heart pounding as steam filled the tiny college coffee shop. My boss, Mrs. Peterson, rushed over with a mop, shaking her head.

"Third machine this month," she grumbled. "Aria, honey, just go home. I'll clean this mess."

I wanted to help, but thunder crashed outside so loud it made the windows shake. The storm had been growing all evening, and now it sounded like the sky was falling apart.

"Are you sure?" I asked, grabbing my bag. "I can stay and—"

"Go!" Mrs. Peterson waved me toward the door. "That storm's getting worse by the minute. You need to get home before the roads flood."

I pushed open the door and quickly got soaked. Rain hit my face like tiny pins, and the wind was so strong I had to hold onto the door frame to keep from falling over. Lightning lit up the dark campus, making everything look like a scary movie.

My phone buzzed with a text from my roommate Jessica: WHERE ARE YOU??? Storm warnings everywhere! Get home NOW!

I ran to my beat-up Honda Civic, struggling with my keys as rain poured down my back. The car was fifteen years old and made weird noises, but it was all I could afford. I slid into the driver's seat, dripping wet and freezing.

The engine made a grinding sound before finally starting. I turned on the heat, but only cold air came out. Of course. Just like everything else in my life, it was broken and I couldn't afford to fix it.

As I pulled out of the parking lot, my mind went to all the things I was stressed about. Finals were next week, and I hadn't had time to study because I'd been working double shifts. My rent was due in three days, and my bank account had exactly forty-seven dollars in it. Mom's medical bills were piling up again, and I didn't know how I was going to help her this time.

Sometimes I felt like I was drowning, and no one could see me going under.

The radio sparked to life as I drove toward the main road. "—severe weather warning for Orleans Parish. Residents are warned to stay indoors. Additionally, officials are investigating reports of dangerous animals loose in the bayou area. Several big, unidentified creatures have been spotted near—" Static cut off the announcer's voice. I tried moving stations, but all I got was noise and weird screeching sounds. Great. Even my radio was giving up on me.

I had to take the back road home because the highway was already flooded. This route went past the edge of the bayou, through dark swampland that always made me worried. Spanish moss hung from the trees like ghostly curtains, and the water looked black and endless.

Lightning flashed again, and for just a second, I could have sworn I saw something moving between the trees. Something big.

I pressed harder on the gas pedal. The sooner I got home, the better.

That's when I heard the screaming.

It wasn't like any dog I'd ever heard. This sound was wild and angry and... hungry. It made my skin crawl and my hands shake on the driving wheel. The howl seemed to go on forever, rising and falling like a sound.

Then another howl answered it. And another.

"What is that?" I whispered to myself, leaning forward to peer through the rain-covered window.

My phone rang, making me jump so hard I swerved slightly. Jessica's name showed on the screen.

"Aria!" she yelled before I could even say hello. "Where are you? I've been calling for an hour!"

"I'm almost home," I said, trying to sound calmer than I felt. "The coffee shop machine exploded and—"

Another howl cut through the night, so close it seemed to be right outside my car. This time, Jessica heard it too.

"Oh my God, what was that?" she gasped.

"I don't know," I admitted, my voice getting shaky. "The radio said something about dangerous animals in the bayou, but—"

My headlights caught something in the road ahead. My heart stopped.

Eyes. Glowing yellow eyes, reflecting the light like mirrors. But they were too high off the ground to belong to any normal animal. Whatever was standing in the middle of the road was huge.

"Aria? Aria, are you there?" Jessica's voice sounded far away.

I slammed on the brakes, but the wet road made my car slide. The eyes disappeared into the darkness, but I could feel something watching me. The hair on my arms stood up, and every instinct I had screamed at me to run.

"I have to go," I whispered into the phone.

"Wait, don't hang up—"

I ended the call and gripped the steering wheel with both hands. Rain pounded on the roof like drumbeats, and the wind rocked my small car back and forth. I sat there for what felt like hours, afraid to move, afraid to stay.

Finally, I took a deep breath and pressed the gas button. I had to get home. Whatever was out there, I couldn't sit in the middle of the road all night.

But as my car crept forward, I spotted something that made my blood turn to ice.

In my rearview mirror, I could see headlights. A big, black SUV was following me, staying just far enough back that I couldn't see the license plate. When I sped up, it sped up. When I slowed down, it slowed down too.

My heart started racing again. Between the strange howls, the glowing eyes, and now this car following me, every nerve in my body was screaming that something was very wrong.

I scrambled for my phone to call 911, but my hands were shaking so badly I dropped it. It clattered to the floor under my seat, just out of reach.

The SUV's headlights got brighter in my mirror. It was getting closer.

That's when I realized the horrible truth that would change my life forever: they weren't just following me.

They were hunting me.