Read Blood Judgment (Judgment Series) for Free Online

back a fresh bout of tears at the desperation and shame in his voice. “I promise.”
    “Don’t cry, Saranna. Nothin’s happened to me that I didn’t deserve.”

 
     
    Chapter Four
     
     
    JULIAN WALKED aimlessly, blood-hunger knotting his insides with a vengeance.
    His first hunting foray after fleeing the Chandler Building the previous evening had ended when he’d caught and fed on a rat. Though educational, the experience had been less than pleasant. His shame and disgust at drinking blood from a rodent had been bad enough, but, within minutes of draining the carcass, he’d become violently ill.
    Animal blood might not be on the menu, but he knew what was. Staggering pain twisted his guts. He folded his arms across his mid-section and bit his lip until he tasted blood.
    He growled, hating the slavish need for blood and the only way of appeasing it. Not that it mattered, he had to deal with it. Tonight. His self-control had already skated to the edge of restraint and partially slid over the brink.
    He’d tried to manage the hunger with a burger from a fast food place. It had stayed down all of ten minutes. He’d rightly suspected he would only be able to eat solids when the blood-need was under control. Which sucked, but at least he would be able to enjoy regular food when the gut-twisting craving was eliminated.
    Focused on pain, walking head down, he plowed into an unyielding bulk. He snapped his head up. Four large Vampire Control and Security Center officers blocked the sidewalk. Julian’s throat constricted, choking off his breath.
    “Watch where the hell you’re goin’, asshole.” A man the size of a tank brushed off his olive-colored coat with quick flicks of his hand. He had the look of someone who’d discovered he’d stepped in fresh dog shit.
    Julian’s stomach plummeted and he took several steps back. “Sorry,” he muttered.
    “What’s wrong with you?” Tank Man eyed him with open disgust.
    Most of the swelling and bruises had faded from his face, but enough remained that he stood out.
    “I asked you a question, boy.”
    “Nothing! Nothing’s wrong.”
    The officer’s gaze dropped from Julian’s face to his right hand.
    Oh, shit .
    Positive the officer had seen the tips of his fangs, Julian took another step back.
    Armed with guns, drugs, and shock devices, the officers were prepared for vampire aggression.
    Tank Man’s hand eased toward the pistol at his waist. “Well, well. Look what we have here.”
    Julian took the only option he had. He spun and fled.
    Curses pelted the air behind him and pounding boots attested to pursuit. But his strength and speed far surpassed theirs.
    A pop sounded a second before pain hit his back. He yelped and ran with everything he had. He sprinted across streets, unmindful of oncoming traffic, honking horns, and curses from agitated drivers.
    Panting for breath, he slipped into an alley and took cover in the shadows. Were they still looking for him? Hot, sweaty, and shaky, he stumbled forward.
    The bastards had drugged him. He clawed at his back until he hit and dislodged the dart that had unloaded a dose of tranq in him.
    His steps faltered. The alley spun in dizzying circles. He staggered and collided with a brick wall, sending pain zinging through his shoulder. Reeling, balance lost, he collapsed on the asphalt. He hit hard, shredding skin from his arms and cracking his knees on the unforgiving surface.
    He lay still, his mind swimming with a kaleidoscope of nonsensical images. When his thoughts gelled back together, he struggled to get his numb legs under him.
    Wasn’t happening.
    Within minutes, the officers clustered around him like crows at roadkill. His guts roiled. Trapped, he hissed.
    One of the men drove a boot into Julian’s side. Groaning, he tried to curl into a ball.
    “Want me to hit him?” The officer’s hand settled on a control device clipped on his belt. Except for two short silver prongs at the end, it resembled a little