Ravenous (Book 1 The Ravening Series) Read Online Free

disgusting creature. The tentacle like appendage moved with an eerie, rapid grace that was almost as captivating as it was repulsive. I found myself entranced by its slithering, snakelike movements. The tentacle was clear; it slithered over the ground before snagging hold of a man holding hands with a woman. My mouth dropped, my eyes widened, a scream tore up my throat. Before I could utter a sound, Cade swiftly slid his hand over my mouth. He pulled me against him, pressing my back to his chest as he held me tight. My knees buckled as I found myself barely able to remain standing. Cade helped keep me up, but I could feel a tremor in his powerful, taut muscles.
       The tentacle thingy slithered up the man’s leg before reaching his chest. It pulled back when it reached the man’s face like a cobra ready to strike. It remained there for a few moments before attacking with deadly, and startling, velocity. It sank into the man’s throat, burying itself deep within his body. The tentacle was clearly visible as it moved, slithering beneath the man’s skin as it made its way swiftly through his body. The clear tentacle began to fill with pulsating blood as the man suddenly, and violently, came back to life. Vomit rolled through me, and it was only the mortifying thought of throwing up on Cade’s hand that helped me suppress it.
       The poor man thrashed against the thing moving through him, his arms flailed wildly against the brutal assault being waged on his body. He grasped at the woman beside him, but she remained still as stone, oblivious to his pain. The man’s fingers tore at the invader, trying to pull it free, but his efforts were useless and only caused more blood to spill from his already brutalized throat. I gagged, choked, nearly fell as every muscle in my body collapsed.
       This time Cade was barely able to keep me up. I could feel the horror that filled his entire body as he clung to me. He took his hand away from my mouth, wrapping his arms around my waist he pulled me away from the window. I did not fight against him, there was no fight left within me. There was little of anything left within me besides fear and revulsion.
       Cade led me swiftly through the store. He dodged the shelves, and delicate artifacts, with a graceful ease that even through my numbing shock and horror, I was able to admire. We passed by the counter. A gray haired man stood behind it, a duster was clasped in the hand above his head as he faced the shelves behind the register. His spectacles gleamed in the light of the lamps dangling from the ceiling above him. My heart went out to him. I moved toward him, wanting to do something, wanting to wake him if I could, needing to get him out of here before that awful thing came for him.
       Cade’s hand tightened on mine, he shook his head at me as he continued to pull me rapidly forward. I wanted to fight against him, but I was ashamed to admit that I was too terrified to offer much of a protest. Cade opened a door in the back of the store and pulled me into the darkened stairwell. Closing the door behind us, he reached up to pull the string on a dim bulb. Light filled the narrow, steep stairway, but it did not reveal the bottom of the steps.
       Cade bent close to me, p ressing his lips against my ear. “Stay,” he breathed so quietly that I barely heard him over the loud rush of blood filling my ears.
       I remained where I was . A strange, uncontrollable shaking was starting to take hold of my body. My knees were trembling; I could not hold my hands still no matter how hard I tried. I wrapped my arms around myself, but it did nothing to ease the chill that had crept into my quaking bones.
       Even in this darkened stairwell, away from the street, I could still feel the vibrations the t hing caused within the building. I could still vividly see the man struggling against the awful creature greedily pulling the blood from his body. I felt nauseous again, and