Chapter 35: Off with Her Head
Beth watches as Coraline moves slowly to the side. Beth reaches down never taking her eyes off Coraline and picks up the lamp once more. Feeling better with something in her hand to deflect blows Beth pushes everything aside and lets her senses free to focus.
"You are proving more of a challenge than I thought you were capable of. Then again you've always been a pain in my ass since you were a child."
"Then maybe you should have taken the hint and stayed away." Beth stepped forward and swung knocking Coraline to the side.
In her fall Coraline falls over one of the arm chairs by the fire and loses her hold on the blade and it disappears under the couch. Righting herself she vamps out and charges Beth, grabbing hold of the lamp using her strength to pin Beth to the wall.
"I'm stronger than you. You're practically a baby compared to me."
"You are looking a bit old," Beth spat knowing how vain she was. Remembering her training with Guillermo Beth stomps on Coraline's foot and shoves her off. They both retain their hold on the lamp and stumble around trying to kick and dislodge it from one another.
Coraline pushes and manages to break Beth's hold knocking her upside the head with the pole sending her stumbling back into the living room.
The world spins as Beth knocks the coffee table aside, tipping over Mick's contemporary wooden chair as Coraline hit her again sending her into the stairs. On her back Beth began to roll over to try and get up but Coraline was on top of her once more having dropped the lamp instead lifting her up with her perfectly painted nails.
Coraline threw Beth with ease across the room and into the column behind the couch her head catching the tree stump end table. "Now I'll finish you and take my new daughter."
Beth's head feels like it has exploded and things blur around her. Hearing Coraline talk about her daughter, her angel Kayla who is upstairs sick and alone right now spurs her on. Coraline is approaching and Beth turns her body to get up and catches sight of the machete under the couch. Falling to her chest she reaches under the couch gripping the handle of the weapon as she feels Coraline standing over her.
Beth grunts and turns over to her back to face Coraline keeping her hand hidden knowing she needed to make her blow count. Knowing she needed to get Coraline closer, her head still spinning she made a futile attempt to kick and was rewarded with a heel to the side before Coraline straddled her pinning her lower half as she'd hoped.
"I'm really over this," Coraline leaned forward and Beth struck.
Slinging her arm up Beth slammed the sharp blade into Coralines right shoulder. Coraline stumbled back and Beth managed to keep her momentum going and shoved Coraline to the side impaling her on the overturned wooden chair leg parallelizing her instantly.
Breathing hard Beth used her right hand to wipe the blood from around her eye as she surveyed the scene. Coraline was paralyzed but still alive. There was no movement from the hallway and she assumed her guards and Coraline's men had taken one another out, minus the one she'd staked.
The ringing she'd thought was in her head Beth soon realized had been the lofts phone. She had no idea where the phone was in the mess that was now the living room but knew she needed to call Mick and let him know what had happened.
Looking Coraline over Beth smiled with satisfaction seeing she was still bleeding from the silver blade in her shoulder. "I know you can hear me so listen closely. You have terrorized my life for far too long but your biggest mistake was trying to mess with my baby girl."
Beth gripped the handle of the machete and pulled it out of her shoulder easily. "Now you'll die and there will be no chance of you ever hurting my family again. I just want you to know that it's me ending your life."
Her whole body ached from their fight but she lifted the machete up and bring it down heavily severing Coraline's head in the first stroke. As the head rolled away from her body Beth dropped the blade and collapsed to the floor unable to stand for a moment, the room spinning around her. Still she felt a sense of calm wash over her knowing it was finally over.
Mick raced up the stairs at vampire speed with Ashton, Josef and a couple of men on his tail. He burst through the door and leaped over the bodies of men in the hallway and straight to the open door. His heart dropped from his chest seeing Beth collapsed on the floor, catching the scent of blood.
He was at her side in an instant lifting her up. Her beautiful blue eyes opened and she smiled up at him. "Beth baby are you okay?"
"It's finally over," she said feeling better.
Josef walked over to Coralines head and nudged it with the toe of his boot, "Looks like Blondie handled the situation."
Mick looked over and saw for the first time Coraline's headless body and her head under Josef's foot. He looked back to Beth, she looked like she'd been in a war but she was okay. "Is Kayla in the panic room?"
Beth nodded, "She was sleeping. I came down to get her Pedialyte and Coraline showed up."
Mick helped her to stand up checking her over once again before lifting her up in his arms. "I'm so glad you're okay. I don't know what I would have done."
Josef had already walked over and pulled out a glass and bottle of blood from the hidden fridge and handed it to Beth, whom Mick refused to put down. "I'm okay. Just a bit banged up is all. How's Candice?"
"Allie has done the best she can for her in the field. She's headed home with David to get her in the freezer and keep the infusions going."
"But she'll be okay?" Beth asked.
Mick nodded, "Looks that way."
Josef pulled out his phone and dialed a number, "We have a second location. We need clean up now." Josef continued giving the address to the loft and looked at Mick and Beth when he hung up, "A team will be here soon. Why don't you take Beth upstairs and clean her up. You don't want Kayla to see you like this."
Beth nodded and Mick started towards the stairs when Beth stopped him. "Wait Mick, the Pedialyte."
Mick couldn't help but grin. He was trying to take care of her and all the while she was still taking care of their girl. "Okay baby."
To Be Continued…
Evilous