For a brief moment I wondered how Max had found me so easily, but that was a question for another time. Right now, I had to find my father.
Looking at the time on my watch, I realized it was too late to ring the bell. The lights were out, and I couldn’t hear a peep of noise from inside.
Max stood beside me, a surprisingly comforting presence to my energized state. “What’s the plan?”
“I’m going left; you go right. Check all the bushes, and watch where you step because he could be anywhere.”
He nodded.
My stomach squirmed with unease as I made my way over the fence and began my search of the backyard, checking every inch of the property until I ran into Max. “Anything?”
He held his hands to the side with a questioning look on his face, probably wondering where I thought he was hiding my father if he’d found him. “Nothing.”
Okay, so great detective skills didn’t come with being an ass-kicking vampire huntress.
My heart hammered against my chest as I tried to work out where my dad could’ve been at the same time as trying to suppress the fear that the vampires already had him. After all, they knew I would come looking for him, Max did as well. My father could’ve been at home when the vampires had arrived and was too drunk to try to fight them off.
That sounded like my father.
“Where else could he be?” Max asked.
I threaded my fingers together behind my head and scanned the area, trying to remain in control. I was two seconds away from losing my cool and needed to keep my shit together for the sake of my family.
I should never have gone in the car with Max. I should’ve retraced my father’s steps from the liquor store. I should’ve...
My eyes went wide. “Mason.” The brat probably didn’t listen to me and stopped by our old house before heading to our meeting point. For all I knew, he could’ve already had Dad.
“What about Mason?” he asked.
“Never mind.” I took a few steps back, toward the road, wanting to make sure I wasn’t wrong and had missed my dad along the drive there. “Meet me at the corner of Park Avenue and McGregor Street.” Without waiting for him to respond, I broke into a jog heading toward the liquor store, which was a completely different path from where our current house was located. Checking every perceivable spot my father could’ve passed out, I came up empty—as I’d suspected.
With my patience wearing thin, I took off down the road in the direction I’d come from, stopping when I saw the lights of the van.
Max skidded to a stop, missing me barely by a yard. The look in his eyes gave me all the warning I needed for the lecture I was about to receive.
I jumped into the passenger seat and said, “Go to the end of the road, turn left, take the first right then left.”
Reluctantly, he pressed his foot down on the accelerator while casting glances at me.
I rolled my eyes. “Just say whatever it is you want to say.”
His grip tightened on the steering wheel, and a few moments later, he said, “You take too many unnecessary risks.”
I frowned. “What risks? I didn’t take any risks.”
Max raised a brow as he cast me a sideways look. “I could’ve hit you.”
I chuckled then quickly snapped my lips closed when I saw how serious he was. “I had it under control.”
He barked out a laugh. “You may be the one, but you need to work on your impulsiveness and reckless nature.”
I scrunched up my nose. “I thought you said you believed in me.”
“I do, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have certain negative attributes you need to overcome.”
I scoffed. “Did you ever think those negative qualities are exactly what I’m supposed to have? They’re what makes me the one?” As soon as the words left my mouth, I knew it wasn’t true. My body was all that was needed for the huntress to inhabit. I was the perfect vessel that would allow her to rise again.
Looking out the window my stomach churned with a mixture of fear and dread. Every second that ticked by was another second off my clock, and it was pissing the crap out of me. I didn’t want to give up my life to save the world. I know that made me a selfish bitch, but it was the way I felt.
But my wants didn’t matter. I owed it to the people I cared about. I could save them all from a life of suffering. I could not only make the world a better place, but I could also serve justice to the lives the demons had destroyed.
“I’m sorry,” Max said as we pulled up at a traffic light.
I snapped my head in his direction, unable to believe the words that came out of his mouth, and was met with regret swirling in his eyes, a smolder to the fire that usually resided in them. “Thanks, but what for?”
“For saying that to you. For accusing you of being a vampire. For wanting to kill you. The list goes on,” he said. “I could’ve been the one to destroy you.”
I shook my head slowly. “You don’t need to apologize. I get it. After everything you went through.” I glanced at the still visible scars on his neck before returning my gaze to his. “I get it. And you’ve more than made up for it.” I smiled, trying to ease his regrets.
The lights turned green, and he focused his attention on the road. “And I will continue to do so.”
Pity.
I didn’t like pity. Or regrets. “Own your mistakes, and don’t hold onto regrets. They are what make us who we are. We might never have known who I was if it wasn’t for you. I would’ve still gone out looking for Mason, but I only bit that vampire because of you.”
Max snapped his head in my direction and looked at me in a way he’d never looked at me before.
Parting my lips, I sucked in a sharp breath as our eyes locked, connecting on another level—an understanding that hadn’t been there before. It was in that moment I realized the true magnitude of my role in this world. The huntress already lived inside of me, ready to fight when I was ready to give up.
Her soul had already marked mine, getting ready to take over.
I bit my lower lip and looked away, unable to bear the reality that we would never be.
“Mason’s in there,” I said, my skin buzzing under the surface. I was on edge, and I wasn’t sure if it was because of the tension between Max and me, the fear that Mason may not have our father, or the danger all around us.
Max pulled up along the curbside and switched off the engine. “How do you want to do this?”
I frowned as I climbed out of the car and headed toward Joe’s. The car Mason and I had stolen was parked a little way up the street, and as far as I could tell, there was no one inside it. As I neared the entrance to the diner, the smell of fresh, stone-baked pizzas assaulted my senses. It had been so long since I’d had a slice, and my mouth was watering with desire. That crap Lana made me eat tasted like dog food in comparison, and I wondered if I had subconsciously suggested Mason to hide out here just so I could grab a slice—or ten.
As I pushed open the door, Max caught up and glared at me. “I guess we’re going for obvious retrieval and not worrying if there are any vampires around. Screw any civilians that might get caught up in the war.”
I raised a brow as I paused in the doorway. “There are no vampires here.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I can smell them.” I grinned and quickly ran my tongue across my fangs before snapping my mouth shut so as not to freak anyone out.
10
Entering the restaurant was like stepping back in time. I’d only been gone for a few weeks, but I was so far removed from this life it was painful. I should’ve missed it, but I didn’t. Looking around at the crowd I used to run with, I felt sorry for them. They were living a lie, not knowing the true world they lived in. As much as I wished Mason was never taken, I never wanted to go back to being as naïve as they all were.
Max stood behind me, brushing his chest against my shoulder. He leaned down and whispered in my ear, “There he is.” He curled
his hand around my hip and gave it a gentle nudge to the right.
Following his direction, my gaze landed on my brother—and our dad. Mason was surrounded by my friends, completely in his element, with our father passed out beside him, slouched against the wall, head back, and a gurgling-snoring sound coming from his wide-open mouth.
For a brief moment, I felt relieved. Then all heads turned in our direction.
“Kali’s returned from the grave!” Jacob yelled.
“She’s going to suck our blood,” Kirsty said in her best Dracula impersonation and fell into a fit of laughter. They were all clearly off their heads, and for once I was glad I was clean. Actually, I was far from clean. The effects the vampire blood had on me were better than any hit I’d gotten from any drug I’d taken.
“Show us your fangs,” Charlie said with a straw shoved over each of his canines.
The rest of the table cracked up laughing as Mason sat there with an apologetic look on his face.
I gave him a closed-lip smile then strode toward them and placed my hands on the table. “You mean these?” I flashed them my pearly whites and watched their faces drain of blood. I was so sick of hiding in the shadows, pretending I was something I wasn’t. My friends would’ve thought the worst when I disappeared, and now I had just confirmed their suspicion.
“Kali.” Max stood beside me and gave me one hell of a scornful look as he slowly shook his head.
The only person who was going to give the hunters away was the guy standing beside me, chastising me for my actions.
“Whoa.” Charlie stood and grabbed one of my knives from the sheath. His glistening eyes fixated on the way the light reflected off the blade. “Is this thing real?”
Ignoring him, I snatched it out of his hand and placed it back in its sheath. Then I looked at Mason. “Let’s go.”
“What’s the rush?” Kirsty said in a sultry tone, her gaze fixed on Max as she flicked her rose gold hair over her shoulder and subtly pushed out her chest. The girl was blessed with boobs I could only dream of, and she certainly knew how to display her assets to her advantage.
To my relief, Max’s attention stayed on me, completely oblivious to her advances. Either that or he didn’t care to acknowledge her flirtatious ways. He was in protection mode—he was always in protection mode. Even when we were in the compound, he was still on edge, almost as if he didn’t trust that Orphelia could keep the protection wards secured around the compound.
Max maneuvered his way around the table, slipped his arm under my father’s body, and lifted him onto his feet.
Mason stood and grabbed Dad from his other side. “See you guys around.”
“That’s it?” Kirsty asked. “You’re leaving already?” She pouted her lips.
Again, Max ignored her. He paused beside me. “Let’s go.”
I nodded. I had no plans to stay there any longer than necessary. I just wanted one thing.
Pizza.
Leaning over the table, I grabbed a slice of pepperoni, my mouth watering as the cheese stretched then snapped. “Later, dudes.”
Taking a bite, I spun around and ran smack into my best friend. “Ashley.”
A wave of emotions swept over me as she wrapped her arms around me, almost trapping the pizza slice between us.
“Holy shit,” she said, squeezing me tighter before releasing her grip on me. “I can’t believe you’re back. Mason said you were alright, but you know his idea of okay and my idea of okay are two totally different things.”
Guilt clawed its way up my chest as I stared at her eager face, filled with relief. By the look in her eyes, she probably thought she was never going to see me again. We’d been inseparable since we were kids and now… Now, I had to leave again.
The smile dropped from her eyes, quickly turning into apprehension. “What?”
“She’s got fangs,” Charlie said, baring his own tiny human ones.
Her eyes practically popped out of their sockets. “You’ve turned?”
I shook my head. “It’s not what it seems.”
Ash’s gaze homed in on my teeth and widened. “Holy shit.” She took a step back. Ash, unlike the others, rarely touched drugs. Before Mom died, I never dreamed I would ever snort any substance up my nose, let alone swallow or smoke something that was made in a backyard chemistry lab. After… I needed to escape. But Ash took her best friend duties to a whole other level. Most people would’ve given up on me. Not Ash. And I was about to walk out on her again.
“I’m not a vampire,” I said, trying to come across as my old easy-going self, which was almost impossible with my heightened senses. “I just have these.” I pointed to my teeth.
“Don’t trust her,” Jacob snickered. “She wants to eat you.” He made a disgusting slurping sound that made me want to gag him.
The others barked out uncontrollable laughs, a tell-tale sign they were under the full effects of the drug high.
Unable to put up with their shit any longer, I grabbed her wrist and dragged Ashley away from the others. Stopping near the bathroom door, I said in a hushed tone, “Look, I know this is freaking you out, and I wish I could sit down and tell you everything that’s happened since I’ve been gone, but I don’t have time to give you a proper rundown.”
“What do you mean you don’t have time?”
Max opened the door to the restaurant and called out, “Kali, we have to go—now.”
“Who the hell is that?” she asked. The look of fear in Ashley’s eyes was digging into my heart like a rusty knife.
She was like family to me, and after these last few weeks of thinking I was going to bring her back to the compound, I wasn’t sure she would choose to leave her family to come stay with me. I furrowed my brows. No one said she had to stay. “I have to go, but I want you to come with me so I can explain.”
“I can’t just leave,” she said. “My parents will freak out if I don’t come home tonight.”
“Kali,” Max called again. “They’re on to us.”
Shit. Of course, the Society was on to us. They probably had a GPS tracking signal implanted in me, not just the vans.
Ashley screwed up her face in confusion. “Who is that? And who are they?”
“That’s what I want to explain to you, but we have to go now.” When she didn’t move I said, “Do you trust me?”
She stared at me for a few moments then nodded.
“Kali!” Max snapped, irritation swirling in his eyes. The guy looked seconds away from throwing me over his shoulder and dragging my ass back to the hunters. As enticing as that sounded, I owed it to him to do the right thing. He’d stuck his neck out for me tonight, and I wasn’t going to let him pay for my actions.
“You ready?” I asked Ashley.
With her mouth slightly ajar, completely lost for words, she nodded again.
I took her by the hand and dragged her outside.
Max placed his hand on my stomach, stopping me from going further. “You can’t bring her.” He gestured to Ashley. “They’ll flip if we bring in a civilian, let alone two.”
I could barely process what he’d said because I was so caught up in the way my stomach had gone to mush thanks to the simple touch of his hand. He wasn’t even touching my bare skin, and I was turning into a hot mess.
“Civilian?” Ash asked. “What the hell is he talking about. Is this guy military? Have you joined the army?” She had her voice back and was slipping into panic mode.
“Uh,” I shoved my inappropriate thoughts to the back of my mind. “He’s talking about some ridiculous rule the Society has in place. But lucky for you, I don’t give a shit about their rules.”
“Who’s the Society?” Ash asked. “Are they a secret government agency? Were they the ones who took Mason?”
Max gave me a look telling me not to say any more about them.
Nothing about the hunters’ secrecy made sense to me. Maybe if the humans didn’t know vampires existed, but they did. They would’ve been relieved
to know that there were hunters out there, protecting them from the monsters that hunted them.
According to Lana, I only had a few weeks until I was no longer in control of myself, and I wasn’t going to leave my best friend in the dark. She needed to know the truth. Hell, everyone needed to know the truth, but I would settle for just telling Ashley.
Keeping his gaze locked with mine, I said, “The Society is a group of hunters that protect humans from the shadows.”
Ash’s mouth fell open. “Hunters?”
Max breathed out harshly as he shook his head, pissed off at me for breaking the sacred code of silence.
Mason popped his head out of the back of the van. “Guys, we gotta go. They’re about two minutes away.”
Those GPS tracking systems in the vans were both a lifesaver and a hindrance. The other hunters knew where we were, and we knew where they were.
“Shit,” Max said. “We don’t have time for this.” He shook his head again. “Get in the van.”
“Not without her.” I pointed to Ash.
“Yeah, you’ve already made that clear.”
I bit down on my smile. “Thank you.”
The corner of his lips tipped up. Then he headed toward the driver’s seat, jumped in, and started the van.
“Come on.” I hopped in the back of the van, being careful not to tread on my father, who was sprawled out across the floor, already snoring.
Ash paused a few feet away from the van. “You’re not going to stick a bag over my head and drag me off to some vampire lair to use me as a blood bag, are you?”
I rolled my eyes. “Get in here.”
A grin crept across her face as she climbed in the back and slid onto the bench seat beside Mason, her eyes going wide when she spotted the arsenal of weapons strapped onto the divider between the back and front seats.
I closed the back doors then took a seat on the bench opposite Ash and Mason. Seeing her sitting there, face pale, in a world she didn’t understand, it hit me that I should’ve left her alone. She wasn’t a hunter. And as far as I could tell, she wasn’t in any danger. Lana had said the vampires would come after everyone Mason cared about, but so far, all they had done was turn my place upside down and possibly wait for me to arrive. There’d only been a handful of them, which was a little unusual if they suspected they were going to go up against the one.
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