Inferno

by Erica Stevens

  Cassie took an involuntary step back from them. “Guess that’s dinner,” Julian said softly, turning the beam away from them. Cassie groaned in disgust, her stomach twisted even harder at the thought. Julian glanced back at her, his eyes bright in the flash of light. “Sorry princess, but it’s true.”

  Cassie shot him a dark look, he merely grinned annoying back at her. Devon took hold of her hand, squeezing it gently as he pulled her a step closer to him. “There’s nothing that we can use down here,” Chris said.

  “And it’s creeping me out,” Melissa muttered.

  Melissa turned and hurried back up the steps, nearly bolting through the open door. Cassie was just as eager to follow her. She stepped back into the store, eagerly gulping down the fresh air. Luther glanced over from his position by the window, his glasses flashing in the small bit of sunlight that filtered through the thick curtains that had been drawn against the day.

  “Anything?” he asked softly.

  Cassie shook her head as she hurried back to her pizza. The rats had grossed her out, but they hadn’t diminished her appetite. The others eventually filed back out, filtering slowly throughout the store. Though she sensed their exhaustion, she knew that their curiosity about what had been done to them was far stronger. She licked the lingering remnants of spaghetti sauce from her fingers, trying to stall for some more time. She was not ready to get into the details of her ordeal, not ready to relive the nightmare that she and Julian had endured. It was inevitable though, they wanted and deserved answers, and she would rather get it done sooner rather than later. Turning to face them, she braced herself for the onslaught of their questions.

  Devon stood stiffly by her side, his shoulder brushing against hers as she moved. He seized hold of her hand, squeezing it gently for reassurance. Chris had taken up position on the other side of the door. Though he stared out at the street, Cassie knew his attention was focused on her. Liam and Annabelle were standing close together, Liam’s arms wrapped around Annabelle’s waist as he held her against his chest. Melissa and Luther watched her questioningly; Melissa’s onyx eyes sad and caring. Dani was sitting with her back against the counter, her head bent, and her red streaked hair falling forward. She looked even more uncomfortable than Cassie felt.

  “Are you ready to tell us what happened?” Devon inquired softly.

  Cassie swallowed heavily, her gaze darting nervously around the room again. They all stared at her inquisitively, except for Julian, who was scowling at the floor with his arms folded over his chest. Julian lifted his head slowly, meeting her panicked gaze briefly before giving her a small nod of encouragement. She took strength in his steady, calming presence, knowing that she would need his help if she was going to get through this.

  Licking her lips nervously, Cassie decided to just plunge in. She quickly filled them in on her capture and imprisonment. She didn’t talk about the torture she had experienced in there. She kept everything simple and short. She couldn’t look at them as she spoke, but remained focused on the ground until she finished, hating the anticipatory silence that filled the room when she was done.

  “What did they do to you in there Cassie?” Chris asked gently, his gaze keen and inquisitive. Though his strange looks were not as common as they had been, every once in awhile she would catch him staring at her oddly.

  She shook her head, unable to look at Chris again for fear she would start crying, and never stop. She didn’t want him to know of her suffering, didn’t want any of them to know about it. She wanted to keep them safe from it, sheltered and protected. She didn’t want Chris to know how much she had changed, how much she had been hurt, or the physical and mental torment that she and Julian had endured. He was too good to have to bear that burden with her.

  They all were.

  She turned away from Chris, ignoring his question as she focused on Dani. “Why did you turn on us?” she asked quietly, unable to keep the hurt from her voice. She had brought Dani into her home, thought of her like a sister, and she had betrayed them all.

  Dani glanced up at her; her gold flecked eyes were red and swollen from lack of sleep. The hostility within the room notched up a level as everyone focused their attention on her. “I didn’t want to,” she whispered miserably. “But…” she shook her head, her voice trailing off as a sob broke from her.

  “My brother went to The Commission after he left town, he told them about you, all of you.” Her gaze lingered briefly on Devon before turning toward Julian. Julian glowered back at her, his hands fisted, his shoulders ramrod straight. Dani turned quickly away from the hatred and malevolence in Julian’s gaze. “He was my brother; I had to help him when The Commission sent him back.”

  They all stood silently, staring at her expectantly, but she didn’t continue. “There’s more to that story!” Julian spat, taking a fierce step forward.

  Dani winced as she bit on her bottom lip. “Easy Julian,” Devon warned in a low growl.

  Julian glared at him for a moment before turning his attention back to Dani. “Either tell the truth, or I will get it from you. All I have to do is touch you, sort through the memories and pick out the ones I want. For the most part it can be painless, and the person need never know that I was there. But I vow that what I will do to you, will be anything but painless.”

  Dani gaped at him in horror; her eyes flew wildly around the room. Though Cassie wanted to feel pity for her, there was none. She couldn’t summon the strength for forgiveness and mercy, not for Dani. “I’ll destroy you if I get into your mind,” Julian growled. “I’ll make what they did to us in that place look like it was a day in the park!”

  “Julian,” Annabelle hissed, reaching for his arm in an attempt to calm him.

  Julian shook her off, taking another step toward Dani. “This bitch put us in that hell hole, and one way or another she is going to tell us why!”

  “Julian,” Cassie said softly. Though he had shaken Annabelle off, he didn’t shrug off her grasp as she seized gently hold of his arm. His reddened eyes slowly turned back to their electrifying blue as his gaze met hers. “It’s ok.”

  He stepped back nodding slowly, though he still hummed with anger. Devon’s hand tightened on Cassie’s, his eyes questioning as he studied her. He wanted to know what had happened in there, wanted to know what had been done to them, and just how close her bond with Julian was. He wanted more answers than Cassie had already given him. She just wasn’t ready to give them to him yet, if ever. She turned away from him, stepping in between Julian and Dani before Julian did grab hold of her. Cassie felt no forgiveness toward Dani, no sympathy, but Julian would hurt her, and they may need Dani later on. Her other friends would be safe around Julian, but Dani was fair game.

  “Why did The Commission send your brother, and you, after us? Why would they even come after us?” Cassie inquired.

  Dani glanced wearily up at her, the tips of her lashes were wet with unshed tears. For a moment Cassie was afraid that Dani wouldn’t speak, and that they would need Julian to drag the answers from her, but she finally did. “Because of you.”

  Cassie blinked in surprise at Dani’s soft words. Her gaze flew toward Devon as he stiffened angrily, a low growl emanating from him. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end, the resentment in the room notched up to a whole new level. Cassie glanced between him and Julian, whose eyes were a bright red again. She was growing fearful that between Devon and Julian she may not be able to keep Dani safe, and alive. She held a hand up, warding Devon back as she focused her attention on Dani.

  “What do you mean?” she asked softly.

  Dani glanced wearily at the hostile group surrounding her. Using the counter, she rose slowly to her feet. She looked braced for an attack. Cassie’s eyes widened at the girl’s behavior, her heart trip hammered with the knowledge that she was not going to like what Dani had to say. “When we were younger Joey and I came to this town. Before our Guardian was killed in The Slaughter, he told Joey about this town, and to come
here if something ever happened. The Commission took us in, kept us with them after The Slaughter, and helped us to survive until we were ready to go out on our own. They also taught us about our heritage.”

  Cassie stared at her, a growing feeling of unease and queasiness moved through her body. They were just beginning to scratch the surface of Dani’s betrayal, and already Cassie wasn’t sure she wanted to hear anymore. Dani had lied to them from the beginning; she and Joey had led them all to believe that they had been completely on their own after The Slaughter. That no one had helped them as they had struggled to survive on the streets. Cassie didn’t know why Dani had kept this a secret, but she was certain she wasn’t going to like the reasons behind it.

  “Why did you lie to us about your childhood?” Melissa asked softly.

  Dani licked her lips, shifting nervously as her gaze settled on the door. She looked as if she wanted to bolt. “When The Commission eventually sent us out in search of other Hunters and Guardians they told us not to let them know about this town. At least not until they knew if we could trust them. There was no way of knowing how The Slaughter had affected people, and how they now felt about The Commission. They never suspected anything like what we discovered with you and Devon; no one ever thought a Hunter and a vampire would fall in love. It was unthinkable. Unheard of.

  “I never thought it was wrong,” Dani breathed. “I thought your relationship was special, different; good.”

  Her eyes darted over the two of them, before glancing briefly at Julian. His lip curled into a snarl, his eyes darkened as he glowered at her. Cassie was irritated by the confusion and doubt she sensed from Dani, but then again Dani had witnessed Julian kissing her. And though Cassie knew what that kiss had meant Dani had no way of knowing. “It is,” Cassie said softly.

  Dani shot her a questioning look. Cassie met her gaze head on refusing to be judged by the girl that had nearly gotten her killed, and had gotten her tortured. “The Commission also wanted us to make sure that any of The Hunter’s we met was not The Hunter’s that have nothing,” Dani continued.

  Cassie started in surprise, stunned and completely mystified by her strange words. “The ones who have nothing?” Luther inquired a sharp edge to his voice.

  Dani nodded slowly, she swallowed heavily. “The evil ones amongst us. The Hunters that turn.”

  Horror rolled through Cassie, she took an involuntary step back as Dani’s gaze darted to her. Devon stopped her backward momentum, resting his hand in the hollow of her back as he sought to steady and comfort her. Cassie turned into him, needing his comfort more than anything right now. His arms wrapped tight around her as she rested her head against his chest, taking solace in his solid presence.

  Luther released the curtain he had been holding as he took an angry step toward Dani. “The evil ones? Are you mad?”

  Dani shook her head fervently. “No, it’s true! There are evil ones amongst us, and Cassie is one of them!” Devon hissed sharply, his hands tightened almost painfully upon her. Dani shook her head quickly, her hair flying around her as she took a frightened step back. “Or that’s what I believed anyway. It’s what I was told from the time I was a child!

  “They said that the ones with no power would eventually turn into mindless monsters that sought to destroy everything in their path! When I first met Cassie I didn’t believe what they had said, I thought that they had lied to me, or that they had been wrong. I thought that there was no way she could turn against someone, no way she’d hurt someone, and then…”

  “And then you saw me kill Isla,” Cassie said softly when Dani trailed off. Her mind flashed back to that night, and the overwhelming anger and hatred that had consumed her. She had been a monster that night, and if it hadn’t been for Devon she very well could have been lost to the rage trying to overtake her. “And you were scared.”

  Dani’s lower lip began to tremble, and despite her best intentions not to have it happen, Cassie felt her heart softening toward the girl. “Yes, and I thought that they had been right. I knew then that there was something wrong with you, and I was so very frightened that one day you would hurt one of us.”

  “And you called your brother?” Luther inquired his voice tight with anger and disbelief.

  “Yes. When Joey left me behind, he went back to the people that had helped to raise us. He came back here.”

  Horror curdled through Cassie as the true depth of Dani’s betrayal set in. “He didn’t leave you behind because you actually wanted to stay. He left you behind to spy on us.”

  Panic flared through Dani as her eyes darted wildly around. Though she appeared to be looking for an escape, they all knew that there wasn’t one for her. Her mouth opened and closed, her eyes rolled wildly in her head. She looked like a crazed horse that had been trapped and cornered. The only difference was that Cassie would have sympathy for the horse; she had none for this girl.

  “Well!?” Chris shouted causing Dani to jump in surprise.

  “Yes,” she admitted in a strangled voice.

  Chris sneered at her, his eyes raked her with disgust. Melissa remained unmoving, her face hard though her eyes narrowed minutely. Luther cursed loudly as he slammed his fist into the sill. “We trusted you!” he exploded.

  Cassie jumped in surprise, more rattled by Luther’s lack of composure than Dani’s admission. Luther was always stoic, he was almost robotically in control of his anger. “Luther,” Melissa said softly.

  Luther scowled at her as he turned on his heel, pacing restlessly back to the window. He cast one last scathing glare at Dani before turning his attention to the day beyond. “What happened when you called your brother?” Cassie inquired, surprised by how composed her voice still was.

  Dani swallowed nervously, her hands clenched tightly before her. Though she knew that she was surrounded by people that hated her, she seemed to have regained her composure. “The Commission has grown stronger over the years; some lost members have even been relocated. They have been working here for many years doing new research.”

  Dani broke off; her gaze focused on her hands. She was twisting them back and forth in what had to be a painful manner. “They were trying to create more Hunter’s!” Chris gasped, taking a startled step back as the realization sank in.

  Cassie shuddered, burying her face in Devon’s chest for a moment as she tried to retain her swiftly unraveling composure. “Yes,” Dani said softly. “Our race needs to be rebuilt before it is completely extinguished. Otherwise there will be no protection for the human race against the vampire’s.”

  “We are not all monster’s you know,” Liam grated.

  Dani nodded, her hands turning red as she continued to twist them. “I know that, but for the most part, you are.”

  Liam glared at her for a moment longer, drawing Annabelle closer to him. “In order to create new Hunter’s you need vampires. That’s why I was captured,” Julian deduced.

  Cassie lifted her head as Julian began to pace restlessly back and forth, running his hand through his hair. He was like a caged tiger ready to snap, but he had to stay in control for awhile longer. They needed more answers, and as much as she had grown to despise Dani, she could not allow Julian to kill her while in a state of rage. Cassie truly believed he was trying to better himself, and killing Dani was not the way to do it.

  “Yes,” Dani admitted. “And they also needed you for your power. They tried using younger vamps, but it didn’t work out well. The Commission felt that if they could get their hands on an Elder, it might make a difference. They felt that might be the key that they were missing in order to get the combination of human and vampire blood right.” Julian shot her a fierce glare, his eyes momentarily flaring red.

  “And they couldn’t take Devon, they couldn’t be sure that they would be able to keep his ability for mind control locked down. And they didn’t know if they could keep him under control, especially…” She broke off, her gaze darted to Cassie. “Especially since they didn’t think they would b
e able to control Devon with Cassie around. So they took Julian.”

  Devon’s hands had tightened on Cassie; his attention was focused on Julian, who looked about ready to rip the store apart with his bare hands. Cassie clung to Devon, fighting back the shudder of terror and dread that wanted to shake her. Devon rested his cheek against her hair. “Breathe love, just breathe.”

  She hadn’t even realized she had stopped breathing until that moment. It exploded out of her, leaving her shaken and on the verge of tears. They wouldn’t have been able to control Devon in there. He would have lost complete control of himself if he had seen what they did to her every day, seen what they had put her through. And they probably would have destroyed him. The thought left her hollow, cold, barely able to breathe as she held him against her, trying not to shed the tears in her eyes.

  “But they couldn’t figure it out,” Dani continued in a shaky voice, watching them wearily. “Everyone knew that The Hunters had been created from vampires, but no one knew how, and no matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t get the combination right.”

  Cassie inhaled sharply, her fingers dug deeper into Devon’s arm. He held her gently, his hands rubbing over her as he tried to put some heat back into her suddenly chilled body. “So they ended up creating monsters,” Cassie whispered. “They created the monster’s that are running loose in this town right now?”

  “Yes, but they didn’t mean to. They were trying to do right; they were trying to protect people.”

  Cassie stared at her in disbelief, her mouth suddenly dry, and her heart thumping loudly in her chest. “How did I not know anything about this?” Luther demanded fiercely. “Why had I never heard about the other Hunter’s like Cassie, but you were told about them?”