Blayke

by Dawn Sullivan

  Be vigilant, sweetheart. In this world, it is kill or be killed. Do not hesitate, no matter what may happen, and always follow your instincts.

  Once your powers have been activated, the creatures of the night will know who, and what, you are. They will see you as the enemy and will hunt you, doing anything and everything they can to eliminate you.

  I have enclosed a ring in the envelope with this letter. Place it on your finger now. It will help protect you, and will let our fellow hunters know that you are a part of the Jackson lineage. This is very important. This ring, along with the mark that all hunters in our family are blessed with, is the only way that you will be trusted.

  Come home to me, little one, where I can protect you. The ring will show you the way.

  Love,

  Your mother, Alyiah

  I read the letter twice before I folded it and put it away. Retrieving the ring, I held it up in front of me. It was a sapphire, and the design matched the Jackson family crest that I had seen on the tapestry. Slowly, I slid it onto the ring finger of my left hand, gasping when a bright light shone out from it in all directions before gradually dimming.

  “The ring was spelled by a very powerful, magical being to protect you,” my dad said quietly. “The same person also altered your memories from the time before you came to live with us. She wanted you to believe that you were our daughter, so that there would be no questions asked.”

  “You mean like a witch?”

  “Yes, although she prefers the term sorceress, as do most people you would consider witches.”

  I looked from Dad to Chandler, and then back again. With everything that was happening to me right now, it wasn’t hard to believe that witches existed too.

  “Who was she?”

  Dad hesitated before replying, “Your grandmother.”

  “Alyiah’s mom?” It was all just too much to take in at once. “I don’t understand,” I whispered softly, glancing back down at the ring that still glowed softly on my finger. “Why is this happening to me now?”

  “Because all hunters come into their powers on their sixteenth birthday, Blayke. Your mother sent you away to keep you safe. She was praying that you wouldn’t have to become a part of the life that she is forced to live. Not everyone does.”

  “Leo,” I murmured, remembering Alyiah mentioning him in the dream.

  Dad’s eyes narrowed, as he slowly nodded. “Yes, your uncle never received the gift. It is said that only the strongest are chosen to protect the world from the demons who threaten it.”

  There was that word again. Demons. An image of the man from my dreams with dark red eyes entered my mind, and I pushed it back down ruthlessly. I wasn’t ready to find out if it was real.

  “Wait, you said it happens when we turn sixteen. I won’t be sixteen until December.”

  Chandler shook her head, resting her hands lightly on her hips as she glanced over at Dad. “No, Blayke, your birthday was actually yesterday. Mom and Dad had it changed when a new birth certificate was drawn up for you in case anyone tried to find us.”

  “And you knew about this all along?” The betrayal I felt was painful and fierce.

  “I found out when I was very young,” Chandler admitted. “They had to tell me. They didn’t have a choice.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because, like you, I am to be a part of the life we left behind.”

  My eyes snapped to hers, “You’re one of these hunters too?”

  Chandler shook her head, “No. I’m a sorceress, Blayke, but I don’t mind the term witch. It is my duty to fight by your side. I’ve been in training since I was four years old, after I accidently popped one of the tires on Dad’s car.” She shrugged as a small grin appeared, “He was going somewhere, and refused to take me with him.”

  I looked over at Dad. “You’re a…?”

  “Sorcerer,” he finished.

  “And Mom?”

  “Amelia is human, nothing more. I met her when I was twenty-two years old, and fell hard. I drug her into the life I led, and she was so strong and courageous. She even fought with us a couple of times, but then we had Chandler. Hunting demons was no place for a child. I was looking for a way out when Alyiah came to me. She said that she needed someone to take her daughter far away from Angel’s Pass. She wanted her to have the chance to live a normal life, something Alyiah herself never had. She was hoping all of this would pass you by, Blayke.” Dad reached out and cupped my cheek gently, “We were all hoping it would.”

  Biting my lip, I fought tears as my gaze went to Chandler. “What if I wasn’t one of these slayers?” I asked her softly. “Would you have to go back by yourself and fight?”

  “Chandler has always had the choice to go or stay,” my dad said, wiping away a tear from my cheek that slipped free.

  “I am your sorceress, Blayke,” Chandler said. “I fight for and with only you.”

  “Mine?”

  Chandler nodded solemnly. “I will pledge my allegiance to you. I will go back with you, and I will fight by your side. I will follow your lead, no one else’s. That is my choice.”

  Taking a deep breath, I swallowed hard and nodded. “Now what?”

  “I know that you have more questions, but they can wait one more day. Your training will start tomorrow,” Dad said. Giving me a hug, he muttered, “Right now I have to go back upstairs and face your mother.”

  After he left, I turned to Chandler. “Just answer one more question for me. Please.”

  “Okay.”

  I hesitated, unsure if I really wanted to know the answer. “Are…vampires real?”

  Chandler’s gaze darkened, and she nodded slowly, “Yes, very real. They are what we call the demons of the night.”

  After my sister gave me a hug and went upstairs, I walked back over to the tapestry hanging on the wall. Knowing everything that I did now, I could not just leave it down here in the dark, musty basement. It was beautiful, special, and deserved to be displayed. My parents obviously had not hung it anywhere upstairs for some reason, but that did not mean that I couldn’t keep it in my room. It was, after all, mine.

  Carefully removing it from the hooks that held it on the wall, I pulled it close and ran my hand down it. I was surprised to find that it felt soft. More like a thin blanket than the rough, coarse texture I was expecting. It was as if the picture had been painted on black velvet.

  After folding it carefully, making sure that it would not be damaged in any way, I cradled it close to my chest, resting my cheek against its softness. My life had just been turned upside down, and was spiraling out of control. My grandmother was a sorceress, and my biological mother a huntress, slayer of demons. My dad was a sorcerer, my sister a sorceress, and my biological father? If my memories were correct, he was what I was supposed to be fighting against as a slayer. Did that mean I would have to hunt him? The thought terrified me. I wanted to fight it, to deny that anything my father and sister had just told me was true, but deep down I knew it was.

  Slowly climbing the stairs, I made my way down the hall to my bedroom. Standing just inside the doorway, I looked around the room I had called my own for as long as I could remember. It all looked the same, felt the same, but I would never feel the same again. Hearing a noise outside, I walked over to the window and peaked out just in time to see my dad disappear into our old, rundown barn. Moments later, he returned carrying two large, black duffle bags. One he placed in the trunk of his car, one in Chandler’s. As if feeling my gaze on him, he slammed the trunk closed and glanced up. Smiling briefly, he sent me a quick wave before turning to reply to something my mother said as she stepped out of the house, shutting the door behind her.

  Turning away from the scene below, I walked over to my bed and carefully placed the tapestry down on it. Going to the closet, I found a black leather backpack that I hadn’t used in a couple of years. No matter what happened, or where we ended up, that beautiful dragon was coming with me. He was mine. Opening the bag, I slipped it
inside, along with a small photo album filled with pictures of me and my family, and a few other keepsakes I refused to leave behind when it was time to leave Blue River.

  My parents left the house before lunch, running some errands according to my father, but I knew it was more than that. My mom was not happy with the situation, and Dad was doing everything he could to help her adjust to the idea of going back to the life they used to live. I knew she would do whatever she had to because she loved me, but I hated seeing her so upset.

  I spent the rest of the day in my room, only coming out when it was time for dinner. My thoughts were consumed with what my future held, and what would be expected of me. I felt so lost, unsure if I could be what everyone wanted me to be. A huntress? I was just a girl, a teenager. How was I supposed to kill demons?

  Chandler had spaghetti simmering on the stove when Dad and Mom walked in, and I was setting the table. They were quiet, and I could tell my mother had been crying. She wasn’t the only one. I had shed my fair share of tears the first part of the day. Tears of disbelief, fear, anger. Unfortunately, it did not seem to matter what I wanted. My destiny had already been decided by the powers above.

  We ate in silence for several minutes before my father cleared his throat and said, “Tomorrow I will work with Blayke in the morning. After that, we will spend the rest of the day packing.”

  “Packing?” I asked, pausing with my fork halfway to my mouth.

  “Yes, but just what we need to take with us. We will only have two cars, so just pack the essentials. I want to be on the road by Monday at the latest.”

  “Monday? But what about school? Cheer? My friends?” I knew they said we would have to move, but in two days? I thought we would at least have a couple of weeks.

  “It isn’t safe for you here, Blayke,” my mom said quietly. “Once you received that mark, you became a target for every rogue out there. They can sense you now, and will be coming for you.”

  “Rogue?”

  Mom’s gaze met mine, her eyes shimmering with tears. “Daniel was right. We should have been more prepared for this. We should have been training you, just like he did Chandler. Now, you aren’t ready for anything. I’m so sorry, baby. I just wanted to keep you as far away from the past as I could.” Glancing at Chandler, she admitted, “Both of you. I was hoping if you didn’t receive the mark, if you weren’t forced to become a part of that life again, then Chandler wouldn’t join the fight against them either. I have been there. I know what that kind of evil is capable of.”

  Laying my hand on hers, I whispered, “It’s okay, Mama.”

  “No, it’s not,” she whispered, shaking her head in denial. “Because of me and my stubbornness, you have no idea what you are up against. They could come for you anytime, Blayke. The minute you received the Jackson mark, you became a target.”

  You could die, you and Chandler both, all because of me. I heard her thoughts, felt her fear flowing through me.

  “What’s done is done,” Dad said roughly, motioning to our plates. “We can’t change it. Let’s eat. Afterwards, we need to get some of the packing started before we go to bed.”

  We need to travel by day, when they can’t attack us. We should be ready to leave first thing Monday morning. There was a slight pause, and then Maybe we should leave tomorrow instead.

  I froze, slowly raising my eyes from my plate to where Dad sat across from me eating. I wasn’t able to hear his thoughts this morning, but it seemed that had somehow changed. I wanted to ask him about it, but didn’t know if I should admit to what I thought I could somehow do. Would he be mad? Would he feel like I was intruding somehow? It wasn’t as if I could help it, but I wouldn’t want anyone to read my mind and know what I was thinking. And what did it mean that I was able to hear him now when I couldn’t before?

  The back of my neck started to feel warm, and I reached behind me to rub it absently. There had to be some way I could block the thoughts of others rolling my way. It seemed invasive and wrong to listen to what my family was thinking without their knowledge or consent.

  “Pack your clothes tonight,” Dad told us. “Leave out just what you need for the next couple of days. Tomorrow we can box up the other things we want to take with us, and we will leave at first light Monday.”

  “Why?” I asked, already sure that I knew the answer, but wanting to actually hear him say it out loud. “Why don’t we travel at night?”

  Dad paused, his gaze going from Mom to Chandler, and then back to me. “Because, Blayke, they cannot be out in direct sunlight. That is one myth that people have gotten right about vampires over the years. Some of the older ones can handle dull rays of sunlight for a very small amount of time, but most can’t.”

  “What about garlic?” I asked. “And Holy water? Do they turn away from crosses?” I had seen several movies with vampires, but not once had I ever believed any of it to be true.

  “Garlic does absolutely nothing to them,” my dad scoffed. “They can eat the stuff if they want to. Neither does Holy water or crosses. There are only three ways to kill one of those demons.”

  “Well, four if you count magic,” Chandler broke in.

  “True.”

  The mark on my neck was getting hotter and hotter. I wasn’t sure why, but it was becoming almost painful. “Dad?”

  “Yeah?”

  “It’s hurting again,” I said, crying out as the mark heated up even more, paralyzing me with shock and agony for a moment.

  “What’s hurting?” When I didn’t answer right away, Dad pushed his chair back quickly and rushed around the table. “Blayke, talk to me. What hurts?”

  Clutching at my neck, I whimpered, “The tattoo. It’s burning!”

  Grabbing my hand and pulling it back from the mark, Dad moved my hair out of the way.

  “It’s glowing,” my sister whispered in awe.

  “We’re too late,” Dad said, backing slowly away from me. “They’re here.”

  “No!” Mom cried, rising from her chair and looking around in terror.

  “The Jackson mark is warning her that danger is near. It’s how hunters know vampires are close.”

  My vision blurred, and I squeezed my eyes shut tightly, shaking my head as images began to form. “The back porch,” I gasped, struggling to my feet. “Fire!”

  The smell of burning wood entered the room, and my dad stiffened, a muscle in his jaw ticking as he growled, “They are trying to flush us out. They fight better out in the dark.”

  Swallowing hard, I rasped, “There is just one in the back. Three more are waiting out front.”

  “How do you know?” Chandler demanded, as she tore open the pantry door and removed a shotgun.

  Wondering why I’d never seen it there before, I watched her check to make sure the gun was loaded. “Because I can see them.”

  My dad’s eyes widened in surprise, “You can see them?”

  “Yes, just brief glimpses,” I admitted, my body beginning to shake in terror. “And I can hear them, too. They don’t know who I am, just that I am a hunter, and they were drawn to me. The pull is strong.” I stood slowly, my gaze never leaving my father’s. “They want to taste my blood first. They’ve never tasted a hunter before. They want to drink from me, and then kill me.”

  “Listen to me carefully, Blayke,” Dad ordered gruffly, grasping my upper arms tightly. “They can’t get to you, sweetheart. It is very important that they don’t. You must live, not only because you are my daughter and I love you, but because the world needs you. Without hunters, there is no one to fight against the rogue vampires. You need to go now. Take Chandler with you. Your mother and I will hold them off as long as we can.”

  “No,” I cried out, struggling to free myself, “I can’t leave you. I won’t!”

  Dad pulled me close, hugging me tightly to him as he kissed the top of my head. “You don’t have a choice,” he said gruffly. “None of us do.”

  There was a loud crash, and my eyes widened when I looked behind him
to see the back door hanging off its hinges, and flames streaking in from the mud room. “They’re coming!”

  My mom quickly closed the distance between us, wrapping me in her arms. “You have always been the daughter of my heart,” she whispered. “No matter what happens, always remember that.” Turning me toward my sister, she gave me a slight push as she yelled, “Take her now, Chandler!”

  “Mom, please, come with us,” I begged, tears streaming down my face.

  Shaking her head, she smiled through her own tears, “I love you, baby. More than you will ever know.”

  I screamed as a window in the kitchen shattered, and watched in horror when a face appeared in the empty space. Bright red eyes stared at me, sharp fangs bared as a loud hiss filled the air. “Hunter.”

  Chandler cocked the gun and raised it. “Stay away from my sister,” she sneered, pulling the trigger.

  I gasped in shock, but Chandler didn’t give me time to think. Tossing the gun to my dad, she grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the basement door.

  “Wait!” I cried, yanking free of her and running into the living room. I had left my backpack with the tapestry in it on the couch, not wanting it to be far from me. I couldn’t leave it behind.

  “Blayke, we have to go!” my sister screamed. Grabbing my bag, I hurried back into the kitchen. I was able to get one last look at our parents before Chandler shoved me down the basement stairs into the darkness, following quickly behind me. “Hurry,” she urged, rushing past me when we got to the bottom of the stairs, “we have to get you out of here!”

  “But, where are we going?” There was no way out of the basement. The windows were too high up for us to crawl through, and I highly doubted we would fit through the narrow openings even if we could get to them.

  “This way,” Chandler said, opening the door under the stairs that led into a small closet. It was empty, except for a couple of boxes stacked in the back, but it would be a tight fit for both of us. I cringed when Chandler stepped inside, looking back at me, clearly waiting for me to follow.