“Maybe he wasn’t when you knew him,” I said, interrupting what I knew was about to become a loud argument between the two, “but it has been years since you’ve seen him, Alyiah. You need to understand that he could be a very different person than the one he was back then. You took something very important from him, which could have caused him to become something he would never have been before.” When her eyes met mine, I went on, “I remember what he looked like that night. He was angry, so angry I can’t believe he let us go. He wanted us both, Alyiah, and then you sent me away.” I sent you both away.
I stiffened, my eyes narrowing on her. “What do you mean you sent both of us away?” Was she talking about me and Alex, or something else?
Alyiah’s eyes widened in horror, and she stood quickly, grabbing the daggers and Dahlia’s hand. “Dahlia and I are going to go to my room and watch a movie while you are gone.”
“What did you mean?” I demanded, stepping in front of them to block her exit.
A muscle in her jaw ticked, and her voice was hard when she replied, “Stop trying to read my mind, Blayke. Trust me, you don’t want to know everything.”
“Is the truth too much to ask for?”
Alyiah stared at me for a moment, before she whispered, “You are so strong, Blayke, so brave and determined to take on the world. To save as many innocent lives as you can. You are just like I was at your age.” Her eyes misted over as she slowly shook her head. “I love you, my daughter. I always have, and I always will, but you couldn’t handle the full truth.” She pulled her eyes from mine and glanced at her mother, before turning to her father. “None of you could.” Taking Dahlia with her, Alyiah left the room without looking back.
It was quiet for a long moment, and then my grandfather pushed back his chair and stood. “It’s time, Blayke. Are you and your team ready?”
If you had told me a few months ago that there was such a thing as vampires, I would have laughed in your face. Now I was leading my own team of slayers to hunt them, and living a life I never would have dreamed possible. Not even in my worst nightmares. My gaze met Asher’s, and he nodded once, rising from his seat. Eben and Brielle stood, each facing me, and Chandler stood beside me. My team. One that I was trusting with my life, as they were me with theirs. “Yes,” I said, returning Asher’s nod, “we are ready.”
It was late when my grandfather pulled the SUV over to the side of the road. The clock on the dashboard said just before midnight. We were on the highway a couple of miles outside of town, surrounded by trees and darkness. Opening my door, I slid quietly out of the vehicle, raising my head to look at the moon and stars above. I wondered if my mother was watching me from wherever she was right now. Was she proud of me? I hoped so.
Hearing the soft click of doors behind me, I turned to face grandfather when he came around the SUV. “Remember what we talked about,” he said, placing his hands on his hips as he looked at us. “Stay alert, never hunt alone, and aim for the heart.”
“What if they aren’t here?” Brielle whispered, and I could hear the fear in her voice. I knew she was terrified, but when I asked her earlier if she wanted to stay home this time, she told me no. She was a slayer, and was needed to fight the battle against evil. She could not do that sitting at home waiting for us to come back. I had given in, even though a part of me was afraid she wasn’t ready. Were any of us really ready, though?
“They’re here,” Asher said gruffly, removing his sword from his back.
When Brielle’s eyes widened in shock, I murmured, “He’s right.”
“How do you know?” Eben asked, removing a dagger from a pocket on his cargo pants.
“Because they are hunters,” Chandler told him. “It’s what they do.”
Knowing they deserved more of an explanation than that, I lifted my hair, turning so they could all see the glow I knew was coming from the back of my neck. “My mark is burning,” I said quietly, “warning me that vampires are close.”
“How close?” Brielle whispered, quickly pulling out two of her own daggers, her eyes skating around the area.
My eyes met Asher’s. “Very close.”
“The cemetery is just beyond those trees,” my father said, pointing behind us. “Vampires love hanging out in cemeteries for some reason. The movies did get that part right.”
“Because they love death,” I said, removing my sword from the scabbard at my back. Fear sent a shiver up my spine, but I refused to let it overwhelm me. I was a Jackson, a huntress, and the world needed me. “Let’s go.” With one last look at my father, I turned and leaped over the ditch, landing in a crouch on the other side. Soon Asher and Brielle were on one side of me, Chandler and Eben on the other. “There are three of them,” I told them softly. “One female and two males, and they know we are here. They sensed us as soon as we got out of the car.”
“I feel them,” Asher muttered, “but they aren’t together.”
“No,” I agreed. “The moment we arrived, they fanned out into the woods to surround us.”
“What are we going to do?” Brielle whispered, but I heard the resolve in her voice. She may be frightened, but I was wrong earlier. She was ready to fight.
“We’re going to give them what they want.”
I looked over at Asher, my breath catching as the golds and browns of his eyes began to glow, swirling together. “What’s your plan?” he asked, gripping his sword tightly.
Cocking my head to the side, I smiled. “They have no idea how many of us are here. All they know for sure is there are two hunters. Asher and I will go to the cemetery first, and draw them in. The rest of you wait here for a couple of minutes, and then follow. They will be too focused on us and won’t realize that anyone else is out here.”
“How do you know?” Eben muttered, his gaze slowly tracking through the trees in front of us.
“Because they can’t sense you like they do us,” Asher said, a slow grin crossing his face.
“No,” I agreed. “That’s why they don’t know for sure how many of us there are. Also, they can’t resist the blood of a true hunter. It calls to them.” Reaching into my coat, I pulled out a throwing star. “Trust me,” I whispered, “it’s Asher and me that they want.”
“I go with you,” Chandler said, her eyes flashing in the dark night. “I am your sorceress, Blayke. I stay with you.”
“We won’t be separated for long, Sis. We need the element of surprise.”
Not waiting for a response, I slipped into the woods under the cover of the darkness. I felt, rather than heard, Asher right behind me. We had practiced this several times in the woods around The Manor, and stayed in sync as we moved silently through the trees. I paused when I saw the headstones just a few yards in front of me, and then continued when I heard the sound of some leaves rustling not too far from us. I was sure it was the female, and it was confirmed when her thoughts slipped through my mind. Finally, they are back. I’ve waited so long to taste one of them again. The human blood we have been feeding on is so weak compared to theirs. The power in the blood of a hunter is like nothing I have ever tasted before.
It didn’t take long to reach the cemetery, and soon Asher and I were hiding behind a large headstone. I could feel his breath on my ear when he muttered lowly, “One was following us.”
“The female,” I whispered. “There she is.” Even though the cemetery was outside of town, it had dimly lit spotlights around the edges of it, which made it easier to see her. She looked so young. Her short, black hair was in spikes on her head. Her skin was white and flawless. She wore bright red lipstick, and dark eye shadow with heavily applied black eye liner. Dressed all in black, she looked exactly like how I would envision a vampire to appear. “Her friends are coming up behind us, but the girl is the most dangerous.”
“Why?”
“She’s been around the longest. The other two were just recently turned.”
“How long?”
“Long enough to know what the blood of a h
unter tastes like,” I said, “and she was envisioning a woman in petticoats.”
“Crap.”
I knew what Asher was thinking, and I agreed. It would be our luck to come upon one of the older vampires on our first hunt. Older didn’t always necessarily mean wiser, though. She had an impatient, angry look about her. Something we could possibly use to our advantage. “She will be more difficult to defeat,” I murmured, “but not impossible.”
“Come out, hunters,” the girl hissed as she entered the cemetery. “I want a taste.”
“So do we,” another voice said from behind me. “They smell so good.”
I felt Asher’s hand on my shoulder, and then he was gone, moving swiftly through the cemetery from headstone to headstone. I was finding it hard to split my focus between the vampire in front of me, the two closing in behind me, and Asher who was now on the other side of the female.
The girl threw her head back and laughed suddenly, playing with a long chain that hung from her neck. “I feel you behind me, hunter. You think you can take me?”
“Maybe not alone,” Asher said, stepping out from behind the headstone he had been kneeling by. I stood, and he grinned as his eyes met mine. “Good thing I’m not alone.”
“Neither am I,” the female replied, cocking an eyebrow and looking at the two vampires behind me.
“Oh, you thought he meant just me?” I asked, grinning widely when I heard Chandler, Eben, and Brielle come out of the woods around us. The words had barely left my mouth when one of the vamps behind me made his move. He sprang forward, and I turned and let my throwing star fly. I faltered slightly when I saw it hit and embed deeply into his forehead. He stopped, swayed slightly on his feet, and slowly fell to his knees. I watched as he reached up and yanked it out, grunting in pain.
“You will die, hunter!” I heard the girl sneer, and turned around just in time to see her jump at Asher, taking him to the ground. Asher’s dagger slid deep into her stomach, but it didn’t stop her. “That is nothing compared to what I am going to do to you!” she screamed, raking her claws down his side, tearing his skin open.
Before I could move toward them, I felt a hand wrap tightly around my ankle, and I looked down to see the vampire I had just sunk my throwing star into staring up at me with hatred in his blood-red eyes. He bared his fangs, a low growl tearing from his throat. “I have to taste you,” he snarled, opening his mouth wide, his gaze moving to my leg.
Just before he struck, Chandler was there, a large white ball sizzling with magic leaving her hand and slamming into him. “Get away from my sister, you creep!”
He glared at her in rage, and slowly rose to his feet. “That hurt, witch.”
“Good!” Chandler said, raising her hand again. “How about another one?”
As soon she let her magic fly, I jumped forward and raised my sword. The ball hit him, dropping him back to his knees, and I sliced down, severing his head from his shoulders. Bile curled in my stomach, sliding up my throat when the head rolled across the ground, coming to a stop with the vamp staring straight at me through wide, vacant eyes. I had seen death before, but nothing like this. I struggled to look away, knowing the others needed me, but his eyes held me in a trance. I had done that. I had ended his life. I knew it wasn’t the first time, but this was definitely going to be a lot harder to get past than turning the last vampire to ash with my ring.
“Blayke! Blayke!” I vaguely heard my sister screaming for me, and forced myself to back away from the body in front of me. “Blayke, come on. Asher needs us!”
A loud shriek brought me out of the fogginess I was in. Chandler’s words slowly sank in, and I remembered the female vampire on Asher just moments before. Glancing around quickly, I saw Brielle sink a dagger deep into the other guy’s heart, and then Eben’s sword slice through his neck. I felt my sister leave my side, and swung around just in time to see the last vampire lean toward Asher’s neck, where she had him pinned down on the ground a few feet away.
I was across the cemetery and on the girl before I knew what was happening. Grabbing her by her arms, I pulled her off Asher and shoved her as hard as I could. She fell to the ground, slowly sliding back away from me, her eyes never leaving mine.
“I knew we should never have let them go alone!”
I heard my father’s voice, but I was so angry, so far gone by then, that I didn’t even look his way. Asher was hurt. He was lying on the ground, bleeding, and it was my fault. I hadn’t protected him like I was supposed to. I was their leader. I was supposed to keep them safe.
“They are hunters, Daniel,” grandfather said calmly, entering the cemetery. “They have to learn, and this is the only way.”
I took a step toward the girl, watching in satisfaction as fear began to fill her eyes. “Let me go,” she whispered. “Please, let me go, and I will leave this town. I won’t tell anyone you are here.”
“You won’t come back?” I asked, lifting an eyebrow, knowing full well she was lying. I heard movement, and saw Asher slowly sitting up out of the corner of my eye. I felt his pain, and his humiliation at being bested by the vampire, and it just made me angrier.
“No,” she promised, crawling back some more. “I won’t ever return.”
“Blayke.”
I heard the warning in my sister’s voice, but I ignored her. I wasn’t stupid. I knew everything that came out of the girl’s mouth was a lie. “Really?”
“Really,” the vampire promised again.
Slowly removing the dagger from where it was strapped to my side, the special one my grandfather had given me, I shook my head as I began to stalk her. “We have a problem,” I said softly, inching closer and closer to the girl.
“What’s that?” she asked, rising into a low crouch.
“Let me end this, Gavin,” my father demanded.
“No.” My grandfather’s tone was final, and I was grateful because I didn’t think I could stop myself now.
“I don’t believe a word that comes out of your mouth.” I could sense that Asher was now on his feet and moving my way. I felt his determination to help me, and his need to end the vampire as much as I wanted to. I paused, giving him enough time to close the distance between us.
The vampire rose to her full height, hissing as she bared her fangs at me. Her eyes glowed red as she snarled, “You shouldn’t.”
I let my dagger fly, watching as it struck deep into her heart. Then Asher was there, slicing through her neck to make sure she was really gone. When it was done, I turned to face my father. I was filled with horror after what had just happened, and I was mad at myself for losing control of the situation, but I gritted my teeth and made myself say the words I knew needed to be said. “Grandfather is right, Dad. This is the only way we can really learn how to be the hunters the world needs us to be.” I could tell he wanted to argue, but he kept silent, fighting his own inner battle.
“Let’s get this mess cleaned up and get home,” my grandfather said, motioning toward what was left of the vampires.
We piled the bodies together, and then Chandler and I stood over them. We placed our hands out in front of us, palms up. Soon we each held a small ball of fire that was slowly growing larger and larger. Our eyes met, and we dropped them at the same time, stepping back as the bodies went up in flames. Soon all that was left was ash.
I sat alone in the living room by the fireplace, watching as the flames consumed the logs I had thrown on top of them just moments ago. It had been a week since our first hunt, and I knew my grandfather wanted us to go again, but I was putting him off. Today my excuse was homework, but it was a lie. It was Saturday night, and I had finished everything I brought home from school the night before. Really what I was doing was sitting in front of the fire, turning the pages of a book I had no interest in reading, avoiding everyone else in the house.
It wasn’t that I was afraid to go hunting. I wasn’t, not really. I could admit to myself the real reason I was sidestepping grandfather and the others. I ha
d put my team in danger, and had almost gotten Asher killed. I was supposed to be their leader. It was my job to keep them safe. Some leader I turned out to be.
Sighing, I closed the book I was pretending to read and set it down on the small end table next to my chair. Leaning forward, I rested my elbows on my knees and covered my face with my hands.
I knew the moment he entered the room. I felt his presence, his hesitance to talk to me. “Blayke?” I heard his voice, but refused to respond. Keeping my head bowed, I refused to look at him. I just couldn’t. I didn’t want him to see the guilt written all over my face. I had spent the entire week avoiding him, making sure I was never alone in the same room with him, but now he was here. Asher. The boy who was coming to mean so much to me, and who had almost lost his life because I froze at the sight of a vampire’s head being dislocated from its body.
I felt him kneel down in front of me, and then he reached out and gently pulled my hands from my face. “Blayke, look at me.” I didn’t want to. I was afraid of what I would see. “Please,” he said softly.
Slowly I raised my head, knowing my cheeks were wet with tears, but there was nothing I could do to hide them. It was not the first time I had cried over the past few days. Every time I remembered that night, every time I thought of Asher almost being taken from me, I was helpless to stop the tears. When my eyes met his, more of them fell.
“Talk to me.”
His voice was so soft, full of acceptance and understanding. Two things that I knew I did not deserve. Shaking my head, I lowered my eyes to stare at the floor. I had failed to do the one thing I was supposed to do. Protect my team. My friends.
Letting go of my hands, Asher gently brushed the tears from my face. “You’ve been avoiding me.” When I didn’t respond, he went on, “Every time I walk into a room, you find an excuse to leave. You sit as far away from me as possible at the lunch table at school. You don’t spar with me at night anymore.”
“You’re hurt.”
“I’m fine. They were just scratches.”
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