Eventually, there was pounding on my door and Jared’s voice boomed through. “Rise and shine, Sky.”
Bite me, dickhead, I thought.
“We hit the road in ten,” Jared added before his footsteps moved off down the hall.
Even with the new clothes Valerie had brought back, I didn’t have the energy to change. I felt like a kid who’d missed Christmas. The disappointment wasn’t sitting well. I’d underestimated Jared. He may never let his guard down. He had years of experience whereas I barely had a year.
I stared at the wall across from me with vacant eyes.
Footsteps stormed down the hallway, faster and lighter than Jared’s. Valerie shoved my door open, breezed in, stopping a couple feet inside the door.
“Are you gonna get off your ass or what?” she demanded.
I kept staring at the wall.
“Quit pouting and come drink your blood. I left it on the kitchen counter for you.” She turned to leave then stopped and swung around. “Why aren’t you wearing the new clothes I got you?” When I didn’t answer she made a huffing sound. “I made a special trip to Fairbanks all for you. It wouldn’t kill you to show a little gratitude.”
Any other day and I might have answered, “Thanks, Mom,” just to see the vixen’s nostrils flare, but this morning I was in the pits of despair. I knew I needed to dig myself out, but I still had to muster up the energy to care enough to try.
Valerie huffed again and stormed out of the room.
I placed my hand over my chest where the North Star pendant rested beneath my shirt and pressed it against my skin.
I heard Fane’s voice inside my head saying, “It symbolizes all that you are to me: my heart, my soul, my star. You are my everything.”
“I will always find you.”
I repeated the last part in my head over and over.
I will always find you.
My back straightened, determination returning. “And I will always find my way back to you,” I said out loud, low enough for my ears only, but forceful enough to make a statement, to mean business.
I had a mission to complete.
Another stretch of white-coated tundra flew past the window on the way to Delta Junction.
Once they’d seen they didn’t have to physically carry me to the car, Jared and Valerie had left me mostly alone.
They spoke in the front seat, stuff about vacation rentals and real estate and not sticking around each area for more than a night or two. I only half listened.
When we made it to Delta Junction, there was a large wooden welcome sign that read: ALASKA’S FRIENDLY FRONTIER.
With Jared rolling in, they ought to change “friendly” to “deadly.”
I was used to moose crossing signs, but the streets of Delta Junction had posted signs of crossing musk ox silhouettes. This was new territory for me. Too bad I didn’t have my phone to snap a picture. Aurora’s adventures in captivity.
Valerie sat up and leaned forward, peering out the window.
Jared slowed the car at a fork in the road.
“This it?” he asked.
“Take a right,” Valerie answered.
The neighborhood we entered soon after wasn’t obstructed by the usual dense spat of forest. There were spruce trees scattered around, along with a thin birch here and there, but the rest was open land dotted with homes. Cars were parked outside, covered in several inches of snow. The homes ranged in style from typical-looking two-story country homes to log cabins to the wood shed Jared pulled up to.
I peered between Jared’s and Valerie’s seats as the car came to a stop. Speaking of shit shacks, this one looked like it belonged in someone’s backyard. It had a white door with dirty scuffs all over the paint and one tiny square window beside it. Below the window there was a stack of firewood covered with a black tarp. On the opposite side of the door there were gas cans, a water jug, and a small outdoor grill.
Jared killed the engine and stepped out of the SUV. He went around back and opened the trunk. The rip of a zipper soon followed. I craned my head back and watched Jared riffling through one of the duffel bags. I scanned for weapons, but all I saw was the file folder Jared pulled out before re-zipping the bag.
I unbuckled and climbed out of the car onto the frozen ground and stretched. Through several inches of snow, I could feel gravel under my feet. Valerie got out, too, and stood fluffing her hair when the dirty white door of the shed opened.
A bearded man in his late twenties stepped onto the small wood platform in front of his door and rested one hand on the doorframe, eyes on Valerie. He wore dirty jeans and a gray hoodie, but he had eyes that crinkled around the edges in a friendly manner.
“Can I help you?” he called out.
The trunk slammed shut right before Jared came around, file in hand. “Yeah, you can,” he said, coming to a stop and smiling, “Adam.”
Adam remained slouched against his doorframe, showing no visible distress at three strangers showing up at his home, knowing his name.
“What’s this about?” he asked calmly.
“Vampire business,” Valerie informed him in a saucy tone.
She and Jared stood their ground in the driveway. I did the same, watching to see how things would unfold.
Adam looked at each of our faces. “I don’t recognize any of you,” he said with the same easy drawl. “We must have a mutual acquaintance.”
“That we do,” Jared said, “but not for the reasons you think.”
“You look like a vampire,” Adam said, staring at Jared, “and the women, are they human?”
Valerie stomped her foot over the ground. “We’re all vampires, idiot!”
Adam shrugged. “I can’t always tell. I thought maybe you were—”
“What?” Valerie shouted, interrupting him. “His suck toys? You see a couple of young women and just assume we’re human blood sacks?” She sneered at him.
“Val,” Jared said with a chuckle.
She whipped her head around. “He shouldn’t go jumping to conclusions. If it weren’t for his nasty-ass AB blood and the fact that he probably hasn’t showered in a month, I’d bite him and show him just how not human I am.”
Adam scratched his bearded chin, observing Valerie with furrowed brows.
“There’s no reason for offense,” he said. “People around these parts think I’m fully human, and I have no problem with that.”
This only made Valerie’s face turn a deeper shade of red.
“Has the cold gone to your brain?” she snapped.
Adam turned his body, pointing it away from Valerie and toward Jared.
“You said you could use my help with something?” Adam prodded.
With wide steps, Jared walked up to Adam, joining him on the wood platform. Valerie and I held back while Jared spoke to Adam, bringing him up to speed on secret government agencies, undercover spies, and vampire hunters. Jared painted a picture of injustice and forceful recruitment by the government, leaving out the part about himself being the agency’s top recruiter not that long ago. In Jared’s version of events, he’d served the agency against his will until he made a brave escape. Everything he’d planned since then was for the good of all vampires.
Valerie huffed from time to time, clearly still hung up on Adam’s first impression of her. Being mistaken for a human was apparently one of the worst insults she could receive, as though she were a celebrity who’d gone unrecognized.
Adam’s attention stayed focused on Jared. He didn’t interrupt or ask questions, listening patiently to everything Jared had to say.
I kept thinking about the duffel bags in back of the SUV, wondering when I could get into them. Unloading the trunk might present an opportunity. If Jared and Valerie headed into our lodgings for the night ahead of me, I could open one up and do a flash search for weapons. Or, I could grab a duffel and hurry inside before Jared and Valerie to do a search while they were carrying bags inside. I supposed it was too much to hope that the next p
lace might have a set of handy-dandy kitchen knives inside a drawer or on the countertop. Whichever way it worked out, I’d have to be quick, like lightning quick.
Renewed purpose surged through me.
With a new plan settled in my mind, I returned to the present.
Jared had reached the part about coordinating a takedown all across the state.
“Everyone’s doing their part and now we need you to do yours,” Jared said, holding up the folder. “This is your assignment.”
Adam leaned away from the doorframe. “You mean you want me to kill a so-called assassin?”
Jared flipped open the folder and pulled out a photo.
“This assassin,” Jared said, handing the picture to Adam.
Adam took it, head bent down. His eyebrows furrowed when he looked at the picture. “I know this guy,” he said. “He’s a hunter.”
“I thought you said he was an informant,” I said, walking over to the makeshift porch.
“He is,” Jared answered.
Seeing me get closer, Valerie hurried to move in beside Jared. She planted a hand on her hip and glared at Adam to show she still hadn’t forgiven his earlier insult.
“Game hunter,” Adam reiterated. “Takes tourists out from time to time, but mostly goes out hunting alone. The guy lives off the land.” Adam’s forehead wrinkled. “Are you sure he’s a government spy?”
“Positive,” Jared answered.
Adam scrubbed his chin. “This is troublesome considering he’s invited me to join him on past hunting trips.”
“Likely gathering intel,” Jared said.
Adam lowered the photo and stared at Jared. “He didn’t strike me as the kind of guy leading a double life.”
Jared snorted. “Why do you think he’s so good at his job? The agency’s informants are trained and recruited for their ability to blend in.”
“There’s a problem,” Adam said.
“What’s that?” Jared asked, voice dipping dangerously.
“Your man, Butcher, is leaving town in a couple days.”
Jared’s eyes narrowed. “How do you know this?”
“He put a notice up on the local bulletin board,” Adam replied. “He’s offering frozen moose, caribou, and bison meat to anyone who wants—doesn’t want it to go to waste. The notice said he needs his freezer emptied by this weekend.”
“Why is Melcher calling Butcher away?” Jared wondered aloud, scratching his chin and staring into the distance.
“Maybe there’s not a lot of vamp activity in the area,” I said. “Maybe it’s enough for the informant in Deltana to handle.”
“No,” Jared said, eyebrows furrowing. “Melcher’s sending Butcher off to track us.”
“Is he some kind of expert tracker or something?” Valerie asked with an eye roll.
A wry smile formed over Jared’s lips. “Actually, he is. He can track down any animal, human, or vampire he sets his mind to. Butcher is one of the best.”
Valerie’s eyes rounded. “Fuck,” she said.
I fought back a smile. Finally, Melcher was doing something useful by getting an expert tracker on the case. All likely thanks to Fane. He had to have turned up the heat since my abduction. And with Butcher on the scent, maybe they knew we were in the area.
Jared smirked. “If only Melcher knew how close we were to Butcher.”
Guess I wasn’t the only one thinking it.
“Just great. Now what?” Valerie asked.
“We kill him,” Jared said, clasping his palms together as though shaking his own hand on a nefarious deal. “With Butcher, we can’t wait until New Year’s Eve. He’ll be in the wind and could catch our scent before we get another opportunity as good as this. We know exactly how to find him.” Jared’s teeth gleamed when he smiled. “I’m in the mood for meat.”
My stomach roiled.
Adam shook his head and muttered, “Frontiersman, vamp tracking spy. What’s the world coming to?”
“Does this flier have a phone number on it?” Jared asked, stepping in front of Adam.
He looked up. “Don’t need a number. All the locals know where Butcher lives, including me. He’s off the beaten path.”
“Perfect,” Jared said in a gleeful tone. “Take me to him.”
God, he made me sick.
A deep frown covered Adam’s face. He stood his ground.
“What’s the holdup?” Jared asked.
Adam leaned forward and spit on the ground.
“Butcher’s never bothered me. Why should I go bothering him?” he asked.
Jared regarded Adam coolly for several seconds before sliding his fingers together and cracking his knuckles. He glanced at Valerie and nodded.
A malicious grin climbed up Valerie’s cheeks as her hand slid to her hip. She pulled out a mini revolver and aimed it at Adam.
“You should do it because we say so,” she said gleefully. “Now, get in the car.” She circled around, the barrel of her gun pointed at Adam the entire time.
Adam sighed and walked slowly toward the SUV. “All I ever wanted was to live someplace off the beaten path and be left alone,” he muttered.
“We’ll leave you alone soon enough,” Jared said. “Once we take care of Butcher you won’t hear from us again.”
“Good,” Adam answered.
“In the passenger’s seat,” Valerie instructed, using her gun to point.
Adam got into the front of the car. Valerie climbed in back, behind him.
“Let’s go,” Jared said to me.
My heart sank with each return step to the SUV.
Somehow, I’d have to find a way to intervene. I couldn’t allow Jared to kill another agent, not when there was something I could do about it. Leave it to the vegetarian teenager from the city to save the outdoorsman hunter.
Adam gave directions from the front seat in a sullen voice.
“Head east after the stop sign,” he said.
“And then?” Jared prodded.
“And then drive east for roughly eight minutes.”
Valerie cradled her revolver in her lap. I was acutely aware of it within arm’s reach. Maybe grabbing the gun from her would be easier than attempting to locate a weapon of my own in one of the duffel bags.
My leg began shaking in anticipation.
“Can you stop that?” Valerie snapped at me.
I ran my hands up and down my thighs instead.
“God,” she huffed. “You’re driving me crazy.”
Good. I could return the favor from last night. A tiny smile formed over my lips.
About five minutes into our drive Jared asked, “Where are we turning next?”
Adam stared out the window, taking his time answering.
“You’re going to take a left onto White Rapids Road.”
“When?” Jared asked, slowing the car.
“About two minutes, maybe three,” Adam answered.
The car was silent for maybe a minute and a half before Jared demanded, “Is it coming up?”
“In about another minute,” Adam said.
“You better not be fucking with me,” Jared warned.
The silence resumed until Adam sat up and said, “White Rapids is the next road ahead.”
Jared slowed then sped up to take the turn. Valerie was propelled toward me. If she hadn’t been clutching her revolver, it would have been tempting to swipe the gun right out of her lap.
“Butcher lives in a small ranch house at the end of the road,” Adam said with some hesitation.
Unlike other roads I’d been down, I could see the homes from the car as we passed. I guess when people lived this far in the interior, they didn’t mind their home situated in plain sight of the road. The only people who drove by had to be neighbors, the mailman, and the random assassin out for vampire hunter blood.
“Is this it?” Jared asked as we neared the end of the road.
An unassuming off-white ranch home appeared to the right.
“Yes,” Adam said
.
Jared pulled into a driveway, up to a single-car garage. After parking, Jared kept the car running for a minute and stared at the house. No one emerged. He shut off the engine, and we sat in silence until Valerie spoke.
“What’s the plan? Do we take him down now or move him to a different location?”
Jared tapped the steering wheel then stopped. “We leave him here for Melcher to find.”
I suppressed a shudder, remembering the undercover agent we’d found in Palmer. What kind of ghoulish message would Jared leave behind written in blood this time? How would I stop him? Making a grab for Valerie’s gun seemed like my best bet. So long as she didn’t shoot me before I had a chance to wrench it from her hand.
Jared opened his car door.
“Everyone out,” he said in a commanding voice.
Once we’d all exited the vehicle, he walked around to the trunk and pulled a gun out of a duffel. After stuffing a pistol inside his jeans and slamming the door down, Jared used his key fob to lock all the doors at once. Guess I wouldn’t be sneaking into the trunk. Valerie’s revolver wasn’t only my best option, it was beginning to look like my only option.
Jared walked up to the front door and pounded on it. I inched my way closer to Valerie. She watched the door expectantly. As she did, I took another step sideways and stopped about a foot away from her. She glanced over and glared at me. I kept my eyes trained on the door as though I had no interest in her.
Adam stood behind us, arms folded across his chest.
Jared pounded on the door again. He leaned his ear against the frame and listened. Jared turned around and looked at Valerie.
“Try knocking on the garage,” he said.
Valerie huffed and walked in front of me, revolver clutched in the hand farthest from me. She walked up to the garage door and kicked it a couple times. We all waited, and waited, but there was no answer from behind either door.
Jared spun around and glared at Adam.
“Where is he?” he demanded. “Where’s Butcher?”
Adam shrugged. “It’s daylight. Maybe he’s out hunting.”
“He wouldn’t be out hunting if he’s giving away his meat,” Jared snarled.
Adam scratched his beard. “You said he’s a vampire. Could be he’s hunting for the animal blood. That’s what I do.”
True North (Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, Vol. 6) Page 21