A Hunter Within

by Anna Applegate

  “My, Ms. Parker. Those are some reflexes you have,” she said, in mock awe.

  I put the mug on the table and laughed, anxiously. “I’ve had some extraordinary luck lately. Trust me, I’m usually quite clumsy.”

  She held her arm up, signaling for me to lead the way out. “Thank you for spending some time with me. I must be going. We have a lot to discuss on Monday,” she said through a tight-lipped expression.

  Being with Marissa was becoming more and more unsettling. She was moving and looking like she was a robot. Precise, defined motions with that smile on her face. It was like a Stepford wives nightmare, and I knew just how terrifying her background was and what she was capable of.

  She turned her head slightly as we reached the doors that would lead us back to the main gala area, nodded once, and disappeared into the crowd.

  I felt shaken and wasn’t quite sure why. I smoothed down my dress and tried to take a deep breath, looking around for somewhere to go. Henry’s father was nowhere to be seen, and with Henry gone too, I was running out of options of people to look for. I wondered if I would be missed if I snuck away. Henry had seemed to think I should stay. I walked farther into the gala and noticed the crowd was quieting and a spotlight was circling around. It landed on Marissa, who had pulled herself together into the figure the public knew. She launched into her speech of their new charity and rambled on, laughing and sharing the occasion with some of her most trusted colleagues.

  I looked around the room, wondering how many people were on her side. I wondered how many people knew who she was and what she had done. Worse, who had supported her rise to the top of this company? I couldn’t shake the feeling that she had just given me a test and I had failed.

  She finally finished, raising a champagne glass that had ceremoniously appeared in her hand, much to the delight of the crowd. There were loud cheers. I made sure to beam and cheer with those around me, being seen by a few more people.

  I thought that had been enough. Henry was meeting me in the quad, and after everything he had said, we needed to talk and it was time. I didn’t care what it looked like now.

  I rushed out of the building, relishing the sense of release the cool air brought as it hit my exposed shoulders. I was barely at my car and felt the prickles on my neck. I paused, gripping my key in my hands, but I didn’t have to attack. Hands I was beginning to recognize anywhere wrapped around my waist and pulled me close.

  “Allow me,” Seeley’s voice murmured in my ear as he reached around and opened my car door. I turned my head into his lips and looked over my shoulder. I threw my arms around his neck, suddenly overwhelmed with relief to be out of Marissa’s building for the moment.

  “Whoa, hey. Is everything okay?” he asked.

  I shook my head and looked up at him, calmed with him here. “Yes, I just … I’m fine.”

  His eyes lit up at my reaction from seeing him, and he walked to the other side of my car to let himself in.

  “Shouldn’t you be farther away from here?” I questioned as I started up the engine.

  “No, no one noticed me. Just like I thought,” he said, a bit more smugly than I thought was necessary.

  “Marissa saw you,” I said, and his face changed suddenly.

  He looked out the window before turning back in my direction. “Did she say anything?”

  “It was fine. She didn’t think a thing,” I reassured him, but wasn’t thrilled with the idea of lingering here much longer.

  “Can I come with you to meet up with Henry?” he asked.

  I nodded and started biting my lip and cheek nervously. Seeley reached out and placed his hand on my thigh.

  “Everything is going to be okay. Whatever Henry has to say will be fine.”

  I nodded again, not because I necessarily agreed, but because it was keeping my nerves down for the moment to be bobbing my head in agreement like an idiot.

  After a pause, I suggested, “Maybe I should talk to him alone though.”

  “If that’s what you want,” Seeley answered, and I glanced at him from the corner of my eye. He seemed genuine.

  “Would you like to come with me to my aunt’s afterwards? I told her I’d visit.”

  His face brightened at the offer. “Of course.” He grinned.

  “It would be overnight.”

  “Even better.”

  Seeley’s demeanor had changed. We had slipped into something comfortable quickly, and while it excited me and made me nervous, our conversations were easy. It seemed contradictory, but it was everything to me at the moment.

  I pulled into the parking lot across from the quad, and Seeley relaxed into his seat, giving me the space I requested. I smiled at him in thanks.

  I made my way toward the well-lit area but didn’t see Henry anywhere. I glanced down at my phone and didn’t have any calls or texts.

  I tried him, once, twice, but no answer. More than fifteen minutes passed. He had just said when the gala was over, not a specific time, and I had left before it had ended. Maybe Henry meant much later.

  I waited another ten minutes before I heard a car door shut and saw Seeley approaching me.

  “Are you cold?” he asked, not waiting for an answer as he shrugged his jacket off and placed it on my shoulders.

  I glanced at him as he put his arms around me, rubbing my shoulders.

  “I hadn’t even noticed,” I answered.

  “Maybe you should wait in the car,” he suggested.

  I looked around again and saw no sign of Henry. I decided to dial him again but this time, it went straight to voicemail. It wasn’t like him not to answer me. I frowned.

  “I don’t want to leave much later for my aunt’s. It’s a two-hour drive, and we’ll be getting in late already,” I told him.

  Seeley thought about it for a minute. “I could ask Kellan and Rebecca to keep an eye out for him, and we can meet up with him when we get back. Would it make you feel better?” he asked.

  I smirked. “I’m sure Rebecca will love that.”

  “I hate to admit it, but Henry is tied to Falcone. However, given his history with you, I doubt he’d hurt you. He could be a valuable ally, and there are some questions I know we have about Gabriel’s location inside the building. They could ask him the questions when he gets here,” Seeley said.

  I was wary of Rebecca and her killer instincts she had revealed in our previous discussions about Henry. “Ally as in no hurting him?”

  Seeley already had his phone out and gave me a condescending look as if I should know better.

  “I guess I could meet him tomorrow, or Sunday whenever we come back,” I said, even though the thought frustrated me that it would be even longer until I got answers from him.

  I was disappointed. There had been things said tonight that deserved explanation, and Henry was the only one who could give them. Like the fact that he thought he knew me as a kid, when we’d only met once I came here. Just that minor revelation for starters. And the fact that he somehow knew about vampires and could potentially be a trained vampire hunter. No big deal.

  Kellan and Rebecca arrived within minutes, and I found myself in awe again of how different these vampires truly were from me. I kept forgetting their abilities when I was with Seeley, as if he were just my Seeley and not some sort of supernatural creature.

  Kellan’s eyes narrowed as he got closer to me. “What is that coming off of her?” he said to the others. “Do you sense it?”

  “Yes, I have since I met her. Why do you think I act this way? What is wrong with you two that you don’t?” Rebecca said, annoyed.

  Seeley looked between the two of them and back to me.

  “What do you mean?” I asked, subtly trying to smell my clothes. “I smell?”

  Rebecca let out a sharp, barking laugh I knew was meant to belittle me.

  “We have a way to get a sense of who or what people are. It’s a defense mechanism for us against our enemies.” She smirked and emphasized the word enemies, implying
once again I wasn’t to be trusted.

  “I only feel what I always do around her,” Seeley said, almost to himself.

  Kellan watched me closely. “Maybe that’s the problem,” he said. He directed the comment to Seeley, but his eyes didn’t leave me.

  “We’re leaving,” Seeley said and then started with his orders to the two of them as my phone chimed with text alerts.

  I can’t make it tonight. I’m so sorry. I don’t want to put you in danger, and I’m concerned that enough happened tonight that you would be. I’m coming over tomorrow, Jules. We’ll talk then, I promise. Be safe.

  I showed Seeley the texts, frowning. He looked them over, seeming uneasy himself.

  “Maybe your aunt’s would be the safest place.”

  “What do you think is happening?” I asked.

  He pursed his lips. “I’m not sure anymore,” he said as he turned and exchanged some quiet words with Kellan and Rebecca. Then he ushered me back to the car.

  I wasn’t much company as we drove. My mind was swirling, replaying everything that had happened since I started working at Falcone. For being so focused on my career, I had certainly gotten myself into a mess that was leading me far away from that focus. Whatever this was, Falcone’s dangerous work, Seeley, this other world, it had sucked me in. But a part of me was fulfilled in a way that I had been searching for since I decided to be a research scientist. I wasn’t quite sure why that was.

  “Parker?” Seeley asked, breaking me from my thoughts. “The light has been green for a while. You okay?” His voice sounded concerned.

  I blinked a few times. “I’m sorry,” I said, pushing my foot on the gas pedal. “We’re almost there. I’ve been terrible road trip companion, haven’t I?” I asked.

  “It’s been nice to have some peaceful quiet for once.” He sighed, leaning his head back against the headrest and turning his eyes to me. He brushed a loose strand of hair away from my face and pulled it back behind my ear. “Did I tell you, you look beautiful tonight?”

  “Just tonight?” I asked, glancing over at him.

  He laughed and shook his head.

  “We’re here,” I announced, pulling up to the house I grew up in. Amanda’s car was parked where it always was in the driveway. The lights were on, guiding me home.

  The door was thrown open before I could even knock, and Amanda had me in her arms. I inhaled the scent that was so her, so inviting, like flowers in the springtime.

  “You know it’s only been a few months, right?” I said. “I can’t breathe.” I exaggerated a cough, and she set me down.

  She pulled back and held my arms, looking at my face steadily. “It seems longer than that.” She looked aged since the last time I saw her, worried.

  I frowned. “Hey, are you okay?”

  “Oh never mind me.” She turned her head and saw Seeley, who had hung back while we had our reunion.

  “Sorry, pardon my manners.” She grinned and held out her hand, introducing herself.

  “I’m Seeley,” he said in his charming, sexy, and knee-buckling voice.

  “Oh, Seeley.” She winked at me, and I rolled my eyes.

  “You really got the whole embarrassing your kid thing down,” I huffed, which made her laugh.

  We walked into the house, and I saw she had mugs and cookies set out.

  “Sit, sit! Let me heat some water so we can have tea.” Amanda quickened her pace into the kitchen, leaving Seeley and me alone to get comfortable.

  “It’s almost eleven,” I shouted toward her.

  She hollered back at me from the kitchen. “It’s decaf, suck it up.”

  “Welcome to my house,” I said, laughing and ushering him over to sit down.

  “She’s great.” He nodded toward where Amanda had headed off to.

  I looked over to the kitchen, even though I couldn’t see her, and shook my head. “I know. I’m so lucky to have her. I’m not sure what I would do without her, to be honest.”

  It only took a few moments for her to come back in. She sat across from Seeley and me, waiting for the kettle to boil. She was old school like that, and I’d picked that up from her. I was convinced hot water tasted better from a kettle than a microwave.

  I was about to start our usual question and interrogation session that ensued after a few weeks of my being away, but I noticed something was off. My aunt was ringing her hands nervously in front of her and seemed almost agitated about something. She stood, almost as quickly as she had settled in, and went back to the kitchen.

  Seeley and I exchanged a glance. He didn’t even know her and seemed to think it was odd.

  We sat in silence, and she finally returned, plopping the tea bags into the mugs and pouring out the water. She set the kettle on a dish towel to the side and smoothed down her pants as she sat back down on the couch.

  “So, everything is clearly not okay,” I said, not even needing to ask the question again.

  She stood immediately. “I should probably just come out and say what I need to say, but it’s so hard to know where to start,” she said.

  Her anxiety was wearing off onto me now. “You’re making me nervous, Amanda. Are you sick? Has something happen?” I couldn’t fathom what would bring my strong, independent aunt to this state.

  Her eyes flicked over to Seeley.

  “I can give you some privacy if you wish,” he said, picking up on her movements.

  Amanda shook her head from side to side and then breathed in deeply. She walked back over to the couch and sat back down. This time her leg bounced up and down, but she remained seated.

  “Henry came to see me this week.”

  I frowned. “Okay.”

  “Has he talked to you at all?” she asked.

  “I was supposed to see him before coming here, but he said he couldn’t make it suddenly.” Why Henry would be at my aunt’s house without me, and what they could have had to talk about left me speechless. “What’s going on?”

  She took another deep breath. “I’m not your actual aunt. Your father was not my brother,” she blurted out and then watched me with a pained expression on her face.

  I blinked, rapidly, not sure what to think or say. So I didn’t say anything, I just watched her struggle across from me as she tried to find whatever words she needed to find to continue this conversation.

  “But, I am your godmother. And, we always pretended I was your aunt anyway.” She smiled hesitantly at me. “Your mom was my best friend, one I’d had my whole life, in fact. She was the single most amazing person I’d ever met. She was so special and so was your dad, and I knew that, but I never knew how.”

  My chest tightened, and it felt too heavy to even breathe in the air my lungs so desperately needed.

  “You probably don’t remember, and I don’t have all the details myself. I know that there was a serious incident where your parents worked. You were taken by someone. You were young and scared, but your parents were able to get you home. They were terrified for you, and I wasn’t sure why. Whoever this woman was that took you scared your parents away from the work they loved. They came home and immediately asked me to be your guardian. Whatever happened, they feared for their lives, but more importantly, yours.” She looked at me with so much love and fear at the same time, it was heartbreaking.

  None of what she was saying made much sense. I looked down to my chest and watched it rising and falling, just to reassure myself of something I could control. Something I knew to be true. I was alive and breathing.

  “They turned to a family friend that they trusted who made it look like my name was Amanda Parker. And that I adopted you.”

  She paused and laughed at a memory. “My first crush’s name was Parker. Your mom thought I’d like that.” She glanced back at me. “I’m sorry, I know that’s not relevant. I still just miss her so much.” She choked on her words and took another breath to calm herself.

  “Your parents were hesitant to tell me more than I needed to know because they were wor
ried about the danger it would put me in. They threw everything they had into protecting the two of us. Two weeks later, they died in a car accident.”

  Seeley was up from the couch in an instant, and I turned my head slightly at the movement. He started pacing, and he had his phone out.

  I looked back up at Amanda to see tears streaming down her face. I moved over to sit next to her and held her hands. I was numb but I knew I needed this woman who was my family, regardless of if it was by blood or not. She placed her other hand over mine and nodded, as if encouraging herself to continue.

  “I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you. I wanted to keep my promise to them. I wanted to keep you safe. I sat right here next to you and swore I’d never bring this up.”

  I felt something pulling at my head. The headaches I’d been having had come back, but this was different. It was a tugging, like the feeling of something being on the tip of my tongue, only in my mind instead.

  I closed my eyes, hearing Seeley’s voice fade as he asked Amanda if she had a picture of my parents. I didn’t hear her response, because I was somewhere else.

  I was sitting in the same place, my hands resting in my lap, but my hands were so much smaller. Instead of Amanda’s hands over mine, there was another pair of hands. Strong but elegant. I looked up into a pair of beautiful green eyes that were brimming with tears but contained a strength I could only dream of having.

  “I know you’re scared and this might not make much sense to you, my darling girl.”

  My mother was in front of me. A tear escaped and fell down my cheek.

  “You’re going to live with Aunt Lizzy for a little while.” An arm came up around my shoulders, and I looked to my right. My father was sitting next to me. His honey brown eyes, the ones he’d passed onto me, and long eyelashes gazed adoringly down at me. “But you can’t call her Aunt Lizzy anymore. Her name is now Amanda Parker. You call her Aunt Amanda from now on. It’s very important,” he said fiercely but lovingly.

  I turned my head again and saw Lizzy on the edge of the couch, trying to look at me reassuringly.

  “That woman from today will never touch you again. We will protect you, baby. But that means that some things have to be different now,” my mother’s voice came again.