Lexia (The Deadwood Hunter Series)

by Raithby, Rachel M

  Walking back into the kitchen Lexia felt so angry at her dad; he had no right to avoid her. He was her dad, he had to stand by her always. Her anger increased turning into a torrent of rage. Balling her hands into fists she wanted to hit something so badly. It churned and built within her until she wanted to scream. Lexia stormed across the room and caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror.

  She froze, staring at the stranger’s face. Terror replaced her anger as radiant gold eyes looked back at her, the cold hardness within them causing her step back.

  A knock at the door startled her. Taking a deep, calming breath she watched her eyes change from gold to blue, then the knock came again. “Just a minute,” she called, her voice breaking. Oh god what is happening to me, I feel so out of control.

  Opening the door she found a delivery guy holding the package that contained her new weapons she’d ordered the day before. Signing quickly Lexia took the package, barely registering the man as she slammed the door in his face.

  Lexia ripped open the package with her bare hands not pausing until her fingers brush against cold silver. Taking the slick, sliver knife in her hand, she twisted it around watching the early morning light glint off the metal. Smiling she felt strangely powerful. God I wish there was something around I could kill!

  Startled by the strange direction her thoughts had taken she dropped the knife back into its box. Next she picked up the stake; the smooth silky wood felt cool against her skin. Excited, Lexia decided to try out her new toys. Heading out to the old shed she pulled open the creaky wooden doors. Amongst the old boxes and cobwebs hung her dad’s old punching bag, a film of dust covering its surface.

  Having cleared all the junk to the sides Lexia stood staring at the bag, stake in hand. Well now or never, Lexia; time to die, punch bag! She jabbed the stake forward and a cloud of dust puffed into the air but the stake didn’t even pierce the fabric. She tried again putting all her body weight into it but still the stake only just cut through. God, Lexia, you can’t even kill a bag! Frustrated she put all she had into the thrust; hitting the bag the stake slid in an inch and she stumbled forward. “Stupid thing! How am I supposed to stake a vampire if I can’t even stake a bag?”

  Lexia punched the bag, again and again, feeling the rage and fear from the past few days building up inside her. She channelled it into her strikes, jolts of shock ran up her arms, and a sheen of sweat broke out across her skin as Lexia struck the bag again. With all that fury flowing through her veins it slid straight through the fabric and into the bag with ease. Pulling the stake back, Lexia stood and looked at the hole she’d just made. Panting, she thought, God, that felt good.

  She froze as she heard a rustle behind her. Slowly glancing around she noticed an old broken mirror, and reflecting on its dusty surface was a black panther. Looking down at the knife laid on the table besides her, Lexia made a split second decision. She spun with the grace of a ballerina, taking the knife in her hand as it brushed past. She watched as the knife left her hand and flew true; it turned over and over in the air before sinking into the ground where the cat had just stood. Running forward Lexia bent to retrieve the knife and caught a glimpse of the panther retreating into the green depths of the forest.

  For a second, Lexia felt overwhelmed with the urge to hunt down the panther that had taken an interest in her. She stepped forward, gripping the knife tight in her hand, feeling the impulse start to take hold and imagined sinking the sharp blade into the smooth, velvet fur of the cat... Sucking in a breath she mentally shook herself; where did that come from? I need to get my emotions in check.

  Lexia returned to the shed feeling a little troubled by the overpowering anger she’d been feeling on and off since the day of the vampire attack. Needing a distraction she practiced for most of the day with the weapons she’d ordered and when she closed the wooden doors later, all her troubling thoughts had been forgotten, replaced with tired, aching muscles and an odd excitement.

  Using the weapons felt like second nature to her now. After the panther had left she’d returned and repeatedly stabbed the punching bag piercing the material like it was butter. Lexia was startled at first by the strength she had and how natural it felt to hold a weapon but now she felt settled; somewhere deep inside, she knew she’d be needing these skills.

  Chapter 5

  Lexia headed inside to shower and change deciding she would cook her dad supper they hadn’t sat down together in a few days and she really missed him. She hoped the simple act of sharing a meal together would fix the problems between them.

  Gathering the ingredients to make lasagna, she got to work on the task at hand: thinly slicing onions and garlic and putting them in the pan to fry, next she added the minced beef, stirring until it browned. Canned tomatoes bubbled away, the smell of basil filling the kitchen. Lexia loved cooking, it had always made her relax and since she had never had a mom growing up, the job quite often fell to her if her dad had to work late.

  Lexia’s dad walked through the door just as she pulled the lasagna out of the oven. He walked towards the kitchen smelling the air. “Smells good, Lex.” He smiled, sitting at the table.

  They ate in silence but Lexia didn’t mind; it was just good to be with her dad and doing something normal. “How was work?” she asked, clearing the plates.

  “Good, you know, just the same. How was school?”

  Turning to the sink, feeling guilty, she started to wash the plates avoiding his face as she answered, “Yeah, good.”

  “That’s funny because I had a visit today asking why you were missing another day of school! Honestly, Lex, I work at the same school.”

  Lexia stiffened, keeping her back to him. “Erm... Well, I was going to tell you...”

  His frosty voice cut her off. “I don’t want to hear your lies, Lexia. Make sure you are there for the rest of term, do you understand? Don’t disappoint me again.” He got up and walked from the kitchen, his final words like a brick wall between them.

  She finished the dishes and walked straight out the back door. Just like that her life was back to being a disaster. Lexia walked along Upper Main Street deciding some retail therapy was in order. She sent a text to Alice asking her if she wanted to meet up.

  Alice didn’t ask why she had been skipping school and for that she was grateful. They chatted and laughed whilst trying on clothes. Lexia slowly began to slip back into her old life, the more bags she carried the happier she felt, things would go back to normal and her dad couldn’t stay mad forever. She would finish school, go to college, and when she looked back years later, she would laugh at the crazy, insane things she did.

  Lexia realized too late that Alice had been asking her a question.

  “Earth to Lexia!”

  “Sorry, Alice, what did you say?”

  “Just that that dress would look like a million dollars with your legs.”

  Laughing she took the dress into the changing room. “It’s short.”

  “Didn’t stop you last night!” she laughed.

  “Hey, I’m sorry for being such a bitch last night.”

  “No probs, come on, let’s see it.”

  Lexia pulled back the curtain and walked out doing a little twirl. “What do you think?”

  “I think it’s shorter than last night’s dress and I wish I had your legs!”

  Both girls laughed and Lexia did another twirl. “You’re right, too short even for your standards.”

  “I think it’s perfect,” said a deep, rough voice from the doorway.

  Lexia froze, she knew that voice. Turning slowly around she sucked in a breath. She recognized his eyes straight away; they were so unusual.

  “Get lost, creep,” Alice snapped.

  “Now, now, me and Lexia are friends.” He smiled that smart, confident smile that sent shivers down Lexia’s spine.

  Alice spun around, glaring at Lexia with her hands on her hips “What is he talking about?”

  Lexia ignored Alice. Looking straigh
t at him she said, “One dance does not make us friends! Get lost.”

  He chuckled. “You’re more fun drunk. Such a tease, made me rock hard then left!” He laughed again as Alice gasped, glaring at Lexia. “Later, ladies,” he drawled, turning to leave.

  As soon as the door shut Alice let rip at Lexia and all she could do was stare at the spot he’d been standing in. She remembered dancing with him, remembered every touch he placed on her body, and remembered the way he made her feel; each caress over her hips a scorching brand.

  “Lexia!” Alice yelled.

  Shaking off the memories Lexia looked at Alice’s mad face. “Look, I’m sorry. I was drunk, alright? You know I’m not normally like that but come on, Alice, you can’t blame me, that guy is seriously hot!” Then she turned, walking into the cubicle to change feeling angry and embarrassed.

  “I have no idea what’s going on with you, Lex, but you obviously don’t want to tell me. If you ever need to talk, you know where I am.” Then she left.

  “Alice!” she called to her retreating figure poking her head back out of the curtain.

  Lexia huffed. Closing the curtain again, she took off the too-short dress and dragged on her jeans and shirt then left the store with a heavy weight in her chest. She was lying to her best friend and her dad; she didn’t recognize the person she was anymore.

  But what would she tell them? Well, I kinda have eyes that glow gold, I’ve been killing vampires, and, oh yeah, a black panther and a stunning but scary ass guy are stalking me, too!

  She was so busy dwelling on her problems that she nearly missed someone following her—a tall man walked on the opposite side of the road. He didn’t take his eyes off her even now as she stared straight into his arctic blue eyes; he wore an old, torn checked shirt with faded jeans, his scruffy blond-white hair hung to his shoulders.

  All the shops were closing for the night and she still had about ten minutes until she would be home. The longer she walked down Upper Main Street the fewer people she would meet but still she couldn’t risk fighting him on the streets. Think, Lexia, think! Okay, up ahead is an alley that leads to a path to the forest that will have to do... Oh god, can I do this? Am I really ready to fight?

  Lexia walked faster catching up to a bunch of girls chatting away; she slipped into the middle of them and dashed into the alley as they passed by it. Quickly putting her bags in a doorway, Lexia ran to the end of the alley. Pulling her knife from her leg strap, she broke through the trees as heavy footsteps sounded behind her.

  There was a slight clearing amongst the trees so she stood waiting for the man to arrive. Anxiety squeezed her stomach but she stood her ground determined to be strong; she couldn’t hide anymore, it was time for her to face her problems head on.

  He walked through the trees at an arrogant pace pausing when he saw the knife in her hand. He looked at her with a twisted smile, laughing at her. “You want to play, little girl?” Fuck, what am I doing? Then all of a sudden bright silver lights shot out around him, they brightened and grew until he was nothing but light, then they cleared to reveal a white wolf.

  Lexia was astounded; she couldn’t quite grasp what she was seeing. Men turning into animals, what’s next? She would have said that the wolf was beautiful if he wasn’t intending to kill her, but Lexia had no time to think through the many thoughts swirling through her head because the wolf started to snap and snarl. The savage beast lunged towards her throat; Lexia couldn’t hold back her ear-piercing scream.

  The fight seemed to unfold in slow motion, she could hear her heart booming in her ears, her chest rose and fell with each slow breath. A strange emptiness filled her as instincts kicked in and she twisted to the side slicing the knife across its body. A deadly silence filled the air, only her slow, calm breaths and the boom-boom, boom-boom of her heart broke it.

  She blinked and the wolf was on her; blinked again and the knife slashed across the wolf’s side. Spinning her body around she slammed her foot into the wolf’s side sending it sliding across the forest floor. She stood, hands hung at her sides, looking at the wolf already in front of her again. Red slashes broke its snow white fur and its ice blue eyes stared at her with hatred.

  Boom-boom, boom-boom.

  She blinked and his paws slammed her to the ground, she gasped in shock but let her body fall backwards. Lexia brought the knife up and sliced into its gut. As her back hit the ground she rolled quickly to the side and jumped to her feet. The wolf slumped on the forest floor. Lexia stood over the wolf; it twitched once and then changed back into human form.

  All at once sound rushed to her ears and she started to breathe panicked, ragged breaths. Lexia stepped back, horrified with what she’d done and turned, running from the clearing. She found her bags where she had left them and pulled off her blood-soaked clothes. She put on the long maxi dress she’d bought earlier; it would cover the blood stains on her legs that had soaked through her jeans. She rubbed furiously at the blood that covered her hands and arms and then she put her bloody clothes in the bag and returned to the now pitch-black street.

  Walking with long, quick strides towards home, Lexia furiously tried to work out what the hell that creature was. Holy shit what the? More research was needed. If vampires exist then maybe werewolves do, too?

  When she stepped onto the porch ten minutes later, all her emotions were barely contained. Her hands shook as she tried to open the door. Lexia desperately needed to get to her room before someone found her. Keep it together, you’re nearly alone, Lexia chanted over and over, but as her key slid into the hole and slowly turned with a click, a low growl broke the dark, silent night. Spinning quickly, heart in her throat, Lexia clamped her hands over her mouth to keep from screaming as she saw the black panther prowling down the side of the shed, its golden eyes lighting the darkness.

  With her back pressed against the door Lexia begged, “Not tonight, please, I’ve had enough... This is all just too much.”

  The panther surprised her by freezing; it cocked its beautiful head to the side in a very human gesture and in the split second the panther hesitated, Lexia forced her scrambled brain to work and dashed into the house closing the door just as the panther landed lightly on the porch. She froze, holding her breath and watched out the small square window as it paced up and down rubbing its long, sleek body against the door before it turned and disappeared into the darkness.

  She slid to the floor and let out her breath. Pulling up her knees, Lexia wrapped her arms around them and rested her head forward as tears spilled down her face and she shook with fear and sorrow.

  She didn’t recognize herself anymore; she’d killed again and it almost felt natural. She was lying to everyone that cared about her, doing things that she never even imaged she was capable of. Lexia sat there for a long time as tears ran down her cheeks and when they finally stopped she dragged herself to bed, falling into a restless sleep.

  Chapter 6

  Lexia woke early the next morning and headed outside before her dad woke. Starting the burn barrel she tossed in some rubbish along with her clothes she had worn yesterday. Then she headed out for a run. An early morning mist lingered over the front lawn, dew glistened in the morning sun, and the air was full of the sound of chattering birds. Lexia stopped looking into the forest and then decided to stick to the streets; she wanted desperately to run in the forest. Being in the forest was one of her favorite things; as soon as you stepped into the thick canopy of trees it was like stepping into another world, a world full of simple beauty. But she knew it would be silly to go into the forest after everything that had happened lately.

  Lexia fell into an easy rhythm, the sound of her footfalls a peaceful tempo. She ran at a steady pace and zoned out, the houses around her becoming a blur. As she turned onto the street to take her home she could have sworn she saw a flash of black velvet amongst the houses. She slowed, listening with her senses but nothing warned her of danger so she carried on a little quicker. Twenty minutes later she slowed
to a walk and turned onto her drive. Walking towards the house she froze; on the edge of the trees near the old shed stood the black panther that had been following her.

  The cat stood frozen watching her with his beautiful gold eyes. Slowly Lexia started to walk towards the door never dropping her eyes from the panther. As she neared the porch the cat became hidden by the shed wall so she quickly ran to the door. Turning she saw it had moved from behind the shed and now stood only a few yards away from her. She was certain the panther could cover the distance between them in seconds but it never moved, it just watched her with its far-too-intelligent eyes as if waiting for something.

  “What do you want?” she whispered.

  The cat returned a low growl creeping slowly forward.

  “Go away, I don’t want to hurt you.” Lexia had slowly bent to retrieve the knife she now always carried strapped to her leg. She’d killed a wolf man last night, she was certain she could defend herself from this large cat but the problem was she didn’t want to harm it. The panther didn’t feel evil in the way the wolf had and it was so beautiful, so sleek, and graceful; its black velvet coat shimmered in the sun and those eyes seemed to see far too much to belong to an animal.

  The panther had moved closer; if Lexia just stretched out her hand she’d be able to run her fingers through its fur. The need to touch the wild and dangerous animal that now crept up the steps of the porch, its head low, eyes gleaming, was so strong that nothing else mattered but to run her fingers through its coat.

  She never heard her dad approach the front door and as her hand started to stretch out to touch, to feel, he opened the door knocking her forward. The panther snarled, lashing out with its paw slashing its claws through her skin. She heard her father scream and he tried to pull her inside but she needed to touch the cat, to feel its soft fur. The panther still held her gaze so intensely, calling her, then it turned, disappearing into the trees and the spell broke.