Blood Hunter (The Grandor Descendant Series)

by Stoires, Bell

  It was mid-afternoon when Ari and Chris finally neared Omega halls. As soon as they reached the front doors, Chris offered to help her study for the mid-semester exam she had to re-sit.

  “Tempting, but I think I just need to lock myself in my room and study,” she said, moving up the stairs and towards her dorm room. “Thanks for looking out for me today.”

  “We look out for each other,” said Chris, smiling at her so that his light blue eyes appeared to twinkle.

  Ari smiled back gingerly but didn’t say anything.

  She had only just walked inside her room and closed the door when someone spoke.

  “Where have you been?” said Ragon, looking up at her from where he sat, waiting on a chair at her desk.

  As soon as Ragon had spoken, Ari’s eyes were wide and guilty.

  Chapter 18 – The Wraith of Ragon

  Ari moved quickly over to Ragon and kissed him on the lips. It was not a long kiss, more like a peck, and Ari could tell from the rigidity of his mouth, that he was angry.

  “I need to tell you something,” she said, moving over to her bed and sitting down slowly.

  “You’re making me nervous Ariana.”

  He was using her full name; that wasn’t a good start.

  “I’m sorry; I don’t mean to make you nervous. It’s just that… something happened today and I need you to know about it,” she said, watching as Ragon’s eyes darkened.

  Ragon remained perfectly still, and for one horrible moment, Ari thought that she had stopped time again. She was just about to stand up when Ragon nodded slowly and so she continued.

  “Something happened with Chris today and-”

  “-Chris?” asked Ragon, his voice steely. “You and Chris; what happened with you and Chris?”

  Right away Ari understood where Ragon was going and knew she had to stop that train of thought.

  “No, it’s nothing like that. Chris knows that I have um, powers-” she began to say.

  “-what?”

  “I didn’t tell him,” said Ari, “he sort of figured it out. And today we went down to the woods so that I could practice my-”

  “-you did what?”

  Ari sighed; this wasn’t going well and she hadn’t even gotten to the best part.

  “Yea, because I can’t practice with you or any other vampires in case I turn into a giant ball of sunshine and, you know… kill you!” she said dramatically.

  At these words Ragon seemed to calm down. Slowly he moved over to her bed and sat down on the edge, picking up one of Ari’s pillows and holding it in his hands.

  “Anyway, while he was chasing me, a bunch of lynxes attacked us,” she said, watching as Ragon began squeezing hard on her pillow. When she thought that he might tear it in two, she moved back over to him and put a hand on his and added, “Look I am trying hard to be honest with you, but you destroying my pillow and getting angry isn’t helping. Nothing happened. Look at me; I am fine! So can you just listen before you start filling my room with feathers?”

  Ragon nodded.

  “Ok,” Ari said, taking a deep breath, determined to say this next part as quickly as possible. “When the Lynx tried to attack me, I tried to freeze them. But for some reason my powers wouldn’t work on them. I don’t know why. Anyway, Chris protected me. Then one of the lynx’s turned into a man… he was a waere. They told us to stay away from the woods because they were going to be after the leeches around here. And now I am worried that there are a bunch of waeres that are after vampires, and I am telling you because I don’t want you to get hurt, and we should probably tell Thomas because Sandra is tied up in those woods.”

  As soon as Ari had said the word waere, Ragon’s eyes had lit up, but as her story continued, his eyes became increasingly small, until when Ari finally stopped, they appeared to be no more than slits.

  “Let me get this straight?” he said, slowly and carefully. “You were out today practising your powers, but then you were almost killed by a bunch of waeres because your powers don’t work on them. Does that about sum it all up?” he asked, in an oddly quiet voice. “But why would the waeres reveal themselves… they are supposed to be extinct? I mean, if waeres still exist, then they have spent centuries hiding, so, why just come out into the open?”

  Ari had been waiting for this question and she chewed on her bottom lip. She hadn’t wanted to betray Chris, but she didn’t have any other choice; it was one thing not telling Ragon something, it was quite another to lie to his face.

  “Well, when Chris rescued me… he was… I mean, he was… a husky,” she said finally.

  “Chris is a waere? For hundreds of years everyone thinks that they are extinct, and just by chance you befriend one?”

  “Um, actually Chris isn’t a waere… he’s a wraith,” Ari admitted.

  Ragon did not speak but ripped from the room and blurred down the hallway. Ari raced after him, certain she knew where he was going. Sure enough, when she reached the hallway, she saw Ragon pounding on Chris’s door. Before Ari had enough time to race over to him however, Chris had opened the door and Ragon stormed in.

  “What the hell were you thinking?” roared Ragon, loud enough that Ari could hear him, from where she was racing down the hallway.

  By the time Ari made it to Chris’s bedroom, Ragon had already thrown Chris across the room.

  “Wraiths are evil,” said Ragon, turning to face Chris and unsheathing his fangs. “They are enslavers of death.”

  “As opposed to blood sucking night walkers,” said Chris, standing suddenly and drawing his chest outwards. “At least I have a pulse. I can’t believe you told him.”

  “I had to,” Ari began to say; she had moved into the room and shut the door, terrified that someone might hear all them yelling.

  “You… you had to tell me?” asked Ragon, his face breaking into sadness.

  “No,” said Ari, searching Ragon’s face for understanding, “that’s not what I mean-”

  “-let’s face it,” Chris said quickly, glaring at Ragon. “Ari shouldn’t be hanging out with either one of us. I was born evil and you were made evil, but considering I have never attacked her, she is better off with me. Face it; she went to practice her powers with me, not you.”

  “Chris,” Ari warned, but it was too late.

  As soon as Chris had spoken, Ari knew all thoughts of peace between Chris and Ragon were doomed. Now she watched Ragon turn around to face her; his eyes were droopy and sad, and his head was hung in defeat. He did not speak but tore his eyes away from Ari, and once again blurred through the room.

  Ari went to race after him but felt Chris holding onto her.

  “Wait,” he said, looking her in the eyes as she continued to fight with him. “Do you really think you should go after him when he’s like that?”

  “You said it yourself,” she said, pulling her hands free and reaching out to freeze him. As soon as his eyes glazed over, Ari knew she had stopped time. “I can look after myself around vampires.”

  After that she raced from Chris’s room and down the stairs. Moving as fast as she could, she reached for her phone and dialled Ragon’s number. It rang once but then stopped; he had hung up on her.

  She was half way to Cruor halls when a dizzy spell made her drop to her knees; trying desperately to catch her breath, she bent over the grassy lawn as a wave of nausea overtook her. As soon as she felt the shivers, she knew she was having a premonition. Hey eyes were teary and out of focus, but from the blur came a shape, colourful and fuzzy at first, but soon it sharpened.

  She saw Ragon, sitting in a dark corner with his hands in his head. It was too dark to make out where he was, but then he stood and walked over to a paved area where many people were smoking. Still entrapped by her vision, Ari tried to focus on what Ragon was wearing. This vision wasn’t quite in focus, and it appeared as if she were watching it from behind a thick foggy glass screen. Peering closely at Ragon, she recognised the same blue jeans and dark jumper that he had been wearin
g when she was with him only a few moments ago. Ari knew then that this vision must only been a short time into the future, and what’s more, she recognised where he was- the campus bar.

  Ari sped past Cruor halls and towards the campus bar. As she ran, she thought about the huge hole she had managed to dig for herself. Ragon was the one person who had been with her from the beginning; he deserved better than this. Sure she had promised to keep Chris’s secret, but not when the truth might have hurt Ragon.

  Ten minutes later, Ari arrived out of breath at the campus bar. She had no ID on her but was spared having to produce it as there was no one yet on the front door. Once inside she flashed to the vision she’d had, and then moved as casually as possible to the outside smoking area. For a Saturday the club was fairly empty, though admittedly it was only early afternoon. Passing a table full of gossiping people, she waved timidly to some girls in her year and continued to scan the room for any sign of Ragon.

  She searched the bar, the dance floor, even the girls’ bathroom; Ragon was nowhere to be seen. Ari was halfway down the hallway that serviced the restrooms, ready to give up, when she remembered the rear entrance. Pushing the heavy fire door open, Ari exited the club. Temporarily blinded by the bright lights of the campus club, the moment Ari was outside she squinted into the darkness.

  Suddenly there was a muffled scream. Inching through the doorway, Ari moved past the clearing surrounding the club and towards a large conifer tree, where she thought the sound had come from. She was a few feet past the tree when she saw the silhouette of a man- Ragon; she recognised him immediately. Relief washed over her and she reached a hand out to touch his shoulder. The moment her fingers touched his icy skin, an insanely strong hand clamped down onto her wrist and she was thrown through the air.

  “Ragon,” Ari screamed.

  Looking around wildly, Ari saw Ragon staring down at her. She couldn’t help but gasp when she saw thick congealed blood hanging grotesquely from his mouth, draping past his fangs and onto his chin. For a moment she thought that he had bitten her, but then she saw the small frame of a girl standing in the shadows, her neck bloody.

  “I’m sorry,” said Ragon, reaching down a hand to help Ari up.

  Ari stared up at him, her mouth still open in horror. Ignoring the hand offered to her, Ari got to her feet and looked from Ragon to his victim.

  “You’re sorry?” she asked.

  Ari was torn between jealousy and anger. Unsure of which emotion to go with, she put her hands on her hips and waited for Ragon to at least apologise. He didn’t.

  “We need to talk. Maybe you should get rid of your friend,” Ari spat, gesturing towards the girl.

  “Leave me and cover that bite,” Ragon commanded, and the girl walked back towards the club, her hand held tight against her neck.

  As soon as she was gone, Ragon turned to face Ari.

  “Ok, you want to talk, that’s fine, let’s talk. How long have you known that Chris is a wraith?” Ragon asked, crudely wiping the blood away from his mouth.

  “It wasn’t my secret to share-”

  “-not you’re secret to share? Ari, you know that wraiths are evil; we were served up to the Ancients by one and now I find that you’re playing games with him one the forest. What if he killed you? Do you seriously have such little regard for your own life?” said Ragon.

  Ari looked down at her feet; immediately all the anger and jealousy washed away from her. Now she only felt guilty.

  “What else aren’t you telling me?” said Ragon, now pacing around the small clearing they were standing in.

  “I wanted to tell you,” she said, trying to inch closer as he took an equal distance away from her. “Ages ago, when I first found out, Clyde saw me and Chris and he thought that we were… that we were together. That’s why he was acting so strange the night of my birthday. Clyde saw us after Chris had just transformed and he was naked… and I guess Clyde just thought that we...” Ari’s voice died in her throat and she shook herself, trying to regain her composure. “I’ve had to endure snide remark after snide remark from Clyde. Don’t you think I would have told you if I could? I didn’t keep this secret for myself; I did it because it was Chris’s secret. Please, you have to believe me; I love you.”

  “You love me. But not enough to tell me something this important,” said Ragon, before blurring past her.

  Chapter 19 – Campus club for Sups

  Ari walked slowly and purposefully back towards the campus bar, her feet dragging along the floor. She wanted desperately to go after Ragon but she couldn’t. At the end of the day, she knew he was right. Walking through the club with her head hung low, Ari was just about to leave when Ryder spotted her.

  “What’s wrong muffin?” he asked, looking at her sideways.

  Before Ari could say anything, Ryder had reached out two hands and hugged her. A few wayward tears spilled out of Ari’s eyes before she could stop herself.

  “Come on, let me get you a drink,” said Ryder, grabbing Ari’s hand and directing her to the bar. “Then you can tell me everything. Alcohol drown s the sorrows. Admittedly it doesn’t work the same way it used to for me, but it should fix whatever ails you.”

  The very last thing Ari thought she needed right now was alcohol, but after four shots with Ryder at the bar, she was beginning to remember how great it was not to feel anything at all. In no time at all she was tipsy, and when they moved to the outside smoking area, she was surprised to see Clyde sitting by himself at a table.

  “Clyde,” Ari yelled, smiling at him toothily; Ryder was right, alcohol really did drown sorrows. “Wait a minute,” said Ari, her nose twitching, “I am supposed to be angry at you.”

  “Why?” Clyde asked casually.

  “Because,” Ari slurred, stretching out her hand and jabbing Clyde hard in the chest, “because… because…”

  “Ari, I may be immortal but I don’t have forever,” said Clyde. “Because what?”

  “Because Ragon is mad at me because of Chris,” Ari explained.

  “So you finally told him?” said Clyde. “And this is my fault, why?”

  “Finally told him what?” asked Ryder; both Ari and Clyde ignored him.

  “It’s your fault because you think you saw something, that you didn’t actually see,” Ari rambled. “Well, I mean you did see it. But it wasn’t what you think it was. Well, it was, but not in a bad way.”

  When she had finally finished her ranting, both Clyde and Ryder stared at her in confusion.

  “Ari,” said Clyde, “you aren’t making a lot of sense, but I assume you are talking about the midnight nudity I witnessed between yourself and Chris.”

  “Ohhh raunchy,” said Ryder, his eyes widening.

  “It’s not raunchy,” Ari countered, hiccupping loudly. “Chris was only naked because he had no clothes.”

  “Yes,” said Clyde, “I did assume that.”

  “What I mean is,” said Ari, drawing breath dramatically, “is that Chris was naked because he wasn’t a man… he was a dog. That is to say, he was a wraith, or rather, is a wraith. I think I am getting my tenses messed up. What were those shots you gave me? I think I need a few more.”

  “Excuse me,” said Clyde, no longer sitting back on his chair but staring at Ari intently.

  “He’s only part wraith,” said Ari. “His father wasn’t very nice. Apparently he was involved in the waere persecutions and so he can transform into an animal. The only thing is… is that when he does his clothes are stripped from him. The night you found us outside, he had just transformed into a dog, a husky to be more precise.”

  Both Clyde and Ryder stared at Ari.

  “I probably shouldn’t have told you that,” she added, slapping her hand to her forehead. “So, how bout those shots?”

  For the next half an hour or so, all three continued to drink copiously. The more Ari drank, the less she thought about Ragon and what she would say to him when she saw him next. Periodically she kept checking her phone, but th
ere were no messages or missed calls from Ragon. Chris had texted her a few times, checking to see if she was alright, but she had ignored him. On the up side, all seemed to be forgiven between herself and Clyde. Now that he knew that Ari had not cheated on Ragon, he was back to his usual charismatic self around her.