Night Prowler Part One

by Samantha Steele

  “What happened while you were in there?” Evan asked me when Sam finally let me go.

  “I think whatever happened before me was bad – they asked me about Mitch’s dad. But I think I brought things up in the hope department.”

  “What about his dad?” Sam asked. I realized she didn’t know that much about Zac – about his family – and wasn’t sure if it was right to tell her.

  “He’s in prison,” I decided on. “They called him to the stand and he said… he said he went to jail in Zac’s place.”

  “For what?” Cami gasped.

  “Murder.”

  ” What? Zac’s been involved in a murder trial before?”

  Sam asked in a harsh whisper. I nodded.

  “There are a lot of things you don’t know about Zac, babe. He has… some problems.”

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  “You got that right,” Evan grunted. He was sipping what I assumed was dark beer since his parents only bought the good stuff. “You want one?” he asked.

  “I don’t just want it, I need it after that,” I answered with a nod. Bryce’s glass was already half empty, and I watched as Evan refilled his glass after filling mine from a Moose’s Tooth growler. It was their oatmeal stout, my favorite.

  The girls were sipping from stupid fruity drinks, but Sam ended up drinking about half my beer before I realized what had happened to it. We drank to Zac that night, hoping he’d be free.

  Sam and I ended up crashing on Evan’s couch in the basement, cuddled up together while Evan’s dog tried to crawl between us. It was a good end to a stressful day, even if we did kill a few brain cells in the process.

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  Blaise

  “We have a problem,” I said. I was sitting at the head of the conference table, speaking to all the Powers of the Core. Bella eyed me with suspicion.

  “What do you mean?” she asked, her country accent offsetting her professional vibe.

  “Our latest recruit has… quit working, so to speak.”

  Everyone looked at me, waiting for an explanation. Seeing as it was my idea to recruit the Fastner boy, I wasn’t happy to admit I’d screwed up in the process. We left him in the recruiter a little too long…

  “He never recognized our kind or cause,” I explained,

  “which is why we thought he’d be such a good asset. However, his lack of recognition has caused him to endanger our lead Hunter, the Seeker. His quest to end the Sign has thrown up a few road blocks, and he is yet to be successful.”

  “What can we do to fix it?” Bella asked. I resisted the intense urge to shrug.

  “Before we can decide what to do with him, we need to extract the Seeker. He already knows who he is, and I believe he knows who the Sign is as well. He has tasted Eden’s apple.”

  “What sort of road blocks have we encountered?” Roman asked from the other end of the table. Bella glared at him; she’d probably been about to ask the same question, and she hated being interrupted.

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  “The Seeker did not understand his feelings towards the Sign. Our recruit tried to kill the Sign, like he was recruited to do, but the Seeker stopped him by accident. Now, the Seeker may be sent to prison for conspiracy to murder. We have to influence the jury.”

  “This is rather unlike you, Blaise, making a mistake like this,” Lu said calmly, tenting his fingers. He looked up at me, his cream-colored eyes making my heart race. Nothing sparked fear like those cream-colored eyes that glowed sinisterly in the dark and blinded you in the light.

  “I did not take into account the fact that the recruit wasn’t very intelligent,” I admitted. “I also didn’t think about the Seeker being confused about his feelings. We’ve never encountered that before.”

  “They’ve never been that close before knowing their secrets,” Bella said quickly, jumping to my rescue. “And the Palace has never sent the Doberman this early. We needed our own assassin – despite how dim. The obsession he already possessed for the Sign’s best friend was the perfect opportunity. It shouldn’t be difficult to sway the jury in the Seeker’s favor.”

  I silently thanked Bella for standing up for me. As my sister, she rarely tried to jump in and help me out – but I was extremely grateful when she did.

  “How did you recruit him?” Lu asked. I swallowed hard, knowing my recruiting ways were rather unconventional.

  “We… kidnapped him, you could say. And exposed him to the cause.”

  “So he became Corrupted?” Only Lu called us that: the Corrupted. I think it was because he came from the Palace – he was cast from it – and probably still stuck to his old ways. He probably still said silent prayers to the nature gods when he entered the Core.

  “Yes,” I answered.

  “You corrupted an unwilling human?” Lu asked, his eyes glittering ferociously. I swallowed hard and nodded.

  “We were in a hurry,” I protested, afraid Lu would punish me. No one wants to be punished by Lu. I’d waltz into the Palace

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  unarmed and alone before I pissed off Lu. Well, except apparently this time.

  “That is no excuse, Souler,” Lu said softly, his voice still retaining a small sting.

  “I know, Lu, I accept my punishment.”

  “Your punishment?” Lu’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

  “Yes… your punishment.”

  “Please, Lu, go easy on him,” Bella begged, reaching a hand across the table.

  “Perhaps we’ll take a rain check on this punishment,” Lu said. “If the Seeker wins, you won’t be harmed. If he loses… the Sign will have her way with you.”

  I swallowed hard again, knowing he meant that if Zac died and the Sign won, I wouldn’t be able to choose my future – I was at the mercy of the Sign’s decisions, whether they directly or indirectly affected me. The thought was pretty terrifying.

  “We shouldn’t have done it,” I said to Bella in the comfort and safety of our own home. “I should’ve waited.”

  “It’s not your fault, Blaise,” my sister said, rubbing my shoulder. “We knew the Doberman had been released. What were we supposed to do but fight? Releasing the gods’ assassin is an act of war.”

  “He didn’t even know who he was yet – neither of them did.”

  “There’s no grace period for assassins,” Bella reminded me. “They’re not divine.”

  “I know. But still – I wonder why they did it this time?

  They’ve never released him on the Seeker before – it’s a nearly impossible mission as it is. They had to know the Doberman would fail.”

  “We didn’t know if our assassin would fail,” Bella said.

  “But we sent him anyway, just in case. You never know when we could get the jump on someone.”

  “I think that was their plan with the Doberman,” I pondered. “I just don’t know why they decided to do it now. It doesn’t make any sense. They’ve never done it before!”

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  “I know, Blaise, I know,” Bella soothed. “Let’s just get some sleep, okay? The jurors make their decision on the Seeker tomorrow – we’ll have to get there early if we want to influence them.”

  “We should’ve gone today.”

  “We have to keep things as real as possible, Blaise. I watched the trial today – I think it’ll be easier to influence them than you think.”

  “Goodnight, Bells.”

  “Night, Blaise.”

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  Chapter Seven

  My lawyer came to visit me in prison the day after my trial. He seemed a bit more chipper than usual, but he still looked rather depressed and afraid of being in prison.

  “Afternoon, Zac,” he said with a strained smile (all his facial expressions, except fear, looked strained). “I just came to tell you I feel confident about your case, and we’re going for th
e judgment today.”

  “We are?” I asked, a little shocked. James nodded

  “The jury spent about three hours this morning trying to make a decision, but they finally did. I feel confident about you getting off. If we win, there will be another trial by the state against Jacob – the same charge you were given.”

  “When do we leave?” I asked, eager to hear my judgment.

  “Well, right now, if you’re ready.”

  “Absolutely.” Being in prison meant I didn’t have much to do to prepare. As I left my cell, I looked back and hoped it would be the last time I saw that lumpy mattress and dirty toilet.

  I was driven to the courthouse in the back of a police cruiser by two very unsociable cops. James met up with me when we got there – he drove his own car, of course.

  James and I were given a few minutes to prepare. We sat at the defendant table in the courtroom, quietly going over our options.

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  “If you are convicted, we can always appeal you. If that happens, I’ll search for more evidence. I’ll do whatever I can to get you out. Also… I was informed this morning the case against your father has been reopened.”

  “What does that mean?” I asked, although I already knew the answer.

  “Since your father revoked his confession, and this case against him was rather flimsy to begin with, the state is charging you with murder.”

  “Fantastic. I don’t even know if I’m out of this one yet and I’m already suspect number one in another case. Life just keeps looking up.”

  “I don’t think you have anything to worry about,” James said, sitting up straight. “All the witness accounts say your father committed the crime, and you’re innocent.”

  I looked at him, my expression fully revealing.

  “You didn’t kill him, did you?” James asked, his voice squeaking. “I’m your lawyer, I’m on your side. But I have to know the truth, you know. Did you kill that man?”

  “Yes,” I whispered. “I killed Carl Shaeffer.”

  James groaned and looked towards to empty jury seats. “I think we might be fucked again,” he said.

  “Look,” I whispered, leaning in close. “My dad didn’t tell the whole truth up there, okay? Mitch and I were home alone with Macy. We were upstairs when we heard her screams –”

  “Please, I don’t want the details,” James begged. “At least not here where someone might overhear.”

  I nodded, understanding. James was right – there was a time and place for discussing my past murders, and it wasn’t here at the present murder trial.

  “Here’s the jury,” James said, sitting up and lacing his fingers on the tabletop. I watched as the jurors from the day before all filed in and sat down.

  “All rise,” the bailiff said a few moments later. Everyone in the room stood up as the bailiff announced the judge and she came to sit at her podium. “You may be seated.”

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  “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” the judge addressed.

  “We are here today to decide the fate of Mr. Zachary Bell. For the charge of attempted murder in the first degree, how do you find?”

  My heart raced, my palms began to sweat, my cheeks flushed. Within the next ten seconds, I would know my fate. I would know if my future consisted of prison or sunny days on the beach (I decided if I was not convicted, I would move somewhere warm).

  “We find the defendant, Zachary Bell,” began one female juror, standing up holding a sheet of paper. She paused, probably for dramatic effect. Either that, or they’d found me guilty and she was afraid of giving me my sentence.

  In the few seconds she gave pause, I looked over at the prosecutor’s table. They looked just as nervous as I was. No matter what, at least one of us would be returning to this courtroom in a few days. I would whether I was convicted or not, but I hoped I could drag Jacob along with me.

  “Not guilty.”

  James leapt up in the air and hollered with joy. The judge glared at him and he sat back down, beaming. Slowly, as the words really sunk in, I began to smile. They believed me, they really believed me.

  For now, I was free.

  When we left the courtroom, I was assaulted by news crews for the first time. James let me exit the front – usually we used the rear entrance, guarded by a shit ton of police officers.

  The media coverage of my case had been kept pretty hush hush per Mrs. Fastner’s extra cash. But, now that it was over, the media hounds came down with a vengeance.

  “Mr. Bell, you won your case! What are you plans now?”

  asked one journalist. A camera man was standing close behind him, his newscaster shoving a microphone in my face.

  “I think I’m gonna graduate,” I laughed. “And then it’s hundred block and the California coast.”

  I probably wouldn’t end up in California; that was just the hottest place I could think of at the moment. I was battered with

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  so many questions I couldn’t count half of them as James cleared a trail through the crowd to a squad car that would take me back to the prison, where I would return my jail duds and get back my favorite jeans – the ones I’d been wearing when I shot Jacob. I couldn’t remember, but I hoped I hadn’t gotten blood on them.

  Then again, if I had, they would serve as a sort of trophy. Not only did I kick that bastard’s ass, but I won the case.

  After I changed back into my real clothes (which unfortunately did have blood stains on them, probably Sam’s, but were at least washed) James drove me home. My mom wasn’t there, and neither was Lily, but I hadn’t expected them to be.

  James asked if I had any victory plans, and I said I’d probably call Mitch and Evan and hang out. He seemed a little sorry for me, but it wasn’t enough to staunch the fact he’d just won a case.

  Mitch, Evan, and Austin came over about an hour later with two growlers of Moose’s Tooth beer and a pizza. It felt good to eat real food – since my little incident with Eric, I had been stuck eating prison shit. So the best pizza in the world (on a regular diet) tasted like freedom with reindeer pepperoni.

  And let me tell you, reindeer pepperoni tastes really fucking good.

  “Tell us about the trial, dude,” Evan asked after we’d all sat down in my living room to eat. Sam must have fucked Mitch up (yeah, I know what you were thinking) a little bit because he ate his pizza off a plate – with a fork.

  “It was all gloom and doom until Mitch got up there,” I said between bites of pizza and swigs of beer. “By the way, tell your mom I said thanks – I really needed this,” I added, holding up my beer glass. Evan waved it off.

  “Absolutely, man, you just got out of prison. Things were looking pretty grim when I testified. What happened?”

  “Well, remember when I said I was going to beat the shit out of Eric?”

  “Yeah, he’s that guy who stabbed you,” Austin said. “You didn’t actually do it, did you?”

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  I hesitated before answering. I wasn’t sure if I should tell them about Blaise or my intense surge of strength when I bashed in Eric’s face. Especially since Sam was… well, the girl I was supposed to kill.

  “I sort of broke his face,” is what I decided on. Luckily, none of them took me literally.

  “Good for you, man!” Evan laughed, clapping me on the shoulder. “Bet it didn’t help your case, though.”

  “No, it didn’t. They made him testify. Made me look like a crazed lunatic because they thought it was totally unprovoked. I probably should’ve said he was the one who attacked me. I mean, the only reason I didn’t was because I was afraid of him coming after me when he got out of solitary. But I bulked up while I was in recovery anyway. I totally could’ve kicked his ass.”

  “You’re getting to be a real badass, you know?” Mitch said, looking at me with rather concerned eyes. I guess by

 
“badass” he actually meant “creepy backwoods Alaskan murderer.” The only thing keeping me from being a complete thug was my blonde hair.

  Thank God for small miracles, right?

  “Was that it? Things seemed much tenser when I testified,” Mitch said. I chewed my pizza slowly, unsure how to answer without revealing my previous murder to Austin and Evan.

  “My dad testified,” I answered. The three of them gasped.

  “Your dad who’s in jail?” Evan clarified.

  “No, Evan, my other dad who lives in Florida,” I said sarcastically. “Of course my prison father.”

  “Did he…” Mitch began. I nodded. Mitch turned white.

  He would have to testify again, too. Only this time, he would be lying completely. At least with the Jacob thing no one had to lie. I really was protecting Sam.

  Not that I hadn’t been protecting Lily. But the jury hadn’t seen it that way when my father was in court. He did have a record, as it was. And although we never said he was a beater, getting him out of my life was a blessing. And much more comfortable.

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  “Did he what?” Austin demanded. Mitch and I looked at each other, unsure of what to say.

  “He revoked his confession,” I said. “They’re probably going to reopen the case against him. It was faulty at best. He…

  he said I did it.”

  “But you didn’t! That’s retarded. No way that’ll go through,” Evan said, brushing it all off. I smiled nervously.

  “Still gotta go through everything,” I said. “That’s a huge statement to make at a murder trial.”

  “It wasn’t really a murder trial, was it?” Austin asked. “I mean, you didn’t kill him. You were just charged with attempted murder, right?”

  “Yeah,” I said with a nod. “But everyone was calling it a murder trial.”

  “I can’t believe they brought your dad on,” Mitch said.

  “That’s… totally unbelievable.”

  My phone suddenly rang, and I got up to answer it.

  “Hello, mate!” said a British voice from the other end.