by Bria Lexor
“Huh?” I was confused about what Brooke was saying to me. “Shinka never told me anything about her biological father.”
“That’s because she didn’t know he was...” Brooke hesitated for a moment as she chose the right words to say. “Shinka’s father is Zeus, and when Bru was pregnant with her, Zeus stole Tuffara’s blood from Zander’s lab and he injected it into Shinka—”
“What?” I said, shocked from the news. “Shinka’s father is Zeus?”
“Yes, Abel.” Brooke said rolling her eyes at me. “Shinka was in fact a Demi-god just like me, just like Trunks and...” Now Brooke cleared her throat to keep herself from crying. “Anyway, Shinka was not supposed to be brought in as a Slayer, and that’s why Bru kept her from this lifestyle. Her father wanted her to have a normal childhood.” Brooke laughed dryly. “Shinka was supposed to be—”
“It’s alright Brooke,” I said placing a reassuring hand on Brooke’s shoulder, stopping her from continuing the story. “There’s nothing more we can do for Shinka now but to avenge her and Cadman’s deaths.”
“Yeah,” Brooke replied, wiping away a tear that escaped her right eye. I was about to turn when Brooke caught me by my arm. I stopped and looked at her. “And Abel,” she said with strength in her voice. “Shinka’s death will be avenged.”
I nodded curtly at her. “I know.” And I transformed into my gargoyle form. I felt my body changing, my fingernails grew, my hair also grew down to the back of my neck, which I always cut off the next day because having long hair in California was hotter than hell and I could not understand how chicks dealt with it! I was also tired of always having to buy new shoes, so I made it a point to take them off before I transformed because my toenails always grew and poked massive holes in my best sneakers.
I also take my shirt off, so my massive wings will not tear up my awesome shirts. My jeans were another story, I had a zillion pair of them, so they tore into shorts when my leg muscles changed. This is what has happened to me every night since I was born. I always thought of myself as a freak of nature, cursing God as to why I had to live the life of a human by day and a creature of the night at nightfall.
I have hated being shunned from society throughout the centuries and I have grown accustomed to keeping to myself and laying low around the humans as much as possible. Moreover, it seemed to work simply fine, until I had met Shinka Fox, that is.
Shinka had changed me into something I never thought I would be. She saw the good in me and even though I was a freak of nature, she accepted me for who I was and that was amazing to me and that is why I had fallen in love with her.
I left the others behind at the Police station with Trunks and Harlow as I leapt into the air and headed in the direction of my house. I thought I was being sneaky, but Wren had tailed me, and I grew annoyed with her presence.
“Were you trying to ditch me back there?” Wren asked, catching up to me. I sighed in annoyance and looked at her from my peripheral vision.
“Now why on earth would I do a thing like that, Wren?” I said sarcastically. Wren scoffed at me and just shook her head.
“Look Dad,” Wren said as we neared my house. “I lost my mother today...” She said looking at me and I felt her pain but said nothing as we continued to fly. “Look, even if I’m not going to be born... I just want you to...” She shook her head and forced a sad smile. “I want you to know I love you, Daddy.”
“Huh?” I blinked as her words sunk in.
I want you to know I love you, Daddy...
“I...” I could not get myself to say the words back to Wren. I do not know why it was hard, but it was and maybe it was the fact Wren resembled her mother so much and it pained me to lose her as well. I cleared my throat as we landed on the balcony. Something was not right; I could feel it in the air as I looked around the empty balcony.
“What’s wrong?” Wren asked me and I knew the clan was not here.
“I don’t know,” I said, as I entered my bedroom, my bed was empty, and my mother was gone. “Something’s not right here...”
“Daddy...” Wren’s voice was filled with fear and I turned and saw her holding a red envelope. My heart was pounding loudly in my ears as I took it and tore it open. It was a letter addressed to me in the same handwriting Shinka’s had been printed in.
Abel,
AS YOU CAN SEE YOUR clan is gone. I have taken them all to an undisclosed location and if you want to see them alive you will bring me your Alarica jewel, or they will die... You have 72 hours from the time you read this letter to bring it to me or they will die... The clock is ticking Mr. Lapis. And my blade enjoyed being inside of your girlfriend... Tragically, she did not make it. My condolences...
-The Hunters
“That jerk!” I growled as I crumpled the letter in my palm Wren looked at me waiting for me to tell her what it said. “The stupid Hunters kidnapped the clan.” Wren gasped.
“You mean they’re all...”
“I have 72 hours before they kill them...” I looked at Wren and nodded at her. “Are you ready to avenge your mother’s death, Wren?”
Wren looked fierce and nodded curtly at me. “More than you know, Daddy... More than you know.”
“Good,” I said dialing Trunk’s cell number. “Because we’re going on a suicide mission and we’re leaving it a blood bath...”
Chapter Fourteen
It was a good thing I called Trunks, because he already knew about the gargoyles capture and told me that there was an abandoned factory a mile out from my house. Wren and I wasted no time, as we flew in the direction of the factory.
My phone rang and I grunted as I came to a sudden stop, Wren stopped too and looked at me strangely. “Hello?” I said as I answered my phone.
“Hey,” It was Kaitlin’s voice on the other end, and she sounded on edge. “I hope you weren’t headed toward the factory—”
“Actually, I was...” I said scoffing at her. “You know, you have a lot of nerve calling me after you and your father murdered Shinka... What the hell do you want?” I growled, aggravated we were losing precious time to find my clan alive.
“Hey, I’m giving you a courtesy call by going behind my father’s back and calling you, you ungrateful rich—”
“Zander doesn’t know you’re calling me?” I asked with total surprise in my voice. Kaitlin heard it and sighed annoyingly at me through the phone.
“Of course, he doesn’t,” she hissed, growing angrier at me by the minute. “Now turn around and head back toward your house—”
“What, are you stalking me?” I growled trying to keep myself from shaking. “How the hell do I know this isn’t another one of your plans to—”
“It’s not!” Kaitlin said with icy voice. “I have information on the whereabouts of your clan...” She paused and I heard hesitation in her voice as she continued. “I-I can’t forgive my father for killing my best friend... and for that... I want to bring the Hunters organization to its downfall!”
I sighed but knew this was the only chance I had at rescuing my clan, so I reluctantly agreed. “Meet me on the balcony in twenty minutes.” I hung up on her before she could object to another location. I looked at Wren and nudged my head south. “Kaitlin’s meeting us at the house.”
“What! Why?” Wren’s face looked horrified, and I just shrugged.
“She says she knows where the clan is being held and she’s doing all of this behind Zander’s back.”
Wren started laughing and I looked at her strangely. Something wasn’t right about her and I didn’t realize it until another gargoyle came out of nowhere and blasted her in the face.
“What the fu—”
The real Wren started fighting with the imposter and I just watched, not understanding what was going on. Wren pulled out a dagger and stabbed the imposter in the abdomen. The fake Wren gasped and transformed into one of the Hunters. It was a female, and she started laughing evilly at us.
“What’s so funny, bitch?” Wren hissed i
n her ear.
“You will never find your clan!” Coughing blood, she spit it at Wren’s face, but Wren dodged it and head butted her in the face.
“We’ll see about that!” I growled at her as I took her from Wren’s hands and carried her to the house. I landed on the balcony and dropped the Hunters body to the cold cement. She was dead, of course, but I wanted to show Kaitlin the body and see how she reacted once she saw it.
“I’m—” Kaitlin leap over the ledge and gasped when she saw the body of her fellow Hunter lying on the ground, bloody and un-moving. “What the hell did you do to her?” She snapped as she pushed past me to check on her comrade.
“I didn’t do a damn thing to her!” I said, narrowing my eyes at her. “Wren, on the other hand...” I trailed off and Kaitlin understood what had happened as she climbed to her feet.
Kaitlin sighed as she gathered her composure. “My father must have sent Catalina to kill you.” She said frowning at me. “That bitch won’t be missed... believe me, she’ll easily be replaced by a new Hunter.”
“What do you want, Kaitlin?” I asked, getting impatient. I looked up at the sky as darkness began to fall.
“I told you,” Kaitlin said, flipping her long blond hair behind her shoulder. “I want to help you bring down the Hunters.”
“If you get any of my people killed, I will kill you myself. Do you understand me?” I hissed as I looked down at her. She looked small from my lofty height, but I hoped I intimidated the hell out of her.
“I give you my word,” Kaitlin said, extending her hand out to me. For a moment, I looked at it and pondered the thought if I could really trust a Hunter. Finally, I gripped it and shook on it. “I already sent my father a text and told him I have captured both you and your... unborn offspring,” she said, letting go of my wrist. She looked at Wren and Wren hissed at her from across the balcony. “I told him you had to prepare for the funeral, and he said as long as I have you in my custody, the time limit on your clan has been extended.”
“You are good Miss. Franchot.” I said, popping my neck muscles. “So that buys us some time to figure out a plan of action—”
“I’ve already got one,” Kaitlin said, smiling slyly at me. “And it’s going to be... one hell of a surprise...”
Chapter Fifteen
It was five days after the tragic deaths of both Cadman and Shinka and today was the day of the funeral. I was dressed in a nice black tuxedo, and I wore a pair of dark sunglasses. I was going to be one of Shinka’s pallbearers, while Drake and Trunks were going to be Cadman’s pallbearers. We decided to honor them both in a double ceremony to celebrate their young lives.
Many of Shinka’s fans showed up to get a glimpse of the fallen pop star, but there were so many fans that showed up, they had to wait outside. Bru asked that the funeral be televised for those who could not attend the ceremony. My mind was still in shock that this had happened. I still could not wrap my brain around it. My beautiful Shinka was gone forever.
The service was about to begin, and we waited in the entrance of the church as the music started. We walked slowly up the aisle until we reached the front. Now you would think that being a creature of the night, I would not be allowed to enter a church, but I attended church at least once a month to show the Hunters I was not evil at all.
The Priest started talking as we stood in the front pew of the church. I took off my sunglasses and looked at Shinka’s lifeless body as she lay in the dark brown casket. She was so beautiful, even in death. Her skin was pale; Wren had done her make-up. Wren got in a fight with the funeral home and they finally agreed to allow Wren to do her mother’s make-up on the condition she was supervised by one of their workers.
“She’s beautiful, isn't she?” Kaitlin whispered to me and I blinked as I nodded curtly at her without saying a word. I leaned toward her and whispered in her ear. “I’m surprised that Hunters have a heart.”
Kaitlin looked stunned for a moment as my words sunk in. “I have a heart,” she whispered back to me a bit offended I would say such a thing to her.
“I’m just really careful of who I allow in, is all.” I was about to say some smart remark when the church wall suddenly exploded. Screams of terror erupted all around us and everyone ducked and started running toward the entrance. I coughed and could not see anything as dust covered my face.
What the hell’s going on here?...
Trunks and Harlow were ushering people from the building and it was a good thing the Police were already on site because they snapped into action very quickly.
“We have to go,” Trunks said, and I shrugged him off my shoulder. “We have to move the bodies before—”
I stopped mid-sentence and looked at the casket that held Shinka’s body in it. The casket was still intact but Shinka’s body was gone...
Chapter Sixteen
I could not believe someone had stolen Shinka’s corpse right out from under our noses. The police had moved Cadman’s body to a safe location until we could bury him. But Brooke was losing it, to put it nicely, and, I was, too.
“How could someone do this?” I yelled and everyone stayed quiet. I ran my fingers angrily through my hair and started pacing outside of the Police Department. It seemed like things were going from bad to worse and there was nothing I could do to stop any of it.
“This is all your fault!” Brooke shot angrily at Kaitlin.
“What?” Kaitlin said with a confused look on her face. “I didn’t do any—” “You had the Hunters blow up the Church and steal Shinka’s body!”
“The hell I did!” Kaitlin shot back angrily. “I had nothing to do with that!”
Trunks had heard enough. “Alright ladies,” he said separating the two girls before Brooke could beat the shit out of Kaitlin again. “Kaitlin has been with us the entire—”
“Oh, so you’re taking her side now, is that it?” Brooke snapped angrily at Trunks and Trunks sighed in annoyance.
“No, Brooke, I’m not taking her side—”
“Then why are you defending her?” Brooke said, shaking violently.
“Because until we have absolute proof Kaitlin was in on the attack, we have to consider her innocent until proven guilty, Brooke.” Trunks shook his head at her. “I wish you would trust me on this Brooke.” There was a hint of hurt in Trunk’s voice and I felt kind of bad for the guy. I do not know why I did but I did. There was more to Trunks and Brooke’s story than they wanted to admit. Not like I cared or anything, their non-existent relationship was their business and that was not for me to be prying into.
Brooke scoffed. “Trust you?” She asked, arching an eyebrow at Trunks and he sighed angrily and waited for her to speak. “In case you’ve forgotten Trunks, I did trust you... we all did, and you ran away from the Slayers to play Cop for the humans!” She screamed angrily at him!
“No Brooke,” Trunks shot back his entire body trembling with rage. “I left the Slayers to protect you...” Trunks lit his cigarette and took a long drag from it exhaling slowly. “I knew if I had said anything to you, you would’ve came looking for me and I...” He could not finish his sentence. I could see the hurt in his eyes, and he was pleading forgiveness to Brooke, but she just rolled her eyes at him.
“So that’s your excuse huh?” Brooke said, forcing a laugh. “You didn’t have the balls to even say good-bye to me, Trunks!” With that, Brooke went to stand by the car and Drake followed to keep her company.
I cleared my throat to get Trunks’ attention. “So, we’re just gonna stand around here and do nothing while the Hunters have Shinka’s body?”
Trunks sighed and shook his head. “I don’t even know where to start looking, Abel,” Trunks said, rubbing his tired eyes. It did not even occur to me Trunks was running on only a few hours of sleep. “I’m sure the Hunters will call or leave you a message soon.”
“But what would the Hunters want with Shinka’s body?” I asked Trunks and he just shrugged.
“Your guess is as good as mine
Abel,” was all Trunks said when his cell buzzed. “Excuse me, I got to take this call.” With that, Trunks stepped off to the side and started talking to someone on the other end. My guess was Harlow with some new information. At least, I hoped it was. Just then my cell phone beeped, and I had a new text message. I looked at it and time froze.
This cannot be real?... It must be a dream?...
But it was not. It was a text from Shinka’s phone:
Hey, baby! I want to see you. Come to your favorite place... I will be waiting... Shinka.
“Th-this has to be a trick,” I stammered.
“What’s a trick?” Kaitlin asked, coming over to me. I showed her the text and her mouth dropped open, but no words came out.
“You think I should meet her?” I whispered and Kaitlin nodded.
“It’s probably a trap to get you away from the others,” Kaitlin whispered back to me. “But I’ll take you there and if my father pulls anything—”
“It’s worth a shot to free my clan from the Hunter’s grasp.” I said as Trunks started walking toward us. “Let’s see what Trunks has to say before we head out.” I quickly put my phone in my pocket and waited for the news.
“The Hunters are nowhere to be found.” Trunks said with a frown. “Everyplace we look, leads to a dead end.”
“I need to borrow Abel for about an hour or so.” Kaitlin said pulling out the keys to her black Escalade.
“For what purpose?” Trunks asked arching an eyebrow at her.
“To get him to clear his head,” Kaitlin said without hesitation. “Abel’s obviously been through a lot this week and he could use a moment or two away from everything.”
Trunks hesitated for a moment then reluctantly agreed. “Fine,” He said. “But you have Abel back within the hour or I’ll come looking for you understand?”