Hunter Trials

by Caroline Peckham

  You can walk out that door. Just place one foot in front of the other.

  When my backpack was nearly full, I crammed my laptop into it, zipped it up and put it on my back.

  My throat was dry as I headed downstairs and gazed at the front door, gripping the straps of my pack.

  Silas's phone rang in the kitchen and he appeared a moment later, talking into it. “Sure. Just coming.” He hung up and pulled the front door open. Two men entered in black clothes, offering me nods as Silas directed them to the kitchen.

  My breathing grew out of control. The world seemed to slow around me as Silas ordered the men about and they soon appeared pushing the chamber on a wheeled trolley.

  I watched them roll it out into the morning sunshine, my breathing growing shallow.

  See ya, Kate.

  “See ya,” I breathed back to his voice as the men loaded the chamber into a black van. That was it. Silas's body was gone. Perhaps I'd never see it again. Parting with him made my heart ache a little. I was suddenly a girl lost at sea, losing her Wilson like Tom Hanks had in Castaway.

  Silas's footsteps pounded upstairs and a moment later he reappeared with his bag in hand, heading out the door. He glanced back when I didn't follow. “Ready to go?”

  I just gazed at him, not at all ready, but managed to nod. When I didn't move, he raised his brows expectantly.

  I inched toward the door. Oxygen defied me. My lungs squeezed hard.

  As my toes met the edge of the doorway, I reached out and clung to the door-frame.

  Silas was watching me curiously and the more he stared, the more anxious I grew.

  Panic was threatening to overwhelm me.

  All I had to do was take a step forward. Why was it so hard?

  Because of what happened to you out in the world before. Because going out there could mean it happens again.

  I stepped back, overwhelmed, the memory on the verge of swamping me. The shadowy figures in the alley. A growling voice in my ear. “You taste as sweet as a rainbow, pretty one.”

  No, I won't go back there.

  “Kate, is everything okay?” Silas asked and I blinked back to reality.

  I wasn't there in that terrifying moment. I was right here in the present with Silas Madigan.

  Keeping my eyes on his, I edged forward and forced myself to step through the door onto the porch.

  I sucked in a breath. The world didn't end. The birds were still singing in the cherry tree in my garden. The wind was playing with my hair.

  Silas reached around me to shut the door and at the last moment, I squeaked, “Wait.”

  He paused, his body so close I could feel the heat radiating from it. I wanted to move away, but I couldn't do anything but stand there like a statue.

  He raised a brow, not moving. “I'm sensing you have some hesitation about coming with me.”

  I nodded, unable to get words past the knot in my throat.

  “Okay...” he said softly. “You don't have to take the job if it's a problem.”

  I shook my head, taking a deep breath. Sweet, pure oxygen flowed into my lungs, helping me move. Turning I grabbed the door and yanked it shut. There. Done. No turning back. “I'm coming,” I said firmly.

  Urging my legs to move, I was suddenly walking along the driveway, making more progress than I had in years.

  Silas moved to the passenger side of his car, opening the door for me.

  I immediately dropped inside, placing my bag by my feet. When he shut the door, I released a harsh breath of relief. I felt better in the car, not great, but better.

  Silas spoke with the men before getting in the driver's seat and starting the car.

  With all the stress of leaving the house, being around him no longer intimidated me. In fact, I was just grateful I wasn't alone in this.

  I breathed in and out through my nose, using the techniques I'd once found online when I'd tried to overcome this fear. Slow breaths. Focus on something nearby. I settled on the dashboard, letting the dark grey colour fill up my gaze, finding peace in the simple task.

  Silas pulled the car onto the road, following the van as it took the lead. We were deep in the heart of the Kent countryside, the lane flanked by lush bushes, reaching up either side of us. It made me feel a little more enclosed and I was able to take my eyes off of the dashboard and absorb the sights around me.

  Look at me – I'm outside!

  I'd once been an adventurous girl. I'd had a whole bucket list of everything I'd wanted to do. From a bungee jump in Thailand, to travelling through Asia with just a backpack, skydiving in Australia, swimming with dolphins off the coast of Mexico. What had happened to that girl, and to those dreams?

  You know what happened.

  I winced, the dark memory unfurling in my mind again. It was like a black fog living in my brain, always waiting to shroud my happiness and snuff it out. That night had taken so much from me. Perhaps that's why I'd clung onto a cryogenically frozen body. I could relate. Feeling that hollow, that empty. Having no company, no one who understood. In a strange way, Silas's body had been my only friend through the darkest part of my life.

  Glancing over at the real Silas, I wondered what he'd think if he had any idea of how his ex-body had provided me solace. He'd probably think I was insane. Even I knew I wasn't completely sane anymore. But that was okay. I didn't need to be sane. Sane people dealt with their problems head on. Faced their demons. I wasn't strong enough for that, sad as it was. That dark time had whittled me down to a husk of a person. Someone who saw an empty body and found more comfort in it than she had her friends. The friends who hadn't believed what had happened.

  Perhaps that was what made me the perfect employee for Silas. One of his men had turned up at my house a few months after the incident. I'd told the police what I'd seen. Sounded damn crazy. Vampires, I'd told them. I'd been attacked by Vampires. The only thing that had reassured me I wasn't going insane was Silas sending a man to my house to offer me a job. I'd been running seriously low on funds and without being able to leave the house, I'd feared I'd go broke. And then a man in a black suit had shown up and said I was the perfect candidate for a newly-opened PA position because I knew about the Immortal world. And he'd told me damn-well everything, confirming I hadn't gone crazy at all. Well, not in the way I'd thought anyway...

  “You're quiet,” Silas commented, jolting me back to the present.

  I threaded my fingers together, glancing over at him. “I haven't left the house in a while.” Understatement of the century.

  “I see.” He nodded, eyes forward. “And why's that?”

  I sighed, resting my head back against the seat. “The world thinks I'm crazy,” I said. Guess that was one of the reasons I hadn't left my house. But not the main one.

  “And are you?” Silas asked, a smile playing around his lips.

  I considered that. Couldn't exactly deny it, but I didn't want to admit to insanity. “I think everyone is a little crazy. But some more so. I'm probably in the second camp.”

  “Well my employees are a quirky bunch, so you'll probably get on just fine.”

  People. Oh Lord, the people. I'd be spending time with other real-life humans (and potentially Immortals) at the institute. I gripped the seat in response to his words. Maybe this was a bad idea. I wasn't ready to be pushed this far. I'd probably be better off heading back home and waiting a few weeks until I was ready.

  Silas's phone rang and he tapped the Bluetooth button on the dash to answer it. A male voice sounded through the speakers. “Hey boss, we've got company.”

  Silas glanced in the rear-view mirror and I turned in my seat, spying a back SUV pulling up the road behind us.

  “Shit,” Silas muttered. “Alright, I'll hold them off. Get back to the institute.”

  “Yes, sir,” the man replied.

  The line went dead and I gazed at Silas, worry niggling at me. “What's going on?”

  “Just hold tight,” he said, then slammed his foot to the brake.


  We screeched to a halt and my stomach flew upwards as I braced myself on the dashboard.

  The SUV picked up speed, flashing its lights behind us. The lane was too small for it to get by and the moment it stopped behind us, someone leaned out of the window with a gun.

  BANG.

  I ducked my head with a scream, my heart slamming into my ribcage.

  “Sir!” I cried in alarm, gripping onto my seat.

  The van ahead of us took a sharp left turn and Silas pressed his foot the accelerator, ignoring me as he sped by the turning it had taken. The SUV surged after us and another shot was fired.

  “Mr Madigan,” I begged, panic swirling through my chest. “What's happening?”

  “Rockley Jones,” he snarled in response.

  I gasped, taking a peek around my seat at the pursuing vehicle. They'd stopped shooting – thank God. But that didn't help my heart rate settle one bit.

  We reached a roundabout and Silas turned right around it at high speed, making me brace myself against the window. The SUV followed, barrelling up behind us, trying to get alongside us.

  Silas pressed the accelerator and the engine roared as we sped away from them. The road was wider here, with fields sprawling out on either side of us. But the signs around us told me we were approaching Newbury Town.

  I could do nothing but hold on and hope we lived through this. I could barely even focus on my agoraphobia with all the chaos going on around me.

  Adrenaline surged through me as Silas picked up the pace to a dizzying speed, turning the world into a blur of green. As we approached the town, Silas took a hard left and I gasped, sure the car was about to roll over.

  We raced up a hill toward a huge supermarket. There was nowhere else to go unless we turned back. I couldn't spot the SUV behind us, but it must have been close.

  Silas flew over a speed bump with a crunching sound then drove up a narrow lane that led into a car park atop the supermarket. The engine hummed as we circled up the spiralling tower. When we reached the car park, Silas veered off toward a ticket barrier. His window was down by the time we reached it and he snatched the ticket as the machine produced it. The barrier flew open and we rolled into the car park.

  Silas sped past the rows of cars, finally pulling into a space between two large people carriers. I gazed at the brick wall ahead of as Silas killed the engine, my heart beating out of tune.

  He reached over, placing a hand on my wrist and I snatched it away, turning to him with wide eyes.

  His expression was collected, his brows drawn together. “Deep breath,” he commanded and I complied, my lips trembling as I blew it out.

  “Now listen,” he said firmly. I was locked in his gaze, unable to do anything but nod. “We need to leave the car and head into the supermarket.”

  I nodded again, my heart ticking loudly in my ears.

  “We'll lay low here amongst humans until they give up. They won't do anything rash in a busy place like this.”

  “What if they don't give up?” I breathed.

  “It's a twenty four hour supermarket, Kate. They have to give up.”

  My throat grew desperately dry.

  “They don't know who you are. So we're going to split up.”

  “Split up?” I squeaked.

  “Yes,” he confirmed. “You're going to take the stairs down to the store and I'll take the lift. When you reach the bottom, head into the supermarket and start shopping. Act casual.”

  Casual? I hadn't been in a supermarket since – who even knew when!?

  “Okay,” I agreed, but I didn't have much confidence.

  Silas leant over me, popping the glove compartment and a pistol appeared within it. A lump rose in my throat as Silas took it out and tucked it inside his jacket.

  “I'll call you when it's safe to leave. You can do this,” he promised, unblinking as he gazed at me. Something in his eyes told me I could. And I found a bubble of resolve growing inside me. Nodding firmly, I stepped out of the car, gazing around the car park, expecting to see the SUV at any moment.

  Silas got out too, giving me a terse smile. “They won't come in here. There's too much CCTV.”

  “I hope you're right about that.”

  “I am. Now go ahead of me.” He ushered me away.

  I hurried off, adrenaline giving me the fuel I needed not to panic about my surroundings. I was out of my house, in the midst of a goddamn car chase. I hurried through a set of blue doors, finding a stone space with a set of lifts and a stairway leading down to the supermarket. I stepped into it and a cold breeze rushed up my arms, sending a shiver through me.

  Red brick walls gazed at me from all sides and the concrete floor was smeared with old gum and wet stains I didn't want to think about. Creeping down the steps, I lifted my chin, fighting deep for my courage. They didn't know who I was. And I didn't exactly look like the usual suspect. My bubblegum pink hair and blue corduroy dress wasn't exactly the most intimidating outfit.

  I crept onward, the scent of stale urine floating over me. As I turned onto the next set of stairs, the light below me flickered and went out all together.

  Alright. It's okay. It's just a light, Kate.

  I continued moving, spotting the opening at the base of the stairs that must have led into the supermarket. Fear bloomed inside me as I pushed myself on.

  Nearly there. Just a few more steps.

  Footsteps sounded ahead and I stiffened, pausing on the stairs.

  Keep moving, idiot!

  I forced myself down another step as two men came into view. A dark-skinned man with a violent orange shirt on, encrusted with jewels. Dreadlocks fell about his shoulders and a glint in his eye told me he was dangerous. Beside him was a thug of a man dressed in black. He had his hand in his jacket, clearly concealing something. My heart twisted sharply as I forced myself to keep moving.

  “He'll come dis way, no doubt,” the dark-skinned man purred in a thick accent.

  They spotted me as they stepped into the stairwell and I forced out a smile.

  That's it, Kate. Act Casual.

  They moved toward me, their eyes never leaving me as I passed them.

  “I once had a girl play one of my games with hair like dat.”

  My throat grew dry and I couldn't help glancing back over my shoulder.

  Thankfully, they moved on, heading up the stairs, not sparing me another thought.

  My shoulders dropped as I hurried along, thankful to be out of the dank space. I passed through a narrow alley filled with shopping trolleys, grabbing one before heading through a set of automatic doors into the shop. It was huge, sprawling out before me and I quickly moved into the veg aisle, grabbing things at random and dumping them in the trolley. I lingered in that area, glancing over my shoulder several times to try and spot Silas.

  What if he hadn't gotten to the lift before those men had arrived upstairs? I forced the thought away, picking up a broccoli and dumping it in the trolley.

  “Nice hair.”

  I jumped at the voice, turning to find a man there, twice my age with a pervy look about him.

  I gave him a blank stare and he frowned, backing up and heading away.

  That's it weirdo, keep walking.

  In all the madness, I started to get a buzz off of my current situation. I'd been locked up in my house so long, reading novels about female heroins who stormed into battles or rode dragons, or fought for their lives against an evil regime. I felt like one of them now, undercover, a part of some crazy underground world only I knew about. I'd been a part of that world a long time and yet only now did that really sink in. I knew about the Immortals. I was hired by a man in the body of a clone. My life might have been dull inside my home, but it didn't have to be. I was outside! Walking amongst people, holding a precious secret in my heart. Maybe I wasn't agoraphobic after all, maybe I'd just cooped myself up in that house so long I'd forgotten what this felt like.

  A smile reached my lips as I picked up a cucumber and plac
ed it in the trolley. I remained in the aisle for as long as possible, waiting to see if Silas would enter. Finally, he did and I released a breath of relief as I spotted him. He caught my gaze, jerking his chin, directing me to move on. I did, heading into the next aisle, putting a bottle of milk in my trolley.

  I rolled along, occasionally standing on the edge of my trolley as I went. I was conquering so many demons right now, it felt like I was part of a movie. My glee stuttered out however as I reached the end of the aisle and spotted the two men walking into the store, looking fierce.

  I turned the trolley, quickly heading down the next aisle. Tins stretched out either side of me and I plucked a few from the shelves, dropping them in.

  At the end of the aisle, I spotted Silas with a basket, heading further into the supermarket at a brisk speed. I quickened my pace, reaching the end of the aisle. Glancing out into it, I spotted the two pursuers rounding into the passage. Timing their approach, I forced the trolley out hard in front of them to slow them down, giving Silas a chance to escape.

  “Oh-sorry,” I gasped, feigning in embarrassment.

  The man with dreadlocks narrowed his gaze on me. “No trouble, my dear.” He moved around me and the other brute followed.

  I swore internally, wanting to slow them down. But how could I?

  This had been a terrible plan. What if they caught Silas? What would they do? Would they make a scene in this public place or had Silas been right?

  I pushed my trolley after them, keeping my distance as I pretended to browse the end shelves.

  My phone rang in my pocket. I snatched it out, anxiously answering it, keeping my eyes on the men up ahead.

  “Hello?”

  “Kate, have you got eyes on them?”

  “Yes, they're just up ahead, near the breakfast aisle,” I whispered, pretending to take an interest in a jar of pickles. Yuck, hated the things.

  “That's Rockley Jones, the one in the orange shirt. I can't believe he'd come here himself.” Silas sounded fraught with worry.

  I considered his words. “How about I distract them? You can get the car, bring it out front and I'll meet you there?”

  He fell silent a moment, then said, “ Alright. I'm moving back toward the exit. Are you sure you're up to this?”