Blood Hunter

by Debra Jess

  No, Hannah would have been thorough with her healing. Alek's attitude toward him might be turning slower than Evan's, but Scott knew better than to make a thing of it. He finished his breakfast and headed for the garage.

  He kept the cycle at a slow pace until he turned onto the main road. Traffic was lighter than usual. It was as if Thunder City was holding its breath. He turned down the next street. Betty Chung's sister also lived in the Fargrounds.

  He made it to the West Ashland Park, which separated the Bayview neighborhood where the Blackwoods lived from a mixed-use area with a denser population. The park had about fifteen acres open to the public, but he hadn't walked its trails since elementary school. He remembered enough about the park to know where the back entrance was located. He could take a short cut through on the dirt trail and find a good hiding place in case he needed to translocate himself and Hannah away from the estate. Maybe even stash some supplies there ahead of time.

  His memories were the only thing that saved his ass when the Shield stepped into the middle of the road, rifle raised.

  Scott skid his motorcycle into the short driveway just as the Shield fired. Son-of-bitch was using live ammo. Scott made it twenty feet, only to discover his escape route stymied by the guard arms chained shut.

  He could see from the rearview mirror the Shield rounding onto the drive, his arms cradling the rifle. Scott ditched his bike, dove under the guard arms and hit the grass to the left.

  What had gone wrong? What had he done? Why was the Shield trying to kill him after they'd worked together at the harbor?

  He could hear the Shield in his head as he ran. Wrong question, Grey. The Shield wouldn't waste time planning to hunt him. It was a perfect set-up for a live-fire exercise with Scott as the target.

  Scott hid behind a generous oak to catch his breath. He had his own weapons with him, of course. He reached for his Ruger.

  Wrong answer again, damn you. You failed to pull the rifle yesterday.

  The Shield wanted him to use his Alt ability, not his guns. He pulled his hand off the holster.

  The birds chirped their early morning song. The small river rushed over rocks. Did he hear a twig break to the west?

  The river ran diagonally across the park. Was the Shield herding him in that direction? Could he pull a gun from a moving target?

  Wooden picnic tables and barbecue pits lined the river. What could he use besides his guns?

  What the fuck is it with you and the wrong questions?

  Fine. The Shield used barriers to protect himself. If the Shield used a full body barrier, how long could he hold it? A full body barrier would cut him off from oxygen. If he kept his barrier lowered to breathe, he wouldn't raise it until he had to. Right now, the Shield more than likely didn't think he'd need a barrier because he didn't believe Scott could find him.

  Scott closed his eyes and covered his nose. He imagined the dust from the nearest fire pit — small, dirty, damaging — and yanked.

  The dust slammed around him, the cloud covering a solid ten feet in all direction. A short, sharp half-sneeze, half-choke gave the Shield away. So close. How had the man gotten so close?

  Didn't matter. Scott charged forward, using a kick to get his point across. Then he pushed his advantage, his fists busy, not holding back.

  The Shield recovered after Scott's second punch. They were practically on top of each other. Not bound by police rules, not caring much for T-CASS's restrictions either, Scott let loose with his fury. That didn't stop the Shield from fighting back, hard and mean.

  Voices traveled up the river, growing louder. The brief distraction was all the Shield needed to sucker punch Scott in the head, driving him to his knees. His ears ringing, he could only watch the Shield as the Neut jumped back and ran.

  More voices. The Shield's and someone else's. Scott forced himself off the ground and moved away from the cover of trees to the path.

  Fucking hell.

  The Shield had taken an early morning jogger hostage, his handgun to the woman's head, his rifle still on his back. He was actually smirking. Scott's fury burned hot. What did that son-of-a-bitch think he was doing?

  "Okay, hotshot. Save the hostage, if you can." The Shield whispered something into the woman's ear.

  "Help. Help," she called, not terribly convincing with a giggle. How the hell had the Shield convinced her that he wasn't really a threat? He looked like a threat without even trying.

  Role-play or not, Scott reached for the Shield's hand gun and pulled. Nothing happened. He pulled again. Shit, he couldn't pull the gun through The Shield's barrier. But, if he couldn't pull the gun, how could The Shield shoot? How had he done it during the harbor attack?

  "I could have killed her and ordered out for breakfast by now," the Shield taunted.

  Scott's face burned, the fire in his belly raged. In the blink of an eye, the hostage disappeared and reappeared in his arms.

  "Oh, my." The woman looked up at him. She had short, snow-white hair, with a grandmother's kind face.

  "I'm so sorry, ma'am." He couldn't stop the stutter. "I meant to pull his gun away — "

  Before he could finish, the grandmother patted him on the chest. "Oh, don't worry. There's nothing to get this old heart pounding than to have a couple of young studs fighting over me. You did a fine job. Keep up the good work."

  She gave him a flirtatious wink and a wave to the Shield, who actually waved back, before jogging off.

  The Shield's smile had disappeared by the time he walked over to Scott. "You were supposed to pull the gun."

  "No shit. I couldn't from under your barrier."

  "I didn't have my shield raised. You caught me off guard with the dust." The Shield holstered his gun. "Maybe you just didn't want it bad enough."

  Scott burned with failure, and yet it wasn't quite as bad as when he was with Highlight. At least the Shield admitted he'd been caught off guard. The partial victory heartened him. "Maybe you're just an asshole."

  "I'm always an asshole. You knew she wasn't in jeopardy, so when pulling my gun became too hard you took the easy way out. If I really wanted to kill her, I still had the gun to shoot both of you. You need to think ahead. Stop panicking about death. People die in war. They die in our line of work. You need to accept that you can't save everyone and sacrifices have to be made."

  Scott looked away from the accusations. "If I’d pulled the hand gun or the rifle, you still could have broken her neck."

  "You're damn right I would have broken her neck, but you would still have the ability to fight. You need to think ahead and stop being a pussy about killing people."

  Scott recoiled. "I've killed people. I killed at least six yesterday. Even before Dane, I killed two people. It's not something I celebrate."

  "Well, congratulations. I don't celebrate my kills either. That doesn't stop me from doing my job."

  "Which is what, exactly? You mumble about a war, you dragged me through this bullshit training exercise. Why don't you just tell me what you're getting out of this?”

  More voices echoed in the background. The Shield grabbed Scott by the arm and yanked him off the path and into the woods.

  "It's about the Court of Blood. It's about what they're doing to Alts."

  "How do you know about the Court of Blood?" The only people who knew about the Court were the Blackwoods and Thomas's elite team of hackers.

  "I work for them."

  Scott tripped over the pronouncement. "How? Why?"

  "Why is not your damn business. How is what I'm teaching you."

  "You're grooming me? You're recruiting me into...whatever it is they're doing." Scott tried to stop, but the Shield was unstoppable.

  "Grooming you, yes. Recruiting you, no. The Court of Blood needs to be stopped, but it has to happen from the inside. I want to bring you into the organization. I'm trying to train you so they can't corrupt you."

  They reached the entrance to the park, where Scott had ditched his bike. The Shield let go of Sc
ott's arm.

  "Why me?"

  "You have potential, Grey. You can make the tough shots when you need to."

  "How do you figure that? Yes, I'm a good shot, but there are others who are just as good as, if not better than, me. Ask the SWAT commander. Or, hell, just go down to the shooting range near the Fargrounds."

  "They're not Alts. Alts don't carry guns. Your mother saw to that."

  "You mean T-CASS doesn't carry guns. You're an Alt, and you carry a gun. You even have clearance for the Arena. How do you know there aren't any other Neuts who are good shots?"

  "Maybe there are, but they're not you. You have the combination of police training, Alt power, and a history of getting the job done. Neuts with guns only use them on the range. That's the only place they're allowed to use them."

  "Legally." To believe all Neuts kept their guns at home while freelancing was a naïve belief.

  For a second it looked as if the Shield was going to yank off his sunglasses in exasperation. Scott's breath hitched, hoping he could finally look the other man in the eyes. There was a secret there, but at the last moment the Shield only rubbed his forehead. "If I thought for a second that there was another Neut in this city who could kill two Alts and an agent of the Court of Blood, I would be training them, not you. You're what I have to work with."

  Scott chuffed his disbelief. "You sure know how to build a guy's confidence. For a moment I thought I was the chosen one. Now, I'm just the least worst of all the possible terrible solutions."

  "The chosen one is a myth of twisted magical thinking. You're real, Grey. Your skills are real. Your power is real. I don't have any more time to waste explaining myself. If you're in, I'll teach you what you need to know. If you have doubts — if you think this is all just a joke, then tell me now and I'll find someone else."

  "You just said there is no one else." Scott leaned against the guard arm, the wood rough under his backside. This clandestine meeting with the Shield made him feel alive again. Hannah gave him comfort and solace, and a reason to get up in the morning, but the Shield offered him a destiny with instructions on how to get there. He hadn't realized how much he needed that until now.

  T-CASS looked down on him. It would take more than a few parlor tricks with bean bags to gain their respect, and even then, he didn't know if he wanted their respect. He didn't care about T-CASS and they only tolerated him because of his family, because of Hannah.

  She would join T-CASS eventually and they would take care of her. If he wanted to be a part of her life, he needed to be a part of T-CASS. He wanted what Thomas had with Catherine, but maybe T-CASS wasn't the only way to make it happen. Maybe The Shield could offer him an option.

  "Okay, I'm in. I'll help you take down the Court of Blood."

  The muscles at the very tips of The Shield's lips relaxed. Not even close to a real smile, but a damn sight closer to any other emotion Scott had seen.

  "Where do we go from here?

  "You go nowhere. You use T-CASS to your advantage. You hate playing with beanbags, but use the access you have to build your other skills. The ones I'm teaching you. The ones you will need once you're undercover."

  Scott was already making a mental list of things he could do from within the Arena. "What about my family? They're going to want to know why I'm suddenly nose-diving into training."

  "You cannot confide in them. You're tempted to tell Carraro what you're up to. Forget it. He can't help you with this. And ditch the girl. She's a liability you can't afford."

  Scott bristled at the order. "No. I won't give up Hannah. She's the only reason why I'm even considering this. The Court of Blood wants her. I want to protect her. Dumping her isn't an option."

  "Keeping her isn't an option either. You think the Court is going to allow her to slip through their fingers? Why do you think they let Dane raise her? Her power is a game changer for the Alt community. Healing is a half-step short of resurrection. Entire religions are built around what she can do."

  Scott's heart screamed. It can't be the only way. What had he just stepped into? Yesterday he was thinking of asking the Shield to rescue Hannah if Thunder City arrested her. "I'll..."

  "No, you won't think about it. You'll do it. You don't have a choice. You're a part of this now. A part of the solution. Back away from me, and Hannah will be in more danger than when she was trapped inside the quarry."

  He had to find another way, a way where he could protect Hannah and still...what? Love her? Live with her?

  He was going to make sure Hannah lived. Thomas often called him stubborn, but loved him anyway. Scott's heart clutched at his father's words. Hannah was almost as stubborn as himself.

  Scott nodded to let the Shield know he'd agreed, but what he had planned couldn't be further from the truth.

  Hannah pushed open the door to the video room with her hip, her breakfast balanced on a large plate, but stopped short when she saw Alek on the floor in front of the coffee table, fiddling with a new device. She looked around for Evan, but didn't see him. Evan had been the first twin to talk to her after she'd arrived in Thunder City.

  Alek, she didn't know so well. The only reason she knew this was Alek and not his brother was because he was the techie of the two. He always had a gadget or tablet in hand, usually gaming, something she knew nothing about. Since Alek had his back to her, Hannah figured she could back out and return later when he was finished.

  "You don't have to leave."

  Caught in the act, Hannah stepped into the room. "Um. I can eat in the dining room so I'm not in your way."

  "You're not." Alek stood up and brushed off his jeans. "I just got back a little while ago. I brought Cory's cycle back from the harbor. Now, I'm installing a new VR system for you and Cory."

  "Both of us?"

  "Yeah, hang on." He motioned Hannah to sit on the couch. "I'll go over to Thomas's place this afternoon. I need to install the same set-up there for Cory."

  "What is it?" She put her breakfast down on the coffee table and took the headset Alek handed her.

  "It's a standard VR set-up, but I wrote the software. It runs on one of Carraro's private servers. Nothing fancy, but it's a way for you and Cory to be together without breaking any laws. You'll have complete privacy."

  Hannah spun the headset around in her hands. "I don't understand."

  Alek broke down a cardboard box. "I created a world as part of a gaming system I'm going to build and sell. Right now it's only world building — background scenes. It's not even close to beta-testing yet. No one else can get in there. You'll have a few options: strolling along a beach, there's a forest with bike paths, sailing on an ocean — you mentioned once you like to go sailing?"

  Hannah nodded, her throat tightening up again when she thought of Roger. He's happy now, floating in the waves of Mystic Bay forever. The tightness in her throat eased.

  "You're not going to be able to pick up a gun and defeat the evil empire or anything like that. I mean, eventually I'll finish writing that part of the program, but it'll take time — "

  "This sounds perfect." Hannah clutched the headset to her chest as she sat down on the couch while Alek cleaned up the mess. "Thank you. How do I contact Scott through this?"

  Alek sat next to her to walk her through the controls.

  "Got it?" Alek asked.

  "I think so." Hannah fiddled with the headset. "Alek, you're not doing this because I healed you, are you? I mean, it's not necessary. I heal people because I want to, not because I expect — "

  Alek held up a hand, so she shut up.

  "I'm doing this because Evan yanked my chain last night and told me to stop being an asshole. Not just to Cory, but to Thomas and well, anyone else who pisses me off. He's right. I hold grudges longer than he does. Cory was there when I needed family in the hospital. You healing me was just a bonus. I'm doing this because it's time I stopped being an asshole."

  "I never thought you were an asshole."

  Alek shrugged. "I think you've h
ad to deal with a lot worse than just a run of the mill asshole in your life. You deserve much better."

  Alek stood to leave, but then he turned back with the oddest look on his face. "Hannah, even though you and Cory will be operating in a virtual environment, that doesn't mean you can't be hurt. You know that right?"

  "Of course." Hannah gave Alek her most confident grin, thankful his confession was over. Having someone sort of apologize to her gave her a weird feeling of worthiness that she wasn't used to. "I read an article about this while I was at Star Haven Memorial. A medical journal I borrowed from a break room. It talked about everything: people tripping over furniture, seizures, muscle spasms, eye strain — "

  "No, I don't mean that." Alek sat back down next to her, reaching out to hold her gloved hand. His cheeks looked red, like he was blushing. "I mean, I don't know how close you and Cory became before the Oversight Committee told you that you couldn't touch, but if you two decide to try to get closer, um, physically, in this sort of environment — "

  "Sex? You think Scott and I are going to have sex virtually?" Talk about being a day late and a hymen short.

  "That's not why I wrote this program." Alek let go of her hand, as if he hadn't realized he had taken it in the first place. "I wrote it just to give you two some privacy to be together, but if things do progress — "

  Hannah could hardly hear Alek's words as her own blush rushed to her ears. After last night, virtual sex couldn't beat the real thing, but if it was their only option until the Committee set them free, then — "I wouldn't do that. I mean, we wouldn't do that here in the house."

  Alek paused. "I'm not judging, because it's not my business, but Catherine isn't always the best when it comes to talking about that sort of thing. I mean, I had my dad, and Cory had Carraro. Given your history with Miranda Dane I wasn't sure if you needed someone to talk to before you plugged in — "

  "You guys were talking about me and Scott having sex?" Could this conversation get any worse?

  Alek turned away from her. He looked like he was trying not to laugh. "No, but I've been using VR for quite some time now. I've seen what happens in there with people. Sometimes people mistake VR for reality and other times they mistake it for a safe place where anything goes without consequences. I'm just saying that if you make the decision to get closer to Cory, um, Scott, that being in a VR environment will protect you in certain ways, but in other ways, like emotionally, you could still get hurt."