Token Vampire (Token Huntress Book 2)

by Kia Carrington-Russell

  I sat on the ground, processing all that had happened. I didn’t want Sydney to die, but the remains of that man no longer existed. He no longer existed, because of me.

  “Chase would have killed him in front of you so you would hate him, instead of hating and blaming yourself for what had happened,” Tythian said, honestly.

  “I killed Sydney,” I said with a parched mouth after all my screaming. That is something Chase would do for me. He would risk a world where I could possibly hate him, so I didn’t hate myself. How did he know I would revert back to my old self if he killed Sydney? He had once explained to me, that he knew vampires who had committed suicide once they lost the vampire they created and were connected too. How did he know I would revert, or was it just a gamble? He couldn’t have known; he just didn’t want me to blame myself.

  “You did kill him.” This was Tythian, he did not hold back. I was dangerous and a monster. I was delusional if I thought I could protect Dillian and Julia. I was the threat.

  “Tythian, can you please take me to the border of the Human Compound. There is someone I must meet. I would be grateful if you could give me an hour? They might be the companions I wish to take to the human camp in the Antarctic, as well as Dillian and Julia.” I was a predator and a threat to them all. What if I had attacked one of them instead of Sydney? What if it was Dillian? I had to cut contact with them. I had to accept this undying thirst that could easily control me. I now admitted that I was wrong. No matter how much I struggled against the thought of being vampire, it was an overwhelming part that was encased inside of me. I could not control it, so I had to let those who I might endanger, be free.

  I scanned the border of the Human Compound with my mind. I found Tori and Teary. I swept through, not at vampire speed, but at my Huntress speed. I could feel the wind cascading over my face. I could not feel its coolness, but I still found it to be refreshing. When I approached them, both were on guard. They lowered their weapons when they realized it was me. They sat on top of a large rock.

  There wasn’t much room for hiding within these woods; the trees were mostly thin and dead. But the fog mounted as good cover. From their position, they could search outwards, but could also be pinned easily by others. I hope that this was not where they had been staying the entire time. I wish I had never selfishly asked them to stay close by.

  “Eh, Esmore, I was wondering when ye would get back,” Teary said. Tori walked up to me with a gleam of respect in his eye. Even though so much had happened and they had seen the ugliness of me upon the night Campture tried to kill Chase and me; they stayed loyal to my commandment. “How have ye gone with the plan?”

  “They both escaped. I had a vampire from within, break them out. However, I have not seen or sensed them since.” They were no longer in the area. “The girls were highly mutilated; I fear that their mindset will not be the same. With the physical defects, they were evidently saber as well. I did as much to give them their freedom, and now I am offering yours.”

  “What do you mean, Esmore?” Tori asked, confused. “We want to follow you.”

  “I have found a human camp within the Antarctic. Originally I was to take Dillian and Julia there, to inspect it and see if they can be incorporated into the camp. I would like to offer you two the same. I have no guarantee of it working. But it is a start, and if it doesn’t work out, then at least you have built your numbers and strength.”

  “Ye won’t be joining us, Esmore?” Teary said, skeptically.

  “But I will go where you do, Esmore,” Tori said with certainty.

  “I too wanted that,” I admitted. But, I could not risk their lives. “But I can’t do that. I killed someone today. I drained him completely dry.” I pointed to my chest, trying to convey the words I needed to express myself. “I cannot control this side of me any longer. It appears the more days that roll over, the larger it grows within me. There are a lot of things I don’t understand about myself and a lot of enemies I now have to fight. This is not something I can do as a Token Huntress. I won’t be able to fight clearly, if I am worried about the lives of those who follow me; and whether I will be tempted to attack them or not. If I stay amongst vampires right now, I won’t be so compelled. I don’t want to hurt any of you.”

  “Esmore, you have let it go to ye head,” Teary said. She pointed her sword into the ground and drove it in hard. “We ourselves are tainted with blood on our hands. Ye do what ye have to do. I would like to join Dillian and his girlfriend. But when ye are ready for battle and ye need warriors ye know ye can trust. Ye find us again, yea?”

  I stood there with little sensation. I should have felt relief in this, or something- any emotion would be nice. I felt the insecurity of pulling away from duty and walking away from my comrades. Teary and I searched our surrounding trees. The presence of many vampires was around. I recalled the stench of two. It was Chase’s coven members; they all had a very similar smell. With our reaction Tori also prepared his weapons.

  I considered fighting. I could have fun dancing amongst them to relieve me of this darkness for some time. But, then what if I turned on Teary and Tori? I now understood how thin my line of control was. This was a good opportunity to be taken, they wanted me as bait. Chase had admitted that he was now prepared to confront his fears. He had helped me by taking initiative by killing Sydney, to relieve me of that pain. I too, could do the same for him, by forcing him to accept his past and confront this Coven that he had been running away from for so long.

  “You two run. I feel like they are weakest in that direction,” I pointed. “I will be fine. I plan to become hostage. After all, they still consider me as human.”

  “Are ye bonkers?” Teary asked. Tori was hesitant to lower his weapons.

  “My bargain will stay. I will find you both and bring you together with Dillian and Julia. I will find you all a safe place, instead of being exposed in the open. Now go.” With much hesitation they both ran at Hunter speed. I smelt flames and screams in the distance as Teary and Tori fought through the few vampires that blocked their escape. But, this coven was not focused on the Hunters. They were here for me. They pooled from the trees. Some looked over me as if savoring the taste. The thought of Chase’s theatrics came to my mind. If I had a sense of humor, I might have said something like, ‘Oh, please don’t get me, the weak human.’ But it didn’t amuse me; it only reminded me of something Chase might do.

  “It seems your Hunter friends abandon you when they are outnumbered,” the woman with long black hair and pale skin mused. The same defective vampire, Spungee, followed her. About thirty vampires surrounded. I was curious as to whether this was the Coven’s entire force. Cesar had a large Coven. But in comparison to this group, Cesar’s was far cleaner and organized. Half of these vampires looked as if they were on the verge of becoming sabers. I held back my annoyance and boredom with her superiority. Between Teary, Tori and me, this fight would have only lasted minutes. I looked at the size of some of the vampires’ fangs and was surprised that some had some age to them. Perhaps, it wouldn’t have been as quick as I first assumed. “Will you come with us now, human girl? I doubt it will be long until your familiar comes out of hiding to save you. On the contrary, he might be a coward in that regard too.”

  Her voice left an irritating humming in my ear. Her words came in and out as I had no interest in listening to her. Two vampires came beside me and grabbed me forcefully. I held back my natural instinct to fight them off. I was human. I looked around and gave a pathetic gasp as if to fear them and show that I was scared. The woman smiled in pleasure. “Dylan will be so pleased we finally caught you.”

  They dragged me at vampire speed for three hours. Their hideout was further than I had thought, considering that they continued keeping tabs on where I was. They ran on a shoreline. Sand flicked up at their speed and shallow waves seeped in and out. I looked out to the vastness of the ocean and then on the opposite side where dead trees concealed it. I could hear growls and savage vampire
s in the distance. I heard the whimpers of a human girl, before she was silenced and her throat ripped apart. I suppressed my heightened senses. I could not focus on the smell of her and give away my fake identity. If they knew I was vampire, then that would change this situation and my element of surprise. It was better that they underestimated me, until I knew how Chase wanted to deal with them. If he thought them worthless, then I would aid him in slaughtering them.

  In the distance there was an opening, where the vampires danced around a large fire. There were hundreds of them; the enormity of their Coven took me by surprise. Their numbers could even compare to Cesar’s. How had they managed to stay so large in size, when they were in the open like this? A large cage was hanging by a high metal pole that was impaled into the ground. It was beside the fire. I wondered if that was supposed to be for me. I had no doubt in my mind that when, Tythian, came to find me hours ago, that he would have reported to Chase. Chase would find me. I had even considered dropping pieces of my clothes, so he could follow the path of my scent easier. But it was no use; the vampires would have seen me doing such a thing as they surrounded me when they ran. They wanted Chase to track me, but I wanted him to do it in his own way. A way where he could enter in element of surprise.

  The rowdy vampires silenced. Whispers began to pool around me as they watched me. They inhaled my scent, skeptically. I heard voices murmur, ‘it’s his familiar.’

  “Clarissa, you finally caught the teeny tiny human,” a heavy accent purred from the crowd of vampires. Vampires separated away for him to walk through. A very pale and dirty vampire emerged. I could sense that he was strong. The vampire with long black hair, Clarissa, brightened red in the cheeks. The praise embarrassed her. She flicked her long black hair away from her shoulders. Her defect vampire began to tug on her dress.

  “Not now, Spungee.” She kicked him away from her. The vampire dragged across the ground and lowered itself as it crawled back towards her. “I’m sorry, Mommy didn’t mean it.” She opened her arms for it, to come back quickly. I frowned at the relationship between them. Could that have been Sydney and me? Is this what Chase had saved me from?

  “I apologize for the delay Dylan,” Clarissa said. The man stroked his pointy beard.

  “Us French are not patient, yea?” He said arrogantly. “But, you are lucky your results came through in the end.” The man had a strong build on him, with lightly tan skin. His dark eyes consumed me hungrily. When he spoke, I looked for for the size of his fangs, but he hadn’t yet ejected them. “Well lock her up in the cage. I like the theatrics of it. If Chase doesn’t arrive in twenty-four hours, we shall eat her, yea?!”

  The vampires cheered as they dragged me towards the cage. I accepted it without much fear. It would be exceptionally hard for me to break away from these vampires, if Chase didn’t make it in time. That did not bother me; I knew he would find me. The man named Dylan blocked my path.

  “Why do you not smell of fear?” He purred with his odd accent. His dirty fingers grazed against my cheekbone. “You are a pretty one aren’t you? It’s such a shame he has not turned you vampire. Maybe I won’t kill you. Maybe I will chain you and treat myself to you, over and over again.”

  I smiled. “I can’t wait until Chase comes, and kicks your ass,” I said, with a gleam of confidence. Chase would not lose to such a vampire. This vampire who now obviously led this Coven, was no match for my familiar. Chase was their technical leader, although he had run away from that duty since even his human years. For those who now wanted to challenge and kill him for leadership, I knew he would not lose. Dylan stroked his beard. “Interesting. You are as weak as a butterfly but have the heart of a lion.”

  The vampires continued to drag me towards the cage. One of them threw me over his shoulder and scaled the pole with efficiency. He threw me into the cage, which I was blessed to find was copper and not silver. The cage swung with my impact. I looked up at the chain from which it hung. It didn’t seem to be very strong. He clamped down a lock over the door and jumped from the cage. It continued to sway. I looked into the glimmer of night which cascaded with clouds.

  The vampires below me continued to dance and chat. This was a very uncivilized Coven when I compared it to Cesar’s. I found no real structure nor strength in it. But they had the numbers and they had members who had age and experience. I sat uncomfortably in the cage and watched their every movement. I fed myself with information and detail of their members. But my eyes continued to follow the movement of Spungee, the defect vampire, and his master, Clarissa attentively. I continued to look at them more than I would have liked to.

  I waited with boredom. I continuously scanned over the area in search of Chase. The night passed over and the sun began to creep up. I felt like I would soon be a cooked vampire, if I had to hang in this cage directly under it. The other vampires began sighing and getting agitated, as well. A lot of them asked if they could return to the shadows of their Coven. So, this open meeting place was not where they stayed at. Dylan wouldn’t allow it. He wanted his numbers to be impressive and strong. I closed my mind, bored and restless. I even considered resting for a while. I closed my eyes still listening to the movement below me.

  “Esmore,” Chases voice interjected in my mind. My eyes fluttered open. I could finally, sense him around. “Are you okay?”

  “They think I am human,” I mused to him. I knew he would find humor in that. “I am unscathed. They have me in a cage. You will see it when you get closer. The one in charge here, from what I can see is Dylan. He has a presence about him, which would suggest to me that he is old.”

  It wasn’t only Chase’s presence I could feel, but Cesar’s four sons and the members of his elite group were behind him. They stayed further back. I was surprised to see that they had all come for me, but this was more than likely Cesar’s direct order. They stayed far back, so the other vampires could not detect them. If Chase did want to reclaim his Coven, then bringing in another Coven’s force would only start a war.

  The vampires began to snarl and run at Chase, but Dylan called them back. Slowly Chase crept out of the trees mist, and overlooked their numbers, his fangs already bared. His leather jacket flicked back in the breeze, as his shirtless chest was poised in a show of dominance.

  “Welcome, finally. After four hundred and sixteen years, we finally meet Chase. No more running away,” Dylan snapped as he walked amongst the vampires and towards Chase. It had been that long since Chase killed their past leader. I recalled the story he had told me. He was still human then. He killed the previous coven leader, to release his mother from his cruel and abusive grasp. He was unsuspecting of the consequence after that.

  “I don’t know you, but you pissed me off!” Chase snarled. “You dare take my familiar as some kind of bait?!” I had never seen Chase so savage. It was a show between the two leaders; the rightful one and the temporary one.

  “I only wanted to coax you out, so I can kill you and take my place. I fought alongside our leader, the one you killed in his sleep. How embarrassing for you to reside and have a weak human as a familiar,” he laughed.

  “I have come back to claim this Coven,” Chase said, surprising me. I thought he would want to kill them all. I thought that was how he would manage peace from his past. This coven had destroyed his mother’s and his human life. “You will either bow to me Dylan, or I will kill you. Your greatest mistake was ever thinking that the familiar to match me, was weak.” Chase locked his beautiful gray eyes on me. “Esmore, dear, let us not toy with them anymore. Come down from there.”

  Dylan snarled savagely. The other vampires did the same, like a pack of sabers responded to one another.

  “Well it can’t be helped then,” I said. I stood and slammed my foot hard into the bottom of the cage, and snapped the chains that I suspended from, in half from the impact. I kicked out the door and jumped over the group of vampires. I flipped in the air and landed on my feet to crouch at Chase’s side. Vampires dispersed from beneat
h the cage that once kept me in. The copper smashed to pieces against the ground, and fire flickered everywhere. I flicked my golden hair over my face and looked up at them through the purple haze of my Hunter eyes. I smiled, displaying my fangs.

  “And you said you didn’t like theatrics,” Chase teased. I stood up as his equal beside him. ‘Trickery’, ‘abomination’, ‘what is it?’, the vampires began to whisper. Dylan looked around at his vampires who already began to come unbound. This army could be led right, but only if they had the right leader. This Dylan, was not a leader.

  “I am two hundred years older than you, boy!” Dylan snapped. He showcased his staunch self.

  “With that extra two hundred years, you have learnt nothing about being a leader,” Chase sneered. “I ask you again, you either die or you follow me. No others involved, after all I don’t want to kill my members. Those who oppose me however, step forward now. I will kill you too.”

  Dylan snorted and spat on the ground. “You are not taking this Coven after all these years. I can’t wait to behead you and take that pretty little familiar of yours.”

  Chase snarled and ran for Dylan. The two collided with vampire speed, slamming into one another. Neither used their weapons. I waited on the outskirts with anticipation. Though, I would not let it show. I stared down all the other vampires who fidgeted or wanted to get involved with the fight. I would be their opponent. This was Chase’s fight. No matter how much I wanted to help him, I had done my part to lead him here. Dylan became sluggish. Chase was hitting him strong in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. I hovered over Chase and Dylan, realizing the effect that Chase was playing on him. While he fought Dylan, he was also overpowering his mind with the sense of drainage and sluggish behavior.