Huntress

by Taft, J L

  “Tell me again before I go.”

  She didn’t need to ask what words he wanted her to say.

  As she stared into those eyes, trying to remember everything she could about them, committing them to memory, she couldn’t say it.

  He saw the answer in her eyes because he dropped his hand and stood. He didn’t seem angry as he stuffed his feet into his unlaced boots, more resigned.

  Fiona got a strange sense of déjà vu when he did it. When he went to the door she finally raised her eyes to his.

  “Take care of yourself, Trent,” she said quietly.

  He didn’t say anything for a second and then he said quietly, “Yeah, you too.”

  Then he turned and was gone. She listened for the front door to close before she let the tears come.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Three weeks later

  The days ran together for Fiona. She started sleeping a lot during the day since she was out at night hunting. It was hell on her writing schedule. But her heart wasn’t in it anyway.

  The vamps were hearing of her now and behaving better. There were laws that needed to be followed and because they needed blood to live they preyed on humans. But they weren’t allowed to kill. She found the whole thing rather off-putting.

  Once they had, their immortal life was forfeit and the hunter’s job was to see that it was done. She didn’t hesitate. There was no room to second-guess it. Otherwise she was risking her own life.

  Her visions were getting easier for her to tap into and they were getting clearer. She started writing down her own kills, as her grandmother had.

  She wrote them all down not because she thought her own granddaughter would read them someday but because she needed to get them out of her head and it was easier to forget them once they were on paper.

  She understood now why her grandmother had done it. It was cleansing and she always felt better after she had written down her thoughts and anything else that came to mind.

  But she didn’t write about Trent. She was missing him too much already.

  For once nothing called to her to hunt that night. She took a long soak in a hot bubble bath, something she loved to do and hadn’t spared the time for in the last couple of weeks.

  It soothed her tired body and she sat in her tub until her skin was wrinkled. She took her time drying off and putting lotion on, trying to keep her thoughts of Trent at bay.

  It didn’t go well. He was always there. If she wasn’t dreaming of vamps she was dreaming of him and their last night together.

  She went to bed, feeling lost and alone. Time that was spent doing normal things felt strange now.

  The bath had done her good and she fell asleep quickly. Some hours later she woke suddenly.

  She was becoming accustomed to the images that hit her suddenly. There was a vamp in a dark parking lot and as she concentrated she saw the pretty brunette slide lifeless to the ground. He had killed her.

  But it was strange. As the woman lay motionless at his feet he seemed to stare right at her, taunting her into coming for him. Something was off but she couldn’t deny the fact that he had killed and it was her job to dole out justice.

  Hopping out of bed, she dressed in her hunter outfit. She was used to it now and it slid over her body easily. She pulled up the middle zipper and took a deep breath to calm her nerves.

  She knew something was going to change tonight. For the first time ever she wished she had a gift like Trent’s so she could see more than just vamps.

  Grabbing her sword, she hesitated at the door and went back for several of the metal throwing stars and the silver stakes.

  She had a feeling she was going to need everything she had tonight.

  Trent was miserable. He watched over Fiona doggedly, pushing his talent to the limit to see her. To make sure she was home safe and sound every night. The urge to protect her was strong and he had a hard time not running to her every time she left the house.

  He had to admit she could hold her own though. Even if he didn’t like it. He saw her in the tub tonight and knew she was going to bed. He had cut it off then. The sight of her all pink and covered in bubbles was too much for him.

  He had been visiting his granny almost every day and he was starting to think even she was getting sick of him and his depression.

  Hell, he was sick of himself. He just couldn’t shake it. The last few months had taken their toll and he found himself with nothing to do but run for Granny’s groceries. It was ridiculous. He was a grown man.

  He flicked the TV on and went to the fridge to grab a beer. What he needed was a job. Something to take up all this time he suddenly had.

  Popping the top on his beer, he sat heavily in his recliner. He hoped there was something on that would hold his attention.

  The images came quickly enough to blindside him. He leaned forward and held his head, his beer dropping to the floor and spilling at his feet.

  He could see her easily, driving, and as he concentrated it all moved forward and he saw her facing a vamp, one that had the blood of a young woman dripping off his chin.

  But then he saw another vamp through the curtain of rain, waiting in the shadows. It was a trap and she was walking right into it.

  He had to warn her. Jumping up, he grabbed his keys, put his boots on and snagged his jacket on the way out the door. He recognized the parking lot they were in. It wasn’t far from him and if he hurried he might make it in time.

  Please god, let me get there before she gets hurt.

  Fiona got out of the car quietly and slid her sword in its sheath. The parking lot was deserted and most of the light poles were out, giving her an eerie feeling. She walked slowly, watching all around her intently. She only made it a few steps before the skies opened up and rain came down in thick sheets.

  The flood of precipitation muffled her footsteps on the pavement. The hunter outfit was tight enough to keep most of the water out but her hair was dripping wet. She pushed it back over her shoulders, irritated with the distraction.

  When she reached the edge of the lot where she knew the vamp was waiting she slowed even more. He was there somewhere but she couldn’t see him. There was an old abandoned guard station off to her right and she looked toward it, wondering if the vamp was hiding there.

  Her attention wavered for that brief second and he was there, standing inches from her. She had no time to pull her sword out and she cursed herself for an idiot.

  She took a step back and as soon as she did she regretted it. It never paid to show fear. It was the same vamp Trent had shot outside the storage unit several weeks ago.

  He reached out and grabbed her arm, lightning fast, spinning her around and pulling her against his chest. He was so strong that he held her immobile. She struggled against him and he tightened his hold, his arm coming around her neck and cutting off her air.

  “Hold still, hunter. I don’t want to end this party before everyone is here,” the vamp growled in her ear.

  Fiona ceased her struggles as his words sank in. Were there more vamps coming? She realized too late she might not survive the night.

  He tugged her across the parking lot toward the guard shack, lifting her feet off the ground when she refused to cooperate. He turned her so they were facing the way she had come in.

  Trent stepped from the shadows.

  The rain was blinding and lightning split the sky for that brief, charged second.

  “Fiona, are you all right?” Trent called out to her.

  She sucked in a breath to answer him but the vamp squeezed her neck harder and she couldn’t push any air out.

  Trent started moving closer to them and Fiona tried to shake her head, wanting him to stay back.

  The air in her lungs felt as though it was going to explode but all she could think about was Trent. She had missed him so much and she knew she would lay her life down to save him.

  She didn’t know why he had come but it didn’t look good for her and even though she didn
’t want him involved she was incredibly happy to see him.

  Trent was watching them closely as Fiona saw someone leave the shadows behind him. She tried to warn him but she couldn’t force her voice out.

  Another vamp, a big, hulking man who had a good three inches on Trent, came up behind him.

  Trent turned at the last second, ducking a blow from the other vamp’s big, meaty fist. But the vamp was quicker than Trent and caught him with his other hand, sending Trent sprawling.

  He was quick to get back on his feet but the vamp was on him in a split second. They struggled and the vamp got the upper hand. He held Trent in a chokehold that was much like the one she was fighting against.

  Fiona was about to pass out from loss of air. The vamp loosened his grip and she sucked in deep breaths, her vision finally clearing.

  “Bring him closer,” he commanded the other vamp.

  Trent struggled and as he got nearer she could see the blood dripping from his mouth. The eyes of the vamp holding him were red and wild. The vamp could smell Trent’s blood.

  Trent caught her eyes and she saw the resignation in them. It terrified her. She had to do something.

  She started to speak but her captor tightened his hold on her neck again, effectively cutting her off.

  “What’s your name, boy?” he asked Trent.

  Trent remained mute and she felt him nod. The vamp holding Trent sucker punched him in the side. Fiona was sure if the vamp hadn’t been holding him up he would have fallen to the ground.

  “I’ll ask again. What’s your name, boy?” he asked calmly.

  “Trent.”

  “That’s better. Now, Trent, look into her pretty brown eyes and tell me if she’s worth it. Is she worth dying for?”

  Trent raised his gaze to hers and she tried to tell him not to do this. The vamp was going to kill them both and there was no reason for him to sacrifice his life for her.

  Then she heard him whisper the words she didn’t want to hear.

  “She is.” There was finality in his voice and she knew he would never back down.

  “Death then?” he asked.

  “Yes,” Trent said firmly, closing his eyes for a split second.

  He wasn’t even going to fight back.

  She felt the vamp behind her nod and the vamp holding Trent bared his fangs and grinned at her before sinking them deep into Trent’s throat.

  Fiona let out a silent scream and, catching the vamp holding her off guard, turned in his arms suddenly and freed herself. She didn’t worry about him behind her. She flew at the vamp holding Trent.

  He lifted his head from Trent’s throat and then released him, letting him slide to the pavement in a heap.

  Pulling a silver stake from her belt, she launched herself at him. She landed with her knees in his stomach, knocking him off balance as they both tumbled to the wet pavement.

  Raising her arm, she buried the stake in the vamp’s chest as far as she could. He screeched and she jumped back to watch him dissolve into ash.

  She was beside Trent in an instant. Rolling him over, she could see he had only minutes left. Blood was still seeping from his neck, mixing with the rain and spreading in a red puddle under him.

  She pulled her sword and turned toward the vamp that was standing by, watching them with a satisfied smile on his face.

  “Come on, vamp, come closer so I can kill you,” Fiona growled out.

  He laughed at her but he came closer. Fiona gauged the distance and knew he had to take two more steps before she could reach him with her sword.

  So she taunted him. “What’s the matter, bloodsucker? Afraid to get to close to a woman?”

  He growled low in his throat and took another step.

  She could hear Trent struggling for breath below her. He wasn’t dead yet. The vamp hadn’t gotten the chance to completely drain him.

  She smiled at the vamp and took the final step as she brought her sword around in a clean arc, catching him just above the shoulder.

  He head rolled, a shocked expression forever etched in his features. Before his body went to ash she was kneeling beside Trent.

  “Trent! Trent!” she called as she slapped his cheeks, trying to get a response.

  All she wanted was for him to open his eyes and tell her he was going to be okay.

  Trent let out a loud, sudden bellow, his back arching off the ground.

  Fiona suddenly understood. He was changing into a vamp. She had to get him out of here.

  “Trent! Trent, we have to go but you have to help me,” she said as she held his face in her hands. His eyes focused on her and he nodded.

  Heaving Trent up was a bit of a problem. He was heavy but the venom was taking effect and he helped her as much as he could.

  She got him to his feet and they headed in the direction of her car. Trent leaned heavily against her and it was slow going. Finally they made it and she propped him against the car as she dug for her keys. “Can you stay standing?” she asked him.

  He nodded and she left his side to unlock the door and pull it open.

  He didn’t say anything, his eyes wild and his teeth clenched in pain. But he did as she asked. She helped him into the seat and closed the door as he leaned back and his eyes drifted shut.

  Running around to the other side, she jumped in and cranked the engine, backing out with screeching tires and heading into the night.

  She didn’t get far before she realized she had nowhere safe to take him. He was thrashing around in the small confines of the car and she realized she should have put him in the backseat.

  Suddenly she was lost. What did she do? Was he going to hate her for this? She took a deep breath and assessed her options. There weren’t many.

  Suddenly her cell phone rang as it sat in her center console. She didn’t recognize the number but something compelled her to answer.

  “Hello?”

  “Fiona, bring my grandson to me.” The line went dead but she knew who it was and now she had a place to go.

  Pulling back into the road, she did a U-turn and headed to Eve’s house. She made it there in record time, flying down the roads like a bat out of hell.

  She slowed to pull into the driveway and then slammed her foot back on the gas. The house was lit up brightly and she came to a sliding stop a few feet from the front door.

  Eve met her at the passenger side of her car. Her hands went briefly to her mouth at the sight of her grandson covered in blood and obviously in pain.

  “Eve!” Fiona cried. “Help me get him inside.”

  Eve snapped out of it and helped her pull him from the car. The two of them got him across the yard as his head lolled and his legs barely held him up.

  The door was open when they got to it and Eve directed her to a bedroom down the hall. They dropped him on the bed and he started thrashing again.

  “Fiona!” he screamed out and she dropped to his side.

  “I’m here, Trent. It will be over soon. Just hold on, baby,” she crooned to him.

  His eyes opened, unfocused and panicky. She felt the tears slide down her cheeks and she wished she knew what to expect. He couldn’t die. Not after all they had been through tonight. He couldn’t leave her.

  She stayed by his side, washing the blood from him and removing his shirt. Sometime in the wee hours of the morning his body went cold and his breath stilled.

  Eve came in and, her heart broken, said, “What have you done?”

  “What I had to,” she answered her. But she suddenly wasn’t so sure.

  He was dying and what was left might not be the same man who had been there the day before.

  Fate it seemed always had the last word.

  Trent woke in his childhood bed and tried to piece together what had happened. He felt different. Something was wrong. He sucked in a breath and could smell everything and he realized he hadn’t been breathing before that. He could smell Fiona.

  Was he dead?

  He sat up and swung his legs ove
r the side of the bed. He glanced around him and saw her slumped in a chair beside his bed.

  The sun was just setting out the window and he stood and stretched, wondering how long he had been here.

  He ran a hand down his face and paused, feeling with both hands. His scars were gone.

  Stepping to the mirror, he jerked back in surprise. A stranger looked back at him.

  His face was smooth. The angry-red, puckered skin was gone. He looked almost like the man he had been long ago. Except for his eyes. They were red instead of green and as he stared at them it all came back to him.

  Fiona. The vamp biting him. He was now one of the monsters Fiona hunted.

  Unexpectedly he felt as if someone had lit his throat on fire. It was dry and he was so thirsty. He gulped down the glass of water sitting on the stand by the bed. It didn’t help. Actually it made it worse. The pain caught him off guard and he stumbled, crashing into a bookshelf behind him.

  Fiona woke with a start and jumped from her chair.

  “Trent?” she asked as he straightened.

  “Hey,” he croaked. He didn’t know what was going on but he could sense Fiona’s heart beating in her chest. He could smell her breath. He could hear everything, even the birds miles away with the window closed.

  Putting a hand on his chest, he felt for his own heartbeat. There wasn’t one. Raising his gaze to Fiona’s he suddenly knew what she had done to save his life.

  Fiona watched as Trent put everything together in his mind. When his hand went to his chest, feeling for a heartbeat, she knew he had figured it out.

  Doubts assailed her. What if he didn’t want this life? What if he resented her for what had happened?

  But there was no going back now. What was done was done and they couldn’t change it. He straightened and came toward her, his eyes glowing red, and she mourned the loss of his green gaze.

  He caught her up in his arms, his strength bruising her where his fingers gripped her. She stared up into his eyes and shivered when she saw his new fangs elongated from between his lips.

  “I’m a vamp,” he growled down at her.

  “I know,” she answered quietly.