Hunter

by S. J. Bryant

  Selene nodded. "I've always thought that we get exactly what we deserve in the end. If I was meant to be a coven leader then one day the opportunity would come, without me having to fight tooth and nail with someone like Pamielle."

  "You believe in fate?" Corvus said with a croaking chuckle. Fate was a very human concept.

  Selene shrugged and kept her eyes on the tunnel in front of them. "Who can say? But look at it this way. I am now prime female of one of the most powerful covens, so at least for now my theory is working."

  Corvus nodded and the corner of his mouth flipped up. He couldn't argue with that, for the moment at least her strategy was working. There were many females who would kill, and in fact had killed, for the opportunity, while Selene had fallen straight into it.

  "What happened?" Winton ran out of the shadows.

  "Wooden spike. Tell Ravyn he needs help now," Selene said, unable to hide the relief on her face when Winton appeared.

  Winton dashed back into the shadows. There were voices from the darkness and then the sound of activity.

  "We're here already?" Corvus said. Even through the agony and suffering he hadn't realised they'd covered enough ground to reach the hideout.

  "Yep. Just take a seat here; there you go," Selene said as she lowered him onto a mattress. It smelt of dust and age. He didn't mind. He was so tired; the exhaustion seeped into his bones. At least now he was free to sleep. To drift away…

  ***

  "No doubt about it boss," said a young man in dirt-stained overalls. "Explosives. They were set about the tunnels deliberately, made them collapse. It would have killed anyone who was inside."

  "But were they inside Gerry? That's what I want to know," Briggles said.

  They stood in a make-shift tent beside the upturned grass which was the sight of the explosion. Nova stood off to one side, watching the exchange. The man in the overalls was a hired explosion specialist; he and his team had been crawling over the rubble all afternoon.

  "We haven't seen any signs of bodies. Also, it looks like there is more to the tunnels than your building plans suggest," Gerry said, scratching a dirt-covered hand through his equally dirty hair.

  "What do you mean?" Briggles asked.

  "Just here," Gerry said, pointing at the blueprint of the tunnels, to a region of solid wall. "It looks like there's another tunnel leading off from here; it heads back towards the city central."

  "More tunnels," Briggles groaned.

  "It's not the first time I've seen this kind of thing," Gerry said. "All the sites I've been to, there have been tunnels under those too. It's like there's a whole other city underground."

  "Bloody lecheons," Briggles swore.

  "Do you need my boys for anything else?" Gerry said. "They don't like messing around with lecheon business."

  "No, they can go. Thank you," Briggles said, waving his hand towards the door.

  Gerry nodded, sauntering out of the tent towards the throng of people gathered outside.

  "So, they got out," Nova said.

  "Yes."

  "We can't do much more tonight. I say we get a good sleep and start again in the morning. They could be anywhere in the city by now. We'll have to start the search again tomorrow."

  "You're right," Briggles replied. "I'll see you tomorrow."

  Nova nodded and followed Gerry out of the tent.

  ***

  "You have no idea," Nova said as she shovelled another mouthful of stew into her mouth. "We're running around in circles. These lecheons have got control of this planet; the people here just haven't realised it yet."

  Tanguin looked at Nova from Crusader's large front screen. She had a bowl of green in front of her which she was delicately spooning into her mouth from time to time.

  "There's no way to track them?" Tanguin asked.

  "Just the usual; heat signatures and stuff, but that's no good because they look just like humans in a heat scan. They're hiding in the city, we just don't know where."

  "Damn," said Tanguin.

  "Tell me about it." Nova grimaced. She'd only been on Boullion Five for a few days and yet it felt like a lifetime. All she felt now was frustration at the ridiculous case; even the reward was becoming less appealing.

  "You can always just leave," Tanguin said. "The space-race isn't far away and if you win that, the money will be the same as what you're getting there."

  Nova nodded. She'd had the same thought multiple times since running into the lecheons.

  "I started it," Nova said. "If it wasn't for me the lecheons would only kill one or two people every now and then. Now it's a war. I've got to see it through to the end."

  Tanguin sighed. "I know."

  "I should get some sleep," Nova said. "I'll talk to you later."

  "Later.".

  Crusader's front screen went blank and Nova collapsed back into her chair with a sigh.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Nova blinked her bleary eyes as she rolled over and hung her legs over the edge of the bed. She glanced at the neon blue time display and groaned. Five am.

  "Who's calling me this early?" she mumbled as she stumbled out of her sleeping pod towards the pilot's chair.

  "Communication from the Inspector," Crusader said as Nova sat down.

  "Put it through," Nova sighed, a sinking sense seeping through her tired body.

  "We've got another one," Briggles said.

  His face looked tired. It was blown up on Crusader's front screen, showing every line and wrinkle. His hair was greyer than when Nova had first met him. His eyes were bloodshot, it looked as though he'd gotten just as much sleep as she had; which was next to none.

  "You're kidding," Nova said, slamming her palm down on the metal control panel.

  "Afraid so. I'm sending you through the photos and a map location now. I'll meet you there."

  Briggles picture flickered, before blinking out of existence. His face was replaced with gruesome images. A young girl with a ghostly white face filled the first image. Her mouth was frozen open in a silent scream. The map location was further into the city.

  "Damn lecheons. Why did I sign on for this again?" she muttered as she stomped back to her sleeping pod to get changed.

  "I believe it had something to do with the three thousand credit reward," Cal said, hovering into the doorway.

  "I'm starting to think I should have asked for much, much more," Nova said, pulling a black singlet over her head. "Crusader, start heading over. Park wherever you can."

  In response, Crusader's engines thrummed into life and the ship lifted up into the dark night sky.

  "You could always just leave it and find a different mission," Cal said.

  Nova glared at him. "You heard me talking to Tanguin last night. I'm not giving up. I'm just frustrated that it's taking so long. I'm not going to be scared off by a few lecheons. Besides, they're weak. I'm sure we nearly have them."

  "Is that based on the fact that they've evaded you four times now?" Cal asked.

  Nova scowled. "Corvus is injured, maybe even dead. Now's our chance."

  "As you wish," Cal said, hovering away from her sleeping pod.

  Nova pulled on her jacket and headed for the door. Crusader landed with a thud and before the engines could fully power-down, she stepped through the door and jumped onto the cement pavement. She headed down the street to where the police had cordoned off a piece of the road. They stepped aside when they saw Nova approaching.

  She nodded to them. Inspector Briggles and Doctor Dunwood were already there, kneeling beside the body and talking in low whispers.

  The victim was young; eighteen at the most, and her neck was twisted. Her eyes and mouth were wide. Nova shivered at the expression. It looked as though she'd died of surprise or shock. Teeth marks lined her neck and arms, and a dried circle of blood stained the pavement under her body.

  "Rosanne. She left work at two. That was the last time she was seen alive," Briggles said as Nova knelt next to him.

 
; "They made a mess of this one," Nova said, pointing to the pool of blood.

  "It's very unusual," Doctor Dunwood said. "Lecheons never let blood go to waste. It makes me think this wasn't a normal killing."

  "It's Corvus's style though, his taste," Briggles put in.

  "Did you say you injured him?" Dunwood asked, looking at Nova.

  "Yeah, got him pretty good too," she said.

  " Hmm. I think they were out collecting blood for Corvus," Dunwood said, frowning.

  "Can they do that?" Briggles asked, looking at the doctor with disbelief.

  "Oh yes," Dunwood nodded. "Especially for their coven leader. And it might just give him enough strength to survive."

  Nova cursed. If Corvus survived then their little trek underground had been for nothing and Johnny the veteran officer had died for nothing. Johnny. She stared down at the girl. Rosanne's green eyes were glazed over and tiny blood vessels had burst, staining the whites of her eyes pink.

  "Have you found any clues as to where they're hiding?" she asked.

  "Nothing, this scene is clean. I think they were being very careful," Briggles said, waving his hand at the empty street.

  "It's so close to the main road," Nova said, glancing over her shoulder.

  There was already a crowd of people gathered around the police barrier. They craned their necks to look in and see the horrific scene, pushing against one another for a better view. They stared with fascination at the body and the officers, transfixed, until someone elbowed them out of the way and reminded them to get back on with their lives.

  Briggles shrugged. "If it meant the difference between saving Corvus's life and letting him die, then they probably didn't care."

  Nova nodded. She got to her feet and began her own investigation. The whole area was made of cement; a main walkway when it wasn't blocked off by a murder scene. The spatters of blood spread out from the body in an arc. There were a few red footsteps, but they collected around the prone body and didn't create a definite trail.

  "Wouldn't this place have cameras?" Nova asked. Most streets so close to the main road were monitored.

  "Usually," Briggles said. He pointed up the side of the building.

  Nova's eyes followed his finger. Sitting at the corner of the roof was a round black orb. Typically it would act as an all-seeing eye with a direct feed straight to the police station. Now, it was smashed in, wires hanging out, and a collection of shattered glass at the base of the building.

  "Happened about two-twenty," Briggles said. "There's no footage of the offenders and none of the other cameras picked up anything."

  "They know this area," Nova surmised.

  "Better than I do," Briggles said with a grimace.

  ***

  "Sit up, my lord," Selene said.

  She cradled Corvus's neck with one hand and a bowl of blood in the other. The blood was thick, congealing, but it smelled divine. It felt like so long since he'd feasted. Corvus struggled to sit. Pain coursed through his veins with every movement. His right side where the bitch had stabbed him was numb completely. It was both a blessing and a curse; at least he wasn't in agony any more, but it also meant the poison was doing its deadly work.

  He couldn't see the wound. Ravyn, the medical specialist of his coven, had wrapped it tightly with bandages after digging as much of the wood out as she could. There had been tiny splinters scattered throughout his chest, gradually working their treacherous way to his heart.

  He gasped for air. For the last hour it had felt as if a massive weight was crushing his chest, forcing his lungs closed. He couldn't get a proper breath and it left him dizzy and confused. His head ached, ached like it had never done before. The extreme pain hammered away inside his brain.

  The struggle to breathe, the pain and the fear, made him wish for death. If only the poison would do its work quickly, rather than dragging him through this torturous embarrassment. Reduced to an invalid and forced to be spoon fed.

  Ravyn sat on his other side. She looked fierce and determined. She was an invaluable member of his coven; if his heart didn't belong entirely to Laticia he would have taken her for a mate. She could never have been prime female though, she wasn't right for the job; but then he never would have thought Selene could take to the roll so quickly.

  His mind was wandering. He had to focus.

  Selene held the bowl of blood in front of him. He allowed his mouth to open. At first it was just a crack. His dry lips stuck together and stung when he forced them apart. His parched tongue scraped against the top of his mouth like sandpaper when he lolled it out.

  The leach part of him rolled out from between his lips but hung limply, mostly drained of its energy. Corvus pushed with all his strength. The leach lifted slightly but that was all it could manage.

  Selene moved the bowl closer so that the leach was hanging down into the thick blood. The rim of the bowl rested on Corvus's chin. He felt the warmth as the leach dropped into the liquid, the taste of iron coated his tongue along with the flowery scent of his favourite flavour.

  It took a few seconds of being immersed in the blood before the leach began to suck. It pulsated as it pulled, weakly at first, but growing with strength. The blood surged into the leach's mouth, before sliding down Corvus's throat. The warmth soothed his scratched mouth and throat. The blood brought a refreshing zing which eased his headache.

  He felt every drop as it fell down his throat to his stomach and was then absorbed, flowing out to his veins. When the new blood reached his injured side it tingled. Sensation returned slowly. At first it was just a tingle, but soon progressed to an ache and before long he was back to unforgettable agony.

  Corvus whimpered. He hated himself for it but the noise leaked from his lips regardless. The pain was so extreme.

  "Cut it out," he said, his eyes pleading at Ravyn. Surely carving out his chest couldn't feel worse than the gut-wrenching pain he felt at that moment.

  "Feeling is returning. That's good," Ravyn said. She bent over his side and peeled back the tight bandages.

  The relief of pressure let more blood surge to the wound and a new wave of agony rushed over him. He glanced down at the hole in his chest. The flesh all around it was blackened and covered in puss. A horrible smell emanated from the wound, a stench like rotting eggs. But below all of that was something else, that flowery scent. Red blood seeped up out of the wound; clean, human blood.

  Tiny tendrils of grey smoke wafted out of the wound and dissipated in the air. He wrenched his eyes away; he couldn't look at the mess which was his chest, not without throwing up all over it. He turned instead to Selene. Her face was the very picture of calm determination. How funny that he had chosen her just to get back at Pamielle and yet she had been the perfect woman for the job. How funny -

  The small underground basement erupted with a loud clanging, like someone beating on a meatal drum.

  Selene jumped to her feet, letting go of Corvus's head and laying the bowl on the ground. Ravyn similarly stood, positioning herself between Corvus and the only entry.

  Corvus could do nothing more than hold his head up. It took all of his energy to focus on not letting himself fall to the ground, his head smashing on the cement.

  The rest of his coven jumped into battle-ready positions. They reached for whatever weapons they could find. Most of them carried swords or knives, the rest were used to using their bare hands. All of them glared at the single doorway which had suddenly burst inwards. The steel door smashed against the opposite wall and the tunnel beyond gaped with darkness.

  "We seek sanctuary under the lecheon convention," a voice echoed down from the tunnel into their basement.

  Corvus's coven looked at one another with confusion and then looked to him for direction.

  Corvus was overcome with confusion. Who would be seeking him out? What was he supposed to do? He was in no condition to fight if they turned out to be hostile; but if they were hostile, why would they request sanctuary? His mind was racing and he
had yet to respond when Selene took control.

  "Who seeks sanctuary?" she called, keeping her knife at the ready.

  "I am Brynden and with me are the remnants of Byzant's coven."

  Corvus and his coven drew in a sharp breath.

  "What are you swine doing here?" Selene spat, exactly mirroring Corvus's thoughts.

  "We seek sanctuary, and to join your coven. We no longer serve Byzant and wish to serve the great and powerful Corvus," Brynden replied.

  Corvus's mind went into overdrive. The remnants of Byzant's coven. The traitors. How dare they show their faces here? They had killed his people and he had given them one chance to escape with their lives, and now they flaunted that offer. But then, if he was truly going to take on the bitch and the other humans he could use some back up.

  Selene stared down at him, her eyebrow raised. He looked up at her and nodded once. They would get one chance.

  "You may enter. Leave your weapons at the doorway," Selene said.

  Corvus's coven crouched, ready to respond if things got ugly.

  The foreign coven entered one at a time through the door, placing their meagre weapons down as they went. They shuffled down the stairs, their eyes wide and staring. They crouched over, with shoulders bent as if expecting a hidden blow at any moment. They were bruised and broken; many had visible wounds or limped as they came down the stairs.

  The man at the front, Brynden, opened his eyes wide when he saw Corvus huddled in a corner, his chest a bleeding, blackened mess. He looked between Corvus's face and his wound before ripping his eyes free and moving forward into the centre of the basement. Brynden stood with his hands spread wide and the rest of the coven followed his example.

  There were fifteen of them in total, some injured but many still able to fight. They could be just what Corvus needed. He glared at them, trying to see through his haze of pain and to pass judgement on these new-comers. In the end he nodded and gestured for Brynden to approach.