I GREW ANTSY waiting for the sun to set. It felt like it took a thousand years. I’d already asked Dad numerous times if we could leave before sunset. He’d repeatedly told me no, that we would wait for Halina to be able to go with us. I hated the idea of just what could happen during the time it took us to get down there. The thought of Hunter being attacked while he was alone gave me nightmarish daydreams that left me shaking.
Restless, I discreetly slipped away from Olivia and headed downstairs to wait for Halina to wake up. She was awake when I ran into her, though. She was awake, and she was very, very angry.
I was in the lowest level of the underground rooms. Not only was this entire floor soundproof from the rooms above it, but each bedroom was soundproof as well. I was heading to Halina’s bedroom, when I saw Starla and Jacen hanging around Gabriel’s lab with their heads down. I was a little surprised they were still here. I also wasn’t sure why they looked so glum. Especially Starla, who was never down about anything.
“Hey,” I said, getting their attention. “Have you guys seen my grandma?”
Starla looked up. She had bags under her eyes, but she brightened when she noticed me. “Nika!” Stepping forward, she tossed her arms around me. The familiar smell of perfume, gum, and hairspray assaulted me as I hugged her back. “I’m so glad you’re okay. We’ve been looking everywhere for you.” Pulling back, I noticed how weary and disheveled she seemed; it was shocking, to say the least. “I haven’t slept in…ages, it seems like.”
After her, I hugged Jacen. He was more reserved, but equally affectionate. “We’re glad you’re safe, Nika. Has your brother returned as well?”
I nodded. “He’s upstairs, resting. He was shot.” Saying it out loud was strange to me, and I couldn’t keep the scowl from my face. We’d been shot at way too much recently.
Starla and Jacen exchanged startled glances. Then Starla bit her lip and asked in a surprisingly timid voice, “And Hunter? Is he…with you?”
Shaking my head, I swallowed the lump in my throat. “No, he…we were attacked by a group of hunters. I’m not sure he made it out.” My hollow voice resonated through the hallway.
Starla’s eyes widened and filled with tears. Turning, she clutched Jacen’s hands. “Jace…if Hunter…”
Her throat closed, and Jacen pulled her close. “It will be fine, darling. No matter what, it will be fine.”
He rubbed her back while a shiver went down my spine. “What’s going on?”
Jacen looked to the closed door on his left. “Your grandmother is in there with Gabriel. She’s…unhappy with his part in what happened to Hunter.”
My eyes widened, and I moved toward the door. Jacen reached out for my arm. “I wouldn’t go in there.”
I pulled away. “I have to tell her what I know.”
Jacen sighed, then nodded. Rewrapping his arm around Starla, he gave me a sad smile. “Make sure to duck.”
I wasn’t sure what he meant, or why he and Starla were so upset, until I opened the door. The sound of shrieking immediately met my ear, followed by the sound of glass breaking. The smell of chemicals, acids, sulfur, and blood stung my nose. The tiled floor was littered with debris, shelves were overturned, the refrigerator was on its side. It looked like a hurricane had swept through the space. A hurricane named Halina.
Throwing a beaker full of something blue against the wall, my grandmother yelled, “How dare you! How dare you, Gabriel! You had no right to break the bond! None!”
Gabriel’s face was dark as he looked around his destroyed workspace. “I did not force it upon him. He asked. I gave. Do not blame me that he wanted freedom.”
Bright red tears streamed down Halina’s face as she chucked a garbage can against the wall, just over Gabriel’s shoulder. He didn’t even flinch. “You didn’t have to give it to him! You should have told him no! You should have told me that he’d asked!”
Gabriel cocked his head. “I don’t discuss all of my experiments with you.”
Halina grabbed a beaker full of a yellow liquid and tossed it at his feet. “He was not an experiment! He was my child!”
Gabriel took a small step backward when the liquid around his shoes started smoking. “He was a bonded child to you, Halina. Nothing more. But in case you haven’t noticed, your actual, blood child has returned.” He indicated where I was quietly standing behind her.
Halina raised her chin, but didn’t look at me yet. “And what do you know about bonded children, since you’ve never created one? It felt as real to me as blood, Gabriel. And you took it away from me.” Before Gabriel could respond, Halina turned my way. Her momentary grief lessened when she finally noticed me. “Nika, thank God you’re all right.”
Her cold arms swept around me, and I closed my eyes, blocking out the physical damage of her anguish. Pulling back, she cupped my cheeks; I shuddered under the chill. “Are you okay? Is your brother okay? Is…Hunter?” Her voice cracked on Hunter’s name. Gabriel sighed, but she ignored it.
I nodded as I removed her fingers from my face. “I’m fine. Julian was hurt, but he’s okay now.” Alanna had numbed him earlier when she’d fixed his leg, so luckily, I hadn’t felt him being worked on. He was achy now, but feeling fine. “And Hunter…”
Halina’s eyes bored into mine as she waited for my answer. I could feel the fragile hold she had on her control as she tightly gripped my fingers. “He’s safe,” I told her.
Her relief was instant. A trace amount of guilt washed through me, but she was so distressed, I needed to ease her into the facts or she might snap. When she sagged against me, I flicked a glance at Gabriel. Brief guilt crossed his face, too, but he steadfastly held my gaze.
When it seemed like Halina wouldn’t explode from any sort of bad news, I filled her in on Hunter’s true condition. “We went to Arizona to find Hunter’s father. A group of hunters found us. Julian and I got out with Arianna, but Hunter couldn’t leave the house because of the sun. The hunters burned the house to the ground, but we believe Hunter was able to dig into the dirt floor to protect himself.”
She stood up straighter with every word I told her. When I finished, her jaw went slack. “My God…” she muttered. Her gaze snapped to Gabriel’s. “He was almost burned alive.”
Gabriel pressed his lips together but remained silent. Halina started looking around the room. “We need to go get him. We need to make sure he’s safe.”
I bobbed my head in agreement. “I know. As soon as the sun sets, we’ll go to him.”
Halina met my eyes, frowning. “No, you and your brother should stay here. Those hunters could still be hanging around.”
That was a fear of mine, too. One of many. Giving her my most stubborn expression, I replied, “I’m the only one who knows where he’s buried.”
Halina sighed, then finally shrugged. “All right.” She looked around the room, impatience on her face. “That damn sun is not moving fast enough.” She twisted back to Gabriel. “This is all your fault.”
Gabriel sighed as Halina tore into him again. Feeling very uncomfortable witnessing their mammoth fight, I slipped out the door to wait in the hallway with Starla and Jacen. Jacen gave me a small smile. “I warned you,” he whispered.
Starla sniffled and hugged him tight. “She’s going to make him leave, isn’t she?”
She looked over at me. I had no answer for her, and shrugged. “She’s pretty upset.”
Starla nodded, burying her head in Jacen’s chest. “I never really felt close to anyone in the L.A. nest…I’m going to miss it here.” Reaching out, she touched my arm. “I might not show it often, but you and Julian are like the children I never had.” She frowned, her lips forming a perfect pout. “Or wanted.”
Tears stung my eyes at the thought of Gabriel, Starla, and Jacen leaving. They’d been fixtures in my life since birth. They were odd, eccentric, aloof at times, but they were family. Starla had taught me how to put on makeup. Jacen had taught me to always be cautious of my surroundings, and never sit with my back to the door. Gabriel had given my family so many incredible gifts, and he’d always had a soft spot for Julian and me. I think we reminded him of his own children, scattered throughout the world.
Not able to offer any wise words of encouragement, I simply gave her a hug. More emotional than I’d ever seen her, she eagerly accepted it. The sadness radiating from her only made me even more nervous. It filled my soul with trepidation.
When that damn sun finally touched the horizon, Halina emerged from Gabriel’s ruined laboratory. She tossed a fierce glance at Starla and Jacen—Gabriel’s nestmates—then stormed past them on her way to the exit.
I let out a tense breath and followed. When we reached the living room, my mother and father were waiting with Ben, Tracey, Imogen, Alanna, and Grandpa Jack; Tracey looked really nervous as she sat on the couch beside Ben. Her knee bobbed up and down so fast, it was almost vampiric. Imogen looked ready for travel, wearing jeans instead of her signature long skirt. Dad had filled her in once she’d woken up, and she’d immediately decided that she was coming with us. Upstairs, I could hear Olivia giggling and Julian sighing. Grandma Linda and Arianna were with them. Everything was set, except the sun.
The last rays of sunshine streamed through the windows as we stepped into the middle of the room, but my grandmother was untouched by their harshness. She scowled at the sun, like it was purposely keeping her from Hunter. Gabriel stepped through the secret doorway leading downstairs after us. Halina pointed at him without even looking. “Do not be foolish enough to think that I am going to allow you to come with us.”
“I can help,” was his calm response.
Halina’s emotion sizzled as she snapped her head to glare at him. “Help? You have done quite enough.” She switched her finger from him to the backyard awash in golden rays. “You can ‘help’ by gathering your things and being gone by the time I return.”
Gabriel stepped forward, arms outstretched. “Beloved—”
Halina raised her palm to his face. “You betrayed me. I don’t want you anywhere near me, ever again. You and the rest of your damn nest need to get out of my home before I kill every last one of you.”
I gaped at her coldness, and wondered if she really would kill them. I wasn’t sure. Neither was Gabriel. Despair broke over his usually unemotional face. He shook his head, “I only did what he asked, love. I did what he wanted.”
Halina’s pale eyes hardened into stone. “No, you did what you wanted.”
Gabriel was clearly at a loss, struggling with deep emotions he usually pushed aside. It broke my heart to watch his turmoil. It took him a minute, but he finally regained control. “My apologies. We’ll leave at once.” Blankness returning, he inclined his head to her in a polite nod, then headed back downstairs. Halina grit her teeth and turned away.
Mom and Dad shared a glance with Alanna, while Imogen took a step forward. “Mother,” she began quietly.
Ignoring her, Halina raised her chin. “We leave the second the sun sets. Nika will show us where Hunter is buried. We will find him, deal with any hunters we come across, then immediately return.” Her gaze turned to my honorary uncle. “Ben, if you wish to join us, I will carry you.”
Tracey stood at hearing that news. “What! No, no way is he going with you. This is ridiculous.” Her icy blue eyes narrowed at her husband. “This entire fantasy you’ve delved up is ridiculous! Vampires are not real, and you’re all freaking crazy!”
Halina blurred in front of Tracey, fangs lowered. Tracey immediately screamed. Halina silenced her with a word. “Quiet. I don’t have time for this. My child is being hunted, and I’m not there to protect him. Vampires are real. Your best friend is one of them. We’ve made your mind believe that she’s been aging, but she hasn’t been. She looks the same as she did when she left California years ago. As do we all. You will not be scared by this information, because I simply can’t abide smelling your fear right now.”
Tracey was slack-jawed when Halina stepped away, but she did look calmer. Her eyes widened when she looked over at Mom, and I figured she was truly seeing her for the first time in a long time. Mom gave her an apologetic shrug, then glared at Halina. “Was that necessary?”
Halina returned her attention to the window. “No, I could have wiped her clean, sent her home, told her any imaginary story I wanted. Comforting her was definitely not necessary.”
Ben gave Halina an irritated look, then grabbed Tracey’s hand. “Honey, this is what we talked about. Vampires or not, the Adams are my family. If they need me, I’m there.”
Tracey pulled her hand free. “Olivia and I are your family. We need you, too. And we need you alive.”
Halina opened her mouth to speak, but Ben raised his hand. “I told you when we got back together that I was going to do whatever it took to keep us together, but, honey—”
My mom stepped forward, silencing him. “It’s okay, Ben. It was sweet of you to rush out here and help us look for the children. We’re forever indebted to you for that. But we can handle this. Stay here with Tracey and Olivia.” She half-smiled. “You can keep an eye on Julian for us.”
As Ben finally sighed and nodded, Tracey’s eyes locked on my mom. “Emma, we’re going to have a seriously long talk when you get back.”
My mom gave her a quick hug. “I know.”
Halina tensed as the sun dipped beyond the horizon; Imogen waited patiently beside her. The faint glow in the sky would follow quickly behind the glowing orb, then we could finally leave. My heartbeat raced, and Mom and Dad protectively flanked me. I could tell Dad wasn’t thrilled about me coming along, but I was the only one who knew where Hunter was. Or, knew where he should be. Hopefully he would stay put when he dug himself up.
As the seconds ticked by, I heard my brother murmur, “Be safe, Nick.”
Feeling his concern for me, I whispered back, “I will.”
Dad looked over at Mom. “Em—”
Mom cut him off with a glance. “I know what you’re going to say, but I’m coming too.”
Her tone was final. Dad knew not to argue, so he merely nodded. His expression darkened though. I hated that once again my family was in upheaval, and it was my fault. The situation might not entirely be because of me, but I was definitely to blame for a large majority of it.
As soon as darkness fell upon the Earth, my grandmother bolted out the door. The rest of us were a split-second behind her. We flew across the ranch, a mere gust of wind to human senses. My feet touched the arid dirt beneath me so lightly, it was almost like I was flying. Halina was the fastest, and streaked ahead of everyone. My parents kept pace with me at the end of the pack. I ran as hard as I could though. I’d never been more motivated to get somewhere quickly.
Even though it just about killed me, I made the long journey for the second time today without resting. I was breathing hard when the group of us hovered outside the edges of the city. Easily remembering where Hunter’s hiding place was, I took off toward the direction of the cabin. I thought I might puke I was so tired, but I could still smell a lingering trace of freshly burned wood in the air, and I needed to get to Hunter.
As I knew they would, my family followed me. When we arrived at the cabin, I was shocked at the devastation. The once quaint, two-story home in the woods was now a hodgepodge of fallen, blackened logs. The walls had crumbled in on themselves. The roof was ash. The stone chimney was the only structural support left intact. The land around the home was dark with moisture. Deep tire tracks were in the front yard, and heavy footprints surrounded the home, like someone had tried to save the cabin, but it had been too little, too late. My heart sank for the poor old man who had unknowingly lost everything when he’d given us a place to hide for the day.
“Hunter!” I called out into the night. I tensed, waiting for him to emerge, or for one of our attackers to hear me and lash out. The night was silent, though, with only the sound of crickets answering me. I called out for him again, but no one responded. Desperate, I began to search the home we’d fled earlier today. “He must still be buried…”
I had no idea how we would find Hunter in this rumble. I didn’t even know where to begin. Despair threatened to paralyze me, but Halina leapt into action, and started pulling gigantic logs from the pile. Her determination recharged mine. I picked a spot near her and started sorting through the debris. My parents and Imogen joined us. Getting to the bottom of the pile was all I cared about. Hunter was at the bottom.
We all worked diligently, restlessly, tearing out logs, stones, destroyed remnants of furniture. My fingers were black with soot, but progress was being made. Within a short time, Halina was able to crawl inside the house and start lifting rubble up to us. When she finally leapt into a hole that I knew had once been the cellar, I jumped in after her.
“Nika! It’s not safe for you down there!” my dad hissed.
I ignored him and scanned the pitch-black ground with my grandmother. Using her glowing eyes for light, I looked for any section of ground that was unnaturally disturbed. There was crap everywhere, though, and seeing the ground, let alone searching it, was difficult. “Hunter! Where are you?” I yelled into the darkness. Was he still buried? Too weak to dislodge himself? Had he had time to cover himself before the burning cabin fell apart?
Suddenly, Halina snarled and took off to a back corner of the room. I had to squeeze under a fallen beam to follow her, but once I did, I understood her reaction. Beside a half-fallen wall of stone was a pile of freshly upturned earth; even with a floor covered in litter, the disturbance stood out amongst the hard-packed dirt. My heart thudded in my chest. A grave meant Hunter had at least attempted to hide himself from the sun.
The two of us immediately reached into the soil, elbow deep, desperate to find a body. “Hunter?” I called as I scooped out the pungent earth. He didn’t answer me, and no bulk the size of a person blocked the path of my fingers. Halina cursed as she dug through the ground. We were both on the verge of losing it.
When we had dislodged a hole large enough to hide three Hunters, it was clear that our search was a futile one. I grabbed my grandmother’s arm to stop her frenzied search. “He’s not here, Grandma.”
She clenched a clump of dirt in her hand, turning it to silt. “Then where is he?” she muttered, looking up at the moonless sky above us.
I swallowed the painful worry crawling up my throat. That was exactly what I wanted to know.
AS I STOOD at the top of the stairs, hazy, indirect sunlight scorched me like I was only a few inches from the sun. Every muscle in my body hurt. No, it went deeper than the muscle. It felt like tiny shards of glass had been imbedded into my bones over every square inch of my body, and each movement I made ground the glass deeper. I wanted to lie still, I wanted to rest, but Nika wasn’t safe yet.
The hunters clearly weren’t expecting me to leave my sanctuary. I’d been classified a non-threat, dulled into submission by the sunlight. Stupid assumption. The door to the cellar opened into a hallway that was just dark enough for me to step into it. A hunter had his back to me, his long arms outstretched toward the front door Nika was escaping through. My body screamed with pain, but I contained the agony as long as I could.
Grabbing the hunter, I slammed him into the wall; the plaster cracked around his body with the force. The gun stopped going off, and, hazy-eyed, the man retrained his weapon on me. I recognized him at once. Collin. We’d done a job together a couple of summers ago. His eyes widened as he took in the sight of me, fangs exposed, ready to strike. His finger squeezed the trigger, but it didn’t matter, I had already dodged. Letting out the growling cry of pain I could no longer contain, I lunged forward and snapped his neck. Guilt mixed with my pain, but what choice did I have?
He slumped to the ground with sickening finality. Others in the home shouted his name, but stopped when he didn’t respond. I heard the whoosh of flames roaring to life as the sting of gasoline overwhelmed my senses. I risked a glance at the door, to see if Julian and Nika had made it, but the sunlight in that direction was too bright. It seared holes into my brain and obliterated my vision. Through the excruciating agony of my bones feeling like they were turning to ash inside of me, I could feel the heat of the flames upon my chilly skin. Time was running out.
Still blinded by the sunlight, I hastily stepped back into the relative safety of the cellar. I slammed the door shut, but hazy light still shone through the hole where Julian had busted the doorknob. Raw with pain, I stumbled backward and fell down the stairs. It hurt, but I was already so far gone with agony that adding more didn’t bother me. When I hit the hard dirt floor, I still couldn’t see; it was like my eyes had been burned away. I wanted to curl into the fetal position and scream for hours, but I didn’t have time. The home above me was hissing and crackling with hungry flames. As soon as they ate a hole through the walls, I would be fully exposed to the sun. That pain would make my current torture feel like I was back at the ranch, soothing my worries in the family hot tub. At the moment, nothing sounded more wonderful than returning to the ranch, returning home.
Running to a corner of the room that I thought might survive the destructive blaze without too much debris falling on top of it, I shoved my fingers into the ground and started digging. The dirt was so hard it was almost clay. My fingertips were sore and bleeding in no time at all. I healed instantly, but it didn’t take long for new injuries to appear, as I continually tore open my skin. Blind, scared, and roiling with pain, I used every supernatural gift I had to open the earth as quickly as possible. I needed Mother Nature’s embrace, now more than ever.
When there was a deep enough space that no light would touch me, I crawled inside. Using my hands, I covered the hole as well as I could, then I rolled and burrowed deeper into the earth to completely hide myself. It was difficult in this type of unforgiving soil, and I found myself continually working my way lower and lower, digging, squirming, adjusting. I just wanted away from the sun, away from the pain. It was all I could think about. I squeezed my useless eyes shut tight as I inched my way to safety. Please, let the dirt hide me. Let Nika be safe. Let this pain go away. Please.
I wasn’t sure when I stopped digging and let sleep overtake me, but when I finally reopened my eyes, they no longer hurt. The soft, glowing light that emanated from them showed me clumps of soil, rocks, the underside of roots. My chest was too heavy to make the movement, but mentally, I let out an exhale of relief. My vision was restored. A definite plus to vampirism was the ability to heal instantly. Although, the effects of the sun had taken a while. The memory of that pain was still with me as I stretched tight limbs as much as I could under the crushing confines of the thick soil.
The natural alarm clock in my body told me that the sun had set, that it was safe for me to reemerge. I was lying on my side, arms still stretched into the earth, trying to dig deeper. I pulled them through the muck back to my chest. Reaching up, I began to push against the wall of soil above me. Freeing myself was easier than burying myself, but the dirt was still uncooperative and difficult to work through. Using my legs as well as my arms, I eventually broke through the surface.
The air was warmer to me than the harsh ground I’d been sleeping in, but it was colder than the basement had been before the fire. As my head emerged from the ground, the clumps of dirt covering me gave way much easier. Sitting up in my hole, I took in the destruction around me. Where a solid wooden floor once was, I could see stars piercing the night sky. Ruined remnants of the old man’s life were strewn around me—tarnished metal frames, bubbled, misshapen plastic jugs, loose sheets of paper that had shriveled into fragile, black roses. The cots Nika and I had slept on were buried under rubble, the backpack with Gabriel’s shot inside it was smashed, my jacket burned and in tatters, my sister’s box in the pocket most likely destroyed. Charred logs above me rested against each other at perilous angles. One shift in the wrong direction would bring the rest of the cabin’s skeleton crashing to the ground. Guilt tore at my soul. Without meaning to, I had inadvertently led my father here and destroyed this innocent man’s life.
Forcefully tearing my body the rest of the way from the dirt, I crouched in the darkness. It was quiet, only the peaceful serenade of the night’s smallest creatures met my ear. I brushed off as much of the filth from me as I could while I waited for an attack that I was positive was coming. Surely those hunters wouldn’t leave my death to chance. They would want to see my end with their own eyes, so they could report back to my father that they’d been successful. Then what would he do? Go after my maker? Go after Nika, and the rest of her family? Yes. That was what I would have done, once upon a time.
I wouldn’t let him hurt my nest. My family. So long as my undead heart still had life in it, I would use it to protect them. They were all that mattered now.
Staring at the moonless sky above me, I determined my best path to exit this hell. As I lightly placed my weight on a fallen log, I vowed to make it up to the old man who’d had his home torched. When I found him, I’d find out what he wanted most in the world, and make it happen. This gift of compulsion was good for so much more than subduing prey and covering up our existence.
When I finally squeezed my way free of the wreckage and placed my foot on solid ground, I immediately looked around for Nika. I still didn’t hear anything out of the ordinary as I stood crouched low before the cabin’s charred corpse. No odd movement, no unexplainable sound, no errant heartbeats. Nothing. I didn’t want to risk calling her name, though. And besides, if she wasn’t here waiting for me, then she must be safe at home. She had to be; the alternative wasn’t something I cared to think about.
Feeling anxious about her absence, I turned and prepared myself to run. That was when my sharp ears caught a familiar twang of a bow releasing its missile. Not knowing exactly where the arrow would strike, I froze in place. When I sensed it passing through the air in front of me, I quickly stepped back. It lodged into the ground at my feet; its shaft gleamed bright silver in the starlight.
My head snapped in the direction of the arrow’s trajectory. I still couldn’t hear anything unusual, but I knew someone was out there. I waited for the telltale sound of another arrow loosing into the night, but it didn’t come. “Show yourself!”
Just when I thought I should run while I still could, a low voice drifted across the breeze. “Hello, son.”
A shuffling sound followed the voice, and a thump, like a body dropping to the Earth. Every part of me tensed at hearing my father’s voice. It was the first time I’d heard it with my enhanced ears. Dad had fled from me soon after I’d awoken from my conversion. He’d abandoned me without even giving me a chance.
I straightened as I heard his footsteps approaching. Now that I was listening for it, I could sense his slow and steady heartbeat. I’d been listening for an anxious heart, fast and pulsing. He was so calm that I’d missed him. Foolish mistake.
The groupings of trees surrounding the cabin were widely spaced, with plenty of room between each trunk. I easily spotted my father’s lean form as he casually walked my way at an unhurried pace. His crossbow was still in hand, but was dangling at his side. His other hand looked free of weapons. He acted like I wasn’t a threat to him. As if he could lift his weapon and end me at any moment. As if I couldn’t blur over to him and rip out his throat in the span of one, slow heartbeat.
It took him a couple of minutes to fully emerge from the trees. When he did, I nodded my head at him. “Dad,” I stated, my tone businesslike. Seeing that he wasn’t wearing any form of mind control protection surprised me. Was he testing me? Or did he believe I was so weak and pathetic, I wouldn’t fight him. He should know better than that. I’d eliminated his assassins after all. I could end this madness with just a few words, right now. But seeing him after all this time…the memories of who he used to be to me overwhelmed me, sapped my desire for revenge. He was my father. My last remaining true blood family. That wasn’t something I could erase on a whim, no matter how much I’d wanted to for the last few months. I needed answers more than I needed vengeance.
“You tracked me here? Sent hunters after me?” I asked, knowing full well what the answer was. My throat was tight as the pain of his betrayal stabbed me yet again.
Dad sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he stepped without fear right in front of me. His hair seemed even grayer than before; somehow it seemed fitting that a vampire hunter had silver streaks in his hair. “It was my duty to make sure you were dealt with. My only regret is that it’s taken me this long to be man enough to do it myself. I should have staked you before you could complete the change.” His voice was more gravelly than I remembered it, like stones were grinding together in his throat. “Do you remember what I used to tell you?” he asked.
I eyed him warily, waiting for some sign of attack. “You told me a lot of things. Some true. Some not true.”
He’d been avoiding my hypnotic gaze, but at my words, his vision snapped to mine. “I never lied to you.” He seemed caught by my gaze, but after a second, he managed to turn away. Quite a feat, since most humans couldn’t look away once a vampire had them ensnared.
“You might not have lied, but some things you told me were still untrue.” A smile graced my lips as I thought of all the things Nika and her family had taught me, about who I was and who I could be. Their words were truth.
Dad exhaled a weary sigh. “I didn’t come here to argue with you.”
A flare of anger ran up my spine. “Why are you here? To burn an innocent man’s home to the ground?” I indicated the destruction behind me. Destruction created on his behalf, if not his hand.
Dad frowned as he glanced at the charred wood. “That wasn’t my call. But you know how it is, Hunter. Whatever it takes to get the job done.”
I clenched my jaw as my hands curled into fists. “We’ll just have to disagree on that. Between this and cutting up that young girl as bait…what’s been done in the name of the greater good has been far more evil than the evil it was meant to end. You can make all the justifications you want, but deep inside you have to know I’m right.”
My father closed his eyes. I knew he wasn’t a completely cold-hearted man. Like me, he was torn. I could see the conflict so clearly in his worn features. Abruptly, he glared at my chin, still avoiding my eyes. “And you’re so much better than me? Killing our compatriots? Our friends?”
His heartbeat increased, just fractionally. His cool was fading. Mine was, too, I just didn’t have a pulse to give it away. “Friends? None of them were true friends to our family. And I only killed when I had no other choice. Most of them walked away to continue their lives in peace.” I shook my head in sorrow as I remembered my days as a human, killing countless vampires that I had known nothing about. How many of those had been innocent? Probably most of them. “That’s a mercy we never allowed our victims. How were we any different than what we thought they were?”
Dad raised his bow to my chest, but didn’t fire. Heat was in his eyes now. “Victims? Don’t pretend that what you are is anything but a monstrosity.” His eyes misted as passion filled his voice. “Don’t pretend you’re still the boy I once knew. That boy died, and I did something so disgraceful to his corpse that I’ll never forgive myself for it. But I’m here to fix that, because, like I told you, we clean up our own messes.” The bow lowered a fraction. I could easily knock it from his hand, could easily command him to give it to me, but still, I hesitated. “I’ve been trying to avoid dealing with you, since the memory of who you once were makes this…so hard.” He completely lowered the bow as he almost looked into my eyes. “Please forgive me for what I did to you, Hunter. I can’t imagine how awful the last few months have been.” Such sadness overcame him then, that I couldn’t help but forgive him for everything. For turning me, for hunting me. What would I have done if it were my son?
I lifted my hands in a peaceful gesture. “Dad…this can end right here. We can be a family, if you just let me in. I’m happy. I don’t kill, and I won’t ever kill. I’ve learned to control it. I’m not a monster. I’m still me. I’m still your son. Nothing has changed.”
Dad looked up at me, a small smile on his lips. “Everything has changed. You died. You just don’t know it yet.” With that, he raised the bow…and fired it.
He was so close to me that I only had a fraction of a second to react. I had just enough time to move my chest so that the arrow didn’t pierce my heart. It still torn through my skin though. The cursed metal made it feel like my insides were spontaneously combusting. It hurt so much, all I could do was cry out in pain as I dropped to my knees.
Dad stood over me, face forlorn, a stake now replacing the bow in his hand. “I’m sorry. You understand, this isn’t what I want, but it has to be. You must be set free.”
I struggled to form the words that would command him to stop. I struggled to touch the shaft protruding from my chest. It was like touching acid, though; I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t do anything but cry out in agony. Nika, I’m so sorry I failed you. As the words reverberated through my mind, my father whispered, “I should have cleaned and gutted that nest long ago, but it’s happening now. I’ll set all of them free, son. Have no fear about that.”
My hazy brain couldn’t entirely comprehend what that meant. Gutted? Set them free? Happening now? Nika… Halina…
My father’s arm came down, his stake poised for the death blow. Through the pain, I found a well of determination. I wouldn’t let him harm them. In one powerful move of desperation, I lunged at my father. I knocked him to his back and jostled the stake out of his hands, but he wasn’t out of commission, not by a long shot. Reaching up, he grabbed the arrow in my chest and twisted it. Fresh pain burst through my body, and I did the only thing I could think to do. I forced every muscle to move…and I ran.
I would run all the way home with this arrow in my chest if I had to.