Ellie trekked back through the forest with her bag of game slung over her back. It was peaceful out here in the woods. The snow had eased off over the last couple of days, but there was still a crisp blanket of undisturbed white coating everything. It swallowed all sound and turned the world into a well of quiet. She loved it.

For a few seconds she just stood there, breathing the fresh morning air. The radio on her belt crackled, breaking her from the silence. “Come in. Ellie. Come in. You there? Over.”

She clipped the radio from her side and pushed the button in. “I’m here Mac. Just heading back to rendezvous now. How are you and Rourke getting on?” Pressing forward, she stopped by another one of her traps and added two more hares to her bag. That made three dozen captures for this shift, breaking her record once more.

“We had a good hunt,” Malachi answered. “Caught a deer and half a dozen rabbits. You far from the truck?”

“Bout another fifteen minutes.”

“All right. Tread safely and keep your wits about you. Surveillance teams from Radst mentioned a number of Whites have been seen around here recently. Can’t imagine they’d give you much trouble being human and all, but you never know.”

Ellie laughed into the radio. “Shucks Mac. Best be careful. I might start thinking you and your boys are starting to value me as a member of the hunting team.”

Malachi’s laugh came back in answer down the radio. “Shit. Amount of game you bring in, you’ve already proved your value several times over. Hurry up and get back to the trucks. We wanna head home.”

Fifteen minutes later Ellie arrived back at the truck, just in time to see Malachi and Rourke return with Grant and Lark, who made up the rest of the hunting team. They all threw their game into the back of the truck and climbed into the cab. Malachi took the wheel, Rourke jumped in the front and Ellie jumped in the back with Grant and Lark.

“All right Thorn,” Rourke said as he turned around from the front seat to look at Ellie. “We’re all dying to know. How many today?”

Ellie blew air through her lips as she tried to remember. “Blimey. I can’t remember. Maybe three dozen?”

Malachi, who was driving the truck back, let out a long whistle and hollered. “Now that’s what I’m talking about! Why can’t the rest of y’all hunt like that?! Ellie’s barely been with us a few weeks and she’s already running circles around y’all!”

“Hey man it’s not our fault you paired us against a master trapper,” Lark said with a smile while nudging Ellie with his elbow. “Maybe we should switch to trapping and stop all this fruitless running around.”

Malachi peered back at Lark through the rearview mirror. “It’s not fruitless as long as we keep catching prey. What we do is important, more than ever now that Black Fang has come back.”

Everyone fell silent momentarily at the mention of Black Fang. The mysterious wasting disease had made an unexpected return to the valley recently and came back with a bang. Stories had spread fast from town to town. It seemed that almost every other human carried the disease now. Blood supplies were running out fast, and more vampires were becoming reliant on feeding through other means.

“There’s plenty to live off providing we hunt it,” Rourke said. “I know y’all were struggling before Ellie and I showed up, but you can be grateful that the latest additions to your hunting squad are so good.”

“Shit Rourke,” Malachi said while cracking up. “I appreciate the extra set of hands but let’s not beat around the bush, Ellie is the one making the difference here.”

Malachi wasn’t too pleased when Kara pushed Ellie on him all those weeks ago. The vampire led the hunting team that foraged food for the townsfolk of Skarvast, and he didn’t see any sense in having a human girl join the ranks. Ellie, who had been eager to prove her skills, opted to forgo on Malachi’s traditional chase hunting and decided to use her trapping skills instead. Malachi had been right that a human couldn’t hunt like vampires did. They lacked speed, strength and the agility to hunt wild game with bare hands. What Ellie lacked in speed however she made up for in her trapping. She’d set up a broad network of traps in the last few weeks, and her hauls were getting bigger every day.

“Say Ellie,” Rourke said while turning around once again, “you didn’t happen to see any of those Order fucks, did you?”

“No,” Ellie shook her head, feeling herself tense slightly at mention of the Order. Apart from Jack, Natalie and Kara were the only ones who knew about her former hunting background. She wasn’t sure it would ever be safe to let vampires know about her past, even if her relationship with the organization was checkered at the best of times. “I didn’t see a thing. You guys?”

“Hell nah,” Rourke said. “I wish we could have run into those fucks. I’d show them a thing or two. Monica’s men in Radst said they caught a couple travelling this way a few days ago. Idiots probably got lost and are out there freezing to death.”

The rest of the vampires chuckled at Rourke, but there was an edge of unease in the car. News of the Order snooping around the forest up here had poked up recently, and it had the vampires in Skarvast on edge. Human or not, the Order were working with the circle now, and they were the reason the Valentines were driven from the northern gate.

Ellie very much doubted the Order were stupid enough to get lost. Surviving in the wilderness and blowing shit up were among the things they did the best. She’d laughed when Malachi gave her a radio on the first day as it was the exact same model of radio she’d used when back in the Order. Vampires and vampire hunters weren’t that different.

Within an hour they were back and safe on the other side of Skarvast’s tall walls. Ellie and Rourke had been the ones to take the hunt’s haul to the food stores the day before, so they got to finish up early today and decided to head to the Royal Oak for a much-needed drink. As they walked through the old wooden doors of the inn they were greeted by an enthusiastic Natalie who was working behind the bar as always.

“Hello pretty boy,” Natalie said as she gave Rourke a kiss on the cheek. “Ellie been running circles around you again?”

“Don’t I know it,” Rourke said while sinking into a seat at the bar. “How’s work?”

“Pretty quiet,” Natalie said and waved an arm across the empty inn. It was late in the morning and the sun would be up soon. Most of the vampires had returned to their homes. “I’ll get you guys some food now. Dare say you’ve earned it.” Natalie turned to Ellie. “How’s Jack?”

“Well. He’s enjoying his work with Garret. He’s in the shop until sunrise.”

“You’ve both settled in quite well here,” Natalie said with a smile. “Don’t suppose you’ve given any more thought to what you’re doing when the pass thaws?”

“Give the woman a rest,” Rourke said. “Jack and Ellie had plans before they came here. They’re not going to turn those plans around because of you.”

Natalie stuck her lip out and pouted. “But you’re the only normal person here Ellie. There’s nothing but mountains up north anyway. You’ll freeze to death!”

Ellie laughed, giving a brief smile while trying to skirt the subject. Natalie still didn’t know that Ellie and Jack were technically involved in the prophecy, but she was certainly asking a lot of probing questions recently. She suspected something, but Ellie couldn’t say anything unless she wanted to risk others finding out. It was too risky at the moment, especially with the Order circling around the forest in recent days.

The doors to the inn flew open at that moment. Ellie and Rourke turned to see Monica Valentine strutting across the room to them, arrogance and confidence brimming over with every step. Sight of Monica always left a sour taste in Ellie’s mouth, but her appearances in Skarvast were rare enough to make it tolerable. Monica walked right up to Rourke and swamped him with a rough hug.

“There’s my favorite brother. How are we doing Rourky? Staying good with the rest of your goody-goody’s?” Monica threw herself down into a seat next to Rourke and snapped her fingers at Natalie. “Get me blood girl and make it fast.”

Natalie rolled her eyes at the vampire and begrudgingly returned to her job.

“What are you doing here Monica?” Rourke said. “It’s sunset in an hour. You’d best be heading back to Radst. Cutting it a bit fine, aren’t you?”

“Relax brother, I’m just stopping in for a drink and then I’ll be off. Don’t worry, you won’t have to spend too much time with your beloved sister. You know, I really don’t like it here all that much anyway. Everyone’s too smug. You all think you’re so much better just because that old hag let you stay. If you ask me Radst is a hell of a lot more fun any—”

The sound of a distant explosion put a stop to Monica’s rant and made the four of them all freeze in place. “What the hell was that?” Natalie said.

They each turned around on their stools to look back at the entrance. The door was still. Everything was quiet. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Rourke said.

“Call me crazy,” Monica said, “but I’m getting a very bad feeling of Déjà vu.”

Another blast echoed in the distance. This one was closer this time, sending a deep rumbling through the building. Ellie clutched the bar, looking around her as glasses and bottles shook on the wall behind Natalie. Her heart beat fast, but she only thought of one thing. “I have to get Jack,” she said as she jumped to her feet. She was about to race out the Oak and across the square to Garret’s shop when Natalie stuck her hand out and stopped her.

“Stop Ellie. You can’t go alone. It’s not safe.”

The doors of the Oak burst open and dozens of vampires ran into the building. Noise and chaos filled the air.

“Move out the way! Make way for the Mistress!”

Bodies bustled and shoved every which way as the closed group of guards escorted the elder Kara into the inn for safe keeping.

“What’s going on here?!” Rourke shouted over the chaos.

“It’s the Order, Rourke,” Malachi shouted as he pushed his way forward from the back of the group. “They’ve blown a hole in the wall and they’ve got a group of vampires held hostage at the center of the square. They want us to turn Kara over and vacate the village!”

“I hate those fucks!” Monica screamed while slamming a rage-filled fist down onto the bar top. The crowded room was suddenly very busy with the sound of vampires arguing about what they should do.

“We need to get out there and fight back!”

“Let’s leave, before anyone else is hurt!”

“I’ll kill every one of them myself!” Monica screamed.

A frail voice somehow rose above the rest and quietened everyone. “We will do no such thing.” Everyone paused in their bickering to see the elder Kara stood quietly at the center of the room. She waited until all eyes were on her and resumed her talking. “The Order have bested us with their technology. From my understanding it is the same attack they used back on the Valentines at the northern gate. They have remote controlled explosives tied to the necks of a dozen hostages at the square’s center. If we do not surrender the village those vampires will die, and I can’t allow that to happen. We will leave, and we will leave peacefully.”

There were a few apprehensive shouts in protest against this idea, but they were quickly silenced with cold glares from the elder Kara.

“We have to fight!” Monica snarled. “I’m not letting these fuckers hunt me forever!”

“One of those hostages is my niece,” Kara said. “Fighting back would end her life. It is not an option. We leave. There is no way to intercept their explosive technologies. It is too—”

Ellie’s attention broke away at this moment as she realized there might in fact be a way to stop the Order’s explosives. “I think I know how to stop them,” she said, forcing all eyes in the room to look at her.

The elder Kara stared back at her and gave the smallest shake of her head. Her voice flared in Ellie’s mind. Sit down and keep it to yourself girl. Do not reveal yourself, it is not worth the risk.

“And how’s that?” Monica said brusquely.

Ellie held Kara’s gaze momentarily before turning to address Monica.

“Don’t do it child,” Kara warned.

“The hunting team uses the same radios as the White Order,” Ellie said. She looked around and caught Malachi’s eye. “Do you have a radio?”

“On my hip,” Malachi said and held the radio up for all to see. “But why? I don’t see how we could disable the explosives. We’d have to know what frequency they were—”

“I know the frequency,” Ellie said. A silent air of suspicion slipped over the room with her admission. Rourke was the first to break it.

“How do you know the frequency, Ellie?” he asked.

Before she could respond Kara interjected again, her eyes burning like fire. “Don’t do it child. It’s not worth it.”

Another voice spoke up at this point. It was Natalie. Her voice was flush with concern and warning. “Ellie, listen to the elder Kara. It’s not worth the risk. You don’t realize what you’re—”

“I’m fine,” Ellie said. “I have no trouble admitting what I used to be.”

Monica stepped forward, her eyes glaring at Ellie. “And what was that exactly? How do you know what frequency they use?”

Silence beat. Ellie clenched her jaw and swallowed. Here she was in a room full of vampires, about to admit that she was a former vampire hunter. If the Order didn’t kill her with their explosives, her next sentence certainly would.

“I know because I used to be in the White Order. I used to be a vampire hunter. Just like them.”

* * *

Metal beat against metal. White sparks jumped up through the sizzling air, cascading across the room with each monumental thud. Jack lifted his arm up and swung his hammer down again, smashing it against the molten metal on the anvil below him.

It was a furnace in here. Sweat pulsed from every pore. Fire roared, chewing through coal like a starved wolf made of metal. The hammer came crashing down with each monumental blow, flattening the silver sheet into a fine point.

Jack saw Garret walk in from the opposite side of the shop. When the furnace was on the medium-sized metal room was crowded with noise. Conversation and outside noise was lost in the maelstrom of creation. The tank-sized man held up two fingers to indicate they would break in two minutes. Jack gave a quick nod, thrust the silver back into the furnace and smashed his hammer against it some more.

“Thought you might like a drink,” Garret said when Jack had finally set the hammer down a few minutes later.

“You read my mind,” Jack said as he took the tall glass of blood from Garret’s offering hand. They both sat back against the stone bench and looked out across the shop. The night’s work was done for now and Jack was just adding the finishing touches to their latest order. It was quieter now his hammer wasn’t beating against the anvil, but the furnace still filled the room with considerable noise, blocking out sound from the square outside.

Jack set his glass down, unbuttoned the top half of his black boiler suit and tied it around his waist. His torso glistened with sweat.

“Been a rather productive night I’d say,” Garret said and took a long swig of his blood. Jack joined him and took a long drink, shivering slightly as the life force flushed through his veins. The cold chill of invigoration would never grow old. “Orders for blessed silver are higher than ever in these recent months. Everyone wants to kill shifters.”

“Doesn’t bother me,” Jack said, laughing to himself. His memory was vague, but he knew he’d had more than enough trouble with the creatures in recent months.

“It’s gonna be a real pain in the ass when you and your girl head north. Do you know how long I’ve been waiting on a good assistant? Work load is high enough as it is. I’ll have to take the Baker’s nephew back on, and that kid is a fucking moron.”

“What can I say boss, duty calls. Me and the girl have had this trip planned for quite some time. Can’t expect us to cancel it now.”

Garret finished off his drink, set his glass down and looked over at Jack. “And where exactly is your trip taking you? I already told you there ain’t nothing in those mountains boy but death.”

Jack paused at the brief glimpse of imagery in his mind. That wasn’t how he saw it. There was something in those mountains. It was the place for him and Ellie. It was life. He’d quickly found the best way to respond to people’s questions about their plans was to smile and remain silent. There was no point in saying something only to jeopardize who they really were. He got the sense the vampires in Skarvast would be loyal to the prophecy, but there really was no telling who was and wasn’t on your side these days.

“I’m just saying,” Garret continued, clearly not realizing that Jack didn’t want to approach the subject. “There’s nothing up there but snow and old wives’ tales. Shit… don’t tell you me, you’re looking for the lost castle of Snowstone.”

Jack turned at the unfamiliar words. “Snow…stone?”

Garret nodded. “You not heard that one eh? Old fairytale round here. Snowstone was an old castle that used to belong to a wealthy noble family. It was a majestic fortress hidden in the mountains, nestled against the constant blizzards that rack that part of the world. Story has it that special magic cloaked the castle to prevent anyone from finding it. Only those of the lineage can trace it.”

“And people believe this?”

“Ain’t nothing to believe. The castle was real, but it was ransacked many years ago. The original families were driven from its belly, and the castle has been lost since. Many travelers go looking for it every year, but they never come back.”

Jack gave pause to consider the story. Could it be this Snowstone was the same place embedded in his head? The place the prophecy wanted him and Ellie to find?

A vision of sprawling snow-covered stone swept his mind. A chill wind blasted his bones. Looking around he saw he was high up in the mountains, looking down upon a vast labyrinth of stone. Cloud filled the air, cloaking everything in a white haze. The sharp wind pulled the cloud to one side, temporarily revealing the mountain tops on the distant horizon. His eyes caught on the silhouette of crisp white against piercing blue sky. There was the unusual outline of a mountain with two peaks. Sharp and jagged, jutting up through the air alongside each other like two swords.

“Jack? Jack?”

Garret snapped his fingers across Jack’s vision, stirring him from his reverie.

“Huh? What?”

“You’re a hard worker and all lad, but you keep drifting off more and more. What do you say we get back to it and finish up with work? Only an hour before sunrise. Not much left to do with this order.”

Nodding, Jack rose to his feet just as a deep rumble shook the building. He and Garret both held their arms out, looking around at the shaking room.

“What the hell was that?” Garret asked.

“Do you get earthquakes around here?”

Garret shook his head. “No, we don’t. And that didn’t feel like no earthquake.”

Another rumble came, feeling much closer this time. Dust sprinkled from the ceiling. Jack turned and looked toward the front of the shop. Realization swept over him. He turned back to Garret. “It’s the Order.”

Garret’s face grew cold with stark realization. His jaw clench, his brow furrowed. “How can you know?”

“The rumbling. It was the same when they attacked the northern gate. They must be using explosives again.”

Garret picked up a hammer from beside him and clasped it in his hand. “If those motherfuckers think they can attack my town then they’ve got another thing coming.”

“I’ve got to make sure Ellie is okay,” Jack said. If anyone from the Order spotted Ellie, then their cover might be blown.

“Grab this,” Garret said and threw a silver sword through the air. “I’ll lock up the shop. You go and find your girl. Stay safe out there, Jack. I can’t risk losing another assistant so early.”

Jack bolted for the door, instantly searching for any sign of Ellie’s scent. Would she still be out in the woods? Would they have got back from the hunt yet? Before he even reached the door, a voice entered his mind, causing him to pause momentarily. It was the elder Kara.

You need to get here at once. We’re in the Oak. That idiot soulmate of yours just owned up to being a vampire hunter in a room full of vampires. Best hurry here and save her ass. If the Order doesn’t kill her then they will. I’m holding them off, but I can only do so much!

He didn’t know how to answer the elder back, but her message was motivation enough to move as fast as possible. He had to be fast. Losing Ellie simply wasn’t an option.