"I believe an Elder is here."

Cassie's legs ceased their swinging motion on the kitchen island she was sitting on as Luther slapped the paper down in front of them. The large headline blazed up at her in ominous big black lettering. ANOTHER WOMAN KILLED BY WILD ANIMAL. Though she tried, she couldn't tear her gaze away from those words. The paper had been on her counter this morning, but she'd thought nothing of it as she breezed by to grab a box of cereal. Then again, she hadn't thought about much other than Devon since he had entered her life.

At Luther's declaration her body broke out in a cold sweat and her temples pulsed with the beats of her heart. "An Elder?" Chris asked in a choked voice.

Luther nodded vigorously and shoved his glasses back up with his index finger. "Yes, murders are up, and animal attacks have doubled over the past couple of weeks. You know what that means. Now, it could be a young vampire, but I don't believe so."

"But you don't know for sure?" Cassie asked her voice higher pitched than she would have liked.

His gray eyes were grave as they met hers. "I'm fairly positive Cass. This thing has been stalking people for a little while now. It's covering its tracks well, something younger vampires aren’t so discreet about, and tend not to do. I never would have noticed the trend if I didn't follow the newspapers so carefully. I firmly believe this thing is older, more powerful, and it is hunting here."

The knot in her stomach clenched further as it seemed to twist her intestines. An Elder. They'd never dealt with an Elder before, never even been close to one. And she had never wanted to be.

It had been The Elders who had grouped together to destroy The Hunter line, determined to take them all out in one fell swoop. Though they hadn't completely succeeded, they had managed to slaughter hundreds of men, women, and children, including their parents. The Hunter line had been left straggling, broken, and scattered across the globe. The survivors moved about continuously in order to stay hidden and alive.

Before the carnage there had been almost six hundred Hunters. After, there were only thirty-two known ones left. That number included Cassie, Melissa, and Chris who hadn't been old enough to walk, let alone fight for their lives when The Slaughter occurred.

Chris had been telling the truth when he'd said Luther knew Melissa's parents. Luther had been their Guardian; one of the people entrusted to train and protect The Hunter line. His duties as a Guardian consisted of schooling them in the old ways, navigating them through vampire and Hunter lore, and teaching them how to fight. When The Slaughter occurred Luther had fled with Melissa to Germany, then Japan, and finally to the U.S. where they'd bounced around in search of survivors. During the carnage, Guardian's had also been slaughtered and there were only twenty-one accounted for now. Her parent's own Guardian, Brent, had been murdered with them when The Slaughter occurred.

All the Guardians had known where The Hunters were located before The Slaughter, but in the aftermath, many had been lost, probably forever. Luther continued to search for more survivors, but his journeys always came up empty handed.

With the small number of survivors, it was possible The Hunter line would eventually die out. Cassie certainly didn't plan on having children. There was no way she would leave them orphaned and alone after saddling them to this life. If the others didn't survive to have children, or if some of the survivors didn't know their heritage, it was only a matter of time before there was no one left. It was Luther's biggest fear; after their deaths, of course.

Cassie tried to swallow the lump imbedded in her throat, but it was choking her, cutting off her air as it remained lodged in her windpipe. Tears burned the backs of her eyes, it seemed their time had come, much sooner than she'd expected.

She was infuriated with fate, and this monster that had come into their lives. It wasn't fair, she'd finally found something good in her life, and now she was going to lose it. She glanced around the room, her heart breaking for the only family she'd ever known. Chris looked shell shocked, Melissa's gaze was distant and unfocused; Luther was pacing restlessly.

"What do we do?" Chris asked.

The normally soft lines in Luther's face were starkly visible. "We run."

There was a moment of stunned, breathless silence, before Cassie and Chris exploded at the same time. "What?"

Luther clasped his hands behind his back as he paced the confines of his kitchen. "None of you are ready to face an Elder. You haven't had enough training; you don't know the full scope of this creature's abilities. No one fully knows what an Elder is capable of. You cannot go up against that."

"The three of us…"

"Are not enough," he interrupted Chris harshly. "Your powers and abilities are nothing compared to what this creature may be able to do."

The room lurched sickeningly, she was half surprised she hadn't slid off the kitchen island and become a limp pool of body parts on the floor. "How can you be so sure this is an Elder?" Chris inquired.

Luther threw up his hands as he continued his relentless pacing. "I can't. The biggest clue I have is the lack of evidence the police have. This monster is killing for the pleasure and power of it. He isn't turning them; he's leaving their bodies behind with no blood, when he leaves them behind, but he also leaves no hint of his mark upon them, which is something new vamps tend not to do. The lack of blood at the crime scene is stumping police, but they aren't digging into it too deeply. Also, most new vampires don't survive their first month."

"What? Why not?" Cassie gasped as she was rattled out of her paralysis.

Luther rolled his eyes as he shook his head. "You never listen to me," he muttered. "Most new vampires are killed in their first month."

"Why? How?" Chris demanded.

Luther shot him a stern, disapproving look. "Either by Hunters, especially when there were more of you, or by other vampire's." Cassie stared at him in bewilderment as her mind spun from the revelation. Luther shoved his glasses back up on his nose and returned to pacing. "Older vampires don't care to have a lot of newbie's around. They don't want the human population to know vampires are real, and young vampires tend to be careless about the conditions they leave their victims in, and the amount of bodies they leave behind. Also, hunting and killing another vampire shows more power than hunting a human, it's more thrilling for them. I imagine they thoroughly enjoy it."

Cassie found the brutal picture he was painting extremely disturbing. They fought amongst themselves in search of a more thrilling kill, and more power? She knew they were monsters, awful, horrendous, and despicable, but this was far beyond her scope of disgust and hatred for them. Nausea twisted in her already sour stomach.

"How come we didn't hear about this fact before now?" Chris demanded.

Luther folded his arms firmly over his chest as he glared at him. "Because you and Cassie didn't want to learn about the lore, and the behavior of vampires."

Cassie had the grace to look embarrassed, Chris did not. Having grown up in this life, and been taught everything as a child, Melissa remained mute. She firmly believed if she was going to know the future, then she had to have a firm grip on the past. However, Cassie had resented her heritage as it was, and she didn't feel like learning more about it. And Chris, well if it didn't involve food, girls and action, then he wanted nothing to do with it.

"It's all boring crap," Chris muttered defensively.

"Well, you just learned something new, and important, from that boring crap!" Luther snapped. Chris finally had the grace to look discomfited as he ducked his head. "So that is why I believe we’re dealing with an Elder now."

"The thing in the woods." Cassie looked crazily at Melissa and Chris as realization lit up like a light bulb inside her. "That's what was out there tonight, and at the beach the other day."

"How could it have been at the beach? It was daylight," Chris argued.

Cassie hopped off the counter and began to pace rapidly. "It was overcast though, probably cloudy enough for them to come out at that point of the day."

"What are you talking about?" Luther demanded. Melissa quickly filled him in on what had happened the other day, and the strange feeling they'd all experienced again tonight. Luther's face was grave and thoughtful as he studied the far wall. "We may never know exactly what an Elder is capable of. The scope of their powers may be far beyond anything we can even imagine."

Cassie's stomach rolled over again, she was worried she was going to throw up her strawberry shake before this night was over. "If it's watching you, then it's likely this creature knows what you truly are. It's also likely the three of you may have drawn it here. It may have sensed your powers, and abilities, and it also may have noticed the deaths of its brethren due to you. That's why we must leave. It will hunt you until it destroys you."

Cassie nearly tripped over her own feet as she abruptly stopped pacing and turned to stare at him in disbelief. Melissa slid off the island; she rested her hand against it as her legs buckled. Chris took a step forward, his eyes turbulent, yet blazing with a fiery determination.

"No." Cassie swallowed heavily as she tried to wet her parched throat. "No, I am not leaving," she managed more firmly.

Luther blinked rapidly as he stared at her in surprise from behind his Lennon style glasses. "What do you mean no? You don't understand Cassie…"

"I understand you think this thing will kill us, and you may be right. I also understand we may have led this thing here; I will not abandon the town, and the people I have known since childhood, to this monster. It may kill us, but we are also the only defense they have against it. I won't leave them to be slaughtered because of us."

"Neither will I," Chris said firmly.

Melissa straightened her slender shoulders. "We can't Luther. Cassie's right, this thing may be far more powerful than us, but we're the only defense here. We can't abandon them; it would be like leading the lambs to the slaughter."

Luther stood for a moment as disbelief, and something akin to grief, churned in his eyes. "I understand your inclination to stay, and I commend it, but I cannot allow it to happen. There aren't enough Hunter's left to risk your lives. I must keep you safe. You cannot stay here."

"I will not allow innocent people to die because of us!" Cassie retorted.

"They die every day. Your lives are more valuable, you do far more good alive than you do dead." Cassie felt as if she'd been slapped as she gaped at him. She couldn't believe he'd just said that. "I'm sorry to sound cruel, but it's true. If you're killed, then more innocent people will die, you must weigh everything before coming to this decision. Sometimes we have to do things we don't want to in life."

Cassie's hands fisted as she took a step toward him. "I'm already doing something I don't want to do every single day! I didn't ask for this, but I will not run from it, not now! I'm staying, if you intend to run, go ahead, but I won't!"

Luther's gray eyes burn as hot as coals. "It is the best for you! My only charge in life is to see that you are prepared to fight, and to keep you safe."

Cassie's anger melted in the face of his distress. "You can't keep us safe forever, it's not possible. You’ve done your best to train us Luther; you have to have faith in that."

He glanced at their determined faces. His eyes were troubled behind his glasses as his set shoulders slumped in defeat. "Fine, but you cannot go hunting alone anymore. The three of you must stick together, and you will wait for me to go with you. No more running off on your own and I want to know every time you have the same feeling you had tonight." His turbulent gaze swung to Melissa. "Have you had any premonitions about this?"

Her dark eyes were sad and distant as she shook her head. "No."

"Have you had any premonitions at all lately?"

She shook her head. "Nothing to do with vampires. I knew we would win the game tonight, and I know tomorrow, at lunch, Marcy is going to announce the nominee's for homecoming queen. Congratulations by the way," she added with a wary smile at Cassie.

Cassie lifted a shoulder, but refrained from commenting. The last thing she cared about was homecoming, or being queen. Maybe at one time she would have, but not anymore. Her entire life had become focused on her friends, her survival, and Devon. Her heart gave a mighty thump as her attention returned to him once more. They had left him at the side of the woods, within close proximity of that thing!

She whipped out her cell phone and frantically dialed his number. She turned her back on them, rapidly walking away as she listened to the endless ringing. It clicked over to his voicemail, but she didn't leave a message. Taking a deep breath she tried to calm herself as she quickly texted him, asking him to call her as soon as possible.

She knew she was unable to keep the horror from her face as she looked back at her friends. "What is it?" Melissa asked.

"We left Devon standing there, and he's not answering his phone," she answered tremulously.

Apprehension flitted over their faces as they quickly exchanged looks. "He's fine," Melissa assured her. "I'm sure of it."

"How can you be so sure?" Cassie demanded. She was finding it difficult to breathe through the constriction in her chest as she strained to remain somewhat calm. "If that thing is stalking us, wouldn't it go after Devon if it saw us together?"

"It's ok, Cassie." Chris grasped her arm but his touch only slightly soothed her tumultuous emotions.

She turned from him, feeling like a caged animal as she paced back and forth with her fingers still clenched around her phone. She'd left him there, she'd involved him in this, and she'd left him there. She'd been too selfish to set him free, and now she may have cost him his life.

She didn't think she could survive without him. In such a short time he'd become a part of her, she needed him more than she needed her own extremities. She would hunt that thing down and destroy it if it harmed him, even if it meant destroying herself in the process.

The ringing of her phone caused her to jump in surprise. Relief flowed through her at the sight of his name and number. Opening her phone, she quickly walked away from them. "Is everything ok?" he demanded immediately.

Cassie took a deep breath as she fought the tears burning her eyes. "Yes, yes I… uh I just thought I'd say hi," she lied badly, feeling like a complete idiot as her face flamed red.

He didn't speak for a moment, and she could hear the wind rushing past his car as he drove. "Are you sure?" The tension in his voice was unmistakable.

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Are you still with Melissa and her father?"

"Yes."

"How are you getting home?"

"Chris will take me."

"I could pick you up."

Cassie glanced at the others, but they were engrossed in conversation. She wanted to see him again, to make sure he was safe, but this was going to be a long night, and it would be better if he went home where he would be safe.

"No, that's ok; we're going to be here awhile," she told him.

There was another stretch of silence. "Ok, let me know when you get home safely."

She frowned at the command, surprised to hear him so worried about her again. She recalled his strange reaction earlier, the tension in his body as he'd turned toward the woods. He'd still been watching the forest after they'd walked away. Then she recalled her earlier realization that he'd sensed whatever evil presence was lurking about town too.

Her hand clenched around the phone. She knew there were humans with their own special gifts. There were those with ESP, telekinesis, telepathy, and many other strange abilities that manifested within them. She suspected perhaps Devon was somehow gifted. She didn't know exactly what his ability was, but it seemed to resemble Chris's talent.

What surprised her most was that Chris hadn't picked up on it. She thought he would have recognized it immediately, especially if Devon's gift was similar to his own. Instead, he'd felt nothing except for a strange darkness. Maybe that darkness was Devon's gift. Maybe because their abilities were so similar Devon's acted as a block against Chris's own power.

Cassie closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. This was one more thing she simply couldn't deal with at the moment. There was already too much on her plate to attempt to put the pieces of this puzzle together right now.

Pushing aside all questions and doubts, she focused upon their conversation again. "I will," she promised.

He was quiet for a moment more, and she could almost feel the tension radiating from him through the phone. "Good night Cassandra."

She shivered in delight and closed her eyes as she savored in the sound of his voice. "Goodnight Devon."

She reluctantly hung up, hating the loss of connection between them. Slipping her phone into her pocket, she turned back to the others. She wasn't going to tell them what she'd just discovered about Devon. They had more than enough to deal with right now. Besides, she wasn't one hundred percent certain she was right, and she didn't intend to divulge something about him he might prefer to keep private. Maybe he wasn't even sure he had such a gift.

"He's fine."

"Good," Chris said briskly. "Now, do you think we should tell your grandma and my mother about this?"

Cassie sighed heavily as she was drug back into the harsh reality of her world.