Hey there! Have about five seconds to post this chapter before I have to go and revise for an exam I'd forgotten about. It's not until Thursday but considering it's a retake... Yeah I better go! A massive huge squishy thank-you to everyone who left a review. Hope you enjoy this chapter! I quite liked writing it! Tell me what you think when you're done... if you're not to busy screaming! Heh heh!

the real vampire

Breaking Point

Hunter opened the door and froze as he found himself face to face with Phil.

"Hello son," he said with a smile. Not a pleasant smile, but the sort of smile a cat gives a mouse before it pounces.

"What do you want?" Hunter asked, managing to keep his voice low and steady even though his heart was beating faster with fear and his hands shook.

"I want to talk. Can I come in?"

"No," Hunter whispered. Blake was inside, Phil mustn't go anywhere near his brother.

"Let me in," Phil growled.

Hunter took a deep breath and shook his head. He had to protect Blake from this monster. "No," he whispered again, looking at the floor….

…which was why he never saw the fist swing up and catch him under his left eye. Shock and surprise caused him to give an involuntary yell as he stumbled back, helped by a shove from Phil.

xxx

Blake was heading for the door when Hunter backed into the room, his face a mask of terror and the skin around his eye already beginning to swell. Phil followed.

"Blake get out of here," Hunter said, trembling but not daring to take his eyes off his stepfather.

Then it all clicked for Blake – Hunter had been trying to protect him from Phil. That was why Hunter had been avoiding Blake's questions; he didn't want Blake to get involved in case he got hurt. And that was why the bike accident had scared him so much – Hunter thought Phil had been behind it. Part of Blake wanted to laugh at that, the other wanted to hug his brother and tell him he was being silly. Both would have to wait as what Phil said next caused them to freeze in horror.

"I know your little secret," he said with a smirk.

"Wha…what secret?" Hunter stammered.

"Don't play innocent with me. You're the Power Rangers. You and the other four brats you hang around with," Phil said, the smirk turning into a grin as he saw the looks on the two boys' faces.

"Don't be silly," Hunter tried to cover, even though he knew it was pointless. It was clear that they had given themselves away.

The change in Phil that followed Hunter's words was terrifying. "How dare you speak to me like that?" he yelled, grabbing Hunter and pushing him backwards, causing him to crash into a glass-topped table. The glass shattered as Hunter fell into it, screaming.

Blake gave a yell and ran towards his brother, but Phil caught him and threw him aside. Blake's head cracked against the wall and he lay unmoving, in an unconscious heap. Hunter cried out in fear as Phil moved towards him.

xxx

Shane was on his way up to the Bradley's apartment when he heard the sound of yelling and breaking glass. Quickening his step he hurried up to see the brothers' door open – the noises were coming from inside. Shane's heart plummeted as he recognised not only Hunter's voice, but Phil's too.

xxx

Hunter stood up and tried to get to his brother but Phil moved forward and punched him hard in the stomach and then again the in chest. Hunter stumbled back into a wall and then fell forward. He lay there wheezing as he tried to catch his breath, a trickle of blood running down from the corner of his mouth from where he'd bitten his tongue.

Shane ran in and stared at the scene before him.

Phil turned and made a show of looking at Shane's clothes, noting his red t-shirt; "Well well well look who it is. Come to join in have we… red ranger?"

Shane stared at him in shock. He knew.

Behind Phil Hunter got slowly to his feet, wincing slightly. "Keep out of this Shane. This is between me and my stepfather," he said.

Phil turned back to Hunter with a smile, "So the brat thinks he can challenge me?" His face hardened, "Bring it."

Shane looked at the two of them; Phil with that evil smile on his face and Hunter, pale and scared-looking but also determined. He realised that Hunter had to do this himself.

As the two combatants circled each other in the front room of the tiny apartment, Shane hurried to the fallen Blake. Relief flooded through him as he found he was still breathing.

Phil attacked first, throwing a volley of punches at Hunter, who managed to block them. They backed away and Shane paled when he saw Phil slide a flip-knife out of his pocket and into his hand. Hunter didn't see it, and moved closer.

Then Phil attacked.

"Hunter look out!" Shane yelled.

Hunter saw the knife just in time, moved swiftly out of the way and grabbed Phil's arm just as he went to stab him. Keeping a firm grip Hunter twisted Phil's arm up behind his back in a hammerlock. Phil cried out in pain and dropped the knife. Hunter grabbed it as it fell, pushing Phil away. Phil spun around to face his step-son, and found the knife point at his throat, held in Hunter's shaking hand.

Phil gulped and, nursing his injured arm, said, "Come on then. Use that knife on me if you can. Pay-back huh?"

For a second it looked as if Hunter might actually do it, but then he shook his head and threw the knife behind him, out of reach. "I'm not a monster like you," he said and turned away.

"This isn't over Hunter," Phil said to his back. "I won't let you go, ever. One day you'll come back home and when you do…" he paused and shot a look at Shane and the unconscious Blake, "Your friends won't help you."

"I'll never come back," Hunter said, not looking at Phil.

"Oh you will. Otherwise your little secret will be revealed to the world. Do you really want your friends to be exposed as power rangers? Don't believe I won't do it, son. I will and you'll be sorry."

"No," Hunter said, turning to look at his stepfather, the monster. "I won't let you."

"Really, and how do you plan to stop me?"

Hunter didn't answer. Instead a strange look passed across his face and he actually looked scared, but not of Phil for once.

Phil laughed, "As I thought – nothing."

"Don't be so sure," Hunter said, his voice strangled as if he was struggling with something.

As he spoke, the sky outside began to darken as clouds rolled in, abnormally quickly, plunging the room into a sort of semi-darkness.

"Hunter?" Blake groaned as consciousness began to flow back, only vaguely aware of Shane crouching beside him. As soon as he realised what Hunter was doing he became wide awake.

"Hunter, no…"

"Stay out of this Blake," Hunter growled, but at the same time shot his brother a panicked look. This was out of control.

Crimson thunder began to flicker over Hunter's body and there was a strange look in his eyes. Shane had never seen Hunter apparently lose control of his powers like this before and he was scared. A flash of lightening outside was quickly followed by a loud crack of thunder.

"So son, you think you can hurt me?" Phil asked, only a slight hint of fear on his face.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Hunter said, struggling with the effort of trying to keep the thunder under his control.

"I knew it," Phil said, a self-satisfied smirk on his face. "You are weak and pathetic. Whoever made you a Power Ranger seriously needs their head examining. That 'power' you have is worthless, even with your little friends to back you up." His eyes flickered to where Blake was staring at the two of them, his face pale, then back to Hunter. "You should warn your little 'brother' to watch his back, next time he might not be so lucky. And as for those others… their time is up."

Hunter stared from Phil to his brother, then realised what he had to do. "There won't be a next time," he hissed through clenched teeth. "This ends now!"

Thunder drummed in his ears and the power he had flooded through his body. It was screaming for blood – and it would get it. Before Blake could react, Hunter let out a scream of anger and released the full force of nature at his stepfather.

The room was filled with flashes of crimson as Hunter's thunder struck Phil straight on. Phil's eyes widened in shock, then his legs gave way.

He was dead before he hit the floor.