Chapter 4
Cancun in March buzzed with life and the bustle of the city as rambunctious humans vacationed during the month of Spring Break. The streets were lively and music pulsed through the air in celebration. The late-night breeze swirled drunken laughter, alcohol, and rich aromas of food around Carter as he made his way through swaths of people heading home from the bars and clubs. While the masses around him were busy enjoying themselves and indulging, he was on the hunt. It had taken him well over a decade, but he finally felt he was about to crack the code. Long plane rides, sleepless nights, and thankless work were about to pay off as he made his way toward one of five alleyways he strategically mapped out to survey that evening. If his hunch was correct, it could finally be the night he came face to face with a vampire and he hoped the books he collected over the years about such encounters would be of service when it counted. He checked his backpack one more time, added another round of armor-piercing ammunition to his jeans pocket, and adjusted the gun discreetly placed on his hip in a holster. He spotted a darkened alley up ahead and made his way down the busy sidewalk, but was surprised to hear his name being shouted behind him.
"Carter Jones, right," called a voice and he frowned in confusion when he saw a muscular young man towering behind him.
"Who wants to know," asked Carter as he looked him up and down.
"I'm Josh, Joshua Black. You know my mom, Leah Black," said Josh and Carter frowned even more in confusion.
"Who," he questioned.
"You met her in La Push," he added and Carter's eyes widened as realization dawned on him.
"The woman from earlier today? I wouldn't say I know her. Wait, your mom? What are you doing here? Did you follow me? How did you…"
"You need to stay away from my mother," warned Josh.
"Again, not sure what you are talking about, but I don't have time for this. I'm a man on a mission, kid, so how about you do us both a favor and get out of here before you get yourself hurt," suggested Carter.
"So that's it, right? You won't ever contact her again," interrogated Josh and Carter eyed him suspiciously.
"Who are you," questioned Carter and Josh crossed his arms.
"I told you. You know my…"
"Mom, yea, I got that part, but not why you are this far south. I've learned the hard way over the years that there is no such thing as coincidences. Plus, I find it hard to believe all of this is because I asked a beautiful woman out on a coffee date." Josh's eyes widened.
"You asked out my mom? Dude, seriously, she is a married woman," exclaimed Josh. Carter placed his hand on his gun and revealed its position on his hip to Josh as he looked around.
"I've seen some weird things over the years and today will probably top them all, but I am too close to get tripped up now. Trust me when I say I am not playing, kid. Who are you and what do you really want," demanded Carter and Josh glanced down at the gun.
"That's a pretty serious piece of hardware for a vacation in paradise," said Josh and Carter smirked.
"Yea, well I'm not exactly here for leisure. You obviously followed me. Are you working with him?"
"Who," asked Josh and Carter eyed him cautiously. The curiosity and confusion in Josh's eyes was evident and Carter sighed as he slowly took his hand off of his gun.
"Jesus kid, you really are here about your mom, aren't you? Are you crazy or something? Is there trouble at home? How did you even afford a ticket? Your parents well off," asked Carter and Josh shoved his hands in his pockets.
"I'll be asking the questions. Do you mean it? You aren't going to go after my mom or come back to La Push one day looking for her?"
"Why would I do that?" Josh was caught off guard by the question. When he imagined his mother's imprint and their response to him, he figured the man would at least be more interested in her.
"Uh, you know what, never mind, you seem busy. Man on a mission, right? I'm just curious, what is your mission anyway and why does it involve a gun?" Carter resituated his leather jacket over the gun and shrugged.
"You can't be too careful. Cancun can be a dangerous city. Look, I'm not buying whatever reason you say you are here, but you do seem like a kid worried about his family. I'm not sure what you were told or think you saw but I'm not a threat to that, so go home. Forget you ever met me and I will do the same."
"Deal, but seriously what's with the gun?"
"Are you always this nosey with strangers?"
"Maybe," he said with a sheepish smile.
"You aren't going to tell me why you are really here, are you," asked Carter.
"I'm not lying. That is why I came. You may not realize it but you caused a pretty big fight between my parents. I wanted to know why and make sure you aren't going to be a problem. That's the honest truth, now your turn."
"If your parents are fighting, it isn't over me. I assure you that much. If your mom is messing around with someone, you got the wrong guy."
"Maybe I do. You are Carter Jones, though, right? You were in La Push and Port Angeles earlier today?"
"How did you know that? Did your mom tell you that?"
"Uh, yea, sure."
"Well, that was me, but I think you've got the wrong idea about your mom and definitely about me." He glanced down at his watch and cursed under his breath.
"I got to go, kid. You really should get out of here. Don't stray too far from the crowd either. You never know what could be lurking in the shadows," warned Carter. Josh frowned at the comment and his senses perked up when he detected a vampire somewhere off in the distance. He could hear Natalie, Zach, and Allie inching a bit closer from their position on the rooftop above them as they sensed it too. Josh grabbed Carter's arm before the man could leave. Carter looked down at the grip he had on him and raised an eyebrow at him. Josh released his grasp.
"You should be careful too. It is getting pretty late out here," warned Josh.
"Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself," assured Carter as he walked away.
"You might be in danger," called Josh and Carter sighed as Josh jogged after him.
"Kid, what the hell are you talking about now? What's with you? You don't seem like a pick pocket or anything so…"
"I'm not. I just…okay, this is hard to explain, but you should really head back the other way. You said it yourself, it isn't always safe out here. You could get yourself killed."
"So you went from accusing me of some affair with your mom to suddenly wanting my well-being," challenged Carter and Josh shrugged.
"I'm complicated."
"Well then let me assure you that whatever danger is out there, I will be ready for him," admitted Carter.
"Him," asked Josh and Carter shook his head in disbelief.
"I can't believe I am even telling you all this. You drug me with truth serum or something," he joked and pulled a picture from his pocket. Josh looked down at the young girl smiling back at him in the photograph.
"She was my sister, Shayla. She's been gone for over fifteen years now and was ten when she disappeared. I'm going after the monster that I know did it, even though no one else believes me."
"Monster," asked Josh.
"That's what I said, so get out of here, Josh. Go home. I don't need another death on my conscience and I don't know what all this guy is capable of," warned Carter.
"What does that mean," asked Josh and Carter looked him over.
"You are a really weird kid. You know that?"
"Thanks, now back to this monster. Who are you going after?"
"More like what," said Carter as he put the picture back in his pocket and shook his head.
"What," asked Josh.
"Look, since you are still here, maybe you can do me a solid and return this when you get back home. I won't be needing it after tonight and maybe it can come in handy for someone else one day. No refund necessary," said Carter as he unzipped his backpack and handed Josh a book. His eyes widened when he read the title.
"Vampires, you think a vampire killed your sister?"
"Crazy, right? It is the only thing that makes sense though. Everyone said it was just my grief talking, but I know I am right. The night she disappeared, I was supposed to be watching her, but I was in the middle of a video game with my friends and didn't want to be bothered. Truth is I never wanted a baby sister. We were ten years apart in age and I took it all for granted, being a big brother. Shayla wanted to go to her friend's house and I was supposed to walk her, but it was just right down the hall. She just vanished without a trace. The cops called her a runaway. She was ten, what kid runs away at ten? They didn't see that though. It didn't matter how many people from my neighborhood told them the truth, that Shayla would never run away like that, all those cops saw was a missing black kid in what they decided was a troubled neighborhood."
"I know a cop. Well, a retired one, but we know people who can help. You should let us," offered Josh.
"You don't think I tried to get help? From other precincts, other agencies, but they all said it wasn't in their jurisdiction to even look into it. You see, a little white kid goes missing? That's a national search. But a little black or brown kid? That's just bad parenting. They don't believe she was taken and even if they did, by now, it is a cold case."
"That doesn't mean you have to…"
"Look, I appreciate you trying to help. You seem like a good kid and for whatever reason, you seem like a good listener about this stuff, but you are out of your depth with this one. Now if you will excuse me, I am busy and not looking for a sidekick. Go home."
"Let's say you find her killer, what then? Vampires don't exist, so what if you kill a human," challenged Josh. Carter stuffed his hands into his pockets.
"Go home to your family, Josh." With that, Carter turned down an alleyway and Josh groaned as Zach, Allie, and Natalie approached.
"I don't necessarily have to stop him, right? I mean sure he is my mom's….well her…you know…but that's not my problem, right," asked Josh even though he already knew the answer from the looks on their faces.
"What are we supposed to do? He isn't going to stop looking and I don't blame him," asked Natalie.
"There's definitely a vampire somewhere close," added Allie.
"Do you think this is his hunting grounds," asked Zach and Natalie nodded.
"While you were flying us here, I contacted an old acquaintance from the area. There is a new vampire in the region and he is already making some enemies," informed Natalie.
"Are there any places you don't know someone in the Underground," asked Zach and Natalie winked at him.
"Plenty, but lucky for us this just doesn't happen to be one," said Natalie.
"You think this vampire may be the one," questioned Josh.
"If so, Carter may be right. Rumor has it, he targets kids," revealed Natalie and Zach gritted his teeth.
"That's sick," he practically growled and Natalie nodded in agreement.
"And frowned upon with our kind to say the least, I've never met a vampire that would do such a thing, but I have heard about one, didn't last long enough to tell many tales though. The vampire world has a code. It isn't exactly a discussed rule, but everyone is expected to follow it. No targeting kids, not only is it evil, but you could accidentally turn one into an immortal child and no one needs that," explained Natalie and Josh began to survey their surroundings.
"Then it sounds like we need to find this monster and turn him in to Marcus and Didyme. Whatever we are going to do, we need to do it quickly though. I can see it in your eyes, Nat, you can't hide from Alice much longer and I'm sure she is getting suspicious either way," warned Josh and Zach nodded in agreement.
"We need to move, now," agreed Zach as Allie looked around.
"Something about all of this just feels wrong. If the vampire targets kids, why would he be here in the middle of Cancun, in the opposite end of foot traffic, and surrounded by drunken adults," questioned Allie.
"Maybe desperate, nomads hunt whenever and however they can, especially if they are hunting humans," suggested Natalie.
"Maybe or maybe we aren't the only supernatural beings to have Carter on their radar. We need to find him now," warned Allie as they hurried off of the busy street.
Carter checked his phone again before heading down another one of the alleys on his list. It was the most secluded and narrow. The buildings surrounding the alley were abandoned and the Cancun nightlife felt like a hazy memory in the distance as the music pulsed down the street several blocks away.
"I've heard you have been looking for me," called a voice behind him and Carter quickly drew his gun as he spun around. The shadowy figure chuckled as he stepped out into the alley.
"I think you know deep down that isn't going to work. You know, this is a first. Usually, I am the one hunting my prey. I've never had it come so willingly. I'm flattered, but to be honest, you aren't my type," said the vampire as he slowly stalked forward.
"You prefer little girls, right," challenged Carter and the vampire frowned.
"Well aren't you a curious little human. How do you know that and why aren't you afraid?"
"Because one of them was my sister, her name was Shayla," he shouted before unloading the gun in the direction of the vampire, who immediately began dodging the bullets. One managed to pierce the vampire in the shoulder and made him stumble back for a brief moment before surging forward again. Carter let out a grunt as the vampire swiftly appeared in front of him, grabbed him by the neck, and pinned him to the nearest brick wall. He pulled the bullet out of his shoulder and flicked it back at Carter.
"Oh I see, this is about revenge. You humans really are quite fragile beings and impossibly absurd. Did you really think you could take me on with those weak bullets? Your kind truly do love to cling to your weapons, don't you," taunted the vampire. Before Carter could respond, the vampire was jolted backwards and away from him. He crashed into heaps of trash and Carter's eyes widened when Josh jogged over to him.
"You okay," he asked and Carter gulped as he rubbed his bruising neck.
"How did you do that?"
"I didn't. Remember I said I knew people who could help," he reminded as Zach, Allie, and Natalie approached the vampire, who was in a daze.
"You're coming with us," said Zach and the vampire shook the debris out of his hair before hopping to his feet. Zach was caught off guard by how quickly the man charged at him and kicked him in his midsection. What surprised him even more was how much it hurt.
"Zach," shouted Allie as Zach jolted backwards from the impact and crashed to the ground. He held his stomach in pain and she rushed over to check on her mate. Josh was ready to phase and attack, but Natalie stopped him.
"You and Carter need to get out of here now," she instructed.
"Nat, I'm not leaving…"
"That's not a normal vampire. He must have some sort of super strength. Josh, go, he could…" Before she could finish, the vampire raced over to the three of them and lunged for Carter. Natalie jumped in front of the man and braced herself for the impact. The vampire pounced on her and Josh phased without hesitation in a rage. He used his hind legs to kick the vampire off of his mate, but the move only managed to make the vampire stumble backwards a couple of steps. Before the vampire could lunge at Josh or Carter again, Zach made it back to his feet and used his power to hoist the vampire in the air. The man struggled against the force field, but was not strong enough to break free.
"I told you, you are coming with us," boomed Zach as realization dawned on the vampire.
"You're Zachary McCarty Cullen, you have no right to be here! I have broken no rules," he yelled back, but before Zach could respond, Allie's gasp caught his attention.
"Zach," she whispered in warning and he looked around to see what had her so shaken. From his peripheral, he spotted Carter, cowering in a corner with a phone in his hand. He was recording everything. Natalie quickly grabbed the phone and crushed it in her hands as she glared at Carter.
"Were you recording or live? Who did you send this to," she demanded and he tried to not let his fear show in the quiver of his voice.
"Everyone, that feed is automatically saved. Destroying my phone changes nothing. You're all monsters. You killed my sister," he said as tears filled his eyes. Josh phased back into human form and tried to take a step toward Carter, but the man cowered back even more.
"What the hell are you," he questioned. Suddenly, two helicopters appeared overheard with spotlights blaring in their direction. Zach immediately dropped his force field and the vampire fell to the ground as a voice called over the speaker.
"We have you surrounded. Put your hands up," ordered the booming voice. Zach gulped as he looked around the alley. Allie was standing by his side as the vampire on the ground did what the voice instructed. Natalie handed Josh a pair of shorts from the backpack she brought but her eyes were trained on the helicopters, trying to find an escape route. Carter remained frozen in fear and Zach let out a shaky breath.
"Okay, this is bad," he admitted out loud and placed his hands in the air as the helicopters continued to hover overhead.
