Chapter 58

The huge man looked Hotch up and down. "I know what you are."

Hotch stood up tall. "That makes two of us."

The big man started to laugh again. "I thought I saw you moving like that the other day, but I wouldn't believe it. I never thought a vampire would be here."

Hotch took a deep breath and looked him in the eyes. "Where's the girl?"

"Who?" the man asked with a malevolent grin.

"Lana Kahele. You took her from her back yard."

"I did?" the man asked as it took a step closer to Hotch.

Hotch mentally winced. Why isn't that working?

"He's too strong to be compelled. The blood lust is protecting him!" James put in knowing that's what Hotch was trying to do.

Hotch glanced at him and then back to the killer.

"Yeah, you're little Jedi mind tricks don't work on me!" he roared as he took another step. "I've always wondered what it would be like to face a vampire. All the stories make them out to be so scary, but I have to admit that you're really not that impressive."

Hotch bit back the smartass retort that wanted to escape and focused on the man in front of him. His knee right knee was obliterated but it was as if he couldn't even feel it. He took a deep breath. "I don't want to kill you. I'm only. . ."

That made the madman laughed again. "Kill me?!" He took another step closer. "Puny little you can't kill me!"

Hotch raised his pistol again. "Don't make me. . ."

"And that won't kill me either, you idiot!" He took another step closer which put him just out of reach. "I'm going to have so much fun crushing you with my bare hands," he spit out and lunged.

XXXXX

Rossi, Morgan, and JJ had all froze when they heard the report of gunfire slice through the natural sounds around them. All of their heads turned left and right trying to decide which way the sound came from. "This way," Rossi injected and took off at a run.

Morgan and JJ took off after him. "It's not a good sign if Hotch is using a gun against it," JJ offered in a quiet tone.

"Yeah," is all Morgan uttered as they moved.

XXXXX

The giant of a man was too slow for Hotch's new speed, though, and Hotch ducked under the massive hands and shot about ten feet away from him. "You will pay for what you have done," Hotch said and the authority in his voice would have had most people shaking. The unsub wasn't most people, in fact he wasn't even human, and before Hotch could think of what to do next, the man shifted into massive tiger and it jumped.

Hotch evaded its attack as easily as he did the man's and after three more tries, the man was standing before him again. "Just give up," Hotch urged as he studied him.

The man smiled a cold smile and when his eyes flicked to James Schewel still lying on the ground, his smile deepened. "You saved him once. Think you could do it again?" he asked and then lunged. He shifted into the tiger form again midair but Hotch moved, too. He ended up grabbing James to his chest and rolling with him as the tiger slashed and roared at the both of them.

A strangled cry escaped Hotch's throat even though he tried to bite it back as four massive claws ripped across his back, and he twisted even further away from the beast trying to put space in between it and the man he was trying to protect. Suddenly the man in his arms wasn't there anymore and Hotch jumped up just in time to witness two tigers fighting in a flurry of fangs, claws, and fur.

The only way Hotch could tell which tiger was which was by the wound on the one tiger's leg, and just when he thought the non-wounded one seemed to gaining the upper hand, the one on the ground leaned up and sank its fangs into the other one's neck. The cry that erupted started off as a cattish shriek but it turned into the scream of a man in severe pain, and James Schewel fell to the ground as both of his hands flew to his neck.

"You're a pathetic, weak excuse for a shifter! You don't deserve to live!" the unsub bellowed as he stood there staring down at the bleeding man. He shook his head in disgust and took a step towards the wounded James intent on ending the life before him, but Hotch launched himself into the man and they both went tumbling.

As they grappled, Hotch couldn't even try to keep track of the animals attacking him as the man kept shifting to get out of Hotch's viselike grip. Hotch felt like he was fighting a whole zoo at once, and he started doubting whether or not he truly had the ability to face such a creature as teeth and fangs and claws tore at his entire body. But it's not the only one with fangs, Hotch thought as he finally let himself change and fought back with all of his vampire strength.

After fighting some more, Hotch finally got the thing on its back and he pinned it. "Just give it up! You lose!"

The mountain lion beneath him shifted back into man form, and the smile on the man's face sent a chill down Hotch's back. "I haven't lost anything yet!" the unsub screamed and shifted again.

Hotch lost his grip as the man suddenly had no arms or legs because he had shifted into a snake that shot out from underneath him causing Hotch to fall forward a little and before Hotch could right himself again, the snake shifted into a bird and flew off.

"Damn it!" Hotch yelled as he scrambled to try and catch it, but even his superhuman speed couldn't get him close enough to it, and his anger grew as he watched it fly and then land on a high branch of the nearest tree and turn back into a man.

"Don't worry; I'm not through with you yet," he taunted as he squatted on the big branch. "I'm going to go eat. One more heart will give me enough strength to deal with you, Bloodsucker!" he yelled and then shifted back into the bird and took to the air.

*Author's note: Happy Halloween! I am so sorry! I promised myself and some of you all that I'd have this chapter done today, but alas. . . Life got in the way and work needed me far too many hours! I will still try to get this case done as quickly as I can, but this next week is sure to be hectic, too. Again, sorry! I wanted to give you all a Halloween treat, and I couldn't. I apologize profusely!

**hangs head in shame and then scrambles off to bed because she is way too tired to write.