Alec insists on seeing the reviews and private messages so he can see if it looks like any trackers have found this story, which was fun because a few readers had some interesting things to say to him. Thank you. That made my day.
Also, for the record, I'd like to add that Alec's opinions on the Cullens that I wrote in the Author/Narrator's notes do not reflect my own. He was just upset that my story so far has implied that they do exist. It's not my fault I happen to have overwhelming evidence, but Alec always has to have the last word.
So at this point we were two vampires, both recovering humanaholics, and a human who was slowly becoming the ultimate prey. We were an odd little bunch. Bree was not used to giving her undivided attention where Alec was beginning to thrive on it. I sneeze, and suddenly I must be sick and we have stop and get medicine. If I hold my breath for even a second it makes Alec stare at me. I slip in the shower and suddenly there's an entire rescue team throwing down the bathroom door and asking me if I'm bleeding.
It was annoying, but don't get me wrong. I love them more than anything and they tolerated me when I felt like being obnoxious. I bothered them both with my constant questioning, they both retaliated with bossing me around. It wasn't until Bree came along that I actually got a laptop to do all of this "fan fiction." She helped me convince him to get it. Bree softened up Alec, and I finished him off by begging and telling him it meant he wouldn't have to check his stocks through cell phone and internet cafe anymore.
Now where was I going with this entry?
Oh yeah. It's about time I told you about our first run-in.
Alec finally was able to trust Bree and I alone together for more than an hour. That in itself is quite an accomplishment. He decided to go hunting for big game and he deserved the break. Bree, who was quite the talker when we first met, grew quiet around me. I didn't want to make things harder on her than they already were, so I stayed quiet as long as was physically possible for me. She'd just hunted recently, so it was safe to go out in public. Luckily, the bookstores in the area were open late.
I was in a particularly good mood going up and down the aisles. Bree followed me, not looking for anything specific. We stopped in the Addiction/Recovery aisle and looked at Bree. She wasn't really paying attention with her thoughtful stare.
So I shrugged, grabbed an alcoholic's anonymous booklet and gave it to her. She was awake now. She took it from my hands and looked up.
"What is this?" she asked.
"I think this might help you," I told her. I'd been thinking about this for a while now. I knew Alec would scoff at it. He's been human-free for three years now. Bree's diet was going well, but it left her very aggravated most of the time. She has Alec to relate to when her restraint starts to weaken, but she also has to stay cooped up with a human all the time. That wasn't fair.
"I'm not an alcoholic," she said dryly.
"I know that, but the twelve steps are applied to a lot of things. Smokers use it, narcotics, over eaters, sex addicts. It's for weaning off all sorts of addictions." She hesitantly flipped it open. For those of you who don't know the twelve step program, its very spiritual oriented. Somehow this intrigued Bree more than I expected. She had somewhat of a religious background. She followed me around the store as I made my usual rounds to the teen fiction, science fiction, and fantasy books. Then a quick stop to the fiction and literature, and finally a glance at romance.
(Getting periodically stuck in airports has made me a huge Katie MacAlister fan. Now I'm addicted to romance too. Because that's just what I need. Another book addiction.)
So we stopped in the sitting area with my stack of books and Bree with her little blue blank cover AA book. I felt happy with my decision to share my idea with Bree. She looked like she was really getting into that little workbook thing. I could almost see her eyes going lighter when she looked up to check on me.
But her look was startled. She sat up, her head turning in the direction of the danger, like a bloodhound who'd just found a scent.
"What's wrong?" I asked immediately on my guard.
"Vampire," she mouthed wrinkling her nose. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't see the vampire she was talking about. Not like it mattered, because the training Alec had given me was running through my brain.
If there is a vampire nearby, never speak out loud.
Secondly do whatever my escort says.
Then of course in the event of being caught by one with no other option, don't make any sudden movements and beg. Keep them talking at all costs.
Bree took a glance at her surroundings and I awaited instruction from my escort. She looked behind us. There was an emergency exit. The problem was that it said it would set off the fire alarms if opened. But from the way Bree was anxiously looking towards the front it didn't look like we had much choice.
She exhaled and tucked the AA book into her coat. So we ended up stealing an AA book that night. She still has it too. We ran out the back door to the parking lot. Its hard to explain what happened after that because in times like this things move very, very quickly.
Bree grabbed me and pulled me on her back. Instinctually my legs wrapped around her waist. She spun around and all of the sudden we were on the other end of the parking lot. There was a figure on the roof of that building we were just in. He was looking down at us watching. Then the door flew open and another vampire made his presence known. It wasn't Nicholas. In fact I still don't know who he was. Its not like I'm all that curious about his name.
"Interesting," the man purred sauntering toward us. Bree tried to make a run for it. Three quick movements and Bree and I appeared from here to there and back again. Each time we came to an abrupt stop the man appeared right in front of us blocking our escape.
Bree swore. When she was carrying me, she wasn't as fast as another vampire. She shrugged me off her shoulders, knowing that I knew to stay put. The man with his red eyes watched me intently.
"How on earth did he convince you to cheat with him? You are a mediator. You are meant to uphold the rules," he said. His head cocked to the side. "Has he acquired a mate?"
"No," Bree answered. "More like a partner. This is one Game the predator won't win."
"Sooner or later, the predator always wins," he said. Then in the blink of an Bree launched herself at him. I knew from reading that I didn't want to watch the killing of a vampire. I kept my eyes closed. I could hear their hard bodies colliding, growls purring ferociously, taunting. Wind wrapped around me when someone got to close. My heart was thundering. In the midst of the fight I remembered that there was another person. The one watching from the roof.
Bree must have known about him too. Her senses were much better than mine. It was then that I realized I was unguarded as long as Bree was fighting this other one. And what could I do? I did the only thing I could do. I stood in the cold dark and squeezed my eyes tighter awaiting whatever was in store for me.
My thoughts were interrupted by a monstrous roar followed by a piercing scream. I cringed, then realized that scream was male and the growling came to a sudden end as I heard the ripping of stone and scrapes against the asphalt.
Then it stopped. All I heard was breathing. My breathing. Two stone hands held me on either side of me.
Panic made me choke on my scream before it could ever find its way out. My eyes snapped open. I was relieved that my stare was level with a familiar chest. I looked up and saw familiar orange eyes. Without thinking I jumped at him and wrapped my arms around him. I'd never been so happy to see my vampire.
Alec, ever paranoid, came back early. It was a good thing he was there. It made Bree's fight against the other vampire that much easier with Alec to swoop in and help her out.
"It's okay, Jay," Alec said resting his cold hand on my back. He pulled me away, his nostrils flared. "Are you hurt? Are you bleeding?"
"No," I reported. Alec turned his back to me and met Bree the second she returned with a can of gasoline. I guess its a good thing we triggered the fire alarm. She poured it over the remnants of what I could only assume was once a vampire. She poured the can over it, careful to avert her eyes from Alec. I could see that much.
She threw a match on the squirming pile of ripped pieces. Her red eyes picked up with a defensive glare.
"I trusted you," Alec hissed. He was beyond angry. This was almost as bad as the day he yelled at me in his car the day he took me away from my home permanently.
"I had everything under control," Bree responded almost growling.
Bree was very good with dealing with Alec when he lost his temper. Alec has a tendency to throw furniture and pace violently to intimidate you. Bree stands still and waits for Alec to run out of steam, never backing down from her position, but standing her ground.
"Then how did they catch up to us?" he demanded.
"Neither of us knew they were that close behind us. I evacuated her the best I could, but I was followed. I threw myself in between her and a Game player, the threat is dead, I'd say I've done my job extremely well," Bree said. Alec was almost shaking with rage. I kept a fair distance between us as I stood beside him.
"The only reason she is still alive is because I came back!"
"I could have finished him off just fine on my own," Bree said between clenched teeth.
"Alec, calm down," I tried. He shot me a glance.
"You stay out of this! You just had to go to the bookstore," he barked. When he yelled at me like that it was terrifying. It was like being yelled at by a father who never raises his voice. It made me feel as small and fragile as I am compared to a vampire. I can never just hold my ground like Bree does. I recovered and narrowed my eyes at him, trying to take Bree's example and not let him intimidate me.
"I am not a hamster. You can't just lock me up in a cage all day," I said, my voice not as defiant as it was intended to be.
"It's okay, Jay," Bree said more gently. Her arms crossed over her chest. She locked her jaw as she gracefully paced. "He's just worried about you. That does not, however, give him any right to yell at either of us. I need to cool off. I'm going hunting. I'll be back by morning." In an instant she took off toward the park. I silently prayed that no one would try to cross the already pissed off and bloodthirsty vampire there.
Alec relaxed a lot the moment she disappeared. His gaze dropped to the asphalt. I hadn't realized it, but during the fight chunks of the gravel were scattered and the black top was marred. The flaming body in the middle of the lot was growing. In the light I saw a familiar look on Alec's face. It was guilt.
"Are you sure you're alright?" he asked me quietly. I didn't answer his question.
"You need to apologize to her when she comes back," I said taking advantage of the fact that he was calm again. He crouched and turned his back to me, motioning for me to get on. I got into a piggy back position and adjusted myself until I was comfortable. He gently held my legs in place around him.
"I know," he answered quietly. He took us around to the front of the store where the car was parked. Bree had left the keys in the car door for us. The fire trucks were coming up the street just as we were leaving. I knew this meant that we were leaving soon, no doubt the better trackers were looking up arson fires as we spoke.
"I thought I saw something while Bree was fighting," I said.
"What did you see?" There was no seriousness in his voice. Most of the time I was the incompetent human who doesn't know what she's talking about. Especially when it came to vampires.
"Another person, I assumed he was a vampire, but he was standing on the roof watching us," I said. Alec shot me a glance. He thought for a moment and then walked around the car to open the door for me.
"Impossible. With Bree distracted, you were an easy target. If there was another one there you would be dead right now," he said. Sound familiar? Far too familiar to the way this all began in the first place with a dead mediator. I didn't think about this until later, I always have to second guess my sanity, because with everything I've been dealing with its not the most reliable source.
However I ended being right. There was someone else watching Alec, Bree, and me. We were being tracked by someone very, very talented.