18. The Hunt
They emerged one by one from the forest edge, ranging a dozen meters apart. The first male into the clearing fell back immediately, allowing the other male to take the front, orienting himself around the tall, dark-haired man in a manner that clearly displayed who led the pack. The third was a woman; from this distance, all I could see of her was that her hair was a startling shade of red.
They closed ranks before they continued cautiously toward Marceline's family, exhibiting the natural respect of a troop of predators as it encounters a larger, unfamiliar group of its own kind.
As they approached, I could see how different they were from the Abadeers. Their walk was catlike, a gait that seemed constantly on the edge of shifting into a crouch. They dressed in the ordinary gear of backpackers: jeans and casual button-down shirts in heavy, weatherproof fabrics. The clothes were frayed, though, with wear, and they were barefoot. Both men had cropped hair, but the woman's brilliant orange hair was filled with leaves and debris from the woods.
Their sharp eyes carefully took in the more polished, urbane stance of Hudson, who, flanked by Jake and Finn, stepped guardedly forward to meet them. Without any seeming communication between them, they each straightened into a more casual, erect bearing.
The man in front was easily the most beautiful, his skin olive-toned beneath the typical pallor, his hair a glossy black. He was of a medium build, hard-muscled, of course, but nothing next to Jake's brawn. He smiled an easy smile, exposing a flash of gleaming white teeth.
The woman was wilder, her eyes shifting restlessly between the men facing her, and the loose grouping around me, her chaotic hair quivering in the slight breeze. Her posture was distinctly feline. The second male hovered unobtrusively behind them, slighter than the leader, his light brown hair and regular features both nondescript. His eyes, though completely still, somehow seemed the most vigilant.
Their eyes were different, too. Not the gold or black I had come to expect, but a deep burgundy color that was disturbing and sinister.
The dark-haired man, still smiling, stepped toward Hudson.
"We thought we heard a game," he said in a relaxed voice with the slightest of French accents. "I'm Laurent, these are Tiffany and Simon." He gestured to the vampires beside him.
"I'm Hudson. This is my family, Jake and Finn, Lady, Madalyn and Flame, Marceline and Bonnie." He pointed us out in groups, deliberately not calling attention to individuals. I felt a shock when he said my name.
"Do you have room for a few more players?" Laurent asked sociably.
Hudson matched Laurent's friendly tone. "Actually, we were just finishing up. But we'd certainly be interested another time. Are you planning to stay in the area for long?"
"We're headed north, in fact, but we were curious to see who was in the neighborhood. We haven't run into any company in a long time."
"No, this region is usually empty except for us and the occasional visitor, like yourselves."
The tense atmosphere had slowly subsided into a casual conversation; I guessed that Finn was using his peculiar gift to control the situation.
"What's your hunting range?" Laurent casually inquired.
Hudson ignored the assumption behind the inquiry. "The Olympic Range here, up and down the Coast Ranges on occasion. We keep a permanent residence nearby. There's another permanent settlement like ours up near Denali."
Laurent rocked back on his heels slightly.
"Permanent? How do you manage that?" There was honest curiosity in his voice.
"Why don't you come back to our home with us and we can talk comfortably?" Hudson invited. "It's a rather long story."
Simon and Tiffany exchanged a surprised look at the mention of the word "home," but Laurent controlled his expression better.
"That sounds very interesting, and welcome." His smile was genial. "We've been on the hunt all the way down from Ontario, and we haven't had the chance to clean up in a while." His eyes moved appreciatively over Hudson's refined appearance.
"Please don't take offense, but we'd appreciate it if you'd refrain from hunting in this immediate area. We have to stay inconspicuous, you understand," Hudson explained.
"Of course." Laurent nodded. "We certainly won't encroach on your territory. We just ate outside of Seattle, anyway," he laughed. A shiver ran up my spine.
"We'll show you the way if you'd like to run with us — Jake and Flame, you can go with Marceline and Bonnie to get the Jeep," he casually added.
Three things seemed to happen simultaneously while Hudson was speaking. My hair ruffled with the light breeze, Marceline stiffened, and the second male, Simon, suddenly whipped his head around, scrutinizing me, his nostrils flaring.
A swift rigidity fell on all of them as Simon lurched one step forward into a crouch. Marceline bared her teeth, crouching in defense, a feral snarl ripping from her throat.
It was nothing like the playful sounds I'd heard from her this morning; it was the single most menacing thing I had ever heard, and chills ran from the crown of my head to the back of my heels.
"What's this?" Laurent exclaimed in open surprise. Neither Simon nor Marceline relaxed their aggressive poses. Simon feinted slightly to the side, and Marceline shifted in response.
"She's with us." Hudson's firm rebuff was directed toward Simon. Laurent seemed to catch my scent less powerfully than Simon, but awareness now dawned on his face.
"You brought a snack?" he asked, his expression incredulous as he took an involuntary step forward.
Marceline snarled even more ferociously, harshly, her lip curling high above her glistening, bared teeth. Laurent stepped back again.
"I said she's with us," Hudson corrected in a hard voice.
"But she's human" Laurent protested. The words were not at all aggressive, merely astounded.
"Yes." Jake was very much in evidence at Hudson's side, his eyes on Simon. Simon slowly straightened out of his crouch, but his eyes never left me, his nostrils still wide. Marceline stayed tensed like a lion in front of me.
When Laurent spoke, his tone was soothing — trying to defuse the sudden hostility. "It appears we have a lot to learn about each other."
"Indeed." Hudson's voice was still cool.
"But we'd like to accept your invitation." His eyes flicked toward me and back to Hudson. "And, of course, we will not harm the human girl. We won't hunt in your range, as I said."
Simon glanced in disbelief and aggravation at Laurent and exchanged another brief look with Tiffany, whose eyes still flickered edgily from face to face.
Hudson measured Laurent's open expression for a moment before he spoke. "We'll show you the way. Finn, Lady, Madalyn?" he called. They gathered together, blocking me from view as they converged. Flame was instantly at my side, and Jake fell back slowly, his eyes locked on Simon as he backed toward us.
"Let's go, Bonnie." Marceline's voice was low and bleak.
This whole time I'd been rooted in place, terrified into absolute immobility. Marceline had to grip my elbow and pull sharply to break my trance. Flame and Jake were close behind us, hiding me. I stumbled alongside Marceline, still stunned with fear. I couldn't hear if the main group had left yet. Marceline's impatience was almost tangible as we moved at human speed to the forest edge.
Once we were into the trees, Marceline slung me over her back without breaking stride. I gripped as tightly as possible as she took off, the others close on her heels. I kept my head down, but my eyes, wide with fright, wouldn't close. They plunged through the now-black forest like wraiths. The sense of exhilaration that usually seemed to possess Marceline as she ran was completely absent, replaced by a fury that consumed her and drove her still faster. Even with me on her back, the others trailed behind.
We reached the Jeep in an impossibly short time, and Marceline barely slowed as she flung me in the backseat.
"Strap her in," she ordered Jake, who slid in beside me.
Flame was already in the front seat, and Marceline was starting the engine. It roared to life and we swerved backward, spinning around to face the winding road.
Marceline was growling something too fast for me to understand, but it sounded a lot like a string of profanities.
The jolting trip was much worse this time, and the darkness only made it more frightening. Jake and Flame both glared out the side windows.
We hit the main road, and though our speed increased, I could see much better where we were going. And we were headed south, away from Forks.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
No one answered. No one even looked at me.
"Dammit, Marceline! Where are you taking me?"
"We have to get you away from here — far away — now." She didn't look back, her eyes on the road. The speedometer read a hundred and five miles an hour.
"Turn around! You have to take me home!" I shouted. I struggled with the stupid harness, tearing at the straps.
"Jake," Marceline said grimly.
And Jake secured my hands in his steely grasp.
"No! Marceline! No, you can't do this."
"I have to, Bonnie, now please be quiet."
"I won't! You have to take me back — Gummy will call the FBI! They'll be all over your family —Hudson and Madalyn! They'll have to leave, to hide forever!"
"Calm down, Bonnie." Her voice was cold. "We've been there before."
"Not over me, you don't! You're not ruining everything over me!" I struggled violently, with total futility.
Flame spoke for the first time. "Marceline, pull over."
She flashed her a hard look, and then sped up.
"Marceline, let's just talk this through."
"You don't understand," she roared in frustration. I'd never heard her voice so loud; it was deafening in the confines of the Jeep. The speedometer neared one hundred and fifteen. "He's a tracker, Flame, did you see that? He's a tracker!"
I felt Jake stiffen next to me, and I wondered at his reaction to the word. It meant something more to the three of them than it did to me; I wanted to understand, but there was no opening for me to ask.
"Pull over, Marceline." Flame's tone was reasonable, but there was a ring of authority in it I'd never heard before.
The speedometer inched passed one-twenty.
"Do it, Marceline."
"Listen to me, Flame. I saw his mind. Tracking is his passion, his obsession — and he wants her, Flame — her , specifically. He begins the hunt tonight."
"He doesn't know where —"
She interrupted her. "How long do you think it will take him to cross her scent in town? His plan was already set before the words were out of Laurent's mouth."
I gasped, knowing where my scent would lead. "Gummy! You can't leave him there! You can't leave him!" I thrashed against the harness.
"She's right" Flame said.
The car slowed slightly.
"Let's just look at our options for a minute" Flame coaxed.
The car slowed again, more noticeably, and then suddenly we screeched to a stop on the shoulder of the highway. I flew against the harness, and then slammed back into the seat.
"There are no options," Marceline hissed.
"I'm not leaving Gummy!" I yelled.
She ignored me completely.
"We have to take her back," Jake finally spoke.
"No." Marceline was absolute.
"He's no match for us, Marceline. He won't be able to touch her."
"He'll wait."
Jake smiled. "I can wait, too."
"You didn't see — you don't understand. Once he commits to a hunt, he's unshakable. We'd have to kill him."
Jake didn't seem upset by the idea. "That's an option."
"And the female. She's with him. If it turns into a fight, the leader will go with them, too."
"There are enough of us."
"There's another option" Flame said quietly.
Marceline turned on her in fury, her voice a blistering snarl. "There — is — no — other — option!"
Jake and I both stared at her in shock, but Flame seemed unsurprised. The silence lasted for a long minute as Marceline and Flame stared each other down.
I broke it. "Does anyone want to hear my plan?"
"No," Marceline growled. Flame glared at her, finally provoked.
"Listen," I pleaded. "You take me back."
"No," she interrupted.
I glared at her and continued. "You take me back. I tell my dad I want to go home to Phoenix. I pack my bags. We wait till this tracker is watching, and then we run. He'll follow us and leave Gummy alone. Gummy won't call the FBI on your family. Then you can take me any damned place you want."
They stared at me, stunned.
"It's not a bad idea, really." Jake's surprise was definitely an insult.
"It might work — and we simply can't leave her father unprotected. You know that," Flame said.
Everyone looked at Marceline.
"It's too dangerous — I don't want him within a hundred miles of her."
Jake was supremely confident. "Marceline, he's not getting through us."
Flame thought for a minute. "I don't see him attacking. He'll try to wait for us to leave her alone."
"It won't take long for him to realize that's not going to happen."
"I demand that you take me home." I tried to sound firm.
Marceline pressed her fingers to her temples and squeezed her eyes shut.
"Please," I said in a much smaller voice.
She didn't look up. When she spoke, her voice sounded worn.
"You're leaving tonight, whether the tracker sees or not. You tell Gummy that you can't stand another minute in Forks. Tell him whatever story works. Pack the first things your hands touch, and then get in your truck. I don't care what he says to you. You have fifteen minutes. Do you hear me? Fifteen minutes from the time you cross the doorstep."
The Jeep rumbled to life, and she spun us around, the tires squealing. The needle on the speedometer started to race up the dial.
"Jake?" I asked, looking pointedly at my hands.
"Oh, sorry." He let me loose.
A few minutes passed in silence, other than the roar of the engine. Then Marceline spoke again.
"This is how it's going to happen. When we get to the house, if the tracker is not there, I will walk her to the door. Then she has fifteen minutes." She glared at me in the rearview mirror. "Jake, you take the outside of the house. Flame, you get the truck. I'll be inside as long as she is. After she's out, you two can take the Jeep home and tell Hudson."
"No way," Jake broke in. "I'm with you."
"Think it through, Jake. I don't know how long I'll be gone."
"Until we know how far this is going to go, I'm with you."
Marceline sighed. "If the tracker is there," she continued grimly, "we keep driving."
"We're going to make it there before him" Flame said confidently.
Marceline seemed to accept that. Whatever her problem with Flame was, she didn't doubt her now.
"What are we going to do with the Jeep?" she asked.
Her voice had a hard edge. "You're driving it home."
"No, I'm not," she said calmly.
The unintelligible stream of profanities started again.
"We can't all fit in my truck," I whispered.
Marceline didn't appear to hear me.
"I think you should let me go alone," I said even more quietly.
She heard that.
"Bonnie, please just do this my way, just this once," she said between clenched teeth.
"Listen, Gummy's not an imbecile," I protested. "If you're not in town tomorrow, he's going to get suspicious."
"That's irrelevant. We'll make sure he's safe, and that's all that matters."
"Then what about this tracker? He saw the way you acted tonight. He's going to think you're with me, wherever you are."
Jake looked at me, insultingly surprised again. "Marceline, listen to her," he urged. "I think she's right."
"Yes, she is," Flame agreed.
"I can't do that." Marceline's voice was icy.
"Jake should stay, too," I continued. "He definitely got an eyeful of Jake."
"What?" Jake turned on me.
"You'll get a better crack at him if you stay" Flame agreed.
Marceline stared at her incredulously. "You think I should let her go alone?"
"Of course not" Flame said. "Finn and I will take her."
"I can't do that," Marceline repeated, but this time there was a trace of defeat in her voice. The logic was working on her.
I tried to be persuasive. "Hang out here for a week —" I saw her expression in the mirror and amended "— a few days. Let Gummy see you haven't kidnapped me, and lead this Simon on a wild-goose chase. Make sure he's completely off my trail. Then come and meet me. Take a roundabout route, of course, and then Finn and Flame can go home."
I could see her beginning to consider it.
"Meet you where?"
"Phoenix" Of course.
"No. He'll hear that's where you're going," she said impatiently.
"And you'll make it look like that's a ruse, obviously. He'll know that we'll know that he's listening. He'll never believe I'm actually going where I say I am going."
"She's diabolical," Jake chuckled.
"And if that doesn't work?"
"There are several million people in Phoenix" I informed her.
"It's not that hard to find a phone book."
"I won't go home."
"Oh?" she inquired, a dangerous note in her voice.
"I'm quite old enough to get my own place."
"Marceline, we'll be with her" Flame reminded her.
"What are you going to do in Phoenix?" she asked her scathingly.
"Stay indoors."
"I kind of like it." Jake was thinking about cornering Simon, no doubt.
"Shut up, Jake."
"Look, if we try to take him down while she's still around, there's a much better chance that someone will get hurt — she'll get hurt, or you will, trying to protect her. Now, if we get him alone…" He trailed off with a slow smile. I was right.
The Jeep was crawling slowly along now as we drove into town. Despite my brave talk, I could feel the hairs on my arms standing up. I thought about Gummy, alone in the house, and tried to be courageous.
"Bonnie" Marceline's voice was very soft. Flame and Jake looked out their windows. "If you let anything happen to yourself— anything at all — I'm holding you personally responsible. Do you understand that?"
"Yes," I gulped.
She turned to Flame.
"Can Finn handle this?"
"Give him some credit, Marceline. He's been doing very, very well, all things considered."
"Can you handle this?" she asked.
And graceful little Flame pulled back her lips in a horrific grimace and let loose with a guttural snarl that had me cowering against the seat in terror.
Marceline smiled at her. "But keep your opinions to yourself," she muttered suddenly.