Chapter Twenty Seven

I storm into the house demanding to know where she is and who let her out of the house when I hear her truck rattling up the drive behind me. I stomp back out onto the gravelled courtyard and watch as she climbs out of the truck. She freezes to the spot when she sees me. "Son of a bitch" she hisses under her breath.

"I heard that!" I call to her and she huffs.

"That's right I forgot, you can hear everything" she mutters sarcastically

"I can't believe you went to the Surf Shack, I can't believe you went behind my back like that" I say and she sighs

"Riddoc don't make this a big deal, I'm here I'm in one piece, I was fine just like I told you I would be. Nothing happened, and I'm going to work tomorrow too" she says pushing past me carrying a grocery bag in her arms so she has to slam the Toyota's door shut with her hip. I frown and follow Adrian to the kitchen. "Don't? Please? I really don't want to argue with you" she says

"We wouldn't have to if you did what you were told" I grumble but it's a little too loud and even with her human ears I know she's heard me, she glares at me over her shoulder.

"I'll pretend you didn't go there" she scowls at me for a second then starts unpacking the grocery bag, Wine, Chocolate, Ice cream, wine, toaster waffles, cookies, gummy bears, more wine, wine coolers. God was staying with me driving her to drink or something? "What's with all the booze? Throwing a party I don't know about?" I ask and this time her glare turns into a scowl.

"My period's comming; I like a glass or two when I'm on the red! Is that ok with you?" she snaps, we both look up to see my Dad has just walked into the kitchen; his eyes are wide at the conversation he just over heard. He raises his hands like an innocent man being held at gun point and backs out of the kitchen. I don't blame him, but atleast now I know why Adrian's been so difficult today.

We both stand there in silence for a minuet, neither of us are sure what to say and the situation was made all the more awkward by Dad walking in. I take a deep breath and feel my anger melt away, I guess I need to be a little more understanding; this can't exactly be easy on her either. I reach up to the cupboard behind her and pull out a wine glass. She watches me set the glass on the side and she smiles at me. She sighs and I place my hands on her hips before pulling her against my chest. She stays there for a full ten minuets before she asks me to open the sauvignon blanc. I smile. "What do you say to a hot bath, then ice cream and a movie in bed?" I ask

"I'd say you're the greatest boyfriend ever" she smiles up at me

"Ok then, you choose the movie and I'll go run the bath" I tell her and she smiles evilly at me and i know exactly what she's thinking.

"No" I say shaking my head

"Oh come on?" she says and sticks her bottom lip out

"Angel? We watched that movie like a week ago" I say

"But I love that movie; we could watch the first one? It doesn't have to be number two" she reasons and I sigh.

"Are you really gonna make me watch Terminator two again? I asks and she nods, I throw my head back and groan. I loved that movie too, in fact Arnie movies were like my guilty little secret pleasure but I was starting to wish Adrian was into chick flicks "Baby? When you can quote it word for word you've seen it too many times" I tell her but she just laughs

A week passed since that night and I'm currently patrolling along the Canadian border hoping to pick up a trail on the vampire, but still nothing. It had been two weeks since his first attack when Adrian had found out my secret and Brady had gotten hurt. He was doing a lot better, Kim said he'd be able to run patrols again in another week so that was good, we needed all the help we could get right about now. It was lucky we had Kim since the Cullen's moved away, she was a trained Veterinarian and had taken care of all of us at one time or another.

I'm running quietly along with Collin and Kai when a panicked Trey fills my head.

Trey: Duck?

I instantly stop running because of the tone of Trey's thoughts, I can tell something's wrong.

Me: Trey what's going on?

Trey: it's him, he's at the surf shack

I instantly know he's talking about the vampire we've been looking for, and for a second I'm not sure if I can still breathe

Me: Trey? Where is Adrian?

Trey: she's in there, Seth's here too, but I think Adrian figured it out she must have recognized him from the crash, she started sending people home and closing the bar, once the last of the humans file out... well

I knew what he was saying once Seth and that Vamp were alone the shit was really gonna hit the fan.

Trey: you three are the only ones phased

Me: we're coming, get back in there and help Seth

And in the same second myself and my two pack brothers start to rocket in that direction.

I got there first I was a lot faster than the other two, I hit the tree line and tumbled out of the tree line as I tried to get my jeans up. I didn't bother to fasten them properly but the second they were up I was sprinting along the beach towards the pier. I tested the air as soon as I was outside the Surf Shack I could smell Seth and Trey but no Adrian and defiantly no Vampire. I pushed through the doors and the bar was empty everyone had been sent home like Trey said. Seth was laid in a heap on the floor while Trey pressed his ear to his chest. "What happened is he ok?" I ask

"I think so, I'm so sorry Duck I couldn't stop him" Trey says to me and I realize he's crying.

"Trey where are they?" I ask.

"He took her, I couldn't stop him, he has an ability it was like there was an invisible wall or something stopping me from getting close enough"

"Where did they go!" I shout

"I don't know ok! He did this to Seth and when I tried to stop him he throw me against that wall! I lost consciousness for a second and when I woke he was gone and Adrian was too!" he tells me. I growl frustrated and run back out onto the pier, she was my imprint if I put my mind to it I could find her, I'd find her anywhere.

I closed my eyes and tried to clear my mind, I could feel her fear, but I could feel anger too. She was nearby otherwise I wouldn't be able to feel her presence like this. I was back among the trees and the second I phased I caught her scent mixed with the stench of a vampire. I followed the trail and both scents grew stronger. I could hear my pack brothers in my head gathering and heading in my direction, but I was blocking their voices out right now, I needed to concentrate on finding Adrian.

Then I heard voices and I knew I was close. "You really shouldn't have done that, don't you know what I am girl? What exactly did you hope to accomplish?" a male voice snaps. I move closer making sure I'm absolutely silent, he'll pick up my scent soon enough anyway but I don't want him alerted to my presence before that.

"Well that move worked pretty well the last time an asshole walked into my bar" Adrian says, she's trying to sound brave but I can hear the tremble in her voice

"Good for you but now all I can smell is whiskey you stupid little girl" he spits as I creep closer. I figured out what Adrian had done to piss him off, she'd broken a bottle of alcohol over him, that's why he reeked of Jim Beam.

I positioned myself so I was low down in the undergrowth about twenty feet behind the Vampire, he had Adrian pinned by the throat against a tree and he was picking bits of glass off of himself with the other hand. I wait a second getting my timing right then I lunge for him. The Vampire holds his hand up and it's like I've bounced off a sheet of glass. He's a shield like my Grandma Bella only his shield is physical how the hell was I going to get through that? "Stop right there Riddoc?" He says and looks over his shoulder to me. "So good of you to join us" my eyes flicker to Adrian's and she's staring at me in shock. I guess even though she knew what I was it's still sort of new for her to see me like this and know that it's me. Also she probably just figured out I was the wolf that night in her back yard. "Do you know what your boyfriend did to me?" he asks Adrian "He killed my youngest son, Jeremy. And then his friends killed my eldest Morgan"

"Your sons attacked them first" Adrian says and I see the vampires hand tighten around her neck, Adrian lets out a winded whiper. He bears his teeth at her then turns back to glare at me, his red eyes flashing with hate. I can feel the pack drawing closer but it doesn't matter, as long as he's shielding himself like this it doesn't make a difference how many wolves are waiting to bite his head off when we can't get close enough to it. I need to figure out a way to make him drop his shield, but how?

"You killed my son Riddoc, you don't have a son for me to take from you, but I figure if you ever did it would be with her wouldn't it?" he says smiling a sick smirk at me, I growl through my teeth at him. "So I guess I'm just going to have to kill her, an eye for an eye and all that" he says. I throw myself against the shield again and again but it's useless. My head throbs, every-thing's spinning and I feel blood running from above my eye from smashing myself into his shield with so much force. I feel like I might be about to see starts, I shake myself trying to get a grip.

I can't believe what I see next, while the vampire laughs at my futile attempt to stop him, Adrian strakes a match on the leg of her jeans and throws it at his face. A book of matches from the surf shack falls from her hand and before it even hits the floor the vamps on fire, I must have mentioned vampires were sort of flammable to her. The vampire screams out, his concentration lapses and the shield drops, Adrian is thrown away from him as I dive at him teeth first.