Hunter

Hey, guys! I'll be going to my Great-Aunt Trix's wedding this Sunday, so I'll probably spend the seven-hour drive up there writing. If I don't get carsick, that is.

Here's chapter fourteen.

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Bella's POV

"Alice and Emmett are outside," Edward said, but I had a feeling he wasn't talking to me. James was close enough to hear us now.

I held my finger up in front of my lips, and dialled Jo's cell number. I let it ring once, and then I hung up and repeated the action. Jo picked up on the second ring.

"Hey, Bella, you know I have caller I.D. now. You don't need to use the hang-up code anymore." Her tone was mocking, but in a playful sense. It was so good to hear her voice.

"Can't be too careful. What if it was someone just pretending to be me? That little code might just save your life. Or, more importantly, mine."

Jo laughed. "So, what's up?" she finally asked.

I leaned back against the wall, the epitome of casualness. "Honestly, I can't handle this anymore. Do you have any idea how boring normal teenagers are? I mean, if they're not complaining about tests or homework, they're gossiping about who's going to prom. Ugh!"

"Yeah, I know. Mom made me go to high school too, remember? I was the freak with the knife collection," she reminded me. "So, what do you need?"

"You still got that credit card I loaned you last year? You know, the one that actually has my real name on it?" I prayed she did.

"Of course! I use it all the time. Hell, I even make payments on it."

I pumped my fist in the air and hissed, yes. "Awesome! Listen, where are you right now?"

"Um…I'm somewhere in Wyoming. Riverton, in Fremont County."

"Riverton, Wyoming. Good, now listen closely; take that credit card and get a room in the first hotel listed in the yellow pages. I need a diversion for the other Hunters to track while I go see if I can get Renée to listen to logic for once."

"Wait! You're getting back into the business?" she asked. She sounded relieved. It was a welcome change from her previous mood "That's great! Actually, I could use a little insight."

"Yeah?" I asked, suddenly interested. Edward was anxious, I knew, but I couldn't turn down a chance to help Jo.

"I've been working a case, but it's going nowhere. I don't even know what I'm Hunting. I'm thinking it's a rugaru."

"Rugaru, nasty. Don't their bones, like, move under their skin or something?" I asked with a trace of disgust, picturing it by accident.

"Yeah, that's it, but it doesn't fit what I've found. Whatever this thing is, it's been leading people to it, not just mindlessly attacking them. I talked to a little girl, and she said she got an email from her dead mother. That's when the dad called me. He thinks they're being stalked. They're the third family who's received an email from a dead loved one."

Something about her story brought back a really bad memory. "What exactly did the email say?"

"Hang on, I've got a copy." I waited, listening to the sounds of shuffling paper over the phone. Edward's eyes kept zeroing in on something out the window. I motioned for him to calm down. If James was gonna attack, he'd have done it by now.

"Here it is!" Jo cried triumphantly. "Okay, it says, 'Hi, baby, it's Mommy. Did you miss me? I missed you. Come outside. I'm waiting for you. Come to me.' Creepy, huh?"

"Come to me," I repeated. My eyes widened in remembrance and I snapped my fingers. "It's a crocotta," I told her.

"A croc-what?"

"Crocotta," I repeated. "They're described as being the coupling a wolf and a dog, but they can take on human form. Back in the day, they would lure people into the forest by mimicking the voice of a loved one. Then they'd eat them. Nowadays, they're a little more modern. Thank you, Charles Babbage," I said sarcastically.

"Who?"

"Never mind. What do the bodies look like?" I questioned.

"I wouldn't call what was left of them bodies."

"Yeah, crocottas don't exactly leave much behind. Except a mess. They like to hang around in filth. Mom and I went after one just after Charlie died. The thing emailed me while I was in the library, pretending to be him. It wrote the same thing, come to me."

Jo let out a sigh. "You're a lifesaver, Bella. I owe you one."

"Just make sure no one comes after me while I'm in Phoenix. Last I heard, Renée was still working a job down there. I'm heading over right now."

"Good luck, you'll need it." She hung up, and so did I.

"Come on, Superman, we're outta here." I shoved my cell phone into my pocket and opened the door. I stared out into the darkness, daring James to come out and face me. I turned to Edward. "Is he here?"

He shook his head. "No, he took off. Alice can't get a fix on him. He's moving too fast, but at least he's gone for now." He looked at me angrily. "What was that all about?"

"It's called strategy, Superman. Do try to keep up. I just told Goldilocks exactly where I'm going, so that'll be the last place he looks." I walked over to my car and opened the driver's door. "Hurry up; we've got to get to your place before he comes back."

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Less than three hours had passed since I woke up this morning, and already I was in a race against time. When the Cullen house finally came into view, I let out a relieved sigh. The door to the underground garage was wide open, so I went inside and found a place to park. Emmett and Alice drove in after me in Emmett's jeep. The garage door shut behind them. Other than that, the room also contained Edward's Volvo, a black Mercedes S55 AMG, and Rosalie's red convertible.

"It's like a frickin' car show," I muttered. We got of the Impala and shut the doors simultaneously.

Suddenly, Edward let out a low growl. I looked at him quickly, and then followed his gaze to the open door at the far side of the garage.

"It's alright, Edward," Carlisle called out. He appeared in the doorway, and walked down the stairs.

Laurent was right behind him.

"He came to warn us," the Doc explained. Emmett and Alice flanked behind Edward and me. Rosalie, Esme, and Jasper stood behind Carlisle. I could tell Laurent wasn't very comfortable, surrounded like this.

Laurent looked at me with curiosity. I raised an eyebrow at him, wondering what he thought of a human who hung around with vampires.

"James is Tracking us," Edward snarled at him.

Laurent didn't appear offended by his anger. "I was afraid of that. You must understand. He is absolutely lethal. I've never seen anything like him in my three-hundred years."

I felt a smirk start to grow on my face. Laurent hadn't seen anything like me either.

"I won't get in the middle of this, but I am sorry about what has been unleashed on you." He gave me another curious look. "Are you sure it's worth it? She's just a human."

The smirk finally broke free. "Hardly," I quipped. "But, if you do come across James, remind him again about not playing with his food."

I saw his mind working, trying to understand my bazaar statement, and then his eyes widened as he remembered. His mouth fell open.

I winked at him.

Edward touched my back, as if warning me not to say anything else. I gave him a look that clearly stated my feelings on that matter.

Finally, Laurent composed himself, swallowing visibly. "Yes…well…I will be sure to do that…if I see him again…" He drifted off, still staring at me with bewildered, somewhat frightened eyes. "I would like to leave now."

Carlisle nodded. "Go in peace," he said formally.

Laurent backed toward the door farthest from me, and then booked it. I shook my head and laughed a little. "What a wimp!"

"What was that all about?" Alice asked.

Great, another catchphrase.

"Nothing much," I said, casually strolling back to my car. "I just reminded him of something he said a week ago, while they were killing Waylon." My voice took on a hard edge as I thought of him.

"Nice," Emmett commented. "You scared him good, Bella." He grinned at Edward suddenly. "She's great, man! I haven't had this much fun in years."

I gave him a little bow, and opened the trunk of my car. "Glad to be of service."

"What are we going to do, Edward?" asked Esme.

"Bella and I are leaving town. Emmett and Jasper can hunt James down before he finds her," he answered.

I looked at the boys in question, and shook my head. "Overkill," I muttered, reaching into the trunk to search for the combination lock that opened the false bottom. It was too dim in here to see it clearly. I leaned in closer, straining to see the numbers.

"I've fought our kind before. Not easy to kill," Jasper drawled.

"But not impossible," Emmett insisted.

"I don't relish the thought of killing another creature, even a sadistic one like James," Carlisle said forlornly.

"You don't have to," I said stubbornly. "Edward's simply being paranoid. I could totally take him out." I finally managed to put in the right combination. 03-13-93. The same day a demon paid my house a visit.

"Bella," Edward scolded. "You have no idea what he's capable of. And if Victoria helps him-"

"I can handle it," I said, rolling my eyes. I pulled open the false bottom and revealed my arsenal. I had two axes, one regular, one a pickaxe, a shovel, rope, a flashlight, a flare gun, lock picks, a wooden stake, a taser, a pair of brass-knuckled gloves that had been soaked in demon blood, demon blood-powered bullets, three shotguns, two revolvers, including the one I had on me now, seventeen packs of matches, three lighters, a flamethrower, a home-made accelerant, chalk for drawing Devil's Traps or other symbols, another canteen of holy water, three protection charms, two bags of rock salt, a few more knives, a crossbow, my EMF reader, a first aid kit, and the most important object of all…

…a vial of demon blood.

Sure, it was about as long and wide as my pinky, and half-empty at that, but just a few drops of this stuff was enough to supercharge any household object into a monster-killing nuclear warhead.

I held it up to the light and wrinkled my nose. It smelled a lot worse than I remembered. I squinted in disgust and tipped the vial back and forth. The red-black liquid inside sloshed against the rubber stopper. The smell only intensified, so I put it back into the trunk. The odour hung in the air, but I knew it would disperse soon.

Edward went on as if I hadn't said anything. "I'm gonna run Bella south. Can you lead him away from here?"

Carlisle shook his head. "No, James knows you'd never leave her. He'll follow you."

"Jasper and I will go with Bella," Alice chimed. "Even if he does find us, he won't stand a chance." She smiled at me as I gazed at her from over the propped up trunk's lid.

Edward seemed torn, but finally, he nodded. He pulled out one of my sweaters. My eyes zeroed in on it, wondering what was up. "Rosalie, can you put this on so the Tracker will pick up Bella's scent?"

"Nice," I commented, realizing his plan. Maybe he was smarter than I gave him credit for.

"Why? What is she to me?" Rosalie retorted.

Carlisle stepped in, sensing a fight. "Rosalie, Bella is with Edward. She is part of this family. We protect our family."

Family comes first, Kiddo. Renée's voice echoed in my head as Carlisle spoke. I smiled to myself, feeling almost like everything was normal.

You know, apart from the bloodthirsty vampires that wanted to track me down and eat me, but that wasn't too unusual in my case.

Jasper edged closer to me. His chest was still, showing that he wasn't breathing. He caught a glimpse of the arsenal in my trunk, and gasped loudly. He took on an almost pained expression when he smelled my scent, or maybe it was the demon blood that bothered him.

"Do you actually need all of that?" he asked in disbelief.

I shrugged. "Not all the time. The protection charms are a bonus. For your garden-variety poltergeist, I just need a shovel, some salt, a lighter, and the accelerant. And a shotgun filled with rock salt. With vengeful spirits, you gotta dig up a body and salt-and-burn the remains. You load the shotgun with rock salt just in case the guy you're burning comes after you. Trust me, they're essential in Hunting."

Jasper raised an eyebrow, and I realized that I'd gotten everyone's attention again. "You've dug up bodies?" he asked.

I nodded. "Since I was twelve or so. Maybe a little younger. It's not as bad as you think. You get used to the smell. Of course, having Casper The Bloodthirsty Ghost coming at you in a graveyard is another matter."

He smiled. "I can imagine."

Emmett wandered over, curious. His eyes widened. "No way! You have a flamethrower!" He reached in to grab it, but I whacked his hand with the butt of my revolver. He pulled his hand away in surprise, and I saw a thin crack along two of his knuckles. "That hurt!" he exclaimed. He sounded surprised.

"Serves you right! That is a very dangerous piece of equipment, not a toy," I said sternly.

He stuck out his bottom lip like a toddler. "But it's so cool!" he insisted.

I rolled my eyes. "Fine," I gave in. "I'll let you try it out later."

"Oh, dear," Alice said forebodingly. "I'll have to hide my wardrobe."

I gave Emmett a harsh look. "Are you planning to set your sister's clothes on fire?"

His eyes widened innocently. "No."

I barely restrained myself from hitting him again. "Such a bad liar," I grumbled, rolling my eyes.

He grinned at me shamelessly, and then gave the flamethrower a longing gaze. I shut the trunk with a loud slam. Then I hopped up onto it as Edward and the others continued to plan.

"Alice and Jasper can take Bella to Phoenix, Arizona. Her car's back windows are tinted, so they should be alright in the daytime, as long as they don't expose too much skin," he told them.

"Got that?" I said, indicating to the couple. "No make-out sessions in the Metallicar."

Emmett sniggered in response. Jasper looked amused, but he kept his distance.

"It would probably be safer to travel by plane," Carlisle suggested.

I nearly fell off the car when he said that. I stumbled and managed to keep my balance as I stalked toward him.

"No, no, NO! If there is one thing I do not do, it's fly," I protested.

"It would be quicker," Carlisle reasoned.

"And a helluva lot more dangerous too. I can't take my weapons with me because of all the airport security, and that includes the salt and holy water. They're so paranoid about people setting off bombs that they don't even realize how screwed they'd be if some demon took the plane on a joyride! And with my luck, it'd choose the one I'm on! Then your little escape plan would go straight to the scene of the crash!"

"She has a point," Alice decided. "Besides, we'll make good time if Jasper and I drive at night. It shouldn't take too long." Jasper nodded in agreement.

I let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you."

"Alright," Edward acquiesced. "But you'd better leave now. Call when you get there, and try to stay out of trouble." He then turned to Rosalie and Emmett, motioning for them to come with him. "Let's go lay the false trail and lead the Tracker away from them."

Emmett grinned broadly again. "Sweet! I almost hope he catches up with us. Then we could have some fun."

From the look on his face, it seemed Edward hoped for the same thing.

"You guys better be careful," I cautioned.

He smiled at me reassuringly, and took my face into his hands. With more care than was strictly necessary, he planted a kiss on my mouth. It took every ounce of self-control I had not to jump him right there, but my Hunter instincts were still in charge. He pulled back and gave me a satisfied smile. "Easier all the time," he murmured.

I raised one eyebrow at him. "Are you calling me easy?" I teased.

He laughed and turned without a word. Emmett held up his hand to give him a high-five, but Edward left him hanging as he headed for the front door.

I opened my door and gestured for Jasper and Alice to climb into the backseat. "There's plenty of room, but mind the bloodstains," I said nonchalantly.

Jasper's eyes widened a little as he surveyed the seat cushions. Most of the stains were old and faded, but I was pretty sure his eyes could detect every one.

"There's a blanket under the seat if the sun makes you too sparkly, or whatever." I got into the driver's seat and put my seatbelt on. Then I rooted around my tape collection as Alice and Jasper did the same. Finally finding the one I wanted, I stuck the cassette into the tape player and turned the volume up.

Please allow me to introduce myself,

I'm a man of wealth and taste.

I've been around for a long, long year,

Stolen many a man's soul and faith.

I was 'round when Jesus Christ,

Had his moment of doubt and pain.

Made damn sure that Pilate,

Washed his hands, and sealed his fate.

Pleased to meet you!

Hope you guess my name!

I waited for the garage door to open again, and then we began the long journey to Phoenix.

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I drove for eight hours before Alice volunteered to take over. She and Jasper sat in the front while I lied down across the backseats. My head rested on one of my sweaters, which made a pretty decent makeshift pillow. I was used to sleeping in the Impala, but the circumstances made it difficult to calm down. I was on high alert; ready to jump up and start shooting the instant I sensed danger.

I shifted so that I faced the seat cushion. My headache was back too, worse than before. I pressed my palms up against my eyes, and moaned softly.

"You okay?" Alice asked, instantly vigilant.

"She's uncomfortable, and in pain, I think," Jasper responded.

"What he said," I mumbled.

They were silent for a few seconds, and then I felt a soothing wave of calm wash over me. It did nothing to dull the pain, but I felt myself drifting off. "Thanks, Harpo."

I heard Alice giggle, and then I was back in my nightmare.

Fire!

I stood in the middle of a room, surrounded by an angry, roaring firestorm. But there was no heat. I moved through them as if they were shadows, towards a wooden desk. The flames licked at its legs, but I remained unharmed. On the desk was a notebook. Newspaper clippings stuck out in all directions. I reached for it and turned to the first page.

Daniel Elkins

I gasped, and looked around, hoping - praying - that I wouldn't see what I knew I would.

There, sprawled near the doorway, lay Daniel Elkins's body. I moved toward him, wanting to drag him out, perhaps to try CPR or something - anything!

But then I saw someone watching me.

I froze as I caught a glimpse of Its bright yellow eyes. Other than that, It was concealed by shadows. Even the bright flames surrounding It did nothing to reveal Its face.

I fought creatures straight out of my worst nightmares. I sold my soul to a demon. I went to hell, and suffered through more tortures than I thought possible.

And yet, my terror during those moments didn't even come close to what I experienced when the shadowed creature took a step toward me.

Whereas before I had moved around freely, now I was paralyzed. My heart raced, and my breathing became shallow. A whimper escaped me as the Shadow-Man reached out toward me. Up close, I could smell burning sulphur. My eyes itched, and I realized I was crying.

The Shadow-Man tilted Its head to the side as Its hand finally reached my face. Its thumb gently ran over my cheeks, wiping away my tears.

If I thought my fear couldn't be more palpable, It proved me wrong when It spoke in a rough whisper, "Don't cry, Angel."

It felt like electricity just zapped down my spine. I trembled. My teeth chattered together until I clenched them firmly together. "Don't…call me…Angel."

Instinct more than anything made me reach for my knife. I felt the familiar handle in my grasp and quickly unsheathed the blade. The air whistled as I thrust forward, hoping to stab this thing right between the eyes…

…and then it caught my arm.

I gasped as It tightened Its grip just above my wrist. I struggled to pull away, forgetting everything I knew about self-defence, and relied on primitive fight-or-flight instincts to save me.

"That's not very nice, Bella," It scolded gently, mockingly. I could almost hear the smile in Its voice. "But I'm not too concerned about your personality. It's perfect for my plans."

Curiosity made me pause. "What plans?" I demanded angrily. Whatever this thing did would be bad. I had no doubt about that.

It made a strange sound, almost like a sigh, but then I realized It was laughing.

"What's so funny?" I yelled, renewing my struggles. This time I was calmer, and I remembered my training. I thrust my left hand, palm forward, toward Its face. If I broke Its nose, maybe the pain would be enough of a distraction for me to finish It.

But again, It caught my arm. Then It gripped both my wrists in one hand, and twisted me around so that my back met Its chest.

The smell of sulphur overwhelmed me. I gagged, and fought to get away, but whatever this thing was, It was strong.

It took my chin in Its free hand and turned my head so that I saw Its burning, yellow eyes up close. I glared at It, baring my teeth in anger. It laughed again, longer and louder than before, and Its breath washed over me.

All the fight left me in an instant. My knees buckled. I went limp in Its arms. My eyes rolled around in my head as I struggled to focus. "What the…hell?" I questioned drowsily.

"Don't worry, Angel, I'd never hurt you. I have such plans for you," It whispered menacingly.

I opened my mouth to protest…and Its lips settled over mine.

The kiss shocked me back into action. I elbowed It in the chest as hard as I could. It laughed again, releasing me from Its embrace. I backed away quickly, shaking with fury.

"I will see you very soon, Miss Colt." It held up a gun, and I froze, wondering if It would shoot me.

But wait!…No…it couldn't be.

"The Colt?" I gasped.

And then I woke up.

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Yeah, yeah, I know it's a horrible cliffhanger, but I'm at over four-thousand words already! Besides, I still have half an hour before class starts and I want to continue working on Talent Search.

Oh, and the song is Sympathy For The Devil by The Rolling Stones. You should all totally listen to it. I'm gonna be using it in a lot more chapters.

I'll catch you later.