Lexia (The Deadwood Hunter Series) (16 page)

“I’m not a freak, Hunter, I’m a Shifter. I’ll see you when your mom arrives, Wildcat.” He turned to leave.

“I told you my mom left when I was a baby—and my name’s Lexia!!” she shouted at his retreating shadow.

But all she got back was a low cat-like chuckle as he shifted to panther, leaving her alone with the thoughts that raced through her head.

Lexia sat tied up and screamed Lincoln’s name over and over but he never came back and eventually she fell asleep with a hoarse throat and tears in her eyes. Her nightmares followed Lexia into her dreams and she woke with a start; she’d remember the man with gold eyes and wondered now whether he was a Hunter like Lincoln had told her about and if he was, was she really half of that? Did she really possess such darkness?

Bright rays of early morning light shone through the gaps in the wooden panels bleaching the old, greyed wood orange. Lexia glanced around her; it looked like she was in an old wooden shed, but when she looked through the cracks, all she could see were the green tops of trees.
He tied me up in a tree house; what is he, twelve?
she smiled to herself.

“What’s so funny?” Lincoln said standing in the one and only door, the sun shone behind him casting him in a silhouette.

Lexia jumped. He always managed to sneak up on her. She didn’t answer his question, just turned her head to look in the other direction.

“Like that, is it? Well, I had brought you some food, bet you’re starving?”

“Not hungry!” She snapped as her tummy rumbled.
God, shut up stomach!
she thought, mad with herself. Turning to look at him again she asked, “You put poison in it?”

Walking forward he bent near her face. “Far more exciting ways to kill you,” he whispered in her ear. His warm breath sent a shudder through her that had nothing to do with fear.
God what is wrong with me?
she thought. He nipped at her neck making her think of the time the panther had bitten her, then as he licked her skin, wet heat flared deep down in her loins.

“Get off, Lincoln!”

“Temper, temper. Think you can behave if I untie your hands? Or shall I feed you?” he laughed

“I’ll behave,” she said, looking away from his hypnotizing face.

Lincoln went behind her untying her bound wrists. The panther crawled at his skin breathing in the scent of her arousal. She tasted just as he imagined, sweet and spicy.

Chucking the sandwich at her feet he stood and watched her eat. He and the panther both found her so fascinating, the more he watched her the more he wanted to claim her as his, but she was still the enemy. She looked harmless enough until you had her cornered and then she turned into a savagely beautiful killing machine.

He threw the bottle of water at her and watched, mesmerized, as she caught it inches from her face without even looking up. Her eyes widened as she realized what she had just done. Yes she was a killing machine, a stunningly beautiful killing machine that his panther yearned to have.

“So there are a few things I don’t understand: why, when you had your teeth in my neck, did you not just finish me off? Why the games, the chasing? I would have been dead in seconds; no more threat?”

He studied her for a while thinking over her question, watched her greedily drink the water; but seeing as she’d screamed most of the night, her throat was probably raw. He’d paced the forest most of the night listening to her screaming his name, each call a fist in his gut; he’d battled most of the night with the beast within.

“I attacked out of possessive rage.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means I don’t share.”

“That still makes no sense.”

He stood and walked around the small space, his large, restless energy taking over every inch of the shed.

“Do you realize I’m missing my last-ever day of school? My dad will be going bat-shit crazy!” Lexia asked, feeling better with a full stomach.

Ignoring her question he stopped pacing and asked one of his own.

“So, Lex, how long have you had your powers?”

She looked at him with those big eyes, he was sure if you looked long enough you would see into her soul. Tilting her head slightly she answered.

 “I’ve always felt different but those things started hunting me a few weeks ago. Three vampires chased me, I was trapped, certain I was going to die when...” Lexia’s eyes glaze over, as if she was back in the alley. “I don’t know, it was a blur, I felt out of control and then... red, red everywhere.” Shaking her head she looked at him. “All those things I killed, they were real? I’m not losing my mind?” Looking away she pulled up her knees, hugging herself; she looked so lost.

The panther growled and clawed at his mind, mad at his Wildcat for giving in so easily. But the man kept it at bay and closed the distance between them, tilting her head so that he could stare into those blue-gold eyes. “You’re not mad, Lex, you have great power. Learn to use it. Those monsters will keep coming, they sense you now.” Lincoln unlocked the chains at her back. He paused in the doorway, a black figure in the bright sun.

“Why?” she whispered.

“Because I can’t listen to you scream anymore.” He dropped from view. “It kills me.”

Stunned she didn’t move
. It kills me?
Did I hear him right?

Chapter 17

Lexia sat there for what seemed like forever after he had left, her body frozen in shock. Hands shaking she pulled the chains off her and stood. Slowly she crept across the floor towards the door; the sun was high in the sky now. Stepping out on the veranda that ran around the little wooden shack, Lexia looked for some way down, walking around she realised he must have climbed up in his cat form. “Damn it!” she muttered.

She was about 20 feet up. “Can I make that? What the hell, it’s better than waiting for him to return.”

Standing on the railing Lexia took a deep breath and jumped, cold air rushed past her face as she dropped to the ground. She landed in a crouch but stumbled, curling into a ball she rolled forward before coming to a stop. Adrenaline pumped through her veins, bringing her back to life. Standing up she winced as her leg twinged. “Fuck, why does it always have to be the same leg?” she muttered, but moved as fast as she could in the direction she hoped was home.

Lincoln stood in the shadows waiting to see what she would do. He still couldn’t quite believe he’d let her go but she made him feel things that no one else ever had.

He wanted her to be his and that frightened him. His panther continued to snarl at the surface, wanting to rip through his skin. It didn’t like feeling this confused; Lexia had been right, the panther had wanted her to touch him, to pet him. Then he’d heard her talking and laughing to Dan that night and the cat had taken over. His panther had been so mad, driven by possessive instincts he’d bitten into her neck, leaving his mark. He had to let her go before he did something he would regret, he’d be lucky if she ever spoke to him again.

She had taken a few hours to come out of the door and now she stood on the railing about to jump. It was a long way down, no problem for his cat of course.

She twisted her leg upon landing but was up and running with only the slightest limp seconds after. The panther growled at his mind wanting to hunt its prey back down but he remained in control.
She wouldn’t be gone for long
he smiled.

Lexia stopped, panting slightly. Her ankle throbbed from the twenty- minute run. She’d found her bearings now and home should be a five-minute run from here. She could no longer feel him watching her, so she walked in the direction of home. She was certain he was playing some game with her, but for now that didn’t matter, she had to get home before her dad organized a search party.

Finally home.
She smiled, thinking of getting a hot shower, but stopped suddenly, danger screamed at her mind, sizzled over her skin. Slowly Lexia walked toward the house, careful not to make a sound; the forest around her was eerily quiet, not even the rustle of leaves could be heard. She reached the kitchen window and looked through but couldn’t see anything unusual so she carried on around the side of the house. Glancing down the drive, Lexia felt nothing with the new senses but still something was very wrong, all her nerves buzzed with danger telling her to run.
Dad’s home,
she thought, looking at his car in front of the house but the front door was half open.

Her heart started to beat faster as she stepped onto the front porch, a feeling of dread formed in her gut. Lexia didn’t want to walk in the house; if she just stayed outside then everything would be okay, she’d never see what horrors lay behind the door. Lexia opened the door with shaking fingers and knew the second she walked into the house and felt the death, the darkness lingering in the air, that life would never be the same.

Her mind refused to translate what she saw. Feeling numb she walked forward, her legs like lead, she followed the grisly red trail down the hall then came to an abrupt stop. Sprawled on the floor at the end of the hall was a body, pools of red spread around him and his leg stuck out at an odd angle. A strangled cough penetrated through her paralyzed mind releasing her from her frozen state. Running forward she tripped on the overturned hall table. Glass cut into her hands and knees as she crawled towards her dad but she didn’t feel it, she only felt numb like this was all a nightmare and she would soon wake up.
Oh please let me wake up!

“Dad? Dad... Can you hear me?”

A strangled whisper replied, “Lex?”

“Yes, Dad,” she said, turning him onto his back, looking into his blue eyes.

“Lexia, listen to me, you must listen! Your mother didn’t leave.” Blood filled his lungs making him cough.

“What do you mean, where is she?” Silent tears fell from her eyes and she struggled to breathe.

“I ran with you Lexia. She turned into a monster, it’s in you, too!” His breathing slowed. “Don’t let it out Lexia, promise me,” he croaked.

“I don’t understand?” she cried. She couldn’t believe this was happening to her, she could feel herself trembling, feel her heart slowly cracking, the pain so intense she just wanted to die.

“Upstairs in my closet there’s a box under the boards, it will explain everything. Now promise me you will never become a monster like her,” he whispered, closing his eyes.

“Dad! Dad, I promise, don’t leave me, please don’t leave me, I can’t do this alone.” She shook, desperate to do something, anything. He couldn’t die. Opening his eyes and focusing on her one last time he whispered, “She’s coming for you, Lex. Run!”

 “Who Dad? Who?” she sobbed, grief cutting off her airway.

“Hunters,” he whispered with his last breath.

A feral cry ripped from her throat and then she collapsed as great sobs shook her body. Lexia sat there hunched over her father’s body, his blood soaking into her clothes and yet she never noticed, all she could feel was the pain of her loss. Her heart hammered in her chest and a dead, empty feeling filled her up; it ravished her insides until her whole body hurt and her every breath felt like breathing in fire.

The sound of tires crunching on gravel made her look up. Darkness had settled while she had been lost in despair. Footsteps sounded on the porch but she sat frozen.
What does it matter anymore? I might as well be dead.

“Mr. Granger? FBI.” A cool voice rang out into the night, a light switched on, hurting her eyes. Two figures ran towards her. “Are you hurt, Miss? Are you hurt?”

She looked into his face, confused.
Am I hurt? No...Yes... I hurt everywhere, my hearts been ripped out.
But she replied, “He’s dead,” as fresh tears fell down her face.

Lexia sat in a daze watching people fill her home, they whispered and glanced at her but nothing sank in, she just sat there looking at the place her father had once been. Remembering how she’d screamed at them to leave him alone, how she’d stood on her shaking legs with her father’s blood covering her body and told them she’d kill anyone who came near him. They’d looked at her with a mixture of pity and revulsion and then as a FBI agent had taken a step forward, she’d knocked him to the side like he was a mere fly. That’s when she’d realized what she was doing and remembered her dad’s last words, she did have a monster in her and she couldn’t let it out. The people around her were just trying to help and she wanted to kill them, of course they’d never believed her when she’d screamed it. But Lexia knew she could and that’s what had made her stop, what made her step back and slide down the wall; she could kill them all.

Two legs appeared in her line of vision. “Miss Granger, you need to come with me.”

She looked up taking in his muscled build. He had a broad face, his dark hair in a buzz cut, mouth set in a grim line, then her heart stopped as she stared into his eyes. Lincoln’s honey-smooth voice spoke in her mind,
Their gold eyes mark them as Hunters.

“Come with me, please.”  He held his hand out to pull her up. Confused, she grabbed his hand and let him pull her up but as his hand touched hers, it felt like he’d stabbed her; cold radiated from his touch, chilling her to the bone. She forced down a gasp trying to hide her reaction and followed him outside. Lexia tried to get a hold of the million thoughts that now raced through her mind.

This man was a hunter but was he FBI, too? Her dad had said they were coming for her but nothing he’d said had made much sense.
Why didn’t I get that box?
Lexia didn’t understand what was going on and she had no idea what her next move was. Her dad was dead; all she wanted to do was curl up somewhere and cry. But her body was screaming at her to run and the last time she’d ignored her body...
I will never ignore my instincts again
.

He met another man in the drive and they started walking towards their car, it was parked near the edge of the forest. Her dad’s voice whispered in her head,
She’s coming Lexia, RUN... Hunters.
As his voice drifted away the haze cleared and her mind stopped racing.