Hide and Seek in the Dark (Being Rewritten)

Chapter 16

16

Gabriel

How could I let this happen? Gabriel stood in the hotel bathroom and stared down at his bandaged hand; watched the red spot of blood spread across his knuckles, grow larger as time progressed. He stretched his fingers outwards and closed them into a tight ball once again. He heard the bone crunch beneath the white wrappings, felt his short nails as they bit through the gauze, but was desensitized to the pain. His entire body felt numb to the core. How could I let this happen?

It was 1823 all over again.

An enraged snarl escaped his throat at the mere thought of that time. No, he vowed silently. I will not allow another young girl to die due to my negligence! I refuse to have another girl's blood on my hands for the second time. Gabriel slammed the first aid kit closed and shoved it back into the medicine cabinet above the sink. Once that was put up he stalked out of the bathroom and into the main room where everyone else was waiting.

Kiel was sitting on the sofa, his arm around Luna's shoulders, comforting her as she sniffed pathetically into her shirt sleeve. The rain had washed away most of the blood on her hands, but there were still traces of red caked into the crevices of her nails. Noel leaned against the bar, his hand wrapped around a bottle of water. His expression was blank as he stared down at the floor, but the white knuckled grip he had on the glass told how he really felt about the night's events. Everyone else was standing around, conversing quietly, but as soon as Gabriel walked in they all hushed down. About a dozen wide eyes trailed his form as Gabriel walked into the room.

"What are you all gawking at?" he snapped, his own eyes narrowing. "We've no time to simply sit around and mope, we need to get moving."

"Moving?" Luna peeked out from behind her sleeve to gaze at him questioningly. Her dark eyes were swollen and red, bright with tears. "Where are we going?"

"Why, I thought it'd be a great time to go out dancing." He rolled his eyes. "To complete that damned rescue mission of course, where else?"

"But, Christine-"

"Is alive." Gabriel cut off her words before she could say them. He wouldn't let her say those god awful words. "She is alive. We'll proceed with the raid as planned, find Christine and she'll lead us to the boy. It's as easy as that."

"Is it?" Noel sneered, his mouth hitched in and smirk that was both parts angry and disbelieving. "Is it really?"

Gabriel fixed him with a cool stare. "Yes."

Noel remained unfazed. "And what if Christine is dead, huh? What then?"

"She isn't dead-"

"What if she is!?" Noel demanded, throwing his water down in a rage. The bottle broke upon impact with the smooth porcelain, shattering into a million pieces. "What if she really is dead? You have to think about that! You can't keep going on with this delusion that she's alive and well and waiting for us! You have to think! She was taken. Her blood was all over that damn alley." His eyes shown bright with anger, vibrant against his pale face. "What if she is dead, Gabriel? What then?"

Gabriel remained silent. Instead he looked around at all the faces in the room. Their wide, concerned eyes bore into his own. They weren't just concerned about Christine, he knew. They were concerned for themselves as well. Aside from their last confrontation with Len during his last attempt to kidnap Christine they hadn't been on the battle field in years, decades. Not since the Treaty was signed. What had happened to Christine could have happened to any one of them and they knew it.

He still refused to accept that Christine was dead. That young, head strong, stubborn as a mule girl. That girl with so much life ahead of her.

But what if she is?

His eyes returned to his nephew's blazing ones. How many times had Christine looked at him that way? Too many to count. When he spoke he spoke confidently, his voice strong. "Then we continue on with the mission. We find the boy. Without her." His eyes moved across the faces of his comrades once again. "She would've wanted that."

His gaze turned hard. "Now the only question is, are you with me? Are you still willing to risk your lives now that our guide is gone?"

Kiel stood from his seat. His hulking form towered over Gabriel's own and the big man gave him a confident grin, his hand clasping his shoulder. "Ye know I'm always with ye."

Luna wiped her sleeve over her eyes once more before standing. "I'm with you, too. For Christine." She choked on the girl's name and had to bite her lip to keep it from quavering, but she kept her back straight and head held high. Gabriel nodded his approval.

"For Christine." Gabriel glanced over at the owner of the voice. Noel met his gaze steadily and spoke in a steady voice. "Be she alive or not."

One by one more stepped up and Gabriel felt the pride for his pack fill his chest. "Alright," he murmured more to himself than anyone else. "Let's go find ourselves some vampires."

They rushed out into the night and to the parking lot. The heavy downpour of rain did nothing to stop them. If anything it spurred them on. Christine was taken in this rain. Gabriel stopped by his bike and, helmet in his hands, titled his head up to the dark skies. He let the rain wash all the bad that had happened that night away, washed all the blood from his body, from his mind. So much has happened. Now he was going to set it right.

Hang tight, Christine. He climbed onto the cold, wet seat and revved the engine, the bikes' headlights paving out the path before him. We're coming for you.