The Runaway

Chapter 8

Violet was invited to sit in the front of the van with Colton but Riley beat her to it. "You should get to know the others more," Riley insisted.

Colette was to Violet's right and Aiden was on her left. "Hey, I'm Colette." Violet introduced herself and they briefly shook hands. Aiden didn't pay attention to them. Instead, he was daydreaming while gazing out the window. Delsin sat in the back quietly which made Violet forget he was even there.

"Do you have any idea what we're about to do?" Colette asked.

Violet shook her head.

She sighed and continued, "I'm sorry that you're involved with all of this."

Suddenly, Aiden snapped out of his daze. "She could've just left. She had the choice."

Violet didn't want to look directly at him. She knew he disliked her and she hated him ever since the attack.

"What if she told the police on us once she left?" Colette suggested.

"Who cares? We could deal with that." he answered, harshly.

Colette remained calm. "We've never been caught before, so don't jump to conclusions."

Aiden was going to argue but then Colton interrupted. "Shut it or we're not going through with the plan tonight."

"You guys are ruining my opportunity to-" Riley glanced at Violet, "get a treat."

Colton nudged her in the arm. "Shut up."

Violet ignored them and looked down at her lap in silence. No one talked. All was silent. After a while, she began drifting off to sleep.

The van came to a sudden halt and someone gently shook Violet's shoulder. "Hey, wake up." She slowly opened her eyes and saw Colton in front of her. "We're here," he said.

She got out of the van and looked at the area. The sky was beginning to grow dark and the others were busy gathering material from the back of the van. Tons of trees stood from a distance indicating that they were near the woods. "What exactly do I need to do?" she asked.

Colton grabbed a gun and loaded it like it was a daily task. "Don't wander off and stay right here. You can even sit in the van if you'd like, but just make sure you're scanning for any strangers that might approach," he explained, "If you see anyone that's not in our group, yell for me immediately. Scream if you have to. Stay here for now okay?"

Violet nodded. She wished she had a phone, but that was left behind at home. The current task didn't sound too hard and the place looked deserted. "What are you guys going to do?" she finally asked.

The sound of Delsin's voice made her jump. "We're going hunting," he said. He looked at Colton. "Are you ready?" Colton gave one nod and that was all it took. They all joined as one and crept slowly into the woods fully armed.

"Don't forget that this is a test," Colton reminded. Violet nodded and watched as they disappeared into the dark trees.

What exactly were they hunting for? Violet stood there alone in the dark feeling slightly scared. She didn't want to go back in the van since it was already too stuffy, so she remained exposed to the outside world. Crickets were heard as the wind blew softly. Where exactly was she? They left early in the afternoon and drove pretty far, but the stars were awake now. Lost in thought, Violet sat against the van and waited. It felt like a million years had passed, but everything was still silent. Waiting and waiting for nothing at all. She had no idea why hunting would take so long. Her heavy eyelids took control as she fell asleep once again.

A sharp pain caused her to wake up, but her eyes remained closed. Someone was hurting her. She tried not to scream when the pain in her neck increased. She was desperate to yell for help but she knew it was a bad idea. The person had a strong hold of her and her body was paralyzed.

"What are you doing here? Get the hell off her." a voice said. She felt something warm slither up her neck and then disappear. Violet finally opened her eyes while wincing at the stinging sensation. A strange boy. Her eyes darted to the right. Colton.

The unfamiliar boy had red on his lips and her left arm was dripping with blood. The stranger grinned and licked his lips. She saw a glimpse of sharp teeth that were similar to Riley's. His hair was so blonde that it appeared almost white. "I didn't even get five minutes into it," he complained with laughter. He gazed at her with his deep blue eyes.

Colton glared at him. "We're not here to fight. Leave, Vic."

The boy chuckled and wiped his mouth. "Why would we drive all the way here just to say hi? You knew we would eventually find you." He looked at Violet. "And to think you've joined with a human. Have you gotten that desperate?"

"Stop," Colton demanded.

"Ah, that's right. You needed a replacement for Ace didn't you? She made the right choice in joining us." The boy seemed to be enjoying this. His eyes suddenly pierced into her own as he swiftly opened his mouth revealing sharp teeth. Violet flinched back while covering her neck wound.

"Victor..." Colton snarled. He pulled out his gun.

"That's cruel, Colton. You didn't tell her, did you?" Victor flashed his teeth at Violet and she saw his glowing eyes move down to her neck. "You do know that Colton is just like me right?" He smirked at her visible fear. "You're obviously still unaware. Hell, you probably think this is a joke."

Colton didn't want another word out of Victor's mouth. He pointed and shot the boy. The bullet zipped through the air and disappeared. Violet looked in horror as Victor unfolded his palm revealing the silver bullet. "Bad aiming."

"Victor, let's stop. They don't have her so let's just go," a familiar blonde stepped out from behind the van.

There were multiple noises and whispering heard from behind the van. "Ace is right. We don't have time to waste." A blue haired girl appeared. Other strangers formed beside her until there was a massive group.

Victor sighed and faced Colton. "We'll do this next time. I hope you enjoy explaining to her what's really going on." He joined his group and they began to walk away.

Ace turned back for a moment. "I'm keeping my promise but today's an exception. Next time, I'll make sure you regret all of it." There was a long pause before her feet started moving again.

She was about four feet away before someone called her name. "Ace!"

Violet spotted Aiden running towards them.

They all knew that Ace had heard him, but she continued walking away. Violet wondered why Ace ignored him, but the loss of blood and pain blocked out any further thoughts. Her hands were shaking in fear as her neck continued to drip with blood. Her body felt colder and colder as more blood was released. The last thing she heard was the sound of three pairs of footsteps running closer and Colton calling her name. She tried to fight the urge to shut her eyes, but it was too strong to resist. Violet felt like she was about to die.