The Hunted

Chapter 12

A/N: I apologize for the delay in getting this chapter out to you.  We had a death in the family and as a result, I forgot to forward the chapter to my beta.  As soon as I did, she whipped through it and got it back to me asap, so huge thanks to gatorgrl91 and GiGi Scott as well.

I'm looking at about 3 more regular chapters and then an epilogue, so we're almost at the end.  Thanks so much for reading and reviewing.

.....

Edward pushed the Bentley as fast as it would go, but it still seemed as if we'd never reach Jensen's place.  Alice hadn't seen any decisions from Jensen which led me to believe he was either unconscious or dead, and I prayed he wasn't dead.  

It took us twenty-nine hours to get to Star City, Arkansas, and both Alice and I let out sighs of relief once we passed the city limits sign.  Ten minutes later, we were driving down a dirt road that led to Jensen's house and junkyard, and I could smell blood the closer we got.  Immediately, I shielded Alice, Jasper, and myself.  I didn't shield Edward because I knew he could handle the smell of blood, plus he would need to be able to hear any thoughts.  The last thing I wanted was for one of us to go ape shit when we'd come down here to help Jensen.

Edward threw the car into park in front of Jensen's house, and we all climbed out, calling Jensen's name.  I could hear a faint heartbeat coming from the back of the junkyard, and the four of us took off toward it after Edward grabbed an old medical bag from the trunk of his car.  I didn't even question why Edward had a medical bag with him, but Alice did.  He told her he'd taken to carry it when he'd started following and hanging out with me.  Since humans were fragile, all you know

We leapt over rusted cars and around car parts that seemed to be scattered throughout the junkyard until we finally reached Jensen, and I came to a skidded halt.  Jensen's body was lying on the ground, blood caked and dried upon his skin and clothes.  I could just barely make out his breathing, and a sob welled up in my throat.  Alice reached out and clasped my hand in hers, murmuring that Jensen was going to be just fine.  It sure as fuck didn't look like it from where I was standing.

Edward, medical bag in hand, knelt down next to Jensen and began to exam him.  Carefully, Edward rolled Jensen onto his back, and I let out a gasp at the damage I saw.  Jensen's face was beaten, bloodied, and bruised, swollen to twice its normal size.  His orange vest was ripped in multiple places as were the rest of his clothes.  Samuel had done one hell of a number on him.

"I need to get him inside, so I can assess his wounds," Edward told us, standing up with Jensen cradled carefully in his arms.  "Bella, can you grab my bag?"

I nodded and picked it up before following Edward back to the house.  As we got closer, it was evident that a struggle had taken place.  The front door was off its hinges, and the rocking chair had been smashed.  The inside was even worse.  Furniture was overturned, stuffing had been ripped out of the cushions onthe couch, and there was glass all over.  It looked as if someone had been looking for something.

"Where's his room?" Edward asked, and I pointed toward the stairs before leading him up.  I looked back to see if Alice and Jasper were coming, but Alice told me to go ahead.

"We'll start cleaning up this mess," she told me in a sad voice.  "You and Edward take care of Jensen."

Once we were in Jensen's room, Edward laid him on the bed and began to remove Jensen's vest and shirt to get a better look at the wounds.  There were several deep gashes on Jensen's torso, and it was obvious he'd been stabbed.  Out of habit, I took a deep breath and steadied myself. The wounds were serious, and I knew Edward would need to be focused in order to help Jensen.