Hunter Academy 3: Blood Ties

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Theo smirked as he grabbed one set of car keys off the hooks near the door. “Since this is his task we’re going to take one of his better cars.” I knew which car Theo grabbed the keys for. A flashy red Ford Mustang with a white racing stripe. Theo was in love with the car but Cael didn’t allow others to drive it. The car was Cael's baby.

“Hey, it’s your decision, if Cael gets mad, I’m throwing you under the bus,” I told him as we went to the backyard. Cael had paved it over to accommodate all the cars he owned and lent to the vampires under his care. The cars ranged from average, everyday cars to a few sports cars like the one Theo was hoping into the driver’s seat of. He didn’t waste any time in rolling down the windows and cranked the music up.

I shook my head and got into the passenger seat, barely having buckled my seatbelt when Theo slammed on the pedal. He lazily waved a hand at Cael who had appeared at the back door, watching us drive off in his car.

“I suppose that he’ll be pissed when we get back,” Theo chuckled, his green eyes mischievous. “Guess I’ll have to make the punishment worth it, we’re not going straight back after we’ve delivered the letter.”

“As long as I’m not dragged into it, you can do whatever. I wasn’t the one that decided to that this car. You’d better hope that Cael doesn’t have to leave for anything tonight. We both know how much he hates driving other cars.” Once when the car had been getting fixed it had taken a week to get the parts in and Cael had sulked and refused to leave the house until his baby was all fixed up and ready to go.

“Well then he can have the Honda Civic,” Theo replied. “Not my problem at the moment.” But it would be when he had to deal with the repercussions of taking Cael's car. It was a good thing he had a good relationship with Cael. If anyone else had taken his car they would have been staked the moment they set their hangs on it.

“Which reminds me, you still haven’t told me about your history with Cael,” I complained. Theo sighed. “I don’t even know how you two met.” I had been bugging him for details every so often ever since I had met him a year ago.

“Well I don’t see you being very forthcoming with details of your past,” Theo pointed out. I frowned. “But the only reason we met was because we had a mutual friend, although at the time none of us were really friends. Trust issues and all that.”

“Where’s this friend now?” I asked curiously.

Theo shrugged, already growing tired of the conversation. “Gone.” And that was the end of our conversation of his past. But now I felt obligated to cough up some detail of my past, or at least share something.

“Yeah, I know the feeling. Now that I’m a vampire having contact with anyone from my past life is off the table. My family, my friends,” I told him as I watched the tall buildings fly by at the fast speed Theo was pushing the car to.

“Any girls?” he asked. I could feel his eyes on me and I could tell him trying o figure out if prolonging this conversation was a good idea. “Couldn’t you call or email your friends? Since you can’t leave here to see them?”

“No, they would want to know more and once they know where I am they’ll be on the next flight here. Once they see what I am…let’s just say that it won’t go over well,” I laughed humorlessly. “As for a girl, yes there was one. But she left me a little before I became what I am now.”

“They would know what you are? How is that possible? Do they know about vampires?” Theo inquired choosing not to bring up the subject of girls anymore.

“Yeah, you could say that,” I replied. I cast around for a change of topic. “So, do you know where we’re heading? Have you been there before?”

Theo’s gaze lingered on me for a moment longer before returning to the road. “Yeah I’ve been there before with Cael. And before you ask, yes I know what the letter probably says and no, I will not tell you.”

My eyes narrowed at Theo’s ability to predict what I was about to say. “You don’t know that that was what I would have said,” I protested. Theo rolled his eyes. “Fine then, don’t tell me. Can you tell me why Cael thought it was necessary to send both of us?”

Theo pretended to think about it. “I could…but I’m not going to because I would get into even more trouble than I am already in. I’m not stupid. Sorry but you’re just going to have to deal with it.”

“Okay, well then can you let me out and I’ll find something else to do?” I suggested. Theo shook his head. “Why can’t you? Since there’s no point in me being here or going to this place that I can see.”

Theo chuckled. “Sorry kid, orders are orders. And Cael told you to come with me so he must have a reason for you to be going.” I frowned. “And don’t forget I don’t want to be alone while I’m taking this car for a spin around the city. You can probably persuade me not to do things that’ll make Cael angrier.”

“I don’t know how much help I can be because my advice is to drive back as soon as we deliver the letter and I already know there’s no chance in hell you’ll follow my advice.”

Theo smirked and turned the music even louder. “No chance at all.”

In another few minutes Theo pulled up in front of a boarded up café. The letters in the word café were peeling and the word before it was so faded not even my vampire eyesight could make it out. Graffiti covered wooden board hid  the windows and the door was sloppily painted black.

He handed me the letter. “Just slip in under the door, and knock for good measure.” I took the envelope and shrugged ignoring the rising questions I had about the strangeness of this task. I climbed out of the car and Theo leaned over. “Wait to see if anything gets shoved back to you.”

I nodded. The road was empty so I crossed the road and I crouched down as I slid the envelope under the door. For a moment it was stuck and wouldn’t budge but after a moment the rest went through. I knocked at the door and then waited watching the bottom of the door. From across the road Theo gave me two thumbs up.

Finally a folded slip of paper was passed to me. I took it and Theo gestured for me to come back to the car. I unfolded the paper but couldn’t make sense of the writing. As far as I could tell it was a girl’s handwriting in some other language. I gave the paper to Theo through his window and got in the car.

“What language is that writing in?” I inquired as I put on my seatbelt.

“Italian most likely, Cael's nationality,” Theo answered as he started driving. He sped up as he neared the upcoming intersection. The light was red until just shortly before we reached the intersection. He glanced both ways briefly but once we reached the middle of the intersection a blue truck came barreling towards us ignoring the red light for him and smashed into Theo’s side of the car.

“What-,” was all I could get out before we were hit.

Theo swore right before the impact went through the car. His head slammed into the steering wheel without the protection of an airbag. Cael didn’t believe in airbags since he was a vampire. They wouldn’t do me any good, he had said. The car came to an abrupt halt as Theo stamped on the breaks in his panic.

Theo looked shocked as he turned to look at me and motioned for me to get out of the car. “Go, get out of here.” Blood trickled down his forehead.

I shook my head. “No, I’m not leaving you behind.” We had both come to the conclusion that this wasn’t an accident that the truck had smashed into us. Someone had arranged to make us crash.

Theo looked furious then his eyes widened. He gaped at something out of the passenger window. I turned. A black truck was speeding towards me with no intention of stopping. It was too late for either of us to get away. I watched as the truck came towards me in seemingly slow-motion. Just before the impact I recognized the driver.