BLOOD MOON » Embry Call

18. STARS

   A FEW DAYS had passed.

   None of the patrols had encountered even a hint of the vampire, and they were beginning to doubt the theory that he was after Avery. None of them knew about the pictures.

   Avery was training with Leon and a few younger wolves when Jason entered the gym and motioned for the two to follow him outside. Leon ordered the younger ones to get together in pairs and practice on their own until he returned.

   "What's up?"

   "Marina called. There's been another murder. West. Married couple. Hunters."

   Avery tightened her ponytail and straightened out her posture. "When do we leave?"

   Jason blinked a few times before he placed his hand on her arm. "I'm gonna have to ask you to sit this one out, Ava. Trust me, it's better this way."

   Leon's gaze darted back and forth in between the two, brows knitted together in confusion. Avery brushed the alpha's hand off and crossed her arms in front of her chest, taking a step closer to her friend.

   "Who. Is. It." she asked calmly, and with so much determination in her eyes that Jason sighed in defeat.

   "Aaron and Melanie."

   Leon rested his eyes on the young hunter, searching for any hint of a reaction, but her expression had turned to stone yet again as she swallowed hard and nodded. "Even more of a reason for me to come with you."

   "What if he's trying to lure you out?" — "What if we pretend we didn't consider that option and when he shows up we'll be ready."

   "I like that idea," Leon said with a crooked grin and Avery rolled her eyes, while Jason stared at his beta in anger. The girl broke through the tense silence when she repeated her previous question, enquiring Jason to tell her when they would leave.

   Thus, just an hour later, the duo was back on the road and on the way to Port Orchard. The car ride was spent in awkward silence until Avery opted for turning on the radio, switching through a few stations until she settled on a semi-satisfactory music program.

   When they pulled into the driveway and stopped in front of the open garage, Avery took a deep breath and exited the vehicle. Nothing had changed. There were still the same toolboxes and tools scattered across the floor and various working benches, a few old cars with their hoods opened or propped up on jacks. The intense smell of oil and gasoline, mixed with laque and rusty metal reminded Avery of the days when she would help Aaron out in the repair shop.

   'This'll open doors for ya, kiddo. You know how to fix a car, you can get pretty much anywhere ya want in the world.'

   A nudge at her arm made her snap out of her daze and she regained focus, leading Jason through the garage. Jacob's pile of corrugated iron sheets was nothing in comparison to this—although Avery had to admit it had felt just as homey.

   "How long did you live here?" Jason asked hesitantly as he looked around.

   "Eight years." A sad smile made its way on Avery's face and he was surprised to see her like this, after weeks of putting on a mask. "After the accident my sister and I moved here, I was seven and she was fifteen. Uncle Aaron started instructing her right away, but I think she already knew about hunting before. Aunt Melanie was fully against it, but she knew if the vampire who had killed our parents came back for us eventually, we'd have to know how to protect ourselves."

   Jason followed her into the back of a messy office; Avery ran her hands along one of the car door on the way there, her fingertips barely even touching the faded red laque. "Aaron waited until I turned twelve to start teaching me. Sera had left for college about a year earlier and was only accepting low-profile hunting jobs. When he started slipping away more and more and would always get so angry—" Avery stopped herself before she could get carried away and go too much into detail. "—Sera made a deal with Melanie. They agreed that, officially, I would still be living with them while in reality I was with Sera in her tiny apartment. Once she got her degree in forensics she accepted proper jobs and we went hunting together. That's when we started to move around so much."