Hunting Tess Read online

  Hunting Tess

  Kathryn Summers

  Contents

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 1

  HER

  This was a bad idea.

  My legs dangle from the bar stool, moving frequently in something akin to a nervous twitch. I trace the faces of those enjoying a pleasant evening around me and hope my overtaxed brain can relax enough to do the same. Already scouting out all possible exits, out of a habit formed years earlier, I feel the condensation from my water slide down the smooth glass and force myself to breathe deeply. Going on a date is not the end of the world.

  The restaurant is one of many in the Boulder area catering to the college crowd, vying for the business of the sleep-deprived and youthful bravado. The Blue Heron must be doing well if the crammed Saturday night is any indicator. The faintest taste of iron touches my tongue and I realize my lower lip was once again the victim of my stress. Nathan suggested the unfamiliar place which is outside the comfortable five-mile radius I set for myself.

  He seems nice enough, and as long as he obeys the rules I set for him before agreeing to this date, there shouldn’t be an issue. Though I can’t see it through the mass of people bustling in every which way, I can almost feel my car parked where a hasty retreat can be made if needed.

  A blond surfer cut bobbles into view just before Nathan arrives at the table, his weight titling the dangerously wobbly slab as he sits. “Hey Samantha! I’m glad you made it!” he exclaims, shrugging out of his jacket before realizing there’s no place to put it.

  Lowering my head, I wait for him to figure out the minor issue without an audience. First dates come with a plethora of emotions and it’s probably too early for embarrassment to be introduced.

  “Yeah, parking wasn’t too bad which is nice.”

  Beaming a full smile, the most I can reciprocate is a modest half smile that I’m afraid is more of a grimace. Thankfully even with a busy night the staff moves quickly.

  “What can I get for you?” the waitress asks, her messy bun shifting ever so slightly with every shake of her head. My stomach growls loudly in response since I’ve had hardly anything all day, but it looks like the raging geyser was drowned out by the lively atmosphere.

  “Looking for someone?” Nathan asks after we order.

  “What?”

  He chuckles before calling to light my ingrained habit. “I’m pretty sure that’s the third time you’ve surveyed the room. If this doesn’t go as well as I hope it does, I promise you won’t have to sneak through the bathroom window to escape. Besides, the front door will be easier to get through.”

  “Been in the ladies’ restroom recently?” I laugh, already having surveyed the high horizontal window in the room on my arrival. While it is perfectly feasible to slip through on my stomach, I’m not sure my white gauzy shirt would survive the trip.

  Nathan does a remarkable job of keeping the conversation moving, his easy manner a noticeable quality that has several of the girls in our shared class swooning.

  “Dache sure knows when to pump up the pressure,” he says between a bite of smothered curly fries. “I saw Emily crossing the quad while mouthing counts. I almost thought she would break into her dance.”

  “If she had would you have joined?”

  “Nah. I’m pretty sure she would object to my contemporary style lifting her tap off the ground. It would throw off her rhythm and give me nothing but a metal sole shoe to my shin.”

  I grin thinking of petite Emily causing anyone bodily harm, least of all Nathan. She swore she didn’t mind me going out with him, and honestly the only reason I agreed was to get him off my back. After dropping hints all semester, it would be better to get it over with and have him come to the realization I’m too closed off for a relationship. That way he can move on to someone, like Emily, and I can go back to my plan of early graduation.

  “Well, Dache is narrowing down his selection for his showcase,” I say, taking a sip of ice water. “He is looking for the best.”

  “Which would be you,” Nathan flirts with a half-smile to which I roll my eyes. “Seriously though, you’re the best dancer in class. It’s the reason people want to partner with you all the time.”

  “You mean avoid me.”

  “It’s a double-edged sword,” he admits, tilting his head back and forth as if debating some grand topic. “Whatever project you work on is always the best, but on the downside, it means whoever in on stage is being compared to you.”

  The greatest factor he intentionally overlooks is a spoiled narcissistic red-head who has the male population wrapped around her finger while the female population quivers in fear of becoming a social outcast with a mere word. That’s why I’m often left partnerless.

  Working toward a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Dance was a no brainer. It holds the most appeal even if it is . . . close . . . to my old life.

  Desperately wishing to relax, I know I can’t. Not in a public area.

  And then I’m reminded why.

  The smell is what hits me first. Not decay like you would expect, but a sweetness. Sickly sweet.

  The palms of my hands don’t start to sweat like they would have three years ago. I know how to handle these monsters now.

  It doesn’t take long for two males to find my table, blocking the front door and the majority of other patrons from view.

  “You’re looking well,” the older one leers. Dmitri. A flood of emotions threatens to pull me back into the past, fighting to make sure I don’t escape this time.

  My eyes leap from Dmitri to his brother Viktor before landing on Nathan, whittling down scenarios until reaching the one that has the best possibility of getting us out alive.

  “Rule number one,” I instruct calmly, keeping my voice low and reassuring. There is no way these two killers will let Nathan go unmolested. The safest place for him now is with me.

  Taking everything with minimal confusion considering the strange turn of events our date has taken, he starts to stand before a hand clasps his shoulder holding him in place.

  “There’s no need for your boyfriend to go so soon,” Dmitri purrs, applying enough pressure to make Nathan wince.

  “Aren’t there rules or something about your kind causing a scene?” I ask casually while slipping on my jacket. Racking my mind on what I know about their rules, I’m sure one of them entails staying under the radar. Otherwise their existence would be more than myth and people wouldn’t be so careless. But if there isn’t such a rule, it’s a good idea to move where less innocent people will get hurt.

  “Are you willing to take the chance?”

  “Why do you think I’m putting on my jacket? It’s not because I’m cold.”

  Taking Nathan’s arm out from Dmitri’s grip, I tug him to my side as we snake around the occupants unaware of the possible bloodbath about to go down. The parking lot shares its space with several other establishments making it difficult to stab these monsters through the heart without getting the cops called on me.

  Handing Nathan my car keys, or rather forcefully shoving them into his hands, I tell him to get in the passenger side and lock the doors behind him.

  Viktor moves to intercept Nathan when I shove my hand against the creature’s chest. “Didn’t anyone
tell you that stalking is rude.”

  Gauging the parking lot, my stomach plummets when several others take interest in the exchange happening. But not so much of a ‘let’s break up this fight’ interest as ‘this is the girl we came for’.

  “Yes, the same ones who said life is fair,” Viktor sneers. “See how well that worked out?”

  I wait exactly three seconds before punching him in the face. Dmitri moves to put me in a choke hold so I duck under his arms and knee him in the groin. Leaping over my car I use the privately designed finger print setting on the handle to jump inside. Slamming the door behind me, I push a little red button saved for emergencies such as these.

  Metal shifts like a lock clinking into place just as the Dmitri rams into Nathan’s window. The specialized glass paid off. I’ll have to thank my parents.

  Revving the engine to life, I hit the gas and both Nathan and I hit the back of our seats. Quickly glancing over I make sure Nathan is wearing his seat belt. Just in case. Viktor jumps in front of the car, probably hoping to slow us down since I can’t veer around him without scraping against other parked cars. The only logical step, in my mind, is to speed up.

  Grinning when he goes rolling over the windshield, I realize I probably look insane and might still get the cops called.

  “Who was that? What is going on?” Nathan asks panicked. Though to be fair I did just run a something over with my car.

  “Rule number two,” is all I say. Ten minutes. He has to give me ten minutes before I respond to his questions, which I’m sure are plentiful and ones I wish I did not have to answer. But I made the choice to go out. He will, unfortunately, deal with those consequences.

  “Call Leo,” I instruct the car.

  I would much rather keep this conversation as private as possible, but with the enemy hot on my tail I need both hands free in case I need to punch through a window.

  My heart hammers through my chest from the short scuffle and I tightly clench the steering wheel to keep from bouncing in my seat. I’m sure there will be plenty of opportunity to burn off this excess energy. After the third ring Leo picks up.

  “What’s up, Samantha?” he asks, someone laughing in the background.

  “There are eight in pursuit and I’m bringing them to you.”

  Any humor in his voice vanishes. “How close?”

  Checking the rearview mirror, I expect to see bodies leaping from the darkness to attack my car. It takes half an hour to reach his secluded home buried in the foothills. “Fifteen minutes.” My foot hits the gas as I merge onto the freeway, bypassing a slow white minivan with a blue light glowing from within, highlighting the face of a child watching something on a tablet.

  “We’ll be ready,” Leo says before a click ends the call.

  Though one of Leo’s expertise lies in obtaining special weapons, it is not the main reason I’m bringing at least eight angry monsters to his front door. His home, as opposed to my apartment, will be well-fortified with silver and other artilleries. I’m lucky to have met him, and it doesn’t hurt that he has two older brothers with a very special skillset.

  The car amplifies the ring from the next call I make.

  “Tess, honey, what a nice surprise! We weren’t expecting a call for another couple of days.” The sound of my mother’s voice nearly brings me to tears and I wish I was home curled up on the couch with her instead of driving in the night.

  I feel Nathan’s eyes burning into me with angry, unspoken questions. For the last three years I have been going by Samantha Wigg since Tess Addams is supposed to be dead, but now my cover is blown.

  “You and dad need to leave.” My throat tightens as I say the words and I wish for the umpteenth time they had moved after I left. It would have been harder to track them down.

  “You sound funny. Are you okay?” my mom asks in her comforting voice before calling for my father whose lumbering steps come through clearer the closer he gets.

  “Who is it?” I hear him ask before my mother answers.

  “Alright honey, what’s wrong?” she questions, her voice sounding more metallic letting me know I’m on speaker phone.

  Licking my lips to moisten them, I wish I had either drank more water at the restaurant or had the foresight to put my water bottle in the car. “They found me. It isn’t safe for you two there. Maybe go to the mountains for a little while.”

  “We will do no such thing,” my father’s voice rumbles and I can imagine the stubborn look on his face. “Addams do not run from oncoming danger. We face it.”

  “But—”

  “Your case was different. Are you coming home?”

  “Tomorrow,” I breathe out in acceptance. Guilt of running has gnawed at me off and on over the years, and while I have been vigilant about staying hidden in Boulder, I must admit it has been nice taking a break from constantly battling evil. But all vacations must come to an end. “There’s something I need to take care of first.”

  “Good. Stay smart and alert.”

  “Keep the doors locked.”

  “We always do.”

  After getting off the phone I see Nathan itching to get in a word before anything else distracts me. So, like the well-adjusted adult I am, I made another call.

  “Tess, I was just about to call—”

  “There’s a problem,” I start to explain before a heavy sigh comes through the speakers, that one sigh telling me Eliza already knows what I am about to say.

  “They found you,” Eliza whispers, and it isn’t hard to imagine the tears forming in my best friends’ eyes.

  “I just don’t understand how—”

  “Sam is dead.”

  It’s as if the air is sucked from the car and my head feels light. A faint buzzing starts ringing somewhere in the back of my head and my body goes on autopilot.

  “I’m so sorry Tess,” she chokes, her voice breaking. “He didn’t want our protection anymore and I can’t blame him. He’s been looking over his shoulder for three years. Three years! That’s too long for anyone to be followed around even if we were friends. He wanted to move on with his life.”

  My mind races through memories of my time at Hillbrook Academy. The private school was weighted with expectations for someone like me, but Sam was normal. He and I were always paired up as dancing partners, and though we never went further than friendship I definitely had a special place for him in my heart. He is the one who helped me escape from Dmitri and Viktor, escape from those trying to get rid of me.

  I begged him to let Eliza and Ben watch out for him. He and Ben became roommates at Utah State, because Dmitri and Viktor would never confront Eliza and Ben. They are too strong. But they could get to Sam. And they did.

  “Where?”

  “His body washed up from the river yesterday. Ben had a warning, but he was too late.” Even now I can picture one of Ben’s ancestors appearing, warning him of the murder about to be committed. His ancestors, though many times only materializing to deliver a message, also have a proactive streak involving drums, mysterious wind appearing from nowhere, and the ability to scare the heebie-jeebies out of anyone in a very physical way.

  I’ll need to send flowers to Sam’s mother. It’s the only thing I can do.

  “But where are you?” Eliza demands, returning to the problem at hand. “Are you okay? Ben and I should be there in about two hours. Stay inside until we get there.”

  “You’ve been driving for six hours? And it’ll be fine. The situation is being dealt with,” I say, trying to shake off the melancholy before a deafening thud rams into the passenger side door nearly sending us careening into oncoming traffic. Sharply swerving to avoid a rather nasty incident, my head lights catch the tail end of a figure as it darts back into the cover of thick trees.

  “Drive faster, Ben,” I hear Eliza’s muted voice say before the phone returns to her ear. “We’ll meet you at your apartment.”

  “I was out when we were ambushed.” My eyes flicker to a silent Nathan who looks p
ale even in the darkness. “Yes, there is someone with me, no, you do not need to come. I’ll be fine.”

  Fervent whispers come through the speakers but even with my heightened hearing I can’t make out all the words.

  “We haven’t driven all this way just to turn back. Stay safe and we’ll see you soon.” The phone cuts off before I have any chance to persuade the two that I’ll be as safe as possible before Nathan explodes.

  “Ten minutes is up,” Nathan gushes so quickly I can’t help but think he may have skipped one or two words. “Who were those men where are we going how did you learn to punch like that and why—”

  “First of all,” I interject, much to his frustration. “This is a long and complicated story. Once you hear it you cannot unhear it. Are you sure you want to know? Because this isn’t something you can safely walk away from.”

  Spending all of half a second making his decision, I worry he didn’t take enough time weighing the risks.

  Taking the next rarely used off-ramp, I slow my speed only enough to safely make a left turn. My body yanks against the seat belt cutting into my stomach and I hear Nathan smack into the window. Increasing my speed once more, I search the surrounding trees for any more nasty surprises running in the night.

  “You know I went to a private school growing up,” I start. “What you don’t know is that this school taught not only prodigies in the Arts, but kids with . . . abnormal talents. Some of those kids fought to keep the peace while others tried to destroy it. It’s the classic good versus evil.”

  A disbelieving scoff from the passenger side clams my lips and I find it easier to simply not talk. If he doesn’t believe this, the simplest part of the story, there is no way he’ll take anything else seriously. After a moment of awkward silence, I hear him attempt to clear his throat. The grating resonance louder with my heightened senses.

  “Who were those men?” Nathan tries again, keeping the sass in check.

  Placated enough, and knowing there won’t be much time for talk once we arrive at Leo’s, I continue, “The ones sent to tip the balance to evil. They arrived my final year, brought in from Europe, to break apart the group who fought for the light.”