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“I don’t care what it is. Leave, and tell the other hunters not to come back. The Grove is off limits. If I see you here again, the Vampire of Garnetia will ensure that you die.”
He turned and walked away, and I stood there stupidly like a total idiot. He walked down the sidewalk, rounded a corner, and disappeared from view.
And I was just left there, stuck with the knowledge that he’d killed all of my friends and I didn’t have anyone to warn to stay away.
Perfect.
1.
Kimberly
Five years later
“Trust me,” I slammed my glass down on the bar counter in front of me. “I’ve been hunting since I was five. I’ve got thirty years of experience. Nothing gets past me.”
“Bullshit,” Raven said. She looked at me, narrowing her eyes. Then she downed her own shot. “Stuff gets past you all the time.”
“Like what? Name one thing.”
“What about your surprise party?”
“That wasn’t my fault.”
“What about Hank’s surprise party?”
“Again, not my fault.”
“What about the fact that he was cheating on you?” She said, raising an eyebrow. Yeah, she knew she’d won with that little question.
“Ouch. I didn’t know this was bring-up-painful-memories day.” I closed my eyes for a second, collecting myself. I should have known something like that was coming, but I hadn’t adequately prepared myself.
“I’m sorry,” Raven said. “It’s just that I think you need to be careful.”
“I understand what you’re saying, but I’m close. I’m not backing down this time.”
I’d failed before. I wasn’t going to fail again. I needed to kill the vampire who had slaughtered my friends. Everyone wanted to bag this particular vampire. Everyone. He was big and powerful and strong, but nobody could get close enough to him to slay him. We all knew he lived in the Grove...somewhere. The problem was that the Grove was a big place, and unles
s you had infinite amounts of time and energy to fight your way to the vampire you wanted, you were dead on arrival.
“You’ve been hunting this vampire for a long time,” she agreed. “But at what cost?”
Raven looked at me softly, as though she was worried about hurting my feelings. Luckily for her, Hank had stripped away any feelings I had. He’d taken my heart and crushed it, completely destroying my self-esteem in the process. All that was left was some hollowed-out version of what used to be a human woman. Who was I now?
I certainly wasn’t brave or strong or in-control of myself anymore. I hated what Raven was saying, but she wasn’t exactly wrong, either. I’d screwed up many times, and I’d been brash. That was part of why Hank had left me, if I was being honest.
He wanted some more stable and predictable. Hell, he’d even said that out loud to me.
It’s not that I don’t love you, but I need someone I know is going to be home at dinnertime.
He’d never really understand my need to hunt. The profession had never been something that interested him. He’d been an accountant, and perhaps that was part of what had drawn me to him. I liked the fact that Hank wasn’t competing with me to be the world’s greatest hunter.
He was just...
Well, he was just Hank.
We’d been Hank and Kim, and then we’d been nothing.
“I don’t care what the cost is,” I said carefully. I reached for the new shot the bartender sat in front of me. “I’ll do whatever it takes.”
