Hunters

ten

“Are you okay?” I couldn’t keep the laughter from coming through in my voice.

“So you find my pain amusing?” He moved forward and I watched him, a smile stretching across my face.

“Yes, at least I do when you walk into furniture.”

He leaned over me and I could see the smile he was trying to repress as he brought his face closer to mine. He moved into my personal space and planted a kiss on my cheek.

“Can I leave today? I hate being in this hospital.”

“You’ll have to ask the doctor. They’re all worried that you’ll hurt yourself like you did during that memory.”

His expression darkened at the mention of what I’d seen the day before. I placed my hand on his shoulder and smiled at him to soothe his temper. The door opened and a nurse came in to check the monitors and whether or not I needed anything. She moved quietly about the room, only pausing for a second at the sight of Nick in the room, but seemed to remember how I’d attacked myself and quickly went back to her job.

“Can I go home?” I asked the nurse and she looked over at me.

I caught the subtle shake of her head and frowned, wondering why she wasn’t talking since it’s not like it’d bother anybody. Nick was watching her in confusion too and only when the moonlight hit the side of her face did we both gasp.

“Are you okay Willow?”

I stared at Danielle’s face, blinking rapidly, not truly believing what my eyes were telling my brain they saw. She looked genuinely concerned and I had to marvel at her acting skills; this woman should get a Grammy for her show that she’s kept up for the greater part of fifteen years. I scooted closer to Nick, who was glaring at the woman, but too shocked to see her in here to do anything.

“Stay away from me.”

Hurt flickered over her face and I felt guilty for a second before I remembered her words from the memory. I gripped Nick’s forearm and flinched when she tried to reach out to me. Her face was shocked, but there was anger glimmering in her eyes.

“How is it possible that you remember? You were less than a year old! It’s not like there were any scars to make you question anything.”

“I remember.” My eyes narrowed and she glared at me. “Looks like you have to wait a few weeks though, since you promised that it’d be when I could fight back.”

“You can fight with a broken leg. Now get up and let me kill you.”

Nick shot to his feet from his position on the bed and stalked around to Danielle. “Over my dead body will I let you lay a finger on her.”

“That can be arranged.”

A knife glinted in the semi darkness and I threw myself off the bed, landing on Danielle’s back and driving her into the wall. I was able to quickly disarm her of the knife, but couldn’t search for other weapons before Nick pulled me away from her. Which was why it didn’t surprise me when a smaller knife was sliced over my stomach.

Nick dropped me when I struggled to get out of his grip and I knocked Danielle’s arm aside, blocking her attack for my chest. My bad leg lagged behind me, but I was still able to jump forward, surging into her personal space. The knife in her hand slid into my chest, just missing my heart. I gasped in pain, but refocused on Danielle. Her first knife was still gripped in my right hand and I drove it between her ribs, straight into her heart.

She sputtered in pain and shock, her wide eyes staring down at me. “How the hell did you learn to fight?”

“That’s what happens when you’re a hunter. I had to learn to fight or I would’ve died.”