Kora was annoyed. She had just been cursed at for not driving properly. It was just a red light, for God’s sake. Besides, there were no cars coming her way, so what was wrong about that?
She turned up the volume of her radio, pressed on the accelerator. It was already dark, so there were hardly any cars on the road. She had just come out for fresh air-the other guys were busy with whatever they had going on, so she had been left alone.
She noticed something wasn’t right when she passed the house around the bend. She glanced up the tree, and saw a dark figure on one of the upper branches. It was a man, judging from the wide frame and muscles. He was standing there, looking into the window, at whatever that was there, whatever that interested him. He didn’t even move an inch when she drove past.
Kora slowed the car to a stop, parked it just in front of the next house so it wasn’t that obvious. She stuffed her pockets with two knives, and holstered the pistol Jacque had given her. That man looked dangerous- a little too dangerous. What if he harmed whoever that was in that house?
Kora wasn’t the kind who would actually help someone instantly, but this, this seemed different. There was something about the man, something inhuman about him.
There was a feeling in her gut that told her he was probably one of those beasts like Jared, but she told herself that she was being paranoid. That man could probably be a normal human being-a weird one, perhaps. But she had to be armed and ready, just in case.
###
He heard something approaching, something with these lights and round things underneath. He ignored it-that didn’t bother him. All he wanted right now was to feel her blood down his throat, feel the warmth of her skin as he bit into her. He smiled to himself, his eyes still on her sleeping body. Now was the time.
He leapt forward from where he was, and reached for the window ledge. He was so hungry, so hungry. He could see her there, looking so peaceful, so beautiful. But today wasn’t her lucky day. She was his prey, and she wasn’t going to get away alive.
He let out a mighty roar, and crashed through the window, waking the girl up instantly. She let out a piercing scream when she saw his flaming yellow eyes and his distorted face. His jaws filled with razor sharp canines opened wide as he sprang towards her.
Oh God, it wasn’t a nightmare. This was real. Those were the only thoughts whizzing around in her head as he bent down, and buried his teeth deep into her flesh.
###
Holy sh-! What was he doing?
Kora clambered up the tree, scraping her arms and legs. What was that man doing to the girl? She had seen the way he leapt through the window, as if nothing was there, heard the inhuman roar…
“Step away from the girl!” Kora held the pistol in front of her, aiming it at the man. He looked up, and grinned, blood trickling down his chin.
“And what makes you think I’d do that?” he spoke with a slight hiss. His bright yellow eyes glowed challengingly at her.
“I said, step away. You don’t want me to do this,” her finger tightened at the trigger.
“Shoot me, I don’t give a damn,” he jeered, and then bent down to take another taste. The girl was screaming and jerking violently. Her wounds were bad, and she was bleeding profusely. “Go on, shoot me,” he mocked.
Kora pulled the trigger. The bullet caught the man right in the chest, just below his heart. He fell back against the wall, grasping the bullet wound. He was still grinning insanely.
Kora shot him again, and again, until he was on the ground, bleeding from the multiple gunshot wounds. When she pulled the trigger for the tenth time, he closed his eyes, and stopped moving.
Kora didn’t bother to check if he was dead or alive. She rushed to the girl, clasped a hand over the bite wound, trying to stop the bleeding. All of a sudden, the door burst open, and a woman ran in.
“Oh, my God!” she cried when she saw the unmoving man on the floor, and then her bleeding daughter. “What happened?” her eyes fixed on Kora.
“Call the ambulance,” Kora said to her. Her eyes moved over to the unconscious man, or whatever he was. "I'll take care of the rest."
“What do you mean you found another?” Jacque asked through the phone. “How sure are you?”
“I am sure,” Kora said. “I have him in the boot of my car.”
“You what? How did you find him?”
“By accident,” she shrugged. “He was feeding on a young girl, but I shot him before he could kill her. I shot him ten times until he was down, Jacque. That doesn’t seem human to me.”
“What do you mean feeding? And you managed to just take his body away? Wait, the man is dead, isn’t he?”
“I didn’t manage to,” she said slowly. “And you’ll find out for yourself.”
“What did you do, Kora? We can’t get the police involved in this. If they find out-”
“Exactly,” Kora said. “That’s why I stole it from them.”
###
“You were the guy who fell seventy floors down?” I asked Bane. “I can’t believe you’re still in one piece.”
“I couldn’t believe it too, but here I am,” Bane spread out his arms. “Guess I just have to accept reality.”
“I’m sorry, Bane. And I hope you understand what I’d just told you. About us,” I said, patting his veined hand.
“I get it,” he nodded. “I knew something was wrong the moment I started killing people and not remembering a damn thing about it. Hey, Jared,” he looked me in the eye. “Do you know what is actually happening to us, or why are we acting this way?”
“No,” I shook my head. “Guess it’s just meant to be.”
Bane sighed. “I…I just want a clear explanation, that’s all. I mean, I get it. They want to kill us because we are causing harm to them, because they don’t want to live in fear. But really, what on earth is going on?”
“I really don’t know, Bane. That’s all I’ve got.”
“I’m really curious, Jared. If we aren’t humans, what exactly are we?”
“I really don’t know, man,” I said again. My mind was wandering away. And all of a sudden, I glanced down at my watch. Oh, God no. It had been 24 hours since I had had that dream. Which meant…
“Oh, sh-,”I cursed, and banged a fist against the wall. The wall crumbled a little under the impact. A single stone fell to the floor at my feet.
“What’s wrong, Jared?” my mother asked, a worried look on her face.
“I failed, mum! I failed!” I cried, feeling a sense of guilt washing over me. “I failed to save an innocent person’s life. Somebody died when I could have done something.”
“What are you talking about?” she asked, a hand on my shoulder. Bane was studying me cautiously.
“Somebody died tonight, and it’s all my fault. If only I had done something…Anything…”
I buried my face in my hands, and sank to the floor.
If only I had done something…
YOU ARE READING
HUNT, OR BE HUNTED
Mystery / ThrillerHe was always blacking out, always confused, losing control of his actions. And when he did, he would have no memory of it. What he didn't know was that there was a monster inside him, a monster that he couldn't control. Once it took over, not a sin...
