Hunter's Heritage (Sterling Hunter Series Book 2)

Chapter Nine

An hour in and Tabitha was already getting bored. She had already switched the station five times in the past ten minutes, and she could tell from Sebastian's pinched expression that it was getting on his nerves. From the way Jonas sulked in the backseat, his eyes on his phone Tabitha could tell the music wasn't helping him either. She frowned and sighed loudly, slumping in her seat.

Sebastian's mouth turned up an amused smile. "What is it Tabitha?"

"I'm bored," she groaned.

"And here we go," Jonas muttered in the back.

Tabitha scowled and turned in her seat. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Jonas finally looked up from his phone. "You always get bored on long car rides. Ever since we were little anyone in the car with you for more than an hour were subjected to your constant whining or endless chattering. Can't you just put on a radio station, leave it there and stare out the window?"

Tabitha didn't care how childish it was; she stuck her tongue out at him. Jonas rolled his eyes and gave her a nasty look right back. She flopped back around, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "No Jonas, I cannot just look out the window. I'm bored and have all this pent-up energy. I feel like I'm going to explode, this is driving me crazy."

Sebastian reached over and took her hand, giving it a squeeze. Tabitha smiled but his touch didn't help her any. "I was planning to drive through the night but maybe we can stop at a hotel instead? So, we can stretch our legs and stuff?"

Both Chelsea and Tabitha said yes while Jonas simultaneously said no. When both girls turned to look at Jonas he scowled. "We don't have time for a hotel stop. This isn't a vacation Tabitha. We're going to New Orleans to track down a killer."

"You sound like Derrick," Tabitha snapped.

"Well maybe you shouldn't have excluded him from this mission."

"If you didn't want to come, you didn't have to," Tabitha shot back, turning back around in her seat.

"Can we just have a quiet drive? If we're going to stop at a hotel tonight I'd like to have a peaceful ride there."

Sebastian snorted. "With Tabitha in the car, that isn't going to happen."

Tabitha shot him a traitorous glare just as her phone rang. The whole car went silent, tension palpable in the air as she tugged her phone from her pocket. She took a deep breath when she saw Derrick's picture on the screen. Time to face up and take her medicine. Sebastian grimaced. "Maybe you shouldn't answer it."

"I have to..." she murmured. Besides, arguing with Derrick would give her something to do.

She clicked the answer button and held the phone to her ear ready for the shouting to begin. Tabitha wasn't disappointed. "Hello?" she squeaked, flinching.

"Tabitha," Derrick's voice sounded like thunder. "Where. Are. You?"

She glanced out the window. "On the highway..."

"You left without me," he growled, his voice low and angry which was almost worse than when he yelled.

"Yeah, but I didn't go alone."

"Oh no, I'm aware. Chelsea, Jonas and Sebastian are with you, aren't they?"

Tabitha nodded even though he couldn't see it. "Yeah..."

"I can't believe you Tabitha. This isn't some kind of joke. This isn't a vacation or something to mess around with. This is life or death. Alistair is dangerous, and you can't face him alone," Derrick said, his voice rising.

Tabitha rolled her eyes, her anger already building. "You don't think I don't know this is life or death? I lost a parent to you know. And I'm not alone. I have backup."

"Two teenagers and a vampire. Yeah, that's some real great backup Tabitha," Derrick snapped.

"At least Jonas can hold his own against a vampire. Sebastian's kicked your butt more than a few times. You would have been a liability."

Derrick sputtered for a minute as if he couldn't think of a bad enough word to express his anger. Tabitha waited and then the words came spilling out. "Turn around right now Tabitha! You turn around and get back here. You're grounded. You're a seventeen-year-old girl, not an experienced hunter. Our parents might not be here anymore, but that doesn't give you the right to do whatever the hell you want. Are you trying to get yourself killed?" This time he was shouting.

"I know what I'm doing! I've been killing vampires for three years, and you aren't the boss of me."

"I am now. We have no parents Tabitha. Do you understand that? Dad is gone. Mom is gone. You're my responsibility now and if anything were to happen to you... I don't know what I would do, so please Tabitha, just come back," his shouting deescalated to a defeated plea.

Tabitha's anger subsided at the desperation in her brother's voice. She frowned, staring straight ahead at the other cars and long stretch of road. She knew she was doing the right thing. This is what needed to be done. What she needed to do to get past her mother's death. Derrick couldn't be a part of it. He would just hold her back, but still, it hurt to hear the pure desperation and pain in her big brother's voice. He had Mckayla and Diana, but they weren't involved in the family business. They lived their own lives, separate from the truth. If anything were to happen to Tabitha... Derrick would be left alone with the weight of the Sterling hunter burden on his shoulders.

She sighed, rubbing her forehead. "I love you, Derrick, and I know you want the best for me. We don't have any parents and...I understand you see me as a kid still, but I'm not. Not anymore. I can take care of myself and I know I can do this. I have to do this Derrick. I'm... sorry..." Before Derrick could say anything else, Tabitha pushed the end call button on her phone and slid it back into her pocket. The whole car remained absolutely silent. When she glanced in the rearview mirror, she saw Jonas' eyes glued to the screen of his phone as if trying to give her some semblance of privacy. Chelsea's expression was pained, and she gave Tabitha's shoulder a reassuring squeeze. Tabitha forced a smile at her as Sebastian took her hand. "You're right Tabitha, we're doing the right thing. We can't have Kyle involved in this."

She nodded, sighing. "I know. I just feel like a sucky sister..."

"You aren't so bad," Sebastian said and when she glanced at him she saw a sly grin on his lips.

Tabitha couldn't help but smile grudgingly backand nudged him with her shoulder. "Let's just hurry up and get there. I don'tknow how much longer I can take in this car."