Hello, so sorry for the long wait. I had wanted to get this finished by the end of the summer and have an essay plan and chapter drafts all ready, but just like people's bones and hearts, computers break and I had to get it fixed.
Stay tuned for more and see you at the end.
Eric POV
With only thoughts of Lia and getting the fuck out of here, I reloaded my gun closely followed by Grayson who had quickly barricaded the door.
'It won't hold them for much longer, we better move fast.'
We both sprinted down the black and dingy corridor, illuminated by a dull yellow light. The ferocious screaming and growling from behind the door was growing closer and was now accompanied by the sound of the door being kicked down.
Dashing around the corner, there was another long corridor that ended in darkness. Using my advanced eyesight, i zeroed in on the rusty ladders attached to the wall.
'Exit. 80 metres ahead.' I barked. Pushing ourselves, my own calves burning, not with the exhaustion but the adrenaline, we moved towards the ladders.
I let Grayson go first as I kept my gun pointing to the end of the corridor waiting for them.
The door flew with a clattering bang and the howling and yelling got louder and nearer.
As the first hunter turned round the corner, twisted and deformed, I shot.
Its face blasted off. Second. Third. Fourth. But more kept coming.
'Get up. I'll cover you.' Grayson yelled, as he hung upside down from the sewer entrance, his gun spraying bullets. Without hesitation, I heaved myself up the ladders and out into the LA air, which I would never complain as being dirty ever again.
I turned towards Grayson, getting ready to sprint for it when he snatched a grenade from out of jacket pocket, pulled the safety pin out with his teeth and tossed it down the sewer hole.
'Fire in the hole.'
'Grayson, what the fuck...'
BOOM. Screams of pain and bits of flesh spat out of the hole, as Grayson tackled me to the ground out of the way of the blast. Standing up, slightly shaken at Grayson's crazed tactics, we both sprinted off into the darkness of the alleyways.
Ten minutes, we had walked, along through dark alleyways. Now we had to join the habitats of this famous but dangerous city.
'Now, we've calmed down. You want to tell me what all that was about?'
'What do you mean? You want to talk about the satan-fucking horror road shows that we just escaped from? The ones who are still trying to shoot up our asses?'
'Cut the shit talk. I want to know for what reason, you feel its necessary to engage in warfare in downtown LA. You want the city's finest PD to be hunting us down too?'
'Jesus Christ, Eric,' snapped Grayson, grabbing me sharply by the collar and pulling me into the grafittied doorway of an apartment complex. I snatched his hand and released his grip from my shirt with a menacing force.
'Remove your hands from me. Remember, I am still your beta.' I growled, my eyes turning amber. I may be in Grayson's territory right now, but there was no need for him to treat me like an annoying, pathetic pup. He slowly released his grip, realising slowly that he had pushed too far.
'Now. I ask, not to insult, but to understand why? You're not an idiot, you wouldn't create such a bang unless you thought it was necessary. So what is it?'
Grayson closed his eyes, his shoulders tensing up. As soon as he opened, I saw something I didn't think I'd ever see in his own eyes.
Fear.
'It's not hunt to kill. It's hunt to capture. They work for all sorts of rewards. Money. Black market shit. But the best kind of rewards is capturing somebody that the buyer want dead but don't need no use for them. That leaves them all up for the hunters.'
Grayson growled slightly, his face suddenly becoming more apprehensive.
'The guy I used to run with, before he got captured. I actually found the whole of him, which is not often for those captured by the hunters. His whole body. Except it had been shrunk like one of those Jivaroan heads. Was being used as a pin-cushion by some crazed fucked up lady as part of some voodoo curse on her ex-husband.'
Taking in the demise of Grayson's ex partner in crime, I gaped at him as he shook his head.
'Bunch of rott smelling turds. I'd rather die than be dragged into the fucking holes they crawl out of.'
My phone beeped as I came to terms with Grayson's horrific story about his friend and I realised just how much he despised and feared the low level hunters.
'In car park. Not followed.'
We continued to make our way through the back alley ways and quieter roads, trying our best to avoid detection. My finger pressed onto the trigger of the my gun in my coat jacket, pointing towards the person standing behind the garbage dumpster.
A homeless man appeared, muttering to himself softly from behind.
'Aliens....They said... They said.... Dissect them....They said... Yes, they said.... Bastards in blue and beige....Hate them... Hate them.... Lose your job.... Lost it.... Mogul, they called it.... MOGUL.... MOGUL' the homeless man coughed erratically, his blue crazed eyes piercing in my own, before he lay down on his makeshift bed as he watched us walk on by and out the end of the alley.
'We have maybe fifteen minutes till we get to the motel. Eric, if we just use the rooftops like last time.'
'It's too risky. They'll be watching every escape route possible including the sky.' I said, my phone beeping again with a one word message from Carl.
''Followed''.
'Shit! Rooftops! Go!'' I barked, sprinting towards the wall of a Chinese supermarket. Pressing my foot against the wall, I propelled myself upwards, grabbing the edge of the first level window and continuing to climb up. Meeting Grayson on the rooftop, we made our dash towards the motel and Carl.
Sure enough, the hunters had been watching the rooftops, as bullets started to spray towards us from the left side. Pulling my gun out, and using my ears, I blindly shot towards two of the hunters that were shooting at us.
'One more.' I snapped, the footsteps of the hunter coming closer towards the front of us.
'Mine,' Grayson said, and growling violently leapt towards the oncoming hunter who screamed when Grayson latched his hands round his head and twisted. Snap!
The run down motel became visible soon after, and we both jumped off the rooftop, soaring down to the bottom of the pavement and into the car park.
It was silent. But we could smell blood. We ran towards the motel room and barged open the broken and splintered remains of the door.
'Carl.' I yelled, surprised at the four dead hunters that lay on the floor in the motel room.
'I'm fine. I'm absolutely fine,' Carl called out from the bathroom, coming out to stand in front of us, trying to wipe the blood from his hands.
'Are you hurt?' Grayson asked, looking around the trashed and bloodied room.
'I may have a fractured rib but it has not punctured my lung, praise the Lord,' Carl said with relief and gratefullness. Nevermind. We have to leave now. The hunters are very much like an inconvenient infection that keeps coming back for more.'
Carl bustled past us and wasting no time, we followed.
'Right, you two know these roads better than I do. What route would be best to use to get out of this god forsaken city?' I asked, jumping into the car passenger seat.
'Leave it to me. I'll take the keys, thank you.' Carl said, grabbing the car keys from Grayson's hand and pushing him out of the way of the car driver's seat.
Raising my eyesbrows at him and Grayson swearing loudly and entering the backseat, Carl shook his head at our behaviour.
'I may have taken down six hunters. Yes, six hunters. There was two waiting outside the church for me when you so kindly threw me into the open air like a rag doll and out of the sewer, Grayson. However, I do not think that even my own skills include fighting from a moving car because to answer your question Eric, there is no best route out of here. Whichever road we are going to use, you better be sure there will be something or someone there ready to cause trouble.'
Carl revved the engine like a car drifting mad man and pulled out the car park at a breakneck speed.
'Well at least you proved you can actually drive.' I said, grabbing onto the handle as he hit 50mph on the road.
'God, please encourage the lovely inhabitants of this city to not cross the road while I am driving.'
'Oh, jesus christ.' Grayson spat as he went flying to the right side of the car as Carl swerved left.
'Grayson, I hope you saw the Lord's son and our saviour on the corner of that liquor store otherwise I will not be happy that you broke the second commandment.'
'You are not even affiliated with the Catholic Church, CARL. You are part of a fucking brotherhood that didn't like them so why even bother.'
'Do not speak of the brotherhood, Grayson.' Carl commanded like an old teacher.
'Cut the crap the both of you. There's two AKs and a sniper rifle in the back. Get them.'
As Grayson looked for the guns, Carl continued to drive fast towards the highway.
They had been on the highway for half an hour without a hitch when they heard the screeching sound of a car and its engine catching up with them.
'Grayson,' I warned, as he shot through and broke the rear window and began firing towards the van it swerved madly to the side, crashing into another car on the road. I snapped the mag into my gun and pointed out of the window, right as more of them came.
Two motorcyclists and another van that had avoided most of Grayson's bullets and was pulling to the left side of the car, beside Carl. The van door opened, and two grotesque looking hunters, badly scarred, one those skin was almost green looking. They were dressed for war as they jumped from the van and onto the car. Without, missing a beat, Carl took out a gun from his robes and shot one of them right in the face as he attempted to grab the wheel. The other hunter was currently atop of us, without messing around, I aimed the gun to the ceiling and began firing. The thing came flying off the car on my right side and onto the ground like a ragdoll.
The first motorcyclist tried to shoot at out wheel, but I leaned out of the window and grabbed him by the helmet, managing to lift him completely off of the motorcycle which went veering off and crashed. The hunter gargled like a monster and tried to slice my fingers off with a small knife, but I roared and threw him backwards and over the car until he smacked into the van with a crunch and under the wheels.
'Hot damn,' Grayson yelled excitedly. War was his game. The second motorcyclist had overtaken us by a longshot and had skidded around and was now gaining speed right towards, its gun faced right towards Carl. 'Grayson, NOW!!!' I yelled.
Grayson, grabbed the sniper rifle, aimed and fired. It stopped the gunshot, but it didn't stop the motorcycle crashing into the front of the car, its driver ricocheting off onto the window screen, cracking it badly and rolling over the car. The motorcycle was discarded to the side. I kicked the damaged windshield off the car so that Carl could see better.
Our last obstacle was the van, both Grayson and I reloaded while Carl sped up and nearing closer to the exit. We had to be careful to take out the van without taking ourselves out.
'On my count,' I nodded to both Grayson and Carl. '3, 2, 1......' Carl pressed hard on the peddle and pushed us forwards as I pointed my gun at the driver and Grayson pointed his gun at the wheel. We both shot at the same time. The van lost control, swerving dangerously into the side and smacking right into the concrete separating the exit from the highway. It went up and toppled over the 60ft drop, disappearing from sight.
We finally cleared the Los Angeles metropolitan area and the hunters, entering into the comforting no mans land where houses, people and lights decreased.
'Everyone good.' I asked. Grayson nodded, and Carl looked ashenfaced.
'I haven't had that much excitement since my days in Europe.'
I emptied the temporary phone of its battery and sim card and tossed it out of the window.
'Stop here. I need to make a phone call.'
After 15 minutes, Carl stopped at a gas station that had a phone booth inside. Without looking at either one of them, I stormed into the quiet place and straight to the phone. My first person to call should have been Nate, but I needed to hear her voice, after everything, I needed to say sorry. I'd gotten it all wrong and she'd paid the price for it, but as nature calls for it, apparently now was I and it wouldn't end pretty.
Guess I deserved it.
I entered the digits and pressed the phone into my ear. It rang.
And it rang. And it rang.