The Skinwalker Hunter

Chapter 16 - Evan

This girl in the passenger seat of my car was like no other I'd come across. She didn't fit into any cookie-cutter mould humans often came in. Her reactions to the world around her were nothing but unpredictable especially her reactions to me. I pulled the car into a spot out the front of the sports store switching off the engine before glancing over at Mia. Her forehead was leaning against the window as she watched the sky muttering random, unrelated words so quietly she probably thought I wouldn't hear.

"Elephant riding a scooter. Bat. Gnome with a long chin. Love heart. Treble clef." I cleared my throat and she stiffened, seeming to finally notice that the car had stopped. Looking around and glaring at the big yellow lettering above the store entrance she pinned me with that glare of hers that somehow managed to wrinkle her nose. "Please tell me this is the only parking you could find and the real shops are behind that," she thrust her hand towards the store pointing at it and silently threatening violence.

"That's it," I beamed at her swallowing the chuckle trying to escape my throat. "You will need some protective gear and training equipment. Gloves, head guard, maybe a kickboard. If you want you can choose any punching bag you want."

"How about I use you as a punching bag," she grumbled releasing her seatbelt and reefing the door handle as she shoved the door open. I flinched when she slammed it shut as if I was the one feeling the pain she was inflicting on my poor, innocent car. Letting out another deep breath I didn't know I was holding in, I gently clicked my door shut and engaged the alarm.

"The door is this way," I called out to Mia as she was making her escape along the footpath towards the entrance to an arcade. Her pace quickened at the sound of my voice and I didn't hold back my chuckle this time. Trying to catch up at a slow-motion human pace while rushing to get to her before she disappeared into the arcade was frustrating, to say the least. "Mia!" I called out to her and she slipped into the shopping arcade, clearly ignoring me.

The little arcade was crowded with people rummaging through the bargain tables lining both sides. Pushing my way through to the other end I spotted Mia entering a clothing boutique followed closely by a heavyset man with long greasy hair. My teeth clenched shut barely containing a guttural growl threatening to escape. My fists were clenched by my side as I forced my way through the crowd, a chorus of curses and shouts erupting behind me. The boutique she had entered was also full of people. Why were there so many people? It didn't make sense.

Mr greasy hair was standing near a rack of dresses, holding a blue floral sundress up, his gaze locked on something across the room and not the dress. A caramel coloured ponytail swishing back and forth held his attention as he watched Mia make her way to the change rooms, plucking random items from the racks as she did. Leaning one shoulder against the wall I followed Mia's progress to the last change room on the left while Mr greasy hair moved from rack to rack edging closer to the changing rooms.

I could smell the stench of his intentions filling in the air. His mannerisms, his behaviour and his practised movements weren't something I hadn't seen before. Humanity was repetitive when it came to behavioural types and this guy was a shining example of the perverted predator type. His level of perversion was dependent on how long he'd been hunting and how successful he had been. He made his way into the change room, the dress still in his hand as he blended in with the other men passing clothes over the stall doors to their partners. I decided that this perverted predator was no amateur, he has victims in his last and more in his future unless he was stopped. He was almost at Mia's door by the time I made up my mind as I closed my eyes to the room vibrating around me.

The stench of Mr greasy hair was almost too much for me to handle making me gag at his pungent smell. I took possession and control of his body, now my robot to control. Hanging the dress on the nearest hook, I stripped off all my clothes, the stiffness and gritty feel of them making me cringe. I screamed at the top of his deep scratchy voice until all eyes were on me.

"I am King Arthur and am here to run you all through with my Excalibur!" I looked down to see what weapon Mr greasy hair was wielding and burst out laughing. His d**k was more like a pocket knife than a sword. I rotated my hips until I was swinging his d**k around in circles and thrust my hips at all the men gawking at me in shock. "I slay you! I slay you!" I sang making a stabbing motion as I passed each man in the crowd, with Mr greasy hair's d**k. I avoided harassing the ladies, only blowing, wet slobbery kisses their way. Don't get me wrong, I was willing to do anything to increase the jail time of this creep but I wasn't a complete animal.

I had made it out of the change rooms and bounded over to where the cashier stood, jumping up and smashing the glass counter. Screams erupted and half the people started running for the exit while the other half pulled out their phones. "Run! Run!" I screamed at them waving my arms around like I was trying to fly away. "The floor is lava, you're all going to burn."

I checked to see where Mia was catching her eyes with mine and giving her a wink before screeching siren sounds and pretending I was a firetruck. "No fear, fireman d**k is here," I bellowed grabbing his shaft and aiming at the racks of clothes. Gasps of horror echoed throughout the store and it surprised me that no one had tried to stop me. Usually, there was at least one hero in the crowd. I aimed Mr greasy hair's fire hose and let out a stream of pungent urine. What had this guy been drinking, that reeked? Police sirens outside were getting louder and the show was quickly coming to an end. I searched for a clue for my finale and grinned widely at the lacey panties scattered amongst the broken glass and blood splatter under my bloody feet. Bending down, I snatched a red g string and fashioned it over my face like an eye patch. "Hardy, harrr, harrr!" I bellowed in my best pirate voice. "I am blue balls the pirate and I am here for my treasure." Grabbing one of the bags near the register, I pressed the enter button on the keypad opening the cash drawer with a ding. When I started shoving the money into the bag a set of hands gripped my arms and pulled me backwards. I fell off the counter landing my bare arse on the hard floor scattered with broken glass. The gig was up and Mr greasy hair was being held down by several police officers. I closed my eyes as the world vibrated out of sight opening them to the vibrant clarity my vampire heritage had gifted me.

Police swarmed the store like blue locusts herding witnesses into manageable groups. I stood up and stretched out my arms and legs. Skin walking always left me feeling stiff. My eyes scanned the room until they fell on the amethyst eyes of Mia. Her expression was blank and the colour had drained from her face. Her eyes darted from me to Mr greasy hair as the officers dragged him outside to their car to cart him away, before darting back to me. She looked terrified and I ached to comfort her, fear prickling my mind that her anxiety was about to swallow her whole. I pushed through the crowd letting nothing get in my way and standing in front of her using my large frame to block out the chaos behind me. Her eyes moved slowly up my body lingering on the muscle definition of my chest before studying all the features of my face. She scraped her teeth across the fullness of her bottom lip, stilling the tremble.

"It's okay, Mia," I soothed reaching out for her before quickly dropping my arms back to my side. This was all about Mia and what she needed to feel safe not what I wanted. I wanted her wrapped up safely in my arms, tight against my chest. I wanted to feel her racing heart slowing down as I gave her the security and protection she desperately needed right now. "Breathe in, breathe out." Her eyes met mine swimming with a range of emotions flickering from one to the next too quickly to gauge what they were. I hesitated, unsure of what to do to bring her out of this without pushing her further over the edge.

"That was you," she stated flatly, her voice steady but soft. Not a question. I lowered my chin slightly in agreement. A sob ripped from her throat and she lunged at me forcing me to take a step back, her arms wrapping around my neck as her firm round breasts pressed against my chest. My c**k twitched and started to swell at the feel of her against me. What the hell are you doing. She's under your protection, you i***t. I chastised myself at my reaction and pried her arms off from around my neck encasing her hands in mine and holding them to her chest. She followed my movement with red-rimmed eyes and pinched brows, a flash of pain crossing her features before settling back on my face. "He was going to do something to me, wasn't he?"

I turned to see the officers making their way through the witnesses taking down statements and contact details before moving on to the next. It would be our turn soon and a police report paper trail was not on my agenda. I linked my fingers with hers and pulled her towards the rear of the change rooms to the staff only door, quietly slipping through without being noticed. Boxes of stock were stacked along one wall and we sidestepped a flimsy plastic table piled high with clothes, a stack of coat hangers and a pricing gun. On the far wall, I found what I was looking for sliding the bolt open and heading out into the sunshine. Locating the car straight away, I disarmed the alarm and opened the passenger door. Mia released my hand gliding into her seat without complaint and watching me as I moved around the front of the car and slid in beside her. Flicking the central locking button I turned to face her. She stared back at me her face unreadable but at least she was getting some of the colour back in her cheeks. "Do you need something to eat or drink?"

"I need answers," she replied bluntly and I stifled my laughter before it could escape. Just when I think she's about to crumble, she surprises me by digging her heels in and fighting me at every chance. "No need to censor the gritty details either, I'm not a child you know."

"I know," the vision of her full round breasts and those womanly curves as she stood naked in the hallway flashed across my mind. I tried to shake the image away as the strain of my arousal became uncomfortable against the unforgiving material of my jeans. I shifted in my seat adjusting myself as best as I could without Mia realising what I was doing. "He was a predator and you were his prey. He played a well-practised game and you wouldn't have been his first victim." She sucked in a breath, shock visible across her features. Her expression morphed from one emotion to the next as she worked through what I had said finally landing on a look of fear mixed with something else I couldn't place. "If I hadn't found you when I did after you tried to ditch, he would have dragged you off somewhere to play out his sick perverted plan. He definitely would have r***d you but I'm not certain if he's advanced to murder yet."

She shook her head and shuddered at the image she'd conjured in her mind clearing her throat like it left a bad taste in her mouth and then she smiled. A wide toothy grin lit up her face. "You saved me." Her eyes glistened with tears threatening to fall as her hand touched my cheek. She quickly dropped it again as she gained control and held me, hostage, in those eyes. "And then you stripped off trying to stab people with your legendary King Arthur cock." She started laughing clutching her chest. "And then," she spluttered "you pissed on everyone." Tears rolled down her cheeks "I can't believe you used your d**k as I fire hose."

"It wasn't my d**k," I corrected amazed at the direction this conversation has taken.

She spluttered out another laugh spraying my face with her spittle. "Yes, it was. You were in the body attached to the very p***s you did all those things with." She raised one eyebrow in challenge, daring me to disagree with her assessment. I opened my mouth ready to argue then closed it again deciding she needed the win more than I did. "Huh! You know I'm right," she floated slumping back into her seat. "You still want to go shopping?" She gestured towards the sports store she had run from earlier and my jaw fell open a second time.