Vampire Hunter’s Revenge

Chapter Six

Over the next couple weeks, Zack visited her in the bunker almost every evening, always bearing gifts of food, alcohol, and news of the world upstairs. Adam had not been to visit, though Zack assured her that he'd seen the other man sulking around the inn. Although Eva couldn't be certain why her partner was 'sulking', she felt it was safe to guess it had something to do with how much time she had been spending with the other Hunter. That was a problem he could fix himself, by coming to spend time with her as well, but she wouldn't be the one to tell him that.

When she opened the door to the bunker, she was surprised to see Zack empty handed, with the exception of his go bag slung over his shoulder. "Going somewhere?" she asked, trying to ignore the way her chest constricted at the thought of him moving on to a new adventure.

"Yup, so are you." He walked past her into the bunker, grinning at the look of confusion on her face. "There's a property in West Hollywood that's host to a lot of spirit activity. Feel up to clearing a haunting?"

Eva's confused expression shifted into a grin of her own. "I thought you'd never ask." As Zack made himself comfortable on the couch, the woman went to the bedroom to change into clothes that would be easier to move in. "How did you convince Kristin to let me out of here?" she called over her shoulder as she pulled a pair of tactical pants and a tank top from the dresser drawers.

"It was actually easier than I expected," the man's voice called back from the living room. "I just reminded her that you need to stay sharp."

He wasn't wrong there, and it was a valid argument. It would only be a matter of time before Damian was dead, and she'd return to Hunting full-time. Letting herself get rusty would only end in trouble, for herself as well as anyone else who was with her.

It only took her a few moments to change and redo her hair in a neater ponytail. In the bathroom, she began her usual routine of putting on her crystal jewelry and herbal oils.

"Why do you bother with those if they don't work?" Zack's voice asked from behind her.

Eva glanced up at his reflection in the mirror, but didn't pause in her movements. "They do work. Just only against spirits that don't have a solid form."

The Hunter leaned his shoulder against the doorframe as he watched her curiously. "Then why'd you put them on when we went after vampires?"

This time, Eva glanced over her shoulder at him with a teasing grin. "Didn't your father teach you anything?" Her words were met with an equally playful glare, and she turned her gaze back to the bottle in her hand. "That warehouse is filled with the tortured spirits of the vampires' victims. I put these on to keep those spirits from bothering me, so I could focus all my attention on the vampires."

Zack nodded as the understanding sank in. "That makes a lot of sense..." His brow furrowed slightly as his gut twisted with an unpleasant emotion he didn't want to contemplate. "Funny though... Dad never taught me about those."

"That's not surprising," Eva replied, casting him a reassuring smile. "I didn't learn about these from him. I haven't even seen him since I started using them." There was a touch of sadness in her voice as she was reminded about why she hadn't seen Allen. With a deep breath, she tried to push those thoughts out of her mind, and put away the small bottles of oils.

The man seemed to feel better hearing that his father hadn't taught her something he hadn't taught his own sons, and stepped aside to give her room to move past him when she had finished her routine.

Back in the living room, she grabbed her go bag off the floor by the couch, setting it on the armrest before opening it. Since she hadn't unpacked it since their last trip to the vampire nest, everything she needed for a successful Hunt was still in there. While Eva knew this, she had learned the hard way to always double check. Sometimes, in the heat of the moment, one didn't realize they had emptied a canister of salt or kananga water. That was an oversight that could easily get someone killed.

The Hunter went through the items in the bag, mentally checking off everything she had that was useful against ghosts and other spirits, as well as making sure there was enough supply of each. Zipping the bag shut, she slung it over her shoulder and turned back to Zack. "Ready when you are," she told him, unable to hide the excitement from her smile. It would be nice to get out of this bunker and actually do something worthwhile.

Zack shook his head and pulled a bag out of his jacket pocket, holding it up for her to see the gray powder within that she recognized immediately. "I promised Kristin I'd make you put this on before stepping foot out of this room."

Sighing heavily, she dropped her bag back to the floor with a heavy thunk. As much as she hated the thought, she knew it was a good idea. Damian would know where she was hiding. If he was close, then the moment she was no longer protected by these walls, he'd be able to catch her scent. Eva wasn't ready for that.

"Fine. But you're cleaning up the mess when we get back."

"Gladly," he replied with a smirk.

Grabbing the bag from his hand, she walked to the middle of the room before opening it. It took a few minutes for her to smear the scent blocking mixture all over her body, and she could feel Zack's eyes on her the entire time. What confused her was how she wasn't bothered by it, like she was whenever Adam watched her so intently. Her own gaze remained on what she was doing, making certain there weren't any spots that she had missed. The floor around her feet was coated with the fine gray ash, with specks of it that had drifted several feet away before settling. It was going to be a nightmare to clean up, so she was glad that Zack hadn't argued about doing that part himself.

Her hand passed over the scar on her chest, and she paused as she recalled how she and Damian would always coat each other with the ash whenever Hunting vampires. It was easier to be thorough when someone else did it for you, and it had been their way of protecting each other. Eva's throat tightened and her chest burned, and she quickly sealed the bag and handed it back to Zack. "There. Now can we go?" It was difficult to make her voice louder than a whisper, and it trembled slightly with the question.

Zack's brow furrowed slightly with concern when he noticed the change, but he didn't question her as he accepted the bag and slid it back into his pocket. "Yeah. Now we can go."

Retrieving his own bag from beside the door, he waited for her to pick hers back up off the floor before he opened the door and waited for her to step into the hall first. The long elevator ride was silent, and it took all of Zack's willpower not to wrap an arm around her to hold her against him. He hated seeing her so broken, knowing she was one of the strongest people he'd ever met. Although she'd never told him exactly what Damian had done to her, seeing how it affected her was enough for him to be eager to slide a machete through that vampire's neck. Then, he'd let Eva light the fire.