Immortal Heart

Chapter 9

“Why did you drag me here?” I asked Hunter as I looked up to the pitch black sky, where sparkling diamonds which we called stars are glimmering.

“You told me that you can’t sleep. I thought the night sky may help you.” Hunter replied before he sat beside me on the grass.

I closed my eyes as I felt the night breeze touch my skin. It’s cold, but it’s not freezing. The way how the silent night breeze sway’s satisfying. I looked down to see the lights from the buildings in the city that seems like a reflection of the night sky above.

“I feel like I’ve been here before.” I told him without looking at him.

“You think so?” he asked.

 I can feel him staring at me the whole time. I wasn’t able to fall asleep because I was too embarrassed for asking him to kiss me. Now that he won’t take his eyes off of me, it’s making it even more difficult for me to face him.

“He kissed me.” I said with a sigh. Admitting it feels like I cheated on him, and it feels so wrong.

He was quiet for a few minutes, but he was holding my hand tightly as if telling me not to go. I looked at him, but he was looking at the distance. I don’t know what’s he’s thinking, but I don’t want to ask him either.

“Hunter? Are you mad?” I asked him. He then looked to me and gave me a smile that I can’t recognize.

“I don’t know Raine, I don’t know where I should stand. I can’t just say that you should not see him because I’m jealous and anxious. I can’t make him stay away from you either.” He said before he reached for my face and gently pulled it closer to his. He rested his forehead on mine, and I can clearly hear how he breathe just to calm himself.

“I honestly don’t know what to do and how I should react, Raine. I don’t have the right.” He said, almost whispering the words.

I looked at him directly in the eyes. The expression that he has right now makes my heart tight. His expression is unbearable for me. It pains me. I don’t like him having that look on his face.

I held his face and gently caress it, hoping that my hand could comfort him. I want to give him the right that he needs, but something deep inside of me is stopping me. I want to hold him, but something says that I shouldn’t.

“H-Hunter.” I called out his name. I can feel how heavy his importance to me, even if I just met him. He smiled bitterly at me.

“I know. I can wait.” He said before he gave me a kiss on my forehead.

I wrapped my arms around him, holding on to his shirt as if my life depends on it.

‘Mine!’

I flinched when I heard a voice inside my head. The voice was deep yet shallow, as if it came from the dead.

I looked up to Hunter to see if he heard the voice too, but his eyes were closed while he was holding me. He didn’t hear anything, so where did that voice came from?

‘Mine!’ I heard the voice said again.

I flinched when Hunter suddenly hugged me tight before he jumped while holding me. I looked in the direction where we were earlier and was surprised to see a knife on the ground. Hunter immediately let go of me before he gently shoved me to his back.

“I never expected to find two vampires playing couples on my night rounds.”

I heard a voice behind the bushes before another knife was thrown in our direction. Hunter immediately pulled a small knife behind his back before he grabbed my wrist and pulled me to avoid the knife.

I looked at the knife that Hunter was holding. It was the same knife that dad used back then. I flinched when I heard several footsteps heading our direction.

A man stepped out of the bushes. He has a huge burn to his chin, down to his neck. His wearing an old silver crucifix on his wrist, but I can feel that it has the same material as the knife that he just thrown at us. I looked at him, and I was positive that he was just a mortal, yet his eyes were covered with too much bloodlust that sends shivers down my spine.

“You just got turned, are you?” he asked me with a smug look on his face.

“What are you talking about?” I asked him while I was still behind Hunter’s back.

“Your face says it all. You don’t have any idea what kind of situation you are in, right? You don’t even know what these babies are.” He said while waving his wrist, showing his old silver crucifix.

“I’m not that dumb. I know that you and that thing means trouble. I also know that there are at least fifteen people heading our way.” I replied.

Hunter immediately turned at me and looked at me with a surprise look.

“There are more?” he asked me and I just nod at him.

“I’m impressed. They are at least fifteen meters away from us, and they are one of the best agents that we have. How can you hear them when I can’t even hear a thing except the sound of the night breeze?” he said. I looked at Hunter and he also looked surprised.

“You can’t hear them?” I whispered to him. He just shook his head, looking so clueless of what I’m saying.

‘Push him!’ I heard the voice in my head again.

Upon hearing the voice, my body immediately acted on what it says and pushed Hunter away. I heard a sharp movement between Hunter and me before I heard something hit the tree beside us. I looked at it and I saw a bullet mark on the tree. Someone must have fired it from afar that I didn’t even hear it coming.

“f**k!” I heard Hunter cursed. When I looked closely at the bullet mark, I can immediately feel that the bullet was the same material as the knife. It can harm us.

“Don’t you think you’re getting yourself in trouble here? You don’t know who you’re playing with.” Hunter said as he pulled me by my waist.

“I admit, you’re fast and your girlfriend right there has a very sharp ear for a vampire, but don’t underestimate me or even my people. I’ll make sure I get to take your head off of your body.” He said with a smirk.

“Let’s see you try.” Hunter replied before he pushed me back as he dodges another bullet.

I can hear the footstep closing in on us. One by one, mortals who’s wearing the same old crucifix on the body came out of the bush. Hunter looked in my direction and I know that he’s worried about me.

“I can take care of myself!” I told him. I don’t want to be a burden to him. I need to protect myself.

A man approached me with a knife in his hand. He smiled at me evilly, telling me that he got me, but my body immediately reacted and bended lower than his knees. I saw the surprised look on his face, since he wasn’t expecting it from me. Before he can recover from the shock, I grabbed his hand that’s holding the knife. My sudden movements terrified him, causing him to lose his balance. I immediately grabbed him by his collar, using my other hand as I hear another bullet coming in my direction. Before the bullet can even hit me, I raised him as I shoved his hand that’s holding the knife towards his throat. He took both the bullet from his back and the knife to his throat.

I smirked as his blood drenched the dress that I am wearing. I dropped him lifeless on the ground. He’s dead and his blood was all over the dress that I am wearing, but I didn’t feel the thirst. I’m not panicking either. This feels different from the other times that I saw blood. It felt good. The kill felt good.

I heard another bullet coming my way, but I easily avoided it. I saw Hunter fighting while he was avoiding the bullets at the same time. I am assuming that there are two of them who’s firing at us at the same time.

‘You need to take care of them,’ I heard the voice in my head again.

I didn’t get to ask who he was when another one attacked me with a sword. Unlike the first guy, he’s faster, but not fast enough to hit me. I swiftly moved to his side, then twist his wrist before he can even hit me with his sword. I heard him wailed in pain as I felt the bones of his wrist broke in my hand.

One of his friends heard him and immediately rushed towards us, while the bullets were fast approaching in my direction. While holding the man’s wrist, I dragged him and used him to hit his comrade while also using him as my shield at the same time. Then I threw him towards Hunter’s direction where another enemy’s trying to sneak on his back while he’s occupied.

“Thanks,” he said when he noticed two dead bodies behind him.

“I’ll be back.” I told him before I started running at full speed.

Those two snipers were far from my audio range. I can’t hear them except their bullets that entered my range. Calculating by how fast the bullets fly and from its direction, I can positively know the location of the snipers.

I leaped from one tree to another. Branches to branches at a full speed. I can feel the blood rushing through my veins. It’s making me feel good, and it’s giving me energy that I never thought I had.

I can no longer hear Hunter or the nimrods behind me, neither the bullets. The sniper must’ve lost sight of me. My movements are fast yet quiet, as if I am stepping into thin air in a split second. My feet felt so light and my breathing was steady and calm as if I was trained for situations like this.

I started to hear two people talking together with guns firing and their hands moving. They can’t hear me, and I don’t think they noticed my presence. With one leaped, I grabbed the first one by the back of his cloth and dragged him down, letting him hit the huge branches as we go down. I can hear his bones breaking as the impact of our fall gets faster. The other sniper started firing at me, but I used his comrade to cover myself from the bullets.

When we landed on the ground, I was covered in blood. It smelled so good that it’s tempting.

“f**k!” I heard the other sniper cursed from above the tree next to where we were.

I didn’t allow him to point his gun at me when I climbed his tree and grabbed him by his neck. He tried to fight back and grabbed a knife from his back, but with his strength, I easily pushed it away.

“You two are not as good as your friends.” I said while he struggled to remove my grip on him.

“We’re snipers. How did you find us?!” he asked me.

“I can hear your bullets.” I answered him.

“What? We’re very far from where you were. Vampires senses may be superior to us, but there’s no way you can hear a bullet that fast.” He said.

I know what he’s doing. He’s trying to buy himself some time. But I don’t have much time. I have to go back and help Hunter.

He pulled another knife again and stabbed me in my shoulder. With my surprise, I unconsciously added too much strength to my hand and accidentally choked him. I guess it didn’t matter whether it’s an accident or not since I was going to kill him.

I threw his dead body and climbed down the tree. I pulled the knife slowly as I screamed in pain. The knife burns my skin. I looked at my shoulder, it’s bleeding, but I didn’t even bother to attend to it. I just ran back to where Hunter was. I can no longer hear them, only Hunter and the remaining nimrod.

When I came back, the guy with a burned neck immediately ran away. I didn’t bother to run after him and just went straight to Hunter.

He had a few scratches, but he didn’t have any serious wounds.

“Are you alright?” I asked him. He smiled at me before he pulled me and hugged me.

“Why are you asking me? You’re the one who has a bleeding shoulder here.” He said.

“B-But..” I didn’t get to finish what I was about to say when my knees went weak, then everything went black.

When I opened my eyes, I was in the middle of the forest. Did Hunter leave without me? I looked at the sky. The moon is shining brightly, but it gives an eerie feeling that gives me shivers down to my spine.

“Hunter?” I called him, then started to walk.

I just took a few steps when I stepped on something and I stumbled to the ground. I flinched when a warm liquid touched my skin. The scent immediately crawled to my nose and I almost throw up. I immediately stood up and looked at it.

I trembled in horror when I saw the endless pile of body in front of me. They’re all faceless and covered in blood.

“H-Help us,” I heard the voices again.

My eyes started tearing up in fear as I took small steps back.

“S-Save us,” they said again.

I looked up at the top of the bodies and there I saw the woman at the zoo and Tristan standing. They are both looking at me with disgust. They are covered in blood too, but they are standing firmly as they looked at me with anger.

I flinched when I felt someone on my back. He wrapped his arms around me, making me calm instantly.

“What did you do, Raine?” I heard Hunter’s voice.

“H-Hunter?” I called him as I held his arms.

“What did you do?” he asked me again.

“I-I didn’t do anything.” I replied while my voice trembled.

“You still want to say that? After killing all of them?” he asked me with a smirk.

“I-I didn’t kill them! I didn’t kill them!” I said, as I started crying.

“Stop lying, Raine! You killed me too!” he said before he pushed me away from him.

I turn to look at him. He has a sword on his chest. It’s the same material as the knife that those nimrods used. I walked towards him and reached for him, but he slapped my hands away.

“Don’t touch me!” he said before he shoved me on the ground and choked me.

“H-Hunter..” I called his name, but his eyes can no longer identify me. I tried removing his hand from my neck but he’s too strong.

“I’m going to kill you too!” he said.

“H-Hunter please…” I begged as I felt my strength slipping away.

“You failed to protect me. You failed to protect us! Now I’m going to kill you too!” he said.

My vision started to fade as I lose all the strength that I have. I can’t breathe anymore.

“Raine!” I opened my eyes when I heard Hunter’s voice called my name.

I was gasping for air while my body was trembling and my eyes were crying. I roamed my eyes and realized that I was inside Hunter’s room. He was holding both of my hands while he was on top of me.

“Raine! You’re having a dream.” He said. It’s just a dream? But it felt so real.

“H-Hunter” I called his name as I started sobbing.

He let go of my hand and hugged me tight. I held on to him as if my life depends on it.

“You fainted after the fight, so I immediately brought you here. Hannah already treated your wound.” He explained.

“D-Don’t go. D-Don’t leave me.. Please.” I begged him.

“I’m not going anywhere. I’m not going to leave you.” He whispered in my ear before he ran his finger down my forehead down to the bridge of my nose.

I started to ease up, but I was still holding on to him. I’m not going to kill him. I promise that I’m going to protect him.