HIS SCENT IS A MOON LIT LIE

Chapter Forty Five

Jordan's POV

"They are here."

"Hunters."

Mum's voice was accompanied by gunshots slicing through the silence. My body was still frozen from the broken window and the shards of glass lying carelessly on my bedroom door.

My heart raced fast but my survival instincts kicked in.

"What hunters? Why are they suddenly attacking us?" My gaze shifted to the half moon out in the darkness.

"There is no time to explain!" Mum snapped, she grabbed my arm. "We have to go! Now!"

Another loud crack echoed from somewhere around the house, it sounded so close and in less than a minute, Corvin ran into the hallways, breathless and behind him was a frightened yet confused Isaac.

"The back door." Mum said, she picked Isaac up from the waist and rushed down the hallways.

Corvin and I followed her from behind but i made sure Corvin was right in front of me.

"Stay low, do not stop. Keep moving!" Mum yanked open the back door and we all ran, barefooted and dressed in our night wears.

Mum could not risk taking the car because the noise was coming from the front yard where the car was parked, plus headlights would draw attention on us.

We kept running, each breath I took burned in my lungs, my senses were heightened, every single noise felt like a threat to me.

We kept moving, deeper into the shadows of the night. My brothers were panting besides me, I did not know where we were going and I doubted mum knew too.

"Where are we headed?" I had to ask, my voice was shaky and my breathing hitched.

"I do not know." Mum yelled, she paused to glance behind us. "Just keep running."

It was clearly impossible to keep running without having a certain destination in mind. The streets were quiet and getting darker. The street lights flickered and it was too dangerous for us to be outside.

I stopped suddenly and turned to mum. "Wait, I think..." I paused to catch my breath. "I think I know a place, somewhere we can rest, just for now."

She looked at me, equally panting. "Where?"

Gazing towards the distant forest, my mind drifted to Elara's grandfather's place and just like that, the words slipped out of my mouth. "We can go to Elara's grandfather's place. Just for the night to rest."

My mum froze but her grip on Isaac's wrist tightened. "Absolutely not." She said. "That place is a crime scene Jordan. We could get arrested."

I wanted to protest but Corvin stepped in, voice steady. "Do you want us to sleep on the streets tonight? It is getting dark and if the hunters are still lurking around then we are still targets."

She looked at both of us, her brows knitted in confusion. Isaac was tired, his eyes were drooping and he shivered. The chill in the air was settling deeper into our skin.

"Mum, look at Isaac. I promise are not going to tamper with anything. Just shelter over our heads, that is all." I raised my hands in mock surrender.

Mum gazed at Isaac, her jaw tightened. It was obvious she did not like the idea but she knew we were right.

"Fine." She muttered. "But we must be out of the place as early as possible."

Without wasting another second out in the cold, we changed course immediately. Our legs moved fast through the thickened woods.

I remembered the turn that led to Elara's grandfather's place so it was easy to locate.

Although, there was this feeling of guilt lingering in me that I was leading my family to Elara's grandfather's place without her consent.

But it was shelter and right now, that was all we had.

We eventually arrived there and it was easy to slip past the police tape.

The apartment reeked of aged books and dust of silence.

Mum guided Isaac inside while Corvin assisted her in helping Isaac settle on the old couch.

I remained by the front door, peeking through the cracks in the curtain and scanning the trees surrounding the house.

Every whisper or faint noise made my heart jump. I was not afraid for myself but for my family.

Time slowly passed and Isaac's breathing slowed, Corvin laid besides him, fast asleep.

Knowing my brothers were at rest made relief wash over me.

Although mum did not sleep, she crept up besides me, her arms crossed over her chest but her eyes fixated on me.

"This town is not for us Jordan." She spoke quietly. "It was never for us in the first place."

I could not argue even if I wanted to, plus in a time like this, I wanted to be the shoulder mum could lean on. I offered a small smile, trying to ease the tension around us. "Isaac and Corvin could sleep through a hurricane."

My plan worked, mum laughed and she shook her head. "At least something stayed normal."

For a moment, we sat together in silence, watching the night slowly fade.

Morning came fast, maybe even too fast.

Mum shook me awake, her voice laced with urgency. "Jordan, we overslept! The cops could be here any second, we need to leave."

For a moment, I was disoriented before reality kicked back in. The gunshots, the escape, hiding in Elara's grandfather's place.

Corvin was sitting on the floor besides Isaac who was still fast asleep.

"We can not leave yet, our stuff is still back at our house. The bus tickets, everything."

Mum looked like she wanted to argue but a loud honking noise cut her halfway her sentence.

"Are the cops here already?" Corvin groaned.

I slowly moved towards the front door but mum hastily snatched me by the arm. "Jordan, what are you doing?" She whispered.

"Someone is out there, I need to see who it is. It could be the cops." Pulling away from mum's grip, I stepped into the woods without waiting to hear mum's response. Just as I neared the edge of the woods, a scent hit me.

Familiar and intoxicating.

Elara!

My eyes narrowed, searching for her but then a blur of blue came crashing through the trees.

A jeep, fast.

Before I could react, it hit me hard sending my body flying into the air.

Then everything went black.