Chapter Ten

“Hunter-1, this is Hunter-2. Do you copy? Over.”

“Hunter-1 copies. What’s your sitrep, Hunter-2? Over.”

“Drop successful. All forces standing by for package arrival at the designated location. Over.”

“Roger that. ETA ten minutes. How’s the rendezvous point? Over.”

“Silent, for now, but the tension is rising. Get your asses down here—double-time.”

“Stay frosty, Hunter-2, and keep an eye on your six. Package is coming in hot, over.”

“Hooah. Over and out.”

The radio went silent in Sam’s hand. Besides the hum of the engine, the truck was filled with hushed voices. We were stuck inside a dark storage container, one that semi trucks carried cross-country. For fourteen hours I spent time getting to know some of the muscle Embry gave to us; there were five ex-Marines going in with us. Most of them seemed like they hadn’t been in the military for a long time, but there was one who insisted he didn’t have a real name and that I call him Red—which was a stupid nickname, in my opinion—that still had the shaved head and mannerisms of military dogs. We got along well enough.

I looked up into Sam’s face in the dim light of the tactical flashlights mounted on the iron picatinny rails on the side of the guns. Picatinny rails were wonderful things; on certain models, the rails were located on top, both sides, and under the gun for quick customizing. Flashlights, sights, bayonet—basically anything could slide onto the rails. My FAMAS had all sides, but I only used the top for my red dot sight, and the side for the tactical light.

Sam had the look of immense concentration on his face, and I wondered if he felt we were up to our knees in alligators yet.

“Did you understand any of that?” I asked him. The radio conversation sounded like a bunch of kids playing make-believe.

He nodded. “The air drop landed safely, and their group, Hunter-2, is waiting for our arrival, Hunter-1. We’re also the package.” He patted the pile of C-4 we were leaning against.

“And we’ll be there in ten minutes?” I knew what ETA meant, at least. The rest of it—sitrep, that stay frosty thing—was all Greek to me.

“Right.”

“You know, I’m not really comfortable with the radios inside Forks. Whose idea was it?” I asked irritably.

As we were preparing to leave for our very long, very boring ride inside the delivery truck, someone had passed Sam a radio and told him it was “boss’s orders” to keep it on. It kept us updated on what was happening up front, but it could easily give away our plan. The vampires monitored cell phones and police radios—what made them think we could slip these through?

“Embry and his men,” Sam replied. “It’s military equipment. The vampires won’t monitor it, since they can’t pick it up. It works on a separate channel compared to other radios. I think he said it had something to do with satellite technology.”

“You don’t know that for sure. Those creatures could be huddled over a console, listening to every code word pass between the groups.”

“But they wouldn’t know what we’re talking about.”

I tried hard to resist the urge to bite my lip with the onslaught of nerves. “There have to be former military among them.”

Sam gave me a boyish grin. “Well we’re working with ex-military, Marines, and I’m pretty sure they know how to fly below the enemy’s radar.” He touched my shoulder and the grin disappeared, completely wiped from his face to reveal the concern beneath. “It’s okay if you’re scared, Bella, we all are, just don’t be nervous. Being nervous makes you do stupid things; you can’t think straight in the field, and that makes you a bad shot. Take a deep breath. This is what we’ve been waiting for. We can get our town back and wipe out the vampire population from the earth in a matter of days.”

My teeth sank into my bottom lip against my will. But vampires exist all over the world. I wanted to warn my teammates that this small area of Washington wasn’t the only place vampires lived, but how would I back up the information? Not even my cynicism would cover it. Until I was told about it, I didn’t believe they were anywhere else either. I doubted taking the three cities would even leave a dent in their numbers.

“I guess I’m just nervous about Charlie. You know how he is.” I shrugged, faking nonchalance with every bone in my body.

Sam didn’t buy it, but as far as everyone was concerned, the only girl in the truck was Angela, and men didn’t call each other on their feelings. If you were scared you would hide it, suck it up, or replace it with a different emotion. I knew the rules, and so did Sam, so he left it alone. I had a feeling if he got me talking about my emotions, I’d break down, and that would officially move me from the “competent” box the team seemed to put me in, to the “cannon fodder” box with Angela. I had to keep my mind on the prize, focus on being indestructible, and killing all vampires in my way. Make them pay for what they did to my town and to Seth.

But honestly, I was well and truly scared. Who walks straight into a vampire’s nest and plans to come out alive? It’s suicide!

“Everything will be fine, Bella. Deep breaths, remember?” Sam smiled. “We’re going to make it through this, and so is Charlie. I bet he already stuck vampire heads to pikes around their safe house.”

That got a little laugh from Angela and me. “I can see him doing that. Want to warn other vampires in the area? That’s the way to do it.”

The continuous bump of the truck finally stopped—thank God, after fourteen hours of that, my butt was killing me—and I heard the powerful engine hiss as the truck settled. The men at the mouth of the container pulled the latch they had rigged to open the doors from the inside. The sun peeked out from behind gray clouds and blinded us all. A blast of cold wind cleared the stale air, and I took a refreshing breath. Home, finally home, and it was time to set things right.

The radio crackled to life in Sam’s hand. “Hunter-2, this is Hunter-1, do you copy? Over.”

“We’re here, Hunter-1. What’s up? Over.” Someone must’ve passed the radio; this voice wasn’t as gruff as the last one speaking for the second group.

“Package has arrived safe and secure, unloading now. All Hunter-1 forces are oscar mike to designated safe zone. Hunter-2, move your forces back. Birdseye, what’s your status? Over.”

Birdseye? I mouthed at Sam.

“Snipers,” he whispered.

A new voice came over the radio. “Birdseye reporting in. We won’t be joining you inside. My men are stationed two klicks back; clear shot through the trees, no wind, over.”

“Roger, Birdseye; watch for bogies. Hunter-2, are you clear? Over.”

“Ready when you are, over.”

That seemed to be Sam’s cue. While everyone else had already disappeared into the tree line, Sam opened one of the pouches of C-4, set something inside and closed it up. He tapped my shoulder as he stood. He spoke into the radio as we exited the truck, “All units, package is primed and ready, clear the danger zone immediately.”

I took a quick look at Newton’s Outfitters, because I knew in a few seconds it would be gone in a puff of smoke. The building looked like any other sporting goods store with its boring white and green paint job; there was a display of a family of mannequins camping in one long window, and large stickers claiming a sale in the other. A lot of time, work, and love went into the making of this store and we were about the blow it all sky high. Hell, I couldn’t believe Mike was letting us do it, let alone helping. I felt kind of sorry that we were taking it out, and then remembered it wasn’t a family run business anymore. It harbored very dangerous creatures and had to be destroyed.

By the time we were clear from the immediate blast area, or what was predicted to be the area, the truck was two sizes smaller, yet the building was still mammoth in size. It wouldn’t take long to rush back in, and the sniper rifles set around the area would catch anything that moved without a gun. I hoped they weren’t using thermal scopes; only the humans would show up.

Leaves crunched behind me. I resisted the urge to whip around with my gun pointed because I knew exactly who was coming up behind me; I pressed closer to the tree I was hiding behind to let the men pass. They were our unit’s flamethrowers, and from what I heard, they knew exactly how to use them. Both units had two flamethrowers that would lead the charge after the explosion. We had to be careful following them. These models were definitely more modern than what they used years ago, but these were genuine flamethrowers, not homemade, and the large tanks perched on their backs would explode if shot. The men were literally walking bombs.

With the men in their positions, Sam pulled his gun, an M16A4 assault rifle with attached grenade launcher. He told the radio with a low voice, “Danger close, danger close. Clear the area immediately—we are primed. All forces stand-by. Over.”

“Birdseye, standing by,” came a reply.

“Hunter-2, standing by,” said the other group. “Blow that bitch sky high!”

“Fire in the hole, fire in the hole!”

One second I was staring at Newton’s Outfitters, the forest silent and tense around me, and the next a giant fireball was engulfing the large sports outlet. The explosion was so strong the ground shook under my feet, and it would have knocked me over if I didn’t have the tree for support. Debris flew past my head, a lead pipe nailing the tree beside me. The sound was so loud, even covering my ears couldn’t save them from ringing. When the shrapnel stopped flying, I wanted to move, to see what was left of the building, but I was way too disoriented. At least the ringing was dying down in my head.

“Maintain radio silence inside the building,” Sam said with his attention on the radio again. “All Hunter units, move in, move in! Weapons free!”

I heard the flamethrowers race towards the building and held my breath, peering around the tree to see the destruction. Most of the dust still hadn’t cleared, and if there was anything left of the truck, I couldn’t tell. There was a skeleton standing where the building used to be; the floor was coated in rubble, a few pieces of foundation hanging precariously in different areas. I was almost afraid to move from my tree and step into that mess; I didn’t want something to fall and squish me.

Sam stayed right behind the flamethrowers as they coated the rubble with fire; the two from the second unit had come down the hill and joined them. Right on their heels was a huge . . . bear? I couldn’t see it very well, but it was big and obviously dangerous. It leapt over their heads, landing with enough force to throw rubble in the air, and took off in a streak of grey, the color of its pelt. Judging by the scream of metal, it found the basement door. Sam chased after it, flamethrowers going first to clear the room, and half the squad followed. Angela and I had just reached the wreckage but hung back. A huge paw print was settled into the plaster dust coating the ground. I swallowed the lump in my throat. What the hell was that thing?

Did we—did I really want to go in there with some huge beast running amok?

I jumped at the sound of gunshots, and it wasn’t any sound the guns below could provide. No, it was the unmistakable bass of the .50 caliber sniper rifles going off around us. Vampires were trying to escape. I had to get down there. I couldn’t let them take all the kills! I spent so much energy flapping my gums about saving my town, and damn it, I wasn’t going to eat my words now.

The FAMAS came free of the rig easily, almost so smoothly I nearly dropped it, and I loaded the first magazine. Bullpup rifles were great; because of its design, it was smaller than a normal assault rifle for great maneuverability in confined spaces, and because the magazine was located behind the trigger, it was faster to reload.

Beside me, Angela was fumbling with the drum magazine on the Thompson, but finally snapped it in place and loaded a bullet. She had the 50-round magazine, a little big for her hands, but she just needed to get used to it. Tommy’s were excellent guns; even mobsters loved them as their go-to firearm.

The fight was picking up downstairs. The snipers kept firing, the trembling bass shot mixing with the staccato of the guns in the basement. I found the steps and upon seeing the pitch black doorway, hit the tactical light mounted on the side of the FAMAS, kind of wondering if it was a bad idea. The vamps already knew we were attacking, and the entryway should be cleared, so hopefully there was no harm in using the light. I kept the FAMAS tight to my shoulder, pointed straight and ready to fire, as I descended the stairs with Angela on my heels.

I kept my eyes trained on the gaping hole in the wall, one side of it holding mangled door hinges and what looked like half of a steel door, so I missed the body on the stairs. My foot slipped on the soft, pliable skin and I slid down a step, catching myself with a hand on the wall. I didn’t stop to look who was lying there; I didn’t want to know whose side they belonged to, but with Angela’s horrified gasp, I could guess. I grabbed her hand and towed her down the steps with me. She really didn’t need to be here. I was almost afraid to have her at my back, afraid she might shoot me by accident when that Tommy kicked, but throwing her in front of me was a big no-no. If a vamp attacked, she couldn’t ward off an assault like I could.

When Sam said the basement was reinforced, I didn’t think he was serious, yet my flashlight showed the metal on the walls. It was cracked and dented in some places; in others, cement blocks were visible through wide holes. Not one spot that I could see was silver, just red. The walls were already covered with blood and chunks of what looked like organs, and I had the feeling it was all because that monstrous animal got down here first. I could imagine something that big tearing apart vampires and humans, throwing body parts and innards everywhere, even though it wasn’t a great image to have.

I couldn’t see very far in front of me so I followed the path of destruction and the loud sounds of gun fire, wishing Angela would let go of the back of my coat and watch behind us. Just because the others had moved up, it didn’t mean they cleared the entire room, if that’s what you could call this place.

The basement was used as storage, so of course it was going to be huge, I just didn’t realize how big. It was too dark to really see much, but the slightest sound echoed off the walls; I imagined the ceiling yards above my head. There were certainly enough stairs coming down.

Gun barrels flashed in the darkness, the staccato shots filled the air, and I ducked behind the closest batch of storage shelves; they were the big metal kind, bolted to the floor, and this one was covered in boxes of lanterns and flashlights. I could hear people shouting throughout the structure, most of it Embry’s men I think, because I heard a lot of numbers and “o’clock” bouncing off the walls.

Angela tapped my shoulder. “Bella, look at that.”

Her flashlight pointed to the wall on our left where a small tunnel was imbedded in the wall like a small cave opening. It was barely noticeable, only a few feet inside the main entrance. It was one of the vampire escape tunnels.

“Do you think they cleared it out?” she asked quietly, her chin basically resting on my shoulder.

“Probably not,” I replied. “Looks too small for them to fit.”

“We could fit. Sam might’ve passed it up.”

I turned to her with a cold stare. Sam was a great lieutenant; he was very intelligent, he was thorough, and never missed a shot. To think he wandered right passed that tunnel . . . was kind of plausible. He would have been watching for vampires straight ahead—not to mention that beast—and not looking for escape routes, trusting the snipers to cover them. I had a feeling no one wanted to get caught by that beast, wherever it was. Not knowing if it was still here or not, it made me nervous to move. But with how small the tunnel was and being completely out of the way, it was possible Sam’s one track mind would have skipped over it. Someone had to go through, just in case.

“You stay here,” I told her sternly. “I’ll go check it out and come right back. Keep your eyes open. Don’t be afraid to pull that trigger.”

“Let me come with you—you don’t know what’s in there!”

“Most likely nothing; if any vamps made it to the end, they’re lying in a pile just outside the exit point thanks to the snipers.”

An explosion went off just past our hiding spot. Angela flinched, covering her ears while trying not to drop the Tommy. My ears rang, but it was manageable—nothing like the C-4 explosion. I peered around the shelf to see the room lit for a short second by a fireball, several flailing bodies trying to put themselves out. Oh my God! Please tell me one of the flamethrowers didn’t explode! I was terrified the screaming bodies were ours until, slowly, arms and legs started to fall off, headless torsos curling in before turning to ashes. Vampires.

Angela was talking, but I couldn’t hear her. My hearing was shot for the moment, and I really hoped that it wasn’t permanent. I gave her a hard look, trying to tell her with my eyes to sit still and stay safe, before I ran across the room and slipped into the tunnel. With a single sweep of my flashlight, I assured there was nothing immediately inside. It was so small and tight, the only way I could fit inside was to keep my FAMAS in front and crouch. I could feel the sword handle dragging against the top, only barely slowing me down, but I quickly found sunlight.

The tunnel opened to a bigger room that looked like an unfinished basement; like it was a second thought when building, with a cement staircase leading up to where the sunshine was pouring in. I stood, stretching my back, and moved up to the stairs. There was no way I was going to poke my head up there, just in case the snipers had an itchy trigger finger. But I did know they were doing their job because of the arm lying over the lip of the doorway, limp. I smiled and turned back towards the tunnel.

A vampire stood at the back wall.

I had a second to bring my gun up, but she was faster. With a snarl, she flew past me, taking my gun with her. I turned to face her, my hands throbbing with pain as I let the FAMAS be flung across the room, before grabbing for the sword handle at my neck. It was safer and more accurate than the Striker.

With one hand, she snatched my elbow before I could pull the sword, with the other she gripped my hair, spun me around, and shoved my face against the wall. Thankfully, Forks was never truly dry and the muddy wall wasn’t too painful. I lashed out with my arm but she wasn’t there. I pushed myself off the wall in time to see her fist coming straight for my head. I ducked and it landed with a squelching sound in the mud.

I tugged the sword from its sheath and quickly stabbed it through her torso. She screamed and thrashed, wiggling the blade in further, tighter. Her hand came free of the wall, grabbing onto the blade, cutting up her fingers, while I tried to wedge it up near her heart before her body healed around it. I should have tried for her neck, but I didn’t have the strength, or the guts, to behead a living vampire. If Mike was here, the vampire would already be dead on the floor.

She twisted her body so the sword came free of my hands, still stuck in her gut, and wrapped her claws around my throat. She used that amazing strength to lift and press me up against the wall and tightened her hold. I uselessly scratched at her hands and gasped for air. What was she doing? She could crush my throat with a flex of her hand; why was she drawing it out?

“You’re that Swan girl, aren’t you?” the vampire panted. “Why are you back in Forks? They said you died.”

What the hell? The vampires knew me? Oh, this was not good.

She laughed, bringing her thin body closer with a sickening smile. “They are going to reward me big time when I bring you in.”

No sooner did her sentence end, her head exploded. My eyes were too wide with fear to actually blink, but I flinched, eyelids slamming closed, and it kept the gore from getting in my eyes. The hands released me, and I dropped to the ground, wiping my face with my coat sleeve before opening my eyes. I was met with a neck bleeding out on to my jeans. I screamed and pressed myself against the wall. If this vampire knew who I was, were there others? Did that mean the vampires who chased us down the highway were also looking for me?

The bits of brain scattered around the room definitely weren’t helping my twisting stomach.

A meaty hand extended into my vision, and I looked up with surprise to find Jacob. That .500 magnum had more power than I thought; if it could explode a vampire’s head to itty bitty pieces, what else could it do? I grabbed his hand with a weak smile, and he hoisted me to my feet, helping me stand on shaky legs.

“Where did you come from?” I asked, hating how my voice cracked. God, that vampire shook me up big time.

“I found Angela cowering near the entrance,” he said, handing me the FAMAS. It had a small nick in the paint, but it was okay. I was thankful it didn’t go off when she slapped it. “She said you disappeared in here to check if it was clear, but didn’t come back. Figured I’d come check on you.”

“Thanks, Jake, but how did you even fit through the tunnel?”

He grinned. “My secret. Are you okay?”

I went to the headless torso and tugged the sword handle sticking out of her stomach. Stuck. The body healed over it. Jake gave it two solid pulls, and slowly, it slid out of the body with a disgusting, wet sound. He bent down to wipe it off with the clean side of her shirt before he gave it back to me. My hands were shaking so badly I was afraid I’d stab myself when trying to sheathe it, so I turned around and let him slide it home.

“I’m fine, Jake, just a bit shaken,” I sighed. “I mean, come on, I was only being choked to death by a vampire. No big deal.” I wasn’t sure if he heard the vampire knew me, but I wasn’t going to bring it up.

“Let’s get out of here. The guys nearly have the place secured.” He moved towards the stairs but I grabbed his arm.

“Don’t you dare go up those stairs—you’ll get yourself killed!”

“You think the snipers would shoot me?”

“I don’t want to risk it. You came in through the tunnel, and you’re going out that way.”

I didn’t give him time to argue. I slipped the FAMAS securely into the rig and made my way back through the tunnel to find Angela sitting on the stairs in the sunlight, clutching her Tommy. Not exactly where I left her, but she was safe, and that’s what mattered. Good girl. I watched Jake squeeze out of the hole in the wall, laughing when his fat butt got stuck. I pulled him out and joined Angela, sitting down beside her.

It was unusually sunny today, and with it I could see her wide eyes. “You put your gun away.” It wasn’t a question.

I shrugged. The firing had stopped a while ago; I figured they were making sure the vampires were truly dead and finding out who was dead on our side. “Jake said we’re about finished here, and I didn’t hear anyone shooting. The place must be secure.”

Footsteps were racing down the steps behind us. Jake didn’t seem too concerned, in fact, he waved. But I pulled my pistol and jumped up, wheeling around on the step to see who it was. I thought it was a vampire sneaking up on us, but it turned out to be Paul. Where had he been during the fight? I holstered my gun, sitting back down as he passed. And here I’d thought I’d at least get one kill.

“Great kills, man,” said Jake, clasping Paul’s hand for a macho handshake. “I think you got most of them before we got down here.”

“I didn’t see him once during the fight,” I growled.

“He was in front of the charge,” Jake replied, rubbing the back of his neck. If I didn’t know him better, I wouldn’t have been able to pick up on the uneasy undertone, but it was definitely there.

“I had a flamethrower for Hunter-2,” Paul said, quickly covering his tracks.

“And that’s why you just came down?”

“Paul, stop talking and check the bodies!” Sam’s deep voice came from somewhere inside the darkness. There were lights moving between shelves, shining on bodies and blood in the distance, and the noises coming from beyond were disgusting enough to give nightmares from sound alone. I was already sure I’d have nightmares for the next few weeks.

Paul jumped into action, brushing off our conversation, and moved further into the room. Jake stayed behind with me and Angela. Our help wasn’t needed; men were already calling out from their sections how many dead they found before coming back to the entrance to wait. They picked up conversation with Jake easily, wondering how many kills he got. How many did I have? Oh, that’s right, none. Darn, I didn’t even get to use the Striker.

A small group formed near the entrance, and it was then I noticed that these men were all we had left. Sam told me, all together, we had twenty-four people going in battle. I counted sixteen, including Sam and Embry who were still lost in the darkness. I had a feeling most of the men to make it out alive were the ex-Marines.

Sam joined the group with a solemn face and directed everyone towards the sunlight. I followed the group upstairs, groaning at the bright light. What time was it? Had to be some time around noon; the sun was too freaking bright.

Someone fell into step beside me, and I fought against my sensitive eyes to look at Embry walking with me. His shirt was torn and there were wounds along his arms, not to mention his Mohawk looked a little messy, but otherwise he looked okay. He grinned down at me. “How did it go down there? Were the guns good to you?”

I shrugged. “I didn’t even get to fire a shot.”

“What?” he asked incredulously. “I give these awesome guns to you specifically for this mission, and you don’t even use them? What’s wrong with you?”

“I might’ve not had the chance because I was being strangled by a vampire! But I at least got to use the sword.”

His eyes were wide and excited. “Oh yeah? How was it?”

“Good. I’d like a little more length to it so I’m sure it goes through my target, but I have a feeling it’d be too heavy for me then.”

“I don’t know about that.” He touched my shoulder to stop me, and I glanced up at him. “Punch me.”

I gaped. “W-what?”

“Come on, girlie, punch me with all your strength.”

“I’m not punching you, Embry, and stop calling me girlie. It’s annoying.”

“Girlie, girlie, girlie,” he mocked childishly. “Can’t even throw a punch, can you, girlie?”

I sighed with defeat and curled my hands into fists. Fine, he wanted me to punch him? I would. He bent over so I could get a sure hit on his face, and I pulled my fist back. He smiled, expectant, just before I made contact. I felt his jaw under my knuckles, felt it shift just a little, and smiled with glee as Embry staggered upright. He rubbed his jaw while I soothed my hand. Jeez, the man had to be made of steel!

“Yeah, definitely don’t need a heavier blade,” he groaned, but it didn’t sound like he was in a whole lot of pain. “If that’s all the strength you got, you wouldn’t be able to slice through a vampire with something longer or heavier.” He winked, moving his hand to show his face completely unmarked. He laughed before joining the big group. My knuckles were already bruising.

I balked. He wanted me to hit him for that? I can’t believe I wasted my strength.

Sam called the group to order in the cracked parking lot. I could tell by the look in his eyes that he realized most of the surviving men belonged to Embry. He brought ten men, five for each group, and all ten were still standing, with barely a scratch on any of them. I did a quick check around the circle but didn’t see Mike or Tyler. Where were they?

Sam produced the radio from his belt to check in with the sniper group; they were already packed up and moving. I wasn’t sure if that meant they were leaving or joining us, but the fact was, Sam was stalling. How bad was the news? Who did we lose? We killed, hopefully, all the vamps in Forks today! There should be no bad news.

Finally Sam addressed us with weary eyes. “It was a hard fight for everyone, and without Embry and his men, I’m not sure we would’ve survived. So thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” Embry said, though he sounded smug. “We still have Seattle to take.”

“Right.” Sam’s voice was laced with a weary don’t remind me. “But we have Forks, and that’s what matters now. We lost several good people today”—he paused briefly, shaking his head as though trying to rid his mind of the negatives—“but their deaths will not be in vain. We won’t think of them and say they did nothing; we will think of them, remember their fighting spirit and faith, and say they did everything they could. We’ll burn up all the vampires in Washington for them!”

I think the Marines were trying hard not to give a warcry as we applauded a job well done, but I was feeling the strain, too. I wanted to scream and get this knot of anxiety out, throw it all to the wind. We worked hard to get to this point in such a short time; I didn’t think it was possible. Now it was time to search Forks any stragglers and see how the bloodwhores were doing. I hoped everyone was free of their vampire captors.

We had no further instructions until a ride showed up, so the group was dismissed. I turned to ask Jake if he saw Mike or Tyler, but he was already at Sam’s side. Angela said she found Mike, and I followed her to see him hiding off to the side of the group, kneeling in the bushes just passed the tree line.

I ran to his side, afraid he was seriously hurt. “There you are! Are you okay? Why are you hiding over here?”

He looked up at me, and I swore long and loud. His face looked like a bloody pulp, bruised and swollen, and his clothes were torn to rags and singed in certain places. The cut on his forehead was bleeding freely, and his hands were burnt. The fear and pain in his eyes was visible; he tried to hide it, but failed.

I could only imagine how I looked with bits of vampire stuck in my hair. The blood on my jeans had already dried so that I couldn’t tell the difference between it and the mud.

“They got carried away,” he said gruffly. “Someone got nicked and that sent them into some kind of insane frenzy.”

I crouched beside him and gently touched his back. “You should’ve gotten out of there, Mike. Don’t be a hero; it just gets you killed.”

Something I said made him turn away from me and dry heave into the bushes. Now I knew why he was hiding over here; not because of the injuries, but because he didn’t want to get sick in front of everyone. I threw the man rules out the window and gently rubbed his back in soothing circles. It was all I could do for him. I knew my nightmares would be just as bad as his tonight. When his sickness passed, he groaned with pain and exhaustion.

“What are we doing to get out of here?” he panted. “Do we have any rides yet? Jared said we were regrouping at the Yorkie’s house.”

“I don’t know, Sam hasn’t said anything yet,” I replied. Softer, I continued, “Hey, have you seen Tyler? I can’t find him.”

“Oh Bella, oh God, it was awful,” he whispered.

“What happened?”

“We found a room full of them, vampires. The two Marines with the flamethrowers decided the best way to deal with it was to throw an explosive, but no one had grenades. They took off the packs just as the vampires started pouring through toward us. Tyler . . . he was pinned by one of them and couldn’t get free in time. The vampires covered him, keeping him there. The explosion caught him.”

It took a second for his words to sink in. The explosion caught him. He was pinned. Tyler’s dead? I shook my head. “Why didn’t they help him?” I asked, only slightly hysterical. “Why would they let him die?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Mike sat up and gave me a hard glare through all the blood and bruising. “They were looking after themselves, not our guys! Why else are we missing so many? Have you seen them, Bella? They’re basically spotless!”

“Because they’re professionals.”

“Don’t kid yourself, Bella. They weren’t fighting for us; they were fighting for the thrill.”

Embry had said they would help us kill the vampires, not that they would look after us. They weren’t our babysitters, yet Tyler was dead because of something that could’ve been prevented. What if it had been a Marine in the fray—would they help him? Did they leave Tyler because he wasn’t one of them? My free hand clenched into a fist. Someone could have saved him. If they had incapacitated the vamp and pulled him to safety before shooting the tank . . . no, not someone, if I had been there, it wouldn’t have happened. Tyler would be fine. Slowly, those creatures were taking my friends. Let them try it again; it adds fuel to the fire.

I gasped as Mike’s words came back to me. “Wait, did you say two Marines were on flamethrowers?”

He scoffed. “Yeah. They wouldn’t let anyone else near them.”

“Paul said he had one,” I said.

“That muscle head? I didn’t see him anywhere, but Jacob was trying to be everywhere. He’s good, I’ll give him that. At least he saved some of our guys.”

Why would Paul lie? To impress us?

Embry’s voice filled the clearing with a startling, “Fall in!” Sam was never one for yelling. I jumped up and helped Mike to his feet, and slowly we hobbled toward the group. Mike received a pitying look from Angela, but he ignored it with a shrug.

Sam had no trouble getting everyone’s attention or telling us the news this time. Our rides were on the way. We were tired and hurt. I had a feeling I wasn’t the only one who was excited to get a shower, a change of clothes, and some sleep. I just wished my house was still standing. I wanted to crawl into my bed, throw the covers over my head, and hide from the world. I had enough of reality for one day.

Regrettably, reality wasn’t done with me yet. I wasn’t sure how they did it, but ten minutes later four cars were pulling into the uneven parking lot. Now that adrenaline wasn’t pushing me forward, I could see the explosion did more damage than I thought; trees were uprooted, the parking lot resembled a shattered mirror. Who would clean up the mess?

It was great to see the familiar faces of Forks’ residents, and to know despite all the trouble vampires caused, they looked healthy. Our drivers were Mr. and Mrs. Cheney—who were thrilled to see Angela and couldn’t resist hugging and fussing over her—Leah, (who I thought was in Port Angeles with Sue), and Mr. Crowley.

Seeing Tyler’s dad formed a hard knot in my stomach. Tyler was a carbon copy of his father, they could have been twins if Mr. Crowley shaved, and I wondered if he was looking for his son in the small crowd. What could we tell him? I wasn’t good with delivering bad news; I couldn’t even tell Sue what had happened to Seth.

Everyone was organized and sorted into vehicles. It was time to split up and cover as much ground as possible. Sam already informed us we weren’t searching for vampires yet, which I thought was stupid. They could get away easily with a five minute start, but having us search the town for known bloodwhores? Yeah, I guess that was pretty important. I wanted my friends to go back to normal; I hated it when Jessica and Lauren would show up with new scars on display.

I had the unfortunate experience of riding with Mr. Crowley; stuffed in the backseat of the sedan was Mike, Jared, and Red, the only Marine I knew by name. The unfortunate part was that Mr. Crowley didn’t seem to realize his son was missing. He might’ve thought he was in Port Angeles, but I was sure it was because Mike was retelling the event with Red’s help, editing out the part where Tyler didn’t make it. Red said the whole thing took only twenty-two minutes.

Our first stop was Jessica Stanley’s house. She was the one I worried about most; she was a little snippy sometimes, and naïve, but she meant well. Mike was so anxious to see her he almost jumped out of the car. I told him to stay in his seat. I had a feeling if Jess was back to normal, then the last thing she’d want to see was Mike’s face.

Before we left, Mrs. Cheney had patched him up with a huge first-aid kit she brought—enough supplies for everyone, surprisingly—but the bruising wasn’t going away any time soon. It was all over his eyes, nose, mouth, and probably under his clothes; he said nothing felt broken or dislocated, he could walk fine, and was concussion free, and so she let him go. It helped to have a nice mom who was also a nurse.

I hopped out of the car and jogged up the steps, using the knocker on the door Mrs. Stanley had thought was adorable, instead of the doorbell. Not that it did much good. It took two more tries and leaning on the doorbell to get someone to answer the door.

It was Mr. Stanley. Last I knew, while his wife was sleeping with her vamp, Mr. Stanley had gone out and found himself a darling vampire—as if that actually existed. He was well into fifties, his wife twenty years younger than him, and had always been on the short side; he was looking a little round in the middle, probably from all the beers he drank, yet still had a full head of graying curls. Usually he was a very happy-go-lucky, energetic person, but today he looked almost dead. There was gray discoloration around his eyes and his lips were blue, but it wasn’t that cold in Forks during November.

He looked positively miserable, and that was a very good sign.

“Can I help you?” he asked. His voice sounded so far away, like he was in a daze. No wonder it took forever to get the door.

I wasn’t sure he recognized me. I didn’t know the story going around Forks’ humans if resistance members were dead or not, but I mustered up as much energy as I could. “Hi Mr. Stanley, is Jessica home?” I asked it the same way I’d asked for as long as we’d been friends; excited, happy. I hope he didn’t hear the fatigue.

“No, sorry. She went out with some friends.”

“Who? Where?”

“I don’t know. Some girl and a few boys; they were taking a trip to Seattle.”

So Jessica was still under thrall. Figures. “Oh, well, how is Mrs. Stanley?”

“Sick. Now go away.” He slammed the door in my face and I raced back to the car.

“Her parents are okay,” I said with true excitement. “Jess went to Seattle with some ‘friends’ so I’m guessing we haven’t found her captor.”

Jared left to interrogate other houses on the street while Red produced the radio each car was given; he turned it on and it was already crackling with reports. Everyone was saying the same thing about the families being sick, looking like death, and suddenly I wondered if we might kill someone by accident. The bond between vamp and bloodwhore was strong. From what Jess told me, it was kind of like finding your soul mate. I didn’t believe it, but I wouldn’t underestimate it. If the vampire died, would the bloodwhore? Hopefully the sickness was temporary and everyone would be okay by tomorrow.

When the radio went quiet, Red pressed the button to talk. “This is Red. Boss, we have a situation, over.”

“What’s the problem?” the radio responded. It sounded like Embry.

“What’s their name?” Red asked me.

“Stanley,” Mr. Crowley replied.

Red spoke to the radio, “The Stanley girl is missing in Seattle, but her parents show signs of the broken bond, over.”

“Just great. The Mallory girl is missing, too.”

I turned in my seat and motioned for the radio. Red gave it up without a word. “Do you think the vampires are calling them?”

“Can they do that from a distance?”

“From what I’ve heard, yeah, they can.” Vampires could call their bloodwhores and Renfields from miles away; it was part of the bond.

“Well, ain’t that the bees knees. But I don’t think that’s what happened. Her mom said she went with some friends.”

“That’s funny; I got the same story from Mr. Stanley. So the vampires know each other too, or else they wouldn’t be working together like this, and we know they belong to Seattle.”

“They’ll probably keep the girls there now that Forks doesn’t belong to them. All right, keep up the good work. Report any more suspicious or missing residents. Over and out.”

I passed the radio back to Red only to be met with a weird look. He seemed to be considering something, and that made me uncomfortable. I knew they were humans, but they were enlisted as muscle, and it just seems weird for muscle to have brains.

“What?” I asked uncomfortably.

“I think I’m surprised,” he replied. “You know a lot about vampires.”

Jared joined the car again, said the families were sick and no one was missing, and I faced the front as Mr. Crowley continued down the street. So far, so good.

“When you were in the military, Red, you tried to learn as much as you could about your enemy before rushing in, right?” I asked. I caught his nod in the mirror. “Well, my entire life has been a continuous learning experience. When your life depends on how well you know the enemy, you soak up all the information you can.”

Red stayed quiet after that, only using the radio when necessary as we finished our rounds. It was hard to tell, but I think I impressed him; judging by the looks of him, that didn’t happen often. Cool.

It was six o’clock in the evening when we finally pulled up to our rendezvous point, the Yorkie’s house. It was empty since Eric and his parents were in Port Angeles, but we were free to use resistance homes as a base. Besides, keeping a key under the welcome mat wasn’t all that smart.

Everyone was already here—we had more stops than the others—and stepping out of the car I could smell something good cooking inside. My stomach rumbled, reminding me that I really had nothing to eat since I left Billy’s. I had slept most of the time in the truck, but I definitely needed a shower. If Mr. Crowley minded me getting his seat dirty, he didn’t say anything.

As soon as I cleared the door, I ditched Mr. Crowley. I didn’t want to watch him look for his son. It was up to the Marine that let Tyler die to deliver the news, but I didn’t know who that was. I’d have Mike point him out if he could, but he was too interested in what was happening in the kitchen.

The Yorkie house was the same as I remembered from my few visits here. White walls, white carpet, with blue curtains on the windows. The only color in the house was the curtains, blue furniture, along with the dark cherry wood doors and trimmings. It was a beautiful house, and I felt kind of bad that we would mess it up, but seeing everyone so at home loosened my anxiety again. People come together in a crisis, even if they are basically strangers.

Mrs. Cheney had everyone eat before they did anything else. Nothing could relax a weary soul like a mom’s cooking. She prepared a huge feast of meat and potatoes, delighting in the way people complimented her. It was no secret that she always wanted a big family, but when Ben passed, she lost the chance of grandchildren. Angela was always considered a part of their family; honestly, I thought she liked Ben’s parents more than she liked her own, although no one could hate her little brothers.

When everyone was stuffed and half asleep, the room filled with a constant low buzz of conversation, the emergency drivers, besides Leah, took off. She was, begrudgingly, helping Sam sort search parties. Jake had his nose stuck in it, too. I heard my name mentioned several times and knew it was a bad sign. But I stayed seated on the sofa, looking out into the night for any movement, and tried to ignore their hushed conversation while waiting for a shower.

Headlights flashed on the street. Everyone who was able to drive had already left; there was no way anyone else would be driving on the roads, as sick as they were. The truck pulled into the driveway, and it wasn’t a vehicle that just left. Sam heard the truck, too, and was already peering into the darkness over my shoulder. I saw the shine of greasy hair and glasses.

“Eric?” I asked out loud. What was he doing here? He was supposed to be in Port Angeles. Was this a trap? I kept an eye on the hurrying figure.

Sam motioned two men on the door, their guns at the ready. I had my pistol ready to be drawn, just in case. The door flung open, and sure enough, scraggly Eric Yorkie ran right into Sam. The big man tried to calm him down; he was spouting random noises that made no sense at all.

“Bella!” Eric panted. “Bella, there’s been an accident!”