Bloodbreeders: Seeking Others (16 page)

The wind was picking up, which seemed to make Jacob and Cates more nervous than what I thought they should have been, until they explained that the wind was blowing our scent in the wrong direction. I got the idea perfectly, being that I’d gone hunting more
than half of my ‘normal life’ with my father and brothers. We stopped running after we were clear of Merna’s land and to an opening where we could see the rogues coming. Some of us took to hiding in the trees with our blades in hand, while the rest found ways to hide in the debris that the forest provided. I crawled into a healthy shrub under the tree that Jacob hid in and then we waited for them to show their selves.

I smelled them before I even heard them, knowing they had to have smelt us, but did they know where we stopped? Two came crashing through and kept going, four more ran into the area and stopped. Death, they smelled like pure, rotting death. When I peered through the bush I could see why. They were drenched in fifth and what had to be old, dried blood, hence the smell of rotten meat. The four stood sniffing the air; all looked very much the same and not one spoke. Their hair was in thick strands of matted knots, and their clothes were mere rags. What I could tell from where I lay hidden was that they were all males. Two more ran in and joined them, causing me to get more uncomfortable by the second.

I looked up as Jacob came flying out of the tree, landing on top of one and slicing open another. The other four turned on him like wild tigers and consumed his body with theirs. We all stepped out and started chopping; it was the best way to describe it. Like Tammy said, these things called ‘rogues’ were nothing close to a normal breeder. Three turned back on us like they never knew that they were wounded, causing me and my little ones to take a step back. It was their eyes that took me by surprise; they were as red as a freshly bloomed rose and glowed in the light of the moon. In my moment of shock one ran right at me, knocking me flat on my back as the other two went for the boys. I blocked my throat with my left arm and drove my blade into his side with my right. He made no response to the piercing of my blade and continued to try and get at my throat. Tammy was trying to rip her blade down the back of the one that was biting on Derek’s collar bone at the same time he was cutting open and spilling the ‘mad’ breeder’s intestine on their feet, yet the rogue held on.

“Hit the spine,” Jacob yelled and pulled his blade from the base of one’s skull as it fell to the ground.

Brandon spun to miss the reaching arms of the one that he had just kicked off and plunged his black blade into the back of the rogues head, snapping it off when he tried to pull it free. I screamed as the rogue got the best of me and sank his fangs first into my arm, and then when I pulled it free, into my neck. I turned my blade and ripped it out of his side, feeling the warm sensation of his blood sliding down my body and covering the ground seconds before I felt his head press harder into my neck. He stopped drinking my fluid and just laid there frozen with his teeth in my body. His body started lifting off of mine and I screamed again as his teeth tore through the soft tissue of my neck. Cates, like the giant he was, towered over me, holding a very dead rogue with his silver dagger sticking out of the back of his head. Garvin and Sydney came back in as the last rogue fell at Jacob’s feet and dropped the two that had ran through, both bleeding from bite marks. Cates and Jacob were the only two that didn’t have some kind of a mark from the once raving mad breeders.

“That wasn’t so hard,” Derek said sitting up and grabbing his badly mangled shoulder. “I think it bit right through the bone.”

“They didn’t even have weapons,” I said getting to my feet.

“They were insane. We did them a favor,” Tammy replied, acting lower than I had ever seen her.

“Are you alright?” I asked walking over to her, where she was inspecting the bite mark on her arm.

“My brother was a rogue.”

“You had a bother that was a breeder?”

“
Had
, being the best word. Cortez let that doctor take him shortly after he turned us. My brother was supposed to be trained for heavy work, like every male was, but Cortez was offered a price he couldn’t refuse. I couldn’t tell you how many years passed, before I overheard the two of them talking about the test making my brother insane and how he almost escaped and had to be
put down
, as the doctor put it,” she paused and took in a deep breath. “Will life ever be anything more than this?”

“We’re working on it,” I smiled, holding my throat. “I’m sorry that you had to hear that about your brother.”

“You’re bleeding badly,” she said as soon as she looked at me.

“It’ll stop,” I said softly. “When the time comes and my brother loses his mind to the world of the insane, I may come to you in my time of need.”

“It may never come to that,” she smiled back at me. “Now let me have a look at that neck.”

On the way back to check on the boat, my mind went through everything that had happened in the last few days, and I found myself disbelieving my own thoughts. I kept asking myself why it was so hard to believe that the dead could walk when here I stood, not sure whether or not I too fit in that category, and I’m sure I did in the eyes of the normal world.  Breeders gone mad, and carrying a well-placed name, the rogues. To me they were worse than those who walked with decay, because they hungered and they moved with a speed to match my own. I now without any form of doubt believed in the art of witchcraft, and preferred to leave it to those who chose to deal in such things. I saw what it can do and see no use of its unnecessary means. In reality it is a more complicated art of the dark magic. Call it what you will, but witchcraft leaves a stain on it all.

“My boat!” Sydney yelled bringing me back into my senses.

I took off running with the rest only to stand on the shore to witness the tip of Sydney’s boat sticking out of the water. He dropped to his knees and threw his hands in the air. Garvin went up to him and placed his hand on the top of his head, but this time Sydney pushed it away. He got to his feet and started walking down the shore. I grabbed Garvin’s arm when he started to go after him and shook my head.

“How far do we have to go?” I asked.

“Because our homes entrance is gained by the water, there is no road by which we can move faster,” Jacob explained leaning down to wash his hands in the salty water.

“Yeah, but how far?” I asked a second time.

“Two nights walk.”

“If we leave now,” Cates added, intentionally making a point.

“Then lead the way. I’m not the only one standing around here,” I snapped glaring over at him.

“We await your move, no matter your liking of that fact, or not,” he snapped back.

“Then shut the hell up, Cates, I have a headache and my neck feels like someone took a huge chunk out of it…oh wait, they did.” Then I turned around and walked off, leaving everyone to make their own decision as to whether to follow me or not.

“Renee,” Jacob called out as my little ones started to follow me.

“What?” I replied, spinning around.

“You are going in the wrong direction. We live this way,” he said pointing down the shore, opposite the way I was going.

“Son-of-a-bitch,” I muttered, gritting my teeth with every step it took to turn and go back the other way.

I must have walked five miles before I spoke to anyone. I weaved through the trees on the shore line, staying out of sight of any passersby. Sydney had calmed down about the loss of his father’s boat and was back to talking to Garvin and the boys. It seemed that everyone knew that I wanted to be left alone, because they all stayed several feet back. I wanted to be back with my brother and figure out what we were going to do next. Shyanna hopped behind me, not letting me get more than two or three feet away. Once or twice she took to the sky when a flock of birds would take flight at our passing. All the papers that we had taken from the doctor went down with the boat and all my hopes of learning anything sank with it. My mind kept seeing Johnny thirty years from now acting like the rogues that attacked us, and a morbidly sick feeling gripped my stomach.

Cates and Jacob took off running into the thick pines, and the others caught up to me. Garvin explained that they were going to seek out a shelter for the day, while we continued to make our way down the shore line. Brandon and Derek kept looking at me when they thought that I wasn’t paying them any mind. I knew that they were worried that Yvette’s blood had taken my mind again. This time I wouldn’t have cared if that had been the case. I looked back at Derek the next time he looked at me and winked. He smiled so big that I could see his fangs shining in the light of moon.

“You feel better now?” he asked almost running into a tree.

“Watch it,” I said pulling him over a step to miss it.

“That was close.”

“Yeah, this is thick.”

“But, you’re okay now?” he asked again this time watching where he was going.

“I’m fine. Just have a lot on my mind.”

“I don’t think much at all anymore. I like to keep my mind blank.”

“How, Derek? I have things running through my mind that just pops up without me even wanting to think about it.”

“I place a black cloak over my thoughts and they just go away.”

“But doesn’t that harden your heart?” Tammy asked overhearing our conversation.

“Doesn’t matter, if it stops the pain.” Then he walked a little faster, until he was far ahead of us.

“I didn’t mean to upset him,” Tammy said stopping by a tree.

“You didn’t. He can say all he wants that he doesn’t think, because that just proves that he still does.”

“Looks like everyone is gathering up there, we better go see what’s going on,” Tammy added pushing off from the tree and gently running my braid through her hand as she walked by. “The sun will be up soon. I’m so tired I could just dig a hole, right here.” Then she giggled and walked off.

I stood there watching them look back at me, wondering at how strangely things had turned out. We started out as a group of children not knowing what we were doing, and now we stood strong, cutting our way through as we go and taking down all who stood in our way. My boys have grown and no longer resemble the orphans that I found on the beach in Corpus, back in Texas, which seemed like a hundred years ago. I could only imagine the changes in myself outwardly, but the inside was quickly becoming as dark as the night that we lived in. I felt no remorse for those that I’d killed and wished to seek others in need of our help. How many lay in the pits of hell? How many where being tortured as we made our way back home? And how long would it take to stop what is thought of as normal to the creatures that I became?

“Renee, please join us,” Jacob called out, waving his hand for me to hurry.

“Yeah,” I called back and ran up to them. “What ya got?”

“A cave, but, we must hurry. Cates is building a fire as we speak.”

“A cave? Is that safe from the sun?” I asked a bit concerned.

“If we stay to the very back it should be,” he replied, then turned to head into the woods.

“Your basing this on a,
should be
?” I called out and took off after him.

We ran several hundred yards before we broke through the trees at the base of a mountain. The opening was small, barely big enough for a good size man, which made me wonder how Cates got in. About that time he stuck his head out and said to grab wood on our way in, then disappeared back into the cave. We all grabbed a handful and entered the opening. Tammy was having the hardest time. “Take the wood,” she said handing it to Brandon. She grabbed her breasts and pushed them up and slid right in.

“These are more trouble than they’re worth,” she laughed.

“That depends on who is speaking, My Lady,” Cates smiled, causing her to blush.

“Yet, you wouldn’t place your hands on them to help me through the window,” Tammy replied tilting her head slightly, then walking further into the cave.

“Well, I guess she just told you. You know that’s the second time that I’ve seen you speechless. I think you’re coming around to my world, Cates.” I smiled then turned leaving him with his mouth slightly open and still just as speechless as he was when I first started talking to him.

The cave didn’t go back very far and made me want to rethink our stay here. I for one thought about the reach of the sun on the caves floor in front of the entrance. Jacob and Cates both assured me that little would penetrate because of the direction the cave faced, and the heavy cover of the pines. All I thought about was the way clouds broke through and could burn my flesh. The sun was rising. I found no trust in an open door, whether it’s a house, ship, or an opening of a cave. Brandon was the first to notice me checking the dirt floor in the back. What he didn’t know was that I was going over every angle that I thought the light might come in as it moved across the sky.

“You look really drained.”

“You just got used to seeing me red,” I smiled.

“Renee, I’m serious. You look really pale,” Brandon claimed stepping up closer.

“Do you think this cave is safe?” I asked changing the subject.

“Brandon, you and Derek come help me break some branches. We’ll cover the opening,” Jacob said overhearing what I had said.

“Better hurry times running short,” Garvin added sitting down and adding a piece of wood to the fire that Cates had made.

“That’s right. I’ll go with you,” I said as I headed for the opening.

“I’ll go,” Cates said stepping in front of me. “You don’t look so well.”

“I think everyone’s had a hard week,” I replied holding the soaked cloth to my neck, and doing my best to not make eye contact.

“You should rest.”

“And you should go fetch some thick brush and make it as dark as humanly possible.” I walked over and sat down by Garvin and watched as he and Jacob slid out of sight.

“They better be quick, I can barely hold my eyes open,” Sydney said laying over where he had become comfortable at the very back of the small, dry cave.

“I’m going to go lay down, you gonna be alright?” Tammy asked stopping in front of me.

“Yeah, I’m just tuckered out. Save me a good spot,” I laughed.

“You can have the dirt right next to mine,” she winked and headed back.

“That was good,” Sydney laughed rolling over, putting his back to the rest of us.

Sydney was crowded in with Derek and Brandon, with Tammy at their heads. Jacob and Cates were putting the last branches that were full of pine nettles, making it look like it should keep out the light, but I still had my doubts. Cates laid right down next to Tammy, actually turning on his side in a spooning fashion. I looked at Jacob who was sitting with me in front of the fire that was more for our vision than comfort, because the cold was not a bother.

“It’s getting light out…
really
light,” I said in an almost whisper.

“Now that everyone is in the slumber, remove the cloth.” Jacob leaned over and pulled my hand down.

I pulled my black shirt back from my upper chest and showed him where my blood had been soaking through, seeping from the bite on my neck. My arm had stopped bleeding as we walked some three miles back down the shore, but this one just kept oozing. Jacob, without hesitation bit down into his own wrist and said, “Take of me.”

“I will not.”

“You will soon fall to the call of the day,” he said moving my hair to the side. “You should have said something.”

“And do what?”

“This,” he said pushing his bleeding wrist up to my hand. “You need to feed.”

I raised his wrist to my mouth as my eyes stayed locked on his. I drank until the fire that was burning in my veins calmed, and he began to pull away. It wasn’t long until I could feel his gift giving me back my strength and the wound on my neck stopped bleeding. Jacob slid back into the curve of the caves wall and leaned his head back. I was fixing to ask him if I had taken too much when a shot of light pierced through a hole in the pines. “Jacob!” He grabbed my arm and pulled me to the other side of him, placing me in the darker part of the cave. More light penetrated and streaks ran across the first half of the floor.

“I don’t want to burn,” I whispered turning my face into the stone wall, shutting my eyes tightly, waiting to burst into flames.

“It will come no further,” Jacob said wrapping his arms around me. “The clouds reflected the rays from the setting sun and burned you. This is merely the light that grips the day.”

“Why do I feel so vulnerable right now?”

“Because, you are just a child to the darkness, and have learned things that your former self would have never contemplated.”

“Just tell me that it can’t get any worse.”

“It is not in my nature to lie.”

Our conversation ended with his last statement. I had wanted to respond, but my precious sleep took me away from it all.