The Recruit: Book One (11 page)

Hannah screamed and shoved as hard as she could.  The rebar
slid through his chest like butter and as he fell back, he made a low gurgling
scream.  His body burst into ash and the other vampire looked up from where he
was feasting on Selena.

“Bitch.”  It snarled and leaped on her.  Hannah screamed as
he sunk his fangs into the base of her neck and began to drink.  The door to
the bathroom burst open for a second time and a huge, snarling, wolf bounded
into the small bathroom. 

The vampire looked up, his mouth ringed with Hannah’s blood,
and hissed like a cat.  He backed into the corner and hissed again as the wolf,
its fur standing up on its neck and its large sharp teeth glinting in the light,
growled menacingly.

“I do not fear you, Lycan.”  The vampire spat.  He ran
towards the wolf, and with a loud howl of rage the wolf leaped forward.  It stood
up on its hind legs and with one swipe of its paw, tore the head off the
vampire.  The head tumbled to the ground and spun across the floor under the
stall, coming to rest next to the toilet.

As the body burst into a fine, cloudy ash, the wolf dropped
to all fours and lifted its snout to the ceiling.  It howled loudly, the small
room nearly vibrating with the sound, and Hannah clapped her hands over her
ears, wincing.

“No, please.”  She whispered as the wolf advanced towards
her.  Moaning, weak from blood loss, she sat up and pedaled frantically with
her feet, shoving her butt along the floor until her back hit the wall.

“Please don’t.”  She breathed and closed her eyes as the
wolf stopped in front of her.  Its head was twice the size of hers and she
flinched when it snuffed at her neck, blowing the hair back from her face and
neck.  It surprised her by licking gently at her neck where the vampire had
bitten her, and she opened her eyes to see it staring at her.  Its yellow eyes
were strangely familiar. 

“Will?”  She whispered.  He whined and she closed her eyes
again.

“Hannah?”

She opened her eyes and Will was squatting in front of her. 
“Honey, are you okay?”

She nodded and let her eyes slip shut. The adrenaline was
draining from her body, and she felt cold and weak.  He patted her cheek
lightly.  “Open your eyes.”

“Tired.”  She whispered.

“I know honey, but I need you to look at me.”

She forced her eyelids up and stared at him. 

“We need to leave.  Can you stand?”

She nodded and he helped her to her feet.  She staggered and
he braced her against his naked body. 

“Oh my God.”  She whispered when she saw the small, crumpled
figure on the floor next to the door.  “Selena!  Will – help her!”

He left her leaning against the wall and crouched next to
Selena, his fingers looking for her pulse.  He looked at Hannah and she could
have sobbed with relief when he smiled.

“She’s still alive.”

He stood as the door opened and Jeremy, bleeding heavily
from a gash on his forehead, stumbled into the room.  “Hannah!  Hannah – are
you okay?”

She nodded as he ran to her and cupped her shoulders.  “Oh
thank God.”  He whispered and kissed her forehead.  “There was a werewolf.  It
ran in here.”

He looked behind him as Will picked up Selena.  He handed
her off to Jeremy who took her with a soft grunt.

Jeremy studied Will for a moment.  “You’re the werewolf.”

Will didn’t answer him.  Instead, he crossed the room and
picked up Hannah.  She clung to him, burying her face in his neck and breathing
in his familiar scent

He left the bathroom and Hannah opened her eyes, her breath
catching in her throat at the carnage surrounding them.  There were dead bodies
littered everywhere.  Not a single person outside of their group had survived
the attack, and Hannah’s stomach rolled with nausea at the sight of so many
dead bodies.

Tyler, his face pale and sick looking, was carrying Alison
towards the front door.  Mannie, covered in blood and ash, was lifting Frank
over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry.  Frank hung limply and Hannah looked at
Will, the question evident in her eyes.

“No, honey.  I’m sorry.  He didn’t make it.”  She dropped
her head to his shoulder and started crying weakly.

“Close your eyes.”  He whispered as he carried her towards the
front door.  She did as he instructed, keeping her eyes tightly closed as he
walked through the bar.  He walked out the front door, and she shivered when
the cool air hit her bare skin.

He climbed into the van without letting her go, and she felt
him settle into a seat as he shifted her on his lap.  The others climbed in
after them, and Mannie started the van as sirens were heard in the distance.

“What the fuck was that, Will?”  Hannah could hear the panic
in Mannie’s voice.  “There were too many of them to be a coincidence.”

“Get us home, Mannie.”  Will murmured.  “As fast as you
can.”

The van began to move and Hannah curled her body into Will’s. 
He rubbed her back soothingly and she let herself drift into the darkness.

Hannah groaned and opened her eyes.  She stared blearily at
the unfamiliar ceiling before rubbing her eyes with her fists.  With a sudden
rush, she remembered everything that had happened and she sat up straight in
the bed, her hand rising to her throat.

“Will!”  She gasped.

“You’re okay, Hannah.  Lay back down.”

She looked at Barb, who was sitting beside her on the bed.

“Will.”  She repeated herself.  “Is he okay?”

“He’s fine.”  Barb soothed.  She pushed gently at Hannah’s
shoulder.  “Lie back please.”

Hannah collapsed back on the bed as Barb felt her forehead
and then peeled back the bandage on her neck.  She made a soft tutting noise
under her breath, and carefully removed the tape before dabbing antiseptic on
the wounds.

“Where am I?”  Hannah’s voice was hoarse and Barb handed her
a glass of water.  She lifted her head and took careful sips as she glanced
around the room.

It was a large bachelor’s suite.  One section of the room
was obviously the living area with a small couch facing a wall that had a gas fireplace
and a TV mounted on the wall above it.  Bookshelves, crammed with books,
flanked the fireplace, and there was an oversized easy chair to the left of the
couch.

The bed she was lying in was nestled in a small nook in the
wall.  To her left were two doors.  She could just see the bathroom sink and
shower through the open door of the one closest to the bed. 

There was a tiny kitchen, equipped with smaller-than-average
appliances, and a short granite counter top with bright white cabinets above
and below the counter.  There was a narrow eating bar, its surface covered in
matching granite, with two black leather stools tucked neatly under it.

“You’re in Will’s living quarters.”  Barb said solemnly. 
“He brought you up here and insisted we keep you here.”

“The others?”  Hannah whispered, almost afraid to know.

Barb sighed again.  “Frank is dead.  They drained him before
Mannie and Will could save him.  Jeremy is fine, as is Tyler.  Selena lost a
lot of blood but she’s recovering nicely.  Alison is – she was drained nearly empty
and she’s in a coma.  We’re not sure if she’s going to survive or not.”

Hannah could see tears in Barb’s eyes, and she reached out
and squeezed her hand.  Barb squeezed back and then smiled at her.  “You’ll be
okay too.  A day or two of rest, and you’ll be back to normal.”

She took the now-empty glass from Hannah and set it on the
small bedside table.  “Do you want something to eat?  I can bring you something
from the kitchen, or I can make you something here.  The instructors all have
food in their living quarters.”

Hannah shook her head as there was a soft knock at the door
and Jeremy stuck his head in.  He smiled delightedly when he saw she was
awake. 

“Hey, HB.”  He crossed the room and sat down beside her on
the bed opposite from Barb, taking her hand in his.

“How do you feel?”

She shrugged.  “Okay.  Tired.”

He glanced at Barb, who gathered the tape and bandage and
stood.  “I’ll just be in the kitchen if you need me.”

Jeremy smiled at Hannah again.  “You’re a sight for sore
eyes.  Will squirreled you away, and wouldn’t let any of us come see you.”

“How long have I been out for?”  She sat up a bit, wincing,
and Jeremy helped pile pillows behind her back.

“Sixteen hours, give or take.”  He stared solemnly at her. 
“I was worried about you.”

“I’m fine.  Have you seen Selena?”

He nodded.  “Yep.  She was sleeping but she’s starting to
get some colour back, and Richard says she should make a full recovery.”

“Good.”  Hannah sighed.  “What happened out there, Jeremy?”  She
whispered.  “How did you survive?”

He shrugged.  “When the emergency lights came on, the
vampires had already killed half of us.  There was one coming towards me.  They’re
so quick, I didn’t even have time to run, and suddenly Mannie was there.”

He wiped a slightly-shaking hand across his forehead.  “You
should have seen him, Hannah.  What he shows us in the training?  It’s only a
quarter of what he can do.  He’s human, at least I think he is, but he moved
nearly as fast as those goddamn vampires.  He had broken off two table legs,
and he used one of them to stake the vampire about to attack me.  He tossed the
other one at me, told me to ‘do my best’ and then just went into killing mode.”

He stopped again, swallowing loudly, and Hannah took his
hand in hers.  “I managed to kill one, more from luck than any type of skill,
but even with Mannie moving as fast as he was, we were losing.  A vampire
attacked Mannie from behind, was about to rip his head from his shoulders, when
there was this - this growling and the vampire’s head went flying across the
room.  Next thing you know there’s a fucking werewolf in the bar.”

He glanced at her.  “I had no idea at the time that it was
Will.  He moved through the bar, taking out the vampires left and right.  He
was so fucking fast.  He killed three of them in less than twenty seconds.  The
remaining two fled the bar, and then Will took off at full speed into the
bathroom.  I guess he figured it was the only place you and Selena could be.”

He paused and squeezed her hand.  “I can’t believe you
survived.”

“I killed one of them.”  She could feel her lips trembling
and she took a deep breath.  “There was a piece of rebar under the counter.  I
used it to kill one of the vampires, and then Will came in and killed the other
one.”

“Lucky.”  He whispered and she nodded.

“Okay, Jeremy.  You should go.  Hannah needs to rest.”  Barb
called softly from the kitchen.

He nodded and leaned forward to kiss Hannah on the mouth. 
She turned her face so he grazed her cheek instead, and he gave her a small
smile.

“I’m glad you’re okay, Hannah.”

“I’m glad you’re okay too, Jeremy.  I’ll see you later?”

She nodded as he stood and left the room.

“Hannah, I should probably get back to the infirmary but I
can stay if you would prefer some company?”  Barb asked.

Hannah shook her head and swung her legs over the bed.  She
stood, swaying slightly, feeling a little lightheaded but not as much as she
thought she would.  She glanced down at herself, her face drawing down in a
little moue of disgust.  She was still wearing the clothes from the bar, and
they were crusted with the blood of the vampire she had killed.

“Do you think Will would mind if I used his shower?”  She
asked Barb.

Barb shook her head.  “No.  Have a hot shower and have
something to eat.  Promise me, okay?”

“I will.” 

Barb kissed her on the cheek and pointed to a phone hooked
up to a wall next to the door.

“If you need anything, just pick up the phone and dial zero.
 You’ll go through to security.”

“Thanks, Barb.”  Hannah said gratefully.

“You’re welcome, love.  Try and get some more rest.”

* * *

Will sighed harshly as he headed down the hall to his living
quarters.  He had overheard Barb telling Richard half an hour ago that Hannah
had woken and was doing well.  Although he was happy she was recovering, a part
of him was disappointed she had woken so soon.

He hadn’t even been back to his living quarters since he had
dropped her on his bed and told Barb not to move her.  She would be back in the
dorms by now, and after what had happened at the bar he had selfishly hoped to
have her to himself for a while.  She had come close to dying last night and it
had scared him badly.  He refused to dwell too deeply on why exactly he had
been so scared.  Instead, he told himself it was because of the time and effort
they had put into training the new recruits.  To lose a group of the most
promising recruits they had seen in a long time would be a blow to the program.

He unlocked his door and slipped inside.  He would have a
hot shower, eat something and then check on the recruits in their dorms before
getting some much-needed sleep. 

Hannah
.  
You’ll check on Hannah
.

He slipped his boots off and was starting for the bathroom
door when he realized he wasn’t alone.  Hannah, her long hair loose and damp
around her shoulders, was sitting in the large easy chair.  Her feet were
tucked up under her, and she had taken the afghan from the couch and draped it
over her lap.  She was holding a book and staring at him.

“Hi.”  She smiled tentatively at him.

“You’re still here.”  He blurted out.  He could have slapped
himself when she immediately blushed and untangled herself from the blanket.

“I’m sorry.  I can go back to my dorm room.”  She stood and
began to nervously fold the afghan.

“You don’t have to – that isn’t what I meant.  I was just
surprised – “

“No, no, that’s okay.  You’re tired and I should probably
check on –“