Slayers (Jake Hawkins Book 1) (15 page)

*

Link decelerated and pulled around the corner. The Audi entered a dilapidated neighbourhood, made up of rundown houses with boarded windows and lawns with knee-high grass.

“
Are we close?
”
Jake asked. He was scared out of his mind, and reluctant to leave the car.

“
Yes,
”
Link said.
“
Crank found the claw marks all over an abandoned two-storey house up ahead. He searched inside, but he found nothing.
”

“
Then what are we doing here?
”

“
Double-checking.
”

Jake lurched forward as Link pressed down on the brake. They pulled up on the side of the road. He looked out the passenger seat window at a house that was literally falling apart. Rotted wood hung jaggedly from the framework. All of the windows facing the street had mouldy planks nailed across them. The concrete footpath leading to the front porch was cracked and broken. The house was shrouded in darkness. Widely interspersed street lights provided a soft amber glow that did nothing but exacerbate the shadows.

Jake followed Link
’
s lead, getting out of the car and meeting him on the footpath. His chest was rising and falling heavily as he tried to combat the nerves. The street was dead silent.

“
So there
’
s a slayer in there?
”
Jake said.

“
You
’
re overthinking things, my friend,
”
Link said.
“
Remember what I told you. It
’
s probably nothing. But we
’
re desperate for any sign of a slayer right now. There hasn
’
t been much activity over the past few months.
”

“
Wolfe thinks Archfiend is up to something.
”

“
Indeed he does.
”

Link began to walk along the path that wound up to the house. He strode purposefully, confident. It gave Jake a sense of calm.

Link tried the door. It was firmly locked. Without a word, he drew a pistol and a hefty flashlight from his belt and retreated back a step.

“
If there
’
s anything in here, this is going to get it
’
s attention,
”
he said.
“
Jake, keep your head up and your reflexes sharp. Just in case anything gets past me. Stay behind me at all times. Got it?
”

“
Uh-huh,
”
Jake said, his pistol now drawn too. He couldn
’
t manage much else.

“
Okay, here we go, in three
…
two
…
one
…”

After a beat, Link kicked the centre of the door. It snapped off its rusty hinges, fell inwards and crashed down onto the floorboards, sending up a billowing cloud of dust. Jake watched him storm in through the opening. He followed suit, dashing over the porch and entering the house.

Deafening silence.

As the dust settled, Jake found himself suddenly alone. He bit his tongue to keep from panicking.

There was no sign of Link. He heard footsteps from inside the house. The narrow beam of Link
’
s flashlight glanced over one of the doorways. He was somewhere inside, searching the rooms. Jake fumbled with his torch until it finally came on, illuminating the black hallway.

“
Okay,
”
he muttered to himself, seized by panic.
“
Okay, okay.
”

Despite his fear, he didn
’
t want to simply stand in the hallway while Link cleared the rooms. He wanted to be useful. Despite every nerve in his body telling him to run, he stood his ground.

There were two rooms branching off from the hallway. Link hadn
’
t checked them, opting instead to move deep into the bowels of the house. Jake moved into the room on the left and cast his flashlight over its contents, from left to right.

The only sound came from his heartbeat echoing in his ears, like a deep bass drum.

Doom-doom, doom-doom.

Cardboard boxes. A bed frame leaning against the wall.

Doom-doom, doom-doom.

A patch of dark liquid on the floor. And next to that, the beam briefly passed something that moved.

There was a low growl.

“
Link!
”
Jake screamed.

He barely had time to register the slayer before it pounced across the room and slammed into him, shouldering him out into the hallway. He lost his grip on the pistol and it clattered to the floor.

The slayer scuttled out of the doorway. Jake took in its bald head, bulging eyes and bare torso. It was wearing nothing more than a pair of dusty old pants. It stood over him, snarling. Jake felt his memory rewind back to the alleyway, where a similar scenario had occurred. This time was different, though. He wouldn
’
t let it get the better of him.

He scrambled to his feet, and the slayer charged. Jake ducked instinctively. A clawed hand passed centimetres over his scalp. Then suddenly he was level with the slayer, standing side by side. It whipped around. He punched it hard in the face, feeling his fist make contact with its cheekbone. As it fell back, stunned, he reached for a knife.

A fatal mistake. It noticed him fumbling at the holster on his belt. Still growling, the slayer swung its right arm back, claws outstretched. Jake realised he was about to be disembowelled. There was nothing he could do about it.

The slayer lunged forward, and suddenly there was a blur of movement and Link was there, wrapping a powerful arm around its neck and wrenching it back away from Jake. He had come from behind. He threw the slayer brutally into the ground. Jake dashed back away from the fight.

Link came down on top of the slayer. He used the opportunity to drive a knee down into its chest. It would have shattered a man
’
s ribcage, but the slayer threw Link away and clambered to its feet.

Jake noticed a combat knife had suddenly appeared in Link
’
s hand. He hadn
’
t even seen him draw it. In one fluid movement, Link threw himself across the tight confines of the hallway and drove the knife deep into the slayer
’
s chest.

There was a moment of silence amidst the chaos. The slayer looked down and saw the hilt protruding from its left pectoral. It had a strange expression on its face. It knew it was mortally wounded.

Link wrapped two hands around the slayer
’
s throat and thrust it up against the wall.

“
Where
’
s Archfiend?!
”
he yelled into its face.
“
Huh?! Where
’
s your leader?!
”

Jake was taken aback by the outburst. He had never seen Link this enraged. It was completely out of character.

“
Link
…”
he said.

The slayer lunged at Link with outstretched hands, in its last, desperate throes. Link stepped back, out of reach. He pulled the sole remaining pistol from his belt and shot it once in the head. It slumped to the floor.

Link stood panting in the hallway, his face red with anger.

“
Let
’
s go,
”
he said. He stepped outside.

Jake followed, confused, but thought it best not to ask questions. As he walked out, he closed the front door behind him. The slayer
’
s corpse lay motionless in the middle of the hallway.

Link had returned to normal by the time they reached the Audi. The rage previously plastered across his face had dissolved, yet he remained expressionless. Jake was suddenly wary. He had never seen anyone in the gang act so impulsively before.

“
Are you hurt?
”
Link said, detached.

“
No, I don
’
t think so,
”
Jake said.
“
This adrenaline won
’
t wear off for a while, but I think I
’
m fine.
”

His hands were shaking uncontrollably.

“
I barely got there in time,
”
Link said.
“
Next time, try and stick right behind me.
”

“
I don
’
t know what happened. I followed you into the hallway, and then you were gone. I
’
m sorry.
”

“
Yeah, your brain was probably in overdrive. Adrenaline does that to you, man. You should count yourself lucky you
’
re still alive.
”

As they got into the car, Link took a moment to exhale and run a hand through his short hair. Then his phone began to buzz. Link glanced at the contact details, and answered on speakerphone.

“
Wolfe,
”
he said.
“
What is it?
”

“
Did you find anything?
”
Wolfe
’
s voice sounded rushed, like he was stressed.

“
A stray slayer. It ambushed us, but we dealt with it. The rest of the house is empty.
”

“
Is the kid okay?
”

“
I
’
m fine,
”
Jake said.

“
That
’
s good, that
’
s really good,
”
Wolfe said, seemingly to himself.
“
Okay, now stay exactly where you are, guys. We
’
re all coming to you.
”

“
What?
”
Link said.
“
Why?
”

“
Sam picked up a ping on the radar. One of the motion trackers you put down in the Dandenong Ranges. He just went to check it out and he
’
s found a huge amount of activity in a warehouse. We need the whole team for this, Link.
”

There was a pause, and what Wolfe said next sent a bolt of terror down Jake
’
s spine.

“
We think we know where Archfiend is.
”

“
This is big,
”
Link said.

They were sitting in the Audi, now parked several streets away from the abandoned house. Link had driven to a new location, warranting someone had heard the commotion.

Ten minutes had elapsed since they had killed the slayer, and Jake was beginning to realise just how close he had come to death. The energy high had dissipated into pulse-quickening fear. If it wasn
’
t for Link, he wouldn
’
t be sitting here right now. He was determined not to make a mistake like that again.

“
Why didn
’
t Wolfe elaborate?
”
Jake asked.
“
Why didn
’
t he tell us what Sam found?
”

“
I don
’
t think he wants us jumping to conclusions. I don
’
t think they
’
re sure what it is Sam saw.
”

They sat back and observed their surroundings for a while, waiting patiently for the rest of the team to show up. Eventually, Jake found the courage to ask the question that had been bothering him.

“
What the hell happened back there, Link?
”

“
What do you mean?
”

“
You know what I mean. Your outburst. You know slayers can
’
t talk. You know they can
’
t understand us, but you still shoved it into the wall and screamed in its face. Why?
”

There was a pause. Jake looked over to see Link staring into space, his gaze transfixed on the steering wheel. He got a shock as he saw a single tear roll down the man
’
s cheek.

“
I was angry,
”
Link said, his voice trembling.
“
I
’
m always angry, whenever I come across one. I can
’
t help myself. I just need to know where Archfiend is.
”

“
So does the rest of the team
…”

Link shook his head.
“
Not like me.
”

“
Why do you need to find him so bad?
”

“
Because I need answers.
”

Jake cocked his head.
“
Answers to what?
”

Link turned. For the first time since he had joined the gang, Jake saw real emotion in the man
’
s eyes. A deep sorrow was nagging away at him.

“
I
’
ll tell you,
”
he said.
“
You
’
re a good kid, Jake. Can I trust you?
”

“
You can trust me,
”
Jake re-iterated.

Link nodded.

“
Seventeen years ago, I was barely an adult, living at home with my father. Mum got a divorce when I was ten. I haven
’
t heard from her since. I had a close relationship with my dad. Despite the fact that he spent most of his life at work, we maintained a strong bond. He was an aeronautics engineer. He worked for a big Japanese engineering company, which meant sometimes he had to leave for days at a time. It was good pay, so we lived comfortably in a house on the outskirts of Tokyo.

“
Despite what you might think, English wasn
’
t my first language. I was born and raised in Japan, but in case you haven
’
t realised yet, I
’
m pretty smart. I was fluent in English by age twelve.
”

“
Jesus,
”
Jake said.
“
I don
’
t think I was fluent in English by age twelve.
”

Link smiled briefly, then the warm expression vanished.
“
So seventeen years ago, in the middle of the night, I was downstairs in the living room watching television. Dad had just come back from a three-week sales trip, but from the moment he returned, he seemed distant. Usually, after a long trip, he would take me out to dinner. That didn
’
t happen. As soon as he walked in the door he hurried straight up to his office and slammed the door. He didn
’
t say one word to me.
”

“
I know how that feels,
”
Jake said.

Link paused.
“
Family problems?
”

“
That
’
s partly why I
’
m here.
”

Link nodded before continuing.
“
Shortly after, Archfiend burst through the front door. It was the single most terrifying experience of my life. I
’
ll always remember the cold smile on his face when he saw me. Before I could move, he pounced on me and pinned me to the ground.

“‘
Where
’
s your father?
’
he hissed in my face.

“
No matter how scared I was, I wasn
’
t going to give my dad up. Any amount of time that would stall this monster was time that my father could spend escaping. That proved to be useless, though. He decided to come barrelling down the stairs with a twelve gauge shotgun. He missed the first shot. That was enough. Archfiend tore his head off in one swipe.
”

“
Oh my god,
”
Jake muttered.

“
I was paralysed in shock. Archfiend stormed straight back out of the house, his work obviously done. And I followed him.

“
I left my entire life behind that night, and I don
’
t regret it. For weeks on end I tracked Archfiend across the country. He led me all the way to Australia. I managed to bribe my way into a last-minute ticket on the commercial plane he had stashed himself underneath. And I didn
’
t stop there.

“
Here in Melbourne, I watched him enter a house much like the one we just hit, and I ran inside, knowing next to nothing about slayers, expecting to confront him. I came face to face with a dozen slayers, and that
’
s when I knew my luck had run out.
”

“
How did you get away?
”
Jake asked.

“
Archfiend tied me up. He spared me, at least for a brief period of time. Half an hour later, Wolfe
’
s team rushed in and shot the place to pieces. By sheer coincidence, they had been staking the hideout for weeks beforehand. They saw me run in and decided to act. It was their first hunt ever. Archfiend got away, but they saved my life, just as Wolfe saved yours. And just like you, they realised my potential and took me in. I wasn
’
t the best fighter, but they taught me to be. Above all though, I could
track.
They couldn
’
t believe I had chased Archfiend halfway around the globe.
”

Jake couldn
’
t hide his surprise.
“
And that
’
s why you need to find Archfiend. You need to know why he killed your father.
”

“
Bingo,
”
Link said.
“
Dad did
…
something. Something bad enough to make Archfiend want to kill him. And I need to know exactly what that was.
”

“
None of the others know this happened?
”

Link shook his head.
“
I don
’
t want to tell them. All they care about is their operation. Those guys, they only work in numbers, and statistics. How many slayers we need to kill. How efficient our methods are. They
’
ll call me stupid. They'll tell me to forget about it.
”
He trailed off.
“
All I want is answers.
”

“
I hope you get them, Link. Honestly, I do.
”

“
I
’
m going to find Archfiend, and then I
’
m going to find out exactly why he did what he did on that night. Either that, or I
’
m going to die trying.
”

Link
’
s voice was filled with raw anger. Jake could sense the man
’
s bitter frustration.

“
You haven
’
t come across Archfiend once in the past seventeen years?
”
he said. No-one had ever clarified that.

“
Oh, we
’
ve found him alright,
”
Link said.
“
It
’
s the killing part that we struggle with. We
’
ve ambushed him more than ten times. He gets away every single time. It
’
s a miracle that he hasn
’
t killed any of us yet.
”

“
Do you think we
’
ll find him tonight?
”

“
Let
’
s hope so. On that note, buddy, here comes the cavalry.
”

A black Mercedes van pulled up behind them. It flashed its headlights twice.

“
I hope we can keep this private, Jake,
”
Link said.

Jake nodded.
“
No problems. Your secret
’
s safe with me.
”

They exited the Audi and walked towards the van. Jake approached with caution. The rear doors swung open from the inside, revealing Wolfe, Felix, Sam and Thorn crouching within, checking their weapons. All four men were clad in black combat gear. Looking past them, Jake saw Crank
’
s blond hair sticking up from the driver
’
s seat.

“
I hear you
’
ve had a run-in with a slayer,
”
Wolfe said.

“
It was crazy,
”
Jake said.

“
It
’
s about to get a whole lot crazier,
”
Felix said.
“
Get in.
”

Jake clambered up into the van.