The Hunt
Authors: Amy Meredith
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Version 1.0
Epub ISBN 9781407075778
DARK TOUCH: THE HUNT
A RED FOX BOOK 978 1 849 41052 6
First published in Great Britain by Red Fox,
an imprint of Random House Children’s Books
A Random House Group Company
This edition published 2010
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
Series created and developed by Amber Caravéo
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For Carrie Enders, kickass chick
‘Oh, God, Evie,’ less cried.
Eve followed less’s transfixed gaze … The demon. There was something wrong about its gait. When Eve realized why the creature was moving in such an unnatural way it felt like a punch to the solar plexus. It had huge claws, blade-sharp claws shaped like scythes on all four feet …
Eve saw that the claws weren’t the only atrocity. Like less had said, the demon had a face that was almost human, but warped, with a nose that was nearly non-existent. Against the sides of its head were the pointed ears of a bat. Its small eyes glowed red and held an intelligence that took Eve’s breath away. It grinned, revealing insanely long, sharp teeth of a rotted-looking dingy yellow. It was enjoying itself.
The creature brayed again, white foam flying from its lips, then it stopped and tilted its head back, sniffing.
Did it just realize we’re here?
Eve wondered.
Also available:
Dark Touch: Shadows
With special thanks to Laura Burns and Melinda Metz
‘Dude, have you decided to give up showering?’ Dave Perry called after practice on Monday. ‘As the guy who sits behind you in history, let me say – bad idea.’
Kyle Rakoff laughed, veering away from the Deepdene High gym, where the rest of the football team was headed.
‘Jogging home. Showering there,’ Kyle shouted back. He turned, trotting backwards so he could continue the conversation. ‘Then hitting Big Ola’s. Sorry, Dave. I know how much you love sneaking a peek at my naked gloriousness.’
Dave gave an exaggerated fake laugh before disappearing into the gym. Kyle grinned, then turned round and picked up his pace a little. His muscles protested – practice had been killer today – but it also felt kinda good, running across the quad. His whole body was warm and purring like a Lamborghini.
Maybe he’d end up making it to Ola’s before Helena did. She had to go in for algebra tutoring this afternoon. She needed it. If she didn’t watch out, she’d be pulling a D for the semester. Kyle grinned, indulging in a little fantasy. So Helena would be late. And maybe that new girl – Brynn? Brenda? He was pretty sure it was something starting with B – would be there. Somebody must have clued her in that the ice-cream place on Main Street was where pretty much everyone from school hung out. He could get a little ground-work laid down. Maybe he’d even offer to show B-something around. Nothing wrong with being friendly.
Helena was great and all, but Kyle would not describe himself as monogamous – not that he’d ever done the deed with even one girl. But in theory. And B-something was a complete cutie with her super-short hair and her long, long legs. Or maybe Eve Evergold would be at Ola’s. He needed a little more flirt time with her. Sure, she’d turned him down for coffee a few times, but she wouldn’t be able to resist him for ever. Someday, someday not too far away, he knew he’d be running his hands through that long, dark hair of hers, seeing her dark blue eyes light up when she saw him.
Kyle decided to cut through the woods. He veered off the sidewalk and onto one of the narrow, twisting paths. His feet made crunching sounds on the fallen leaves that smothered the forest floor. This route would get him to his house probably five minutes sooner. And he could shower fast. Yeah, he should definitely make it to Ola’s before Helena.
The branch of a fir tree slapped Kyle’s shoulder. The trees were closer together than he remembered, maybe because the last time he’d taken this short cut he’d been about ten, with a lot less muscle and height on him. He should do it more often. The salty ocean air mixed with the earthy smell of the woods in a good way, and it was cool and dim and quiet. Kyle wasn’t usually into quiet, but he’d left his iPod in his locker, and the quiet was sort of nice. Maybe he’d scout around a little sometime, see if there was a private place out here that was girl-romantic. Usually he made a bonfire down on the beach, but switching it up was…
A rustling sound in the brush off to his left pulled him away from his thoughts.
Probably a fox
, he decided. There were lots of them around. His mom even left bits of chicken out for them sometimes. She liked to sit out on the second-storey deck and look at
them. She called it Fox Watch, and it usually involved cocktails. His dad liked the being-out-on-the-deck part and the cocktail part, but he hated that Kyle’s mother fed the foxes. He called them vermin. Kyle’s mom called them vermin too – red, pointy-eared, adorable little vermin.
Kyle felt a wave of pinpricks move across his shoulders. It felt like someone was watching him. And not a fox. He slowed down a little, glancing from side to side. He didn’t see anything, but he heard the rustling sound again. Louder this time. A fox wouldn’t shake the brush hard enough to make that sound. Would it?
Maybe they travel in pairs
, he thought. At Fox Watch they definitely came a few at a time, but Kyle wasn’t sure how big a part the chicken played in that.
He kept jogging – actually it was getting closer to running – but the feeling of being watched stayed with him. He suddenly remembered why he hadn’t taken this route in so long. These woods had creeped him out when he was a kid. The last time he’d been through here, when he was little, he’d let his imagination run away with him completely. He’d been sure that the bogeyman was right on his heels.
And even though he was six years older – and a lot
bigger – it was happening again. He was giving himself the wiggins.
Man up
, he told himself, even though the prickly feeling was getting worse. The sensation wasn’t just across his shoulders now. It was all the way down his back.
It was probably just because he’d been working out so hard at practice, really sweating, and now the sweat was drying, giving him chills. The theory worked – except for the fact that Kyle was running. His muscles felt hot, and fresh sweat was running down his face and back. His pits were pumping it out.
A strange sound came from behind him, a mixture of a bark and a howl. Foxes barked. He’d heard them. But he’d never heard a sound like that before. And the weird cry sounded like it came from something bigger than a fox.
‘OK, fine, I’m a wuss,’ Kyle muttered as he began to run full out, pushing himself as hard as he could.
Bad move. It seemed as if the fox – or whatever it was – could smell his fear, and Kyle’s increased speed seemed to have triggered its predatory instincts. It was chasing him now. He could hear its footfalls – yeah, it had to be much bigger than a fox – following him.
It let out another cry, higher and longer, a real howl this time. Kyle’s entire body went cold. What the hell
was it? A dog? A
rabid
dog? A wolf ? He didn’t turn to look. That would only slow him down.
He took a sharp left, ducking around a tree, hoping to lose the … whatever was back there. It stayed with him. It was caught up in the hunt now. It let out another howl. Close. So close.
Kyle took another turn. Was he heading deeper into the woods? He wasn’t sure – he’d lost track of the direction. And he didn’t care. All he wanted was to get away. He could hear the creature breathing now, harsh eager pants.
Something sharp sliced across the back of his ankle, right between his sweats and the top of his sneaker. It took him a few seconds to register that he’d been bitten. Kyle pumped his legs and arms, reaching for every reserve of energy. It wasn’t going to be enough.
The creature howled again. It was almost on him. Running wasn’t going to work. Kyle whirled around, crouching into an attack position, his heart slamming against his ribs so hard he thought they would shatter.
There was nothing there. He scanned the darkening woods. Nothing. ‘Where are you?’ he shouted.
A howl answered him from so close that Kyle could feel hot breath on his face.
It was the last sound he’d ever hear.
‘Hey, witchy baby.’ Jess walked into Eve’s room and dropped down on the bed next to her friend. She’d come over straight after her Monday afternoon cheerleading practice.
‘Remember, no witch stuff in front of my mom,’ Eve reminded her best friend. Eve’s mother didn’t know Eve had discovered that she – and her mother – were descendants of the Deepdene Witch. Supposedly, at least according to Eve’s dad, her mom had gotten teased relentlessly about it back in high school and she was sensitive about the whole thing.