A Hunter's Keep - #1 of "The Hunter's Series"

Lizzy’s POV

I tried to open my eyes, but the bright light blinded me. Instantly everything started to spin, and I felt sick. The pounding in my head intensified by the slightest movement. Even a thought crossing my mind, was enough to make me wish I was dead.

“Awake yet?”

My heart sank, when I recognized his voice. Derik!

I tried to open my eyes, getting used to the light. And sure enough, there he was! Sitting next to the bed, looking all concerned and shit.

“My head!” was all I managed to grunt. My throat dry and voice hoarse. Derik instantly got up and handed me a glass of water and what looked like two painkillers.

“I need you sharp as soon as possible,” he said with a small grin on his face, that I kinda ignored. He was joking, but I wasn’t in the mood to take it. I was never going to trust him again. I was never going to believe him again. I was never going to let him make me feel anything again…

“How generous of you,” I scoffed, but the motion only shot a pain through my head. He didn’t reply, but I hear him take a deep breath.

Suddenly Derik put his hand on my shoulder and pushed me back down on the bed. A nice cold cloth on my head. Involuntarily I moaned in delight. Damn that felt good! And before I knew it, I was drifting off to sleep again.

I woke up again, still in the same hospital room and Derik still by my side. This time in a chair next to me. The process repeated itself. The second I showed any sign of pain, he got up and gave me some pain medication.

“Ready to talk?” he asked this time, when he took the glass out of my hands.

“You do realize these take time to work, right?” I muttered, but at least tried to accommodate his request by sitting up. “People are only instantly fine in movies because they don’t actually feel the pain!”

“How are you?” he asked then. I grinned. Was he trying to win me over? Fat chance of that happening! I was going to do whatever they asked of me, but only so long I knew Sif was safe. I was going to use that. It didn’t feel right, but I had to. She had to take priority over my own sad ass feeling!

“Is the room spinning or just me?” I scoffed, before looking to him again. “Any word from Sif?”

“She’s fine,” he said and as if he knew, I wasn’t taking his word for anything anymore, he added: “There was an attack, but once Vector showed up, they retreated. They lost their scent in town.”

I nodded. Classic Hunter tactic. Werewolves didn’t risk being exposed and the town is the only place dense enough for a werewolf to lose a track in human form; especially when their pray was driving a car.

“Why didn’t you tell us?”

I looked at Derik and now it was my turn to look at him like he’d grown an extra head. I pushed away the image of his caring eyes and soft voice aside and only focused on my own anger.

“I didn’t trust you!” I scoffed, playing with the sheet between my fingers. “Turns out that was one of the things I actually WAS right about!”

“That’s rich coming from you!” he replied, his laced with sarcasm. I think he was hurt… NO! I wasn’t going to consider his feeling.

“You promised to keep her here!” I barked at him, letting my anger fuel my hateful words. “But the second another alpha showed up, you offered her up on a silver platter!” The pain was returning with a vengeance. “Had she---!”

Tears clogged my vision and my heart felt like someone was trying to dig it out with a spatula. It hurt only thinking about it…

“It would be on you!” I muttered, hiding my face in my hands. I tried to calm down, the anger only amplifying my headache. I tried to ignore the calm I felt, having Derik’s hand on my back. How much better it felt, just giving in to him, than fighting it.

“You’re really something,” he said softly, while stroking my back. “After all of this and you’re still worried about Sif.”

“I don’t expect you to understand,” I sniffled. I’d started crying again this. This really wasn’t helping my headache. Noting was helping me… Why?

“Try me!”

He challenged me. Anger exploded inside me. Why? Why me?!

“I failed,” I cried out, my heart clenching in my chest. “My Initiation! I failed.” I tried to breath, but it became more and more impossible to do. I looked to Derik, his eyes so soft and caring. He didn’t hate me. And I hated it…

I gasped for air.

“She was so small and beautiful and just--- perfect,” I found myself continuing. Why? I didn’t know. I just wanted to tell him. “She was just crying because she was hungry.”

I know that if she hadn’t been things wouldn’t have been any different. Nothing would have changed. Still my brain tried to make some sense of it all. Tried to explain.

“I couldn’t do it!” I shook my head, trying to make myself so little as possible. I was shaking and my head was hurting so bad…

“Dad took the gun from my hands and pulled the trigger himself.”

Derik’s soothing motions stopped for a second. Just a split second of shock and horror, before he continued. My throat dry and soar from swallowing that god damn bile over and over again.

“If I don’t protect Sif, he’ll…” I hickuped. “I just can’t let it happen. Not again.”

I felt his arm wrap around me. My headache became worse with every tear I tried to hold back. So, I let it go. I muffled my cries into his T-shirt. His warmth wrapped around me like a blanket and I soon felt myself fall into blissful darkness.