"ᴀᴛ ᴛɪᴍᴇs, ʏᴏᴜʀ ɢᴜɪᴅɪɴɢ ʟɪɢʜᴛ ᴡɪʟʟ ɴᴏᴛ ʙʀɪɴɢ ʏᴏᴜ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴅᴇᴍᴘᴛɪᴏɴ; ʙᴜᴛ ᴡɪʟʟ ᴛʀᴀsʜ ʏᴏᴜʀ sᴏᴜʟ ᴛʜʀᴏᴜɢʜ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴀʀᴋᴇsᴛ ᴘɪᴛs ᴏғ ʜᴇʟʟ, ᴀɴᴅ ʙᴜʀɴ ᴏᴜᴛ ʙʏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛɪᴍᴇ ʏᴏᴜ'ᴅ ʙᴇᴄᴏᴍᴇ ᴀᴄᴄᴜsᴛᴏᴍᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ɪᴛs ᴄᴏʟᴅ ᴘʀᴇsᴇɴᴄᴇ. ᴅᴏᴏᴍɪɴɢ ʏᴏᴜ ᴛᴏ ᴀ ʟɪғᴇ ᴡᴏʀsᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴀ sʜᴀᴅᴏᴡ's, ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀʙsᴇɴᴄᴇ ᴏғ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ʙᴜᴛ..."
— A L I N E
ANOTHER perfect shot.
I reach for another arrow and prepare my next shoot. I concentrate, keeping my eyes on the target, but my ears on my surroundings. My dad always says that you're at your most vulnerable when you're aiming your target. You can become so focused on who you're trying to shoot, that you may forget about anything else. He saw many hunters being killed by the target's friends, exactly because of this. Good thing I'm the best in my family at multi-tasking.
I hear a gun cocking and I duck just in time. The bullet didn't even bruise me, stopping in the centre of my target. I quickly return on my feet, pointing my arrow towards my attacker and releasing it. My idiot brother didn't expect my immediate response and I saw the colour paling from his cheeks when I aimed at him. He didn't have time to dodge so my arrow bruised his left arm.
"Are you fucking insane?"
"Says the guy with a gun on his hand," I say as I roll my eyes and start grabbing my stuff. I don't know why Jez is here, but I'm not in the mood for his shit.
"It was the only way I could've gained your attention." He explains me, trying to make me believe I'm to blame because I didn't understand his joke. Of course, I don't see the humour in a bullet coming straight to my face. But I've learned that it is useless to argue with the Trussell men unless you want to give yourself a headache.
"What do you want, Jez?" I ask him, trying to ignore my desire to shoot another arrow at him. This time, it'd give him more than a scar on his arm. I always wondered if I can shot someone exactly in the centre of their eye; like a literal bullseye shot. I never get the chance for such things on the field. I rely on the safe shots, not the experimental ones that may get myself killed. But Jez is not a threat, as far as I'm concerned, so he would make a great training puppet. I need to find him a purpose because both he and Jonty suck at being my older brothers.
Actually, all my family seems unfitted to do any other real thing than hunting. They tell me that I'm too focused on my training, but they're the ones who discuss hunting strategies at dinner. Or whose idea of a vacation is hunting outside England, on our family friends' territories. So it's understandable why I'd rather be out here, doing anything else, than falsely bonding with my family of neat criminals. All of them act so noble, with their fight against the monsters of our world, and look down on humans who kill innocents, but they forget an essential thing: the majority of the monsters they kill, have lesser blood on their hands than the hunters. Of course, I'm the only one in my family who believes monsters can be innocent. But I know they're wrong because I've seen how prejudice can cloud their judgement.
It was one of my first hunts. It was only me and my mum. We were after a presumed dark witch who was living in the outskirts of Liverpool. The neighbours complied that the woman was a Satanist after they witnessed her stuffing her flat with living snakes. My family heard about it and remembered an old spell dark witches used to bring disasters to their city: famine, disease or other bad things. We equipped and travelled there with our private jet. It was considered a low-rank mission, this is why my mum chose me over Jonty.
Once there, we broke into the woman's house at night, trying to catch her in the middle of her ritual. But we didn't stumble upon a dark witch with a bad agenda, but a desperate mom, trying to save her dying kid. The girl, no older than twelve, was sleeping in a hospital bed with a half-emptied IV bag near her. Her mum was preparing to administer her a new vial of the potion she was making, perhaps to keep her daughter alive. I look into her frightened eyes when she realised who we are and why we came. She begged my mum to spare her and her daughter's life, arguing that her little girl didn't inherit her magic and was only a human.
I was sure that my mum was about to tell me that we've got the information wrong this time, to apologise to the lady and to point me to the exit door, but it didn't happen. She killed the witch, in her characteristic cold-blooded way, then ushered me to spread the gasoline on the apartment. Burning her body is the only thing that can prevent a witch from resurrecting herself. Although, the witches we encounter on a daily basis are not strong enough to protect themselves against a bullet, so I'm sure they wouldn't be able to resurrect themselves even if we left the bodies unburnt. But the fire was another way of hiding the hunters' murders from the oblivious humans.
I've emptied the gasoline cans while watching my mum reading the little girl's medical file. She tested her, spreading fairy dust on her. But the dust didn't lit up as it does when it senses magic. The girl was indeed human, just like her mother told us. This calmed me a little and I managed to finish the job. As we were about to leave, I was waiting for my mum to ask me to call someone to help us get the little girl out of the house.
"Don't forget the mountain ash, daughter." She tells me, as I start pouring the ash on the sill of every window and in front of every door. This will keep the fire in the apartment long enough for the neighbours to call the firemen. I turn around, to face my mother, the moment I was ready to go. She doesn't tell me anything, nodding when she sees that everything is ready. She drags me to the door and I gasp when I see her throwing a lit lighter into the apartment, closing the front door behind us.
"NO! What the hell have you done?" I scream and try to open the door, but my hand is burnt when I touch the handle. It was already too late. I chase my mother down the stairs to the ground floor, then I go out in the night. I demand answers, I call her names and start crying like a baby on the street. I lay down and hug my knees as I try to calm myself. I was in denial, I couldn't believe my mother was a murderer. I understand the need to kill dangerous monsters, it was our duty as hunters to protect the humankind from this kind of threats. But that ailing little girl was neither a monster nor a threat.
"Stop it already," she asks me and rolls her eyes, like me grieving an innocent kid was annoying her; "you don't have to cry over a monster."
"That little girl was no monster, mother! She was human, she was sick and she needed our help! Isn't our mission to protect humans? Or am I mistaken and all this time you've trained me to become a bloody murderer?!"
"Watch your mouth, young lady! You are so mistaken right now, but I can understand why you've fallen so easily for that witch's tricks. It is especially hard for new hunters to see past those kinds of treacheries."
"You're psychotic, mother. There were no tricks, only an innocent human girl whom you've killed because her mother was a witch." I spit the words at her, raising from the pavement and facing her. "You have no plausible excuse for what you did."
"Maybe that girl was not a witch, but her mother was. This makes her inherently evil, and therefore a threat. I did what was needed to be done. You don't become a great hunter if you take pity on these monsters."
"Unbelievable..." I mutter and turn around to face the block of flats. The flames were visible from the street and I could hear the faint sirens approaching.
"We should go," says my mother as the sirens become louder, "our job is finished here."
But a hunter's job is never truly finished. Some nights I see the little girl in my room, watching over my bed with an IV blood hanger and a disappointed look on her face. It was my job to rescue her and I failed miserably. She's not the only ghost who comes visiting me during my weakest moments. All the people, monsters and humans, who I feel guilty for their deaths in some way, find their way to my room. They've never hurt me, nor scared me like I've believed ghosts like to do, but the disappointment on their faces is worse than anything. I always try to apologise, but I can't mutter a single word in their presence. Because anything I say is in vain and it won't help them. I could've done something for them while they were still alive, now it's a little too late.
"Mum and dad have come to a decision regarding your fate, Ad."
I turn around to face him. He wasn't smirking, it was no trace of amusement on his face. I know my brothers adore to play cruel jokes on virtually anyone. This is what bonded them when our parents decided to marry. Jonty's dad was a hunter who died in the line of work of a cause my mother never told me. Meanwhile, Jez's mother died in childbirth because she was unable to get to a hospital. My dad and his wife were trapped inside their mansion by a clan of leprechauns. They were angry because the Trussells offended their species, by building an outside pool on their sacred land. It sounds funnier than it was because the stories involving these little creatures often have some humorous vibe. But the amusing part stops the moment bodies start dropping all around.
The Trussells are not a Hunter Family, but they were brought into this world by the tragedy they've experienced. My dad was adamant on making those monsters pay, so when he met my mom and she introduced him to the world of Supernatural Hunters, he knew he found his calling. And Jez only followed on his father's footsteps, like any other Hunter kid. It's strange how natural everything comes to Jez, who was not born into this but seems impossible for someone like me. My mother's family has been in this business for centuries, almost since the first monsters walked the face of Earth. People like Mother and Jonty, have the hunt in their blood. I guess I'm just the black sheep of the family.
"Thanks for letting me know," I tell Jez and I go back to packing my stuff. I take my time to arrange all the arrows inside my quiver, I analyze my bow's arc and gently touch the bowstring, testing it. I take good care of my weapons since they are the only friends I can rely on when I'm on a mission. I may get partners every time I'm on the field, but I don't trust them with my life. Who wouldn't save themselves first in a life-death situation? Especially if your hunting mate is a stranger you've been paired with for the first, and likely the last, time.
"Do you want me to tell them that I couldn't find you?" My brother asks me and it shocks me. Since when does he care?
"No, it's fine," I assure him, trying to hide my shock, "tell them I'll be inside in a second."
Jez only nods and leaves me on the training field. What was that? Jeremiah Trussell showed compassion towards his little sister? Fine, I'm a jerk now because other than his and Jonty's annoying pranks, my brothers were never unfair to me. They didn't support me at once when I was being wrongfully punished by our parents...erm, correction: by my mother, because dad is always just following her lead; but my half-brothers never seemed like they were agreeing with them either. I've always tried to fly above what my parents were teaching me, to see the life behind the wall they were building to conceal the real world, and I was sanctioned every time. I am disobedient, something a hunter should never be, especially to a Head Hunter like my mother. But she and I just love arguing and throwing knives at each other. Literally.
I dragged my feet to the back door, entering the storage archery closet, then making my way to the kitchen. I've poured myself a glass of water and leaned against the aisle. I was enjoying my last moments of peace before all hell breaks loose in the dining room.
"Adeline Ariane Thrussell, I hope is not you in the kitchen, stalling like you always do!" I groan when my mother's screaming disrupts my peace. I put the glass on the counter, water splashing from it upon impact.
"Adeline!" I hear my mother again and decide that I can't avoid the inevitable any longer. I exit the kitchen and stop before I enter the dining room. I know that I'm about to be grounded, I'm just wondering what punishment they've found suitable for my so-called treason.
I can only imagine...
"Here goes nothing." I silently tell myself before I head into the room.
My parents, my half-brothers and the Sappingtons were all there, waiting for me. I look over at William Sappington, my latest hunting partner, as I walk to the table where they were all seated. I'm glad everyone found him as much to blame as me. After all, it required a great amount of team effort to royally screw that mission. He smirks at me as I sit right next to him, facing my mother's angry face. Oh, it's not her normal angry face. It's her I-don't-care-you're-my-only-daughter-I'm-going-to-get-your-criminal-ass-the-punishment-it-deserves angry face.
"Hello everyone." I politely say as I cross my arms and sit comfortably on my chair. I see my mom's face reddening with anger and I don't even flinch when the volcano inside her finally erupts.
"'Hello everyone'? This is what you have to say, Adeline?" She asks me, looking like she's about to shove me against the glass wall behind me. "I don't care you're my only daughter, I'm going to get your criminal ass the punishment it deserves!"
"I was waiting for that line, mummy." I mock her, making my brothers and Will to silently laugh. I see that my mother gathering all her powers to calm herself down and seats back on her chair. Of course, she would've chased me up the stairs with a loaded gun, if the Sappingtons were not here. "I'm glad you're here, Mr and Mrs Sappington." I feel the need to tell Will's parents but they only look at me blank-faced.
"Adeline, everyone knows about the stunt you and William pulled at that vampire den," my father tells me and I nod because I already knew it. Bad news travels fast around here, "and they're not pleased. Not at all. They've asked us to forsake you."
His words don't startle me. I was threatened with disownment before, by my own mother I must add. But it never happened because, as great as the shame is that I've brought to my family's name, it'd be far worse if I'd become an Outcast. The DeGreys have a family history clean of such hunters and they intend on keeping it. The Sappingtons had an Outcast, many generations ago, and it nearly costed their whole integrity in the hunters' world. If a family is not able to educate its children, how can one believe that they are capable of far greater deeds, like saving humanity? And this old prejudice is what kept me from becoming an Outcast all my life.
I said I hate prejudice? Well, I lied.
"But you won't," I tell them and my father agrees.
"I guess you expected that." He tells me and I just smirked a little. Of course, I've expected that. I've been having a feeling of déjà vu ever since I walked into the room. "But you're not being left unpunished, my dear."
"We've come to the agreement that European laws are far too complicated for you two." Mr Sappington says, pointing to me and his son like we are some lepers.
"So we're sending you to the States." Finishes the sentence my mother, and I can almost imagine a tiny wooden hammer in her hand as she speaks.
"The States? Why?" Asks Will and I kick him under the table. I was feeling like I was on cloud nine and he was questioning our luck? If I knew that screwing up a mission will send me far away from my family, I'd have done it long, long ago.
"What he means is," I try to say but I'm kicked back. I look at him and his face full of disbelief made me realise my mistake. Nothing is ever so easy, "what is the catch, mother?"
"What do you mean?" Steps into the conversation Mrs Sappington, but my mother motions her that she's handling the situation. Of course, because 'the situation' is her very own disrespectful daughter.
"My Adeline, I know you have trust issues, but not everyone has a hidden agenda." Says my mother in her sweetest voice that nearly made me puke. That trick may work on your acolytes, Mother, but not on me.
"And where I have to ask, do you think my trust issues originate from? My good upbringing?" I scoff and knives start being shot from my mother's eyes. At least these ones aren't real.
"The reason we decided to send you away is simple." My dad speaks again, catching my attention. "The United States has other ways of dealing with problematic young hunters. They're not being disowned, but reformed."
"You're sending us to hunter's rehab?" William speaks my thoughts before I can.
"If you must call it that way, fine." My dad continues, unfazed. "They have a great program in Boulder, at the University of Colorado. You'll enrol there, as a way of explaining your moving. In-between classes, you're taking part in the program Young&Troubled."
"It sounds like the title for an old soap opera, dad," I tell my father but he cares little for my complaints.
"Have a safe trip to Boulder, children." Says Mrs Sappington when I try to repine again.
I look over my mom's proud face and I shallow in the dry. I have to accept it: it's all been already decided and I have no saying to it. My parents always believed that they know what's best for me and they've just proved to me that they'll never stop doing it. I look at Will and he seems as hopeless as me. As bad as it sounds, I feel a little better because I'm not alone in this whole mess. Although I know it'll make no difference that Will's coming to hunter's rehab with me.
I'm royally screwed.