H.U.M.A.N.S (The Veiled World Book 1) (2 page)

“Hold that thought.” Cole nodded at her. “You okay?” He then asked me while shining a light on my wound.

“Yeah.” I nodded and winced at the jolt of fresh pain that seemed to punish me for lying about it again.

“Go on and head back to the bar with Isis, we’ll take care of things here.” Cole said.

“No way. There could be more out there just like you said, I’m not abandoning you two.” I frowned.

Cole sighed at my stubbornness and then directed to Isis, “Do a complete mile radius aerial check for any movement or anything out of the ordinary for that matter.”

“In other words, do something useful this time.” Jax had to add in to further taunt Isis.

“Don’t make me redo your new haircut, Jax.” Isis threatened as wind began to swirl around and beneath her and then she began to levitate slowly.

“Get your restraints and tie him up good.” Cole then nodded at Jax, who was ready to finish off the undead target.

Appalled, Jax snapped his eyes to Cole in utter disbelief. “What? Man, are you for real? Why waste any time with this piece of corpse shit? He’s not gonna cooperate and you know it.”

“He will, especially with the smell of blood under his nose. We need to have a conversation before we dispose of him.” Cole assured.

“No need. I’ll take it from here.” A smooth yet authoritative voice cut into our conversation.

We all jumped and spun to face the source of the unforeseen invasion with rifles up and ready to fire.

How the hell did we not hear or scent his arrival?

Though we could all see him clearly, Jax shined his light directly into his face anyway, more for annoyance sake.

The brim of his cowboy-style, black hat was pulled low, obscuring his face from his head all the way down to the tip end of his nose. The concealment left the bottom of a square, sculpted jawline and full sexy lips exposed as he turned his head slightly away from the light.

Switching to my natural infrared vision, I carefully scanned his body from head to toe. I could tell that Cole and Jax were doing the same thing. We all three barely acknowledged our own observations among each other through the steady curtain of needle-like rain that began to fall. Our silent exchange confirmed what we all realized at the same time.

He was armed with two huge, kick-ass revolvers strapped to his body underneath his duster. So why wasn’t he going for them?

What was the point of approaching a potential gunfight while armed if you weren’t going to draw your weapons? I mean, three laser rifles all aimed at your head were more than enough reasons to consider it.

The main heat signatures emanating from the inside of his body were in his head and in and around his heart. Everything else remained a cool, dark blue hue.

He must be starving too, otherwise there would be visible heat from the fresh blood running throughout his muscles and entire body.

Those revelations were both odd and surprising to me. I had no idea that these notorious, night parasites had any semblance of an actual warm heart.

Cole was right. This bold, idiotic one on the ground was going to bring many more behind him if we didn’t force him to reveal how he had gotten here. Adrenaline was rising in me again, masking the annoying and profusely bleeding pain in my side.

Though the stranger managed to come upon us virtually undetected, he didn’t seem to be looking for a fight. When his gaze fell on me, I took note that he didn’t seem interested in my fresh and exposed blood at all.

Now that was really bizarre.

Cole was six foot three and about 220 pounds of solid muscle. By comparison, and from what I could make out, this Nocturna was pretty close to his height and build. Rain pattered rhythmically on the top of his hat, dripping steadily over the edge of the brim to further conceal his features, and his long, dark, glistening wet duster flapped in the rain-filled breeze.

Instantly, he reminded me of a bounty hunter.

Hostile or not, he was a Nocturna and we weren’t taking any chances.

Chapter 2

Col
e
was all but ready to fire and blow this mysterious Nocturna away but since he appeared at ease, not even attempting to go for his guns, he hesitated. Out of Guardian Hunter code, we didn’t believe in shooting or attacking an unarmed and non-threatening being without justifiable cause.

Nocturnas were the exceptions though because they were never without malicious intent by virtue of their diets.

“Who the hell are you?” Cole demanded.

“It doesn’t matter. I said that I would take him off your hands and I appreciate the assistance.” He smiled handsomely, flashing perfect, way too white— normal teeth.

Assistance?

I tried hard to get a glimpse of his eyes but I couldn’t really see them. I was too fixated on his sexy lips when he spoke.

He still hadn’t so much as glanced down at my wound that I could tell. Hmm.

“Thanks but we’re not asking you to take him off of our hands. We handle our own intruders and you’re surrounded right now, so unless you want to end up like him, I suggest you go back to wherever it is you spawned from.” Cole warned him.

That was just it. Where had he come from? Where had they both come from? I wondered.

The Nocturna on the ground had long since slipped into unconsciousness when the last few darts struck him. I think we may have overdone it and killed him unintentionally.

I had spoken way too soon. He suddenly began to rouse, groaning as his head slowly lolled from side to side stopping short when he faced the other Nocturna.

His eyes nearly bugged from their sockets.

I stiffened and both Jax and I watched his movements, ready to shoot him again if he did anything stupid. I was still pissed that he had managed to injure me but that second of carelessness and misjudgment had been my fault.

To our shock, the dazed Nocturna came to life and began to panic. Writhing wildly in an attempt to slither away from the stranger, he began to shout and cower. “No! Not him!”

Both Jax and I looked at each other with puzzlement and then Jax trained his rifle back on him in warning.

“What the fuck is your problem you parasitic freak? You wanna die now?” Jax threatened in disgust.

“Yes! Go ahead and pull the trigger, right here, I’m begging you! It would be more humane!” the Nocturna pleaded, stretching his mouth wide, flashing fangs and all while emphatically pointing inside the dark, gaping, cavernous opening.

“I’m not challenging any of you. I have no reason or desire to fight and I promise to make sure that you aren’t troubled with any more of his kind as well.” The stranger explained, remaining cool and patient as the tilt of his head fell and rested on the Nocturna on the ground.

“His kind? You mean any of your kind, don’t you?” I corrected him rudely.

He smiled slightly, I could see that much even in the darkness and rain.

“Not quite.”

“Bullshit! You guys are all the same and subject to the same complimentary execution as the next one.” Jax clarified.

The stranger was nonchalant to Jax’s insult and threat as well as the Nocturnas sudden bizarre request for us to aid with his suicide.

“No two beings are the same, even those belonging to the same class.” The stranger replied.

The cold, needle-like raindrops were illuminated by a quick flash of lightning. My hair was soaked as was the rest of me, and water annoyingly continued to trickle down into my eyes from my bangs.

Cole huffed with impatience before any of us could respond. “We don’t debate anything with Nocturna and we’ve definitely got this situation under control. Now I did ask who you were and how you got here though. If you don’t want to answer that then you best be on your way.” Cole stated imperiously.

Armed with bad-ass revolvers or not, we weren’t backing down. It was three against one anyway.

It wasn’t like us to engage in any kind of civil conversation or reasoning with Nocturna at all, then again, most of them were not as engaging or as calm as this one either.

Though he carefully scoped out each of our faces, either for memory or comparison before responding, the direction of his gaze seemed to linger and rest a bit longer on me than with Cole and Jax.

I could tell that Cole noticed the same thing and he was none too pleased about it too.

“Who I am and how I got here is irrelevant, though I can’t say the same for him. I haven’t taken count since arriving but you know as well as I do that where there is one, many more will follow. It never dawned on me that I’d find more than one hunter in one place at the same time…and twins at that.” He smiled at me and then tilted his head up slightly to pan the night, rain-filled sky.

He was even more intriguing and tempting to me now that I could see more of his lips and the chiseled shape of his strong jawline, both slick with rain.

“Of course, the air user, well, they’re pretty common. It’s surprising yet refreshing to find you both in the same company though.” He commented matter-of-factly.

He’s already spotted Isis? I hoped that she was alright. I could tell that Cole was thinking the same thing when we looked at each other in the momentary silence.

“Yeah, we’re well aware of that fact. You showed up, didn’t you?” Jax cut him off with a deadly glare.

“As I said, we aren’t of the same class or breed.”

Cole scrutinized him suspiciously, trying to see past the veneer of his words and the physical facade.

“What the hell do you mean, not of the same class or breed?” Cole retorted.

“I greatly admire you guys. Believe it or not, you and I have a lot in common. Give him to me and I can guarantee that you’ll never see him or another Nocturna in this area again.” The stranger completely disregarded his question, which was really pissing Cole off now.

Then he gauged me for a moment.

“I can tend to your injury so that it heals quickly without infection— if you’d like.” His tone was half- soothing and half-seductive, enough to stir up a frenzy of my curious lust. Infection?

“I don’t think so.” I quickly declined.

We were all undecided. This interaction didn’t make any sense.

“What’s the status? I lost connection and now I’m hearing a lot of commotion.” Pierce’s voice ushered in through the static of the earpiece.

“Standby.” Jax acknowledged him.

“He’s alone.” Isis’ voice suddenly affirmed aloud and into our ear-pieces as she landed silently beside me.

I felt a rush of instant relief seeing that she was alright.

“Where the hell have you been?” Cole asked.

“Doing what you asked…thoroughly. Mile radius is all clear. Why’s he still alive?” She nodded at the downed Nocturna in disgust.

“Thank you! I’ve been waiting for it myself! I was hungry but I wasn’t trying to kill anyone!” He pled again, clawing the ground and sliding towards me, only to be halted by the crushing weight of Jax’s heavy-booted foot on his neck.

“Who is he?” Cole decided to ask the insane, poor-excuse for a Nocturna pinned under Jax’s foot instead.

That’s what I’m waiting to know. Who was this Nocturna, that this land shark would rather us kill him than be taken away or dealt with by him? A cruel master? Someone seeking revenge on him? Or was he really a fellow bounty hunter after all?

“
Vishinkatura!
” the Nocturna hissed in foreboding fear.

“What?” Jax snapped.

“Translate.” Cole ordered the Nocturna.

“It means hunter. I told you, we have much in common.” The stranger cut in impatiently.

We all looked at him questioningly. I somehow didn’t believe that but at the same time, I wanted nothing more than to get out of the soaking rain and start tending to my throbbing and now burning wound.

Cole paused in thought, looking at me, Jax, and then Isis. Grumbling under his breath, he sighed heavily.

“Fine. Do what you want with him as long as I don’t see either one of you around here again.” Cole warned as he knelt down beside the Nocturna. Jax removed his foot, allowing Cole to hoist him roughly to his feet by his neck.

“No! I’m begging you…”

Cole covertly jammed a tracking transmitter down his throat just as he began to protest, and forced him to swallow it by jabbing an elbow into his sternum.

He gagged and swallowed hard with a grimace. Despite the rain, there were still small traces of my blood smeared across his mouth and chin.

Grabbing at his throat and gagging, he tried to speak, “What? No! Please!” he tried futilely to resist even after the other Nocturna grasped a firm hold of the back of his collar and lifted him as if he were a lifeless skeleton.

With a tip of his hat he nodded and flashed another dazzling, toothpaste-commercial-worthy smile.

“Not a problem.”

“I meant what I said about seeing you around here again.” Cole stated firmly as he straightened to stand again.

The stranger regarded each one of us again as if taking notes.

“Understood.” He politely replied.

The doomed Nocturna in his grip began to freak out again, struggling and trying uselessly to escape. Why was he so terrified of him?

“Don’t believe him! Vishinkatura means ca..!”

He was abruptly cut off and I flinched when his head was jerked and twisted, hard. He broke his neck without effort, turning it all the way around as if he were simply unscrewing the cap on a water bottle. The unfortunate undead hung limp with his head twisted nearly backwards on his shoulders and facing us with a frozen, pleading expression.

We all gaped at the stranger suspiciously in reaction to his abrupt and callous method of silencing.  He examined his captive nonchalantly as if he were simply carrying a dummy or a bag of laundry under his arm.

“A little overkill, don’t you think? You may want to rethink and revamp the effectiveness of your ammunition. No pun intended.” The stranger commented on all of the darts sticking out of the Nocturna’s back, head, and neck.

“There’s more than one way to kill and we know them all, always remember that.” Cole promised him.

“I agree. Duly noted.” He replied politely and then turned to leave.

Once he was out of range Jax spoke, “I wonder why he didn’t even bother to pull those bad boys out.”

“Should we follow him? Where’s he gonna go?” Isis asked.

“I’m gonna assume that he’s leaving the same way he arrived.” Cole said as we all watched his form disappear in the distance behind the sheeting rain.

“He didn’t really arrive, he just…appeared. I didn’t know Nocturna could do that.” I said.

“Yeah, I know. There’s apparently a lot we don’t know but I’m gonna bank on a possible gateway somewhere on the island. New mission in effect as of now.” Cole replied in deep thought.