As much as Cadence appreciated having the opportunity to plan the attack and place everyone in position, she was not confident enough in her own ability to actually call the hunt at this point, so she deferred to Aaron and his decades of experience when it came to actually running the show. This would be a little more difficult for him because he would be on the ground, rather than overseeing movement from above, as he generally preferred, but considering the importance of this particular assault, not to mention that he felt compelled to personally cover Cadence, he insisted on coordinating while actually participating. Cadence agreed that it was for the best and that if anyone could multi-task in such a stressful situation, it was the Guardian Leader.
The sky was breathtaking, the stars illuminated against the vast open spaces of ebony, their pinpoints of light shimmering against the eternal blackness. The mountains loomed around them as they wound their way to location A. While much of the team would be dispatched to location B., the lake where Finn had been spotted, Cadence, Aaron, Cale, and Morgan would be beginning their journey from the shed in hopes that Travis would still be present and on his way to meet up with Finn.
They arrived at the location after the Vampire had already begun his journey to reunite with the renegade Hunter. However, he had been there recently enough that Cadence could still hone in on his presence, and without a word, she began to track him, the three Guardians observing and following, ready to intercede if needed, but giving her room to operate.
The dense forest reminded her of the last hunt she had participated in, and Cadence had to push those thoughts aside. Travis gave her a distinct feeling in her gut, and that particular sensation also reminded her of what it had been like last time. She had known it wasn’t Giovani because the feeling in her stomach was not nearly as trepidatious as it had been with the more dangerous Vampire, but it seemed each Vampire presented a unique sensation, and so she settled into the feeling of Travis and let her instincts take over.
Eventually, she found a path, and Lucas was able to confirm for her over the IAC precisely which trail it was. He was stationed near the caves, along with the rest of the team, but he was an expert on the area. The team members were all reporting no sign of Finn, not yet. Once Cadence knew where they were, she could better anticipate where Travis was and where he was headed.
With her speed, it only took a few moments for her to see him in the distance. She hung back, not wanting to give the team away. The plan was to let the two reunite before they moved in and then take them out simultaneously. The marks would have no secret way of communicating with each other; Vampire telepathy only worked on other Vampires, and Finn had no way of communicating with Travis. As he neared the clearing by the lake, Cadence stopped at the tree line, the Guardians nearby. Travis hesitantly stepped out of cover, making an odd noise, sort of like a bird, but not exactly, as if he had agreed on some sort of call to let Finn know when he was close by. He was a short, pudgy Vampire, and Cadence was certain she could pounce on him easily and dispose of him with little effort at all. First, however, she needed for him to lure out Finn.
After several minutes with no response, Travis looked around in confusion. Seeing nothing, he dug in his pocket, and produced a cell phone. Cadence glanced at Aaron who was nearby on her left, and he shrugged, just as shocked as she was.
After a few seconds, the teammates near the caves indicated they could hear what sounded like a cell phone on vibrate from within the cavern. It was Meagan who picked up on it first. “Should we move in?” she asked.
“He’s not in there,” Aaron replied confidently.
To him only, Cadence asked, “How do you know?”
“I can’t explain it, but I can see through the wall of the cave,” he answered.
Cadence looked at him bewildered. “So where is he?”
“That I don’t know. But I can see the phone, and it’s on the ground in the entryway. He’s not in either cave.”
“He knows we’re here,” she replied. Seconds later, a shot rang out from atop the mountain and Travis fell to the ground.
“Damn,” Cadence exclaimed, instinctively ducking at the sound. “I was really looking forward to killing him myself. Why would he do that?”
“I’m not sure, but he’s on the ridge, right up there, running northwest,” Aaron said, immediately taking off in the direction the gunfire had come from.
Cadence couldn’t see him herself, but she could utilize Aaron’s IAC to hone in on what he was seeing, and she locked in a visual that way, taking off in a sprint. Usually, she was faster than Aaron, but not tonight. He was outrunning her to the extent that she felt like she was standing still. She was both amazed and confused at his newly found speed, but she did her best to keep up as he practically flew away from her.
Cale sent in his helicopters to illuminate the ridge, and the team members who were closest to the mountainside Finn was traversing began to move in as well. Even though Christian and Meagan were within a few hundred yards of where Finn had been hiding, they were not closing as quickly as their Leader was. In fact, as Aaron approached the base of the mountain, he leapt up the side so quickly, to Cadence, it truly appeared as if he was actually flying. She paused in her pursuit, mouth open in awe.
Finn was running like an animal under heavy pursuit. Essentially, that is what he was. As if he could feel the Guardian closing in on him, he turned and began to fire wildly. His shots were nowhere near landing on the blur that was quickly closing the gap. There was little he could do to hide with the helicopters illuminating the mountainside and Aaron gaining ground so quickly. He hunkered down behind a large boulder, precariously near the edge of the cliff, trying to use the rock formation as a shield, frantically trying to think of something.
“Please don’t kill me,” Finn yelled, panic evident in his voice. “I just eliminated Travis for you! I didn’t kill any Hunters or Guardians! The ambush wasn’t my idea. I just did as I was told. You’ve got to believe me!”
