Gibbon had to choose again—right or left. The tunnel split, and just like his choice between doors, he tried to determine which was darker, which was quieter. They seemed to be about the same, and so he chose to go to his right.
Aaron and Christian both knew that Gibbon had taken off down the tunnel because they were able to see it through Cadence’s IAC. Aaron hoped that he would have the opportunity to face the monster and destroy him now before he was unleashed on the world, but when he reached the broken door, he knew it would be up to Christian to encounter Gibbon and defeat him now. One look at Cadence, laying bleeding on the bed, he rushed to her side, sending Aurora, Shane, and Meagan down the tunnel to fight Gibbon instead.
“Are you all right?” he asked as he stood back and surveyed the damage.
She was clearly in a lot of pain. Her breathing was labored, and the hair was matted to the side of her head where she had made contact with the wall. “How’s my sister?” she asked.
“She’s still resting,” Aaron assured her. “Don’t worry about her now. We need to take care of you.”
“Gibbon got away,” she muttered.
“I know, but Christian is about to meet him face to face, and we’re tailing him, too, so maybe we can stop him,” he reminded her.
“Christian can’t stop him,” Cadence whispered. “No one can stop him.”
“We will find a way to defeat him,” he replied. “The most important thing right now is taking care of you.”
As if on cue, Cale emerged from the jewelry store stairwell, medical bag in hand, and rushed over to ascertain the damage.
“How’d you get here?” Cadence asked, confused.
“Had one of my choppers drop me off,” he replied, smiling at her. “You are amazing. And a bit torn up. But we can fix that, I think.”
“Christian might need some light in a few minutes if Gibbon gets past him,” Aaron reminded him.
“Already sent my pilot back,” Cale nodded. “Now, let’s make you more comfortable, shall we?”
“So long as it doesn’t knock me out,” Cadence pleaded. “I want to see Cass.”
“Just pain medicine,” Cale replied, giving her a shot. “And then we’ll get you cleaned up.”
Cadence could see Aaron constantly looking over his shoulder at the passage now that Cale, and a few of his teammates, were on the scene. “Go,” she said.
“Are you sure?” he asked, clearly torn.
“I’m fine. Go see if you can catch Gibbon.”
He bent down and kissed her quickly on the forehead before darting off down the tunnel.
Christian heard Gibbon coming long before he could see him, the sound of his growling and heavy breathing echoing off of the walls. Even with Christian’s night vision, the monster was moving so quickly, he didn’t have time to fire his weapon until he was almost on top of him. Christian got off one shot, which grazed him in the shoulder, before Gibbon slammed into him. In the narrow passage way, there wasn’t much room for them both, so Gibbon powered his way through, throwing punches until Christian crumpled up and slid down the wall out of the way; Gibbon had no idea that he couldn’t kill the man in front of him, and he didn’t stop to see if he was dead. Once Christian was no longer an obstacle, he took off running again.
Aurora, Shane, and Meagan were there almost instantly, and Christian gestured for them to keep going, though he was doubled-over in pain, blood trickling from his mouth and his temple.
“You guys keep going; I’ll stay here with him,” Meagan insisted, and with a quick nod, Aurora and Shane took off. A few seconds later, there was a gust of wind and a blur in their vision as Aaron went by as well.
“Come on. We’re almost to the underground room, and Cale can give you something for the pain,” Meagan insisted, hauling the Guardian to his feet.
Aaron caught up to Shane and Aurora in a matter of seconds. But Gibbon was fast, too, and they watched his feet disappear up the stairs that led to the pier. Shane fired twice, but both shots ricochet off the steps, missing their mark.
Gibbon reached the top of the stairs and was suddenly blinded by the helicopter lights. He shielded his eyes from the brightness, hesitating at the top of the steps. The noise behind him dissuaded him from going back the way he came. Looking around, he saw only one alternative and hurled himself into the darkness of the Delaware River.
The LIGHTS team came up just in time to see him splash into the water, and all three of them jumped in behind him. The water was murky, and even with their IACs it was difficult to see. X-ray vision was not very helpful because of the vastness of the expanse across the river. There was no sign of Gibbon anywhere. After a few moments, Aaron came up for air and looked around to see if there was any sign of him. Shane and Aurora popped up, too, but there was no trace of the monster. They went back under to try again, swimming in different directions, but Gibbon seemed to have disappeared without a trace.
The helicopters continued to shine their lights on the river long after Aaron and his team abandoned the water, but there was never any sign of Gibbon; it was as if he had simply sunk into the black abyss and faded away.
After many a protest had fallen on deaf ears, Cadence had consented to a shower and a change of clothes. She wanted to stay with Cassidy until she woke up, but her friends insisted she would be of little use to anyone if she didn’t take care of herself. So, she finally gave in. Cale had repaired her ribs and the gash in her head while applying another temporary fix to her ACL, all of which had completely drained him, and she had promised Jamie she would absolutely have an MRI on her knee so he could operate just as soon as Cass was awake. For now, she was sitting in a chair beside her bed, staring at the beautiful face of her little sister, who only seemed to be slumbering.
Brandon, who hadn’t let go of her hand since Jamie brought her in, was sitting on the other side. Aaron was in and out, taking care of business and collecting information on the search for Gibbon, and Jamie was also in the room most of the time, waiting for Cassidy to open her eyes.
“I’m so sorry,” Brandon said for the hundredth time that night.
“Please stop saying that,” Cadence implored him. “What’s done is done. You can’t change it now.”
“But… I should have stopped her,” he argued.
“You couldn’t have stopped her,” Cadence shrugged. “Once my sister has her mind made up, nothing is going to stop her.”
“Kind of like you,” Aaron said as he entered the room, stooping to kiss Cadence on the head. “Are you still feeling okay?” he asked as she leaned up to kiss him.
Releasing him, Cadence said, “I’m okay. I’ll be better once Cass wakes up though.” Cadence had turned her IAC off so that she could concentrate on her sister. “Any news?”
“Morgan finally caught up to that helicopter. She was able to take out the pilot,” he informed her.
“That’s good. That Morgan is one tough cookie,” Cadence replied.
“Yes, she is,” he agreed.
“So is Cass,” Brandon muttered. “She’s going to be all right, isn’t she?”
His face was swollen, his eyes bloodshot, and it was obvious he’d spent a good deal of time crying. “She is tough, Brandon,” Cadence assured him. “But I am not sure what we are going to have when she comes back to us. We’ll just have to see how she is.” She had considered using the word what—what she is. Jamie had explained to all of them that he had no idea what the outcome might be. When Cassidy awoke, she could be her normal self, if the serum didn’t take. If it did, she could be a Hunter. Or there was a possibility, that when she finally opened her eyes, Cassidy Findley would be a Vampire.
And there was also the chance that she would never open her eyes again.
“Regardless of what she is, I’m still going to be here for her,” Brandon vowed, tears welling up in his eyes again.
“We all will be,” Aaron agreed, patting him on the back.
There was a twitch then, a slight movement, in Cassidy’s arm, and then her head tilted to the side for a moment. Her lips opened and then closed again, and she let out a loud sigh.
“Cassidy?” Brandon called. “Cassidy, can you hear me?”
She turned her head again, pulled at the blankets, and shifted her shoulders. Then, as they all gathered around her bedside, Cassidy’s eyelids began to flutter. Cadence held her breath, hoping to see those familiar brown eyes staring back at her, and as Cassidy’s left eye came open, Cadence breathed a sigh of relief at the familiar brown iris, until the right eye came open as well, and then she stepped back in shock and horror. Staring back at her from her sister’s familiar face, Cadence saw one beautiful brown eye, and one steel gray eye—the eye of a Vampire.
