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                       Officer Mustache locked me into the neighboring cell from Jock's.

                  "No PDA between your cells, hooligans, or you get no breakfast." Turning to only me, he then said, "It's always the cookie bakers that are the bad eggs, isn't it? ISN'T IT? I trusted you..."

                  "I'm not selling any drugs!" I motioned to Jock. "He is! I'm just a victim!"

                  "Sure."

                  Jock threw up his hands. "Yo, way to throw me under the bus!"

                  Officer Mustache put his hands on his hips. "You threw the poor boy under a bus? That's some impressive arm strength, young lady--!"

                  Jock went red. "I'm not a boy!"

                  "You're a girl?" Officer Mustache stroked his stache. "Well, I would have never guessed, but I'm not one to judge--"

                  "No, I'm a man, is what I meant--!"

                  "Are you even allowed to lock us up yet? I want a lawyer!" I demanded, attempting to rattle my cage bars. "Officer Mustache, this is ridiculous! This is child abuse!"

                  Officer Mustache shook his head at me then walked away. Panic sunk in deep down in my chest. I was in jail. In jail, and my "Secretly- Elite-Hunters-Lying-Sack-of-Parents" could find me locked in jail and take advantage of my vulnerability! Was there any way to defend myself against an attack? Was I hopeless?

                  Most importantly, when was the last time I had used deodorant, because I was sweating bullets.

                  I sniffed my armpit.

                  Still good.

                  "Don't you turn your back on me, Officer Mustache! I'm a woman!" More desperately, I added, "Don't leave me with this idiot!"

                  "Yeah!" Jock shouted afterwards, "I mean--no! I'm not an idiot!"

                  I turned sharply at him, pinning him with questions. " We hurt without moving. We poison without touching. We bear the truth and the lies. We are not to be judged by our size. What are we?"

                  "Words!"

                  I narrowed my eyes at him. "Mr. Blue lives in the blue house, Mr. Pink lives in the pink house, and Mr. Brown lives in the brown house. Who lives in the white house?"

                  "The white man!"

                  "The president! The president lives in the white house!" I hit my head against the bars. "We're done for!"

                  " I'm not an idiot!" More quietly, he added so only I could hear, "I'm smarter than you think I am, Pepper! And I'm just as scared as you are being locked in here. Hell, I'm a constant target as of last night, I have every reason to pee myself right this second but I'm holding it in because that's socially not acceptable!"

                  I let that sink in a little. "Wait, what?"

                  "I found a Smiley mask in my car last night," Jock admitted after a long pause. "Rumor has it, that's how he lets his next victim..." He swallowed hard. "Well, know. That's how he lets them know that he's coming."

                  I turned sharply at those words, remaining silent. If Hunter was after Jock, it had to be because of the immense amount of VOID he had been clearly taking back and forth between clients. Jock was a target because he worked for Vlad, which meant that Hunter would do something to Jock that would be a lot worse than death if I didn't intervene.

                  "Maybe it's good I'm locked in here," Jock continued, staring down at the floor. "Maybe he can't get me while I'm in here..."

                  Yes he can, I didn't say it out loud.

                  "You got ten minutes," Officer Beard said, startling both of us as he unlocked my cell. "Call your parents, Miss. Wilmerheiven." Officer Beard lead me to a phone, peeling away the skin of a banana. When he made no move of checking who was on the other line, which was clearly what any other police officer would have done, I gave the stupid policeman the most innocent smile imaginable and dialed Ronny.

                  He could use his fairy powers and get me the hell-o out of that joint.

                  It run many times before the line finally picked up. "Vell... vell... vell," a heavily accented voice slid into my ear, making me squeeze the phone so tightly I thought it would crack into a million pieces. "Pepper Ballard, daughter of the vorld's most dangerous hunters is in quite the predicament, isn't she? How is jail, vittle hunter?"

                  My heart skipped a beat. Vladimir was answering Ronny's phone, which meant there was a more than likely chance that Ronny was with Vlad.

                  Or dead.

                        I turned away from Officer Beard, keeping my voice down. "Funny, I don't remember dialing your number, Count Dracula," I hissed.

                  "I hijacked ze call before you could reach your...fabulous pal."

                  "You hijacked the call, or one of your brain-washed suit guys did it for you? Or maybe your slave girlfriend, Grace? How is she, by the way? Are you taking her out on a walk at least four time a day?"

                  Officer Beard took a big bite of his banana and threw the peel into Jock's cell with a snort, clearly oblivious of my conversation.

                  Vlad snickered on the other line. "Oh Pepper, you highly underestimate how powerful I am. Do you have any idea how much control I have over your life now that you vork for me? Speaking of vorking for me, explain to me vhere you have been for the past veek."

                  "Investigating," I said without skipping a beat. "I found a lead, and I took it."

                  "Did that lead get you anyvhere?"

                  "Not at all," I lied through my teeth.

                  A pause.

                  "Oh veally?" Vlad said with obvious disbelief. "Need I remind you, darling, I'm a very powerful man. I can change your life in many ways. For instance, make you an orphan--"

                  "You touch my family and I'll stake you right in the d--!" I stopped, whipping my head in Officer Beard's spot in the room once again.

                  "I totally won, you stupid fat monkey!" Beard screamed at his phone, shaking it, still oblivious as to who was talking to. 

                  "Vone can only imagine how a sweet and innocent girl like yourself would survive in jail as a juvenile delinquent," Vlad taunted. "Vell, I guess it's safe to say you vould do just fine, hybrid." He chuckled to himself in a cold, cruel way. My chest rattle with the awful foreboding sensation that something bad was about to happen. "I know that your parents vanted you dead the moment they found out that Sin had discovered you barely breathing in that varehouse."

                  "How do you know all of this?"

                  "I know everything."

                  "Clearly, not everything."

                  "Tushe, Pepper Ballard. Tushe.  FIrst of all, I have my resources, but Smiley is a very difficult man to find. Second of all, your parents vork for me, and I know everything about my employees from the thoughts in their head, to their favorite color, to their choice in undergarments."

                  I frowned at that last part. "Undergarments...?"

                  He continued without pause. "Knowing Sin Trinidad was infatuated with you, I told your parents to vait and see if Sin followed through on his promise to kill you ven you if you turned supernatural. Gee, vasn't I right vhen I told them your life would be spared because he vants your virginity..."

                  Suddenly, I relaxed. He didn't know about Hunter's involvement in my transition. I had felt an odd sense of possession over Hunter the moment Vlad had started asking questions about Smiley, as well as the undeniable urge to protect what was mine.

                  Mine?

                  I cursed loudly.

                   I didn't know much about the supernatural, but I knew enough that "mine" was never a good word when it came to hybrids or werewolves Mine started with the same word as mate, and mate sounded a lot like mutilation when it came to Hunter Trinidad. Suddenly, I was on a really bad werewolf TV show and I was being pinned down by an Alpha who was threatening to rip my throat out with his teeth if I didn't let him dry hump my leg...

                  Three cheers for Pepper Ballard for being creepily and uncontrollably possessive over a serial killer and a very dirty hyper imagination, I thought dryly.

                  "Smiley's identity must be revealed, Pepper Ballard. For the sake of innocent lives, you must help me if you can," Vlad said on the other line, fishing for answers. "One veek. You were gone for one veek."

                  "What are you implying?"

                  "That you were vith him."

                  "If by him, you mean Him-him, then no, I vasn't with him because my head is still intact with my neck."

                  "I meant, Him-him."

                  "Him-him?"

                  "Yes, Him-him."

                  "Huh-huh?"

                  "SMILEY!" Vlad shouted over the other end, clearly annoyed. "You know voo I meant. You are dancing on thin ice, little hunter!"

                  Hunter. The irony.

                   "What about Smiley?" I asked innocently.

                  Vlad let out many foreign curses. "I vant a name, Pepper Ballard. Voo. Is. Smiley? Vhat is his identity, and I will cease your services with me."

                  How is it not obvious to him?

                  "I vant a name," Vlad pressed.

                  "Don't ve all vant a name!" I mocked.

                  "PEPPER BALLARD, I VILL FIND YOU!"

                  I clenched my fist, side eying Officer Beard, who had just polished off his banana and was playing that game on his phne. Were one of the officers snitches for Vlad? Had Jock somehow contacted Vlad and told him what I was? Vladimir knew. He knew? How could he have possibly known that I had been changed into a hybrid?

                  "I can't tell you anything, Vlad, because all I heard was his voice."

                  "You vill regret not telling me his identity, Pepper Ballard--"

                  The line cut.

                  And so did the lights.

                  "Pepper, it's me, don't attack me," a masculine voice whispered at my ear. Startled, I roundhouse kicked the darkness, hitting flesh. "Ooof! Pepper, stop--!"

                  "Rape!" I roundhouse kicked the darkness again.

                  "Ooof! Pepper--!"

                  "What the hell is going on?!" Jock shouted. "Pepper? Pepper, are you ok?"

                  "Just peachy, Jock! Thanks for asking!" I elbowed my attacker in the face. "You picked the wrong chick to flick, buddy!" "Now I'm going to flick you where it counts!" Grabbing my attacker by the shoulders, I kneed him hard in the balls five times. The attacker drop to his knees, groaning.

                  The lights went back on.

                  A familiar man with black eyes and black hair lay curled on the floor, hands cupping his crotch.

                   "GARY!" I gasped. "How the hell did you find me?"

                  The last time I had seen Gary, he had dropped in to the room where Sin Trinidad and I had been held, aka Hunter Trinidad who took the place of Sin (God, why the hell did they have twins to make the explanation so confusing?), and Gary had revealed to me first, that Hunter had been pretending to be Sin to get information out of me, and second, that he knew Hunter Trinidad was Smiley. Gary had come to save me from captivity and expressed his regret of initially killing me and making me ultimately become a hybrid, but I had refused to go with him.

                  I had stayed with a serial killer over Gary.

                 Ouch.

                  Gary looked sexy in his assassin clothes, which hugged his muscular frame perfectly. His black hair was no longer to his shoulders and over his eyes, displaying his clean-cut features, dark eyes, and long eyelashes. 

                  Seeing Gary brought back a memory I wanted to forget. When left me for dead because I knew too much about his cover as an assassin. Sin Trinidad was forced to kill me, couldn't bring himself to it, tried to change me into a hybrid, and then brought me to Hunter because it hadn't worked.

                  "I told you to stay out of it, Pepper." Gary had told me in the warehouse right before paralyzing me and slitting my throat like a cow. I did everything I could to keep you away from me. You've left me no choice. I'm sorry that it had to end this way."

                  Now I was back to the present and I was enraged. Gary was still recuperating from the numerous blows I had given his nuts. Color slowly came back into his face. Well, not too much color, since he was pale and vampire-looking to begin with, but now he looked like he could breathe and his nuts were no longer pulsating in pain.

                  I wanted to kill him.

                  Gary stood up straight, fully recovered. "I let you hit me before because I deserved it. It's not going to happen again. We put a tracking device in you," he explained. "The transmitter in your worked perfectly fine, but Ronny freaking bedazzled the receiver system we set up and screwed up our signal to your transmitter. After I found you with Hunter when he was pretending to be Sin, I waited for him to switch locations so that I could find his hideout and destroy him. It kept saying you were in Guadalajara at a tiki bar with a yellow and white bikini, drinking tequila with five of those little small umbrellas, while a parrot sat on your right shoulder talking dirty in Spanish to a girl next to you eating a salad. So needless to say, I couldn't find Hunter's hideout where he kept you because the GPS was busted."

                  Could have just checked his house. For a serial killer, he doesn't really keep his hideout too far away from home.....

                  "That's.... a very specific GPS, nonetheless," I commented. "Where the hell did you get a transmitter like that?"

                  "I'm an assassin." He shrugged. "We like details and fancy tracking toys. Not bedazzled toys though, for obvious reasons..."

                  "Has Sin turned up anywhere?" I asked hopefully. "He was really hurt the last time I saw him. Because he eats animal blood and not human blood he's weaker and probably hasn't even healed yet. Hunter implied that he was safe, but that's not very reliable coming from someone who likes to chop people's heads off in his spare time."

                  Gary shook his head. "Sin hasn't turned up."

                  I ran a hand through my hair. "Mother..fudger. Hunter probably has him locked up somewhere with one of those hamster water things dangling from a ceiling." I looked around the Sheriff's department. "And what about Officer Beard and Officer Mustache? Where are they?"

                  "Wiped their minds, then knocked them out with a tranquilizer. They'll be out for at least a couple of hours."

                  "I'd ask you to teach me how to do that, but you're on my shit list for killing me."

                  Gary glared at me for the longest time. "You're never going to let that go, are you? Even though you know that I had no other choice? I couldn't let you blow my cover."

                  "I wouldn't have blown your cover."

                  "You have a big mouth, Pepper."

                  I put my hands on my hips. "You know, for someone who slit my throat, it's kind of twisted that you came to save me--I'm sorry, I mean tell me that I have a big mouth and blame me for dying."

                  "I had no choice but to kill you," he emphasized. "You would have blown my cover. How many times do I have to say this?"

                  "I wouldn't have blown your cover."

                  Gary leveled his gaze with mine. "You're obviously going to keep saying that. We can argue this out another time. Right now, we need to get you to safety because you were captured by Smiley. Understand?"

                   "What makes you think I'm going anywhere with you? You have no idea what I've been through this past week! All because of you, too!"

                  "I had to do what I did to you, even if it went against my feelings towards you. I know exactly what you've been through. I know being a hybrid is a huge adjustment for you, but frankly, you need to get over yourself."

                  "I need to get over myself? I freaking died, Gary!"

                  "I'm technically dead too, and you don't see me complaining! Do you think I like being a vampire? I'm a freaking hemophobic! I hate blood! You really want to talk about problems with me?" He ran a hand aggregately through his hair. "You, for one, have a lot more issues than being immortal, super strong, and hotter than you already were."

                  I snarled. "You little--wait, I was hot even before I changed?"

                  Gary's black eyes went hard. "Nevermind that, Pepper. It's time to go. We came to rescue you from jail."

                  "We?"

                  "Ronny and I. But clearly, you didn't need rescuing with the way you just beat the shit out of my balls five minutes ago. Thanks for that, by the way.

                  "There's more where that came from, buddy." I threw back my arm and went to punch Gary. This time, he dodged my attack, bringing my arm painfully behind my back and throwing me up against the wall.

                  "Let me go!" I shouted.

                  "Are you going to hit me again?"

                  'Yes!"

                  "Then...no!"

                  I cursed under my breathe. "Fine. I swear, I won't attack you!"

                  Gary smirked. "Do you swear on your virginity?"

                  "Screw you, Gothic--I mean, assassin...stupid...YOU!"

                  "Good one."

                  "Hate you!" My lips peeled back from my teeth in an unfriendly smirk. When Gary had pinned me against the wall, I felt a gun on under his t-shirt. It was probably filled with silver bullets, and being I was a hybrid,  I came to the conclusion that I couldn't sucker punch him in the privates again. "So help you god, if you don't let me go right this second, I'm going to peel the skin off of your--"

                  "HELLO?! Pepper, I've been screaming for your attention for like ten minutes now and none of you have even acknowledged me! I have to piss!" Jock shouted from his cell, catching both of our attention. "Not that I'm not enjoying this back and forth bickering between you two love birds, but can you GET ME THE HELL OUT OF THIS CELL ALREADY?!"

                  The assassin reached for his gun and aimed it at Jock. "Shut your mouth and sit on the ground with your hands on your head," Gary barked.

                  Jock dropped to the ground.

                  Gary finally let me off of the wall, putting distance between us, one hand on a gun clearly in case I tried to attack him again.

                  "Who the hell is this idiot?" Gary asked, inclining his head towards Jock.

                  "I'm not an idiot!"

                  "He works for Vlad. Deals VOID. I have reason to believe he's Smiley's next victim. Even though I thought you might be conspiring against me, I dailed Ronny before to let you guys know I had found a possible next victim, but Vladimir intercepted the call, asking directly about Smiley. I didn't give him Smiley's identity, and I don't plan on it."

                  "Why?"

                  I swallowed hard. "You know who, said he would kill me if I told anyone anything about what we discussed in the last week. Normally, I wouldn't take a threat like that too seriously. But you know who, is a loose cannon, and you know he is. He could kill hundreds after me, just because he's pissed that he can't kill me again!"

                  Gary rose a brow. "Why aren't we saying his name?"

                  I inclined my head towards Jock, who was picking his nose.

                  "He's too dumb to remember who Smiley is."

                  "True," I agreed.

                 Gary stepped closer to me. "You're going to tell me everything he told you at some point, whether I have to make you or not. I need to know everything about that bastard, so that I can kill him."

                  I narrowed my eyes. "You would really force me to tell you what he said to me, even after everything I've been through? What makes you much better than Hunter if that's the way you operate? Cruelty and torture to get what you want, huh? Real civilized."

                  "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're taking Hunter's side." Gary loomed over me. "You're either with me, or you're against me, Pepper. And if you're against me..."

                  I laughed bitterly. "You'll kill me?" I flashed my fangs. "Bring it, Assassin's Creed."

                  "Get me out of here!" Jock rattled his cell bars. "He's coming after me next! I don't want to be in a freaking cell when he does!"

                  Gary ignored him. "You are literally going to drive me insane, Pepper. It's impossible to get along with someone who's as blunt and--and bitchy as you are!"

                  I jabbed a finger in his face. "It's hard to get along with someone who slit my throat and left me to die, in a building that smelled like urine and dirty rats!"

                  "Ugh! You are so frustrating!" Gary ran a hand roughly through his hair, then down his face. "We have to bring this kid with us, and we have to move fast because I'm not in the mood for a big shoot out when I have to protect a civilian..." Gary touched his chin. "However...Jock might be perfect bait to draw Hunter out if he's really his next victim. Maybe Hunter has a list and he's been set on checking people off chronologically to avoid any screw ups. Most of the supernatural serial killers I've encountered are like that. Organized."

                  "Bait!" Jock shouted. "I'm not going to be your bait!"

                  "Well what do you propose we do?" I chimed in.

                  Jock looked between the two of us. "He's an assassin. You're..like, a ninja. Fight back! We can fight back!"

                  "Not going to happen." Gary shook his head. "This is my job. I'm getting paid to eliminate him."

                  Except for the fact that Hunter is creating an army of undead people...

                   "Sorry I'm late, girls, had to slip on something pretty!" a voice sang out. I whirled around, to find none other than Ronny in a sparkly pink jumpsuit and pink mask, hair gelled back and a pink and purple wand in his hand. "Must have accidently hit a light switch walking in --I mean, when I strut in!" He lifted his leg and ran a hand down his tights, then proceeded to strike different poses. "I mean, of course I strut. I look faaaaaabuloooouuuss!"

                  Gary looked sharply away from Ronny. "Jesus, Ronny, I told you that you had to wear underwear if you wore that! 

                  "Ronny!" I shrieked, shoving Gary hard out of the way so that he smacked into the wall.

                  Gary let out a low hiss.

                  "Pepper!" Ronny shrieked back, "my main bee-otch! I swear, I had nothing to do with Gary murdering your ass! He didn't even tell me you were a hybrid until yesterday!"

                  "Ronny, you're not helping!" Gary barked.

                  We came towards each other at the same time, me running, Ronny strutting fabulously, me sprinting. He hugged me tightly, lifting me off the ground and kissing both of my cheeks, then planted a hard kiss on my lips.

                  "Oh my god, Ronny!" I laughed out, wiping off my lips. "I thought you were gay!"

                  "More than ever, bee-otch! I just missed you so much!" He made his usual wide gestures with his hands. "I'm talking, Ian Somerhalder being killed off of Lost, missed you! Jack Dawson, sinking to the bottom of the ocean like a brick, missed you! Oops, spoilers! I can't believe you're a hybrid! You smell like dog!" Abruptly, Ronny took a step back, looked down at my outfit, and dropped his pink star wand. "OH. MY. FASHION!!!" He covered his eyes, turning completely around. "What in the name of Vogue and are you wearing?"

                  Gary winced, visibly repulsed by my shirt. "Whose blood does all that belong to, anyways?" He put a hand over his mouth and nose. "Can you... change your shirt or something?"

                  I rolled my eyes at him. "Are you seriously still afraid of blood? You're a vampire!"

                  "Anyone with eyes is afraid of your outfit right now!" Ronny said, still refusing to look at me. "You look right out of a really crappy horror film! The irony is that you're killing me the longer you wear that disaster! Killing me!"

                  Gary showed his fangs at me, ignoring Ronny. "Rub salt in the wound, why don't you? This isn't the time to discuss how I'm a hemophobiac. We have to go." Gary went over to Jock's cell and broke the lock with his bare hands. I scratched my head, realizing I could have just used my super strength as soon as I had been thrown into the cell and broken out. But that was the easy way. Gary gripped Ronny by the shoulder. "We need to get them out of here. You're not safe here. And...you need new clothes."

                  Ronny giggled. "He's about as afraid of blood as I'm afraid of vaja-jays! Except, Gary's definitely not afraid of vaja-jays." He cupped his hand over his mouth, leaning into me. "You should see his laptop--!"

                  "Ronny!" Gary barked, "we have to get Pepper and that guy out of here. Pepper managed to get yourself locked into one of Smiley's next victims."

                  "What guy--?" Ronny turned, his jaw dropping as he saw Jock. Straightening, he pranced over to Jock and gripped his bicep with both hands. "Well, hello there, handsome. I'm Ronny, and I will be your slave for the night--I mean, savior. Whoops!"

                  Jock swallowed hard, fixated on something behind us. "What the..."

                  "Fuck," Gary whispered under his breath, slowly reaching for one of the katana swords strapped cross-crossed on his back.

                   Ronny held out his star wand defensively in front of him.

               "Ronny, put that thing away! You're scaring Jock," I said, then turned to Gary. "Here's what we have to do tonight. We need to go somewhere safe, which means putting aside our differences, and we need to devise a plan to somehow get sloppy Smiley out in the open. Then we sleep. We can't attack today, we'll attack tomorrow. Smiley was bound to make a mistake at some point, and tomorrow will be that mistake. We'll trick his ass so hard he'll frown. He thinks he's better than us just because he can swing around a blade and cut people's heads off? DOes he think he's smarter than us? Well, trust me, I know who he is, and Jock could probably solve a rubix cube eight faster than him! Let's go, team!" I brought my hands towards myself, trying to create a huddle. "On three! No me gusta Smiley porque tiene un pene pequeño! That's Spanish for, 'No, Smiley is not pleasing to me because he has a tiny peni...."

                  I stopped, finally noticing that everyone was staring at the same spot Jock had been for five minutes straight, aka directly over my head.

                  "Smiley is right behind me, isn't he?"

                   "Uh-huh," Jock squeaked out.

                   I swallowed hard. "With a freshly sharpened machete?"

                  They all nodded.

                   * * * 

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