Chapter 17

My heart was pounding mercilessly in my chest as I sneaked out of the house into the huge garage. Luckily, I located my car with no trouble at all. Just as Cedric had promised, the garage door was open so I easily got into my car which I had sorely missed, started the engine and eased it out of the garage. I didn't turn on the lights just in case someone might still be awake. In the afternoon I had walked the length of the driveway twice so I could muster the turns and bends 'coz  I'd really hate to ram my car into something. My heart still beating fast, I raved the engine and drove quickly to the gate which also stood wide open. Man, this was almost too easy!

I stopped just outside the gate and in a second, Cedric jumped in and before he could settle in I had already stepped on the gas pedal and sped away from our base. From the rear view mirror I saw the massive gate sliding closed. I felt so... forlorn. Like I had left something behind. As the gate became smaller and smaller, the feeling increased. I also started to panic.

What was I doing? Was this going to work? What if I got all of us killed? Cedric will surely hate me for getting him killed! And he will never talk to me again! Well, he will be dead but what if there was afterlife? What about Gabriel? What was he going to do when he notices we were not in the house? What will he do when he finds us all dead?

"Santana? Are you okay?" Cedric's voice broke my string of panicked thoughts.

"Wha'?" I was gasping for air because my throat suddenly felt constricted. I was also zig zaging across the road.

I screamed.

"Hit the brakes!" Cedric yelled holding on to the dashboard for dear life.

I hit the brakes and the Range stopped crossed right through the middle of the road.

Cedric and I were both breathing hard.

"What the hell is there matter with you? Are you trying to kill us?"  Cedric yelled.

"Sorry. I sorta had a panic attack, I think." I said still panting.

"Well are you okay now?" He asked.

"Yeah, I think I'm fine." I nodded finally getting control of my breathing.

"THEN GET US OFF THE BLOODY ROAD! My God! Do you have a death wish, woman?" Cedric bellowed.

I just stared at him for a second then I burst out laughing and almost immediately Cedric joined me. In a few seconds we were both shaking in a hysterical fits of laughter. If someone was to ask why we were laughing, I would really have no idea what to say in reply. And the laughter just kept coming.

"Nooo..." I groaned breathlessly clutching my stomach which was now painful from all the laughing. "Stoooop."

Cedric was clutching his side too, lying back on his seat and panting hard. "Don't take this as a hint to continue laughing but if a car comes now we will literally become roadkill."

I grinned at him then started the engine again. Evening out the car on the road, I continued our journey. Cedric punched the address in the GPS.

After that we drove for about fifteen minutes in complete silence.

"I think you are bipolar." Cedric suddenly said breaking the silence.

"What?"

"Bipolar. You have extreme mood swings that-"

"I know what bipolar means. I mean why do you say that?" I snapped slightly annoyed.

"See? That's what I'm talking about. One minute you are having a panic attack, next you are hysterically laughing, next you are silent and seemingly socially awkward and now you are irritated." He explained.

I smiled lightly. "Sorry, you can't even imagine what's going through my mind. It's seriously giving me whiplash." I said flexing my shoulders.

"It must be hard for you." He muttered sympathetically.

"You have no idea." I muttered back.

"Maybe I can distract you from the situation." He suggested.

I glanced at him briefly before looking back at the road. "How?" I was a little sceptical.

"What's going on between you and Gabriel?" He asked curiosity levels high in his voice.

I glanced at him again and found him watching me closely. "Nothing." I shrugged trying to appear nonchalant.

"There's definitely something going on, Santana. Will you tell me what it is?" He pushed on.

I wasn't telling him anything! I wasn't about to share tales of my rejection. I was probably going to die single.

"There's nothing, Cedric. Give it up."

"If you won't tell me then I won't tell you what Gabriel said to me when you were unconscious after the battle." He said tauntingly sing-songy.

My interest immediately quipped. "What did he say?"

"First tell me what is going on." He insisted.

Did I want to know what Gabriel had said about me? Absolutely. And I was also dying to talk to someone about this Gabriel situation. Now that Lola had dumped me... Cedric was the next best thing.

I sighed. "He kissed me."

"What?!"  Cedric nearly chocked in shock.

"You can't tell anyone!" I added quickly. I hadn't meant to start with that but it just slipped out of my mouth.

"Gabriel. Kissed. You." Cedric breathed through each word.

"Yes." I replied adopting the same breathing pattern as Ced.

"Santana, I have been friends with Gabe for about eight years now and in those eight years I have never ever seen him interested in a woman. Let alone a girl." He spelled it out for me.

"Oh, really?" I didn't believe him. Gabriel was gorgeous and could have any woman with a blink of an eye.

"Yes! Even Gisele has been trying to get his attention ever since they met but all she's ever been is his weird secretary kinda thing." Cedric said

I knew that Gisele wanted Gabriel, that was obvious to anyone but Cedric didn't know what he was talking about. "Well, Gisele is not a nice person so who would want her? But Gabriel... I'm sure he has had lots of girls." I said letting out a little painful laugh. That hurt to say but it was probably true.

Ced was shaking his head. "No. You are the only girl he's liked ever since I knew him."

He likes? He likes? Gabriel liked me? Did he? "You think he likes me? What did he say?" I asked my eyes wide.

"I do think so. He said, and I quote he had 'never in his life seen any person mortal or immortal quite so exquisite.' "

Oh my. "He said that?" I was blushing so bad my face was the same color as a beet. Thank heavens it was dark.

"Yeah. And I have never seen him looking at anyone like that. He likes you, Santana."

The warm fuzzy feeling in my chest was growing. Did I dare believe what Cedric was saying? Didn't I know better though? Gabriel's face after our kiss when he was telling me off suddenly flashed in my brain and it rained all over the warm feeling.

"He likes me? He sure has a funny way of showing it." I muttered bitterly feeling the pain of rejection all over again.

"What did he do?" Cedric frowned.

"Well, he is Gabriel. The man incapable of emotion." I said quietly.

"You really like him, don't you?" He asked quietly.

I took my time responding as I weighed and considered my feelings. He has been mean to me yet I still wanted to be closer to him. I missed him all the time and I thought about him a lot too. I was sure this was the most I'd ever liked anyone.

"Santana?" Cedric gently prompted.

I nodded. "Yeah. Yeah I do." I glanced at Cedric one more time with a sad smile on my face.

"I'm going to have to bring you home safe." He said with a small smile of his own.

"Why?" I looked back to the road.

"Because I'm interested in seeing how this love story will end. The story of the cold Guardian and his fiercely beautiful Lioness." Cedric smiled.

I gave a small laugh. "It ends with the Lioness killing the Guardian because he was a gigantic douche."

Cedric laughed. "Let's not forget the werewolf friend who cheers her on."

"Ah, we can't forget the werewolf." I agreed laughing too.

"I still can't believe he kissed you." Cedric muttered almost to himself.

"It's not a big deal." Except that it was. It was my first kiss for Pete's sake! But Gabriel didn't know that, did he? Jerkface.

"We are almost there, Santana. Are you nervous?" Cedric changed the subject.

"I can't wait to see Finn. I miss him a lot. And yes I am nervous." I admitted. "Are you?"

Cedric flexed his bulging muscles. "No. I'm way stronger that all of them combined. Plus I have a Guardian with me. We will be fine." He assured me.

Yes,we will be. I minklinked to him.

He gasped and looked at me like I had grown a second head. "You can do that?"

Yeah, baby! I said with a grin.

"Whoa! Santana, you make a fine fine  Guardian." He drawled giving me a wicked kind of dirty look.

"I still don't know how I can use it as a weapon though." I mused.

"Believe me, in the moment it will all come to you." Cedric said nodding like an old man with a memory full of life experiences.

"Hmm, it better." I muttered almost to myself. "We are almost there. Oh God." I breathed.

"We will have to leave our car some distance away so we can observe the situation without being detected."

"Yeah of course." Tension was rising as we just nearer and nearer. My hands were so clammy I had to wipe them on my jacket several times. The time was so close and I knew I couldn't fail. I had come all this way and i was going to get everything I had come for, Finn being first priority. I just hoped Ced would not get hurt because of my elaborate plan.

Please, let this go well, I silently prayed.

"Maybe, go down that road and hide the car somewhere there." Cedric said pointing at a narrow detour probably leading to someone's property.

I nodded as I eased the car down that road he indicated. The GPS protested but we ignored it. I found a perfect spot to park and hide the Range.

"Now what?" I asked turning to Cedric after I shut down the engine.

"Well, we are about five hundred meters away, let's get moving."

Cedric said unbuckling his seat belt.

He was out of the door and heading to the trunk before I could say anything. I sighed then followed him out.

"Ced..." I started but he had already pulled me into a tight hug.

"I know. I know." He whispered brushing my hair with his hand.

I shut my eyes and wrapped my arms around him.

"I'll have your back and you will have mine, okay?" He Said and

I nodded against his shoulder. "Don't worry, it will be fine."

I released him and stepped back slightly. "Yeah it will." I smiled a smile I wasn't feeling though his answering grin made me grin back genuinely.

He opened the back and took a backpack out. "Here, take this." He took a small gun. "And this."

"Whoa! I don't wanna shoot anyone." I protested refusing to take the gun.

"It's hunting gun." He showed me a bunch of syringe looking bullets. "These are tranquilisers and these" he produced yet another bunch of the syringe bullets which are kind of purplish "are filled with a none lethal dose of wolves bane."

"Wolves bane?" I raised an eyebrow.

"It's a flower that poisons wolves." He replied and started putting them in my jeans pockets for me.

"They have werewolves." It was a statement than it was a question.

"Yes. And if you see any, shoot them with the wolves bane. There are vampires too but I have no poison for them. We will just have to fight them." He said.

"What's in the bag then?" I asked shaking the little thing.

"Flashlight, small crowbar, binoculars and sandwiches." He said.

"Sandwiches?" Of course he brought food, I thought a laugh forming up in my chest.

"What? We might get hungry." He justified himself even though he looked embarrassed.

I laughed at him as I strapped on the bag. I put the gun in my pocket. "Only you can think of food at a time like this."

He merely grinned then he shut the trunk door. "I made a copy of the car keys. Just in case."

I nodded in understanding. Cedric's playful mood was gone and it was replaced by this serious focused tone.

Beeping the car locked, we started walking in the bushes towards the base, I assumed. I followed closely and quietly behind Cedric. If there was anyone out there we didn't want to alert them of our presence.

We had walked a short distance when Cedric suddenly stopped. He held a finger to his mouth to silence me.

I froze as I tried to listen to whatever he was trying to hear. I heard nothing. After I waited a few seconds, I whispered; "What do you hear?"

"Take your tranquilizer gun out." He whispered back and he waited for me to take the weapon out and hold it at ready position. Good thing daddy dearest had taught me how to shoot.

We continued walking until we were hidden by trees directly opposite a wall that was bathed in flood lights. Sure enough there were guards at the gates, a few scattered over the length of the wall and I was sure there were some hiding in the shrubs. I looked up at Cedric for instructions.

He was studying the wall carefully probably counting the guards or looking for a way in.

"We need to cross the road and go to the bushier side of the wall. Maybe we can get in without being noticed." He whispered pointing at one side of the wall that was almost completely covered in trees and bushes.

"But how do we do that without being seen?" I asked.

He tapped his chin thoughtfully. "The only way we can do that is if we walk further down the road until we are sure they won't see us." He suggested.

Seeing no other way of doing this, we began walking further down the road as quietly and inconspicuous as we could. We could only pray that we were not being seen.

Ten minutes later, Cedric was satisfied with the distance we had walked and the wall was in darkness.

"Come on." He whispered beckoning me to follow him. We cautiously crossed the road and my gun was held ready to shoot any one or thing we saw.

As soon as we reached the other side of the road, I heard a sound that distinctly sounded like a man groaning. In panic, I shot three wild shots towards the direction of the sound.

"Ouch! Who's there?" A deep voice called.

I froze in terror feeling horribly exposed since I was hiding behind a tree. Cedric, who was hiding behind another tree put a finger to his lips to tell me to shut up.

Footsteps of the man I had hopefully shot shuffled on the grass clearly looking for us. Oh good God... How long did the tranquilizers take to work? Maybe by the time they worked we'd be dead, I thought as the sound of footsteps came closer and closer.

"I have a gun." He stated and I almost jumped because his voice was so so close to my hiding place. I clamped my hand over my mouth to stop the sound of my panicked panting.

He suddenly stopped a few heart stopping seconds later, he fell to the ground with a thud. I breathed a huge sigh of relief then I turned towards Cedric but he frantically waved me back in my hiding place.

Was the guy still awake? Was someone else there? It was too dark I could barely see and I couldn't hear any sound either.

Cedric was pointing his gun out into the darkness and he shot three shots into the darkness.

"Argh!" A voice cried in pain. Then shot his gun randomly.

"Get down!" Cedric called as he dashed for cover.

The man staggered and fell to the ground but there damage was already done. All the other guards had heard the gun fire.

"Grab his gun!" Cedric yelled. I could hear the sound of footsteps approaching.

I mind controlled the gun to my hand ignoring my conscience which was telling me that I could hurt someone.

"Get on my back." Cedric said.

"What?"

In response, he shifted to his massive wolf form then ducked down for me to climb on. I jumped on his back and before I even got properly settled, Cedric took a few steps back then leapt from the ground, above the wall and landing in the yard. I gasped as my inner thigh brushed hard on his fur.

I jumped off his back and scanned our surroundings while Cedric shifted back to his human form. We were some kind of a backyard similar to the one we had back at our own base. At this point we were standing in the middle of a large open space, completely exposed.

As if we had one mind, we both ran towards cover which was quite a distance. I was breathless by the time I had my back against the house wall.

"What now?" I whispered.

"Let's try to get inside. We need to find a window or a door." He whispered back urgently.

"Okay. Let's try the back first." I suggested.

We started walking quickly along the wall and as it was there were no low windows. I knew it wouldn't be long until the guards outside alerted everyone else so we had to move really fast.

"That one seems low." Cedric said pointing up at a window. "If you stand on my shoulders, you can reach it."

His last word was punctuated by the shatter of glass and before we knew it, we were showered in broken glass from the window we were just about to climb.

One by one the lower level windows were breaking and we just stood there in confusion.

"What-?" I got the answer to the question i was about to ask when men started climbing out through the windows.

Damn!

Two things happened; Cedric shifted again and I started running towards the front of the house heading away from the wall.

More hunters were coming out of every opening of the house and from outside the gate!

Oh my God!!

Panic bellowed inside me as I stopped running. There was nowhere to run to. We had been trapped!  Cedric ran up in front of me and growled fiercely at the hunters. I stood next to him with a gun in one hand and the tranquilizer gun in the other hand and both hands were stretched out towards the group of hunters who were circling us.

We were completely surrounded yet they didn't attack...they just stood there watching their prey. Cedric was growling viciously daring anyone to come any closer. From the corner of my eye I saw one of the hunters drawing a gun and pointing out towards us and he fired.

I quickly deflected it and it hit a nearby tree. More bullets came and I deflected all. The hunters obviously saw it as a challenge and more guns were drawn and fired. It didn't take me long to realise that the bullets were aimed at Cedric.

I had dropped both guns to the ground and I was using my hands to deflect the bullets away from either of us. The concentration it took was astounding and I knew I wasn't going to be able to keep it up because the bullets kept coming.

Suddenly bright light bathed all of us and I was momentarily blinded.

"Urrrgh!"

I turned and saw a human Cedric sprawled on the ground clutching his chest. He had been shot.

"No!" I screamed.

"W..wolves bane..." He coughed up black stuff from his mouth.

Just as I was kneeling, I heard a clap of hands.

"Well, that was certainly entertaining." A familiar voice said sounding slightly amused.

I turned slowly as all the hunters lowered their guns and I  stared into the eyes of the man I called my father. He was standing at the opening of the circle of hunters.

"Wasn't it?" He added turning back to someone behind him. The group opened up more to allow the newcomer to pass.

My heart stopped when the newcomer finally passed through.

"It sure was." Finn said standing next to Dad with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face.