The Hunters - Chapter One

The counter was cold beneath my elbows, but I couldn’t have cared less. I was well into my daydreams by now, so much so that everything around me seemed to disappear.
I wondered where Ryan was, and then decided that I probably didn’t want to know. Presumably, he was out getting hammered and searching for his next conquest.
Ryan was my brother, three years my senior, and was well-known for his...rambunctious behaviour. There didn’t seem to be a woman in town that could resist him, and that pleased him a lot. I rolled my eyes and tried to forget about him.
Uncle Cam had been out of town for almost two weeks now and I was expecting an update call when I got home tonight. From the sounds of it, he was doing well and hadn’t run into any trouble as of yet. It wouldn’t last, that much I knew. Good luck wasn’t something that liked Cam, nor my brother and me.
Cam wasn’t really my uncle, just a family friend who had taken in my brother and me when our parents had died, over ten years ago now.
‘Hey Kate, do you plan on working tonight? There are customers over there, you know.’ Eddie called to me from over the counter, nodding towards a table at the back of the bar.
I jerked alert and turned to face him.
‘Sorry Eddie, I’ll go see them now.’ I apologised with a fake smile.
Eddie nodded and went back to cleaning a glass, his favourite past-time when he worked the bar it seemed.
Eddie was my boss and the owner of The Phoenix, a small but popular bar on the edge of the long dirt road into town. Because of where it was, we got plenty of passers-through dropping in for a drink so it stayed pretty popular.
I had worked here at The Phoenix for two weeks now, mostly as a waitress but occasionally behind the bar. Since I was seventeen, I wasn’t really allowed to work here, but Eddie was short on staff and I was short on money so we all ignored that fact.
I sashayed over to the table, knowing that an extra twist of the hips here and there would get me better tips. So would the tiny shorts and miniscule white t-shirt I wore as a uniform, but I wasn’t overly fond of them. I felt like I worked in Hooters or something.
‘How can I help you boys?’ I asked with a smile to the table of middle-aged men.
I recognised most of them from town, though I knew none of their names.
‘Well darling, you can start us off with a pitcher of beer I think.’ One of the men answered, winking at me.
I fought desperately against my gag reflex and nodded before bouncing off towards the bar. This was just what I needed, a group of perverts who were perfectly willing to forget about their wives and hit on a minor. Groups like that came in once or twice a week and I had learned to deal with them politely.
In my first week here I had not been quite so sensible. A guy had grabbed my butt and I reacted before I thought, slamming his head down against the table. Eddie had been out of his mind angry and I was lucky to keep my job. The guy had avoided The Phoenix for a week or so and when he came back he had carefully avoided my section of the bar.
Eddie looked up at me as I approached the bar and quickly assessed my facial expression.
‘They ain’t worth it honey, don’t let them get you worked up.’ He soothed as he poured a pitcher.
‘Thanks Eddie, I know.’ I smiled, almost genuinely this time.
Eddie was a good guy, and I knew his apparent bad temperament was all false. He was truly nice, but he had a bar to run and he didn’t need people thinking he was lax on the activities going on here.
I grabbed the pitcher and a couple of glasses and set them on top of a tray before heading back to the table. I deposited the drinks on the table, careful not to lean over too far and give them an eyeful. Not that they would have minded from the looks of it – they had all leaned forward slightly in the hopes of getting a view. I rolled my eyes and turned to walk back to the bar.
Before I could make my exit though, the same guy who had winked at me hooked his finger into the back pocket of my shorts. He slipped five bucks into my pocket and patted my butt. I gripped the tray tightly in my hands, resisting the urge to break it in half on his face. Instead, I smiled my thanks and sped from the table.
I would’ve dropped the money he’d given me into the tips jar to share out with the other waitresses at the end of the week, but I figured I deserved the money since I was the one who had to get groped. Besides, I knew that some of the other girls had been dipping into that money all week whenever Eddie wasn’t looking, so the share was dropping significantly.
Just as I sat myself on one of the barstools, the bell above the door rang, signalling another customer. I sighed and glared at the door until I saw who had walked through. It was Debbie, another of the waitresses at The Phoenix, and she was coming in to take over my shift.
I grinned at her and she smiled back and walked over.
‘How ya doing, Kate?’ she asked warmly.
‘I’m good thanks, and yourself?’
‘I’m doing alright. Danny’s a little sick so my mom’s over there looking after him.’ Debbie explained.
I smiled apologetically and touched her arm for comfort. Danny was Debbie’s three-year-old son who she had raised on her own since her boyfriend had ditched her a year before. Fortunately, her mom was still around to look after him whenever Debbie had to work.
‘I’m fine; he’ll be alright by the morning. How’s it in here tonight?’ she asked, glancing around the quiet bar.
‘It’s pretty slow tonight, but watch out for the table at the back. They’re handsy.’ I explained, rolling my eyes.
She laughed and went behind the bar to put her apron on. I untied mine and dropped it on the bar. I told Eddie I was leaving and he nodded at me as I walked out the door.
It was dark outside, but not enough that I couldn’t see. I glanced at my watched and was hardly surprised to see that I was half an hour late in leaving. It was only nine thirty, but I hated staying late nonetheless.
The Phoenix was surrounded by forest and the driveway was long and twisting. It was pretty creepy if I was honest. I strolled across the gravel, the crunching beneath my feet the only noise permeating the clearing. I had parked close to the bar, never liking to walk far in this area. It wasn’t the safest and people had been mugged out here in the past. It seemed that some of the rougher customers would hang out in the parking lot, just waiting for innocent looking patrons to steal from.
Not that I had anything to steal, all my stuff stayed at home or in my car. I had never been a purse-carrying type of girl.
I reached my car and looked at my reflection in the mirror. My dark brown hair was nearly black in this light and it was springing from its ponytail in every direction. I sighed and tugged the band from my hair, allowing the curls to tumble carelessly around my face.
I leant closer to the window to check out how my makeup had faired when I caught sight of the reason it wasn’t very dark tonight over my shoulder. The full moon hung in the velvety blue sky, its light uninterrupted by clouds.
Oh, god!