"Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend."

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

                                                                            ***

They were like flashes of crimson lightning. Darting into his mind, then out again just as quickly. Not enough for him to comprehend what he was seeing, but enough to leave him sick and shaking.

Nightmares.

Sirius' eyes flew open and he lurched up, looking around wildly. Walls with holes, the faint smell of dry rot, lumpy cushion beneath him.

The abandoned house Caleb had found for them to crash.

He slumped back into the cushions of the couch he'd passed out on. Breathing slowly, he flinched when his stomach growled loudly enough to be heard. He needed to eat. It had been about six days, give or take, since he'd last had a proper meal.

Closing his eyes, he thought back to yesterday, lingering specifically on the memory of after the fight. It couldn't be good that he was actually starting to see her when she wasn't there. 

But he wanted to see her again.

The front door opened in a blast of heat and light. He shielded his eyes, waiting for the door to slam shut. It did, and something warm thumped into his chest. Curious, he looked down to find a fast food bag, then glanced up at Caleb.

He didn't say anything other than, "Hurry up. We're gonna go meet them soon."

Sirius nodded, pulling a single fry out of the bag. He studied it for a moment, sitting up. His stomach heaved in a weird mix of hunger and nausea. He had to eat.

Not thinking about it, he stuck the fry in his mouth, chewing quickly. The taste managed to settle his stomach, and he finished the fries, then the burger. He wiped greasy fingers off on the couch cushion, then lifted his shirt, checking the wound in his side and his chest.

Both had completely disappeared. The only evidence of his altercation were the dark stains on his bloody shirt. Nastily, he thought that the Hunter was just going to have to deal with it. He didn't have anything he could change into.

Caleb came back in, sitting on the edge of a coffee table about three feet away from him. With a haggard glance, Sirius said, "We need to get her car."

"I already did," the Hunter said quietly. "You wouldn't wake up."

Sirius rubbed a hand down his face, his eyes gritty with sleep. "What time is it?"

"About three in the afternoon." Caleb raked a hand through his hair, then said, "There was a story in the paper this morning about two gang members found dead."

Sirius raised an eyebrow carelessly. Caleb asked, "Was that you?"

"The paper say one of them had their throats torn out by what appeared to be a dog?" he asked listlessly. He looked up just in time to watch the Hunter scowl with disgust. Nodding, still dragging with exhaustion, he said, "That was me."

He waited for the Hunter to start giving him some lecture about humanity and how every life was worth something and whatever other bullshit he believed. So he was shocked when Caleb just kind of smirked. 

Reluctantly, the Hunter said, "How many where there?"

"Five," Sirius said warily. "But they were just humans. It's not that impressive."

Now Caleb rolled his eyes. "Sure. Whatever you say, Fido."

Sirius relaxed. Yawning, he asked, "So is this one of those let-you-do-the-talking kinds of scenarios? And what happens if they get jumpy first? I'm not going to get in trouble for killing one of your friends if they decide to try something."

Caleb snarled quietly. "You touch them, I'll put you six feet under. These aren't friends, they're family."

That wasn't really an argument that made a whole lot of sense to Sirius, but he just nodded. Family, friends, whatever. As far as he was concerned there wasn't really a difference. Sooner or later they all stabbed you in the back.

He rubbed at his left eye, then said, "Fine. What are we telling them?"

Caleb went silent, looking down at the floor. He raked a hand through his hair again, then rubbed at his mouth.

Sirius sat up straight. "You have no clue. Do you?"

"Well what would you tell them?" he snapped. "Hey guys, so turns out ten years back I sold my soul to a demon, but it's fine 'cause I ended up having a thing with the Collector sent to get me. She ended up in Hell 'cause of that, and we have to go risk life and limb to get her back. Is that what you would go with?"

"You could tell them you want to go there for shits and giggles for all I care," Sirius said, annoyed. "Tell them whatever you need to tell them to get on board."

"I'm not going to lie to them—"

"Why?" Sirius cut him off. "You've been lying for ten years. Why stop now?"

Caleb actually flinched, his expression shutting down. Sirius looked up toward the ceiling, letting out a small groan. "Fine," he finally said. "Tell them it's my fault. Tell them I tricked you into helping me, and now you're bound with dark magic that will kill you if you don't follow through. That's true enough."

I'm tired of true enough, Sirius.

The memory slammed into him with the devastation of a tactical nuke. Sirius flinched, trying not to get dragged back to Philadelphia when he'd been hurt and scared after killing someone who wasn't a Debtor, and her first instinct was to comfort him. 

He immediately lost the struggle, his mind dragging him down.

She'd kissed him, and his first reaction had been to pull her closer, kissing her back. 

That particular kiss had been more important than she knew. It was the one that let him know how well and truly fucked he was. He had probably loved her before that, but that kiss had brought it to the forefront of his mind and scared the hell out of him. 

He'd pretended to sleep as they drove, even when she had stopped the car and sat staring at him. In the motel room, he'd found the perfect distraction: a hunt. Then, that damn ghost had whispered to him using her voice, telling him that consequences be damned, she wanted him just as much as he wanted her. 

He'd been conscious as that ghost had beaten the hell out of her, but couldn't stop it.

The next morning he'd come so close to just telling her the truth. She'd been lying there next to him, her body soft and warm against his, making him want to spill his guts and beg for her mercy. He didn't get the chance to tell her how horribly, tragically in love with her he was.

Instead, Theron had shown up, giving him an excuse to leave and clear his head.

When they'd been alone again, he'd made sure to be as cruel as he could manage, because it was the only way he could think of to get rid of that shaky, scared feeling. A feeling he now recognized as vulnerability.

He could be quite cruel when he put his mind to it. It sickened him how easily he had hurt her.  

Caleb shook his shoulder, startling him. Gasping in a breath, he looked up. Not in any control, he said, "I'm fucking losing my mind."

Dark eyes heavy with something he couldn't recognize, the Hunter said, "We're getting her back. You keep it together until we do that."

Sirius didn't know if he could, but he clung to the words, forcing his heart to stop beating so fast. He nodded, the movement jerky.

With a sigh, Caleb took out his phone to look at the clock, then muttered, "Close enough." Standing, he looked down at Sirius. "We'll go now. No use stretching this out any longer than we have to."

Slowly, his body feeling old and abused, he stood and followed Caleb out toward the back of the house, where he assumed the vehicles were. The sun scorched his eyes, but he didn't have any sunglasses on him. He was pretty sure the last pair he'd stolen might still be at the restaurant they'd been arrested at.

He raised a hand to shield his eyes, then stopped dead at what he was seeing. Choking a little, he said, "What did you do?"

Caleb took a step away from him. His voice smaller than usual, he said, "I didn't have a slimjim."

The glass had been broken out of the driver's side window. Sirius was having trouble breathing. His claws slithered out, and he balled his fingers into fists, cutting his palms. Caleb didn't say anything, ducking his head and glaring morosely at the car, like it was its fault rather than his.

Sirius inhaled through his nose, hauling air into his lungs with a great deal of effort. He stalked forward, throwing the door open to find wires hanging out of place. "You think you could have torn it apart a little more?" he hissed.

The Hunter didn't answer, and Sirius whirled around. He bared his fangs at Caleb, but forced himself to stay away from him. Rage boiled just under his skin, hot and poisonous, and he knew if he wasn't careful they would both end up bleeding.

Shaking, he threw himself into the car. "I'm following you."

He shut the door with care, though slamming it would have been much more satisfying. His fingers drummed against the steering wheel for a second before he sparked two wires together, twisted them around one another after the car purred to life.

The wires left an electric burn on the tips of his thumb and forefinger. It ached and stung as he turned the wheel, following Caleb onto the street. The faded green truck wove slowly toward the edge of the city.

Sirius tried desperately not to think of the pained look she would have given the car. After she had gotten over her own fit of rage, that was. 

It took a little over an hour to get to where they needed to be, Caleb pulling into the parking lot of a cute little inn. Sirius stared at it suspiciously. That didn't look like a Hunter-approved, cheap as hell, roach motel to him.

It looked like a place people went on their honeymoon, except for the fact that it was on the edge of the restless desert. 

He waited until Caleb got out of his truck and waved impatiently at the Hellhound. With a sigh, he rubbed at his eyes, then killed the engine and stepped out into the late afternoon light.

Caleb raked a hand through his dark hair, giving Sirius a considering look. He shook his head. "We might as well just get it all over with. Alex won't really be a problem, but just...try to take Rick in stride. He can kind of be a dick."

"So are you," Sirius retorted. "You'll notice I've yet to kill you."

The Hunter didn't deign to respond to that, instead choosing to throw Sirius an irritated look before turning on his heel and stalking into the inn. Sirius was content to wait outside.

He jumped when there was a sharp whistle, then looked up to find Caleb waving him over. Swearing under his breath, he walked toward Caleb sullenly, following him past a front desk and up a set of stairs covered in a Persian-style carpet runner over the polished wood.

Already he could feel his hackles trying to rise. There was just no way this was going to be easy. 

Although, he mused, it did seem like the setup to some terrible joke. Three Hunters and a Hellhound walk into a bar...

He shook his head, staring warily at Caleb when he stopped in front of a door with an elegant, golden twenty-four on it. The Hunter sighed out a long breath, then thumped the side of his fist into the door before leaning against the frame.

There was a second of dead silence, then the door cracked open to reveal a suspicious blue eye. That eye widened and the door was slammed shut, making Sirius frown before he heard the scraping of a deadbolt. Then the door was flung open. A hand was fisted into the collar of Caleb's shirt, and he grunted in surprise as he was dragged into the room.

Sirius hesitated outside for a second, already regretting this. He edged inside to find the Hunter standing in the middle of the room with a girl wrapped around him. 

She had her face pressed into his chest, so all Sirius could see of her was a mop of dark caramel hair. 

A raspy voice from deeper in the room said, "Let the man breathe, Al."

The girl shook her head, still clutching at the Hunter who was rubbing her back, holding her tightly. A sharp pain bloomed in Sirius' chest and he had to look away, instead staring past the lacy white curtains of a window into a small garden.

Finally, she heaved in a breath and stepped away from him. Shaking back her hair, she jabbed a finger at Caleb's chest and said, "You don't get to just drop off the face of the earth, then call us saying you have a problem without telling us what the problem is!"

"Christ, Alex, bring it down an octave." The raspy voice from earlier was matched to a face.

Cold, steel-grey eyes bore into him. This man was shorter than Caleb, but built more powerfully through his chest and shoulders. A scar started just under his left ear and ran down into the collar of his shirt before reappearing as five claw marks down his bicep.

Sirius was tempted to ask what kind of over-sized house cat he'd run into.

He wasn't quite as pretty as Caleb, but he was attractive enough that Sirius was beginning to wonder if there was some unspoken rule that all Hunters had to be fairly good looking, if not downright gorgeous. 

That thought was solidified when he finally got a good look at the girl. 

With a heart-shaped face and eyes that would have put Bambi to shame, her looks were reminiscent of a silver screen star. She blinked once at him with long, dark lashes, her Cupid's bow lips pulling into a frown. She couldn't have been more than twenty-five. Maybe twenty-six, tops.

"Let me guess," the man said, sitting in a nearby armchair. "You're the problem."

"And you must be Rick," Sirius replied coolly. He crossed his arms, leaning against the wall, then said, "I'm supposed to let him do all the talking."

"Well then talk," Rick said. The severe military-style cut of his light brown hair did nothing to distract from the scar.

Caleb sat on the edge of one of the beds, Alex curling up next to him immediately. Sirius couldn't decide what their relationship was, his eyes flicking curiously back to Rick. 

He could practically taste the silver in the air, the scent burning the back of his throat. It hung in a heavy coat around Rick especially, making him think that the Hunter had more than one silver weapon on him. 

His attention was pulled back to Caleb when he sighed. Pointing at the girl next to him, he said, "This is Alex Winters." 

"And he's Rick," Sirius said, also pointing. "Yeah, I worked that out for myself, funnily enough."

Rick surprised him with an amused snort. Caleb didn't rise to the bait, instead saying, "Alex is Rick's sister."

"Great," Sirius said shortly, the underside of his skin starting to feel itchy. "Look, I don't really have time for pleasantries. So can we just get this done?"

He bristled as the Hunters all looked at him, his teeth and claws lengthening without his permission. Alex gasped a little, her fingers clutching the sleeve of Caleb's jacket, who was glaring at Sirius. 

They all jumped when a laugh rang out, and Sirius turned to Rick to find him grinning nastily at Caleb. His eyes flicking back to Sirius, he asked, "Pick up something at the pound, Cay?"

Grimly amused but not wanting to be, Sirius said, "For your information, I'm the one who broke him out of jail."

"What was it this time?" Alex sighed, her head resting against his shoulder.

"Public indecency," Sirius quipped. "Who cares?"

She didn't even look at him, gaze steady on Caleb, who was frowning at Sirius. Slowly, the Hunter said, "Fighting some asshole with a bad attitude. But like he said, it doesn't matter."

"What are you doing with one of Hell's bitches?" Rick said, bracing the heel of his boot against the armchair seat and propping his elbow up on his knee. "Why didn't you just skin him and turn him into a Hellhound fur rug?"

Sirius flinched, trying to dodge his way through yet another emotion-riddled memory. He couldn't afford to lose it around these people. He could barely afford it the hundred other times it had happened since she'd been gone.

Not gone, he thought bleakly, taken.

Caleb pursed his lips for a second, staring at Sirius consideringly. Then, he said, "He needs our help."

Alex raised an eyebrow at Sirius, who found himself having a hard time meeting her clear gaze. She murmured, "Well I wasn't expecting that."

Rick scoffed. "So?"

Sirius shifted from foot to foot, anger and anxiety bubbling uncomfortably in his chest. He did not like that sensation. He growled, earning himself a warning glare from Caleb.

"So," he turned back to Rick, "we need to help him."

"Why?" Rick asked, a hint of exasperation creeping into his voice. Sirius was starting to get the feeling that Rick would just as easily gut him as look at him.

Caleb took a deep breath, but before he could say anything, Sirius snapped, "Because he owes me."

Standing up sharply, Caleb said, "Whoa. Stop. Flag on the play." He stabbed a finger at Sirius. "I don't owe you a single damn thing."

"But you owe Galloway!" Sirius roared, his fangs stabbing into his lip, and Rick drew a gun.

He didn't point it at Sirius. There was nothing overtly threatening about the Hunter. He was still very relaxed, but Sirius got the message. Taking a step back towards the door, he tried to rein in his temper, forcing his teeth back to their more human shape. His claws stayed out though.

"Who's Galloway?" Alex asked, staring intently at Caleb.

Caleb closed his eyes and took another deep breath. His forehead creasing with worry, he said, "She's a Soul Collector."

Alex gasped lightly. "So they're really real?"

Caleb nodded wearily, his eyes on Rick, who was frowning. Then, his mouth puckered in disgust before his face paled. "Why do you owe a Collector, Caleb?"

He didn't immediately answer, and Sirius' patience was wearing very thin. "He owed a Debt and she let him walk." His eyes slitted with fury. "Now she's in Hell, where he should be rotting instead of her!"

Rick lunged out of the chair, a knife suddenly in his hand, but before he could do anything, Alex threw herself in front of him, forcing him to a stop. She turned around, her back to her brother. Calmly, she said, "Why doesn't everyone just take it easy, all right?"

Sirius' teeth were cutting into his lip as he snarled quietly, savoring the idea of how satisfying it would be to take his frustration out on this bastard. He wiped at his mouth with the back of his hand. Rick's eyes lingered on the black there, and then he was pulling Alex back, tugging her closer protectively.

He gave Sirius one last nasty look, then whirled on Caleb, who appeared braced for a fight. "Why'd she have to let you walk, Caleb?" Rick snarled.

"Rick..." Caleb started.

"Why?" he hissed. "Don't try to bullshit me, you're no good at it. Just answer the goddamn question!"

Caleb still wasn't answering.

"Why did you owe a debt?" Alex asked, voice soft and startlingly calm in comparison with her brother's.

She was still hard to look at. It kind of felt like his eyes were being burned every time Sirius tried. He supplied, "He sold his Soul."

"No fucking shit," Rick spat. "Why?"

"Because I about got Alex killed!" Caleb finally burst out before sitting back down on the bed, face buried in his hands.

Sirius had not been expecting that, and he froze, struggling away from the fact that he had sold his Soul for almost the exact same reason Galloway had. 

Both Alex and Rick stopped moving, looking at Caleb. Alex shook her head violently, hair whipping around her face. Rick blinked, his eyes going back and forth between Caleb and his sister. Sirius could practically sense the rage and confusion simmering inside of him.

Alex touched her tongue to her upper lip, then rasped, "You told me you went to a witch?"

"I did," Caleb said, but when Sirius snorted, he finished, "At first. But there...there was nothing she could do. And I couldn't..."

"What. Did. You. Do?" Rick asked, his voice restrained. Caleb flinched with every carefully enunciated word.

Rick grabbed Alex by the shoulders and shook her a little. "What happened?"

Alex's eyes were wide and a little scared, but Sirius wasn't paying attention to the drama playing out in front of him. Instead, he let a string of darkness tie itself around his index finger, eyes half-closed as he listened to what it had to tell him.

Caleb darted forward, prying Rick's fingers away from Alex.

"It...it was my fault," Alex began tentatively, but stopped when Caleb held up a hand.

"No. It was my fault."

Rick looked up at the ceiling. "Would someone tell me what the fuck either of you actually did?"

Sirius was tiring rapidly of this little domestic. He decided to cut this short, employing the secrets he'd just been granted. With a terrible little grin, he said, "He took her on a hunt while you were away. She was tired of getting left behind."

His grin grew as both Caleb and Alex paled horribly. "I don't really know why you were gone," he said to Rick. "I didn't care to ask. But she's a convincing little thing with those big Bambi eyes, and Caleb figured it wouldn't do any harm. After all, she was twice the age he had been when he'd been on his first hunt. Just a routine werewolf, no big fucking deal."

Rick had turned a worrying shade of white. It made him look blanched and sick, his eyes huge in his face as he looked at Caleb.

Sirius continued cruelly, "Except, things didn't go quite as smooth as Caleb thought, and she winds up half-dead." He looked at Rick, smile frigid. "Caleb knew you'd do anything to keep baby sister safe, so he fell on the sword for you. Bit the bullet. Whatever. Little Alex is lying in a hospital bed on the brink of death with doctors saying there's no brain activity, and Caleb makes a Deal so you don't have to."

It seemed like none of them were even breathing. He knew Galloway would be pissed at how harsh he was being, but Sirius couldn't bring himself to care. He just wanted her back. He'd do whatever it took to make that happen, even if it was something she would hate him for.

The silence was broken when Alex whispered, "But it's only been ten years. Contracts last for twenty-five."

Sirius sneered. "Not for Hunters. Crossroads Demons always screw them because Hunters only make Deals when they're scraping-the-bottom-of-the-barrel desperate."

Rick turned to Caleb. "I need to talk to you. Outside."

Alex started to stand, but Rick shook his head, not looking at her. "Not you. You stay here and keep an eye on Rover."

Sirius was getting tired of the dog jokes. 

"Rick?" Alex asked anxiously, blue eyes wide and hollow in her pretty face. 

The older Winters just made a slashing motion at her, making her scowl, but she sat back on the bed. Caleb shared a long-suffering look with her, then followed the other Hunter out the door. 

Sirius stood uncomfortably in the middle of the room, doing everything he could to avoid looking directly at Alex. She shifted until she was sitting cross-legged on the end of the mattress, staring at him. He could feel her gaze burning into him.

Finally, she sighed, leaning back on her hands. With narrowed eyes, she said, "You're such an asshole, you know that?"

That knife in his chest twisted, making him flinch back from her. Galloway had said something along those lines to him once. There was something about this girl that reminded him of her.

So he decided to give her the same answer. Haggard, he fell into the chair Rick had vacated and rasped, "Yeah. I know."

"And yet, you're still going to ask for our help," she said. "Aren't you?"

"Trust me. If I had literally any other option I'd go with that. But I don't, so here we all are." He waved a hand, encompassing the room around them. Briefly he wondered what Rick and Caleb were talking about. He couldn't hear anything, so they weren't shouting.

That, or maybe they had already just killed each other.

"Who's Galloway?"

Sirius closed his eyes, swallowing past the tightness in his throat. "My Collector," he hedged.

Contemplatively, she said, "No. You don't just go to Hell for someone you work with." 

Feeling her gaze on him, he opened his eyes and forced himself not to look away from her. He knew when she saw the truth. He could see it in the way her face softened.

Very quietly, she said, "Oh."