Chapter 32

Hesh heaved as he blinked to clear his vision. He thought he saw a huge bird of all things flying through the air even though it had ran past him just moments ago. His vision cleared as he saw Logan writhing on the ground in agony and Rorke facing… "Hawk?" He breathed weakly.

Sequoia was facing Rorke with narrowed eyes as she held her hands ready. She was crouched low and was ready to move. She merely stared with a fierce look as Rorke laughed at her and taunted her, "Now there Little Charlie, you know my stance about manners."

Sequoia said nothing as she spared a glance at Logan. She had hit Rorke from behind at an odd angle that when he released his leg it twisted his ankle. She could tell he had a broken arm by the odd angle and the way he was holding it and it looked like his nose might be broken. That could be fixed later. Right now she had the issue with Rorke and she watched the man carefully as he mocked her with that grin of his.

It was lightning quick she pulled her pistol the moment Rorke pulled his and pointed it at her. She had pulled hers and pointed it at him. They were both extended and it looked like they were aimed at each other's chests. She narrowed her eyes defiantly while Rorke grinned at her while holding where Logan blew the hole in his chest. He said, "Well looks like I was wrong about a few things Little Charlie. I didn't think that Merrick would let you in on this fight."

"Hard to try that when all hands on deck," Sequoia allowed. She kept her gun pointed at the man as he did her. In a weird twisted way as long as they pointed them at each other, they wouldn't fire… Well she would, given the chance. With him… it depended on how bad he wanted her. Her hair had come out of the coil at the nape of her neck but it was still in its braid. Loose wet tendrils dangled on either side of her face and her war paint was smeared but she looked still ghostly.

Rorke chuckled at her, taking in her appearance. She definitely was a Ghost. "Nah the best he could do was to hold you back but like Charlie, you disobeyed orders and came after me."

Sequoia curled her lip in amusement. She would let him think what he wanted. Part of the hunt was to make your prey see what you wanted them to see. "Considering you killed my captain then you would be right," she replied as she leveled her weapon.

"Then why don't you get it over with?"

Sequoia kept her gaze on Rorke even though she noticed that Logan was moving a bit on the ground. Rorke was a wounded predator and they were unpredictable enough already but wounded… She kept her gun at the man and replied, "Then my question is why don't you do the same since you're pointing that thing at me?"

Rorke looked at her suspiciously. Sequoia kept an impassive gaze; there was nothing to indicate any sort of emotion. It was like a game of chicken with a gun and it was also similar to what he had the Walker boys in on the train but it was different. He moved as if to circle and she moved with him but not faltering. He liked that; it was so like Charles. He knew that bastard had taught her how to be like this. "Maybe I'm keeping you in suspense."

"Or it could be that you are what you are and that is why the Feds were able to turn you," Sequoia offered. "I'm inclined to believe that and you're only hiding behind your so-called admiration for a man who died ten years ago."

Rorke looked at Sequoia and grinned. It slowly turned to a chuckle and almost a laugh. He used his free hand to shake a warning at her. "You're good Little Charlie but it's not Charlie. I don't even think you have the guts to pull that trigger at me because you want me alive. You want to know everything I know just as I want you."

"And shooting me won't get you what you want."

"You got that one right Little Charlie." Rorke then pointed the gun at Logan.

Sequoia shouted, "Logan, move!" She fired just as Rorke did.

"LOGAN!"

Hesh had been struggling to stay awake and trying to move his body that was fast giving out on him. He gripped the sand as he watched Sequoia and Rorke face off with each other and their guns. He couldn't hear the conversation but he could tell that neither was going to back down; hell she had more strength that he did and her own life was on the line. When he saw Rorke point the gun at Logan, his body screamed as he pushed himself up and screamed his brother's name when the shots rang out.

Logan seemed to jerk from Hesh's position. He didn't realize that Logan had moved when Sequoia shouted at him and the bullet grazed his head. It looked like though Rorke shot him in the head like he did Elias and Hesh felt rage build up along with sorrow. That was his baby brother. He was on his feet the moment he saw Sequoia throw her gun and hit Rorke right in the middle of his forehead before charging and tackling him.

He watched as she got to her feet and pulled out her tomahawk and twirled it in her hand, holding the head in her palm. He could hear Rorke's laughter as he taunted her, "I got one too. Thanks."

Hesh had no idea how he managed to get closer but he found himself next to Logan who was lying still on the ground. He patted his brother and saw his brother's chest rise and fall to indicate he was still breathing. He looked up and saw that Rorke and Sequoia were going at it until Rorke got her in a chokehold and ended up blinking when she brought her leg up and he was certain her knee hit Rorke in the face. He started looking around for a weapon apart from a rock.

Sequoia had tackled Rorke after nailing him in the head with her gun. She managed to wrestle the other gun away from him and sprang to her feet and had out her tomahawk. She looked at the bastard with narrowed eyes as she circled Rorke. They charged with her using the handle for defense while Rorke used her old one and swung the blade at her. Rorke managed to get her into a chokehold from behind. She retaliated by bringing her leg up and smashing his face in.

"You're good Little Charlie. Never thought you'd be able to handle it."

Sequoia said nothing but twirled her tomahawk and was ready for the next exchange. She managed to bring in Rorke close and lock him in with a maneuver her father had taught her but he never showed anyone else. They were facing each other and Rorke struggled to break away but she held fast. He wasn't going anywhere.

Rorke snarled at her, "You little shit. What the fuck?"

Sequoia's face was impassive as she countered the way she had been taught to prevent Rorke from breaking away. She had one way of ending this but… She heard a gun click and realized that someone else was trying to get in on the fight.

"So you still got a little life in ya," Rorke was saying. "Couldn't stay down could ya junior?"

"It's… over… Rorke," Hesh was breathing heavily. His hands were shaking even though he had a firm grip on the gun he had found by Logan. He was aiming at Rorke and blinking, trying to stay awake.

"You think you can do what your brother had the balls to do?"

Sequoia had a firm stance. The only way Rorke was going to throw her in the line of fire was if he adjusted his position. Hesh didn't know that and he wouldn't risk shooting her. She narrowed her eyes as she managed to see Hesh start to waver. The fact that he was on his feet to some degree was a testament. She had to act fast since he would drop it entirely.

Rorke was laughing, "Didn't think so. You're not a Ghost. You don't have what it takes."

Sequoia knew it was now or never. She said, "David!" She twisted and put it so the Rorke was in a pretty much perfect position.

Hesh fired but his hands were shaking so badly that his aim was off. The bullet seared across Rorke's back but it was enough. Rorke released one hand and was able to slip out of the grip. He flung Sequoia until she flew away. She collided with a boulder and dropped to her knees gasping for air. Rorke in the meantime dropped his tomahawk and started towards Hesh. He grabbed the hand with the gun and wrenched it away while delivering a hard kick causing him to cry out in pain. "Didn't you learn never to point guns at people?"

Rorke gave Hesh another hard kick and he felt some ribs break. He would have given another but was halted by, "Stop!"

Rorke turned to see Sequoia standing there. She was looking at him with a determined look even though she had been winded a bit from that exchange. He looked at Hesh who was writhing on the ground in agony and turned to look at her and asked, "Or what?" He taunted her by pointing the gun at Hesh.

"You want to hunt me," Sequoia said with a firm gaze even though she knew that both Walkers had some semblance of consciousness, "You have to earn that right. You want me. You have to earn it."

Rorke narrowed his eyes at her to see if she was tricking him. There was nothing of the sort. He threw away the gun and nodded, "Alright Little Charlie. I'll humor you. Charlie would have done the same thing." He stepped closer to close the distance and began to circle her.

Sequoia was ready for the strike and blocked it. She countered with a swing from her tomahawk and had her wrist grabbed. It was still sore from the zip tie and Rorke was able to fling it away. Didn't matter though… she was good at hand to hand. It was another little secret of the badass Echo Three. She countered with a three punch strike and ended it with a palm strike right to the chest where the gaping wound Logan gave the bastard was. It had him stagger back and grasp his chest while she kept her gaze on him.

Rorke couldn't help but chuckle, "Not bad. Didn't know you had that up your sleeves." He held up his hands ready to punch her like a boxer would and took a swing.

Being smaller, Sequoia was more agile and her father taught her how to use it to her advantage. He also taught her how to play it smart with her abilities. She knew that Rorke was fast too even injured and that made him even more dangerous than usual. She blocked the swing and adjusted her position to get a feel for how the man would move. She had seen what he could do with a gun. Now it was time to see how he would do without one.

One of the major things that Charles Williams taught his daughter was the ability to defend herself. Most people, with the exception of a few close military friends, knew that he was a black belt in martial arts and coupled with the hand to hand they taught at boot, it made him pretty formidable. He was a quiet man by nature but he never hesitated to offer advice to any one of the men he served with and it was usually when it was asked of him. Sequoia had learned unofficially what he had taught her along with things that he had learned from his father going back to the old days.

Charles was watching his daughter play. It was one of her usual games of stalking the stuffed dog that had been hers since she was a baby. She was practicing her hunting and tracking. He also saw one of her older cousins stalking her. He had noticed this going on for some time. He watched as the boy pounced on her and trapped her. He watched as she struggled to get away and noted how creative she got. It was then he took matters into his own hands.

"Father what are we doing today?"

Charles looked at his little daughter stare up at him with her innocent brown eyes. They had not seen what he had seen; they didn't know the ugliness of the world. Yet he knew that if he didn't teach her how to defend herself, that ugliness would destroy her. She may have been born a warrior but she was still a person. He looked at his daughter and replied, "I am teaching you little Hawk."

"But you always teach me," Sequoia frowned not understanding the question. She looked up at him with her brown eyes trying to understand as she had been trying since he started teaching her things that a man would do for his son. "What is different about this?"

"I am teaching you to protect yourself, Daughter," Charles finally allowed. "I am teaching you so you can stand up to the things that may want to hurt you."

Sequoia looked at her father with a puzzled look. "But you make sure I don't get hurt. Mother too." She didn't understand.

"I won't always be around to do that my little Hawk. You must learn to live up to what your name means. The Hawk is a bird of prey, a hunter and he knows his environment and learns to adapt. You must learn the same."

Sequoia frowned a little as she tried to comprehend what he was meaning. Some of it made sense as her little features contorted into seriousness. He looked at her as if trying to understand what he was doing to the most precious thing that was in his life next to his wife. "What is my name?" She asked the question in a solemn little voice.

"You are White Hawk… Tahatanskah. You are a hunter and warrior."

Sequoia blinked up at her father. She repeated her name in Sioux and said it with pride. She then asked, "Why must I learn father? Why must I learn to be like my name?"

"Because you are a hunter." What Charles didn't say was what he knew was out there. He had a dark feeling overcome him. Still even if he said it now, she wasn't going to understand it until she saw it. Better to teach her now so that if she heard it, she would learn and understand. Finally he said, "Because there are other hunters out there that are not hunters. You need to protect yourself from them."

Sequoia backed away to avoid a heavy footed kick. She could see why it would hurt Hesh as much as it did. Rorke had power in his strikes whether it was a kick or a punch. It didn't matter that he was injured either. He seemed to be enjoying it too. That was a dangerous thing in her mind. She wasn't going to admit it but in between running on trains, crashing, swimming and running… her muscles were starting to burn. She had to end this.

"Not bad Little Charlie. You're good. You are most definitely a Ghost. You should consider my offer," Rorke said with a chuckle. He rubbed where the hole from the 44 was in his chest. He nudged Logan's broken arm since he noticed that the kid was moving and said, "You could learn a lot from her kid." He chuckled when he heard the hiss of pain and saw the glassy eyed stare. He had intended to miss anyway… so it worked out.

Sequoia adjusted her stance. "You still haven't earned the right, Rorke."

"Bring it on then."

They went through another exchange of strikes and kicks. Sequoia was feeling it burn in her muscles. She was also well aware of a couple of sore spots from the harder ones that Rorke delivered. He was wearing her down with body shots. He finally grabbed her in a headlock and his hand went to the knife on her belt and held it to her neck. He said, "Now hold still Little Charlie. We wouldn't want to have an… accident."

Sequoia struggled and felt the nick on the side of her neck. It wasn't deep but it drew blood. She spat, "I won't consider."

Rorke then got real low in her ear. His tone was menacing, "Oh I think you will. Consider this, I'll spare the kid but you get the chance to hunt him. Do that or they both die here and now."

Sequoia looked at the bodies of Logan and Hesh. She couldn't and wouldn't stoop that low. Even if she said yes, Rorke would do whatever he wanted. She wasn't going to give in and she knew they wouldn't either. "Fuck… you," she gritted and gave a hard elbow.

Rorke grunted but didn't let go. "Then we do this the hard way." He threw the knife aside and focused on cutting off her air. He adjusted his grip as she flailed trying to get an edge. "You're mine Little Charlie and you'll not only hunt Ghosts… You'll destroy their souls."

Logan had been moving since he was coming to from whatever knocked him out. He saw that Hesh was there and surprised at that. He blinked and watched as his brother struggled to move and turned to see Rorke holding a limp Sequoia with that infuriating grin of his. She was passed out and he slung her over his shoulder saying, "You're mine Little Charlie."

"Dammit Rorke, you… son of a bitch!" Hesh was struggling to get up.

Logan watched as his brother got a hit to the face and was pushed over. He ended up grunting in pain when Rorke gave him a hard kick. He said, "I gotta hand it to ya junior. You're persistent. I was wrong about you." He gave a chuckle and added, "If you live, come find me. You might like what I make of Little Charlie here."

Logan managed to get out, "Fuck you!"

"You too son. You'll meet a real hunter when I'm through with her." Rorke then turned and started walking towards the jungle. Sequoia's arms dangled like she was dead. The tail end of her braid hit the back of Rorke's thigh as he limped and carried her out of sight.

Logan heard Hesh grunting in pain and saw his brother move. The last thing he saw before passing out was Hesh reaching out and shouting, "HAWK!" His brother collapsed and he blacked out and thought he heard the sound of a helicopter rotor getting closer. Too little too late…

Being a hunter is not about learning how to track your prey and taking it out. It is also about learning about the environment around you. Remember my little Hawk, it is not about just surviving…

Sequoia heard the sounds of wildlife in her ears. She knew that she was outside. It didn't take much brainwork to figure that one out. The question was where outside and why. Slowly she opened her eyes and winced since her head ached though she was certain that she hadn't received a heavy blow to the head.

Her eyes lighted on dirt but the soft kind that was continually moisturized. She moved her fingers and dug them into the earth. She took a breath as she looked around but tried not to move too much just in case someone was watching. It was habitual but also she wanted to delay what was going to happen and not to give them any excuse to do anything.

Slowly she moved her head and looked all around once she realized that there was no one there at the moment… at least physically. She pushed up with her hands to get to her knees and sit on her heels. She felt her muscles protest and she figured that made sense since she pretty much pushed them to the max with that bastard Rorke. She pushed that aside though as she looked around.

She was in some sort of pit. That much was certain since there was nothing but dirt for the floor and walls. Some vegetation was coming down the side and it looked like it would provide a means of getting out. Then she lifted her gaze towards the top and could see that what was a means of escape was now a means of taunting.

Above there was a grating. The holes were large enough to stick an arm through but it wasn't big enough for a body unless you were a baby or something. She could see the foliage from the trees above and the late afternoon sun filtering through the leaves. Where the fuck was she? Deep down though she knew where she was. She hadn't forgotten what Elias had told her what the Federation did to Rorke…

They kept Rorke in a hole for months…

She was in a hole and probably the same hole that they kept Rorke in. That meant that they were going to keep her there and try to break her. She knew that was what Rorke wanted. The look in his eyes…

You're mine Little Charlie and you'll not only hunt Ghosts… You'll destroy their souls…

Sequoia looked around as she vividly recalled Rorke's words as he put her in an incapacitating hold before she blacked out entirely. No wonder her head was buzzing. She paced around the perimeter of the pit still looking at the sky. She was trapped.

You'll destroy their souls…

The predator is a hunter little Hawk and the worst kind. They are the kind that cannot be stopped alive…

She looked around. She hated the fact that she was in there already. It was like that fucking sub. She hated that place. The only thing that saved her from going insane and begging for a sedative was Riley and Riley was there because of Hesh.

Hesh…

Sequoia stopped pacing but continued to look up. If they were watching they would just think that she was looking for a means of getting out. It would hide the fact that tears were pricking at her eyes. Hesh was there on that beach. Crimson made a trail from the water to his body… Was he even alive?

Being pissed off at what he did was unimportant now. She wasn't even mad at Logan. They did what they thought was right. It was all anyone could do even if it was a bad idea in the first place. She sighed as she looked up as darkness started to fall. It came fast in the jungle. She could only hope that Logan and Hesh were okay… especially Hesh. She wandered around looking at what was going to be her cell for the next… how many ever months they decided to keep her in. She was going to get very familiar with it and she might as well start learning how to control her hatred of being kept in a cage.

As she walked around her fingers began tapping a rhythm with them. She tapped them on her free palm since she really didn't have anything else. They took all equipment that could be used to escape. She looked at her hands and the rhythm she was tapping. She felt her lip twitch as she remembered why she did that. She could do this.

It is not enough to know how to hunt for survival. To survive merely means to satisfy basic needs. When you are hunted my little Hawk it will not be for just your very existence but for your soul. Only you can decide if you want to surrender…

Sequoia looked up as the sky darkened. Her fingers tapped the rhythm on her palm. She had faith in them. She would need to have faith in herself. They will come for her; he would come for her but until then she had to have faith in herself as she just came to understand days ago. She would have to be strong like a true Lakota Sioux warrior in order to beat the Federation in this hunt for the soul of a Ghost.

A/N: And there you have it folks! Now that was a twist wasn't it? What happens next? We'll find out in the sequel The Hunt coming to a fandom near you. Thank you for all who have read and enjoyed this story...