by Willow Rose
"Where did you get this?"
Jayden sniffled. "So, you do recognize it? What is it?"
"It's a page from my mom's book. One that was ripped out. Where did you see this?"
"Ruelle had it. She said she found it here in the park."
Jazmine sighed with a shrug. "My mom could have dropped it. It's probably not important anymore."
Chapter Thirty-One
My dad looked worse than the day before when I got back from school. I had picked up Veronika on my way back. She rushed to her room to play with her doll.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
He had the phone in his hand, and his hair was unruly. I had never seen him quite like this before. He was a mess.
"Just got off the phone with Ben."
I put my backpack down. "And?"
He gave me a look. It was strained with despair. Panic started to spread inside me.
"Dad? What did Ben say?"
My dad swallowed, then cleared his throat. "They're charging her."
My eyes grew wide. "What?"
He nodded like the realization was just starting to sink in. "They're charging her with murder."
"Why? How? They don't even have the guy's body yet. I mean, they don't even know if he’s dead or not."
"It's all part of their tactics. They want us taken down, all of us, one way or another…lure us out of our hiding," my dad mumbled, obviously not quite realizing who he was talking to.
"But…but they can't keep her like this, can they? Aren't there laws about these things? What's their evidence that they’re basing their charges upon?" I asked, confused.
He cleared his throat again. "That's what we need to find out. Guess it's time to lawyer up. Luckily, I know some of the best in the country. I’m calling them right away."
I rushed to my room, not without looking in every corner and on every wall of the house to make sure there were no spiders. I sat on my bed heavily, when I heard a scream.
"Veronika," I said and hurried into the hallway. I found her in the bathroom, squatting on top of the toilet.
"What's wrong? Veronika? Speak to me? Did you see something? Was it a spider?"
My eyes scanned the room, but I saw no hairy long-legged creatures. I felt like I was getting paranoid from constantly looking everywhere for them after hearing Amy's story.
She shook her head.
"What was it then? Was it any of my cousins? Were they up here?"
She shook her head again. "No."
"Then what was it?"
Our eyes met. "It happened again," she said.
"What happened? Did you travel?"
She nodded again. "Yes."
I relaxed. "Okay. And you saw something scary?"
She bit her lip. "Yes."
"What did you see?"
"You. You were dead."
I sighed, nervously. That again. "And you're sure it was me?"
She nodded.
"And who else was there?"
"Duncan," she said.
My heart dropped. "Anyone else?"
"Another vampire," she said. "Tall one. A boy with evil eyes."
This was new. As my dad called from downstairs to tell us we needed to order another pizza for tonight, I grabbed onto the small straw of hope that I could change the future and my own fate.
There had to be some way.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Alyssa Heckler was listening to music on her phone, earbuds in her ears as she walked her Boston Terrier, Dinky along the lake. It was late. Way too late to be outside, her mother would tell her. But it had been late before she had come home from cheerleading practice where Britney had run them hard because she wanted them to be the best this year; she wanted them to go all the way to regionals. Alyssa and the other girls knew it would never happen since they were just really not that good, but it was the same at the beginning of every school year. Over the summer, Britney had gotten this idea in her head that this year they were going to be better than everyone else. Tonight, she had been yelling and screaming at them while they rehearsed their routines, and especially at Alyssa who had fumbled a couple of times.
"You gotta step up this year, Alyssa," she had told her. "Otherwise, you're out. I only want the best and prettiest on my team this year."
Alyssa knew she wasn't one of Britney's favorite girls, but she still enjoyed being a part of the squad. Alyssa had never really been a part of anything and was never very popular in elementary school. Once she joined the cheerleaders in eighth grade, she was immediately one of the popular girls. It was her ticket out of despair, away from the social outcasts, the weirdoes, kids like Robyn, Jazmine, and Amy. Those girls were so strange. They had known each other well when they were younger, and Alyssa used to hang out with Amy a lot, but she had to stop seeing her when she became a cheerleader. In the beginning, Amy had called a lot and even come over to her table in school, but Alyssa had realized the only way to get rid of her was to ignore her completely. So, she had stopped talking to her, and if Amy addressed her, she simply didn't answer. It was easiest that way. A clean cut. Like pulling off a Band-Aid, Britney had told her. Alyssa still remembered the concert they were supposed to go to together. She and Amy had bought the tickets months before Alyssa had tried out for cheerleading, and they were both looking forward to it. Then, when Alyssa had started to ignore Amy because she had to, because Britney told her to do it if she wanted to be with them, Amy had come to her desk one day in school and asked her if they were still going to the concert as planned. Alyssa hadn't even looked at her. She had simply turned around and walked away without a word. Alyssa's mom had yelled at her because she had paid for the tickets, and then they had put one ticket in an envelope and Alyssa had handed it to Amy the next day in school without even a word. Amy had ended up going alone while Alyssa bought an extra ticket and went with Britney. It was quite awkward when they met in the line outside to get in, but Alyssa had kept ignoring her, hoping she would soon give up and let her go.
Alyssa missed Amy from time to time, of course she did. They had been very good friends in elementary and part of middle school, and for a while, they had been almost inseparable. But that was life for you, right? You win some, and you lose some.
Alyssa hummed along to her favorite song by Drake with a shrug. She hated thinking about Amy and those days. She had been so dorky back then. It was years ago now. Three years to be exact. She was a completely different person now. She had a better life now. She had new friends that were popular, and that made her popular too.
"Unless Britney throws you off the team, then where does that leave you?" her mother had said one day. But Alyssa didn't want to listen to her. What did she know about being popular anyway?
"Could you hurry up, Dinky?" she urged the dog and looked at her watch. It was past midnight, and she had to get to bed in order to be rested enough for tomorrow's practice, and the darn dog refused to do her business.
"Please?"
The dog finally went, and Alyssa decided she didn't have to pick it up since no one would see it anyway. Whistling, she started to walk back toward her home, thinking about the routine she needed to prove to Britney tomorrow that she could do, rehearsing it in her head.
She didn't hear the rustling in the bushes behind her, nor did she hear her dog beginning to whimper. It wasn't until she stood face to face with it and looked into those glaring red eyes that Alyssa realized something was wrong.
And by then it was too late.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Jazmine woke up at two o'clock once again and walked to her closet. She turned on the light and looked up at the shelf. It was still there.
You're just being paranoid.
All night long, she kept waking up and turning on the lights, worrying that one of their spiders would be there, sitting under the ceiling looking down at her. What she feared the most was that it might go into her closet and find the Yeti.
What would happen to her if they found him? Was
it only a matter of time before it happened?
She closed the closet again and turned off the lights. She laid down on her bed, eyes wide open, staring at the window where light came in from the moon outside. It was strange to Jazmine how the sky in this place always seemed to be covered in clouds during the day but at night, the moon shone brightly from a clear sky. It made no sense.
Jazmine sighed and tried to close her eyes. She had to get some sleep. She had school tomorrow, and she had promised herself that this year she was going to do better. Last spring, her grades had been affected by the death of her father, and she refused to let the fact that her mother was in jail influence her future in the same way.
She tried to think about something else, but every time she did, she kept returning to the fact that she felt like everyone who had ever loved her had left her. Even Adrian was so far away now.
It wasn't fair.
Jazmine sat up in bed when she realized there was no way she could fall asleep now. She felt so alone and sad.
And that was when her mother appeared. At first, Jazmine thought she was actually there in her room walking toward her bed, but soon she realized that it was just a vision. She had seen visions before but none as clear as this one. Her mother was wearing the same orange prison outfit she had been wearing when Jazmine had visited her, which told her that her mother was still in there, physically at least. She looked troubled, and her face had grown old.
"M-Mom?"
"Jazmine," she said. Her voice sounded clear and very real. "You refuse to listen to me, so this is the only way I can talk to you. Why won't you listen to me?"
Jazmine shook her head. "No. I am not doing this, Mom. You can't trick me anymore."
"I am not trying to trick you, sweetie. I am asking for your help."
She shook her head again. "I can't. I can't help you."
"Honey. Whatever it is you think I have done, I didn't do it."
Jazmine looked into her mother's eyes, then swallowed. The look was very sincere and honest. A tear escaped Jazmine's eye.
"But…I saw you, Mom. Jayden saw you."
"I’m telling you, Jazmine. It wasn't me. You hear me?" she said. The vision started to flicker, and her mom disappeared for a few seconds, then returned.
"Now, listen to me, honey. I don't have much time to tell you this, but…"
She disappeared again.
"Mom?"
The vision crackled and then returned, but the picture was pixelated and the sound scratchy.
"Find…you…please try...find…ri…"
And just like that, she was gone.
"Mom!" Jazmine yelled. "Find what, Mom? Find what?"
You know, a familiar voice said inside her mind. Jazmine turned her head and spotted BamBam approaching her, his yellow eyes glowing in the darkness.
You know exactly what she was talking about.
Chapter Thirty-Four
When I came home from school the next day, I spotted a black limo parked in front of our house, and my heart skipped a beat.
"Duncan," I mumbled, a smile spreading across my face. I hadn't seen him in forever, and I missed him. I was worried about him and how he was doing after losing his dad and all that.
Veronika had started to take the bus, so she was already at home. I parked the car in the driveway, then rushed up to the front door. I threw my backpack on the floor inside and continued in, still wearing my shoes, even though I knew it would have made my mom raving mad if she had known. But that was one of the advantages of her not being around.
"I’m home!" I yelled and hurried into the living room, expecting to see Duncan's handsome face staring back at me. But it wasn't his eyes that met mine once I walked in. It was a set of completely different sparkling eyes that I had looked into before.
"Well, hello there," his voice said.
My heart dropped. "Caleb?"
Caleb smiled. My dad, who was sitting next to him, buried in paperwork, looked up.
"Oh, hi, sweetie. Say, you two already know each other?"
Caleb gave me a look that made me very uncomfortable. It was like he undressed me with his eyes. "We've had the pleasure of meeting, yes," he said, still eyeing me.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, trying to sound polite. His mere presence made the hairs on my neck stand up. His piercing eyes scrutinized me.
"He's helping me getting your mother home," my dad said.
"You’re a lawyer?" I asked.
"Only the best in the country," my dad said.
I stared at the piles of papers in front of them. Caleb was sitting leaned back in the leather chair with a drink in his hand, still smirking, still looking at me. I blushed.
"So, how are her chances?" I asked. "Can you get her acquitted?"
Caleb scoffed. "Of course. I'm the best, remember?"
He sipped his drink.
"And he's doing it all for free," my dad said.
"Pro bono," Caleb said, smacking his lips.
"That's very kind of you," I said, not quite buying into it. Caleb didn't strike me as the type that would do anything for free.
He threw out his arms. "What are friends for, right?"
"That's...great," I said. "I'm gonna…I'll go get something to eat."
I walked to the kitchen, but once I got there, Caleb caught up with me. His sudden appearance startled me.
"You scared me."
"I’m sorry. I didn't mean to. I was just so…happy to see you again."
"Really?" I asked and walked to the fridge. There was still leftover pizza in there, and I grabbed a slice. I ate it, hoping Caleb would return to the living room and my dad soon. Renata, Adrian's dog, was sitting in the corner in her bed, growling at Caleb.
"Don't mind her," I said. "She hasn't been herself since Adrian left."
"That's right, Adrian is your brother," Caleb said. "I had forgotten about that. I have a hard time seeing the resemblance, though. You're way prettier, I have to say."
"You know him?"
Caleb smirked. "Not well. Met him through some mutual acquaintances. Let's just keep it at that. But I was the one who got him into Harvard. I'm on the board."
"Of course you are."
"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked.
I shrugged. "Nothing."
There was silence. He kept staring at me, making me feel uncomfortable.
He walked closer to me and grabbed me by the chin. He lifted my head to make me look into his eyes.
"Now…remember how I said in there that I wanted to do this pro bono? To help your family out?"
I stopped chewing and swallowed. "And now you're telling me there’s a price after all? Why is that not surprising?"
He laughed. I didn't care much for his laughter or his way of being so full of himself all the time.
"Well, it's not so much a price as it is an award. For you."
I lifted an eyebrow, sensing where this was going. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"
His eyes lit up. He looked a little manic when he did that. "A date. One little date with me. That's all I want."
"And what if I say no?"
He tilted his head. "Well, you wouldn't want me to lose the case for your mother, now would you? I have a feeling she won't do so well in prison."
"So, you're blackmailing me into going out with you? Isn't that a little pathetic?"
He chuckled. "Now, that's an awful word. Why would you say such an ugly word? Well, come to think of it, it is kind of fitting. So, yes, that's exactly what I’m doing. You have a problem with that? You think it’s pathetic? Well, too bad. I’m still doing it."
I scoffed. "And what do you think Duncan is going to say to us going out? I am supposed to marry him, you know. I don't think he'll be very happy about this."
Caleb leaned over me, looking very smug. Then he said in a low voice, placing his lips very close to my ear, "Duncan's a big boy. He'll just have to learn how to live with it. He knows his place."
Chap
ter Thirty-Five
"Is there really nothing you can do to help her?"
Jayden was sitting in the kitchen while his parents were discussing loudly in the living room. They were talking about Robyn's mom. Jayden was supposed to be doing his homework but stayed where he was to listen in on their conversation.
"I can't," his dad said. "I’ve tried everything, Claire. If I do more, they'll start asking questions about me."
"We can't have that," his mom said. "Is she all right?"
"I think so," he said. "It's Camille. She's pretty tough."
"I know. I know. I just…well she used to be my best friend, remember? I know I’ve been angry with her for a long time, ever since…well, you know what…but I still can't stand knowing that she is being…I mean, this is one thing I know she hasn't done. You know how I know? Because she would have told us. We wanted this to happen. She would have involved us or at least told us, maybe even bragged about it."
"What if she didn’t because she wants to protect us?" his dad asked.
"Ha. Camille protect us? I hardly think so. But you sound like you think she did kill him?" his mom asked, surprised.
"I don't know what I think anymore. I can hardly remember what went on just a few months ago. I’m just trying to navigate all this and trying to keep them from focusing on our family."
Jayden's mom sighed deeply. "I can't say I’m sad that he’s gone, though," she said. "After what he did to Logan."
Hearing his mother's words, Jayden's eyes grew wide. He got up from his chair, then wrote a note and went into the living room and handed it to her.
"They might be listening?" his mom said, confused when she read it. "What's that supposed to mean?
Jayden grabbed the note and wrote on the back: THE SPIDERS.
He showed it to his mom. She nodded, letting him know she understood.
"Jayden's right," his dad said with a low voice. "They get in everywhere."
"Of course. I didn't think of that," his mom said, sending him a gentle smile. "Thanks."
