by Willow Rose
"Caleb?" I said, holding his cold hand tightly in mine. My voice was shivering. The spider-man held out the machine toward Caleb. My heart raced in my chest.
Caleb moved fast. He grabbed me around the waist, then soared into the air toward the ceiling before the machine could even be turned on. I gasped as I looked down at the spider-man, who now ran on all eight legs up the wall toward us. Caleb still held me in his strong arms as he rushed across the ceiling. I could see the bar beneath me as I was dangling in his grip. I closed my eyes, so I wouldn’t look down. I had never been good with heights, and this was just too much. If Caleb let go of me, or if I slipped out of his grip somehow, or if the spider got to him and he died…well, I didn't even want to finish the thought. I just closed my eyes and prayed that we would make it to the other end of the room. I could hear the spider-man closing in on us, his skinny feet tapping along behind us. But Caleb was faster, and soon we reached the other end, and he stopped. I opened my eyes and looked down beneath us where several other spider-men now had taken up the pursuit and were crawling up the wall. Everywhere I turned, I saw them mounting toward us.
Caleb didn't move.
"C-Caleb? They're…getting kind of close."
My heart stopped as one of them turned on his vacuum cleaner behind us. If they sucked out Caleb's soul at this moment, I was sure to fall to my death. I screamed, trying to force them to realize that, but they didn't seem to care. Caleb sat completely still underneath the ceiling, holding me tight. The spiders were crawling closer and closer, the sound of their vacuum sucking machines drowning out my every thought and even the panic screaming inside of me.
I shrieked and closed my eyes, but as I felt Caleb move, I opened them again, just in time to see him dart through a small round window under the ceiling. I squealed and held my breath as glass was shattered all around us, and we were spit into the air. Caleb spread out his wings and held me in his claws, carrying me away quickly. I looked down at the ground below and felt a deep suction in my stomach. Then I looked back at the spiders that were crawling out the window and up on the roof. One was spewing out web after us, but we were already too far away.
Chapter Forty-Two
I was still breathing heavily, and my heart was racing in my chest when Caleb put me down in my front yard. He landed on his feet and, as I looked at him, the vampire was gone. He was back to his own smug self, grinning.
"That was a little more intense than what I had planned," he said. "But, hey, heck of a first date, huh?"
First date? What does he mean? Are there going to be more? Does he expect more?
I felt dizzy, and my heart was still pounding.
"I think…I need to…" I said and nodded toward the door. "I better go."
He grabbed my hand and pulled me close, forcefully, hurting me. I groaned, annoyed. He looked into my eyes and put his hand on my waist.
"Best. Date. Ever."
I rolled my eyes at him. "At least one of us thinks so."
"What? You didn't like it? Come on; that was fun!"
"We were both almost killed. What is the fun in that?" I asked, growing even angrier with him. He put me in danger. Didn't he even care about that?
"Oh, my God. I haven't felt so alive in a very long time," he said, his eyes sparkling in the moonlight.
I was getting tired of him, and all I wanted was to go back to my room. That was when Duncan arrived. Well, arrived is not quite the right word, he more of darted through the air and knocked himself into Caleb. Caleb was forcefully punched back and hit a tree behind him. Caleb groaned, annoyed. Duncan stood in front of him, his nostrils flaring, breathing heavily.
"You put her in danger!" he said.
Caleb rolled his eyes. "She was never in danger. She was with me, remember?"
"You idiot!"
Duncan lunged at him and threw a punch at his face. To my surprise, Caleb took the punch even though it dislocated his jaw. He then pulled it back into position before looking at Duncan with a sigh.
"Be careful, Duncan," he said with a snarl.
"Or what?" Duncan said.
Caleb roared, then rushed toward Duncan, grabbing him by his throat and lifting him up. I gasped.
"Caleb, no. Don't hurt him," I said.
That made Caleb chuckle. "He's a vampire, dear. He won't get hurt. I mean, it will hurt, but not for very long." With those words, he threw Duncan through the air. Duncan slammed into my swing-set and landed on the ground.
"Duncan," I said and rushed to him.
He looked up at me. "I'm okay."
He rose to his feet, then shot through the air toward Caleb, fist held out in front of him, ready to hit Caleb, but Caleb grabbed his fist in the air and held it. I could literally hear the sound of Duncan's bones crushing.
"Back. Down," Caleb said, speaking through gritted teeth.
Duncan fell to his knees. He was still panting heavily. Caleb let go of his fist with a grin, then looked at me. He grabbed my shaking hand in his and kissed the top of it.
"This was fun. Let's do it again sometime. Toodle-oo."
Caleb let go of my hand, gave me an intense look, then turned around and, faster than I could blink, he was gone.
Duncan got to his feet, then came closer. He grabbed me by the shoulders. "Are you all right?"
I exhaled. "I…I don't know. How did you know what happened?"
Duncan's eyes avoided mine. He didn't answer.
"You followed us, didn't you?" I asked.
"I…I knew…the guy is trouble, Robyn. I had to protect you."
I scoffed, a little offended, but at the same time, I felt relieved that he had been there keeping an eye on me. I didn't trust Caleb either. And I kind of liked that Duncan was so jealous that he figured he had to follow us all night.
I smiled. "At least he’s gone now. You wanna come in?"
He smiled back. "I would be delighted to."
Chapter Forty-Three
Jayden watched the fight from his window, keeping a close eye on Robyn. If either of those vampires even came close to her or hurt her, he would make sure they never…well, who was he kidding? He couldn't really do much against two vampires, but he was going to do whatever he could to protect Robyn, that was sure.
Luckily, the fight was between the two of them and, to be frank, Jayden kind of wished they would just eliminate each other. He didn't much mind seeing Duncan fly through the air and hit against the swing set. He had wanted to do that to him a number of times.
Jayden didn't really know who the second vampire was or where he had come from so suddenly, but he didn't have to know him to know that he was bad news. Well, all of those creatures were nothing but trouble. How Robyn had somehow found herself between two of them was beyond Jayden. Was she just attracting them now? Did she really want any of them? Did she want the life they would provide her?
Jayden sighed and sat down on his bed as he saw the one vampire disappear and Robyn and Duncan go back inside. It still made his blood boil when thinking about them together.
Jayden grabbed his football and threw it in the air a few times when there was a sudden knock on his door.
"Come in."
It was Ruelle. She smiled as she walked inside. "Your mom said I could just walk up."
Jayden sat up straight. He ran a hand through his hair to make sure it wasn't going in ten different directions, then cleared his throat. Why was she here? He thought she was tired of him.
"Ruelle? What are you doing here?"
She sighed and threw herself on the bed next to him. "I just got so…bored at home."
He looked at his watch. He was surprised to realize it was approaching midnight.
"It's kind of late."
She grinned. "Oh, I am sorry. Am I messing with your beauty sleep, huh? Does pretty-boy have to have his nine hours of sleep?"
He grimaced. "That's not what I meant. But there was a girl who went missing just a few days ago. You've got to be careful out there on your own. We still don
't know what happened to her."
"Oh, I think I can take care of myself. Besides, they found the killer, remember? That girl's mother. You told me she killed all those people. I always knew there was something off about her."
Jayden wrinkled his forehead and chuckled. "You never even met."
"True. But still."
Jayden shook his head, then leaned over Ruelle and kissed her. She smiled as their lips parted.
"What was that for?"
He smiled back. "Just for you being you. I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you."
She grabbed him by the shoulders and forcefully pushed him down, then sat on top of him, leaning over his face. She looked into his eyes, a strange grin on her face, her gorgeous eyes almost feverish. When her sleeve slid down on her arm, he noticed something on her wrist, a bite mark.
"What's that?" he asked.
"That? Ah, some dog bit me in the park. Hurt like crazy."
"It looks bad. What did the owner do?" he asked. "Did you report him to the police?"
Ruelle shook her head. "There was no need to."
"So, you let them get off with just saying they were sorry? What if this dog attacks some kid the next time?"
"Oh, it won't. Don't you worry. Besides, they were both sorry…very sorry indeed."
Chapter Forty-Four
She knew it was illegal, but she had to do it. BamBam—or rather her dad—had been right. Jazmine knew exactly what her mother had spoken about in her vision. It was the ripped-out page. She had to get it, even if it meant breaking into Ruelle's house.
She had been waiting outside in the street till Ruelle had finally left, and now that the clock had hit midnight and Ruelle's parents had run off into the night, she knew it was the perfect time to make her move.
She had thought about getting Jayden to help her, but how was she going to explain why this was so important to her? He would never agree to help her if it meant risking going against Ruelle's wishes; she knew that much. She had to take care of it on her own.
So, she did. Jazmine used an unlocking spell to open the front door to the house. She placed a hand on it and whispered, "Reserare."
The door unlocked, and she could push it open using no force at all. She snuck inside and almost tripped over a turtle. In the living room, she found three chickens walking around and a parrot squawking above her head.
"What a madhouse," she whispered.
She spotted the stairs leading up and concluded that Ruelle's room was probably up there. The stairs were filled with piles of dirty socks and old newspapers. It wasn't hard to find Ruelle's room since there were only three rooms upstairs, and one was obviously her parents' and another an office. She pushed open the door to Ruelle's room and stepped inside, wondering how such a neat girl could stand to live in such a messy house. Maybe that was why she liked it so neat because she wanted to be different than her parents.
"Now, where would be a good hiding spot?" she mumbled and walked to the desk, then pulled out the top drawer. She looked through it but didn't find anything that resembled what she was looking for. She then tried the next drawer and then the last one, but nothing was there.
She sighed and looked around the room. She then walked to the dresser and opened one of the drawers. Ruelle's clothes were so neatly folded it looked like she had used a ruler.
Jazmine didn't dare even to touch any of it since she would never be able to put it back correctly and Ruelle would know that someone had been in there. Instead, she closed the drawer, then walked to the closet where all of Ruelle's dresses were hanging neatly and straight, and her shoes were placed in a long row on the floor below. Jazmine spotted a small shoebox on the shelf, then pulled it down and opened the lid.
A smile spread across her face. "Bingo."
She took the ripped-out page, then placed the shoebox on the shelf again and closed the closet. She stood with the folded paper in her hand for a few seconds, then sat down on Ruelle's bed and started to unfold it.
She read the page from top to bottom. With the little knowledge she had gained from reading her mother's book, she knew exactly what this was. Her heart sunk into a deep sadness and a tear escaped her eye. How could she have been so stupid?
In this crucial moment, Jazmine was so overwhelmed by sorrow that she didn't even hear someone enter the room until it was too late.
Chapter Forty-Five
I met with Amy and Jayden for lunch at the diner the next day. It was Saturday and felt great to sleep in.
"Is Jazmine sick?" I asked when not seeing her there.
They both shrugged.
"She was fine yesterday," Amy said. "I texted her earlier, but she hasn't answered."
"Maybe she just needed some quiet time," Jayden said. "Can't really blame her after everything that has happened."
"I guess she must be really sad now that Adrian is gone too," I said, wondering about my brother and how he was holding up at Harvard. If you had told me a year ago that my brother would turn dark and emo and end up going to Harvard to become a lawyer, I would have laughed so hard I would have passed out. But here we were. The past eight months had taught me one thing: life could change in an instant. One day, you think you have it all figured out, then suddenly, life as you know it ends. It had taught me to enjoy the smaller moments more. You never knew when they would be gone.
Amy's eyes were on Kipp again. He was at the diner too, but completely ignoring Amy. As usual, he was hanging out with the cheerleaders, who seemed to have quickly gotten over Alyssa's sudden disappearance. They were giggling at Kipp's jokes and touching his chest and arm. Amy was working hard on controlling her anger and jealousy. I could tell by her vibrating nostrils and beginning cough that let out a small cloud of smoke. She quickly waved it away.
"You could try and talk to him about it, you know?" I said. "You don't have to just sit here and take it."
"I wouldn't want to embarrass him," Amy said.
"Is that what you think? That he is embarrassed by you?" I asked.
She gave me a look that told me that that was exactly how she felt. It broke my heart.
"You shouldn't let him treat you like that," Jayden said. "He doesn’t deserve you. I’m serious, Amy. You're way too good for him."
That made Amy smile. "You're sweet. But let's face it. We belong to two very different worlds. He's popular; I’m not."
"Still. He shouldn't ignore you like this," I said.
Amy shrugged and continued eating her sandwich. "I was thinking about checking in on Jazmine afterward," she said once she had swallowed her bite. "Anyone else wanna come with me? Maybe we could cheer her up a little together?"
I shrugged. "I would. My mom is deep into her own problems right now; it seems like she’s given up on keeping an eye on my every move. I'm in."
We both looked at Jayden. "I can't. I have to finish my shift here, and then I’m taking Ruelle out."
Seeing how his eyes sparkled when talking about Ruelle made me feel the small pinch of jealousy again. I knew I had no right to since I was dating Duncan, but still. I missed seeing the excitement in his eyes when he was with me, when it was me he talked about like that.
But I wanted him to be happy. I was glad that he had found someone good for him. Even if it felt like knives to my heart to think about.
Chapter Forty-Six
It was her aunt who opened the door. She was wearing a fluttering dress and a turquoise scarf on her head. Her face was flustered, her eyes confused.
"Oh, it's you."
"We're here to see Jazmine," I said, a little surprised at her reaction when she saw us.
Her aunt sighed. "I had hoped you were her. Come in."
Amy and I exchanged a look, then followed Jazmine's aunt inside. We sat down in the kitchen at the breakfast counter, and she poured us some coffee. Amy pulled out a bag of cookies from her backpack. If it wasn't for her aunt's serious look on her face, I would have chuckled. How Amy always managed to have a little something
for us to eat was beyond me. It was a gift.
I wasn't hungry, though, and passed when she offered me one.
"What's going on?" I asked, letting my fingers envelop the coffee cup. It was chilly outside for the season, and I needed to warm up.
Jazmine's aunt let out a heartfelt sigh. "I…I don't know. She didn't come home last night and…I can't reach her on her phone. Do you two have any idea where she can be?"
I shook my head and looked quickly at Amy, then at Jazmine's aunt. "No. None of us has seen her since yesterday."
"We thought she maybe just needed a little peace and quiet," Amy said, her voice quivering slightly.
"Yeah, we thought maybe she was sad, you know, on account of everything that's been going on and all. We came here to cheer her up," I said.
Amy took a second cookie from the bag on the counter and took a bite from it. Jazmine's aunt seemed to be getting more and more nervous as we spoke.
"This is awful…I mean the police were here yesterday asking about this…this girl who has been gone…and I kept thinking those poor parents and how terrible it was. I mean, you never think that…but now I can't stop thinking about just that. I should never have let her go out."
I nodded, tightening my lips. I couldn't stop thinking about it either. What if something had happened to Jazmine?
"Did she say anything about where she was going when she left yesterday?" I asked.
Aunt Tina exhaled and rubbed her forehead. "She's sixteen. I don't ask her…maybe I should have… She left here around five in the afternoon. She took her bike. I thought she would be back a few hours later, but… Then, this morning when she still wasn't here, I got scared and called the police station. They told me to wait twenty-four hours. Usually, they come home by then, they said."
I had an idea. I grabbed my phone and opened Snapchat. I found the map and Jazmine's latest location.
