by Kasi Blake
“Ah, I see you noticed my little project.” Jersey lifted one book and opened it. “Before starting to work here, I went through every single yearbook this school has produced.” He flipped the pages. “Here we are. I told you I would figure out why you look so familiar to me.”
Jersey set the yearbook in front of Jack and pointed to Jack’s Sophomore picture. “There you are. Jack Creed.” Jersey snapped his fingers. “I also have a fairly good computer in my home, and I dug up everything I could find on you. Now, I think I’ve been around the proverbial block a few times, and a person is hard-pressed to surprise me, but you managed to do it.”
Jack had heard enough. He and Billy had a lie already prepared for such an occasion. Jack was Billy’s cousin from Boston and he’d never met Billy’s older brother. There was a strong family resemblance. That’s all. Jack was going to try to convince Jersey these were the facts.
Jersey didn’t give him a chance to lie.
“You died. But that isn’t the part that surprised me, believe it or not. It was seeing you surrounded by vampires.” Jersey nodded, a smug smile firmly in place. “Yes, Jack, I have secrets of my own. I can touch a person and get a blast of memory off them. When I touched your shoulder in detention, I got a flash of you surrounded by vampires. It was brief, I confess, but it was clear as glass. There were four of you, and you were smiling.”
Jersey held a hand up. He paced as if he was giving another lecture and didn’t want to be interrupted. “Of course I knew you weren’t a vampire, because you were in school during the day and hadn’t turned to a pile of ashes. You are obviously human, which makes me wonder why you would be in the company of vampires. Then I found this picture. I have a thousand more questions now.”
Jack was barely listening. His mind twisted around the fact that Jersey caught brief glimpses into a person’s life when touching them. How did the two of them have the same power?
Without asking for permission, Jack reached out and grabbed Jersey by the hand. He was used to getting a jolt of electricity from contact before the scenes began, but this time it nearly knocked him off the desk. It was more powerful than being struck by lightning.
The scene from Jersey played out differently than the scenes from Silver’s point of view. Jack wasn’t inside the man; he was an invisible spectator, a third-party in the room. He stood in the corner and watched the memory unfold.
Jersey sat at a huge, ancient desk that must have weighed a ton. His chair had a high back and was made from expensive leather. It swiveled on steel balls when he turned his attention from a pile of papers to an open book. There was a stone fireplace to his left. Flames blazed inside of it, crackling and popping as the logs burned.
Beyond the fire there was a miniscule amount of light in the room. Jersey had a small gold lamp on his desk. That was it.
The door opened and a tall woman with platinum blonde hair, the kind of color a person got from a cheap dye bottle, glided into the room. She wore a bright neon pink mini-skirt and a low-cut top. The way she dressed made Jack think of Silver’s best friend Trina. This woman could have been the girl’s mother.
“She walks in beauty like the night,” Jersey quoted. He leaned back in his chair and waited for the woman. “Of cloudless climes and starry skies. And all that’s best of dark and bright meet in her aspect and her eyes.”
“Better be careful.” She wagged a playful finger at him. “Someday I might take you seriously.”
She handed him a folder, and he tossed it to the side without a glance.
“There’s something on your mind,” he said, clasping his hands on the desk and leaning forward, giving her his full attention.
“I have bad news.”
Jersey stood slowly. Dressed in his usual solid black, he had a blood-red tie on for a splash of color. His cold eyes narrowed on the woman. “Tell me.”
She fidgeted with pencils on his desk, avoiding his probing stare. “It’s Kenneth.”
“What about him?”
“He did something he shouldn’t have.”
“What now? How much trouble has he made for me?” When she didn’t immediately answer, he raised his voice. “Answer me! What has he done?”
She spoke fast while backing away. “He wanted to impress you so he went after the werewolf slayer on his own and she killed him. He’s dead.”
With a roar, Jersey changed in an instant. The face of a giant wolf, black fur standing on end and huge eyes that glowed red superimposed itself over Jersey’s human face. The outline of Jersey was still visible behind it. It was like the ghost of a wolf or a demon had possessed Jersey and was making itself known. His growl of outrage shook the room. Books tumbled off shelves. Crystals on the chandelier above them clinked together. A painting in the background fell.
He howled like a wounded animal. The sound was like nothing Jack had ever heard. Thunderous, it sent a chill up his spine. He silently gave thanks that he was only in a memory.
Pagan covered her ears, a terrified expression on her face. “Please, stop.”
In the blink of an eye Jersey was his old self again. He retook his seat and mumbled, “That stupid fool. If I had wanted the girl dead, I could have done it myself a thousand times over. Did he think I feared her? Did he think me too weak to destroy her myself? Do you think I’m afraid of a little girl?”
Pagan shook her head. “No. I know you aren’t afraid of anything or anyone.”
“Exactly. There’s no reason for us to panic over this girl, no reason to rush to terminate. Her powers are minimal at best. If and when I decide to kill her, I can do it alone.”
Jack let go of Jersey’s hand and leaped off the desk, almost knocking it over in his haste to put distance between them. Jersey Clifford was a werewolf and not just any werewolf. Jack hadn’t seen anyone turn part wolf while remaining part human before. It was a new (scary) trick.
“What’s wrong?” Jersey asked, a smug twist to his mouth. “What did you see?”
Jack shook his head. “Nothing.”
“It’s a little early in our relationship for lies, Jack. Tell me what you saw. You tell me your secrets, and I’ll tell you mine.” With a smirk, Jersey quoted, “All my faults perchance thou knowest. All my madness none can know.”
Lord Byron again.
Was the teacher trying to tell him something? Like maybe he was an insane werewolf who enjoyed playing with his prey before devouring them?
Jack ran for the door, leaving his books behind. He didn’t care what anyone thought. He raced down the hallway, past the filled classrooms. Desperation drove him. His survival instinct kicked in. He was supposed to be in Study Hall, but he wasn’t going to make it today.
A few feet ahead a janitor was mopping the floor. Jack barely glanced at the scraggly man with the long, unwashed hair hanging over his face. When Jack got close to the guy, he slowed down so he wouldn’t slip on the wet floor. Stopping for a moment, he looked over his shoulder, made sure Jersey wasn’t chasing him.
The hallway remained clear.
Water hit his feet as the janitor slopped the mop over them. He glanced down at his wet shoes. The janitor did it again. Water soaked through to his socks. The guy was doing it on purpose. Anger began to build inside of Jack’s gut as he turned to confront the man.
Jack recognized the face almost immediately. If he lived to be a hundred, he would never forget it. It was forever burned into his memory. The janitor was the werewolf who had killed his parents. An invisible sucker punch to the gut stole Jack’s breath.
The janitor laughed, flashing uneven yellow teeth.
Jack stared into the eyes of the thing that had killed him.
Chapter Ten:
JERSEY MAKES A CONFESSION
Jack drove home as fast as he could without drawing the wrong kind of attention. The last thing he needed was a speeding ticket. Once he fina
lly reached the house, he leaped out of the car and raced inside. Terror had been his nagging companion on the ride home. He couldn’t get the janitor’s ugly laughing face out of his head.
Billy was busy fixing a sandwich when Jack entered the kitchen. With drooping eyes and a slack mouth, he didn’t look like he’d gotten much sleep either. He dropped the dull knife he’d been using to spread peanut butter and grabbed a sharper one from the drawer. “Come any closer and I’ll slice your heart out.”
Adrenaline pumped dangerously fast in Jack’s veins, messing with his sense of self-preservation. Part of him wanted to jump over the breakfast bar and wrestle the knife from his brother’s hand. He didn’t appreciate being threatened, especially not after what he’d just seen. The diplomatic voice inside his head told him to take it easy. He forced himself to stand still, even though every muscle he owned nearly went into spasms over the inactivity.
“I saw him!” Jack tried to keep his voice steady, but it cracked with emotion. Tears of frustration and grief filled his eyes. “He’s working at the school. We have to kill him.”
Billy’s eyebrows went up. “Who do we have to kill?”
“I don’t know what he’s calling himself.”
“You want to kill someone and you don’t even know his name? Right. Did he cheat off your paper or cut in line at lunch?”
Jack’s head felt like it might implode. It was holding too much information, too many terrible thoughts. He took another deep breath and tried to steady his shaking hands. “Okay. I know you don’t trust me right now, but you need to listen. I saw him, the werewolf who killed mom and dad. He’s at the school.”
Billy froze, sandwich halfway to his mouth. His eyes seemed to glaze over. With an angry grunt, he tossed his unfinished meal into the trash. His finger jabbed the air in warning. “You had better not be messing with me.”
“I’m not.”
“You have no idea how badly I’ve wanted to find him.” Billy headed into the living room with determined steps. Jack followed close behind. Billy opened the secret room and started removing weapons two at a time before piling them on the sofa. “I searched and searched for that animal. Now you’re telling me he’s working at the school?”
Jack nodded.
Billy checked each gun. He made sure the safety was on before loading them with as much ammunition as they would accept. It was quite a selection of hardware. There were small guns and big guns, knives, and even a mechanical bow. He handled each one with care, the way their father had taught them. When Jack reached for one, Billy slapped his hand.
“I don’t think I trust you enough to give you a weapon yet.”
Jack wasn’t going to argue about it. His brother believed him. They were on the same side for once. No sense in pushing it until they had another fight. It would be especially stupid to argue with Billy while a ton of weapons were within reach.
“How much do you know about werewolves?” Jack asked.
“Not as much as the Reign family, but enough to get by.”
“I think we need to do more than get by here. The werewolf who killed mom and dad is extremely powerful. He may even be the lead werewolf. If so, then only Silver can kill him. Unless…”
Billy stopped what he was doing and looked up, curious. “Unless what?”
“Silver says there’s a magic rock with the power to kill any werewolf on the planet. According to her, I’m the one who needs to use this rock. In fact, I’m the only one who can use it. It was made for me.”
Billy appeared doubtful. “Maybe you should call her since this is her area of expertise.”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“We had a fight. Remember?” The words sounded lame even to him. They were talking about getting revenge on the monster who’d taken their parents away, and he was sulking over a spat with a friend. He rubbed the back of his neck. “Even if I wanted to call her, she isn’t speaking to me right now.”
Billy shook his head. “Unbelievable. I have waited for this opportunity for years and we’re going to watch it go down the drain because you did something stupid and ticked off a girl.”
“What makes you think it was something I did?”
“Wild guess.”
The tightrope Jack had on his temper loosened a notch.
“I think I’ll call them anyway,” Billy said. “I’ll talk to Andrew or Vanessa. They’ll give it to me straight. Then we can decide what to do about your werewolf.”
“It isn’t my werewolf,” Jack growled. He took his temper and went outside. Better to give Billy some privacy while he talked to the Reigns. He didn’t tell Billy about Jersey Clifford turning out to be a werewolf. Jersey hadn’t tried to kill anyone to his knowledge. He didn’t want Billy to get sidetracked thinking about the other werewolf in town. His brother’s homicidal tendencies needed to be focused in the right direction for a change.
The next day Jack managed to get through the morning without running into the werewolf janitor, Jersey, or Silver. By lunchtime he was feeling pretty good. His morning classes were over. Now if he could just get through the rest of the day without losing his temper and hitting the wrong person.
The lunchroom was packed by the time he reached it. His eyes automatically sought Silver. She wasn’t hard to spot. Sitting at a center table with a large group of friends, she laughed at something one of the boys was saying. Watching her, he realized she wasn’t pretending not to notice him anymore. Somehow she’d moved on and was truly over him.
Meghan and her friends waved, clearly wanting him to sit with them, but Jack walked in the opposite direction. If he had to listen to that girl go on and on about her perfect life, he’d lose it again and punch somebody. Not her, because he didn’t hit girls, but he’d hit someone, probably someone who didn’t deserve it.
Jack chose a far off table near the exit. There were only a few students sitting at it, and none of them seemed particularly interested in talking to the new kid. He bought a tray of food, even though he wasn’t hungry. Since losing Silver, he’d lost his appetite as well. He set the tray down before sliding onto the bench. He kept his gaze lowered, not wanting to invite conversation.
But some people couldn’t take a hint.
“May I join you?”
Jack swallowed the frustrated sigh building in his throat. He looked up, expecting to see a student, but it was a teacher. Jersey stood over him, a tray of food in hand. Without waiting for a response, the werewolf sat across from Jack. Smiling, Jersey asked, “You aren’t afraid of me, are you, Jack?”
Was he? Now that he was human, his emotions were a chaotic mess. He had trouble labeling them. Shrugging, he gave the teacher the answer he probably wanted. “No. I’m not afraid of you.”
“Good.” Jersey stabbed a fork into his salad. “Will you tell me what you saw when you touched me then? I’d like a chance to explain if I can. And please don’t try to tell me it was nothing. We both know that isn’t true.”
Jersey stuffed some lettuce, cucumber, and a piece of onion into his mouth.
“I didn’t know werewolves were vegetarians,” Jack said in a matter-of-fact tone.
Jersey continued to chew without missing a beat. His pale blue eyes twinkled with amusement. Jack had wanted to catch him off guard. It hadn’t worked. Jersey spoke low enough to keep the nearby students from overhearing. “I can’t speak for the species as a whole, but I enjoy a well-rounded diet. What about you? You haven’t told me how you managed to rise from the dead.”
“I was a vampire until recently.”
Jersey choked. He grabbed his bottled water and drank half of it with big gulps. His large Adam’s apple bobbed with each swallow. Now that Jack knew the truth about his teacher, he could smell a strange scent coming off him. Part of it was the familiar stench of werewolf, but there was something else as well, an odor Jack couldn’t remember encounteri
ng before. His acute vampire sense of smell had returned, probably on a temporary basis. Too bad he hadn’t had it earlier.
Jack stole a quick glance at Silver over the teacher’s shoulder. She leaned against Trina, still laughing. One of the boys dangled a plastic cup over their heads, threatening to dump the contents on them. They squealed, a girlish sound. The voices carried to him, taunting him.
“Why don’t you go over there and talk to her, Jack? You obviously want to.” Jack shook his head, so Jersey asked, “What happened? Did she cut you loose? Or is it the other way around?”
“Why do you care?”
Jersey shrugged. “Humans fascinate me, you especially.” He chuckled. “Although if I’m to believe your claim, you aren’t an actual human being.”
“I was a vampire, and now I’m not. I’m as human as anyone else in this room, excluding you, of course.”
Jack pushed the food around on his tray. He hadn’t been paying attention when picking the items. There was pudding, chips, a muffin, and chocolate milk. None of it struck him as edible. He sure didn’t want to put it all in his stomach at once. He’d be sick before his next class even started.
Damn Billy for making him return to school. Things were going to have to change between the two of them. Billy was barely speaking to him, yet he managed to find enough words to tell Jack that quitting school wasn’t an option. Billy reasoned someone had to keep an eye on the werewolf janitor until they figured out how to kill it. The Reigns hadn’t been home yesterday to take Billy’s call, so the two brothers had to wing it for now.
Jack watched Silver on the other side of the cafeteria. He could pull her aside to tell her about the werewolf janitor, could ask her what he should do about it. It gave him a good excuse to speak with her. He was sure she’d want to know about the janitor. Werewolves were her job, after all.
Jersey repeated his earlier question. “What did you see when you touched me, Jack? I really need to know.”
