by Kat Cotton
“I should be fine here, if you want to go off and fight alongside Britney. We don’t want to get you in trouble for failing the stupid drill again.”
“It wasn’t you who got me in trouble. I was the one who couldn’t shift in time.” Lucas shrugged. “And I’m not sure she’s for me. She’s crazy beautiful.”
“You’re not so bad yourself, wolf boy.” I wasn’t just saying that to perk up his spirits either. “You like her, so go for her. What’s the worst-case scenario? She breaks your heart, you hurt for a while then you recover. That’s got to be better than wondering what could’ve been.”
Lucas laughed so hard he doubled over. I didn’t know what he found so funny.
“You’re giving love advice.” Lucas pointed at me. “You.”
“Yeah, that’s nothing to laugh about.”
“Are you talking from your years of experience? I’ve never seen you talk to a guy since you’ve been here.”
“I talk to you, I talk to Tarragon and Mark and Seth.”
“Not in the way a girl talks to a guy, you don’t. It’s more like the way a girl talks to annoying insects buzzing around her. Usually with swatting thrown in. Outside our group there’s only been one guy you’ve ever mentioned in all your time at Edgewater Academy. In fact, you seem a bit obsessed with him.”
“Huh?” What kind of fool idea did Lucas have in his head? Something to do with vampires, no doubt.
“Ren Worthington.”
I glared hard while my brain caught up with his words. Maybe being out under the moon made him lose all common sense because he’d know I wouldn’t take that. I charged at him, smashing him into a tree.
“Take that back. Take it back now.”
Lucas laughed. “Cherry loves Ren.”
“I swear, I’ll punch you.” I jumped as he scratched my neck. “And get your wolfie claws off me.”
Wait. I’d pinned Lucas’ arms. It wasn’t him scraping my neck. But if it wasn’t Lucas... a twig or some nature thing... The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.
Whatever scrapped my skin wasn’t part of nature. So not part of nature.
Lucas stared over my shoulder, eyes agape. He tried to scream but it came out as a gurgle.
I slowly turned around, my feet scrunching on the wet leaves as my chest tightened. The woods went silent. No owls, no wind, no scampering animals. Only the sound of my pounding heart.
Shadows covered this forest. I could run, I could disappear into any one of them. Only, I couldn’t disappear from the real dangers. And even without seeing, I knew this was a very real danger.
Goosebumps covered my skin as a cold arm tightened around my neck.
I inhaled, waiting for a laugh. Mark or Seth to yell at me. But Lucas could see what stood behind me and the way his eyes bulged said this wasn’t a drill.
“Va-va-vampire,” he stuttered.
The word hammered in my head.
What? No.
A stench like rotting meat made me reach. Bile rose in my throat, panic along with it.
We’d done this in drills. I knew how to fight. I just needed to reach my stake. And keep a clear head. I could do this.
I fumbled in my waistband. My stake? Where the hell had it gone?
I must’ve dropped it. That never happened in drills.
“Shift!” I screamed at Lucas.
Lucas shook free of his stupor but we had no time. His shift started. Yes! His fur grew, his nails turned to claws.
But could he shift fast enough?
We should’ve been alert. We’d been told. In every single training session, we’d been told.
Concentrate. Focus.
But I’d never listened. Now I’d die here in the woods.
Chilled fingers traced my neck, sweeping back my hair. I shivered, screams dying in my throat. Flailing, twisting, struggling, I tried to escape his grasp.
His teeth scraped my skin like a whisper. He toyed with me, letting me know he could kill me at any time.
If my latent powers were going to emerge, now would be the time. I tried. I pushed with all my might. Stupid powers, all they ever did was crush me with pain.
Every sensation grew stronger. The reek of blood and decay, the howling, the prickling of my skin. The cold, cold arms. The teeth against my neck.
Lucas growled, a low wolfy sound. He’d shifted?
Before he even moved, I sensed what he’d do.
As he sprung, I ducked out of the vampire’s grasp. Lucas’ teeth clamped onto the vampire’s arm, leaving me free to hurl my body along the path.
“Vaaaampiiiiire!” I yelled, to Mark, to Britney, to anyone who could help.
Wet branches whacked me as I ran, my feet sloshed in the mud, sticking so I couldn’t move fast.
As a heavy weight hit my back, my stomach dropped. Those cold arms wrapped around me once more, chilling me to my center.
“Lucas!”
I flailed, trying to see Lucas, knowing he was my only chance of survival. Cold mud squished under me and the studs of that vampire’s leather jacket jammed into my side. I’d kill this damn vampire if he’d get off me and let me get a shot at him.
The vampire reared back his head, his fangs fully extended. The force of his fetid breath hid me. I shut my eyes up tight, praying for something to save me.
My heart pounded and that’d just make it easier for him to drink from me. The band around my head squeezed so tight I wanted to scream. Fangs pressed tighter into my neck, piercing the skin.
Then suddenly, nothing.
He disappeared.
I pressed my hands to my neck. Had he drained me? Was I undead? My hands came away clean and I definitely had a pulse, because it raced like crazy.
Lucas? He must’ve scared the vampire off. But Lucas, in human form, came pounding down the trail.
“What was that about?” I got to my feet and brushed myself off. “How did you scare him?”
Lucas shook his head. “Not me.”
“Well who then? Tarragon? Mark?”
Lucas picked a leaf out of my hair. “Cherry, it was weird. From what I could see he started to bite you and then stopped and ran away.”
“Like he’d remembered he’d left the kettle on the stove...” I tried to smile to lighten the mood.
We both started walking. The general consensus in the air was that this fight was over. My bond with the others wasn’t as strong but even I got that message.
“Like he realized you couldn’t be bitten.”
“Yeah right.” I turned to Lucas. “This isn’t one of your stupid ‘Cherry is a vampire’ things again, is it?”
“Vampires don’t eat other vampires.” Lucas scowled.
“If I was a vampire, he’d have known before he attacked me, so don’t start with that nonsense. He probably saw you shift and got scared off. And seriously, buddy, that shift was much faster. Nice work.”
“There are theories, schools of thought, that vampires can exist for years in their pre-vampire state. The change needs to be triggered.”
I picked up my pace, wanting to get back to the school. That pressure on my bladder hadn’t let up even if I was safe now. Of all the paranormal creatures I could be, vampires had to be the worse. Except maybe trolls or orcs or sluggy things.
Tonight hammered one thought into my stubborn head: No more fooling around in training. Shit was getting real, with attacks on the school and scratch marks on Ren’s window. I never again wanted to be vulnerable like I’d been in that vampire’s arms.
Starting tomorrow, I’d turn myself into a killing machine.
Chapter 16
We needed to have a debriefing with Mr. Norton.
“I know, Cherry, you want to wash the mud off. We won’t take long.” Mr. Norton’s hair had gone crazy again.
Then Lucas and I started telling him what happened. Britney came in and interrupted us.
“You got attacked by a vampire?” She made a move like she wanted to hug me so I got up and paced.<
br />
“I did but I’m fine now. Well, muddy but fine otherwise.”
Then the others came in. Mr. Norton got them to do another sweep of the woods to make sure the vampires had completely gone. I had a feeling he didn’t want them around while we discussed this.
“He had hold of you but ran away?” Mr. Norton frowned.
“Yep. That’s about it.”
“And at no point you felt any kind of paranormal power?”
“I felt it but...” I put my hands around my head to imitate the band. “You know how it is.”
Mr. Norton nodded. ”Even when you thought you’d die, it didn’t ease up?”
“Not at all.”
Lucas started telling his pre-vampire theories.
“I don’t think so.” Mr. Norton asked Lucas and Britney to get me a cup of hot tea. Again, I think he wanted to get rid of them. “Make it extra sweet.”
Once they’d gone, I sat on one of those cheap folding chairs and started picking flakes of dried mud from my legs.
“There was no other sensation? Did your body get warmer? Any buzzing in your stomach?”
“Other than pure fear, nope.” I flicked a big flake on the floor. “If anything, I got colder with that freaky vampire’s body touching me.”
“His teeth grazed your skin and then he run off?” Mr. Norton stared at the mud flakes around me on the floor, all disapproving-like.
“Yep, like he didn’t find me tasty.”
“I want you to answer me honestly, did you feel any urge to give in to him? Even the slightest pull of temptation?”
I laughed. “I’d have ripped his head off if I could’ve. Buddy, you have no idea how foul that guy’s breathe was. And, ick. Nope, no temptation here.”
Mr. Norton nodded, like he thought something he didn’t want to tell me.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“There’s something.” I studied his face. “What are you thinking?”
He ran his hand through his hair, making it stick up even more you’d think possible. “Nothing. Nothing at all. You look exhausted. You should go straight to your room and shower after Lucas and Britney get back.”
“You’re not wrong. Constant interruptions to my sleep will do that.”
Before I could ask more, Tarragon and Seth came into the scholarship room.
“The woods are clean.” Seth put his weapons back in the cupboard. “Mark is just being extra careful but we couldn’t see anything, couldn’t sense anything either.”
“Hey, you owe me pudding,” Tarragon said.
“I know, I know. You’ll get it.”
“I’d better. Magic turns bad if it’s not paid for.”
My stomach burned. Did that mean Ren’s horse was at risk? I really didn’t want anything to happen to that horse, not just because Ren would kill me but because, even though Thunder was a huge animal with scary teeth, he seemed quite nice.
“I’ll get it tomorrow.”
My plans to get the pudding had been thwarted by their popularity. Every night, I’d be lucky if there were one or two left when I got to the study room. A few times I’d grabbed one to take to Tarragon but the creamy deliciousness had tempted me too much. It seemed unfair to take pudding to someone else when I couldn’t eat it myself.
Lucas and Britney returned and I wrapped my hands around the steaming mug of tea, glad for its heat. Sitting around in muddy clothes would give me a chill in my kidneys.
Britney hovered around me, as though I was made of fragile china.
“It’s okay.” I smile to reassure her. “Even though I was almost killed by a vampire, I’m fine. I’m not going panic or freak.”
And strangely enough, I was fine.
Chapter 17
When we finished class, I rushed to the study room. On the way, I grabbed a smoothie and two of those puddings. There were five in the fridge but I couldn’t take them all. Someone would notice.
I got out my books and put the pudding in a container in my backpack. It really did look too delicious but then I thought of Thunder. If I had to miss out on pudding to keep Thunder safe, I’d make the sacrifice.
I sat down to study but half hour later, sneaked back to the fridge. Not many people were around tonight so I grabbed another one. That meant three delicious puddings in my backpack, half of my debt paid off.
Since I wasn’t sure how long those puddings would last unrefrigerated, I only studied for a little while before I left to take them to Tarragon.
The upper floor was really quiet. Yeah, of course it was. Dinner hour. Perfect timing. I’d drop these puddings off and make it to the dining room in time.
I rounded the corner and ran - bam - straight into Oscar. I rebounded, smashing my backpack into the wall. Glass tinkled. I hoped I hadn’t smashed the pudding jars.
Oscar sneered. This was the first time I’d seen him since I moved up here and I’d been hoping to keep my distance.
“Watch out, pauper.” He shoved me again. This time, glass definitely smashed in my bag.
“Keep your hands off me.”
Even though I’d been given the green light to defend myself, the best policy would be to quietly walk away. Getting into a fight with Oscar would never be in my best interests.
But, as I tried to move, something sloppy and wet trickled onto my leg.
Pudding.
Oscar grabbed my shoulders. “What weird shit do you have in that bag?”
“Nothing.”
He snatched the bag off my shoulder.
“Just give me back my bag and we’ll end this here.” I kept my voice low and threatening.
But Oscar unzipped my backpack. “Not until I check it first. And don’t try anything. My father says he’ll have you thrown out of the school if you hit me again.”
I couldn’t say that Ren’s father said otherwise. Instead, I rushed for him, trying to grab my bag back but he shoved me aside.
“Pudding!” He yelled loud enough to get the attention of anyone still around. “You’re stealing. We don’t like paupers stealing from us. Thieving pauper”
I swung, just meaning to get my bag back but I walloped him across the chest. Oscar lunged, full body slamming me into the wall.
With the breath knocked out of me, I raised my knee. He reeled as it connected but I couldn’t get enough force behind it to make him back off.
He slammed into me again.
“Fight all you like, pauper, you’ll never win.” He leaned in so close, his voice reverberated in my ear.
I was strong, I was a better fighter, but I couldn’t attack Oscar at full force, not without another visit to the principal’s office. He had nothing holding him back.
“Be nice and I won’t report you.” His hand squeezed tight around my boob.
Screw playing nice. I slammed my knee up into him again. As he bent over in pain, I bore down on him with all my weight, smashing my elbow into the back of his neck.
“Thief. Dirty pauper.”
He could yell as many insults as he liked, I just wanted to get away. I pulled my backpack from his hands and bolted, head down for my room.
Smack bang into someone else.
Waves zapping through my body told me it was him before I even looked up. I reeled, a metallic taste in my mouth and every nerve end buzzing.
Ren Worthington.
“She’s stealing... her back pack...” Oscar moved behind me, his body way too close.
Sandwiched between the two them, I had no way to get back to my room.
“I’m not a thief.” I wasn’t. Sure, I took the puddings but I’d have eaten them while I studied otherwise. The only person I stole from was myself.
“Dirty pauper thief.” Oscar grabbed for my backpack again.
I clutched it to my chest. I didn’t need to justify myself to either of them, I just needed to get away.
“I didn’t... I wasn’t.”
Surely Ren would believe me. We might not be friends but we were... somethin
g. Any fool would know not to trust Oscar. But Ren’s eyes flashed at me with an arctic chill, brutal and unyielding.
He stepped closer. “I’ve just been with Thunder.”
I gulped. The horse had gotten sicker? My stomach churned. If the two of them would leave me alone, I’d be able to pay my debt and Thunder would be okay, but I couldn’t tell him.
Frustration welled up inside me.
Ren gave curt nod to Oscar. “Do what you want with her.”
He leaned against the wall as Oscar’s arms clasped my waist.
That vice-like feeling returned to my head, stronger and more debilitating than ever. I fought it but tears welled in my eyes and my head throbbed. I could fight, but not with this pain.
Still, I struggled but Oscar held me tight. If I could swing at him, if I could get my arms free, I’d be able to fight back but he had me pinned and helpless.
My vision blurred so I screwed up my eyes. I stopped struggling and clenched my hands. I couldn’t stand Oscar’s hand on me, his tongue licking my neck, his breathe hot and heavy.
A buzzing filled my ears, louder and fiercer than those bees had been. Britney? No, it couldn’t be. I screwed my eyes up tighter and tried to send out a signal to the others as a last resort.
Anger surged through my body. The band around my head grew so tight I thought my head would burst.
I opened my eyes, needing to steady myself.
Ren came closer. Was he going to attack me too? Oscar pushed me and my hip smashed against Ren. The touch not just electric this time but searing my skin as though I’d been branded. The heat so intense, I wasn’t sure I could stand it.
“No!” My scream almost shattered my own ear drums.
Then, like a floodgate bursting, the pressure on my head snapped. I could almost see power glowing within me, in my hands and my arms. I screamed, not from pain but the sudden lack of pain.
I could smell burning as the glowing intensified. Both Oscar and Ren flew from me, smashing to the floor.
“What are you?” Oscar inched along the hallway, trying to get away from me. “She’s a freak. She threw me across the hallway. With her mind.”
