Fierce Dawn

by Scott, Amber

  ~ ~ ~

  Chapter Six

  Back home and safely inside, Sadie slumped against the door and listened to Remy’s car drive away. With a ragged sigh, she gave in to the shakes she’d fought to suppress all evening. In the dark vacuous quiet of the bottom floor, she stopped denying the facts. She had hallucinated a glowing-eyed, sharp-toothed beast chasing her through the streets.

  Sadie rubbed at her burning cheeks.

  She’d run like a scream queen in a B movie, defending herself with a bag of Ben & Jerry’s. Yeah. Real intimidating, Sadie. One minute she hovered at the brink of hysteria, sprinting for her life, and the next she was standing, panting, alone and safe and sound right in front of Heather and Remy’s home.

  Like she’d blinked herself there.

  Or, more likely, had just overreacted to the whole thing. Except for the ice cream weapon part. At least she’d fought back a little.

  She held onto that strangely comforting thought as she let go of the door behind her and sought out Jen.

  But Jen wasn’t home yet and her cousin’s replying text gave her an hour to kill. Going dancing actually sounded really good. She wondered what she’d wear and figured Jen would help. It was only eight so once in her room, Sadie plunked her iPod headphones in and selected a dance mix to get in the mood. She lay down for a minute to think of outfits, but dozed off after the first imaginary ensemble.

  Tart sunlight filled the corners of her brain and the edges of her room. Dust danced in the daylight streaming in. She sat up, wiping her face. She didn’t feel groggy, making her realize she’d skipped last night’s dose. Oh, well. The medications made life a blur, made her own sense of self go to sleep.

  Right now, she felt rather normal.

  Maybe she’d stop all meds as of today instead of next week, as planned. After all, she was down to half of one of each at bedtime. And what would a few days matter?

  She looked at the clock. “Shit!” It was noon? What had happened with Jen? Why hadn’t Jen woken her up last night?

  Sadie scrambled out of bed. Her shoulders sagged when she found a note in the kitchen: Sorry about last night. I tried to wake you up, but you were sleeping like the dead, girl. Tonight, be prepared! I’m making it up to you. K? K! Love, Jen.

  Had Jen come home at all? Had she ditched Sadie and gone out alone? Was she home now?

  Nope on the last account. No clue on the others.

  Telling herself she had no call to get jealous, Sadie got herself some coffee. Scandalous amounts of fun tended to keep a person out well past midnight, but morning, too? Images of Jen, glorious blond hair swaying in rhythm with her hips on some dazzling dance floor, snapped through her mind. She scrambled eggs. She ate. She glared at her empty plate. Letting the fork clang unceremoniously before shoving both away.

  No texts, no replies either. She propped her chin on her fist and debated calling Ben. Or, maybe she’d go snooping in Jen’s room. The idea took hold.

  “Screw it. She’ll never know.” With no real idea of what she hoped to find there, Sadie tiptoed halfway up the stairs. The metallic scrape of the front lock stopped her short. Half-tripping over her own feet, Sadie raced back down in time to act natural as Jen spilled in.

  "Oh, no!" Jen said, hand to heart. "Did I wake you?"

  Unfortunately, a high pitch giggle threatened to break free if Sadie opened her mouth to point out she stood in the kitchen, not her bedroom. Instead, she quickly shook her head.

  "No? Oh, good." Jen locked the door behind her and swaggered in. "Sadie, Sadie, Sadie." She swayed past and sat in the same chair Sadie had been sulking in, the stink of smoke and alcohol in her wake. "Not coming out with me last night was a crime! I cannot even begin to explain how cool this club was.”

  "Really?" Sadie swallowed and pulled out a chair. Her heart raced hungrily for more. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

  “Honey, I tried. You were dead to the world.”

  Damn it.

  “And I met, hands down, the most interesting, the most captivating, the most gorgeous man on the entire planet." Jen nodded solemnly, her shiny aquamarine eyes riveted to Sadie's. "He is perfect." She lowered her voice to a throaty whisper. "Perfect."

  “Wow.” Sadie dropped her chin to her palm. “Tell me everything.”

  Jen held a finger up, much like every other time they did this vicarious living thing. "And completely, totally, one hundred percent not interested."

  "What?" How could any male with working vision not be interested in Jen? Her mouth alone made you stare. "I don’t believe that."

  “Believe it.”

  “But how can you be sure?”

  Jen tipped her head as though to say, "Come on. When you know, you know." She slurred, "I can tell." Jen scrunched her face up. "I think I'm still drunk, though. Maybe once I sober up, he won't seem so amazing."

  Sadie didn’t know whether to be inspired by how unperturbed Jen was by a perfect man rejecting her, or depressed. If only getting over Elijah would be so easy. "Maybe he's gay?"

  "Nope, definitely not gay.”

  "What was the club like?"

  Jen stretched her arms over her head with dramatic flare. “The club was…glorious."

  Sadie could’ve sighed. Next time, she’d stay awake. Next time, she’d be there. Jen’s phone rang.

  "Uh-oh," Jen said, exaggerating each syllable. She put a wobbly finger to her lips, "Shhh. It's Heather," then answered, mumbling about being checked in on more than a kid at camp.

  Sadie almost got up. But Jen waved her hand for her to stay. So she did. A few vague uh-huh’s and uh-uh’s later from Jen's end—probably about Sadie—accompanied with Jen's hand-puppeting a talking duck, Sadie's name came up. What a shocker.

  "I told Sadie to go, but she stayed home, as usual." Jen winked at Sadie, pointing at the phone. "What do you mean?" A pause. “No way.” Another pause. "I don't think you give her enough credit, Heather. She'll be fine. She’ll have fun.” Longer pause. “No, of course she wouldn't drink. Yes, yes, alcohol and medications don't mix. Listen, I have another call coming in, so—."

  “Hah!” Jen flipped her phone shut. "She hung up on me!"

  Sadie groaned. “Great. She’ll be attacking my phone next, terrified, out to save me from your clutches.”

  "She's married, stays home, worries about you like you're a toddler. I swear, Sadie. Heather acts fifty-one instead of twenty-one. I mean, what harm could there be in you going out with me? Me, of all people. Family. It's a completely normal thing to do for young, single women." Jen rolled her eyes. “Like us!”

  “Coping, I guess.”

  “We used to sneak her ass in the club’s back door, Sadie!”

  “I know. I remember.” Vividly and often.

  "It’s like she hit fast forward," Jen continued, staring off into space. "And you hit pause. When your mom died, you stopped. And she made up for it by doubling her growing up. Tripling, really, if you think about it."

  Sadie frowned. Is that what it seemed like to outsiders? The eggs she’d eaten began to rot in her belly. Her life wasn’t on pause. Pausing sounded leisurely. Even stopping sounded like a choice. The last two years felt more like being trapped. Trapped between before and after, between the past and a future.

  "Do you think Heather will ever let you go, Sadie?"

  "No," Sadie said, attempting to sound amused. She stared at her hands, searching for the words to clarify, and explain how Heather wasn't what held her back. But before she could find the words, Jen had excused herself to go and “pass out”, leaving Sadie to stew.

  Had Heather held her back? Or had her own fears?

  If that night two years back had never happened, how different would Sadie’s life be? She hugged herself high, reaching under her tee to feel one of the scars on her shoulder blades. If only she hadn’t given in to the stress and caused such an upset.

  Well, it didn’t matter now. Because nothing would hold her back again. Tonight, wherever Jen went, she would be sure
to follow.

  *

  Seven p.m. arrived way too fast.

  A knock on the door stopped her paintbrush midair. “Nine sound good?” Jen asked.

  Sadie nodded. And gulped. She’d been doing no more than staring the empty canvas down, trying to paint anything but two glorious wings. She couldn’t show up at her next therapy session empty handed. It’d send off alarms.

  In theory, returning to her old self sounded easy. Would it be? Tonight would be a little test.

  She had two hours to get ready, which sounded like a lot. But Sadie might as well have been getting ready for prom. Plus, one niggling worry kept creeping through. What if another glowing-eyed beast came bounding across the dance floor?

  Sadie scrunched up her nose at her reflection in her bedroom mirror. “Don’t answer that. There will be no freaky dark streets to walk through. Nothing to spook you.”

  She leaned closer, trying to apply mascara with clumsy fingers.

  A knock sounded on her door. Jen peeked in. “Ready?”

  “Almost. Can you explain again why I have to wear a bra half my size?”

  “Lift.”

  “And if I so much as sneeze, this skirt ain’t gonna make it.”

  “That’s cool. I can buy another.” Jen strolled in on red velvet stilettos, accented by her tapered skinny jeans. “You look incredible, Sadie.”

  Sadie gasped. Oops. She had meant to sigh. A nice, long breath designed to calm her nerves and shut her worrying brain up. Her own cobalt heels elongated her legs. “I didn’t think it’d be so hard. You know? I thought it’d be like riding a bike.” She was almost a hot wreck in high heels.

  “It will be. Give yourself a break. We’re out to have fun. Just dancing. No pressure. We can leave anytime, okay?”

  Dancing. In these? “Okay. No pressure.” Damn it, she was going to do this.

  Short of wetting herself in public, nothing—glowing or otherwise—would send her running home tonight. Nothing.

  “Ready?” Jen asked.

  Her hair couldn’t get any straighter, thanks to Jen’s ionic flat iron and some magical shine spray. All in all? Not so bad, actually. She turned so her bared shoulders showed back at her. Impressive. Jen had concealed the crescent shaped scars on back. In dim lighting the skin there looked perfectly smooth “Ready as I’ll ever be,” Sadie said.

  “Gorgeous,” Jen said.

  “Thanks,” Sadie took one last glance and a deep breath. “So, where are we going?”

  “Fire and Ice.” Jen jingled her keys. “Later. To start things off, we’ll get some sushi at Ra.”

  “Is that where you went last weekend? Fire and Ice?”

  Jen sighed. “No. I was at Déjà Vu. Sorry. I couldn’t get us on that list. Next time?”

  “Definitely.” A chill slid up her spine. Sadie ignored it along with the urge to look behind her as they went to Jen’s Mustang. The garage door closed as Jen reversed the car onto the street.

  “Don’t worry,” Jen said, laughing. “Fire and Ice is only a far second.”

  With the press of a button the convertible top folded back above their heads, baring the star-spangled night sky. Sadie shut out the sound of her name on the breeze. Nerves were normal.

  Jen stuck a compact disc in and wriggled her eyebrows. She shifted into drive, accelerating so fast their heads pushed back. Sadie forced her eyes to stay open and as the car sped away, dismissed the shadowy outline on Jen’s rooftop, telling herself only birds had wings. Even very large ones.

  *

  “How exactly does Sadie escaping the safety of the home fit into our brilliant plan?” Lyric said as the car below sped away.

  Elijah unclenched his fists. The feeder was pushing every last button tonight. “Did you get a feed off her, or not?”

  Lyric stood and walked the spine of the roof’s tile shingling. “No. I don’t see how you expected me to, though.”

  “I expected you to quickly read her for signs that she’s either half immortal or a changeling. What’s the problem?” Elijah mentally cursed Lyric. The car’s taillights faded in the distance.

  “I couldn’t tell. Whatever she is, the human part of her is clogging my feed. I’ll need more time with her.”

  “We’ll follow them.”

  “Or find another location, one where I can have more than a short minute. Call me.” He angled his feet, skidded down the slope of roof and leapt down.

  Elijah opened his wings and cut through the air, heading Lyric off on the street. “Forget it.”

  “Forget what?”

  “I’m not going to drag you around all night.”

  “Good. If you think I’d climb onto your back and play hang-glider, or transport with you, you’re dead wrong.”

  “We don’t have time for arguing, Lyric. And the last place I’d trust you is anywhere near my back.”

  “You’re just mad at yourself. You should have approached her when you had the chance.” Lyric hopped over the side wall.

  Elijah stalked after. “No. I had to be sure. I still have to be sure. It isn’t like we can pop into her bedroom and introduce ourselves.”

  Lyric shrugged noncommittally and mounted his realm-modified motorcycle. He flicked two gold metallic switches and the carved metal beast purred to life, steam puffing gusts from the chrome and brass exhaust. “You have a trace on her, why not simply follow?”

  Elijah didn’t know why he’d thought Lyric would for once prove helpful. Unless, it went beyond animosity. “You can’t, can you?”

  “Can’t what?” Lyric said.

  “It isn’t that you didn’t have enough time. It’s that you can’t read her, isn’t it?” He was right. Lyric didn’t have to answer for Elijah to see it. “It doesn’t matter.”

  “No. I couldn’t just now but I will.”

  Elijah sensed a faint vibration nearby. “No need. We can’t wait any longer. You’ve done enough.”

  Lyric’s jaw set, his lips thinning. But he didn’t argue. Instead, he pulled his goggles down, revved the engine and peeled onto the street. Elijah watched as he lifted off into the sky, the propulsion blurring the lights in a white, steaming tail. Movement caught his peripheral attention. Quickly, he expanded his senses outward again.

  A low hissing sounded reached him. Elijah lit onto Sadie’s rooftop again before transporting down to her bedroom. Last night he’d watched her sleep. So peacefully, oblivious to the change about to come.

  The room had been left tidy. Elijah found the fact promising. She was holding up after the near attack last night. The hissing in the distance hushed away.

  Elijah transported back out to the street. Satisfied he hadn’t been seen or followed, he pushed off the ground and spread his wings wide into the dark night sky.

  He had to trust Holly was correct. She could be a changeling and she definitely was in danger. Though it knotted his gut with tension, Elijah knew he couldn’t wait any longer. He had to warn Sadie. Tonight.

  ~ ~ ~

  Chapter Seven

  The car’s music pulsed from the speakers, drowning out the engine, burying Sadie’s fears. The hypnotic notes and heady lyrics swept her racing thoughts away as night air pushed through her hair, pulling her toward possibility. By the time they arrived at the sushi bar, Sadie’s body pulsed, too, with anticipation.

  Tonight she would live out what she’d envied. She would be herself again.

  Jen pulled the car into valet and closed the top. Without a missing a beat, Sadie joined her cousin, exiting the Mustang and passing the line outside the restaurant. The hostess waved at Jen and let them bypass one very long line. A high table awaited and after they ordered appetizers, Sadie let herself take a look around. Lots of skin. No glowing-eyed beasts. She fit right in. Possibility practically scented the air. “Jen, I don’t know if I’ve ever told you how much I appreciate all you do for me.”

  “Of course, Sadie! I love you. And I miss old Sadie. It is so good to finally have her back!”

  Sadi
e clucked. “Good to be back.”

  By the time their California and Reno rolls arrived, the place had really filled up. Heat lamps spotted the outdoor patio, where they sat, though the late autumn evening hadn’t grown cold yet. Two hard-bodied and brunette guys headed their way, pausing a couple feet back. Even rusty, Sadie saw through the ploy. She grabbed her ice water for another sip.

  “I do have to say, though, and it’s none of my business,” Jen said. “But I think that getting laid would do you a world of good.”

  Her mouthful of water went down the wrong way. Sadie coughed, spewing plenty. “Did you just say ‘laid’?”

  The taller of the two guys spun around. “Ladies! Are you looking for volunteers over here?”

  Jen laughed. “You wish.”

  Sadie balked.

  “Mind if we join you?” the shorter friend chimed in.

  “If you can fit,” Jen said.

  There wasn’t much room around them to pull the spare chairs out. So they didn’t. One guy wore black. Somehow, it wasn’t Elijah black.

  “We’ll stand. So, what are you drinking?”

  Sadie stuck with water. Jen ordered a martini.

  “So, who is it that needs to get laid and why?”

  Sadie felt her eyes bulge.

  “Huh-uh,” Jen said. “Eavesdropping gets you nothing. You gotta earn a secret like that.”

  “How about I guess?”

  “Sure, but you’ll be wrong.” Jen winked at Sadie.

  “What do you mean wrong?”

  “There’s no right answer, is there, Sadie?”

  The pair looked at her, hopeful.

  “She’s right. If I need to get laid, I’m labeled as easy. If she does, she gets the label.”

  “And if we need to?” the other guy said.