Dark Days (The Childe Series, #2)

by Kunz, C. A.

  10

  Three Penny Brit

  “Ryan, you’ve been sitting outside my window, watching over me for the past two weeks, and nothing has happened. Don’t you think that if they were going to try something again, they would’ve by now? Besides, your mom will begin to dislike me if I occupy all of your time like this,” Cat said, staring intently into his eyes while both of them lay on her bed.

  “You’re right,” he replied, and then grinned after seeing the offended look on her face. “I’m only kidding. But Cat, there’s something that you need to know about newly turned vampires. They’re unpredictable, more dangerous, and less controlled. The fact that they haven’t attacked again can be one of two things. Either the person who fought them off gave them a good beating, or they’re planning something bigger.” Ryan combed his hand through Cat’s hair, pushing the wayward strands over her ear while returning her deep gaze. “I hope it’s the first reason, but we can’t be sure.”

  Cat bent her head up and kissed him softly on the lips, her hand caressing his chest. “You better get going, your mom’s going to text you soon to get your butt home, I can feel it,” she murmured jokingly as she playfully pushed him away, trying to break his serious demeanor. Ryan laughed softly and then kissed her again before he made his way to the window.

  “Don’t do anything reckless tonight, okay?” he said as he turned around and flashed a grin before he made his exit.

  “Hey, Ryan?”

  “Yeah?” he asked, poking his head back through the bay window.

  “Are you ever going to use the front door?” she inquired with a grin.

  He just laughed, and said, “Good night. And I mean it, nothing reckless.”

  Cat didn’t want to tell Ryan, but she was worried about staying home by herself with only Taylor. She didn’t want him to worry. She knew Ryan had to go home, and telling him would just have thrown that idea out the window.

  Snuggling up in her bed, cuddling her pillow, Cat tried not to react to every strange noise she heard outside. “Come on, Cat, there’s nothing there. They haven’t tried for two weeks, why would they all of a sudden strike again?” she tried to reassure herself. Ryan did say that they could be unpredictable, though. Cat heard her cell beep, breaking her train of thought. Opening it, the message read:

  Got home safe. Call me if anything happens, k? Ttyl. Nothing reckless! Lol.

  Cat smiled at the message and was about to reply when a loud resounding knock came from the front door. It echoed through the entire house, sounding slow and powerful. Warily, Cat opened her bedroom door. She made her way down the old attic’s spiral staircase, which creaked with every step she made, making her feel more uneasy. “Hey Cat, could you get that?” Taylor asked, hearing her pass outside his bedroom door.

  “Alright,” she replied hesitantly. Rachel and Sam were at a town hall council meeting which meant Cat was at Taylor’s beck and call. Creeping down the stairs in her old pink ratty robe, she made her way to the front door. It was night time, and looking through the eyehole, all she could see was a faint outline of something outside. Flipping the switch by the door illuminated the front porch. Looking through the eyehole again, she saw no one. Opening the door slightly, Cat peeked through the crack. “Hello? Is anyone there?” she asked, her voice shaking. There was no answer. Opening the door all the way, Cat spied something on the front porch. It was a small square package tightly wrapped in brown paper and tied with a thin tan string. Written in bold letters on the package was: For Catherine Colvin. So many thoughts ran through her mind. Who left it? What’s inside? Is this a trap? Should I take it? Cat crept out onto the porch toward the package. “Hello?” she asked once more into the night. She scanned the front yard to see if anyone was there. Seeing no one, she bent down and picked up the package.

  “Cat, what are you doing? Who was at the door?” Taylor asked behind her making her jump. Stuffing the package into her robe, she spun around to face him.

  “Holy crap, Taylor! A little warning next time would be nice, thanks!” she joked. “Oh, and strange thing, no one was at the door. Must’ve been some kids or something.” Taylor looked at her suspiciously and crossed his arms over his chest.

  “Well, then get your butt inside. Mom and Dad would kill me if anything happened to you!”

  Cat rolled her eyes at him. “I can take care of myself you know. I’m half that which shall not be named, remember?” she whispered at him.

  “Whatever, you’re still my younger sister and they’d kill me all the same,” he replied, and then motioned for her to get back inside. Cat rolled her eyes again and then rushed passed Taylor, up the stairs and into her room, slamming the door behind her. Taylor shook his head as he closed and locked the front door. “That girl’s a strange one. Special indeed,” he quipped to himself.

  Jumping onto her bed Cat pulled out the package and laid it out in front of her. She studied it, not sure if she wanted to open it. It could be from the three girls! Maybe I shouldn’t open it. Maybe I should wait for Ryan, she told herself. “Ahhh, what the heck,” she said aloud, tearing off the wrapping. Layer by layer, she peeled back the brown paper until she reached the contents. It was a book. Seeing the back cover, Cat turned it over and her eyes filled with surprise. She read the title eagerly:

  The Cleansing

  By Robert Craven

  Cat could hardly believe that she was holding the book in her hands. “OMG! This is Craven’s new novel! It’s not even out yet!” she squealed. Opening the book, she noticed some writing on the first page. It read:

  To my #1 Cravenite! Thank you for all the support. I hope this book helps.

  -Robert Craven-

  “This, is, so, awesome!” Cat exclaimed in a whisper, grabbing for her cell phone.

  “Hey Cat, what’s up?” Julie answered.

  “You’ll never guess what was just left on my doorstep!”

  “What?”

  “A signed copy of Robert Craven’s new novel, The Cleansing!”

  “Really? That’s amazing!” Julie replied cheerfully. “Who left it?”

  “Well, it was so weird. Someone was at the door, and then when I answered it, they were gone. And all that was left was the book,” Cat explained excitedly.

  “Hmmm, that is weird,” she replied.

  “Well, what’s weirder is he signed it to his number one Cravenite. But on Craven’s fan site, I’m like number 4,000 or something on his list of top fans. So maybe he sent it to the wrong person,” Cat sighed, flopping back on her bed.

  “Maybe…but either way, I don’t think you should tell anyone else about this, especially since the book hasn’t come out yet,” Julie said in a concerned motherly voice.

  “I know right? But you have to admit, this whole thing is really cool!”

  Miss Amaya entered the teachers’ breakroom and noticed Melvin Pierson standing next to the coffee maker, watching the coffee drip slowly into the pot. His hair was disheveled and his wrinkled shirt was halfway tucked in. Hmm, he’s usually impeccably dressed, she thought. “Good morning, Melvin, rough start to the day?” she asked with a warm smile. Turning his head to face her, he grabbed the pot of coffee, and stretched for his mug that was just out of reach.

  “Oh, Amaya Phillips, hi,” he replied distractedly as he began pouring the coffee, not paying attention and instead getting lost in her gaze. “Oww, crap!” he exclaimed, missing his mug and sending hot coffee splashing on the countertop and onto his gray pants and white shirt. “Great!” he continued, beginning to wipe his clothes off with paper towels. Miss Amaya tried not to giggle.

  “Are you okay? You look a little worse for wear,” she stated, handing him more paper towels.

  “Yeah sure, why do you ask?”

  “Oh, no reason really. Just that you look like you rolled out of bed with those clothes on.”

  “Well, I kind of did. I’m really behind on grading papers and getting my lesson plans together. I was up late last night. I feel so disorganized, an
d this is usually not like me. I think I might need a teacher’s assistant,” he joked, but sounded defeated.

  Miss Amaya thought intently for a moment. “If you’re serious about this, I might have the perfect student for you.”

  “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to have some extra help. Who’d you have in mind?”

  “How about Catherine Colvin? I’m sure she’d love to help you out. She’s a hard worker. Plus, she thinks you’re a great teacher,” Miss Amaya explained.

  “Oh, that would be great. Do you really think she’ll be up for it?”

  “Sure do. You should talk to her today after seventh period.”

  “Thank you so much for the idea Amaya, I’m really going to consider it,” he said, smiling at her. “Well, I best be off. Got to clean up and make myself look presentable before my first class,” he said with a chuckle. Grabbing his half-full coffee mug from the counter, Melvin made his way to the door.

  “See you later, Melvin,” Miss Amaya called out. Melvin held up his mug, toasting toward her as he made his exit. She waved to his retreating back with a longing look in her eyes.

  Standing by her locker, Cat was showing everyone the signed copy of Robert Craven’s new novel. “‘To my number one Cravenite!’ That’s awesome, Cat!” Amanda whispered trying not to draw any attention to their group.

  “I can’t believe you brought it to school, Cat, especially after our talk last night,” Julie reprimanded.

  “Oh Julie, you and I both know I’m terrible at keeping secrets. Especially when it’s a secret like this,” Cat said. Well, I guess that’s not completely true, she thought to herself after she said it.

  “Can I hold it?” Elle asked with her eyes full of envy. Cat placed the book into Elle’s outstretched hands and she began scanning it as if it were a bar of gold. “So, have you read any of it yet?”

  “Of course not, we have a pact, don’t we?” she answered.

  “That didn’t stop you before,” Matt interjected.

  “Matt, that’s so unfair. It was only that once,” she replied.

  “So what are you all plotting?” Mrs. Rosenbaum asked, standing behind Elle and looking over her shoulder. “Is that the new Robert Craven novel? How do you have it? It hasn’t come out yet,” she asked excitedly. Matt gulped as he stared at her slightly unbuttoned blouse. Amanda noticed what he was doing and stomped on his foot, making him yelp.

  “Cat is Craven’s number one fan, so he sent her a signed copy,” Amanda said.

  “Amanda!” Cat groaned at her as she grabbed the book from Elle and shoved it in her messenger bag. Amanda turned to her and shrugged, mouthing, “What?”

  “Very interesting,” Mrs. Rosenbaum replied. “You must tell me how it is, Cat. I’m a huge fan. See you in class.” As Mrs. Rosenbaum walked away, Duffie and Leif approached the group.

  “Hey guys!” Duffie called out as Leif waved to everyone, semi-hiding under his gray ski cap.

  “Hey, Duffster,” Matt said, still distracted by Mrs. Rosenbaum’s exit.

  Leif’s eyes filled with panic as he looked down the hall. “Uh, I’ll, see you guys, later,” he muttered, and then took off the opposite direction he was looking. Moments later a parade of females blew past them, obviously hurrying after Leif.

  “What’s that all about?” Cat asked, watching the girls scurrying after him.

  “This kind of happens all the time,” Duffie explained while giggling. “Leif is, as we say, popular with the ladies.”

  “Hey Matt, you could take some pointers from him,” Amanda joked, patting him on the back. He glared at her and then she smiled innocently, making the group laugh.

  “So, you’re all coming to the grand opening of my dad’s store, right?” Duffie asked.

  “Definitely, wouldn’t miss it,” Cat replied.

  “Can we dress up?” Amanda asked with a gleam in her eye.

  “Sure, why not? I’m sure there will be gobs of Craven fans there dressed up as well,” Duffie explained. Amanda smiled mischievously and everyone looked at her, wondering what she was planning.

  “Can we bring a guest?” Elle inquired, causing everyone to stare at her in disbelief.

  “I don’t see why not,” Duffie replied.

  “A guest, other than us?” Matt asked with narrowed eyes.

  “Well, yeah-” Elle began to reply.

  “Who is it, Elle?” Amanda probed.

  “Uh, um, well,” she answered sheepishly, dodging their stares.

  Ryan came up from behind Cat, grabbed her around the waist, and squeezed her in a hug. “Oh brother, all right everyone, that’s our cue to leave the happy couple alone,” Amanda groaned. Cat rolled her eyes at Amanda. As everyone dispersed, Cat turned to Ryan.

  “So how’s Mom?” Cat asked jokingly.

  He smiled at her and replied, “Fine.”

  “Got any plans for this Saturday? Want to come with us to the grand opening of Duffie’s dad’s store? It should be fun.”

  “I’m busy Saturday night.”

  “Oh really? Should I be jealous?” she asked with one eyebrow raised.

  “Yeah, maybe. No, actually I’ve got a family thing, a meeting really,” he replied. Cat looked deep into Ryan’s eyes and knew something was up, but didn’t want to pry. She just said, “okay” and kissed him softly on the lips. Pulling away slightly she gave him a quick smile as the school bell rang and they headed down the hall hand in hand.

  After swim practice, Cat made her way to Mr. Pierson’s classroom. He had asked her during seventh period if she could spare a couple of minutes to talk to him at the end of the day. She held back a giggle at the sight of him sitting in his chair, his hair sticking up from running his hands through it all day. He was so focused that he didn’t realize she was standing in front of his desk until she cleared her throat.

  “Oh Catherine, sorry, have you been standing there long?” he asked, putting his pen in his pocket protector, and adjusting his glasses, which were slightly crooked on his face. He’s so cute, Cat thought, in a geeky sort of way.

  “No, just got here. What’s wrong? You look a little frazzled.”

  “So much work. But that’s actually why I asked you to stop by. I need a teaching assistant, or TA as you youngsters call it.”

  Cat held back another giggle as he didn’t look much older than her. “So Amaya, I mean Miss Amaya, said you’d be perfect for the job.” He looked pleadingly at her.

  “She did, did she? Well, I’d be honored.” She watched as he slumped in his chair, relief written all over his adorable face.

  “That would be wonderful. I’d only need a few hours of your time a week. I know you have swimming, and I’m here until all hours anyway. But you just show up when you can. I’ll be eternally grateful.”

  “I’m available most days, except for the ones I have swim meets on. Do you need any help tonight? Practice went short, and my boyfriend Ryan is still in football practice. Tell me what you need me to do.” Cat watched in delight as a huge smile erupted on his face. Mr. Pierson dug into his bag and withdrew a huge stack of papers, plopping them down in front of her. Cat looked at the stack with wide eyes as she grabbed a chair and pulled it up to his desk.

  Ryan watched from a nearby tree as Cat and her friends walked toward the Three Penny Brit. He snickered at Amanda’s outfit. It was a cross between Elvira Mistress of the Dark and a punk rocker. Her tall and bushy black hair made him laugh harder. Seriously, Amanda, a punk vampire? Homing in on Cat, you know she’d be really pissed off at you for spying on her, he thought, hoping the three girls wouldn’t be making an appearance.

  As Cat entered the store, Ryan scanned the windows and saw a large cardboard cut-out of Bartholomew Drake, famed vampire of Robert Craven’s Dark Shadow series. It amazes me she’s still a fan of his novels, even now after knowing what she is. I wonder if she’s figured out all of his books are based on our kind’s history.

  Cat looked around the trendy book café. The store resembled a highly polished Bri
tish pub with rows of bookshelves. The walls had a dark wood finish, as did the floor. It was definitely one of the coolest places in downtown Astoria.

  “Oi! Over here, guys!” Duffie called out, standing next to a display of Robert Craven’s new book, The Cleansing, and waving to the group. She wore a layered maroon cocktail dress and knee-high black boots. Her beautiful, wavy, black hair was set back with a maroon hair clip.

  Matt wolf whistled, “Duffster, you clean up nice!”

  “Oh grow up, Matt,” Amanda chastised as Duffie just laughed off his comment, shaking her head.

  “Great costume,” Duffie said while looking Amanda up and down.

  “You really think so?”

  “Yeah! Punk rock vampire, right?” Duffie replied.

  “Wow, finally, someone who gets me!” Amanda exclaimed as she grabbed Duffie in a bear hug. Duffie gently patted Amanda’s back while smiling awkwardly. Over Duffie’s shoulder, a concert stage in the back corner of the café caught Amanda’s eye. A sign next to the stage read:

  Playing Tonight:

  The Damianic Bombshells

  “The Damianic Bombshells are playing here tonight? They’re like easily the best thing that’s come out of our school, ever! They’re awesome!” Amanda announced eagerly, releasing her grip on Duffie.

  “Yeah, my dad heard they had a darker feel to them. Plus they’ll blend well with our theme tonight. Their lead singer is intense, though. She’s nice, but just a tad eccentric,” Duffie said with a laugh.

  “But Bridgette’s soooo hot! She can be all the eccentric she wants to be! Just as long as she wears those skimpy outfits, and sings the way she does,” Matt commented with an impish grin.

  Amanda smacked him across the chest. “Matthew Ian Thomas, could you please keep your hormones in check for like two seconds?!” she asked glaring at him.

  Matt rubbed his chest, “I guess that’s my signal to head on over to the refreshments,” he joked.