by Willow Rose
"It means nothing to me. It makes no difference. You should know this by now," I said. "I’m not like my parents, and I never want to be. I don't want to join their little club of vampires and snobbish friends. I have no desire to hang out with royal families or be part of the jet set. I am me. Robyn Jones. An ordinary girl from Shadow Hills who is in love with her childhood friend and wants to give up everything to spend the rest of her life with him. Okay?"
He stared into her eyes.
"I am never going to see him again. I promise, okay?" I added.
He nodded but didn't seem convinced, just as Amy drove up to the entrance of the park in her truck and Jazmine approached from the other side on her bike.
Chapter Twenty
Where were you today?" Amy asked addressed to Jazmine. Jazmine blushed and looked away.
"I took the day off."
Amy grabbed her head and turned it, so we could better see her neck. "Another hickey! You were with Adrian, weren't you?"
The thought of my brother and Jazmine together made my toes curl. I couldn't stand to even think about it. I hated that she trusted him so much. She had no reason to.
Jazmine pulled away. "So, what's going on? Why did we have to hurry up and meet?"
Amy sighed. "My parents found Melanie."
"They did what?" I asked.
"You heard me."
"I thought you said they never went into the basement," Jazmine said.
"Yeah, I was wrong," Amy said, resigned. "They did last night, and they found her there."
I swallowed. "What have they done to her?"
"Nothing so far. They are not going to tell the other parents; they promised me that much. But they want her gone. We need to find another place for her to hide."
I stared at Amy, not knowing what to say. This was bad, very bad. We had no idea where to keep her, where she could stay safe even when turning into a wolf at night.
"Did you talk to Melanie about this?" I asked. "Maybe she has some extended family or something?"
Amy shook her head. "I just spoke to her. That’s why I was a little late coming here. I drove home first to talk to her and make sure she got something to eat. She is terrified. She has no idea where to go."
"She would be best off in the mountains," I said. "Where she could roam and hunt at night."
Amy nodded. "True. But up there, we can't protect her. Remember when your mom found her the last time?"
I nodded. It wasn't something I was going to forget, ever. I was about to say something when I suddenly spotted a flock of birds—black ravens—gathering behind us, then turned and saw more of them come flying across the lake and land really close to Jazmine. Soon, there were hundreds of them. Loads of them in the tree above us, sitting on branches like they were waiting for something to happen.
"What's going on here?" I asked.
Jazmine looked up and let out a small shriek.
"I’m afraid they're here for me," she said. "The animal kingdom has kind of being attacking me lately."
Amy scoffed. "You're just being paranoid," she said.
"But they are attracting attention to us," Jayden said and looked up at the sky where a swarm of birds circled overhead. "I say we split up and go home before our parents notice."
"Okay," Amy said. "Please think about a place for Melanie to hide. My parents are traveling tomorrow morning again, so that gives us a couple of days to figure this out. We'll meet again, here, tomorrow, same time."
Chapter Twenty-One
That was a quick run."
My mom was waiting for me in the hallway when I entered. She looked at my face, then ran a nail across my forehead.
"You know you're never gonna get into shape if you don’t even break a sweat."
I smiled, strained. "I didn't feel like running so much today."
"Very well. I have a smoothie prepared for you. Your brother is drinking his in the kitchen now."
I tried to seem excited, then followed her into the kitchen where Adrian was sitting, his green gelatinous smoothie standing on the table in front of him. I prayed it wasn't made with kale. If my mom served kale to me one more time, I was going to scream. Renata was lying under the table, till Adrian hissed at the dog and it ran away, whimpering.
"Beet and carrot for you today, young lady," Mom said and showed me my smoothie.
I breathed, relieved, grabbed it and sat down. My brother smirked at me, then slurped as he drank. He knew I hated when he did that.
I sipped mine and tried to hide the fact that the taste made me want to throw up, when my mom turned to face us, clapping her hands together excitedly.
"I have wonderful news."
"Really?" I said, fearing the worst. My mom's great news more often than not meant something terrible for me.
"Yes, for you, Robyn."
Uh-uh.
"Oh, you're gonna be so happy when you hear this. I have arranged for you to go on a date with Duncan tonight. Now, it wasn't easy since you already turned him down once, but I explained to his dear mother that you were merely being polite, and you were not quite yourself because of the medicine the doctor had prescribed for you. I told her you would gladly accept his offer and go out with him."
My mom looked at me, her eyes glistening in the light. I could have strangled her. She was so excited, and she had no idea how much she had just screwed up everything for me. I had just promised Jayden I was never going to see Duncan again. Ever.
"But…but, Mo-om?"
"What dear? Oh, you don't need to thank me. Do that at the wedding ha-ha, or when you realize just how wealthy you're going to become."
"I can't…Mom; I can't go out with him. I won't do it," I said and put the smoothie down, hard.
My older brother was grinning at me from his seat. I wanted to slap him for enjoying this so much.
My mother approached me, bent down, and grabbed my chin. She put her face really close to mine, and I could feel her icy breath on my skin. She held me, hard.
"Mom? You're kind of hurting me," I said.
She looked into my eyes and, for the first time, I think I understood the expression: If looks could kill. ‘Cause if they could, she would have killed me right about now—no, more than that—she could have chopped me into pieces using only that piercing look of hers.
"You…will go on that date with him, or—so help me—I will make your life a living hell."
I stared at her, wondering how she could possibly make it more of a hell than she already had, but knowing my mother, I knew she could.
Oh, boy, how she could.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The birds followed Jazmine home and, as she biked back, more joined the party and not just black ravens but also pigeons and seagulls and even a few ducks. They were everywhere. By her front door, three cats were waiting for her as she drove up and, while the birds sat in trees and on the patio furniture outside the house, the cats jumped onto the windowsill and sat there, looking inside as Jazmine rushed in and closed the door. Birds were pecking at the windows, cats meowing, and it seemed the dogs were back as well since she could definitely hear barking.
Jazmine breathed shakily and hurried to the kitchen, where her mother sat, reading a big book. She looked up and smiled.
"Hi, honey…say, what's wrong, dear?" she asked, worried. "You’re not sick, are you? Your eyes…they're yellow, an alarming yellow."
Jazmine shook her head and approached her mother. "I don't know, Mom, it's like…look…" she said and pointed at a huge bird sitting outside the window, turning its head sideways so it could look inside. "I don't even know what that is?"
"It's a King Vulture, Sarcoramphus papa, very rare in these parts, lives mostly in Argentina and Mexico, where it is known to use its hooked beak which is ideal for ripping into tough carcasses…but, honey…?"
Jazmine stared at her mother, then at the big scary bird outside. The noise the hundreds of birds made was overwhelming and gave her a headache. "They followed me hom
e. Why are they following me? Mom?"
Her mother walked to the window and looked out at the many animals. Jazmine walked up behind her.
"Is that a deer?" she asked.
Her mother chuckled. "It sure is, and there's a raccoon over there, and even a porcupine; oh, I love porcupines, don't you?"
"Usually, yes," Jazmine said. "But not when they follow me home along with every freakin’ other animal in the world. Why are they doing that, Mom? Why are they attacking me?"
Her mom turned around and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Well, it is a little early…it wasn't supposed to begin till…" her look became distant, and she seemed like she had something on her mind.
"Mom?"
Her look returned, and she shook her head. "It's nothing, dear. You always were good with animals; remember your cousin Pete's horse? You were the only one who could tame it, who could get it to calm down when it freaked out. You’ve always had a way with animals."
"But…"
She kissed her again. "They're attracted to you, baby. That's all." Jazmine's mom looked at her watch. "Oh, boy, I am late for my…um…dentist appointment downtown. You grab yourself something to eat, okay? I'll be back in a few hours."
And just like that, her mother left Jazmine once again and took off to do whatever it was she was doing while pretending to go to the hairdresser or dentist. Who was she fooling anyway? No one went to the dentist four times a week, and her hair didn't look like it was just done yesterday when she was supposedly at the hairdresser.
Jazmine stared at the birds outside her window then pulled the curtain, so she couldn't see them while making herself a sandwich, thinking about the day she had spent with Adrian. She knew she was falling for him and it scared her slightly.
Chapter Twenty-Three
He came at six o'clock. Precise as clockwork. He rang the doorbell just as the old grandfather clock in our living room chimed. I was still upstairs getting ready and rolled my eyes as my mom corrected my dress, telling me to suck in my stomach. I couldn't believe I was actually doing this.
My mom removed a strand of hair from my face and put it behind my ear. I pulled it out again and let it fall into my face. She had put it up and used an extreme amount of hairspray to get it to stay in place. It felt like I was wearing a helmet.
She spat on her thumb and used it to wipe something from my cheek. I cringed.
"There," she said and gleamed as she looked at me. "I think this is the best we can do."
Adrian opened the door downstairs and let Duncan in. I could hear their friendly chatter. Just the fact that Duncan hit it off with my brother was alarming to me.
"Okay. Now, you can make your entrance," my mother said. "This is your big moment. Remember to keep your chin up, suck your stomach in and, whatever you do, don't smile with your teeth. You don't want to show him those crooked teeth of yours. You must walk slowly to make sure he really sees you, watches your every move, and sees just how beautiful you are. Now, go."
I closed my eyes briefly, feeling so embarrassed over this, then walked out to the top of the stairs where I—as instructed by my mother—paused for just a second to make sure Duncan saw me and, as soon as I had his eyes upon me, I continued slowly, taking one step at a time.
Duncan was still engaged in a chat with Adrian when I walked out. His look caught me right away, and he stopped talking. I heard him let out a small gasp as he gazed at me. I walked down the stairs, holding in my stomach, Duncan's piercing blue eyes on me all the way till I reached the bottom of the stairs and he approached me, grabbed my hand, and bowed to me, kissing the top of it.
"You look absolutely gorgeous," he said. "Stunning."
I couldn't help myself. I tried, I really did, but I had to admit I enjoyed the moment. I had never felt like a million dollars before, but at this moment I came really close, even though it was much against my will.
He put my hand on top of his arm and escorted me out. "Shall we?"
I walked outside with him to the waiting limo in the cul-de-sac. Just before I got in, my eyes landed on Jayden's window across the street, and I was overwhelmed with guilt. I hadn't had time to explain to him what was going on. If he saw me get into the limo with Duncan, it was going to break his heart. It was the last thing I wanted to do to him.
We got into the limo and sat down, the guilt still nagging in my stomach. I tried to will it away, but it was hard. The limo took off.
"So, where are we going?" I asked, expecting him to say something about a cool little restaurant downtown, or maybe a big fancy one, but he just looked at me, grabbed my hand in his again, and kissed it.
"The airport. My private jet is waiting."
I chuckled, certain he was joking. "You're kidding me, right?"
He shook his head. "Nope."
"You have a private jet?"
"It's the family's, but yes."
My eyes grew wide. I knew he was wealthy, but I hadn't realized just how rich he was up until now. It felt very intimidating. I wasn't the type that was easily impressed with money. As a matter of fact, I often found it to be scarier than anything else in this world.
"So…do you want to go to Italy?" he asked with an annoying smirk. "For dinner?"
"Oh, you mean like in the movies where the hero takes the girl to Italy for dinner and has her back in time for bed?" I asked. I could hear in my own voice that I was being condescending. I hadn't meant to have it sound like that. Well, maybe a little, but not as much as it ended up being.
He nodded.
"Yeah, sounds nice and all if it wasn't totally fiction. In the movies, they seem to forget to tell you that, even if you do fly in your own plane, it still takes ten hours to get there and ten hours back," I said.
He gave me a look. "You don't fool easily, do you?"
"Of course not," I said in a cold voice. "Just because I’m a girl doesn’t mean I’m stupid."
He scoffed. "You still don't like me much, do you?"
"Again, it's not you…it's what you…"
"Represent, I got it," he said, slightly disappointed. He turned his head away from me and exhaled. The limo continued out of our neighborhood and we sat in silence.
This is going to be a long night.
I wanted to say something nice since I was starting to feel bad for him. It was, after all, not his fault. But I couldn't find the right words. They simply didn't come to me.
"Listen," he said. "I do realize this is a setup by our parents. I’m no fool either. I don't enjoy setups much either, but this makes them happy. Us dating makes them happy, so how about we make the best of it, huh? In my view, we might as well. What do you say?"
I sighed and looked into his eyes. Of all the guys my mom could have found for me, Duncan wasn't half bad. He was handsome and seemed to know how to treat a girl nicely. He was a true gentleman. I guessed I could try and make the best of it, even though I was so angry with my mom for agreeing to this without my consent.
Then I smiled, deciding it would do no one any good for me to be miserable all night. It certainly wouldn't help Jayden. He was going to be jealous no matter what. I would just have to explain everything to him tomorrow. I just hoped he would understand.
"All right," I said with an exhale. "Let's make the best of it."
Chapter Twenty-Four
He wouldn't tell me where he was taking me. It was a secret, he said, a surprise, so I played along. We drove to a small airport outside of town and got into his private jet. We flew for only about twenty minutes across the mountains before the pilot set us down in another small airport where another limo was waiting for us.
"Where are we?" I asked.
"Montague, Massachusetts," he said.
I wrinkled my forehead. "Really?"
He chuckled, a little too confident for my taste, but I went along with it and got into the limo.
"And what exactly is in Montague, Massachusetts?" I asked.
"You'll see."
Probably some fancy restaurant,
I thought to myself. Where he plans on impressing you with strange food served at ridiculous prices. As if that type impresses you.
I knew his type and prepared myself to act impressed, even though nothing could bore me more. But I knew if I made this a pleasant date, I would make my mother happy, and a happy mother meant more freedom and less suspicion of me.
"I’m sure you'll enjoy it," he said, still smirking. He looked dashing even when smirking, but it annoyed me anyway.
"I’m sure I will," I said, trying my best to be polite.
The limo drove through the countryside and I tried to look outside and see, but it was mostly darkness. Till we finally drove up a small road with nothing but farmland on both sides and, after crossing an old broken bridge, the limo stopped. I looked out the window and didn't see much.
"We're here," he said.
"Here?" I asked, wondering where exactly here was. We were pretty far out in the countryside as far as I could tell.
He held the door for me and helped me out of the limo. I stared at the building in front of me. It didn't look much like a fancy restaurant. Duncan closed the door and the limo drove off into the darkness.
"What is this place?" I asked.
"It's an old New England mill," he said. "It overlooks the river and falls, but we have to imagine them since it's dark now."
"I can hear it," I said, smiling. This place wasn't anything like I expected. This was quaint and quiet. Not a car in sight.
"Come," he said and grabbed my hand. I almost slipped on the rocky surface in my high heels as we walked toward the entrance.
"It says on the door that it closes at six," I said.
"Not for me."
He held the door for me and I could tell he was about to explode with excitement. Inside stood a small woman, wearing glasses and a scarf across her shoulders. She was holding a bucket of red roses in her hands. "This is Mrs. Olson. She owns this place and she has agreed to keep it open just for us."
