by Lari Smythe
Chapter 16
I apologized to Tink about the car and then walked down the hill toward the bus stop. It would have been faster to run to school, but I needed the time to think. The bus wasn't as chaotic as I expected, instead most of the kids were in a sleep-depraved daze. I was surprised to see Matt on the bus.
"Hey," Matt said as I sat down a few seats up from him. "You and Hollywood going out?"
"I turned sideways in the seat so I could see him. "What's it to you?"
He kind of stared at me as if he didn't recognize me. "Nothin', was just going to say he's okay."
"Okay?"
"Yeah, you know, he's a pretty, decent quarterback. Who knows, we might even have a shot."
"You should tell him that."
"I did."
I turned back toward the front of the bus and we didn't speak again. I kind of wondered if I should be worried that Matt saw where I got on the bus, but he seemed to be okay with 'Hollywood' so I figured it shouldn't be a problem. The constant jostling from the rough roads made it impossible to think, so by the time we got to school, I was still in the same predicament. As I walked toward the front of the bus, I saw myself in the large, panoramic rearview mirror—now I understood why Matt was staring—I wasn't wearing any makeup. I stepped down on the sidewalk and glanced at the sky. To the west, there were dark clouds, the front the weatherman expected, but to the east and above, the sky was velvet blue, not a cloud. Besides neglecting the makeup, I hadn't painted my skin either. I wasted no time getting inside the building.
It was odd being back in class. Just yesterday, I'd completely given up on school and while I still didn't need to know Latin, I participated in class. It felt like the right thing to do.
In Art, Cathy also noticed I wasn't wearing makeup. She'd done another mental reversal and went up to the sink and wiped hers off. We got a lot of speculative stares from the class and even Mrs. Snyder.
I saw Jason at lunch and in History, but we didn't speak. When the final bell rang, I suddenly realized the sun was out—I was trapped. I could always hide out in the ladies room, but maybe there was something more constructive I could do.
"Coach Singleton?"
"It's Coach, remember?"
"Coach, can I stay after class and use the computer?"
"Stay after class?" He scratched his head. "Yesterday you bolted out of here like you were never coming back—without a pass mind you—and today you want to stay after?"
"Yeah, I'm sorry about yesterday, it was a girl thing."
If a black man could blush, he did. "Well, I certainly don't need the details, I didn't mark you as absent anyway. Sure, you're welcome to stay and use the computer. Make sure you shut it down when you're finished; and if you don't mind, kill the lights."
"Thanks."
"You're welcome." He went in his office and dug around on his desk until he found a clipboard. He started toward the door that connected with the boy's locker room, but stopped and came back to the entrance to class. "Izzy?"
"Yes," I replied, looking up from the monitor.
"That little stunt you pulled the other day—the one on the football field—it made a huge impact. The boys are startin' to come around and that fella of yours, well he's got quite an arm."
"He's not mine," I said, flatly.
"Sorry to hear that. Well, I just wanted to thank you. I think Saturday's game is going to be a real, barn-burner."
"I'm sorry I'll miss it." I hadn't given up on the idea of leaving.
"It's homecoming, you know."
"Not for me."
"Well I hope you change your mind. Heck, I'll even sweeten the deal. How'd you like to come down on the sidelines and help with my headset?"
"Thanks, Coach, but I can't."
"Suit yourself." He turned back into his office. "Don't forget to shut everything off." He went out through the doorway to the boy's locker room.
I spent the next two hours exploring the western side of the Olympic Peninsula. I zoomed in as close as MapQuest would allow and went through every part of Forks and Port Angeles. I also did an image search and still nothing. I began to wonder if maybe I'd been right. Maybe they were just places I'd visited. The rush to leave faded as I had to consider the possibility that I didn't have enough information. The sun was close to the horizon, so I shut down the computer and headed for the door. I could hear the boys in the locker room—they were back from practice, so I closed the door and hurried toward the exit. I wanted to be gone before they came out of the locker room. Unfortunately, I forgot the front of the school faced west. The exit was bathed in sunlight. I turned as I heard footsteps in the hallway behind me.
"Hey," Jason said, jogging up to me, "I'm glad you waited."
"I didn't, I had some Software Apps homework to catch up on."
"Oh, my bad."
I recoiled away from the stream of sunlight when he pushed the door open.
"What, you afraid of the sun now?" He continued through the doorway without looking back, letting the door slam behind him. The difference between us was never more obvious—Jason bathed in sunlight—me lurking in the shadows. I headed for the exit on the other side of the school.
By the time I got there, the sun had slipped behind the mountains. Out of habit, I started for the parking lot—of course, I'd ridden the bus today.
"Hey," Jason called, pulling up to the curb, "need a lift?"
"Na, my mom's coming."
"Okay." He pulled away, but stopped after just a few feet and then backed up. "Listen, about earlier, I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean anything by it."
"Yeah, whatever." I tried to brush it off as no big deal.
"Seriously, I'm sorry. The team is coming together and there's a lot of pressure on me to do well."
"That's what you wanted isn't it?"
"Yeah, I guess, but it's no excuse to be rude, especially to you. After all, you're the one who made it happen."
"I'm sure you'll make your dad proud."
"You're coming to the game, right?"
"I'm not sure—"
"Come on, you have to. Coach even said he'd let you come down on the sidelines."
"Coach put you up to this?"
"No, I want you there."
"I don't know. Guess I could ask Cathy if she'd come."
"That's a start."
"What does that mean?"
Jason leaned over the seat and dug around in his backpack. He pulled out two tickets and held them up. "Will you go to homecoming with me?"
The warmth I'd grown accustomed to when I was with him—and had missed so terribly—enveloped me, but it wasn't fair to lead him on, and that's what I was doing. It was selfish to expose him to the dangers of my existence—I loved him too much for that. I couldn't bring myself to say the word, so I shook my head.
He didn't really look all that surprised. "Well, I've been a jerk. I deserve that, but hey, I've got a couple of days to change your mind."
"Jason, I—"
"See ya." He let off the clutch and pulled away, waving the tickets over his head. "You'll see!"
I waited until he disappeared over the hill and then started walking toward the park. Once the school was out of sight, I was home in ten minutes. I paused halfway up the front steps, weighed down by the thought of leaving Jason—did I really have the strength to leave him? It seemed impossible, he'd become part of me. The sound of footsteps approaching the door pulled me away from my thoughts and I realized for the first time the atmosphere inside was tense—something was wrong.
"What is it?" I said as Melanie opened the door.
Her smile was forced. Behind her, there were whispers from the dining room. "We have company."
"Seriously—other's, here?" I knew about them, but I'd never seen a vampire outside of our coven.
"Not exactly company."
"What's that mean?"
"Come with me." Melanie led me to the dining room where the family was huddled over a map spread out across the table
.
"Ah," Benjamin said, glancing up, "excellent, we're all here now."
As Melanie and I got closer, I could see areas of the map marked with yellow highlighter. I squeezed in next to Tink and realized the highlighted areas were our hunting grounds, the house and Melanie and Nathan's.
"What have we missed?" Benjamin inquired.
"I don't understand what you mean?"
"Good grief girl," Benjamin snapped, "where have you been that we've not accounted for?"
I recoiled. Benjamin had never raised his voice to me. I pointed to the location of the school, circling it with my finger, and then traced my route along the ridge back to Melanie's.
"Is that all?" Elizabeth interrupted as Benjamin highlighted the areas I had identified.
"Here," I said, circling the location of the soccer field. I lifted my finger, scanning past where Jason's house to the site of my recent crash, and then traced another route back to our house.
Benjamin filled in the areas with yellow. "Curious, this is further than the others."
"It's where she wrecked the car," Tink answered. He looked at me and frowned. "You did quite a number on it—it's in the garage."
"Sorry—oh wait, there's Cathy's and the store." I pointed them out and Benjamin marked them like the others.
Benjamin pushed back from the map examining it carefully. "Forgive my earlier harshness, Izzy, I sometimes forget you're a lady."
"That's okay." He'd never referred to me as a lady. It felt nice, but at the same time, I couldn't help notice a kind of finality in his tone.
"Are you sure that's everywhere?" Melanie prompted.
I knew exactly what she meant, but hesitated. "I don't see what all this has to do with visitors?"
"Please, Izzy, we need a complete picture of our movements, then I will explain," Benjamin said.
"Fine." I stabbed my finger on the location of Jason's house and ran it along Antietam Creek back home. I glared at Melanie. "Happy?"
"She gets around." Tink's chuckle was cut short by Benjamin's harsh glare.
"Well?" I said, waiting for an explanation.
Benjamin straightened his jacket. "Under normal circumstances, it would be appropriate to introduce ones self, if for no other reason than to clarify ones intentions."
"It's common courtesy," Elizabeth added.
"But these visitors have not?" I confirmed.
"That is correct."
"And…" I prompted.
"It's probably nothing." Elizabeth said, laying her hands on my shoulders.
"Right, that's why we're all gathered around a map retracing our movements."
There was a momentary smile beneath Benjamin's mustache but it did not ease the concern in his eyes.
"They're probably just curious," Melanie added.
"You all say I am part of this family, right?"
They all nodded.
"Then stop beating around the bush, what's really going on?"
All eyes looked toward Benjamin.
"For some time now, there have been indications that we are being tracked."
"By some time, are you talking weeks, years, decades?" I asked.
"Decades," Benjamin continued. "It would appear that this is once again the case. The lack of contact, their pattern of surveillance—"
"What pattern of surveillance?" I interrupted.
Nathan pointed to a thin red line drawn in close proximity to many of the areas where we had been. "They are probably ascertaining our numbers, strengths, vulnerabilities."
"Okay, I can see that, but that doesn't explain why you all are so nervous. So—part of the family and all—remember?"
"Why don't we go in the other room and let the men take care of this?" Elizabeth said.
"Benjamin? Father?" I pleaded.
"Oh, very well," Elizabeth huffed.
"On previous occasions there has been considerable destruction and bloodshed—"
"Bloodshed as in human—Jason!" I gasped.
Benjamin stroked his mustache. "Izzy's presence would be considered a strength, but the boy could be construed as a vulnerability."
"I have to protect him." I started toward the front door.
"Wait, please, Izzy you need to hear the rest," Melanie called after me.
"There's more?" I paused.
"Benjamin continued in a noticeably detached tone. "The most logical way to protect the boy and ourselves is to do what we have always done, and that is to withdraw."
"Withdraw, as in leave? Are you kidding me? You just said Jason was in danger and now you expect me to just walk away?" I'd been upset over how hard it was going to be for me to leave Jason, but now, hearing that he was in danger and that I had to leave, made it all the more impossible.
"We will need the sheets to cover the furniture," Elizabeth said to Melanie.
"Yes, ma'am." Melanie moved quietly up the stairs.
"I could use some help in the barn," Tink said to Nathan and they left through the kitchen.
"That's it?" I said to Elizabeth and Benjamin. "You're just going to leave, no matter who gets hurt?"
"It's best for—"
"No!" I cut Elizabeth off. "Is that what you want?" I continued, my gaze bearing down on Benjamin.
His expression was torn with indecision.
"Don't look at her." I chastised when his gaze drifted toward Elizabeth.
He looked back at me; his eyes pleading as he apparently noticed my glance toward the door. "Please don't, Izzy." Before the words fell silent, I was halfway down the mountain.
At the street, I headed straight for Antietam Creek. I paused momentarily at the bridge to listen, but they hadn't followed. Anger drove me out of the house, but I really hadn't expected to escape. Now, there was only one thing I could think of, 'protect Jason'. I leapt from the bridge and used the river to conceal my path to his house. I stayed in the water, jumping from pool to pool until I spotted the calm water near his house. I made one last leap and landed shoulder deep not far from the bank.
"Izzy!"
"Jason!" In my haste, I hadn't seen him.
"What? Where? I mean how'd—"
"I fell," I said, pointing to a large branch hanging over the creek.
"You fell," he said incredulously, "from the tree."
I climbed the rocky bottom until I was knee deep.
"My God, you must be freezing. Wait here." He ran off toward his house before I could stop him. Minutes later he returned with a blanket, and I let him coax me up to the shore, but not out of the water. He walked down to me and draped the blanket around my shoulders.
"I'm sorry," I said. "You probably think I'm some kind of stalker—"
"Stop. No more lies." He walked back to the bank, just a few feet away.
"Okay." We stood staring at each other. "What do you want me to say?"
"Anything, so long as it's the truth."
"There's something you need to know." I paused, hoping he would tell me he didn't want to know, but his eyes urged me to continue. "You could be in danger."
"Darn it, Izzy!" He spun around in frustration, slipped and fell in the mud.
I couldn't help but laugh.
"It's not funny." He slipped twice more, trying to get up. "I can't believe you're trying to sell that, 'I'm dangerous' line again. I'm not an idiot."
"Not from me." That derailed his tirade. "I need you to trust me."
"Done," he replied without hesitation.
"So sure." I reached out and stroked his cheek.
He took my hand and kissed the palm. "Yes, absolutely."
"I need you to stay away from the woods."
He tugged me toward the bank. "At least come up here where it's dry so we can talk."
I pulled my hand free and shook my head.
"Promise you won't leave," he said, glancing back at his house and then at me.
"Where are you—"
"Promise." He edged up the bank.
"Okay," I agreed, puzzled by his sudden desire t
o go back to the house.
He climbed to the lip of the bank, stopped and looked back, before racing off through the trees. I heard the screen door slam as he went inside.
I'd already proved to myself I wasn't a good tracker, but I used what senses I had and probed the surroundings. I moved up and down the creek a short distance from his house. There was nothing out of the ordinary. The back door screeched, then slammed closed and Jason was on his way back. He skidded to a stop on the ridge above the creek.
"I have something you probably need to see." He tapped a manila envelope that he had under his arm. When I didn't move, he walked down into the creek.
"What is it?"
"A photo." He opened the envelope and pulled out a black and white photograph. As I examined it, he flipped on a flashlight. It was a wooded area not far from one of our older hunting grounds. I recognized the splintered tree.
"Where did you get this?"
"I told you, I hunt with a camera."
"Yes," I said, remembering the conversation.
"I was out a few days ago, in one of my blinds. I'm pretty good at detecting movement, and well, I saw that." He pointed to a blurred shape under a partially fallen tree. "The focus isn't all that perfect, this is blown up quite a bit—the grain doesn't help much either, but there is definitely something there. I'm sure of it. I know it sounds impossible, but I swear who, or whatever that is, turned when I took the picture—like it heard the shutter. Two to three hundred yards—impossible, right?"
If there was an image in the shadows it was blurred beyond any sort of recognition, but what drew my attention were a cluster of pixels that definitely resembled a brass button. "This is the only picture?"
"Yeah, the negative is in the envelope." He shrugged. "I figured I'm probably not supposed to know about this."
"Promise me you'll stay out of the woods."
Jason stepped closer and wrapped his arms around me. "You're not even shivering."
"Please Jason, promise me?" I slipped out of his embrace.
"Sure, if you'll go to the dance with me," he said, catching my hand.
"Jason, this isn't a bargaining chip. I'd never forgive myself if something happened—"
"I know." He grasped my other hand. "Tell me you'll at least consider the dance."
"Jason, I—"
"I'll take that as a yes." He held me at arms length. "I'd ask you in, but I'm not sure how we'd explain your wet clothes to Mom." He tried to laugh, but the tightness in his throat wouldn't let him. "I'd ask what you're doing, but I don't imagine you'd tell me anyway."
I shook my head and stepped back—we were still holding hands. Jason pulled himself toward me, but I stepped back when he tried to kiss me.
"Please, Jason."
He masked his disappointment with a polished smile, turned and walked back to his house. He looked back twice and lingered on the back steps before finally going inside.
I stayed the rest of the night. Jason spent hours at his window, just staring toward the creek, although I doubted he could actually see me. I let myself believe he felt safe with me guarding him, but deep down, I knew he had to think of me as some sort of freak—a freak that had put him in danger. It would be completely understandable if he hated me—he should. When the sun showed itself over Lambs Knoll, I started home, knowing Jason would be safe in the daylight.
Elizabeth and Melanie came out of the parlor to meet me when I walked into the house. Benjamin, Tink and Nathan were in the dining room. Benjamin and the boys looked up when the three of us entered the room.
"A quiet night?" Benjamin asked.
"For the most part." That seemed to unsettle everyone. "How are your eyes?"
"Benjamin looked perplexed. "Do you mean have we fed recently?"
"It was a rhetorical question." I slid Jason's envelope out from under my shirt.
"What do you have there? Benjamin asked.
"A picture," I replied, sliding the photograph out of the envelope.
"That's one of our hunting grounds," Tink said.
"Yes," Nathan agreed, "I recognize the splintered tree."
Benjamin nodded in agreement.
I turned the photograph and put my finger on the partially fallen tree and then turned it back to them. "Yes, but look more closely." I jabbed at the photograph with my finger.
Their eyes tightened as they examined the area I was pointing toward. Their faces suddenly registered awe as they spotted the figure.
"Where did you get that?" Benjamin asked.
"Jason?" Tink speculated.
"Impossible," Benjamin said.
"Exactly, it's supposed to be, right?" No one answered. "So, my question for you is, what kind of vampire would track us and be so careless?" Again, no answer. "How about someone more interested in us than remaining inconspicuous? Who do you know, or have known that fits that profile? Remember, you said decades, so I'm leaning more toward someone you have known."
The men turned toward one another and spoke in quiet whispers. Melanie and Elizabeth slipped up beside me. Elizabeth turned the photograph so she could see it. Melanie looked over my shoulder.
"Here." I pointed toward the fallen tree.
Neither spoke, but Elizabeth turned the photograph away so she could no longer see it. I took that as a signal and took the photograph to Benjamin. He took the photograph and then they closed ranks without me. Melanie motioned for me to join them and we excused ourselves to the parlor.
"They will decide what is best," Melanie said.
"Not for me if it doesn't include Jason's safety." While I wasn't sure what they were thinking, I did feel a sense of finality. Were we in peril? They seemed to think so.
The sun was up now—school would be starting—and Jason would be safe. Whatever was going to happen, I had to be sure he was safe. He'd suffered enough with the loss of his father. He deserved better than to die because of my carelessness. "No," I whispered. I can't let this happen. Melanie and Elizabeth stared.
"I have to go," I mumbled.
"The boy?" Elizabeth gawked.
Melanie followed me to the door. "Keep him close," she said, giving me a hug. "Enjoy the time together, we'll find you when it's time."
"Time?"
"Go, be together." She nudged me out the door and closed it behind her.
