“What do you mean?” Carly asked.
“You didn’t let on that you’re still hurt by what your father did,” Gabe said. “I know how hard that must be for you. Anyway, I want you to know that I’m here for you if you ever need to talk.”
“Thanks, that’s good to know,” she told him, stepping back into the hall. “You mentioned something about being hungry?”
He let out a laugh. “Yeah, it’s kind of a perpetual state.”
* * *
Carly woke just after sunrise Monday morning, and rushed downstairs to the guest room on the second floor where Gabe had slept. But the bed was still made, and empty. He must have taken off just as soon as he sensed it was safe to leave her.
“Carly?” Howard called from his bedroom across the hall.
She spun around to face her father. “Morning, Dad. I was just checking to see if Gabe wanted some breakfast.”
“That’s very thoughtful of you. He left the house, but I think he’s still outside. This isn’t going to be a problem, is it? Having him stay here with us?”
“Why would it be a problem?” Carly asked.
“You’re already spending a considerable amount of time together,” Howard noted.
“Seriously, Dad, how many times do I have to say it?”
“I know, you’re just friends.”
“Yes, we are.”
“I’d just be more apt to believe you if you didn’t say it like you’re trying to convince yourself.”
“Dad, whatever you think might happen with Gabe living here won’t happen,” Carly assured him. “Don’t you trust me?”
Howard straightened his tie before he leaned down to kiss her forehead. “I need to get to the office early. But like I said, Gabe’s right outside. Will you be okay if I leave you?”
“Yes, of course.”
“I’ll see you at school then,” he said, and headed downstairs.
Carly gave up on her search for Gabe and took a quick shower. She hadn’t liked what Howard had implied, that she had feelings for Gabe, because it simply wasn’t true. With a Thermos full of coffee, she headed out to the Jeep. It wasn’t until she was almost inside that a hand landed on her shoulder.
“Morning,” Gabe greeted her, sparks shimmering under his hand.
“Morning,” Carly replied, turning to face him. “I didn’t think you’d still be here.”
“Well, I’m here. Would you like a ride to school? We have time to stop by the bakery for some cinnamon rolls if we leave right now.”
“We’d better leave right now then,” Carly replied, and followed him to the Jetta.
Gabe opened the door for her before he headed around the car and jumped inside. The stereo blasted when he started the engine, but he turned it to a reasonable volume as he sped out of the circular driveway.
“Who’s this?” Carly asked, pointing to the speaker.
Gabe pulled the CD case from the cubby in his door, handing it to her. “Do you honestly not know who this is?”
“Manchester Orchestra. Yeah, I honestly don’t know who this is.”
“Well, that’s going to change right now,” Gabe told her, and turned up the music.
Despite their stop at the bakery, Carly and Gabe still managed to get to school with plenty of time to spare, and ran into Sharla on their way inside. Carly was thankful for a chance to talk to the petite blonde, who she’d come to learn was a sophomore. Carly wanted to get to know everyone better since she had more in common with them than she’d first thought.
“Hey, guys,” Sharla greeted them, her gaze lingering on Gabe. “Are you doing any better, Carly? You seemed pretty freaked out after the dance.”
“I’m dealing,” Carly admitted. “Thanks for asking.”
Sharla gave a slight nod before looking to Gabe again. “I stopped by your house Saturday, but Paul said he didn’t know where you were. And then you didn’t answer any of my texts, so I didn’t know what was going on. Was everything okay?”
“Yeah, totally,” Gabe said. “Carly and I ran to Duluth. Sorry about the texts. You know I’m not good about replying all the time.”
“That’s okay. I stopped by your place yesterday, too, but you still weren’t home.”
“We were having a horror movie marathon at Carly’s, so I was MIA all day. Why’d you stop by?”
“I made you brownies,” Sharla said as she fidgeted with the strap on her backpack. “Your dad promised he’d give them to you. I put white chocolate chips in them again because you’d liked them so much the last time.”
“I’ll check for them when I get home. Thanks, Sharla.”
“Of course,” she gushed, her cheeks pink. “I mean, I like doing that kind of stuff for you. Always, Gabe. Maybe I’ll see you at lunch?”
“Maybe.”
“Okay, later,” Sharla said, and hurried off to class.
“Wow,” Carly said as she led the way to homeroom.
“Wow what?” Gabe asked, falling in beside her.
“Wow, she’s got a giant crush on you.”
“Sharla?”
“Yes, Sharla,” Carly confirmed. “Not that it’s a bad thing. I mean, she’s seriously cute. You could do a lot worse.”
Gabe shrugged. “She was just being nice. She does stuff like that for me all the time.”
“I’ll bet she does.”
“She doesn’t have a crush on me, okay?”
Carly pushed her shoulder into his. “Whatever, Gabe. I guess I can’t really blame her. I mean, sometimes I find myself compulsively compelled to make you brownies, too.”
“Wasn’t it cookies in your case?”
Carly realized the irony, and her cheeks burned.
“Look, it’s not me she’s attracted to,” Gabe pointed out. “It’s the fact that I’m… You know.”
“Full blood?”
“Shhh!” he hissed, throwing his head back to look behind them. Carly glanced back as well, and noted that no one was there. “We don’t talk about it at school.”
“Oh, sorry,” Carly apologized, scolding herself as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Really, Gabe.”
“No, it’s fine. You didn’t know.”
She nodded, keeping her mouth shut as they reached homeroom.
“Hey, guys,” Esther called from the back of the classroom without looking up from her novel.
“Hey,” Carly said, taking her usual seat. “Esther, does Sharla have a crush on Gabe?”
Esther pulled her nose from the book to look over the boy in question. “Brownies again, huh?”
Gabe groaned as he took the seat in front of Carly. “She’s just being nice.”
“Sure,” Esther said with a wink. “What do we have planned for this weekend? Anything major I should know about?”
“This weekend?” Gabe questioned. “It’s Monday morning, Esther.”
“I know, but this past weekend kind of sucked. I think Carly deserves a do-over.”
“Why don’t you come up with something then, and run it by us?”
“How’s this for starters—The Futura Collective is playing a show Saturday night in Duluth,” Esther mentioned. “My parents already said Abel and I can go. What do you guys think?”
Carly eyed Gabe. “I don’t know if my dad will be okay with letting me go out of town.”
“What if I put in a good word for you?” Gabe asked. “Promise him I’ll watch out for you?”
“I think I’m technically still grounded.”
“Won’t your two weeks be up on Saturday?”
“Tell you what,” Carly said. “If you can talk my dad into it, I’m in.”
* * *
Carly had the dream again that night. She was beside the stream with Gabe, both of them in their animal forms, when a rustling in the bushes caught their attention. Only this time, she saw what had made the ruckus.
She took a few steps forward, her paw pads leaving prints in the snow. She thrust her muzzle into the air, taking in a strange new scent
as a monstrous brown bear lumbered into her path. At first she was afraid, but the fear didn’t last long.
Carly watched in amazement as the bear morphed into a human. She looked over his muscular frame, up to his blond hair, into his brown eyes. She smiled in her own fox way as Abel stared back at her. But it wasn’t just him that fascinated her—it was what he was holding.
Carly woke in a sweat. Her first and only thought was that she needed to get to school so she could talk to Abel. She dressed and rushed downstairs, sprinting for the Jeep.
“Carly?” Gabe called as she unlocked the door. “Are you okay? You seem… frazzled.”
“Oh,” she said, reaching for the handle as she turned to meet him. “Hey.”
“Do you want a ride to school?”
“Um, sure, I guess.” Carly locked the Jeep back up before she jumped into the passenger seat of the Jetta. She tapped her fingers on her knees as she waited for Gabe to turn over the engine.
“Want to stop for coffee?” he asked. “We have time.”
“No, I need to get to school. I need to talk to Abel.”
“Abel?” Gabe questioned as he pulled away from the house.
“Yeah, I had a dream about him last night.”
Gabe was visibly caught off guard. “You had a dream about Abel?”
“When he shifts, does he change into a massive brown bear?”
“That’s his primary form, yes.”
“Then the rest of it’s probably true, too,” Carly guessed.
“The rest of what?”
“Just get me to school. Please. I won’t know anything until I talk to him.”
Gabe didn’t say another word as he sped into town, although he kept his gaze on Carly most of the trip.
She noted Abel’s car in the parking lot when they pulled in and jumped from the Jetta before Gabe had a chance to cut the engine. She had to find Abel now. She ran inside, relieved when she spotted him in the lobby talking to Sharla. Carly rested her hand on his shoulder, pleased to have his immediate attention. “Abel, do you know anything about a crystal skull?”
thirteen
“A crystal skull?” Abel asked, a smile at his lips as he looked Carly up and down. “What are you talking about?”
Carly pulled her hand away to plant her hands on her hips. That wasn’t exactly the reaction she’d been hoping for. “I had a dream last night—about you.”
“Did you?”
“You were in your primary in my dream, and when you changed back into yourself, you were holding a crystal skull.”
“That’s what this is about?” Gabe gasped.
“Carly, I believe you,” Abel spoke, “but I don’t know anything about a crystal skull. I mean, I’ve heard about them, but I’ve certainly never seen one. Much less held one.”
“We should talk more about this,” Gabe decided. “But not here. Let’s meet at my house for lunch.”
Carly twisted around to meet his gaze. “There is something to this, isn’t there?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know, but it’s a conversation that can wait until we’re not at school.”
“I’ll see you at lunch then, Gabe,” Sharla spoke up.
Gabe eyed her for a moment. Carly knew as well as he did that he couldn’t stop her from tagging along if she really wanted to. “Yeah, sure. Come on, Carly. We should get to class.”
“We’ll talk later,” Carly said, catching Abel’s dark gaze before she headed down the hallway. “Gabe?”
“Yeah?” he answered.
“I’ve got to be honest. Your reaction to this is freaking me out a little.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because you should have said my dream was no big deal. That it was just that—a dream.”
“Carly, we both know it wasn’t just a dream,” was Gabe’s confident response. “None of them are.”
* * *
Carly was left unsettled for the remainder of the morning. She didn’t pay attention in any of her classes, and found her gaze lingering on Gabe much too often. She wished she could hear his thoughts, or at least had some way to communicate with him other than just the occasional scribble on her notebook.
Carly jumped up from her desk as soon as the lunch bell rang, grabbed Gabe’s arm, and pulled him toward the lobby. She couldn’t stand it anymore; she needed him to talk.
“Hey, guys,” Sharla greeted them just as they reached the main door. “Is it okay if I ride with you?”
“Yeah, sure,” Gabe agreed. “But we should go now. We don’t have much time.”
“We’re going to your house for lunch?” Esther questioned as she appeared with her brother.
“Is everyone coming over?” Gabe grumbled.
Esther rolled her eyes. “If you don’t want me—”
“No, it’s fine, but we can’t all fit in my car.”
“I’ll drive, too,” Abel offered. “Carly, want to ride with me?”
Carly glanced at Gabe, who didn’t seem too thrilled with the idea. But Abel had been in her dream, which meant he was somehow important. Which meant it was probably a good idea to get to know him a little bit better. “Sure, that would be great.”
Carly walked with Abel outside to his PT Cruiser, thanking him when he opened the door for her. She settled in the passenger seat, going over the dream again as Abel joined her in the car. “You’ve never even seen a crystal skull? Are you sure?”
Abel let out a laugh as he turned over the engine. “You’re really stuck on this, aren’t you?”
Carly opened her mouth to speak, pausing when she heard his stereo. “Is this Death Cab? You listen to Death Cab for Cutie? Really?”
He turned down the music as he pulled out of the parking lot. “Amongst other things that might also surprise you. I’ve never seen you fidget before. That dream must’ve really freaked you out.”
Carly made an effort to still her hands. “In my dream, you were a big brown bear. Gabe said that’s what you are when you…”
“Shift, yes. Although, Esther’s primary is an owl, and I’ve chosen that form from time to time.”
“Is an owl easy for you to change into because Esther’s your sister and you’re so close?”
“Yeah, I suppose,” Abel said. “I mean, it would be more familiar to me than, say, a white fox.”
Carly looked him in the eye, not sure how to respond. Had Abel somehow seen into her dreams?
“Relax,” he told her. “The white fox is pretty loud and clear in your thoughts. Not that I’ve been listening or anything, it’s just… I mean, have you shifted yet?”
“No,” she disclosed, hoping the disappointment didn’t show in her voice. “Why? Do you think I’m going to soon? I mean, have you sensed anything?”
“I have no idea, Carly. Have you asked Gabe? He’s the one who seems to know everything. I hear he’s staying at your house. That has to be interesting.”
“Yeah, I… It was my dad’s idea, actually. I guess he thinks I’ll be safer with Gabe watching out for me.”
“And in Howard’s opinion, Gabe’s the best choice,” Abel said. “He’s stronger than the rest of us, so I can see why your dad went with him.”
Carly contemplated the jealousy in Abel’s tone. “Why don’t you like Gabe?”
“Who says I don’t like Gabe?”
“Your sarcasm, for one.”
“Gabe and I just… clash,” was his vague reply.
“You clash?” Carly asked as Abel parked in front of Gabe’s house.
“Yes, we clash. And I wouldn’t worry about Sharla.”
“What about her?”
“I’m referring to the ridiculous crush she has on Gabe,” Abel answered. “He doesn’t feel the same way about her.”
“Why would I care if Sharla has a crush on Gabe?” Carly wondered.
Abel reached for his door handle. “Apparently, you don’t.”
Carly hopped out of the car and followed him up to the house. She didn’t like that everyone he
re was so cryptic all the time. Why couldn’t people just say what was on their minds? She waited until they were all inside before she marched over to Gabe, and said, “I think it’s time you told me what the hell you’re thinking.”
Legacy: Bloodline Book 1 Page 13
