Nick showed up a few minutes after the pizza, and had to pull up a chair to sit at the edge of the table that wasn’t surrounded by the booth. Lela smiled and handed him a stack of papers. I began to go back to my paperwork, but something made me take a second look at Lela’s smile. Nick had looked down to his paperwork, but Lela continued to smile all googly-eyed at him. Oh man, she totally liked him. It made me trust him even less. Not because she liked him, but perhaps her judgment of him was clouded, and her judgment was all we had to go on in trusting him. I looked back down to my paperwork, feeling even more uneasy, if that was even possible.
By the time I had finished my second slice, Lucy, Max, and Nick had finished their forms and handed them back to Lela. I was still working on mine, and the questions were becoming more and more strange the further I got. Was it really necessary for them to know my blood type? Plus, I was entirely at a loss as to what I should put under the section labeled “preferred hunting grounds.”
Allison cleared her throat and gave me a meaningful look when I glanced at her. She and Lucy both excused themselves to go to the bathroom. Catching on, I got up and followed them. So it was terribly obvious that we wanted to talk amongst ourselves, could you really blame us? The three of us walked into the bathroom and shut the door firmly behind us.
After checking that all of the stalls were empty, Allison whirled on me and asked, “Who is that other guy and why is he here?”
I turned to Lucy. “I assume you filled her in on the stuff with my dad?”
Lucy nodded and I turned back to Allison. “Chase is my dad’s idea of a bodyguard.”
“Because of the abductions?” Lucy asked.
I nodded. “Yep, Jason and I caught him watching us in the woods.”
Allison frowned. “Why is he still with you?”
Lucy answered for me, already seeing my logic. “It’s him or your dad?”
I nodded again as I turned to push open the door. “Yep, the lesser of two evils.”
Allison pursed her lips. “I don’t like it.”
I stopped in mid-motion and smiled wanly. “Neither do I, but Chase is the least of our worries right now.”
Allison nodded her head in agreement. “I don’t think the pack thing is a good idea.”
That wasn’t what I was expecting. I turned to fully face her again and cocked my head, waiting for her to explain her logic.
“It’s just . . . ” she began, then took a moment to consider her words. I noticed the chagrined expression on Lucy’s face and deduced that they had already discussed this. “It seems like a big commitment,” Allison went on. “You have to fill out all of these forms, and promise to meet with all of these people you don’t know, and then there’s Nick. How can we even begin to trust him? He came out of nowhere.”
I shrugged. “What else can we do?”
“That’s just it,” Allison continued. “It seems like there’s never any choice on anything. You have no choice but to let that Chase guy hang around, you have no choice but to form a pack. There should be choices.”
I was getting a headache. I met Lucy’s tired expression, identical to my own when I answered, “I agree, but there aren’t.”
Allison stomped her foot to bring attention back to herself. “How can you two be so calm about everything!”
Finally getting angry, I raised my voice, “Stop it Al! I can’t help what I am, or who my dad is, and Lucy couldn’t help being scratched by Dan. We’re just trying to make the best of our situations.”
“I know that!” Allison yelled back, her face becoming increasingly flushed. “But you should be upset about it!”
I began to shout back, but forced myself to stop. Getting angry in a public place was so not a good idea. I knew I should be understanding of Allison being upset, but there was only so much I could take. When it came down to it, Allison was upset because Lucy and I had problems, but we were the ones that actually had to deal with the problems. If dealing with them meant accepting things, then so be it.
Lucy reached for Allison to calm her down just as Lela peeked her head into the bathroom. “Everything all right?” she asked.
“Peachy,” Allison snapped, before stomping out of the bathroom past Lela. I gave Lucy a sad smile and we both followed her out.
Once we were back at the table, no one seemed to be very hungry anymore. No one argued when I offered to take home the leftovers, so I packed them up, then we all pitched in on the check and left. On the drive home I tossed my monstrous packet of forms on the floor of Jason’s car, kept my takeout box on my lap, and cranked up the radio, not wanting anymore conversation.
When we pulled up to my house I was relieved to see my mom’s car in the driveway. I got out of the car and headed straight for my front door. I waited for Jason to go inside, but he made it obvious that he wanted me to go in first.
Chase waited expectantly, as if he would be coming inside as well. I regarded him. “You’re not coming in. Go ahead and call my dad. He can keep you company out here.” With that I strode inside and allowed Jason the pleasure of shutting the door in Chase’s face.
I quickly forgot my satisfaction as I paused in the living room and took a good look around, completely stunned. The couch, loveseat, and surrounding floor were cluttered with a multitude of shopping bags. Apparently my mom had engaged in a bit of retail therapy. I picked my way through the clutter, then jogged upstairs to her room and went in without knocking. She was passed out on her bed, shoes and trench coat still on.
I let out a sigh of relief, glad that she was home and . . . coping. I tugged off her plain brown shoes and put the royal purple throw from the foot of her bed over her. I closed the door gently as I left her room, even though I doubted anything short of a foghorn could wake her.
I went back downstairs to find Jason standing in the kitchen. His attention was on the window, or more precisely what he could see of Chase through the window. He had resumed his post on my porch swing, gently rocking it back and forth with his feet on the ground. Jason was so intent on trying to make Chase disappear by sheer force of will that I don’t think he even heard me approach.
I stepped right in front of him with my arms crossed and cleared my throat loudly.
He looked down at me, brow still furrowed. “I do not like him,” he said, referring to Chase.
I shrugged. “Can’t say I really blame you.”
Jason and I both turned our attention back to the window. As the swing came forward and brought him into full view, Chase gave us a sarcastic salute, making Jason’s face turn red with anger. It wasn’t like him to lose his temper so easily (that was usually my job), and I wondered if there was something else that had him on edge.
I grabbed his hand and drew him away from the window, then wrapped my arms around his waist in a loose hug. I stared at him until he met my eyes. “Tell me what’s wrong,” I ordered.
Jason gave me a glimpse of his usual crooked smile. “You are far too perceptive,” he conceded.
I smiled back. “Tell me.”
“I got a job offer,” he said softly.
I cocked my head in question. “So . . . ?”
He licked his lips nervously. “So, I would need to leave immediately.”
I broke eye contact and looked down at the floor. “Oh.”
“I would not even consider it,” he said quickly, then went on more slowly, “but jobs can be few and far between. I can turn down this one, but there is no knowing when the next offer will come along.”
“You should take it,” I said quickly, knowing that if I took any time to think about it, I’d ask him not to go.
“I know it is bad timing . . . ” he began.
“Will you be gone long?” I interrupted, a little more snappishly than I had intended.
“Only a few days,” he answered, clearly relieved that I wasn’t going to make an extended issue out of him going. “I should be home before Christmas, definitely by your birthday.”
My birthday w
as on the 31, so that meant he could be gone around 10 days. I nodded despite my feelings. “You leave in the morning?”
He drew me closer, wrapping his arms tightly around me. “Yes,” he answered, his lips moving right beside my ear. “I will have to go home to prepare tonight, but I will come by before I leave.”
I nodded again and closed my eyes against his shoulder, not sure what else to say. I breathed in the woodsy, vanilla tinted smell of him, not relishing the thought of being away from that scent for even a day.
I felt him glance towards the window again. “If he gives you any trouble, I would like for you to call me immediately.”
“I can handle it,” I said softly.
“I know,” he breathed into my hair.
And just like that, he was gone, shutting the front door silently behind him. I stayed standing in my kitchen for several minutes, my arms wrapped tightly around me. I eventually moved into the living room and tossed my mom’s bags onto the floor so I could curl up on the loveseat. I sank into the cushions feeling sorry for myself. I waited, hoping that Jason would come back and reconsider, or that he’d pop in and say, “Gotcha! Just kidding.”
When nothing happened, I finally went upstairs to my room. It was close to midnight. I had no idea where the time had gone. I must have sat downstairs for several hours. I walked into my cozy purple-themed bathroom to get ready for bed. I brushed my teeth and scrubbed my face, splashing myself several times with cold water to try and snap myself out of my stupor. I dried myself off with a fluffy purple towel, then forced my eyes up to the mirror.
I looked miserable. I was falling apart because my boyfriend was leaving town during the time I needed him most. It wasn’t his fault, but I still felt slightly resentful. Man, I was pitiful.
I slapped my hand against the sink with a dull thud, making little sparks of pain run up my wrist. I would not fall apart because of a boy. I’d always been able to take care of myself no matter what life threw at me, and damn it, I could handle my situation on my own. I smiled, proud that I had so quickly pulled myself together.
I am demon, hear me roar.
Chapter Eight
There wasn’t any fire this time. I was once again on a cold, stone floor, but this time I was lying down with my cheek pressed against the rock. I tried to get up to explore my surroundings, but I couldn’t move. I could hear footsteps. Someone came to stand in my field of vision, but all I could see was their shoed feet. The feet kept shifting in shape and color so that I couldn’t tell what they looked like. Then the person knelt down beside me, and I knew with sudden certainty that I was going to die.
When I finally woke up the next morning around 9:00, I could vaguely remember Jason coming in through my window in the ungodly early morning hours to say goodbye before he left. My dream had really thrown me. My dreams of fire had always been unnerving, but this one caused me to wake with a solid cold knot of fear in my stomach. I rolled out from underneath my dark green bedspread, hating everything while trying to push my fear aside. I glanced out my large bedroom window to see that the miserable weather matched my mood. Dark grays and blues swirled ominously, promising snow. It was going to be a white Christmas . . . yippee.
I took a shower and got dressed in a deep red cable-knit sweater, and faded, holey jeans shoved into dark brown, low-heeled slouchy boots (courtesy of Allison’s annual wardrobe cleansing). Not bothering to do anything with my hair, I clunked downstairs in search of coffee.
I caught sight of my mom sitting at the dining room table dressed in a royal blue sweater dress and black boots. She sipped coffee while carrying on a jovial conversation. My day darkened exponentially when I came around the corner and saw that she was talking to Chase, who looked quite comfortable in his forest green sweater and jeans. He was drinking coffee out of my usual coffee mug. It was oversized and had an illustration of a dejected looking Edgar Allan Poe on one side and was my tried and true favorite.
I walked into the kitchen to find a completely empty coffee pot. I grumbled to myself as I ground some beans and got a fresh pot going. I grabbed a store-bought blueberry muffin and stomped back into the dining room, taking a seat on the far side of the table, away from my mom and Chase. They interrupted their conversation to turn their attention to me.
I regarded my mom, ignoring Chase’s presence. “No work today?”
“No,” she answered, a big, fake smile plastered across her face. “I’m feeling kinda tired,” she went on, her smile crumbling around the edges.
I nodded, understanding that she still wasn’t ready to discuss things further. She gave me a genuine, if small, smile in return.
“So,” my mom began awkwardly, “I found your friend on the porch and invited him in to wait for you.” She smiled warmly at Chase, but I could sense her wariness underneath.
My smile for Chase was more of a snarl. “He’s not my friend,” I corrected, making eye contact with Chase as I said it.
“Oh,” my mom hesitated. “Well, um, I have a lot of gift wrapping to do, so I’ll leave you two alone.” She stood and hustled out of the dining room. I caught her glancing back into the dining room with motherly concern before she turned to hurry up the stairs. I had a feeling the days of my mom prying were at an end. She could never be sure what information she might pry her way into.
I turned my attention to Chase. “You got a car?”
He smiled pleasantly at me despite my earlier rudeness. “I can get one,” he answered simply.
I nodded and stood to get myself a cup of coffee. Chase stood as well and immediately let himself out the front door, presumably to “get” a car. I hadn’t felt the need to let him in on the fact that I just wanted him to take me to the mall to finish my Christmas shopping; he might not have deemed it important enough.
I sat back down at the table with hot coffee and my muffin and couldn’t help my mischievous grin. Messing with Chase had made me feel infinitely better. I would have to continue doing so. My thoughts went to Jason, and I immediately redirected them. What else did I need to buy for Christmas . . . oh who was I kidding? I stared down into my coffee cup and wallowed.
By the time Chase returned, I had finished my coffee and muffin and was leafing through a catalogue while I waited. I grabbed my keys and wallet to throw into a plain cloth purse I had recently bought and went outside to meet him. The cloudy sky had made me expect miserable weather, but the air felt cool and calm. I still expected snow, but maybe it would be the pleasant, soft-falling snow that’s so popular in Hallmark commercials, rather than the harsh, blizzardy snow that was more often the reality.
Chase was leaning against an ancient gray, rust-speckled pickup truck. I had serious doubts that it would even make it to the mall. He stepped away from the truck and swung his arms out to pose like a model on a game show. “Your chariot awaits,” he said dramatically.
I raised my eyebrows. “Lovely,” I replied sarcastically.
Chase smiled and went around to get in the driver’s side. I yanked the passenger door open and climbed into the ancient seat. Chase shut his door and started the ignition. I squirmed as I tried to find a position where the seat springs wouldn’t poke into me through the seat’s flattened padding. I finally settled in with a disgruntled expression.
Chase, misreading my expression of distaste asked, “Did you want to drive or something?”
I paused a moment in confusion, then seeing an opportunity, quickly hoisted my nose into the air, as if offended that he had assumed the role of driver without asking me. “Yes, yes I do.”
He didn’t even argue. He just got out and went around to the passenger’s side while I slid into the driver’s seat. I couldn’t help but be pleased. My driving terrifies my mom, so since I don’t have a car of my own, I didn’t get to drive often. I was practically bouncing up and down with excitement by the time Chase finished buckling himself into the passenger’s seat.
Taking in my maniacal glee, he looked at me nervously. “Something tells me I’m go
ing to regret this.”
I took the time to flash him a quick grin, then slammed my foot on the gas.
The truck peeled out of my driveway, kicking gravel up in its wake. The old clunker had a lot more power than my mom’s little car. I eased off the gas just a little bit as we wove through my neighborhood towards the highway.
I spared a quick glance at Chase. “Mind if we take the long way?”
“Sure,” he said weakly.
I drove a short way on the small highway that leads through the middle of town, then turned onto a street that would take me to the back roads. I was mainly going this way to avoid the graveyard, but I’d let Chase believe that I just wanted a chance to drive the truck on the long, curvy back roads. Heck, he’d be partially right to believe so.
As soon as we reached the start of the narrow road that curves out into the woods on the outskirts of Shelby, I let my foot fall down on the gas. Chase was beginning to look a bit more relaxed, so I rolled down my window and hit the gas a little bit more. The wind blowing in through the window pummeled me, making my hair swirl around my head. Since I hadn’t done anything to my hair that morning anyways, I wasn’t about to worry about it.
Chase cranked up the ancient radio, then started flipping through the few stations that we get in Shelby. He settled on a station that was playing Living on a Thin Line by the Kinks, then leaned back against his seat.
As we made our way down the deserted road, partially shaded by the surrounding trees, I eased my foot off the gas a bit. For the first time in days, a feeling of relaxed contentment came over me. Chase may not have been my first choice for company, but the wind in my hair felt good, and we were in little danger of being attacked or confronted by anyone or anything. My thoughts wandered to Jason, and the fact that I didn’t even know where he was going or what his “job” was. I quickly stifled the irritation that bubbled in me, not wanting to ruin the peacefulness of the moment.
Accidental Ashes: or that time I found out I was a demon, and all my friends were vampires and werewolves (Xoe Meyers Young Adult Fantasy/Horror Series) Page 7
