Black-Eyed Kids: The Complete Series

by Miranda Hardy

  “And stop following me, or I’ll call the cops.”

  He races to stand in front of me and places his business card into my hand. “Here. You’ll want to talk to me about what happened—eventually. I may be able to help shed some light on your current circumstances and, how shall I put this, outlook on life in the near future.”

  “I doubt that.” I take it and shove it into my jeans pocket.

  I get on my bike and take off towards my house. If he knew my current situation, he’d piss his pants. Hey, dude, I have one at my house. I’m pretty sure I could shed some light for you.

  “Kid, can you answer me one question?” he asks.

  I ignore him, and I put more distance between me and this nut-job.

  “Maverick, please. How did you get away? The BEKs never let anyone go. Never.”

  My whole body shivers, and all I can think to do is peddle away from Ronald as fast as I can. I risk turning my head for a second, and I see him throw his arms up in resignation and go back toward his idling car.

  BEK? Black. Eyed. Kids. They never let anyone go? They’ll be back for me. I know it.

  My days are numbered.

  17

  ASTID

  RONALD TUNSTALL,

  Paranormal Investigator

  Those are the only words on the card, above a telephone number. I don’t understand what this means, but Maverick seems upset.

  He sits in front of the coffee table and glares at it. “I need some answers, Astid.”

  I’m not sure I can answer all of your questions, Maverick. My body tenses while I sit in a chair in front of him. I knew this moment would come. I feel like I owe him the truth after all he’s been through.

  “This guy said that you never let anyone go. His card says paranormal investigator. Are you guys aliens or something? Are we being invaded?” He squints his eyes and his mind explodes with all kinds of strange and inaccurate possibilities.

  No. We are not aliens.

  There is much about my birthplace I’d rather forget. If I had been born beyond the stars, things would be much easier. My life began surrounded by white walls and screams.

  “Why can’t you speak out loud? Why do you put your words into my head all the time?”

  It’s easier to project my thoughts and words to you, rather than try to speak your words through my mouth. Although I understand your language, it’s not easy for me to communicate your way.

  Maverick’s frustration grows. “Why would a paranormal investigator be looking for you?”

  I shudder. Ronald’s mind wasn’t clear to me, but I wonder if he works for those we’ve tried to avoid all of these years. This man seems to know some things about us. I’m not sure.

  “What are you sure of?” he asks. “You’re not aliens, you’re not demons…what are you? Where are you from? Why do you kill us?”

  His questions bring back a flood of painful memories. I’m so overwhelmed, I run to his bedroom. I shut the door and sob on the bed. The one thing I can be sure of is that I’d rather be killed by my brother or his followers than return to Level 6.

  Maybe if I lure Kren and the others away, they will leave Maverick alone to live out his mortal life, but I can’t be sure that Level 6 will leave him alone, either.

  I may have made Maverick’s life worse by letting him live.

  18

  MAVERICK

  WITH MY LIFE in turmoil, the last thing I need is the first day of school. I’ve pretty much left Astid alone since she started crying yesterday. There’s something about a girl crying that makes me sick to my stomach.

  Even though I dread school, I look forward to seeing Lisa and Cadence. I don’t know exactly what I will tell them, but I’m hoping Astid might be more willing to open up to two girls.

  Is Astid even female? Female as in the human-sense of the word. She looks like it, but I can’t be sure. That’s the least of my worries. How am I going to explain that I have a black-eyed girl living in my bedroom? I need answers, and Astid is the key.

  I leave my room and lock the door behind me. Astid still sleeps in my bed, and I don’t want Mom coming in to find her. I guess Astid could mess with her mind again, but that freaks me out. I know I’ve got to do something soon, and sleeping on that bean bag chair is already getting old.

  “Are you all ready?” Mom asks as she sets a bowl on the table next to a box of Cheerios.

  “As ready as I’ll ever be,” I reply in the most enthusiastic voice I can muster.

  “The therapist called and said you missed the appointment yesterday.”

  “I completely forgot about it.” I give her my puppy dog eyes as best I can. “Sorry, Mom.”

  “Well, Dr. Wilson said she would work with your school schedule. Can you stop by after school this afternoon to see her?”

  “Aw, Mom, it’s the first day of school. I don’t really want to go to therapy.” I want to get home to Astid as soon as possible before Mom gets back from work.

  “I think it’s best that you go. I’ll pick you up on my way home.”

  She gives me a stern look that tells me that there is no way I can get out of this.

  “No, I’ll ride my bike home.” Maybe I can cut the session short and make it home before Mom does.

  “All right. Thank you, honey.” She kisses my forehead. “Good luck at school today. I can’t wait to hear how it goes.”

  She exits the kitchen, and I listen for her to start her car and drive away. I go back to my room, completely forgetting that I had locked my door. Maybe I can leave a note, but will she be able to read it? I think she can read.

  I check my watch. No time if I want to get there before the first bell rings. I would skip, but Mom would get a call from school. Who skips the first day of school anyway?

  Leaving Astid here in my house alone just feels so...weird. But what else can I do? She’s too afraid to be out there with the other black-eyed freaks lurking around, wanting to kill all of us.

  I linger by my locked door for another few seconds before leaving the house. My bike sits on the front porch, and I’m about to get on it when a blue Corolla pulls up.

  Marcus beeps the horn at me, and yells out the window, “Dude, get in.”

  “Since when did you get a license?” I ask as I get into his car.

  “Eighth time’s the charm. Just got it yesterday. You like the new wheels?”

  Marcus isn’t dumb. He just has a hard time focusing, which makes him a horrible driver.

  I make sure to fasten my seat belt. “They actually let you pass the driver’s exam?”

  He pulls out and turns onto the road to school. “It wasn’t easy. I had to, like, go real slow the entire time so I didn’t make too many mistakes. It was the first time I didn’t hit one of those darn cones. I think they just passed me so they wouldn’t have to see me again. The trick is to bug the crap out of them until they can’t take it anymore.”

  “I think you just summed up your entire life philosophy right there.” I examine the interior of the car. “Nice wheels, too. I can’t believe your mom let you have the car.”

  “Right?”

  “Marcus, man, why are you wearing the tags on your clothes?”

  “It’s the style, don’t ya know?”

  “It’s only the style if you’re not buying them at Walmart.” I flick the generic tag hanging from his button. “And I don’t think that leaving the size sticker strip down the front is considered cool.”

  “You wait and see. All the girls will want a piece of the Marcus Man by the end of the day.”

  The school looms at the top of the hill. It looks so much smaller than I remember. Buses and cars pour into the parking lot, and Marcus finds an open spot.

  “So glad this is our last year.” I get out and we head toward the front of school. For a second, it feels like I’ve forgotten something, but I quickly realize what’s different. Tarick and I always rode our bikes to school together. “Thanks for the ride, Marcus.”

  I’ve
been so worried about Astid in my room, I completely forgot about having to face the guys at school. They will all stare at me, pronouncing me guilty for Tarick’s disappearance. At least I sort of have a few witnesses. Marcus, Cadence, and most of all Lisa. They all know I had nothing to do with it. And all three of them know about the black-eyed kids.

  “Marcus, no one can know about what happened the other night. Out in the woods.”

  “Shiitake, who’d believe me anyway?”

  “Seriously. Let’s keep this stuff between us and the girls.”

  “Yeah, I gotcha. Besides, I think Cadence will warm up to me soon. I mean no disrespect. Tarick was a friend of mine, too. But how long should I wait to make my move? I’ve had a thing for Cadence since the sixth grade.”

  I shake my head. “I’d lay off. She needs time to mourn.”

  “Like how much? A day? Give her another day?”

  “Give it a little longer.” Sometimes, his brain is on a different planet.

  “Speak of the devils.” Marcus points to Lisa and Cadence who head our way into the school’s main entrance.

  This is the first time I’ve seen Lisa since the other morning, after she spent the night with me. My mouth goes dry, and I feel my left eye twitch a little.

  Lisa gives me a hug. “I’m sorry about my mom the other day.”

  My arms are around her shoulders, and I smell her shampoo, mixed with that yummy lotion scent. “Why’d you get grounded?”

  “Because I got busted for telling them I was at Cadence’s house. But don’t worry, I didn’t tell them anything. They’d lock me up at some psychiatric ward for sure. I’m pretty much grounded all year, which sucks.”

  I let go of her, even though I don’t want to. “I’m sorry.”

  “No biggie. It’s all good. I told them that I was so sleepy that I had passed out in my car after dropping Cadence off. They didn’t buy it, though. Of course, my mom gave me the whole safe-sex lecture.”

  My face turns hot, and I’m unable to speak.

  “So, what’s next?” Cadence asks me.

  I can tell she’s pissed and that she wants to take on all the black-eyed kids on her own. “What do you mean?”

  “Like, how are we going to find those monsters that killed Tarick? Should we go back to the barn with weapons? I think we need to come up with a plan of attack.”

  “Attack?” My gut clenches. “I don’t think our weapons would be useful. I told you, they have superpowers and stuff. That black-eyed boy would snap you in half.”

  “We can’t let them get away with this.” Cadence’s fingers grip the binder against her chest tighter. “No way.”

  “Have any of you guys told anyone else about any of this stuff?” I ask the group.

  The silly grin from Marcus’ face slides away. “Dude, no one would believe us. The cops already think you offed Tarick yourself, man.”

  I have to sometimes remind myself that Marcus lacks any kind of filter on his big mouth.

  “I haven’t said a word to anyone,” Lisa replies. “My parents were already steaming mad at me for staying out. I couldn’t get a word in edge wise through them screaming at me.”

  “My parents don’t think I should be hanging around you,” Cadence admits. “They think you had something to do with Tarick. I tried to tell them you didn’t, but they believe you’re a member of that cult hanging around town.”

  A group of kids walk by, and they stare daggers into me. So this is what the rest of my day is going to be like. Surrounded by memories of Tarick, too. Today is just going to suck.

  I’m seriously thinking about being home schooled for my senior year.

  Instead of staring back at everyone, I decide to look away. “It looks like parents and cops aren’t the only ones who think I’m a cult-freak and murderer.”

  More students glare at me as they walk by.

  “The girl with black eyes I saw that night. She ran off, but I know she could have killed me.” Lisa grabs my chin and turns my face towards hers. “They are real.” She turns to Cadence. “I saw the girl. She came to Maverick’s window.”

  “What?” Cadence grabs her arm. “And you didn’t tell me?”

  Lisa recounts the story of the other night, and she finishes her story just before the bell rings. We are ushered into the schoolyard with everyone else. Marcus tunes out the chaos all around us and surprises me by actually listening to her the entire time.

  “Dude, you didn’t tell me this crap the other day when we caught that investigator guy,” he says to me.

  “Why am I so in the dark?” Cadence asks. “What investigator guy?”

  “Meet up at lunch. We have things to discuss.” I push through the bodies of other students to lead the group to the lobby.

  “Hope we have the same lunch,” Lisa says.

  We branch off to find our homerooms in order to get our schedules. This will give me a little time to prepare. I don’t know how I’m going to explain how I’ve got Astid at my house at this very moment. I’m hoping the rest of the day can be a distraction from all this stuff on my mind.

  THE FIRST FEW classes went by fast. Luckily, I didn’t have to put too much brain power into the subjects. The first day of school is pretty boring anyway. All that was on my mind was how I was going to tell Marcus, Lisa, and Cadence about Astid staying at my house. I rehearse what I will tell them, but I can’t figure out a way to explain why I’m harboring a black-eyed kid.

  As angry as I am about Astid’s brother killing Tarick, I know I shouldn’t be angry with her, but she’s keeping secrets from me. I know it. It just seems that all I’m good at doing is making her cry.

  Second lunch approaches, and I know exactly where everyone will be sitting since we all pretty much hang out at the same place every year. Tarick won’t be there, though. I don’t know how he had managed it, but no matter where his fourth hour class was, he was always the first one at the table. He’d be sitting there with his brown bag lunch, wearing a goofy smile and waiting for all of us.

  Cadence sits on the bench in the courtyard. She sees me approach, but doesn’t get up. “Lisa has first lunch, damnit. How will I survive this year without her?”

  That sucks. Lisa’s not in any of my classes, and now she has a different lunch? Is this a cosmic conspiracy to keep us apart? With her being grounded, I’m never going to be able to see her. “And Marcus?”

  She shrugs and then points. “There’s the little stoner now.”

  “You should be nice to him. He isn’t that bad.”

  “What ev. He just says the stupidest things sometimes.”

  I stare at our table for a second, imaging Tarick sitting there already. Cadence gets up, and pats my shoulder. She gives me a quick look that lets me know she’s thinking about him too. I take her hand and lead her to our table.

  Marcus plops down with his tray. “Man, have you seen the girls this year. It’s like Victoria’s Secret on steroids.”

  “See what I mean?” Cadence scrunches her mouth in disgust. “What you just said makes no sense.”

  “What?” Marcus shrugs.

  “It’s the same girls every year, Marcus,” I say. “We’ve known them since elementary school.”

  “Yeah, but maybe this year they’ll actually like me.” Marcus scoots closer to Cadence. “You see my new wheels?”

  “You’re in my personal space, jerk.” She pushes him away before taking out her lunch.

  “Your eyes look messed up, man,” Marcus remarks while he stares at my face. “People will think you’re high on something. And the stitches on your forehead don’t help.”

  “Look who’s talking.” I notice the whispers and stares crossing the courtyard. “I don’t think it’s my bloodshot eyes they’re talking about.”

  “A lot of people have come up to me and asked me why I’m still talking to you,” Cadence says.

  “Yeah, and what did you say?” I ask.

  “That you didn’t do anything and I believe you’re innocen
t.” She shrugs. “I don’t know what else to say. I don’t want them to think I’m crazy, too.”

  “I get it.” Everyone at school thinks I’m nuts, but at least Cadence tells them she’s on my side. “It’s not fun having people think you’re guilty and crazy, so I do appreciate you believing me. It really means a lot.”

  Cadence nods, but something far away catches her attention. “Look.” She points to Lisa who heads in our direction.

  Lisa’s without her backpack, and she’s carrying a piece of paper in her hands.

  “Hey guys! What’s up?” Lisa takes her customary seat next to Cadence.

  “You get sprung from class?” Marcus asks. “Coolio.”

  Lisa rolls her eyes. “No one says Coolio anymore, Marcus.”

  “It’s retro,” Marcus says.

  “I’m taking a class break,” Lisa says. “First day and all, the teachers are usually better about letting us go to the bathroom.”

  “I can’t believe you don’t have second lunch with me. What am I going to do alone with these boneheads all year,” Cadence whines.

  All four of us are together, so I decide to drop the bomb on them now. “Look, guys…I have something to tell you before Lisa has to get back.”

  They all turn to me, as if they know what I’m about to say is important.

  “The black-eyed girl that let me go…”

  “The one I saw the other night?” Lisa whispers.

  I nod. “She’s at my house.”

  Cadence’s mouth drops open, and her sandwich falls to the ground. Marcus stops mid-chew, and his cheeks puff out like a chipmunk’s. Lisa’s face turns pale white, and she shakes her head.

  "You’ve got an alien in your house?” Marcus asks, a little too loudly. “Dude, we need to call the National Guard or something.”

  I now regret telling them. “No, we can’t tell anyone.”

  “The hell we can’t!” Cadence yells, and the whole courtyard full of students turns our way.