“I’m holding you to that,” I teased, pulling back and then texting Taylor that we were coming.
Within a few moments, she replied. :D Awesome! Front gate is open. C u soon!
Music blasted out through the open windows as we approached the front doorstep. I pressed the doorbell and braced myself for the artic freeze of Taylor’s house as a fancy chime rang out.
The door flung open and the pulsing music surged out. Taylor, dressed in a hot pink spaghetti-strapped top and a black miniskirt, smiled from ear to ear.
“You came! I’m so excited!” she squealed, as she bounced up and down. “Where have you been, chicky?”
She pulled me into a tight embrace and then held me back by one shoulder sizing me up. “You couldn’t dress up even for a party?” she teased. “C’mon, let me do a makeover for you. Just this once?” she pleaded before tossing back whatever was in her cup. I thought she maybe had a bit too much already. She was even more exuberant than usual.
I laughed. “Taylor, this is Roman,” I flicked my chin toward him and widened my eyes, reminding her to say hello.
“Hi, nice to meet you,” Taylor smiled. “Do ya mind if I steal her away just for a few minutes? Everyone’s in the kitchen hanging out. Grab a drink if you want, and make yourself at home.”
Before Roman had a chance to speak, Taylor grabbed my arm and dragged me toward the stairs. I winked at him over my shoulder. I hoped he would take the opportunity to look for the dagger.
“This could take a while,” I added for effect.
Roman nodded and then looked around, mouth gaping. It was the same reaction I’d had when I saw the museum of a house.
Taylor pulled me into her room and spun around. “You like?”
“Yeah, you look wicked hot.”
“Thanks! And I’m so glad you came. Seriously, my mom’s away and I’m alone for the weekend.” She bit her lower lip, “I’m hoping she’s with Dad. She wouldn’t tell me where she was going. Maybe she didn’t want to get my hopes up?”
“Maybe,” I said. I honestly felt bad for Taylor. I wished I could be a better friend. Guilt rushed through me. The only reason I was there was to snoop through her house, find the dagger and get out of there. She deserved better than that. But I wasn’t able to give it to her.
I cleared my throat. “So what’re ya gonna do to me, oh Fairy Godmother?” I bowed and fanned my hands through the air.
“Right!” Taylor tore across the room to her closet and began rummaging through it. “I bought you a whole new outfit for a birthday present! Sorry it’s not wrapped yet—I wasn’t gonna give it to you until the big day.” She looked over her shoulder and grinned at me, “But it’s perfect for tonight.” She pulled out a Marciano bag, and with a smile whipped out a pair of black skinny jeans with small silver zippers at the ankles.
I laughed. “Oh, Taylor, you seriously didn’t have to do that.” They were cute but totally not like anything I’d worn before. My parents usually shopped at Target or Wal-Mart for my clothes.
“I know. But I rock, admit it,” she said with a giggle. “And…” She took out a jade green fitted top, laid it on the bed, and then pulled a shoe box out from her closet. She lifted the cover revealing a pair of black heels. “Hey, I remembered your favorite color! And the top and shoes go with the jeans.”
I widened my eyes. “That’s way too much!” I’d never had clothes like that before. My face flushed in embarrassment, and I pressed my palms against my cheeks.
“Don’t feel bad, True. I get a big allowance and you’re totally worth it.”
I hugged her. “Thanks, and yes, you definitely rock.” I laughed.
She twisted around until her back was to me. “Okay, okay. Change already. I know you’re shy. I won’t look.”
I changed into the black jeans that fit me perfectly. I slid my hands over the soft material, sighing.
“They don’t fit?” Taylor asked, peeking over her shoulder with a pout.
“Yeah they fit perfectly. I love them. One sec.”
Taylor turned back around. “’Kay.”
I reached for the top, hauled off mine, and pulled the new one over my head. It had a round neck and capped sleeves just long enough to cover my birthmark. “Okay, you can look now.”
Taylor twisted around and smiled so big I thought her face would break. “You look great! Shoes now!” She clapped her hands in excitement, pulled them out of the box and handed them to me.
“How did you know my size?” I asked, slipping them on. I felt super tall now that I was standing about 5’11”.
“I notice all the fashion details. Besides, I take a size seven shoe, too. I have an eagle eye.” She winked. “’Kay, c’mon sit down and let me fix your make-up.”
I really wanted to get going but thought buying Roman extra time to look for the dagger wouldn’t hurt. I plopped down on the edge of the bed. “Go for it,” I said, running my fingers across the soft duvet. “You really should go into fashion or design, Taylor.”
She pulled out three massive make-up bags from her nightstand and placed them next to me on the bed. When she looked up, her eyes were alive, but then just as quickly the spark went out. “I totally want to,” she said, her voice breaking. “But Mom wants me to go into like paranormal investigation or something.” She rolled her eyes.
I stiffened involuntarily. “There’s a university course on that?” I asked, trying to keep my voice even.
Taylor looked away and dug through a make-up bag full of eye shadows. “Ah, here you are!” She held up a silver-gray shadow. “MAC’s Knight Devine. This one will look perfect with those smoky eyes of yours.” She dragged a brush through the compressed powder. “Close,” she instructed.
I closed my eyes.
Taylor released a long, troubled sigh. “I don’t know where she expects me to learn about it.” She ran the brush across my top lash line. “First it was astronomy, then antiques, now paranormal activity investigation. She’s gotten into all this weird stuff lately. That’s why Dad thinks she’s psychotic.” She inhaled deeply.
I wanted to tell her that her mom may not be psychotic after all and that paranormal stuff really did exist. But then again, her mother knowing that didn’t mean she wasn’t psychotic. Besides, if I told her, she’d probably think I was just as crazy as her mom. And I couldn’t risk her knowing the truth about me.
After she rimmed my eyes with the smoky shadow, she added mascara, bronzer, and lip-gloss. I smacked my lips together. “All done?” I asked.
“True?” She touched my arm lightly.
“Yeah?”
“Your grandmother was here with my mom the other day for a long time,” she paused and bit her lip. “No offence or anything, but it was after Mom met your family that she got extra strange.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. I would have believed that being around Aunt Eva would make anyone strange, or at least act awkward, but not so much Grandma. “Sorry about that. Guess they’re all into weird stuff. Must come with old age,” I said with a laugh trying to brush it off.
I wondered if Aunt Eva was telling Grandma Raine to ask Taylor’s mom to do something…besides hide the dagger.
I shrugged my shoulders. “Let’s go downstairs, huh?”
“One more thing, Cinderella.” She pointed at my head. “You definitely need to ditch the ponytail tonight.” She pulled my black hair out from the elastic and brushed it, letting it cascade down my back in soft waves.
Tugging me up off her bed, she ushered me in front of the Cheval mirror standing in the corner of her room. The floorboards vibrated from the pulsating music beneath my feet.
“Check that out!” she squealed.
I smiled at my reflection in the mirror. “Is that really me?” I had to admit, she did a great job taking me from Plain Jane to fab in like fifteen minutes. She was right about the eye shadow accentuating my eyes, too. They looked like pools of liquid steel. “You definitely need to go into fashion. Forget paranormal.” I f
licked my hand dismissively through the air and then turned, hugging her. “Thanks, Tay. You’re an awesome friend.”
I wanted to tell her I’d miss her, and that she was the first really good friend I’d ever had. But I couldn’t. Instead, I cleared my throat and swallowed hard, willing the knot in my stomach to go away. I gave her a peck on the cheek and tugged her by the hand out into the hall.
The massive staircase was packed. A lot more people had arrived since we’d gone upstairs. Somebody had dimmed the lights and now shadows danced across the walls in eerie shapes. The music blared through the boisterous house as we squeezed through the mass of bodies.
The air was hot and sticky; something I didn’t imagine Taylor’s house could ever be. She’d obviously turned off the air-conditioning, and with the crowd and the open windows, it had heated up fast. Somebody really needed to teach that girl about temperature control.
I held Taylor’s hand behind me and weaved in and out of people and down the stairs. One guy tipped his beer bottle toward me as we past. He leaned against the golden sarcophagus chatting up a junior I vaguely recognized.
Taylor screamed something in my ear about getting more wine and scooted past me. She waved her hand in the air, motioning for me to follow her into the kitchen. I wasn’t used to wearing four inch heels, so I decided to walk instead of chasing her. I didn’t want to risk falling flat on my face. Where are you, Roman? I scanned the room searching for him.
In the middle of the crowded kitchen, Chase sat on the island. Olivia stood in front of him, her hands on his knees. She looked so content while talking to him that I was sure if I could hear her it would have sounded like a cat purring. I couldn’t blame her though. The boy looked pretty hot with his blond hair, tanned skin, and deep blue eyes. Not to mention his athletic bod.
I turned to leave but not before Chase caught my eye and jumped off the counter.
The smile on Olivia’s face dropped faster than a person bungee jumping off a cliff. Her hands fell to her sides and she glared at me.
Chase looked equally shocked, just in a different way. “One word. Wow!” he said as he reached me. He lifted an eyebrow and gave me the once over. Twice. He placed one hand on top of the other flat against his chest. “Heartbreaker,” he said with a slow smile.
“That’s two words,” I joked. I averted my eyes, surveying the room. Taylor was off in the corner with Jack and a couple of other people from our class. Amy had taken Olivia’s side by the island, watching our every movement, and the back patio door was open. I looked through it and saw a few people swimming and diving into the pool.
Still no sign of Roman. My heart started thumping louder in my chest. Where is he?
“You want a beer, Maple Leaf?” Chase asked, leaning in close so that I could hear him above the throbbing music. His breath tickled my cheek. “There’s a keg of draft and some light beer in the fridge. Or maybe some wine?” he asked.
“Sure, maybe a little wine,” I said with a smile.
“Be right back.” Chase sauntered off to the far end of the kitchen.
I peeked around the corner and down the hall, looking for any sign of Roman and got none. When I looked back, Olivia now stood right in front of me, with her devoted little solider, Amy, next to her. I jumped, startled.
“Hey, Freak.” She poked me in the shoulder with one finger, her other hand held a too-full glass of some fruity looking drink. She rocked on her feet and it slopped over the sides of her glass. “What’s with the five dollar hooker look? Trying to make a little money on the side tonight, or what?”
Amy burst out laughing.
I stood up taller. “Olivia, jealousy’s a bitch, isn’t it?” My head instantly began to pound. I wasn’t in the mood for her crap. I had bigger things on my mind.
She ran her hand down over her white dress, straightening it. “Jealous? Of you?” She looked like she smelled something bad. “You went from looking like you woke up in a garbage can, to transforming into the garbage itself.” She snorted and then took a gulp of her cocktail.
All I could think about was taking her fruity drink and sloshing it right into her smug little face. “I think that would look better on you than in you,” I blurted out. “A red drink would do wonders for your outfit.”
Olivia’s eyebrows knitted together and she went quiet. The next thing I knew she was pouring the drink over the top of her head. It ran down her face like red rain and onto her white dress. An orange wedge clung to her hair.
Amy gasped and grabbed Olivia by the arm. “What are you doing?” she shrieked.
Olivia blinked, shook her head and then glared at me. “Did you do that, whore?” She lunged toward me.
“No, you did it,” Amy said, yanking Olivia’s arm back, mouth gaping.
Olivia shook her head. “I don’t remember. She did it! I told you she was a freak.”
Amy looked at her like she was nuts.
Did I do that? I was thinking about the drink in her face and all over her.
And then I remembered the spell in the Ancient Witchcraft book that I’d read aloud. The spell of persuasion it said. Oh, my God. I looked back at her, eyes squinted. “You need to leave. Right now.”
Olivia glowered at me, then turned and grabbed Amy’s hand. “Let’s go, Amy.”
“What?” Amy’s eyes widened.
“Let’s just get out of here,” Olivia bumped her shoulder into mine as she passed me, and headed toward the front door.
Is this happening? Did I really just do that?
Through the crowd, on the far side of the kitchen, Taylor waved me over and Chase poured wine into a plastic cup.
“Bathroom! Be back in a minute,” I mouthed the word dramatically so she could read my lips.
Taylor nodded and waved as I left the kitchen. I scooted down the hall, anxious to find Roman. I prayed he’d found the dagger. I couldn’t go home tonight. My heart raced at the thought of Aunt Eva finding my empty bed. Stumbling through the hallway, I bumped into people and mumbled apologies. The marble floor felt sticky under my feet, and the sickly skunk smell of weed smothered me.
There was a line for the bathroom. Is the whole town of Pomona Park here? Not needing to go anyway, I rushed by it, farther down the hall, past gyrating bodies until the partiers started to break up.
I darted into a room and closed the door behind me, resting my back against it. I inhaled deeply. Despite the now muffled music, my ears still rang. A large desk sat against the far wall facing me. The stars shone through the window behind it like hundreds of prying eyes. Bookcases lined the walls on both sides, filled with books of every size and color. I ran my fingers along the smooth desk surface, and eyed a mug nestled on top of some papers. Scrolled in large faded letters were the words, World’s Greatest Mom. A slight crack splintered through the cup, and I couldn’t help but think it was symbolic.
Sitting at the desk, I shuffled through some papers and then opened the desk drawer. There was nothing but bills and loose paper. I let out a frustrated groan and plopped my head into my hands.
The computer screen lit up. I must have hit the mouse by accident. It opened to Outlook Express. At the top, an already read email from Eva Nemkova caught my eyes. My heart jumped, and I clicked it open.
Elizabeth Snow,
The time has finally arrived. Your ticket for Moscow will be waiting as per the plan. I will send Karina to pick up the dagger tomorrow in the place that you and Raine have decided upon. Don’t become weak now. This is all necessary for you to become a true and sacred member of our coven.
Eva Nemkova.
I clutched the edge of the desk inhaling short, shallow breaths. So, Mrs. Snow is going to Moscow? If she’d already left, that meant she was probably already there, and with my dagger. But why? What did they want her to do in order to become a member? Grandma and Mrs. Snow had decided upon a place to hide the dagger, at least according to Aunt Eva’s email. I had to hope that Mrs. Snow was not long gone and my dagger was still here somewhe
re.
I wished I could just talk to Grandma Raine about everything. I so badly wanted to believe she’d been bullied into the whole kidnapping thing. That if I talked to her, I could convince her to take me to my real mom. My throat burned and I swallowed past the growing lump, willing away the pain.
A memory from when I was little floated before my eyes. Grandma and I had been playing find the button. She’d confined the hunt to the kitchen. After half an hour of searching in every drawer and cupboard, I’d given up, crying. Grandma had led me by the hand to the kitchen counter. Beside the toaster she’d picked up the navy blue colored button. It was the same color as the counter and blended like a chameleon. She had kissed my cheek and wiped away my tears with her thumbs. Sometimes the things you look the hardest for have been right before your eyes the whole time, she’d said.
I looked around the room in obvious places. I searched the walls and on the bookcases. There was nothing but stupid artwork and books. I twisted my hands into my closed eyes, rubbing hard, needing to think. Maybe at the entrance way to the house. I’d been thinking all along the dagger would be hidden in a room, or drawer but maybe it was in the entranceway, right before my eyes the whole time. I couldn’t be sure, but it was worth a shot.
Back outside in the noisy hall, I zigzagged through the pressing bodies and headed to the front door. I stood with my back pressed to it, looking around. The tapestry and several paintings filled the walls all the way up to the cathedral ceiling. A couple of the bulbs attached to the candelabra on the wall flickered ominously. The other three bulbs on it were completely out. Maybe the bulbs were just old and failing…that or somebody had twisted them to make it darker and screwed up on two. I took a deep breath. Definitely creepy. My eyes drifted to the stairway and the golden sarcophagus. Golden—like the dagger! Like a chameleon!
I dashed to the stairs and headed up, pushing through several people. “You guys should go out back to the pool,” I suggested. “Everyone’s skinny dipping!” I yelled.
Spectral Page 15
