They were silent for a few moments before George said, "You are truly wise beyond your years. I can see why you will be a king that will outshine all others."
***
I sat up on my pile of hay. Cliff knew that this would happen? I knew that this would happen?
Did he disappear because he knew that he could do nothing about it? Or so that he would not get jealous and risk losing everything? Was it possible that he wasn't angry but instead was disappointed that the day of my betrayal had come so soon?
The depression that was starting to overtake me when I fell asleep was now gone, and I had renewed energy and a new sense of purpose to keep fighting. I wanted to escape before I was handed over to the Moretti's. I didn't think that I was ready to face them yet.
I knew that I had to come up with a plan to get out of that place, and the sooner, the better.
Looking at my chains I said, "Get off now."
I watched as they fell to the ground. I walked quietly to the wall opposite the door, thinking that it might be an outside wall.
I leaned against the wall and imagined myself outside. Suddenly, I felt a breeze blowing by me. I opened my eyes and I was standing outside an ugly stone building in the middle of some creepy woods.
I took a quick look around in every direction. I saw no one and there were no windows for anyone to see me. In a split second, I started running as fast as I could in the opposite direction of the building. I ran soundlessly on the forest floor and my bare feet didn't slow me down in the slightest.
After about ten minutes of running, I bolted up a tree to get my bearings. I had no idea where I was, nor in which direction I was heading.
I sat quietly and listened for anything that would indicate danger or my location. I didn't sense that I was in any kind of danger. I didn't want to stay where I was very long, because I knew that it would not be long before Adam and his crew were after me. His witch might even have added ways to find me. I didn't want to take any chances.
Since I didn't believe that I was being chased, I decided to find something to eat. It had been entirely too long since I had eaten.
I listened for large animals. I heard mostly small creatures and even a coyote, but even the coyote would only be enough to tease my appetite. I decided to move on and search for something bigger. I jumped out of the tree and ran in a slightly different direction than I had been running before. I was listening for animals as I ran, which was much trickier than when I was sitting in a tree.
I stopped in my tracks when I heard something that sounded like a bear. That would be perfect. I followed the scent and sounds, found it, and spied on it for a few moments. It knew that it was being watched and I could smell its fear. I was convinced that it was alone so I rushed in and bit down. It didn't even stand a chance, because I didn't give it one. I was too hungry to toy with it or enjoy the hunt.
When I had drained the bear of its blood, I was satisfied, so I thought I should be able to be on top of my game. I ran and I ran until I heard the faint sound of freeway traffic.
I ran in the direction of the noise, and as I ran out of the woods, I felt as if my eyes were being stabbed with thousands of tiny knives. I had never felt anything so painful, and I ran back into the thick woods before I dropped to the ground and fell victim to the sun.
I leaned against a tree and allowed myself to recover from what felt like a vicious attack.
How was I going to get out of the woods if I couldn't go out into the daylight? Even though it was November, it was still going to be hours until the sun went down. I did not want to be tied to these woods for even a second longer.
As I stood there trying to find a way out of this mess, I imagined Adam and his jokers discovering that I was missing and then laughing at me, knowing that I couldn't leave the woods anytime soon.
I shoved them out of my mind and decided to attempt being in the sun again, even though I knew how much it was going to hurt. With my arms covering my eyes and my eyes shut tightly, I slowly stepped out into the sunlight again.
My skin felt warm and began to get warmer and warmer. I was doing a good job of keeping my eyes protected under my arm, because I didn't feel any of the knives stabbing them. I knew that I wasn't going to get very far without being able to see, and my skin was becoming uncomfortably warm.
I sighed, backed up into the woods again and opened my eyes in disappointment. I was stuck in these woods and I needed to decide whether I was going to camp out somewhere and wait for it to get dark, or if I was going to travel further in the woods.
Since I still didn't know in which direction home was, I decided to find a comfortable tree and save my strength. My only point of reference was the direction that I come from, and I would avoid that building with everything in me.
I walked as close to the edge of the woods as possible, looking for the perfect tree to hide out in. I kept trying to look out of the woods to get an idea for my location, but even looking into the light felt like daggers to my eyes.
When I found the perfect tree, I climbed up as quickly as I could and made myself comfortable on some branches that were nestled together. I sat and listened to the sounds of both the traffic and the forest for a long time.
I needed a plan, especially since I could only travel in the dark. My first priority was to find Tanner and get him away from Samantha. Then I had to find Clara, because she would know where to take me to get my sun blessing back. There was no way that I could go back to my family without being able to go into the sun. There was no way to explain that to them.
I thought about how Brooke had visions when I was in trouble. I wondered if Brooke had any knowledge of this mess. Why hadn't she known about Adam coming to town? Were her visions unreliable or was Adam somehow impervious to them?
I peeked out of the branches and saw that the sun was beginning to go down. I would wait until it was at least dusk before I attempted to leave the woods.
I wondered what my parents and sister were doing. I had been gone at least a couple of days. I was sure they were worried out of their minds, because it was so unlike me to disappear. Sure, I had been late a lot recently, but had never completely disappeared.
I thought about Tanner's family and how much his mom depended on him to help with his brother. Did people think that we had run off together? I hoped that it didn't look like he'd taken me. I knew that people often jumped to conclusions like that. Significant others and parents were usually the first suspects when someone went missing. I really hoped that nobody was interrogating any of our parents.
Several years earlier, a little girl in Delphic Cove had disappeared and the whole town came together to put up signs and get the word out nationally so that she would be found. They did find her and she too had been kidnapped, but I doubted she was kidnapped by vampires. I wondered if the town was doing anything like that for Tanner and I or if they thought we'd just taken off…without our cars.
Did my vampire parents know what was going on? That I was missing yet again before they even got to see me after my first kidnapping? I wondered if Cliff knew what was happening, since nobody seemed to know where he was either.
My mind wandered to Hailey and Emma. I wondered if anyone blamed them for our disappearances. Their recent behavior did give reason to suspect them. The thought of them taking some heat brought a smile to my face, but if Hailey was still playing scared little victim, then she was probably off the hook. I thought about Amanda and wondered what she was thinking, since we hadn't talked after I got mad at her for not believing in me. Even at that, I could easily imagine her helping with whatever community efforts were being made to find us.
I hoped that Brooke and her family were searching for me and any clues that might have been left behind. I really hoped that they didn't think that I had run off with Tanner. I did not want to be alone in this. I wanted them to show up and fight with me. I had no battle training and I was sure that I was going to run into Adam and his gang before I made it home. It wa
s a strong feeling.
I looked through the branches again and saw that it was nearly dusk at last. I felt as though I had been in that tree for too long. I stretched my legs and arms, and got ready to get out of the tree and try walking out of the woods again.
I took a deep breath and climbed down the tree, keeping my senses aware of any danger that might be lurking nearby. I walked toward the edge of the woods and looked at the setting sun. If I looked at the outer edge where the colors were dark blues and purples, my eyes were fine. If I looked at the oranges, I could feel the tiny daggers again.
I walked out further so that I was completely out of the woods. I was on a stretch of grass overlooking a freeway. I watched as the cars zipped by not too far below.
I didn't see anything to reveal my location. The freeway signs were not facing me, and I didn't see any other kind of indicator.
I knew that I had to act fast and that any decision was better than no decision. I decided to go in the direction that the freeway closest to me was headed. I hated to be so close to the woods, but I had no choice, being stuck between the woods and the freeway.
Running as fast as I could, I focused on getting to the nearest populated area. I was hoping for a mall or someplace similar. That might also help me to figure out where I was, which would be a huge help.
I sensed that something from the woods watching me. I ran even faster, and felt that who or whatever was watching me was keeping up with my speed. The hairs on my neck and arms rose and I knew that it was a vampire.
There was a park about a mile ahead of me and I made it my goal to get there. It appeared that there was some kind of gathering there, and if I could mingle with humans, I would have a net of safety. My pursuers wouldn't be stupid enough to kill a bunch of humans, I hoped.
Going faster than I ever thought possible, I ran behind a pole in the park near the humans. I stopped and ran my fingers through my hair, trying to make myself look presentable.
It looked like some sort of wedding celebration. People were eating and dancing, and a bride and groom were lovingly feeding each other dinner. I could not imagine wanting my wedding to be outside in late November as a human. As a vampire, it would be fine, because the cold didn't bother me. I was wearing a dress with leggings and no shoes, and I was fine.
Doing my best to act naturally, I slipped in amongst the people. Fitting in would be tricky with my clothes being a wreck and my bare feet. I got in the food line and listening to people talking so that I would know what to say if I needed to pretend to know either the bride or groom. As I was filling my plate, I scanned the horizon for vampires and was sure that I saw Adam hiding at the edge of the woods, watching.
I sat down at a table with a couple that was only paying attention to each other. I tried to act normally as I scarfed down my food. The blood did help, but I still needed actual food.
Another couple sat down at the table.
"Wasn't this the most beautiful wedding?" the girl asked me.
I smiled and nodded with my mouth full of food.
"It couldn't have been any more perfect with the sunset as the background," she said with a sigh. "I thought an outdoor evening wedding in November was insane. But what a great idea."
"I wondered that too," I said. "Tonight's sunset was perfect. It must have been meant to be."
"I can't wait to see the pictures. They are going to be stunning."
The guy turned to me and looked like he'd seen a ghost. "You look just like that girl who's all over the news."
My face went white. I was sure of it.
"What girl on the news?" his girlfriend asked.
"Right, you don't watch the news." He rolled his eyes. "There's a high school couple from Delphic Cove that disappeared without a trace three days ago. They were last seen kissing in a park when some thugs showed up. They all went into the woods and none of them came back out. You seriously haven't heard about any of this?"
"No, I didn't hear any of it," she said. "So someone saw them go into the woods with the thugs and nobody went to make sure that they were okay?"
"Apparently, the eyewitnesses didn't know them and didn't think about it. They said that they figured they were all friends. They didn't put two and two together until they heard about the missing couple. Then they came forward to the police."
"It sounds like you've been following this pretty closely," she replied.
"I have," he replied. "It's so scary. The boy reminds me of my younger cousin, and I couldn't imagine anything happening to him. The community has come together, and it looks like everyone has been searching. They've got piles of flowers at the park where they disappeared and people have been holding candle light vigils each night in the park that they disappeared at."
"Do they have any leads?" the girl asked.
"No," he said, and shook his head. "They don't have a single lead. They don't know who the thugs are and there is no trace of them at all. The girl had been getting bullied pretty badly at school, so they were investigating kids at their school, but they didn't come up with anything convincing."
"That is so sad," she said.
"It's especially hard to watch when any of the parents gets in front of the camera," he said. "They always break down in tears. They can't hold it together and the parents actually have a spokesperson speaking on their behalf now."
I felt a lump forming in my throat.
He turned his attention back on me. "You really do look just like her."
I bit my lip and said, "I haven't seen that news story either. I'll have to look into that when I get home. I really hope that they find that couple."
A million questions ran through my mind, but I couldn't ask any of them without raising suspicion. I had wanted to blend in and not be noticed at all. If my picture was all over the news, I had little chance of that happening.
Then I wondered if should tell them that I really was the girl from the news. I could be whisked away without Adam being able to get me. I could still see him watching me from all the way in the woods.
On the other hand, I had the whole issue of not being able to be in the sun, and that was going to be very hard to explain. I needed to get that fixed before going back to my family. If I was discovered then there would be a huge media circus and I would never be able to get back to Tanner or get my sun blessing back.
The guy looked at his girlfriend and said, "I'll be right back."
"Okay," she said.
We both watched him join a group of guys and start talking to them. One by one, they looked over toward the table and started whispering. I focused my hearing on their whispers.
"I think that's the missing girl from Delphic Cove."
"Did you ask her?"
"She only said that she hasn't seen the news."
"How would she get all the way over here?"
"Ever heard of a car, you tool?"
"She's not even wearing shoes. I doubt she drove herself over here to attend the wedding."
"She does look like she's been through some kind of ordeal."
"I watched her eat. It was like she hadn't eaten in three days."
"Dude, she's been gone for three days."
"Exactly."
"Should we call the cops?"
"Is there a reward?"
"Shut up."
"Do you think her boyfriend is around here?"
"Who knows? I didn't see him though."
"Do you guys think that I should call the cops? I really think that's her."
"Be sure to get a picture of her with your phone. They'll want proof, especially if she takes off."
"Right. How did I not think of that?"
"I can't believe you didn't get a picture. Epic fail."
Pictures. I hadn't even thought of that. This was a wedding celebration and someone could end up getting a picture of me. The worst part would be if there were a flash. That could be as bad as the sun.
"Pardon me," I told the girl next to me. I got up and walked as fast
and furtively as I could to a tree nearby. I took a deep breath and began running so fast that the humans would never be able to see me.
TWENTY THREE
I came to a movie theater, stopped and stood among a crowd waiting for a movie to start. I was glad to discover that artificial lighting didn't affect me negatively.
As I stood amongst the people, I looked into the distance as far as I could see. If Adam had managed to track me, I couldn't see him. I had taken many random turns and ducked between a couple dozen buildings. He would have had to have some crazy tracking skills to keep up with me.
I walked to a wall and leaned against it to rest and regain as much energy as possible. I'd run at least fifty miles and still felt energetic but I didn't want to take any chances.
Someone nearby said, "Did you hear that they think that girl from Delphic Cove was spotted tonight?"
I looked down, letting my hair fall in front of my face. I didn't want to be seen again so soon. I needed to find a place where I would be able to hide out when the daylight came back.
"They did? Where?" asked another.
"They were near the woods where we go camping every year."
"I wonder if it was really her."
"It sounds like they were really sure, according to the news interview I saw before I left. It was at a wedding, and they're looking through all the cameras there to see if anyone got a picture of her. The guy that recognized her said that she had disappeared before he could get a picture of her."
"Her boyfriend wasn't with her?"
"No, she was alone. I wonder if something happened to him."
"It's so crazy that there are just no clues in that case. I sure hope this will help find them."
"Do you think it was the bullies at her school?"
"She's so hot. I can't believe that she was getting bullied."
I couldn't help smiling despite everything, and was glad that my hair was covering my face.
"That's exactly why she was getting bullied. Other girls were jealous of her. That's what happened to my neighbor before she moved to our street. It was so bad that they had to move to a different district."
The Transformed Box Set: Books 1, 2, 3, 3.5 Page 25
