“Xanderberghen,” Idric squeaked.
The woman looked taken aback. “Pardon?”
“Xanderberghen,” he repeated, a small amount of confidence returning to his voice. “My name is Idric Xanderberghen.” The real Mrs. Padilla would have gotten it right.
She glanced down at a folder just to her left on the desk. “Quite right. I apologize.”
He stared at her nervously, but gave a slight nod.
“Mr. Xanderberghen, it has come to my attention you may have had contact with two of the students involved in the pranks at our school.”
“I’m not sure I understand,” he replied.
“Have you or have you not had contact with Sally Singletary or Yasif Zerriouh in the past two weeks?”
Idric was confused. Was she trying to throw him off or just playing games with him? She had to know he was part of the group. Or do these shape-shifters not talk to one another? Whatever it was that tried to carry him off in Mt. Holly had to be part of the shape-shifter club, so what was the deal?
He glanced from the folder to her face, trying to determine what she was after. “I know who they are. I may have talked to them a time or two.”
“Did you also talk to the reporter who was here on campus?”
“She asked me a few questions,” he said truthfully.
“What kind of questions?”
“The same kind of questions you’re asking me now, except about Billy and the others.” He brought his hands together on his lap to keep them from shaking.
“She didn’t ask you questions about me?” Mrs. Padilla adjusted herself in her chair, straightening her posture.
“Not that I recall.”
“And were you visited by a couple men in black suits?”
“No, but the guy next door was.” He figured offering her a bit of information might help throw her off. “I saw them go in there.”
“When was this, Mr. Xanderberghen?”
He looked up at the ceiling, squinting in thought. “I don’t remember exactly what day, but it wasn’t long after the boys went missing.”
“They didn’t go missing, Mr. Xanderberghen, they left the school on their own choosing,” she corrected.
“Right.” He avoided her eyes. “Sorry, just a lot of people were talking and—”
She interrupted. “I think you’d be wise to pay attention to the monitors for accurate information. We are working hard to make sure these ‘rumors’ don’t persist.”
“Sorry.”
She waved him off. “No need to apologize. I understand how all of this may have upset you. I assure you, we’re doing everything in our power to return the school to normal.”
Normal? There was nothing normal about what was going on in the school. He still couldn’t figure out her angle. Why ask him questions to which she already knew the answers?
Mrs. Padilla stood. “Thank you for your time, Mr. Xanderberghen.”
“That’s it?” He waited for confirmation.
“Is there a reason for me to ask you more questions?”
“No, no!” he said quickly. “I just…I didn’t…I mean, I didn’t know why you called me.”
“We are just trying to figure out how to help you students the best we can.” She smiled. It looked genuine enough, but he couldn’t help but think about what was really lurking behind it.
He stuck his hands into his pockets as he stood, watching her move around her desk out of the corner of his eye. He rushed past when she opened the door, not waiting for her to change her mind.
As he made his way toward the commons, he replayed the whole exchange. He couldn’t say for sure, but he got the feeling she may have gotten more from him than he intended.
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
THEY HAD NOW BEEN in the station for nearly two months and still were getting nowhere with the information they had. They were missing something important, and Yasif wasn’t sure what it was. Tensions rose, tempers flared—mostly because they were all tired of having to hoof it down to the truck station each time they needed a shower—and they needed a break from all this madness.
Yasif had never seen Sally so vulnerable. She’d always handled things like a champ. He never imagined her being capable of breaking down under pressure.
Granted, they’d been through a lot. In a small way, it made him feel better to know she wasn’t perfect. Perhaps he’d set unrealistic expectations and that was why things had turned out the way they had. As he watched her now, it was as if he was seeing her—the real Sally—for the first time. He needed something to cheer her up and he knew just the thing.
It was Sally’s birthday—not that she gave any indication she remembered. Since they’d known each other, they’d celebrated their birthdays together. His was only a day after hers, and he wasn’t going to let her mood stop them from celebrating this year. They needed a bit of fun, and he was going to plan a party whether Sally liked it or not.
He arranged everything so it would be a surprise for Sally. He sent Jake to pick up Idric and get supplies and made sure everyone knew what time to be at the station. All Yasif had to do was to figure out how to get Sally out while they decorated.
He went to her room where she had spent most of her time lately. “Hey, wanna go for a walk?”
She looked up, surprised. “I uh… Now really isn’t the best time, Yaz.” It was clear she’d been crying again.
“Come on. Let’s go get something to eat. There’s a little dive just down the road we can go to.” He waited for her to respond. When she didn’t, he added, “My treat.”
Sally paused a moment as though considering his proposal, then reluctantly rose from the bed.
They walked along the broken sidewalk toward the restaurant, not saying a word. Yasif didn’t want to screw things up this time by sticking his foot in his mouth, so he decided to let Sally set the terms of this conversation. They passed a few pedestrians milling about or walking along collected in groups, a few talking on cellphones.
As soon as he saw the restaurant, he immediately regretted his choice in venue. It looked more like a soup kitchen. Given there was nothing else nearby, they had no choice but to go inside.
They were promptly seated at a booth with torn seats and given greasy menus by a man in a dirty apron. He returned moments later with two glasses of ice water and silverware wrapped in a cloth napkin. Yasif was relieved the water was clear and the glasses clean. Silently, they looked over the menu and selected their meals.
“It’s not your fault,” Yasif said after the waiter took their order. “You couldn’t have known what was going to happen. Being inquisitive is a good trait for a reporter.”
“Don’t you mean stubborn?”
“Call it what you want, but it’s the reason the Hi-Li has been so popular. You’re an amazing journalist with brilliant insight into your stories. Most of the time, I feel inadequate around you.” He said this last bit as an afterthought.
“Inadequate?” She looked genuinely surprised. “How can you possibly think that?”
“Sal, I’m not half the reporter you are.”
“Yes, you are, and clearly I’m not all that good. I’ve only managed to get a bunch of people hurt. Or killed.”
He spread his napkin on his lap as the waiter brought their food. He glanced up at her occasionally. When the waiter left again, he continued. “None of this happened because of you. You’ve got to quit blaming yourself. You can’t control everything. It’s because of you that we’ve gotten this far.”
“Yeah, and what good has it done?”
“You’ve saved our lives more than once,” Yasif replied.
“Me? How? That was Idric’s magic that saved us.”
“It was your leadership that saved us.”
The conversation lulled while they ate. As he took the first bite of his chicken alfredo, he immediately regretted his initial reaction. The food was amazingly good!
“I just don’t understand,” Sally said a short time later.
“None of this makes any sense.”
“You’re right. It doesn’t,” he agreed. “Why should it make anymore sense to you if it doesn’t to the rest of us?”
She looked at him. “I suppose. I’m just so used to being able to find answers with enough poking around.”
“We’ll find them,” he reassured. “We just haven’t looked in the right places yet.”
The return trip was again mostly in silence aside from an occasional comment about the weather. He was surprised when Sally grabbed his hand and intertwined her fingers through his. A rush of excitement went through him and he couldn’t help but smile. By the time they got back, he had all but forgotten about his plan for her birthday, his thoughts filled only with her.
“Why is it so dark in here?” Sally asked, her voice echoing in the station as they entered. “Did everyone leave?” She flipped on the lights.
“Surprise!” several people yelled at once, including Yasif.
Sally’s hands went to her face as she jumped, startled by their greeting.
Yasif took both her hands in his. “Happy birthday.”
Sally started crying again as he drew her into a hug.
“I completely forgot what day it was!” She smiled as Jake approached with a simple cake with colorful icing. “Happy Birthday, Sal,” was written on top, eighteen candles around the sides.
Sally blew them out and then they retreated to the folding table they’d set up for meals. As Jake cut the cake, Yasif noticed the happiness on her face; it made him feel good. She glanced at him several times during the party and smiled. It gave him a warm, bubbly feeling inside.
Lani passed out plates and plastic forks while Idric passed out napkins. They ate and talked about anything and everything—as long as it had nothing to do with the shape-shifters. Yasif decided beforehand this party should be shape-shifter free.
They sat together to open gifts. Lani had gotten her an expensive-looking pen and notepad. “I got one like it when I set off for college to be a journalist. I thought it would make a nice touch for you.”
“Thank you, Lani,” Sally said. “I haven’t known you all that long. You didn’t have to get me anything.”
“I wanted to.” She smiled.
Jake had gotten her a magnifying glass as a joke as well as a new phone to replace the one she’d broken.
“How can you afford this?” she asked.
“Are you kidding?” he replied. “I get those things practically for free from…”
“Your dad’s company.” She laughed, finishing his sentence.
Her gift from Idric was a bag of M&Ms.
“I didn’t know what to get,” he said.
“It’s okay. I love M&Ms!”
Yasif handed her a box wrapped with silver paper and a white bow. She glared at him with a suspicious smile as she took it from him.
“Yaz!” she said in shock as she opened it. “Oh, my goodness, it’s gorgeous.” She pulled out a brown leather form-fitting jacket.
“I saw you eyeing it the last time we were in the mall,” he said. “I wanted you to have it.”
“Oh, my goodness! I can’t believe you bought this! It was crazy expensive!”
“You’re worth it,” he said meekly.
She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly, then went to try on her new jacket. “How do I look?” She was quite breathtaking in the brown leather with her maroon sweater underneath.
“It’s probably getting a little warm for a jacket, but…”
“Are you kidding? I’m always freezing!” She laughed.
Afterward, Sally and Yasif sat together on an old raggedy couch, holding each other’s hand.
After a few moments passed, Sally examined his wrists. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m okay,” he said. “Still a bit freaked.”
“I’m so sorry about what they did to you,” she said.
He shook his head. “Not your fault.”
“Still…”
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned about all this, Sal, it’s that there are things in this world we can’t change. We’ve just got to accept them and find a way to deal with them. I hate what those agents did to me, but I’m tired of being the wounded cat. I’m ready to meet them head-on and face them like a real man.”
Sally smiled.
They drifted closer, staring into each other’s eyes. Yasif felt the rush of emotion wash through him as he caught her scent. The sweetness of her made his cheeks flush. They drew closer, as if pulled in by magnets, and before he knew it, he was kissing her.
Every thought of the world beyond her disappeared in that moment. Just as suddenly, it was over and he was left a bit out of breath.
Words seemed inadequate as his mind became lost in the after-effects; he wasn’t even sure how much time had passed before Sally spoke again.
“Thanks, Yaz,” she said. “This was amazing.”
He smiled sheepishly.
Jake came in with a laptop, turned on some music, then popped open a bottle of vodka.
“Where’d you get that?” Yasif asked.
“I have my sources,” Jake replied as he began pouring drinks. He even allowed Idric a taste.
Sally nursed her drink for the next hour, laughing as the others danced around the station. Yasif mostly watched her, sipping his drink slowly, not wanting to get drunk and make a fool of himself. Things were finally going well between them and the last thing he wanted to do was to screw them up again.
A while later, Yasif worked up the courage to ask Sally to dance. She gave him look of feigned surprise as she set down her unfinished drink, then offered her hand. As they danced, holding each other tightly, smiles and blushes passed between them.
Had they finally traversed that line they’d both been terrified of crossing? Yasif’s mind was filled with questions, but at that moment, he ignored them all. It didn’t matter if they were dating, or if they were boyfriend and girlfriend. He just wanted to live in that moment, to enjoy things as they were right then. He was happier than he’d ever been, and he didn’t want the evening to end.
Jake and Lani danced together, moving up and down each other’s bodies as though courting on the dance floor. Then they’d laugh and twirl off in another direction.
Idric bopped up and down off to one side as he sucked on a Twizzler. It was well into the night when Yasif realized it had gotten quiet in the station. Jake and Lani had passed out on the couch together, and Idric had fallen asleep propped up against the wall, the candy string still hanging from his mouth. Yasif wondered if perhaps the alcohol hadn’t been such a good idea. He shook his head, glad he’d only had the one drink. He nudged Sally and motioned toward the stairs, offering his arm. She smiled, taking it as they made their way upstairs.
Yasif took Sally’s hand, and they crept up the rickety stairs to her room. On the cot, they reminisced about times before the shape-shifters had come.
Sally’s mood seemed to fall slightly. “I still can’t shake the feeling that all of this was my fault.”
“It wasn’t.” He took her hand in his.
She gave him a reproving look.
He placed a hand on her knee and spoke reassuringly. “We’ll figure all this out. We always do.”
She gazed at him a moment, then smiled.
“I’m sorry for all of my drama I threw into all of this,” he told her. “I know it was bad timing on my part.”
She took a breath, placing a finger on his lips. “Nope. You’re right, no more regrets. We just enjoy what we can before I leave for college.”
He blinked, stunned. “Leave for college?”
She pulled out her acceptance letter and showed it to him. “Oh, my God! Sal, why didn’t you tell me this sooner! Congratulations!”
She managed a weak smile. “Thanks. I was going to, but then all this stuff happened… I just don’t know that I deserve it.”
“Of course you do! You’re the best journalist I know!”
“She’s had loads more experience. That’s why you have to go. You can’t turn this down.”
“What about the stuff that’s going on here? I don’t know what to do,” she admitted.
“I told you. We’ll figure it out. Then you’ll have a story that’ll blow their socks off!”
She let out a soft laugh that made Yasif tingle inside. “Happy birthday.” He gave her a toothy grin.
“Happy birthday to you, too!” She drew him into another hug and held him a moment.
Everything about her seemed more intoxicating than the drink had been. Even now with a clear head and unencumbered thoughts, he felt a rush that overwhelmed his senses.
A moment later, they were kissing again, their bodies intertwined in a comforting embrace. He felt the weight of her as she lowered him onto the cot. The flimsy metal frame creaked as they released the inhibitions they’d held between them for so long.
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
SALLY AWOKE THE NEXT MORNING feeling as if the weight of the world had been lifted from her shoulders. She was content for the first time since all this nonsense had started. Yasif lay next to her, his smooth beige skin only half covered by the blanket. She ran her fingers through his thick black hair, then along the back of his ear.
He laughed. “That tickles!”
“Were you sleeping?” She smiled as he flipped over to face her.
“Maybe.”
She leaned in, kissing him. Why had she resisted this for so long?
Yasif had always been there for her, always cared about her. Why had she refused to see it before? Perhaps she was afraid. It hadn’t been her first time, but what she felt for Yasif was more than what she’d felt for anyone else. Could it be love? She wasn’t sure if she even knew what love was, but she knew what she felt for him was different. It made her feel as if she’d given a part of herself away, made herself more vulnerable. Perhaps that’s what had scared her the most. It had been there all along; she just didn’t know why she hadn’t realized it sooner.
Sally Singletary's Curiosity (The Sally Singletary Book 1) Page 19
