by Tijan
“I know.” She made it sound like it’d been inevitable. “You gotta be there in twenty minutes.”
That’s when I looked at the clock and thought my heart stopped beating. It was 1:39. I hit the ground running.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Our school held a volunteer convention on the main lawn of the campus. It was surrounded by brick buildings and a few ponds on three sides. Statues were displayed randomly over the lawn, but I knew it wasn’t by accident when the crisis hotline booth was placed next to the angel statue. She was in gray stone, her two eyes watched wherever you went, and her tight curls were in dire need of a new perm. The wings had been sculpted to arch upwards as if she were about to push into the air and fly away.
She freaked me out.
I dropped into one of the vacant seats behind our table and announced when someone sat beside me, “I named her Eileen.”
“Uh… okay.”
Did my ears detect? I looked and was rewarded. Emily had sweetened the pot with Adam, but I hadn’t let myself hope. Now, I did.
Adam looked refreshing in a soft blue sweater and a pair of tan corduroys. Both molded to his tall form while his chestnut curls accentuated his yummy almond eyes. I almost wanted to eat him. If I’d been a vampire, I might’ve ignored the decree.
“You named her Eileen?” He smiled and ducked his head. “Uh… oh… kay. Um, where’s Emily? I’m not complaining or anything, but I thought I had the afternoon block with her.”
“Emily’s sick.” I turned and stared at Eileen for a moment. Was it my imagination or did she seem to grow before me?
“Oh. Okay. So… um… you and that guy, huh?”
Just like that, Eileen lost her appeal. I closed my eyes and cleared my throat. I knew I had damage control to do, but I hadn’t known it would start this soon. The need to deceive was itching and so I itched it. “He has a girlfriend that was there. They had a tiff and he wanted to make her jealous. I didn’t want to… I wanted to tell you, but then all of the sudden she was in front of the club and I kissed him. I know, I know. It wasn’t smart of me or anything, but when a friend asks for a favor who am I to say no?” I held my breath. When I saw the instant relief flash in those adorable almond eyes, I expelled it.
“Oh so… you and him aren’t…?”
“No. God no! No.” I couldn’t emphasize that enough.
“That’s um… that’s good to hear because…”
I watched in disbelief as Adam opened those perfectly formed lips and spoke in slow motion. It took a moment before the sound hit my ears, but I heard, “…go on a date? Maybe tonight?”
“Yes!” I shouted and instantly cowered back in my chair. Never appear too eager. Kates hadn’t taught me that lesson. I’d learned it on my own, but sometimes I couldn’t control myself.
Adam looked taken aback. He paused a second before he nodded. “That sounds great. I was thinking of the Alexander Restaurant. It’s supposed to have good food.”
I hoped my drool was kept in check. I had no idea where the Alexander Restaurant was and I didn’t care about good food. We could go to the Shoilster for all I cared. A date with Adam! I’d die happy when I told Shelly Witless.
“Are you guys from the hotline? Do you have any pamphlets?”
Adam immediately started his perfect volunteer thing. I was content to sit back and daydream about our perfect date, listening to his voice drone on until the guy was done with his questions. A few more people came over and Adam was eager to answer questions. I was eager not to. I considered us a good team.
“…that girl died, right? Wasn’t someone there?”
My chair tipped forward and I almost went flying into the table. My eyes shot open to see whoever was talking with Adam. The guy looked like an average student. He could’ve been Adam’s twin dressed in Abercrombie, but it wasn’t the sight of him that sent my alarms buzzing. I felt him. He was a vampire. In fact, the girl who had stopped before him and the first guy had been vampires too. I just hadn’t really noticed or cared. I cared now and I sat up straighter in my chair to scan the lawn. Six out of ten students were vampires. Those were not good odds. A normal statistic should’ve been one out of ten.
“Why are you asking questions like that?” I glared at the vampire. “If someone was there or not is none of your business. A girl died. You should be considerate.”
Of course, he wasn’t.
“Hey, hey, I meant no disrespect.” The guy held his hands up in mock surrender and made a show of backing up two steps. He grinned charmingly towards me, but I shot out of my seat and leaned closer to him. “A person died that night. I don’t care that you’re not a person… of virtue. A human being died that night. It makes me wonder why she did. She was only human after all… maybe she was pushed into it. Maybe someone who isn’t human did it?”
“Davina.” Adam stood and touched my shoulder.
I ignored him and held the vampire’s gaze steadfast. I wanted to make sure he heard my real meaning. “I know enough about humans and those who like to think they are. I know which category you fit in.”
“That’s enough, Davina.”
“You should go… you and your friends.”
The vampire hated it. He caught every nuance of my threat and probably more, but I didn’t care. I was trembling so hard. Slowly, too slow for me, he turned and walked away, but he looked over his shoulder and met my gaze. Then he smiled. Damn vampires.
“Davina! What was that? You can’t talk to customers like that! He might’ve joined up as a volunteer.”
“Trust me,” I muttered underneath my breath. “You don’t want him answering that phone.”
Adam said something, but I didn’t hear it. A figure was weaving lithely through the crowd. Roane. My eyes narrowed when I noticed that he looked like he was on the prowl.
“I’ll be right back,” I said briefly and pushed off through the crowd.
When Roane stalked his prey, he did it well. I lost him eight times before I finally saw him at the corner of our admissions building. I sprang forward and would’ve lost him again if I hadn’t jumped over two bushes and thrust my way through four groups of students. I stepped on toes and banged against private parts, but I didn’t care. I landed with a huff at Roane’s feet and bent over gasping. “We need to talk about the Immortal and all of these vampires here.”
Roane wrapped a firm hand around my arm and yanked me behind him. I didn’t have time to blink before I found myself pushed up against a building wall as Roane glared at me.
“Huh?” I was still focused on breathing.
“You better think long and hard before you start throwing out words like that to me.” Roane glared at me with deadly intent.
Oh. Whoa. I blinked as I took in the sight of him again. The shadow from the building hit his face to accentuate his angular cheekbones. His tight shirt molded against his form, highlighting his lean muscles that would’ve had any A-List actor drooling in envy. Then there was the air surrounding him. He looked capable of killing. He might’ve been a forceful dick, but I’ll admit he was hot. He even smelled of danger. My eyes shifted to see his teeth showing. I knew that his fangs could elongate out from their gums and he could jump nine feet at times. That’s how far the other hunters had jumped on Craig. Their fangs had been bared to the flames before they sunk them into his flesh.
“Davy!” He hissed and clamped his other hand to my arm. He had me trapped in place now.
“Wha—huh?”
“What are you talking about?”
I shrugged out of his hold. “Kates told me about your fairytale. Whatever. But there are way too many vampires at this convention for it to be a coincidence. What is going on?”
He relaxed slightly—which unnerved me. “They’re harmless.”
“I don’t want them here. This is my world. I go to college here. I’d like all the vampires to just leave!”
He laughed.
He laughed.
The lethal Hunter that scared me t
he most laughed at me. “Hey!” I hit his shoulder, but vampire bodies are sculpted and hardened to withstand anything. My hand literally bounced off of his shoulder and I was the one that gasped from the pain.
“What?”
I cradled my hand to myself and gritted my teeth when it started to throb. “Don’t laugh at me.”
“I’m not. Yes, the Immortal is in town. They’re here for her. It’s like when humans flock to wherever the pope shows up. I can’t make them leave so you’re going to have to deal with their presence.”
“They hurt people.”
“That’s my problem. Trust me, I can handle my job.” Roane turned and gestured towards the hotline booth with his head. “I thought you quit that place.”
“What? Huh?” I looked over and sure enough, I could see the booth through a line of pine trees that blocked us from the convention. There he was, hard at work. My Adam. My hero. And he was currently answering some more vampires’ questions. His hand didn’t tremble. He didn’t sweat. He had no idea those things were vampires. I saw how eager he was. He thought he was recruiting future volunteers. Unlike those vampires, his heart was in the right place.
“I saw you over there. I thought you quit.”
Roane pulled me back to our conversation. I felt off balance from my Adam daydreams and then Roane’s presence was a world in itself. The force that came from him was sweltering and it seemed to suck a person in. I shook my head again and tried to get past a little dizziness.
Oh… no… no. I realized with horror that the dizziness wasn’t going anywhere. In fact, the world was starting to circle around me at breakneck speed. I felt myself falling and I shot out a hand for balance. The building in front of me felt sturdy as I leaned my head against it. It was really nice to touch.
And then… double crap. Everything went black.
CHAPTER TWELVE
I found myself in a dark secluded room and on top of an uncomfortable couch when I woke up. Where the hell was I? “We’re in a professor’s office.”
I jumped abruptly and let out a shriek. Then I saw a shadow detach itself from the wall and stroll forward. Roane.
“You fainted.” His voice was curt.
“You caught me before? I thought it was the building.”
He leaned back on the desk and asked, “What’s going on with you? You were vomiting the other night and I know you weren’t drunk. Now you fainted. You look like you’ve been sick since last night. Cold sweats?”
“Why do you care? It’s none of your business. How did you know about the cold sweats?” I didn’t think I wanted to hear the answer.
“I can smell the perspiration on your skin.”
I’d been right.
“It’s got a sweet aged smell to it. Not many vampires can place it.”
“Too much information.”
“You asked.”
“Well, I wish I hadn’t now.” My voice sounded like I’d just sang the lead in an opera—as a novice.
“Your throat hurts?” Was there sympathy in that voice?
“Yeah.” It felt like I’d swallowed bark and then vomited it back up, still fully formed.
Roane crossed and sat in the chair beside my head. He leaned forward on his knees and regarded me intently. Why did the chair have to be positioned so close to the couch? Why did Roane’s hands brush slightly against my shoulder and why didn’t I suppress the shiver this time? I swallowed tightly and grimaced from the pain. The shivers were becoming normal to me. Somehow, I was certain that wasn’t a good thing.
“You might be able to ignore that something’s going on with you, but I won’t.”
I slowly and achingly sat up. “Why do you care?”
“Because I might need you if Kates goes against the decree again. You’re still the only person she’ll listen to and contrary to what you think; I really don’t want to kill your friend.”
What every girl wants to hear. “Well… thanks for not wanting to kill my friend.” What every girl wants to say.
“Have you talked to anyone about your symptoms?”
“You sound like a counselor or a doctor. It’s annoying. And no, I haven’t said anything. You know that, it’s why you brought me in here from the convention—the convention! Adam! Did you—”
Roane stood and crossed to the window. He peeked through the drawn blinds. “Your boyfriend thinks you had an emergency and that’s why you were called away. Don’t worry; I had someone pass along the message.” Did I detect a slight smirk at the corner of his lips? I could only imagine what that might mean… “Can you stand?”
“Uh… yeah… I mean… can I have a minute here?” I swallowed underneath those impenetrable eyes of his.
“I can help, you know.”
I knew instantly what he meant and I felt myself pale. “No, no, no. I am not drinking your blood. I don’t care if it’ll heal whatever wrong’s with me.”
“I thought I’d offer.”
“Again. No.”
Roane stood up. The chair didn’t even creak. It looked old, uncomfortable, and pink. I felt the couch creak underneath my weight so I knew that if I’d been the one to stand up from the chair, it would’ve sounded like a falling tree. Not Roane with his supernatural grace. Not even Kates could move how he did. Something told me that Roane was not the vampire to be pitted against. I shivered at that thought and for once I was thankful the Hunters were on my side.
“You should go home and rest for the night.”
I could rest, yes, but not for the night. “I can’t. I have a date tonight.”
“With your boyfriend?” He said it so calmly and evenly. I frowned when I couldn’t discern what he might be thinking—and why the hell did I care about that?
“With Adam. He’s taking me to the Alexander Restaurant. It’s supposed to be divine eating.” I almost tripped on my own self-righteousness.
“I own it.” His voice was flat. Emotionless.
“Let me know how that makes sense. I didn’t know that vampires were such ‘divine’ chefs.”
“You should stop stereotyping us. You know that we’re not all the same, Davy.”
I heard the seductive promise and I hated how my body reacted. “Is it hot in here?”
“I’m not Adam either. You like him because you can control him. You don’t like me because you can’t manipulate me. You can’t control me.”
“You’re not very normal for a vampire either.” Had I just admitted to being manipulative?
“Truth hurts. Deal with it.” Roane turned back towards the window.
“What’s out there? You keep looking out there. Are you looking for something in particular?”
“More like someone in particular.”
“And that makes sense.” Sarcasm.
Whatever Roane was going to say was interrupted as his eye caught and held on something. I saw a slight grin appear and vanish just as quickly, but his eyes remained on whatever spot he watched. He withdrew abruptly from the window and crossed to the office door. It wasn’t even a second before he opened it and another giant vampire stepped through. It almost looked coordinated, but who coordinates that? ‘Vampires would.’ I snorted at that thought. Roane ignored me, but the other vampire lifted a pair of shrewd dark eyes my way. They were cold. No—scratch that. They were freezing. And they didn’t want me there.
