His shoulders had broadened, and his muscles had filled in since four. Of course, he’d also grown taller. But the guy at the table had to be Chase. Humans might remember little from preschool years, but vampires forgot nothing. Every incident got recorded in our minds, tucked away by our animal brains in case a threat reappeared. I would know his face anywhere. The navy-blue t-shirt he wore read: Santa Monica Basketball. I knew the high school, and it wasn’t far. Sophie had said they were our rival team.
As I passed his table, I longed to swipe a notebook, anything of his, so I could find him later. If there’d been a pen or pencil within reach, I would have. As it was, being a thief didn’t feel like a good way to introduce myself to an old preschool, and supposedly imaginary, friend. Besides if Mother knew to find him here, it must be his regular hangout. He had to be a witch or half witch. Perhaps he didn’t even know he was. My thoughts switched to Ivy and her fate. Why had she disappeared? The same knot grew in my stomach as I remembered the day Chase and I had searched my whole house, then his for her. We’d stayed at the entrance to her room for hours, but it never opened.
We never spoke of her after that day. It wasn’t long after, a few weeks, when Mother announced our move to Miami. Did she realize Chase and Ivy were witches? Were we connected in some way? Was that why we’d relocated? I couldn’t ask her or Orm. It would tip them off. And I wouldn’t put Chase in jeopardy. I didn’t want him involved until I knew what was going on.
The memory of the first time he’d touch me trickled into my thoughts as I followed Mother to the car. Gotcha, he’d said, grabbing my arm and pulling me from under the coats in our foyer closet. Wow! He let go fast. Your arm is so hot. Are you sick?
No. Mother, my mom, I corrected my speech, says I have hotter skin than most people.
He’d shrugged. Okay, you’re it. He tapped me on the shoulder and ran away.
“Would you like to go shopping? Orm says you have a Homecoming dance coming up.” Mother’s voice brought me out of the scene.
“It’s like four weeks away. I don’t even know if I’m going yet.”
“Well, of course you will. You always find friends to go with. Maybe the boy Nick will even ask you.”
Weaving through traffic, I cut my eyes to her. “You’d let me go to the dance with Nick?”
“Yes.” She nodded her head as if to convince herself. “You may attend a school function with a boy.” Her lips formed a smile. “I am capable of listening and adjusting my policies.”
“Good to know.”
“Should we go shopping?”
“Yes.” I turned in the direction of the mall.
I liked dress hunting with Mother. The council supplied our housing, food and drink, staff, vehicles, and bodyguards, so money wasn’t an issue. She liked clothes and always ended up buying several outfits for each of us. Plus, the moments when she felt like a mom and not a governess were few and far between.
Browsing through the stores, I picked out a white dress, and she picked out a pair of black pants and a sweater.
“Do you wear anything besides dark colors?” I asked as she took the outfit to the counter.
“They’re more formal.”
“You and Elizabeth.” At least Mother paired her suits with colored shirts and scarfs.
“Don’t taunt Elizabeth about her style anymore.”
“Sorry, I won’t. Thank you for the outing. I really needed it.”
“You had a rough week. I’m sorry all this happened your first week of school. But don’t worry, we’ll find the rogue vampire.”
Returning home, we found Orm and Elizabeth in the sitting room having tea. We snacked on the fruits and cheeses she had laid out. My leg bounced on the seat, fueled by the longing to retire to my room. As I was about to excuse myself, Mother raised her finger.
“You may go. Dinner is at seven.”
“Thank you.” I set my teacup down. “I think I’ll nap till then.”
In my room, I thought about Chase. Since we’d created pretend aliases for ourselves, Chase wasn’t his real name. He liked to play chase and so that became his name. Ivy had deep green eyes, and I loved to wear purple, so they’d named me Violet. Had I seen some recognition in his eyes?
Thinking I could go back to the library the next day, I crossed my legs over each other, yoga style, and focused on his face. All I saw was the image I remembered from earlier in the day. Giving up trying to connect with him, I crawled under my duvet for a nap. Movement in the room brought me out of my light slumber.
“Were you doing magic earlier?”
“Yes, levitating my stuffed animals to unwind,” I lied.
“Dinner is in an hour,” Elizabeth said, opening my blinds.
“Thank you.”
“Have you been asleep this whole time? You must’ve been tired.”
“We were up late, and then I got up early to have time with Sophie.” Remembering the books in my bag from Fahim and Eden, I lifted my pack from the floor. “I’m going to study till dinner.”
Once she’d closed the doors, I sat cross-legged on my bed, skimming the texts. They were all basic vampire texts: the vampire bible, the edicts, a vampire history, and one on vampire physiology. I’d already memorized all of them. But to keep my cover, I’d have to come up with some questions. Ripping out a sheet from my notebook, I tapped my pen to my lips. If I were human and just learned I was half vampire, what would I want to know? They’d already covered the diet thing. Everything was laid out in the books they’d given me. But they would think me half human and getting through and remembering all the information would be harder.
Can I have normal children? I scribbled on the sheet. How long will I live? Can I compel someone? Would holy water burn me?
My alarm for dinner dinged, and I stashed the books and question page into my backpack. Looking over my image in the mirror, I hoped Mother would be okay with a pair of pants and a sweater. She tended to be low key on Saturdays anyway.
As I guessed, Mother accepted my outfit, and the meal felt less formal. I listened to their conversations on politics, culture, and current events, all the while thinking about the two secret projects I’d amassed. I would need to balance time at the library and time at the bookstore. I’d noted Fahim kept evening hours Monday and Tuesday, so I could use those days to find Chase. If I missed him at the library, and too much time hadn’t passed, then I might be able to catch his scent. Had I decided to stalk him? No, I’d hang out at the library until he showed up.
After dinner, I wandered back to my room and started my real homework. I worked slowly, texting with Sophie every few minutes. She complained about having to stay home and babysit her brother while her parents went out. I wondered what she would think if she knew I hung out with five-hundred-plus-year-old people most of the time.
Skimming Macbeth, my phone dinged, and I read Sophie’s new message. Nick wants to know if it’s okay to call you.
What bad timing, I thought. Between Fahim and Eden, Chase, and Nick, I’d gotten myself into three volatile situations within the span of three days. But Nick was cute and mostly nice, and Mother finally agreed to let me go to a dance with a boy.
Sophie texted a question mark when I guessed my reply didn’t come fast enough.
Sure, I wrote to her.
Reading though Homer’s The Odyssey I fell asleep on the open book. As thoughts of Shakespeare’s fortune-telling witches, Fahim’s bookstore, and Chase danced in my brain, they comingled to form a dream wherein Mother arranged for my marriage to Macbeth. I saw myself clinging to his dead body. When I looked into his ashen face, it was Chase’s, and I sat upright and screamed.
In a flash, Elizabeth and Mother appeared in front of me. “Dear, what’s wrong?” Mother questioned.
“I was just dreaming.” I stood up to reassure them I was fine.
Mother took my hand. “You aren’t having visions of imaginary people again are you? Maybe Los Angeles isn’t the best area for you.”
; “Vampires have dreams like humans. It was a dream.” I scanned their faces as Orm entered the room.
Orm’s left eyebrow cocked up. “But witches don’t have dreams. They have visions.”
“This was definitely a dream.” I prayed I was correct.
“Working out your apprehensions maybe. We can talk about it tomorrow.” Mother cupped her hand against my cheek.
I lowered myself to the mattress. “Thanks. I’m fine now.”
They retreated, and I worked to calm my pulse and breath rate. What if it were a vision? What if Chase died because of me? If he didn’t know about witches, maybe I should forget about him. He’d probably be safer. But then I thought about the possibility of his missing witch parent returning and inserting himself or herself into his life when he turned eighteen. Did I have a duty to prepare him for that? Would I want to be prepared for that?
If honest, I would have to admit I longed for my childhood friend. Further, he might be an important part of me figuring out the riddle of my eighteenth birthday. I could protect him and teach him to protect himself. Wondering how long half witches lived, I decided to stay my course and camp out at the library till I found him.
I set my morning alarm for eleven and took out my school texts and studied until falling into a slight slumber again.
Having shot out of bed, I dressed and showered and then entered the kitchen at twelve.
“To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you up so early?” Orm asked.
“I have a lot of work for school. I need to go to the library again.”
“Ah, the sort of history paper.”
“Yes. Would it kill you to have any real books around here?”
“You would never leave the house,” Orm suggested.
“That may be true.” I picked up an apple and sank my teeth into it.
“I will drive you.”
“I can take the bus. I hate to make you go out on your day off.”
“I wouldn’t rest a bit knowing that rogue vampire is still on the loose.”
In my room, I studied my outfit in the mirror. I’d chosen a purple top, thinking the color might help with Chase’s memory of me. Slipping some socks on, I pulled on my ankle boots and grabbed my backpack. After Orm dropped me off, I planned to loop by Fahim’s shop, drop off the books, then head back to the library.
When Orm pulled up to the library entrance. “Here you are. I will be back at five.”
“Okay, thanks for driving me.” I stepped from the car to the sidewalk and waved goodbye as he drove away. Nervous, I hit my phone on my leg. I extended my arms, savoring the warmth as the sun bathed my skin. Popular vampire literature had vampires all wrong. We loved sun. Much like other animals, we conserved energy if we let the sun heat our bodies rather than doing it ourselves. But I couldn’t dawdle. Picking up my pace, I reached the bookstore.
The witch’s hum picked at my ears, and I shuddered. Forcing energy into my cloak, I opened the door.
“Alena.” Eden called to me as soon as I was inside.
From the overwhelming smell of testosterone and adrenaline, I guessed the back room held as many as twenty vampires. I hesitated.
“Sundays are busy, child.” In a second she closed the distance between us. “Come in. You’re safe with me.”
“Would I be safe alone back there?”
“Vampires are private and sometimes unstable people. Best if you make introductions one on one first.”
“Okay.” I realized all the times I’d socialized with other vampires were under controlled circumstances at Mother’s parties and events. I imagined her guest list might be more of a domesticated population than those gathered in the back bar. Not moving from my position, I swung my bag around to the front of my body.
“I brought the books back.” I handed the stack to Eden. “I have some questions but don’t have time today.” I glanced warily at the bar. “I noticed you were closed Monday and Tuesday till evening. I can only come during the school day, so I won’t be back till Wednesday.”
“What time is your lunch, child?” She ran her hand down my arm and squeezed my hand.
“Eleven thirty.”
“You come by then. We’ll be here.”
“Thanks.” I slung my bag onto my back and exited the shop.
With that errand accomplished, I focused on the next task. Would Chase need more study time? If he was there, what would I say? It’ll come to you, I told myself as I clicked through several options in my head, all of which sounded like cheesy pickup lines.
At the library, I chose a seat in the center beside the aisle to the stairwell and elevator and laid my backpack on the table. Homer’s The Odyssey fell open to the page I’d fallen asleep on, and I started reading.
I read through the text but surveyed the room every few seconds. A half hour and then an hour went by, and I grew stiff and restless. Stowing my books in my bag, I took the stairs to the top floor, making a mental note of the floor plan. Rounding back to the first floor, I typed in witches and European literature into a computer terminal. The search listed the same results as before, and I reclaimed my seat in the middle of the room.
Having finished the section on Circe in The Odyssey, I opened The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart. Reading the text, I grew consumed by the story of the boy Merlin, a bastard child like me, misunderstood and cast out for possessing psychic abilities. My eyes raced over the pages as the tale unfolded.
A knock on my table brought me from my trance, and I looked up to see Chase standing in front of me.
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you.” He slid his hand in his pocket.
Embarrassed, and angry I’d let my guard down in a public place, my face burned with blood rushing to it. “No. It’s fine.” I studied him, noticing his heightened heart rate, quickened breathing, and sweating palms. A hint of a ping of magic emanated from him. I focused on his face. The right phrase didn’t come to me. I had no clue what to say.
Shaking his head, he laughed nervously and looked at the ceiling, the floor, and back at me. “Okay, so this is going to sound like a total pickup line. May I?” He pointed to the chair opposite me.
“Sure.” I smiled, my face warming again. Focus, Alena, I told myself. With so many emotions bombarding me, I was reacting, not a comfortable position for an animal of my type. I tucked my hair behind my ears, slid my hands under my legs, and looked back to him as he set his backpack on the table between us.
“I swear this is not some attempt to get you to go out with me. Not that you aren’t pretty. You really are. God.” He rubbed his hands down his pants and shook his head. “I don’t usually do this. Especially not at the library. I’m not that guy. But you look so familiar. I saw you here yesterday, and I can’t figure out where I know you from.”
His hushed voice resonated in a deep tone through my ears. Its pitch had dropped an octave in the fourteen years since I’d heard it. I smiled, remembering that he’d always wiped his hands on his pants when he got nervous. “I recognized you yesterday too. Okay, I’m not sure what else to say, so I’m going to be honest. I had these imaginary friends when I was little. One was named Chase—”
“And Ivy. You’re Violet? How is that possible?”
“I’m not sure. I thought you looked like Chase yesterday so that’s why I came back.”
“I’m Hunter.” He extended his palm over the table to me. Wishing I’d had my hand on something cooler, I slipped it in his, squeezed briefly before pulling it back.
“A hunter?”
“A bit manlier than Chase. You still have warm skin.”
“You remember that?”
“Bits and pieces. So, what’s your real name?”
“Alena.” I bit my lip, still unsure of what else to say.
“So, you live near here?”
“Yeah, we moved back a couple months ago. You?”
“I live a few blocks north.”
I sensed a body approach, and a librarian stepped up to our table. “K
ids you should go outside if you want to talk.”
“Sorry,” we whispered in unison.
“Do you want to go to a coffee shop or something?” he asked.
“Sure.” I stowed my books in my pack.
Outside, I followed him to the café, telling him about my Mother and our moves. When we sat at a table with our drinks, he cut his eyes around the restaurant and back to me. Leaning in, he whispered. “So, do we have some sort of psychic connection or something? What do you think happened to Ivy?”
My eyes dropped to my lap and back to his. “I think she got sick.”
“Do you think she died?”
“I don’t know,” I said even though I’d always believed she had.
“It felt like she did.”
“I feel it too. Like a knot in my stomach when I think about her.”
“Do you think about her often? I hadn’t thought about you since kindergarten. Mom said I cried for weeks.”
“I’m really sorry.” I reached out, wanting to touch him. I felt that way with few people, Mother, Orm, Elizabeth, Kaylie, and perhaps Sophie.
“Hey, you were four. It’s not your fault. That’s sorta life.”
My face warmed. “With relocating so often, I don’t get a chance to make many close friends. I’ve been having these dreams about the three of us since we moved back to LA.”
“Weird.” He looked at the table.
“So, what about you? Your family? I noticed your shirt yesterday. You go to Santa Monica High?” I took a sip of tea.
“Yeah. It’s just me and my mom too. She’s not with my dad. He travels a lot, so I don’t see him much.” He scanned the room again. “So I’m kind of freaked out about finding out my imaginary friend is real. Does this happen to you? Do you see other people?”
“No.” I bit my lip, wondering when or if I would tell him about witches or vampires. That would be breaking some major rules, but it was the only explanation. He had to be a witch, and we had to be connected somehow.
He leaned towards me “Why are you so warm?”
The Kingdom Journals Complete Series Box Set Page 9
