“So, what are you doing here? Why are you concerned with me joining either of you? There are literally hundreds of other girls in this school. Are you harassing all of them, too? You can’t tell me one vote is going to make a huge difference. So, what’s your deal with me?” My voice was starting to rise and my veins grew hot. I was fed up with the whole subject of Homecoming, queens, campaigns, and courts.
Angie narrowed her eyebrows so much I had an urge to warn her they might freeze that way. Her bright pink lips peeled back into a tight lipped grimace as she spoke. “We just want to know where you stand.”
“Why?”
They exchanged a look before Kitty took over. “If you’re not joining either of us, that’s fine. That’s perfect, in fact. We don’t need your”— she looked me up and down—“kind lowering the bar.”
That did it. I looked at Harper, she looked at me, and I could tell we were on the same page.
“You know what, Kitty-cat? Angie? I am getting involved. I am going to run and I’m going to beat you both so bad you won’t know what hit you. Everyone in this school will be chanting my name on Homecoming. They won’t even remember you. I’m going to show Jefferson High what a Homecoming queen really looks like.”
I barely had enough time to notice the shock on their faces as I stepped around them and marched down the hall. Harper was laughing as she caught up with me.
“Oh my God, you should see them spluttering back there!”
“Idiot girls. If they’d simply left me alone the first day I was here, none of us would be in this mess. Now I have to worry about running a Homecoming campaign along with everything else!”
Harper’s laughter died. “Does everything else include me?”
I turned my head to look into her worried face. “No, it does not. I promise.”
“I think they’re both worried you could beat them and that’s why they’ve been obsessing about what you’re going to do. You know you’ve been the talk of the school since you arrived.”
I grumbled an oath under my breath before changing topics. “So, want to go to the park? Or your house? Somewhere we can talk in private? My parents are home, so my place is out.”
“We can go to my house. My parents won’t be home for hours.” She slid on a huge pair of black sunglasses. The kind that went halfway down her cheeks and showed only a bit of skin and her mouth.
“Great!” Let’s go.”
We were about to leave through the front doors when she stopped to put her sweatshirt on.
“What are you doing? It’s not cold outside. C’mon. Daylight’s wasting.” I grabbed her arm and hauled her through the double doors, herding her toward Bessie. “We’ll take my car and I can swing you back here afterward and you can pick yours up. Sound good?” I was anxious to start unraveling her mystery, so I was chattering and rushing, completely unaware of Harper struggling in my grasp.
Her shriek stopped me. I watched as she scrambled with her shirt, her movements frantic, panic written all over what I could see of her face.
“Harper! What’s wrong?”
That’s when I noticed the skin on her arms and hands reddening. I stared, lost in thought, as everything started clicking into place. But an abrupt move as she finally tugged her sweatshirt over her head brought me out of it. By now a few people had stopped to stare and my survival instincts kicked into high gear. I grabbed her hand and pulled her to my car, unlocking the door and pushing her inside as fast as I could. I ran around to the other side and slid in. She had stopped yelling and was slumped as far as she could into the seat.
I looked at her, at the way she was trying to cover herself up. I thought about the graceful way she moved in the hallways, her athleticism during P.E., her incredible beauty, her aloofness, and finally, the incident in the library.
“So,” I said calmly, “you’re a vampire.”
Chapter Ten
“It’s not as simple as you think.”
We were sitting in Harper’s bedroom. She lived in one of the richer parts of town—the same neighborhood Molly lived in— in a two story red brick house with black shutters, a three car garage, and white picket fence. The lawn was pristine and lined with flower gardens. A long driveway ending in a circle at the front steps ensured privacy from the busy neighborhood streets. It suited Harper perfectly.
“So, you’re not a vampire?” I was lounging on her bed, watching her pace in front of me. The redness on her skin was fading. Her fingers fumbled together in a nervous way that was completely uncharacteristic for the girl I’d come to know over the past few days. She was anxious and at a total loss for words. During the car ride from school to her room, she’d only been able to make noises, never getting a full sentence out until now.
She picked up a lime-green fuzzy pillow and squeezed it against herself as she walked. I admired her matching bedding and waited patiently.
“No,” she finally said. “I’m not a vampire.” I marveled that she wasn’t stumbling over the word and the implication behind it.
I made a “mmm” noise in the back of my throat and let the sound linger between us. She squeezed the pillow tighter, stalking quietly around the room. Her dark hair was halfway down her back in a rumpled mess and her shirt was falling off one shoulder. I’d never seen her this frazzled and it was obvious she wasn’t used to the feeling.
“See, I don’t believe that. And it’s okay that I don’t believe it. I told you I was going to be hard to surprise and I meant it. You don’t see me wigging out, do you?” As soon as the words left my mouth, I wondered why I wasn’t.
“I don’t know why you’re not wigging out. After the blood”—she stopped walking to take a deep breath—“and the instantaneous sunburn, you should be screaming all the way back to your house. I would.”
I pondered what to say. Was this one of the things Pen had warned me to keep a look out for? Should I be texting her? It seemed like a logical move. I didn’t think Harper was dangerous, but she clearly wasn’t aware of the vampire presence in town. Despite appearing to be one.
I spoke slowly, still trying to decide what to do. “I’m not freaking because… because I have some unusual traits, too.”
She grabbed a unicorn stuffie from the floor and hugged it to her along with the pillow. The sparkly purple horn made me smile. “What kind of traits?” she asked.
Making my decision, I dove in. “I’m not flipping out because I am a vampire.” Her eyes widened to the size of saucers and she stopped moving. “But I’m not a very good vampire,” I added.
“What do you mean you’re not a very good one. Are you… do you kill people?” Her voice was soft and she looked at me like a deer in the headlights. It occurred to me she might think I was dangerous.
“No, I don’t kill. What I mean is, I seem to lack all of the characteristics that encompass being a vampire.” She looked puzzled, so I tried to explain further. “For one thing, I get sick from the sight, smell, and taste of blood. I can’t stand it and I have to take blood capsules to get my daily dose. I usually throw up or pass out when I’m close to it.”
“But in the library, you didn’t do any of those things. You just took charge like it didn’t bother you one bit. How?”
“That’s a good question, and one I intend to find the answer to.”
She nodded. “What else?”
“Well, I’m not graceful. Like, at all. I’m clumsy and trip over my own feet. I don’t have the same reflexes normal vampires have. And I don’t look like a vampire. I’m average, and the rest of my family is not. They’re all beautiful in sort of the same way, but different, too. Like you.”
“Me?”
A suspicion dawned on me right then. Slowly, I said, “Yeah, you.”
She kept talking and I tried to refocus on what she was saying.
“So, if you react badly to blood and don’t have the speed and grace of a vampire, how do you know that you are one?”
“Because I was born one. Well, made into one, which
is what we refer to as our birth. And I have fangs. And when I get mad, vein shadows start to pop out all over my skin. I’m strong. It’s like I have some of the characteristics, but not all. Like I’m not full-blooded vampire.” I fell silent, thinking, puzzling things out.
Harper came to sit cross-legged on the bed near me. “I don’t have fangs, but I… I crave blood. I always have. I discovered it when I cut myself as a kid and licked the cut. The blood tasted so good. It’s tangy and rich.”
I made a face. “So, where do you get it?” I was afraid to hear the answer, but we were all in now. I needed to know everything.
“I sneak into the hospital and steal it from the blood bank in there.”
“How? The hospital is pretty secure. They don’t just let people wander around.”
“I have a knack for talking my way out of things. Or into things. I don’t know why, but if I concentrate hard enough, I can almost always make people do what I want them to do.”
She was talking about Persuasion. Of course. That’s how she got her class schedule moved around. The wheels in my head were turning so fast I had to get up and move with them. I started pacing around as she had, processing the situation. “And you have a reaction to the sun,” I said, almost to myself.
She heard me. “Yeah. Though, it’s normally a lot worse than today. That’s why I have to stay inside the building as much as possible unless it’s overcast. I’ve actually had the skin blister up within seconds of being in sunlight.”
“Do your parents know about all this? I mean, when you were little and stuff, surely they noticed you burning up in the sunlight.”
“They don’t know about the blood craving, but they do know how harmful the sun is to me.” She paused, a frown creasing her features. “I was adopted. So, I was about two and a half when they took me in. Not long after that, we went to the park and I almost died from severe burns. I was rushed to the hospital and everything. They did all kinds of tests and finally diagnosed me with polymorphic light eruption. It’s basically a severe sun allergy. The weird part is that I healed in under half the time I should have. The doctors never could identify a reason for that.” She paused. “I don’t remember much about it because I was so small, but my parents told me.”
“It’s because vampires heal quickly. But not me. That’s another one of the things I’m lacking.”
We both fell silent, lost in our thoughts. She was adopted, craved blood, but didn’t have fangs. Sunlight harmed her and she could Persuade people. I shook my head a little. She was more vampire than I was.
“Sadie, I… it feels good to be able to talk to someone about this. Thank you. It’s unreal that vampires exist. That I’m friends with one. That I have most of the same characteristics. What does it mean?”
I pulled my phone out and sent a quick message to the number I had memorized. “I don’t know. But we’re going to find out.”
***
I dropped Harper back off at the school parking lot. It was nearing 7:00p.m. and I was meeting Kade in thirty minutes.
“Thanks, Sadie. I can’t tell you how much better I feel about things now that I can talk about it with someone. I never knew we had a whole community of vampires in town. I don’t feel so alone anymore. Though I still have no idea what to think and I have a ton of questions.”
“I should be thanking you. We’re both feeling the same thing. Neither of us have been able to talk about how hard it is to keep these kinds of secrets. It’s a lot to carry, ya know?”
She pulled me into a hard hug. “I know.” She opened her car door and beamed a smile at me. “See you tomorrow!”
“Yep, see you then.” I was happy to see her upbeat. I was happy to be a part of it. And I had to admit, it was going to be nice to just be myself when I was with her. I watched her drive out of the parking lot before getting back into Bessie. I checked my phone, hoping for a reply from Pen, but there wasn’t any. Frustrated and anxious for answers, I started the car and drove home.
When I pulled into the driveway, Kade was already there waiting for me. I couldn’t help the rush of exhilaration flooding my body when I saw his face. I grinned before running and throwing my arms around him. He swung me around several times. Our lips met as he held me in the air against him and a shiver went down my spine when he deepened the kiss. Hot sparks ignited in my stomach, creating a lovely warmth that fanned through my veins until even the tips of my toes felt it. As he lowered me to the ground, he eased his mouth off mine and I moaned softly in protest.
“Well, hello there.” I could hear the smile in his voice as I rested my head against his chest. God, it seemed like forever since I’d seen him.
“Hi,” I replied in a soft voice.
“Wanna get in the car and go somewhere a little more private?”
“Yes.”
He let go of me and held the car door open. “Your chariot awaits.”
Smiling, I gave him a curtsy and crawled into the passenger seat. As soon as he was in and starting the car, I reached for his hand. We locked fingers and the familiarity of it caused tears to well up in my eyes. I blinked them away, not even sure why I was crying in the first place. I kept my eyes on the scenery as he drove and sighed a little when he pulled into the parking lot adjoining the park. Keeping my eyes away from the spot where Cam had parked, I promised myself I wouldn’t think about that afternoon with him here. I was with Kade. And that was that.
The sun had gone down and we were in those precious minutes between twilight and dark. Wind rustled the tree leaves and faint chirps and peeps echoed around us as the birds settled into their nests for the night. Kade took my hand again and we walked to a small grove of trees and bushes. Pushing one branch to the side, we entered the dark cave-like center and sat down. Here, we were completely hidden from the world.
He pulled me onto his lap and I nestled my head against his chest. Wrapping his arms around me, he lowered his mouth to my ear and whispered, “Tell me everything.”
I let out a deep sigh that pulled from my toes. He felt it and hugged me closer.
“I don’t even know where to start.”
“Start from the beginning. Tell me about your first day and every moment since.”
I paused, remembering Pen’s warning, and picked through my thoughts. I started telling him about the Homecoming queen brawl and my decision today about running against Kitty and Angie. He laughed and a small burst of annoyance caused my skin to prickle.
“You’re going to run for Homecoming queen?”
I huffed. “I don’t see what’s so funny about it. Harper thought it was a great idea. You don’t think I’m pretty enough to pull it off?”
“Sadie, no. That’s not it at all. I think you’re beautiful. And who’s Harper?”
“So, why the laughter?” I asked, ignoring his question.
“I’m laughing because of how you’ve described it. Homecoming queen is the last thing you’d ever be interested in. You’re not very girly… and I mean that in a good way. I can’t see you parading around in a frilly dress and wearing a crown as you wave to a crowd of people.”
His answer seemed reasonable, but there was still something in his tone that bothered me. The words were right, but I sensed the condescension in his voice. It was subtle, but it was there.
“Anyway,” I continued, disregarding what he said, “moving on to a different topic. Molly filled me in on what’s happening with her at school.” I waited, but he didn’t say anything. A slight tensing of his legs was all I noticed. I gave him a few more seconds to offer up an explanation, but when he didn’t, I went off. “How could you, Kade?” I turned around to face him. “How could you not defend Molly when Jill and the other kids are being so mean to her?”
He looked up at the sky, refusing to meet my eyes. When he still didn’t say anything, I started to get up. But with his quick reflexes, he reached out and grabbed my arm, pulling me back down to him.
“I didn’t defend her because I can’t get involved.
” The muscle in his jaw worked. This time he did look at me and these were the eyes of a stranger.
I tried to pull my arm from his, but he was too strong. “Dammit, Kade, let me go! What do you mean you can’t get involved? You didn’t hesitate when I was the one who needed defending. This is just an extension of that, so what’s different now?”
He continued to look at me with strange eyes. A knot of dread began to form in my stomach, growing larger the longer he didn’t speak. I tried, again, to pull out of his grasp, but it was no use. He held firm, exactly where he wanted me.
“Because everything is different.” He paused a beat. “Because there was a reason I sought you out.”
I reeled back as if he’d slapped me.
There was a reason.
With those few words, everything changed. Puzzle pieces began falling into place and I shook as they sank in. His sudden and immediate connection with me hadn’t been born from love at first sight. It had been designed, planned, like an operative choosing his mark. All the times I’d wondered how he could have been attracted to me, a plain girl, born a vampire but useless at it… I’d been right to question. Betrayal cut sharp and deep. Memories of those first few weeks together played through my mind and the pain of knowing it was all a ruse made me crumble.
He watched as I pieced it together and I saw a hint of hardness behind his eyes. I wondered how he’d been able to hide it all this time.
“Let go of me.” I tried to pull free but his grip was solid. I yanked harder, and he suddenly let go. I rubbed my wrist and glared at him. “Who are you?”
“I’m the same person I’ve always been.” His voice was gravelly as if suddenly he was exhausted by me.
“What do you mean you’re the same person?” My voice rose to a hysterical pitch. “You’re nothing like who I thought you were!”
Between Lies Page 11
