Remembrance

by Avery Kloss

  “Whatever we have’s in the fridge. Well, you have fun with that. I guess it could be fun. Let me know if you find anything.”

  “I will.”

  Then I remembered the conversation from the night before. Gabe did not want me outside after dark. I had to embark on the secret backyard mission soon. With this in mind, I found the battery I needed. After dressing properly in a jacket and sneakers, I started in the backyard, where I worked nearer to the house and then fanned out. The instrument beeped several times, and I found bottle tops and a hairpin, along with a crumpled can. Several pennies and a dime followed.

  Not having any luck, I sat on the grass a while later, and stared at the trees in the distance. I tried to remember what I read in The Book of Shadows last night. I should have torn that page out and kept it. Where had it said to place the jars? I tapped my forehead with a finger, rocking back and forth with my knees drawn up.

  “Come on, Brie. Think. What did it say?”

  Then it came to me. The jars were to be placed North, South, East and West, which made sense. Hoping this might help, I began the search anew, the machine beeping almost instantly. I used a hand trowel, and hit something hard a moment later. After digging for a bit, I managed to pull out what looked like a jar with a metal lid.

  “Ah, gotcha!” I held it up to examine the contents, seeing bits of dried lavender, some sort of dried green plant species and salt mixed in with white rice. “One down, three more to go!”

  I spent the next hour digging in various locations and finding either old lawn tools and cans or coins. A second jar appeared a while later, filled with the same things. I found the third and the fourth after, quite pleased with my efforts. Not knowing what to do with the jars, I emptied them in a pile in the cemetery, and hoped whatever spell they predicated would now end.

  “No more protection spell. You’re gone, baby.”

  Tossing the jars into the trashcan by the side of the house, I picked up the metal detector and went in. I wanted to listen to music before I called Gabe. He would not answer the phone until after dark anyhow. Out the window, clouds gathered, the greyish blotches darkening; a storm brewed, threatening bad weather.

  I left the metal detector by the laundry room door, not needing it any longer. Taking the back stairs, I sat in my room, and listened to records, waiting impatiently for the sun to go down. With any luck, he might get to meet my mother tonight. I longed to have him nearer, wondering if this was what the ghost had planned all along. She had been quiet for a while.

  “Dinner’s ready soon, honey,” called mom.

  “Okay, I’ll be down in a minute.”

  Not dark yet, but nearly sunset, I tried Gabe, and hoped he might pick up. He answered the phone a moment later, sounding slightly groggy. “Hello, Brie.”

  “I hope I didn’t wake you. I waited as long as I could.”

  “Did you get the package?”

  “I did! I found all the jars.” I smiled into the phone.

  “Good girl.”

  “Will you come over later to see if it works?”

  “The spell shouldn’t have power anymore.”

  “I want you to come over and meet my mom.” The doorbell rang then. “Someone’s here.” I slid off the bed to glance at the front yard, where I saw Jack’s car. “Mom’s boyfriend.” Was she going out again tonight? “Will you come by, please?”

  “I’ll try. I’ve some business at the bar first.”

  “How’s Reese?”

  “She’s fine. She’s living with Serena at the moment.”

  “The bloodsucker who made her?”

  “Yes, Brie. They’re not enemies, you know? They’re friends. She’s showing her the ropes.”

  “Which means they’re feeding together?” I cringed at the thought, hating how gross vampires could be.

  “Mostly.”

  I changed the subject. “Do you miss me at all?”

  “I just woke. I haven’t been conscious long enough to miss you.”

  “I miss you.”

  “You shouldn’t. Now that the spell’s off, we’ll see what Suzie has in mind. I really need to put a stop to this nonsense.”

  “What nonsense?”

  “Us.”

  I had heard the argument before. “We’ll talk about it later. Come over as soon as you can.”

  “Yes, yes,” he said dismissively, a hint of humor in his tone. “Hold down the fort. I’ll be there shortly.”

  “Bye, Gabe.”

  “Till later.”

  I heard mom calling. “What?”

  “Come down, Brie.”

  Leaving the phone on the bed, I went to the door. “What is it? Are you going out again?”

  “No, but Jack stopped by.”

  I arrived at the landing, and glanced into the entryway, where Mr. Douglas stood on the newly refinished floor.

  “Good evening, Brie.” A smile emerged.

  For some reason, that greeting made the hair on the nape of my neck stand on end. “Uh, yeah. Hi.”

  Mom beamed. “He brought ice cream. Do you want some?”

  “Not right now.”

  She glanced at the man. “It’s so nice of you to stop by. I didn’t know you were coming. I should show you around. I’ve been renovating.”

  “I’ve seen it before, but it’s lovely now. It used to smell of mothballs. You’ve modernized the décor, yet it still feels like an old house.”

  “Can I take your coat?”

  He wore dark trousers and a grey leather jacket, his hands having disappeared into the pockets. “I’m fine. You don’t need to make a fuss over me, Hila.”

  “Well, then, how about a glass of wine?”

  “That sounds wonderful.”

  “I can put on some music. We can talk.” She drew him towards the hallway.

  Before he disappeared out of sight, he glanced at me, smirking again, grinning like the cat that just ate the mouse.

  37

  I waited for Gabe, and listened to my mother laugh downstairs, finding something Jack said entertaining. A little after eleven, I faced the fact that he more than likely could not come. I called him again, although he did not pick up the phone. Typical.

  When I went downstairs later, I found mom with the TV on. “Where’s your date?”

  “Oh, he had to go home. He’s got to be at work early in the morning.” A soft smile lit her face. She seemed enamored of the guy, her happiness evident.

  I did not want to tell her that her boyfriend creeped me out. “I’m going to bed.”

  “It’s late, honey.”

  “I know.”

  “Jack wants to take us out to dinner Friday night.”

  “Um … okay.”

  “He’s going to a medical conference on Saturday, and he won’t be back for a few days, so I figured Friday would work.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Is there something else you wanted?” She eyed me quizzically, her brows furrowing. “You look worried about something.”

  “You’re not like really serious about this guy, are you?”

  “It’s early days. We’re just hanging out, getting to know each other.”

  If given enough time, she would find out more about him, his true character revealed. I had to let this run its course, not wanting to ruin mom’s happiness. I had a weird feeling about the guy, but I had to try to give him the benefit of the doubt.

  “Sounds good. I’m gonna get some water, then go to bed.”

  “Night, honey.”

  “Night, Mom.”

  Opening a cabinet in the kitchen, I retrieved a glass and poured water from a plastic container that held a filter. Returning to my room, I got into bed, but left the lamp on the nightstand on. My phone sounded, making me jump.

  “Hello?” I heard noise in the background, the sounds of people talking. “Gabe?”

  “It’s late, Brie.”

  “I’m aware of that. Why aren’t you here?”

  “Clive called in sick, and
I’m bartending for a while. Go to sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow night.”

  “I’m having dinner with my mom and her new boyfriend.”

  “I’ll come by later then.”

  I yearned to see him, feeling low about the fact that he was stuck at work.

  “Brie?”

  I cleared my throat. “Yeah?”

  He chuckled, “Don’t pout. You’ll see me tomorrow night.”

  “You being a vampire is really inconvenient.”

  “How so?”

  “That you can’t come out in daylight. I’m stuck having to adjust to your schedule.”

  “That’s why you shouldn’t get too attached. It’s not gonna work; you see that, don’t you? You’ve your whole life ahead of you. You’ll go to college and meet some guy and have children and a nice house and all of that stuff. I’ll be doing what I always do, which is lurking around the fringes. I’ve got almost nothing to offer you.”

  “You can push me away all you want, but it’s not gonna work. I still want to be with you. I’m hoping the stupid protection spell’s gone, so we can spend more time together.”

  “You’re incredibly stubborn,” he grumbled, while someone shouted in the background. “I need to go. The natives are getting restless.”

  “Okay.”

  “I’ll see you tomorrow night, I promise. Then we’ll know if the spell’s gone or not.”

  “I don’t want to go to school. I just want to do my own thing.”

  “I know you do. Like I said, you’ve a lot of potential. You’d be throwing it all away getting tied up with me. I need to go. Get some sleep.”

  “It’s too late. I’m already … there.”

  He failed to reply to that, hanging up.

  I spied Maven by her locker, my friend wearing green leggings and a purple sweater. She knew I approached, a smile on her face. “Hey, Brie.”

  “Hi.” Seeing her happy made my day, because the girl had been so depressed. “How’s Reese?”

  “She came home the other night to see mom. It was kinda a weird reunion. We had to make up a story to explain where she’s been all these months.”

  “I bet.”

  “Let’s grab some lunch.” She indicated the cafeteria. “I’m starving.”

  I fell into step with her. “So, now that you know Gabe didn’t do that to her, what do you think?”

  She sighed, clearly annoyed by the topic of conversation. “I know you’re in love with the guy. It doesn’t really matter what I say about him, does it?”

  “I guess not.” We grabbed trays, and slid them along a counter. I took a plate of lasagna. I hoped it did not taste bad. “He’s not evil. I guess that’s what I’m trying to say.”

  “They’re bloodsuckers. They aren’t saints, Brie. They never will be.”

  I glanced at the guy before me in line, concerned he might have overheard that. “Let’s talk in a minute.” I paid for my items, and Maven and I strolled over to an empty table. “I want Gabe to meet my mom.”

  She made a face. “Why?”

  “Because he’s important to me, and I want her to meet him.”

  “I’m glad I know what happened to my sister, but she’s different now. She’s not like she was. She’s never going to be a part of the family again. She has this blood lust to contend with and the whole aversion to sunlight thing. I … don’t feel close to her anymore.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  She shrugged. “This town’s infested.”

  “With … vampires?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You didn’t cause that. I didn’t cause that. We just have to live here and deal with it.”

  “I’d give anything for Reese to be her old self again, but I know that won’t happen. She roams the city streets at night, drinking from hobos.”

  I made a face. “Ew … let’s not talk about this, okay?”

  “It’s the cold, hard truth. You might think Gabe’s totally honorable and just a hunk of a guy, but we all know what he has to do to survive.”

  I lowered my voice. “He gets blood bags from the hospital. He also drinks deer blood.”

  “Wow,” she said dryly. “What a selfless humanitarian.”

  Not having a response to that, I took a bite of lasagna, seeing Steffy and Tara across the way. “I don’t like what they are any more than you do. I wish Gabe could be human. I want that more than anything. He wants that too. If he was human, we could get married and have a family.” A sudden rush of emotion gripped me, the feeling so intense tears threatened. “I wish he wasn’t a bloodsucker. It figures I’d meet the perfect guy, only I can’t really be with him.”

  “Man, I’m sorry.” She touched my hand. “I didn’t mean to make you cry. I’m happy my sister’s okay. I’m glad you got a boyfriend. You should enjoy him. I don’t know what’s gonna happen, but … we both have our problems. My mother’s a drunk. My sister’s a vampire. My best friend’s in love with a vampire.” She grinned. “That’s enough for a Gerry Springer episode.”

  I laughed at that, sniffing. “Yeah.”

  She glanced at my food. “Are you gonna eat that? It looks good.”

  “You can have some.” I had a thought. “What are you doing tonight?”

  “Finishing an essay, why?”

  “I have to have dinner with my mother and her new boyfriend. I really don’t want to. He kinda gives me the creeps. Why don’t you come along?”

  She speared the lasagna with a plastic fork. “I’d really like that, anything to get out of my house.”

  “Because of your mom?”

  “Well, if she’s drinking, it’s not fun. If she’s sober it’s fine, but that doesn’t happen all that often.”

  “I’m sorry, Maven. That sucks.”

  She shrugged, and lifted her chin. “I’ll move out soon enough. I'm not gonna hang around this town forever. As soon as I graduate, I’m heading to Portland.”

  “That’s sad. I’ll lose a friend.”

  “We should get an apartment together. There’s nothing going on here. It’s a dead end.”

  “I don’t know if I’d go that far. It’s beautiful with all the rivers and trees. We used to go to the mountains all the time in Colorado. I wasn’t a skier, but we went up for the fall colors and the hot springs.”

  “I want the bright lights of a bigger city. Nature isn’t really my thing.”

  “I love it,” I murmured, thinking of how peaceful the walk home was.

  “I’ll go out to eat with you, though. Thanks for the invite.”

  “I should thank you for agreeing to come. You saved my butt.”

  Mom’s perfume lingered in the hallway, the music on in her bedroom. I had no desire to go out to eat, sitting at the desk and tapping a pencil to a pad of paper. Staring absently out the window, I caught sight of Jack’s headlights, the car approaching. “He’s coming, Mom!” I shouted, but I doubted she would hear me with the music so loud.

  Sighing with displeasure, I braced myself for an awkward evening, just praying I made it through.

  “Mom!” The doorbell rang. “Aw, crap!” I muttered, getting up and glancing in the mirror over the dresser. I’d worn minimal makeup, with a hint of red lipstick. “Mom!” Knowing she could not hear me, I said, “Your creep of a boyfriend’s here.”

  The doorbell rang again. Annoyed, I left the room, and headed down the hallway, where music blared. Descending into the foyer, I went to the door and opened it. Mr. Douglas stood there with a bouquet of red roses.

  “Hi, come on in,” I said somewhat tonelessly. “She’s getting ready.” I took a few steps back, suddenly uneasy in his presence, although there wasn’t really a reason for it. He stood a foot taller, his shoulders filling my vision. Wearing dark slacks and a black jacket, he smelled of aftershave, his hair perfectly combed.

  “These are for you and your mother.”

  I took the flowers. “Thanks.”

  “You look lovely, Brie.” He smiled politely.

  “Uh
… thanks.” I hardly knew what to say to the man, wishing my mother would hurry up and come down. “I’ll put these in water. You can just … wait in the parlor.” I hurried towards the kitchen, although he followed, which made the situation even weirder. Retrieving a vase from the cabinet, I filled it with water and placed the flowers in it. They certainly were pretty.

  “The same color as your lips,” he murmured, eyeing the roses.

  The doorbell rang again. Oh, thank God! “That’s my friend, Maven. She’s coming with us tonight.”

  His smile flattened marginally. “I thought it would be just you and your mother.”

  “I invited her.” I brushed past him. “I gotta get that.”

  “Well, your friend is more than welcome.”

  Something in his tone struck me as disingenuous, and I often detected a hint of an accent, although he mostly masked it. I turned to look at him. “I don’t need to come, you know. You and mom can have a nice, quiet dinner. I’ve got … some homework to finish anyway.”

  “I’d prefer it if you joined us. I’d like to get to know you better, Brie.”

  That also felt off, sending a shiver down my spine. “Sure. Excuse me.” I hurried for the door and the safety of Maven’s company.

  38

  Packed with people, the steak and seafood restaurant smelled of freshly baked garlic bread and grilled shrimp. While we waited to be seated, I stood close to Maven, my friend dressed in black jeans and a jacket.

  She eyed the dining room expectantly. “I’ve never eaten here before. It’s one of the nicer restaurants in town.”

  “I guess.” I glanced at my mother, who smiled serenely, clearly happy that I had agreed to come along. “What do you make of … ” I lowered my voice, “you know who?”

  “He’s all right. He looks kinda young. Your mom’s robbing the cradle.”

  “Sure,” I muttered, not believing that for a second.

  Jack’s face, the skin unlined and smooth, appeared to belong to someone younger, but his speech and behavior shattered that illusion, at least in my opinion. I struggled to make sense of it, watching him carefully, how attentive he was to mom, escorting her to the table with a hand at the small of her back.