Remembrance

by Avery Kloss

  I sat across from them, with Maven by my side, and sipped water from a glass, while the waiter took our order. Classical music played from hidden speakers, the lighting dim overhead, and candles flickered on each table.

  “The roses are beautiful,” said my mother. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” A gold watch gleamed at his wrist, as he toyed with the wineglass. He brought it to his lips, although he did not seem to drink more than a tiny sip.

  I chewed on a nail, while my belly grumbled, impatient for the appetizer to appear. Now I wished Maven had brought her car, so we could leave directly after eating. Mom and Jack spoke on a variety of topics, seeming to agree on almost everything, which I found odd. If she said she liked one thing, he agreed. If she disliked the other, he agreed as well. Maven glanced at her phone often, my friend lucky enough to have a newer one.

  Once the meal arrived, I pulled grilled shrimp off a skewer with my teeth and attacked the seafood salad with a fork. Maven ordered battered fish with chips, finishing nearly everything on her plate. I observed Jack then, wondering why he picked at the food, moving things around.

  Does he have an eating disorder?

  He appeared to be of normal weight for a man his height. No one seemed to notice how he played with the food, my mother laughing at whatever witty thing he just said. At that moment, something dropped to the floor, which gave me pause. I purposely lost a fork, reaching to pick it up. Staring at Jack from beneath the table, he tossed a piece of food into the napkin on his lap.

  Wow, that’s not an accident.

  “What are you doin’ down there?” laughed Maven.

  Entirely disturbed now, I shook my head. “Nothing.” There was something wrong with Jack. He wasn’t eating the food in the least, just moving it around and dropping it in his lap.

  “So, Maven,” Jack said, smiling. “You’ve lived in Clatskanie all your life?”

  “Yes.”

  “And how do you like it?”

  “It’s boring.”

  He chuckled, “Well, that’s honest.”

  “I’m getting out as soon as I can.”

  “College?”

  “I dunno. Maybe. Heading to Portland for a while. We’ll see from there.”

  The waiter came to refill our glasses, not needing to do so with Jack’s. I watched him carefully, observing how he pretended to drink, lifting the glass to his lips, yet it did not go any further.

  He has to drive, Brie. He doesn’t want to get pulled over by the cops.

  Whether that explained the odd behavior or not, I wasn’t sure. My mother had not noticed any of these oddities, her laughter ringing out at various moments. Once the bill came, I could not wait to get home, Jack escorting us from the restaurant, where we stood in the cool night. The glare of streetlamps glinted off the cars in the parking lot.

  “Thank you, Jack,” said mom. “That was really nice.”

  “I do hope the evening’s not over yet,” he intoned smoothly. “It’s early.”

  “I want to go home.” Crossing my arms over my chest, I silently pleaded with my mother.

  “You want to see your boyfriend, don’t you?”

  Just the mention of him produced a happy feeling. “Maybe.”

  Jack perked up. “You should’ve brought him along tonight.”

  “He’s busy.”

  “Maybe you’ll see him tomorrow, honey.”

  We approached the car, and Jack held the door for my mother. “Here you are.”

  She stepped in. “Thank you.”

  Maven and I opened our own, and sat in the back. Adjusting the seatbelt, I found myself looking at Jack in the rearview mirror. I stared out the window to avoid him, as we left the parking lot a moment later.

  “You said you wanted me to meet Gabe, right? You should bring him over tomorrow.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Gabe?”

  I met Jack’s eyes in the rearview mirror. “Yes.”

  “Your boyfriend?”

  “He is.”

  “Sounds … familiar.”

  I shrugged, not wanting to discuss my personal life in his presence.

  Mom glanced at me. “What did you say he did?”

  “I didn’t.”

  “He’s not a college student, is he?”

  “No.”

  Maven knew who Gabe was, eyeing me peculiarly. She had to be wondering why I was being so evasive.

  “He’s … in the hospitality business,” I said.

  “What does that mean?” asked mom.

  “It’s like the restaurant business.” I hardly wanted to discuss it further. I did not know how mom would react, if she knew Gabe owned a biker bar with a bad reputation, although … being a vampire would probably be seen as something worse.

  Later that night, I sat on the bed with a book on myths of the ancient world, one of the many we had on the subject in our library. Mom, not finding any of them interesting, wanted to donate everything to charity, but I would not let her just yet.

  A tapping on the window distracted me, the sound so unnatural, far too repetitive to be from the branches of a tree. Sliding from the bed, I ventured over to the desk, where I heard the tap again. Someone was outside the window, although my room stood two-stories up and there wasn’t a balcony.

  “Oh, my God.” I removed the protective spell around the residence, which prevented the supernatural from entering, or was that only reserved for vampires? Another rap sounded. “Who … is it?”

  “I’d love to hang out here all night, sweetheart. It would be better if you opened the window.”

  Excitement raced through me. “Gabe!” I moved aside the drapes, seeing my boyfriend’s handsome face on the other side of the glass. He grasped the wall outside, hanging on with impossible strength. “I hope they got the paint off this thing, otherwise I won’t be able to open it.”

  “It’s all right,” he drawled, flashing pointy teeth. “I’ve got until sunrise. Then I'm toast. Literally.”

  I giggled at that, unlocking the window and pushed it open. “Hi.”

  He grinned. “I guess the spell’s really gone.”

  I stood aside, so he could enter, although he appeared so odd in my room. His presence brought a certain kind of energy with it.

  “How was your dinner?”

  “Really weird.” I took his hand, and led him to the bed. “Let’s sit.”

  “Do you think it’s wise to have … me here, on your bed?”

  I giggled, and shoved aside the books. “You said you couldn’t … ahem … have sex. I guess that means my virtue is perfectly safe.”

  He sat on the edge of the mattress, his smile wolfish. “But, have you asked yourself, how safe is your soul?”

  “I don’t know. Good question. When I had my near-death experience, I seemed to be heading upwards not downwards. I don’t recall seeing flames. I might be okay in that department.” I grasped his cold hand, almost giddy to have him with me like this. “Will you stay the night?”

  He feigned shock, saying, “My dear, no well-bred young woman would ask such a thing.”

  “You know what I mean.” When he spoke like that, it sounded as if he came from another time. It was easy to forget his real age.

  “Don’t you remember our super secret mission?”

  “What’s that?”

  “I’ve been trying to get into this house for decades. Those damn witches kept the spell going for a good while. Don’t you want to know why?”

  “Because they’re meddling bitches?”

  He laughed, “Yes, there’s that.”

  “I almost don’t care now. I’m just so happy to have you here.”

  His attention drifted over the room. “It looks a lot like it did when Suzie lived here. We … spent time together in this very space, hours and hours and hours. This feels … so familiar.” He glanced at me. “You really remind me of her. It’s been so long, I’ve nearly forgotten.” He touched my face, his fingers cool. “You look
at me with such warmth. I want to drown in this feeling, but … I worry about you.”

  “Just because your love affair ended badly, doesn’t mean ours will.”

  “Is that what this is?”

  “Yes.”

  He thought about that, although he debated something internally. It appeared as if he came to a decision. “I could risk it all again, I suppose. You’re not entirely human anymore. Suzie’s responsible for that, whatever she did. She’s been busy these years, operating behind the scenes, so to speak. She wanted us to meet.”

  “I haven’t seen her in a while. I don’t know where she went.”

  “Oh, she’s here. Perhaps, she’s done what she set out to do and she’s now at peace?”

  “I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

  “Or she’ll appear any second.”

  “I should get a Ouija board.”

  He shook his head. “Don’t. Let’s not open that can of worms.” He caressed my cheek, leaning near. “Against my better judgment, I’m going to kiss you.” His cool breath drifted over my cheek.

  I wrapped my arms around his neck, scooting nearer. “Or I’ll kiss you.”

  “Bold and saucy.”

  I giggled.

  “I love the sound of your laugh. I … never want to make you sad, Brie. I never want to see you cry.”

  “Good. Then stay with me.” I pressed my lips to his.

  He groaned against my mouth, the sound rumbling in his chest. Different from other times, this kiss deepened at once, the feeling like drowning in melted butter, all of my senses sparking and prickling, the pleasure intense.

  “You smell like garlic and shrimp,” he murmured.

  “Dinner.”

  “I’d like to meet your mother. I’d like to take you out to dinner.”

  I met his gaze. “That would be nice, but how would you eat? You can’t have human food, can you?”

  He shook his head. “It would make me violently ill. I’d have to move food around my plate and drop the rest in a napkin. It’s how I always fake eat.” Humor lit his eyes, although that vanished at once. “What’s the matter?”

  “Oh, my God!”

  39

  I sprang from the bed, because the shock of what I had just discovered made it difficult to breathe. Pacing back and forth, I tried to get my bearings, knowing now what was so odd about Jack.

  “Brie? What’s wrong?”

  “Oh, wow. Oh, man.” I raked fingers through my hair, finding several tangles. “You know my mom’s new boyfriend?”

  “Not personally, no, but you’ve mentioned him.”

  “When he first took her out, he waited outside. He wouldn’t come in the house. Then at dinner tonight, I saw him push food around his plate and drop the rest in his lap. Who does that?”

  “Me.” His features hardened. “What’d you say this guy’s name was?”

  “Jack Douglas.”

  “Never heard of him.”

  “He gives me the creeps. My hair stands up on the back of my neck, that kind of creeps. It’s this all over ick.” I sat on the bed, and faced Gabe. “You don’t do that to me.”

  He grinned. “That’s good to know.”

  “But he’s weird. He’s very pale, and his skin’s too perfect. In that way, you’re similar.”

  “It is odd he would move food around. That’s … worrying.”

  “I thought maybe he had an eating disorder, but he’s not thin. He looks big and healthy to me.”

  “Why don’t we all meet? If he’s vampire, I’ll know instantly.”

  I could not shake the feeling that something wasn’t right. “I think he’s a vampire. He doesn’t really talk all that much about himself. He lets mom babble on, which she loves. She says he’s a good listener and funny, but he never really offers a ton of information.”

  “There could be explanations for all of that. I’ll have to meet him.” His gaze rested on me. “You look beautiful in that nightgown.”

  A shy smile escaped me. “I do?”

  “It reminds me of what women wore a hundred years ago.”

  I made a face.

  “Victorian era nightgowns. I … find them intriguing. All that fabric everywhere. It makes a man wonder what’s beneath.”

  “Really? I thought none of that interested you anymore.”

  “Oh, it does. I was a man once. I do remember those pleasures. I’d give anything to experience them again.” A wistful, sad look clouded his eyes. “Alas, it’s not to be.” He rested a hand on my knee. “The mystery will have to remain.”

  “I wish you were human, but … I like you either way.”

  “That’s very diplomatic of you.” He shifted, and sat next to me with his legs stretched out before him. “So, tell me, what have you been reading?”

  “Suzie’s books on mythology.”

  “Ah, of course. Did you learn anything?”

  “It all sounds like made up fairy tales and bedtime stories.”

  He glanced at the books on the floor. “Why don’t we read a little then? I’ll watch you sleep.”

  I shifted, resting an elbow on the pillow. “I’d rather talk. I want to know all about you.”

  He appeared chagrinned. “Oh, good grief. This’ll be a long night.”

  “I want to know about your adventures and all the things you’ve done.”

  “Brie.”

  “Humor me.” I eyed him expectantly. “If we’re lucky, Suzie will appear. She’s probably listening right now.”

  “Ah, so there is a point to this,” he teased. “You’re not just trying to torture me with the past.”

  “No.”

  “I’d rather hear your story. I’d like to know why a beautiful young woman would try to end her life.”

  I frowned. “Oh … ”

  He waited for a reply.

  “I’ve always been depressed until recently. It’s not a fun story.”

  “Most of my life isn’t fun either. You might think being alive for a hundred and sixteen years is a blessing, but it’s not.”

  “Why not?”

  “I’m stuck at the age of twenty-three. Forever. It’s always just me. I’ve watched my family and my friends and every person from every era I’ve lived through die. I find the news boring, because it’s always the same, the same tragedies and the same triumphs. What I long for, what I yearn for is to experience life at all ages, the good and bad. I’d give anything to marry someone, to have a family, to watch that family grow.” He stared at nothing in particular, a faraway look in his eyes. “To see a sunrise. To travel by plane anywhere, all the things people take for granted.”

  “That sounds nice. I hope you get your wish, Gabe.”

  “I won’t, but thank you.” His arm went around my shoulder. “Come here. Let me hold you. Let me pretend for a moment that I don’t have to leave before it’s light.”

  A rush of emotion gripped me, the feeling all-encompassing. “I love you, Gabe.”

  “I love you, my precious little one.”

  I did not see Maven in school on Monday or Tuesday. She would not pick up her phone either. By Wednesday, a rumor circulated that she was missing, and her mother had notified the police. I sat with Steffy and Tara at lunch, although I picked at the food, my appetite gone.

  “Did you hear anything else?” I asked, eyeing Tara.

  “Nope. Just the cops are looking into it.”

  Toying with a straw, I stared absently at the room, a chorus of voices resounded, as students talked. “That’s weird.” Someone dressed in black appeared in the doorway. The man caught my notice at once. I sat a little straighter, as did other students, because a police officer had arrived. The man spoke with our principal, George Wilson. “Look!”

  “That has to be because of Maven,” said Tara. “They’re asking questions.”

  The cop peered in our direction, and then moved through the cafeteria towards us. I swallowed the lump in my throat, instinctively knowing he wished to speak to me.
r />   “Miss Thompson?” He came to stand before our table. The man’s attention roamed over us.

  “Yes?”

  He nodded, and smiled slightly. “Officer Sandhurst. I’d like to ask you a few questions, please.”

  “Am I under arrest?”

  “No, but I need to speak to you about Maven Brown. Her mother says you were one of the last people to see her.”

  That bothered me greatly. “Is … is she dead?” I held my breath, while my heart thumped in my chest.

  “Miss Brown’s been missing since Friday night. She never came home. We’ve no indication she’s deceased. We need to find her.” He eyed my friends. “I’d like to talk somewhere else, please.”

  I got up, feeling a little shaky. “Can you guys put my tray away?”

  “Sure,” said Tara. “Good luck.”

  Feeling wretched about Maven’s disappearance, I followed the officer from the cafeteria. Everyone turned to look at us, all chatter ceasing. Wanting to dive under the furniture, I kept my head down, mortified at being singled out like this. He led me to the principal’s office, where we occupied a small conference room. I sat in a chair, and folded my hands in my lap.

  “All right.” Officer Sandhurst retrieved a small notepad. Clearing his throat, he glanced at me. “Maven’s mother says she went out to dinner with you and your mother Friday night.”

  “Yes, and we dropped her off at her house afterwards.” But then I had to rethink that, because Jack brought mom and I home first, with the intension of driving Maven to hers.

  “Are you remembering something, Miss Thompson? You look … worried.”

  “Um … my mom’s date took us home first. He dropped Maven off.” Good God. What had Jack done to my friend? He was the last to see her. A riot of unpleasant thoughts drifted through my mind. We had wanted to drop her off first, but her house was further away, and it hadn’t made any sense.

  “I’m gonna need the name of your mother’s boyfriend.”

  “Jack Douglas.”

  “Do you have his number? An address?”