Beast

by Kate Harre

  He grinned sheepishly. ‘Guilty. I’ve seen them perform several times; your Dad’s awesome.’

  ‘Yeah, he is,’ she said proudly. ‘But he’s also a bit of a pain in the butt.’

  Alex laughed.

  She thought about asking him why there were no photos anywhere in his room, but she figured she knew why. What was the point in surrounding himself with photos of the friends who didn’t care enough to find out if he was still alive or the father who had abandoned his disfigured son?

  She liked his room; especially the fact that it felt lived in. It wasn’t exactly messy, but it didn’t have the pristine tidiness of the rest of the house and she could easily imagine him hanging out here.

  Alex led the way back to the library and she pulled up one of the bucket chairs next to the one he’d dropped into and watched him fire up the computer. It suddenly occurred to her there would probably be a profile photo of him on his Facebook page and she wondered how he would feel about her seeing it. His hand hovered uncertainly over the mouse and she figured he’d had the same realisation.

  She pushed her chair back and got up. ‘I’ll give you some privacy while you log in and get to the relevant page.’

  ‘Don’t you want to see what I used to look like?’ he asked abruptly, his expression guarded.

  ‘No,’ she said and realised she meant it. ‘What you look like now is the guy I know and I’m just fine with you the way you are.’

  ‘I thought you’d be curious,’ he mumbled in surprise.

  ‘That other person who goes with the perfect face doesn’t exist anymore and I’m not sure I would have liked him anyway,’ Annie said honestly, not holding anything back. ‘I like the person you are now and the face that goes along with it.’

  Alex grimaced, but she didn’t miss the look of relief in his eyes. ‘You’re amazing, do you know that?’

  ‘Yep,’ she said cheekily and wandered over to the bookshelves. Then a thought occurred to her. ‘Wait. It’s the weekend. Everyone’s going to be logged into Facebook right now and they’ll see if you log in. Kind of gives away that you’re still living and breathing.’

  He snatched his hand away from the mouse. ‘Damn. I hadn’t thought of that.’

  ‘Why don’t you wait until tomorrow during a time everyone will be in class?’ she suggested. ‘You shouldn’t be noticed then.’

  Her phone buzzed. She pulled it out of her pocket and checked the message. It was Karen.

  Are you coming home for dinner? I’ve got lasagne in the oven.

  ‘What time is it?’ she muttered and glanced out the window. The afternoon had passed in a flash and it was nearly dark.

  ‘What’s the matter?’ Alex asked, studying her frown.

  ‘Nothing. I didn’t realise how late it was. Mum’s got dinner cooking and wants to know where I am.’

  He glanced over his shoulder to look out the window, just as surprised as her to see how dark it was. ‘The time kinda disappeared. You’d better go. We can look for photos another time.’

  ‘Do you want to come?’ she asked impulsively, not ready to leave him yet. ‘For dinner? It’s dark enough for you to stay suitably concealed, isn’t it?’

  He looked nonplussed. He didn’t get invitations to dinner, well… ever. ‘I, uh, wouldn’t want to intrude,’ he said, his discomfort evident.

  ‘You wouldn’t be intruding; it’s only Mum and I and Mum will be delighted to get to know you better.’

  ‘Then thanks, I’d love to.’ He smiled shyly and stood up from the table, running his hands nervously down the front of his jeans.

  Annie shot a quick text back to her mother. On my way. Alex is coming too.

  ‘I have to warn you though, Mum is a bit hit and miss when it comes to cooking. It could be good or completely inedible,’ she cautioned ruefully.

  ‘I don’t care. The company will be great,’ he said simply.

  *

  Mercifully, it was a good cooking night. The lasagne was melt-in-your-mouth delicious and, served with fresh salad and garlic bread, there was nothing to complain about.

  ‘How’s the painting going, Mrs Archer?’ Alex asked between mouthfuls.

  ‘Karen,’ she reminded him and then grinned happily. ‘The series I needed to complete for this commission is done, so right now I couldn’t be happier.’

  ‘So when do you have to go to New York?’ Annie used the last of her bread to mop up the remaining sauce on her plate.

  ‘I leave first thing Friday morning and I’ll be back late Saturday afternoon, in time to take you and Chelsea dress shopping in Charlotte on Sunday.’

  Alex turned to her and mouthed one word: Red. Annie attempted to ignore him but couldn’t help the blush spreading up her neck.

  Oblivious to their interplay, Karen frowned. ‘Are you sure you’re going to be alright on your own?’

  Annie rolled her eyes. ‘Mum, I’m eighteen now. I’ll be fine.’

  ‘You’re going to be staying here by yourself?’ Alex questioned, his brows drawn together in concern. ‘Do you really think that’s such a great idea with a killer wolf still on the loose?’

  ‘I don’t think it’s going to come roaming through the streets! I’ve stayed on my own before; it’s really no big deal.’

  ‘You can stay at my place Friday night,’ Alex offered. ‘We’ve got plenty of spare rooms – you can have your pick.’

  ‘I really don’t think that’s necessary,’ Annie argued, not enjoying being painted as a helpless female.

  ‘I do,’ Karen surprised her by saying. ‘I’ll worry if you’re alone – which means I’ll probably call you every fifteen minutes and drive you crazy.’

  ‘Mum, it’s about a hundred times safer here than it ever was in New York!’

  ‘There weren’t killer wolves in New York.’ Karen turned to Alex. ‘Maria will be there, right?’

  Alex nodded.

  ‘Nobody made you have a chaperone when you were my age,’ Annie muttered under her breath.

  Karen’s sharp ears didn’t miss a thing. ‘Maybe they should have!’

  Annie crossed her arms mutinously. ‘You’re making me feel about five years old!’

  ‘Tough,’ Karen declared. ‘At least I know nothing can happen to you at Alex’s.’

  Alex bit his lip to hold back a smile.

  Chapter 9

  Adrian cornered her after first period on Monday, the determined but slightly nervous look on his face forewarning her of what he wanted to talk to her about.

  ‘Chelsea’s bullied you into asking me to the Prom, hasn’t she?’ she said bluntly. She liked Adrian but she didn’t exactly want to be a pity date.

  He flushed guiltily and shoved his hands in his pockets. ‘I probably would have got around to asking you anyway. I figured you’d be okay just going as friends.’

  Annie didn’t miss the subtle emphasis on the last word and smiled. ‘It’s okay, Adrian. I don’t have designs on you. There’s someone I’d like to be going with but he’s not available.’

  ‘I didn’t know you were interested in anyone. Do I know him?’ he asked curiously.

  Since Adrian would have at least known who Alex was, she avoided answering the question directly. ‘He doesn’t go to school here.’

  ‘Oh, okay. So do you want to go with me?’

  ‘Yeah. That would be great.’ She looked at him sideways as she grabbed her next set of books out of her locker. ‘You kind of missed the boat on Chelsea, huh?’

  He shrugged and looked away. ‘I can’t see us working out long term anyway.’

  Annie frowned as she watched Adrian walk away. She couldn’t understand why he was so negative about Chelsea. He obviously liked her, but there were times when he also seemed to hate her.

  At lunchtime, Alex rang her. Just in case anyone caught a glance at the screen of her phone, she’d re-entered him as Xander, a contraction of Alexander that he’d probably hate if he knew about it. Excusing herself from the table where she was sitting
with Chelsea, Mikayla and Caroline, she walked quickly out of the cafeteria, Chelsea’s eyes burning a hole in her back the whole way – at least that’s what it felt like. Guilt at keeping Alex a secret from Chelsea was making her imagination run wild.

  ‘There were three others at the party who weren’t basketballers or cheerleaders,’ Alex reported. ‘There were a lot of photos. I didn’t want to stay logged in for too long, but I’ve printed them all off so you can have a look through them later on and see if you notice anything I might have missed.’

  ‘Cool.’ Annie leaned against the lockers near the cafeteria doors, attempting to suppress the stupid grin trying to work its way across her face. She loved the sound of Alex’s deep voice.

  ‘Since Louise Kent was in every single photo and looked completely wasted, I think we can rule her out. Which leaves us with Jeff Larson and Gena McNaught.’

  ‘Okay. I’ll make an opportunity to talk to both of them,’ Annie said, getting back to business and planning how she’d approach them. Jeff sat across from her in biology, so he should be easy enough. And Gena was in drama group with Caroline and Chelsea, so she could probably ask Chelsea to do some digging.

  ‘There’s one other thing,’ Alex broke into her thoughts. ‘We don’t know who took all the photos – so that could be another person to consider.’

  ‘You’re right. I’ll see if I can find out who everyone entrusted their phones to.’

  ‘How’s your day going?’ Alex asked quietly.

  ‘Pretty standard. Aside from Adrian asking me to Prom – so I guess I have a date now.’

  There was silence on the other end of the phone for a moment and then Alex spoke with forced cheer. ‘That’s great! Adrian’s a good guy.’

  ‘He is and we know each other fairly well so it shouldn’t be too awkward.’

  ‘Yeah. Look, I’d better let you get back to your lunch. See you later for training.’ And the line went dead.

  Annie drew the phone away from her ear and frowned at it. That was almost rude. What had she said to upset him? Maybe his memories of last year’s Junior Prom were bothering him. Tucking her phone back in her pocket, she returned to the cafeteria.

  *

  ‘Okay, spill.’

  ‘Huh?’ Annie hurriedly clicked away from the text message she was writing Alex, before looking over at Chelsea, who had dropped into the chair beside hers. It was Wednesday, the only day they had a study break together.

  ‘You’ve been texting all the time lately and taking mysterious phone calls. I’m out of the loop and I don’t like it,’ Chelsea huffed, her bottom lip sticking out slightly. ‘Have you and Adrian got something going on?’

  ‘No! You know I’d never step on your toes like that!’

  Mollified on that score, Chelsea relaxed a little. ‘Well who are you texting all the time?’

  ‘Just a friend.’ Annie said vaguely, shoving her phone back in her pocket in case Chelsea got any ideas of poking through it.

  ‘Of the male variety?’ Chelsea asked dryly, clearly exasperated with the lack of forthcoming detail.

  ‘Yeah. But it’s not like that,’ Annie hurried to explain.

  ‘Sure it isn’t. That’s why you’re texting all the time.’ Chelsea rolled her eyes. ‘Your face literally glows when your phone buzzes – you’ve definitely got feelings for this guy.’

  Annie bit her lip. Was Chelsea right? Annie couldn’t deny the flutters in her stomach she got whenever she saw Alex or the way she replayed their conversations while she was lying in bed at night. But she’d managed to avoid translating that into actual “feelings”, because it would… complicate things... in a way she didn’t think Alex was ready for.

  ‘You really didn’t know, did you?’ Chelsea was studying the rapid flow of expressions across Annie’s face. ‘Girl, you are so out of tune with your emotions!’

  Annie blushed and looked away from Chelsea’s all too knowing eyes. ‘I don’t want to talk about it.’

  ‘Why not?’

  ‘He doesn’t go to school here and we don’t have that kind of relationship.’

  ‘Is he the reason why you always run out of school the second the bell rings?’

  If it was possible, Annie’s face heated even further. She shrugged awkwardly. ‘He’s my self-defence teacher or more like personal trainer.’

  Chelsea groaned and hit her forehead with the heel of her palm. ‘I knew I should have signed up to classes with you! He’s totally hot, isn’t he? And I bet his body is super buff.’

  Smiling at her friend’s “appreciation” for good-looking guys, Annie thought of Alex’s face, which definitely couldn’t be described as hot. ‘Nope, that’s not it, although he’s ridiculously fit so his body is probably pretty good and I can definitely vouch for his biceps.’

  ‘Let me get this straight.’ Chelsea’s forehead pleated in concern. ‘You don’t think he’s good looking but you get this goofy grin every time he texts you. I don’t get it.’

  ‘I can’t explain it,’ Annie said helplessly. ‘There’s just something about him that I’m drawn to.’

  ‘Interesting. When do I get to meet him?’

  ‘Not any time soon. Let’s face it, you lack all subtlety and I don’t need you spilling out my secrets.’ And while that wasn’t the reason, it was definitely the truth!

  ‘Humph.’ Chelsea crossed her arms grumpily, but she had no comeback.

  ‘Did you get a chance to talk to Gena?’ Annie changed the subject before Chelsea could ask any more questions Annie couldn’t answer. Like who her self-defence teacher actually was.

  Selecting a carrot stick from Annie’s snack bag, Chelsea took a noisy bite and leaned one elbow on the table. ‘Yes, but she didn’t have much new to add. She remembers Danielle being upset and saying she was going to go home, but she doesn’t know who she left with.’

  ‘Damn,’ Annie muttered. ‘I didn’t get anything fresh out of Jeff either. I don’t understand how everyone can be so unobservant!’

  Chelsea shrugged. ‘Most teenagers are pretty self-centred. If we’d been there, we might not have noticed anything either. I mean it’s not like anyone knew what was going to happen to her, so why would they pay special attention to her activities?’

  ‘You’re right.’ Annie groaned and dropped her head in her hands.

  ‘It’s not up to you to solve Danielle’s murder, Annie,’ Chelsea said gently. ‘Maybe you should just let it go.’

  ‘I wish I could,’ Annie admitted. ‘But the chances are pretty high someone at this school, someone in one of our classes, had something to do with her death.’

  Chelsea shuddered feelingly. ‘That’s a horrible thought.’

  ‘I know, but it plagues me.’

  Chelsea studied her thoughtfully before nodding her understanding. ‘Then here’s what we need to do. Everyone who was at that party is pretty much guaranteed to be at the Friday night basketball game, so we’re going to be there too.’

  Annie screwed up her nose. ‘Really? I thought we were both in agreement when it comes to our loathing of sports.’

  ‘We are. But it will give us the perfect opportunity to observe everyone, see if anyone’s behaviour is off. I’m not guaranteeing we’ll find out anything new, but it’s worth a shot.’

  Friday was the night she was staying at Alex’s while Karen was away. It would make things a little more complicated, but Alex wouldn’t mind if she ducked out for a couple of hours to attend the game. ‘Okay. I’ll pick you up. We probably shouldn’t walk in the dark until our killer is caught.’

  ‘Cool.’ Chelsea grinned wickedly. ‘It will also give me a chance to check out Stephen’s form on the court. And by form I mean…’

  ‘I know what you mean!’ Annie rolled her eyes.

  *

  The week had flown by, Annie thought as she drove towards Alex’s house on Friday afternoon. The two of them had gone through the stack of photos Alex had printed off with a fine toothcomb. While they hadn’t been able to
identify anyone they hadn’t already crossed off the list, it hadn’t been a total waste of time – the photos had revealed a time line of the night and they’d been able to pinpoint approximately what time of the night Danielle had left the party, based on her absence from all photos after a certain point.

  They had also made a list of everyone who’d been in the photos in the early part of the evening and another list of everyone who appeared in photos after Danielle’s departure from the party. They’d cross-referenced the two lists. The only person missing from the second list was Samantha, who’d been picked up by her parents long before Danielle had left. Known for their conservative beliefs and disapproval of alcohol, as soon as they’d found out Samantha had snuck off to the party they’d gone after her – much to Samantha’s mortification.

  Alex had also crossed their unknown photographer off the potential suspect list since he or she had still been taking photos after Danielle had left the party. Which left their potential suspects at a big fat frustrating zero! However, Annie was now just as eager as Chelsea to attend the game that night – she was planning to carefully observe the interactions of all the students who had attended the party in the hope that someone might be acting out of character.

  In amongst their sleuthing, she’d done a whole lot of exercise. Each training session she had with Alex was getting incrementally harder, but she was also steadily getting fitter and stronger, so her body wasn’t as sore as it had been… though certain muscles seemed to be constantly tender. Just when they’d start to recover, another session would tear them up again.

  But tonight she was planning on giving them a rest and letting Alex do all the work. She had finally convinced him to demonstrate the parkour and free-running he’d been practicing.

  Nosing her car up to the gates in front of the Hamilton property, she punched in the four-digit access code Alex had given her and once the gates had gracefully swung open, she drove up the driveway and around the side of the house to where the four-car garage was. Alex was standing in the open doorway of one of the garage bays and waved her through. While it wasn’t unusual for delivery vehicles to drive in and out of the property, Alex thought it best that her car wasn’t parked in front of the house where it could potentially draw attention to her presence there… and lead to unwanted questions about why she was spending time in a house that was only supposed to be housing a middle-aged housekeeper.