by Jamie Ott
Chapter 3
Alin and Saul didn’t return from town until the next morning. In bags, they carried all kinds of things that Starr knew not. Then they spent the day on the back porch building and welding whatever it was they planned to fix the helicopter with.
Chanler cornered her in the kitchen.
“So we’ll probably be leaving today, if they can get their work finished,” he said, motioning to Alin and Saul through the window. “I feel bad about it though, like I should be here.”
“We’ll be fine.”
“Okay, well, you’d better call me if you need anything at all.”
Michelle appeared at the door, smelling foul. Her jealousy stank up the kitchen.
“Bye, Starr.”
He walked out of the back door without even a hug.
Michelle followed him out.
A few hours later, they managed to get the helicopter to work. After Saul flew it around the mountain, he landed and declared that they could finally depart.
Alin, Saul and Chanler went around and said their goodbyes while giving hugs to those they’d become close to. Michelle stood at the helicopter with hands crossed, watching them with a repugnant look on her face.
“Starr,” said Alin. “We’ll be back for you, okay?”
“Okay,” she smiled and gave him a hug.
“What about me?” asked Saul.
Starr smiled hugged him, too.
They walked halfway down the wood slatted path, veered off to the right and climbed inside the helicopter.
In the center of Starr’s chest, a pulse thundered; it almost felt like her heart beat. As the helicopter flew away, the pulse grew in strength. More than anything, at that moment, she wished she could have kissed Chanler goodbye, the way that she’d wanted to kiss him for a while now.
Back in the kitchen, her mother tried to talk to her again.
“I’ve been watching you and Misaki practice Tai Chi.”
Starr closed her eyes and ordered herself to remain calm; not to get angry and lose her temper.
“I’m still not clear on who those people were.”
“They’re members of an organization that protects the world from things, like what’s happening, right now.”
“Well, they haven’t been doing a good job, have they?”
“Actually, they have,” she said angrily.
“So when did you become one of these things?”
“You mean a vampire? It was the night I found Meghan.”
“Is it true? Those things you said, about her, the other day?”
“Yes.”
“Meghan would never do those things. I just don’t believe it.”
“Then why did you ask?”
“Because I hoped you might have a conscience!”
Starr rolled her eyes and made to leave the kitchen.
“Wait, I’m not done yet.”
“What? What do you want, Mom?”
Starr’s voice echoed off the walls.
“Your dad and I plan to leave tomorrow.”
“So?”
“I just thought you should know, in case you’d like to come with us.”
“Great! Goodbye!”
She walked back outside faster than she meant to. Her limbs were still not so quick or accurate. She tripped on her ankles and stumbled flat onto her face.
Shane, who was digging in the flowerbed, under the kitchen window, helped Starr to her feet.
“You alright?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Uh, Starr?”
“Yes?”
“I just want to say that I’m sorry about what I said on the dock.”
“You are?” she asked, sounding surprised.
“Yeah, I’m just having a hard time with all of this. I know everyone else is, too, so it’s not an excuse.”
“Well, alright, thanks. I guess,” she said awkwardly. Shane was not the apologetic kind, so that was a huge deal.
There was another sound of a rustling beyond the clearing that made her turn around.
“I heard it too,” said Shane. “It’s Bielz. She’s sneaking around, and thinks we don’t know it’s her, but we do.”
“Have you tried to talk to her?”
“No.”
“Have you read her mind?”
“No, Starr,” she said agitatedly. “I’m trying not to do that anymore.”
“Sorry.”
“But I do feel her feelings; I can’t stop that for some reason.”
“And?”
“Well, I think that’s why I got so mad at you yesterday. I knew, in my mind, that I was being irrational, but I had this feeling in my gut, like I wanted to kill you. As I walked back up to the house, I heard breathing and I knew it was her. I could feel her hatred of you: curse of being an empath,” she concluded.
“She’s got it in for me, doesn’t she?”
“She’s always had it in for you.”
“Do you think she’s dangerous?”
“Most definitely,” she said as she pulled her gardening gloves off, and ran her hand through her dark hair. “But you don’t need me to confirm that. You know in your gut that she’s crazy.”
“What is she doing in the trees? Where is she sleeping?”
“I think at the next cabin, over. She seems torn: on one hand, she wants to come back, and on the other, she wants revenge.”
Starr looked back at the trees and wondered how worried she should be.
“You should be very worried. She’s gone, now, though.”
Starr had a hard time falling asleep that night. Again and again, she went over, in her mind, about what happened in Boston with Antony.
Did she really have to kill him? Should she have tried harder to control him? How much responsibility does one have to the fledglings they create?
To Marla, Mica and Shane, she had none. They were more than able to take care of themselves.
Why didn’t she listen to her first instinct about him? Which was that he was a very dangerous person? What moron would turn a psycho into a vampire?
Clearly, Bielz was just as dangerous as Antony was. Now that she was on her own and sneaking about, Starr couldn’t help but wonder if it were better to kill her, rather than hang around, waiting for her to attack.
Shane was right: she was dangerous. Why else would Bielz snoop around all the time, if not to be menacing?
Goodbye, For Now