Forks, Book Two

by A. E. Davis

  Before I could ask anything else, Glinda took off down the hall in the opposite direction.

  I glanced back down the hall to see if Evelyn was still there, but the hall was empty.

  For a girl that I had not really seen before today, Evelyn had a way of showing up everywhere I went. I was beginning to wonder if she was following me. Each time I saw her, she had the same look on her face, like she hated me. I didn’t get it.

  “What is she doing down here?”

  Glinda leaned back and looked around me. “What is with your sudden fascination with Evilynn?”

  “She keeps showing up everywhere.” I looked over my shoulder, feeling like I was being watched and sure enough the Evelyn was standing by the water fountain, watching me.

  “She does go to school here,” Glinda said offhandedly as she opened her bag and dug out her notebook.

  “Yeah, I know that,” I snapped, not meaning to.

  Glinda looked up sharply. “Come on.” She grabbed my elbow and yanked me into class.

  Once inside, she let go and walked to the back of the room.

  I was going to follow her but the Turtle was giving me one of her staple crappy looks. Since I didn’t’ want to be yelled at I made a beeline for my chair before she started screeching at me.

  Class dragged. It probably had less to do with the fact that Ms. Campbell was talking nonstop and more to do with the fact that Victor wasn’t in class again. Viola was.

  Joy.

  Not.

  In between taking notes from the Turtle’s drone- fest, I doodled absently on the edge of my paper. A cool breeze ruffled my hair. I looked up and my breath caught. Evelyn was standing at the door. Freaking out, I quickly averted my eyes. What was she doing here?

  “Thank you, Ms. Fletcher.” Ms. Campbell said loudly.

  At the mention of that name, my blood ran cold. Fletcher? Was she related to Jason? I glanced up and the girl was staring right at me. Sh—t! Instinctively, I blocked my face with my makeshift hand visor.

  The classroom was all-abuzz about something but I couldn’t tell what with my heart galloping in my chest. And even though I was straining really hard to hear, I couldn’t make out what else the Turtle was saying.

  Viola snickered behind me, which I heard loud and clear and couldn’t help but wonder if it was because she could see the girl giving me an angry glare. When I finally got up enough nerve to look, Evelyn was already gone.

  When the bell rang, I was ready.

  Spotting Glinda moving quickly towards the door, I pushed past one of my classmates and was rewarded with a loud “Watch it” as I grabbed hold of her bag, putting an end to her hasty exit.

  “What are you doing?” Glinda gaped at my fingers holding tightly to her bag.

  “Why didn’t you tell me who she was?”

  Glinda exhaled loudly. “I didn’t want you freaking out. That’s why.”

  “Oh.” That shut me up.

  “See. Look at you. You’re already freaked.”

  “Well, fine, I am,” I admitted. “But you should have told me.”

  Her brow hitched up a notch. “I was going to, but I wanted to tell you later.”

  “Oh.” What was I going to say to that? “All right,” I conceded finally and let go of her bag.

  “Anyway, it’s not that big of a deal.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Because he’s out now,” I said.

  “Yeah. So what? He’s been out.” She sighed and pulled her bag back up on her shoulder. “I was the one that told you, remember?”

  “Yes, I remember.”

  “Well, what’s your problem then?”

  “I guess I was just shocked.”

  “Which is exactly why I didn’t want to tell you,” she said.

  She had me there. “Fine,” I grumbled.

  “Come on.” She turned and headed out of class.

  Stepping into the hall, I walked beside her in the rush of bodies swarming towards the doors to leave. “What do you think she was doing in class?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe she was getting Jason’s homework or something.”

  “Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “Easy for you to say,” I mumbled dejectedly.

  She bumped shoulders with me and gave me a cheesy grin. “Don’t worry. I got your back.” She put up her small fists and did a one-two jab in the air.

  A slight smile pulled at the corners of my mouth.

  “Go on,” she said, still smiling.

  “What?”

  “Laugh. You know you want to.”

  She was right. I did want to laugh. Not because any of this was funny but because it was better than the alternative.

  twenty six

  The biggest question I was asking myself as I drove home from school was why Vincent hooked up with Glinda’s doppelganger, Jason’s sister, Evelyn. Too bad I didn’t have any answers. Glinda was supposed to call me later and give me “the dirt” on Evelyn or more accurately put, Evilynn. I was beginning to think that name wasn’t too far off the mark.

  Pulling into my driveway, I parked Peggy Sue and turned off the car. The engine sputtered a few moments and then finally gurgled to a stop. Obviously, Peggy-Sue still needed a tune-up but Ken said he would take care of it. I just hoped he got around to it before she decided to kick the bucket—she sounded like she was at death’s door.

  Gathering my things, I climbed from the car. As soon as I stepped out onto the driveway a frigid breeze slapped me in the face and ripped a few brightly colored leaves from the tree above my head. They went sailing off to who knew where. I loved this time of year. Fall was the best season of all. The way the air smelled and the kaleidoscope of colors the leaves took on before they finally shriveled up and disappeared for winter.

  Inhaling deeply, I slung my bag on my shoulder and walked slowly towards the house. Halfway there, three crows took flight from the tree by my window and prickles rose on my skin. Instinctively, I turned toward the tree line. About fifty feet away, in the shadows, I could swear I saw two glowing eyes watching me. I wasn’t sure if I was imagining things or not, but I still hastened my step, fast walking the rest of the way to the house. I flung open the door and it banged loudly against the wall. Not even looking back outside, I slammed it shut and locked it quickly.

  “Amber!”

  I jumped and spun around. Mom was sitting on the sofa, her face white as a sheet. “What?” I yelled, not meaning to, but she just scared the beejeebies out of me.

  “You scared me,” Mom screeched.

  “You scared me, too,” I screeched back, holding my hand to my chest.

  “Oh.” She gave me a sheepish smile. “Sorry.”

  “I’m sorry too.” I dropped my book bag by the door and walked into the living room. Perching my hip on the sofa, I pulled my hair up into a messy bun. “So what are you doing?”

  Mom lifted her book and showed it to me. “Reading.”

  “I can see that.”

  “Then why did you ask?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “What’s on your mind?”

  I wasn’t going to tell her about Evelyn but then I couldn’t seem to stop myself. The entire story poured from my mouth—even the part where I saw Vincent kissing her.

  When I finished, Mom blinked a few times and then gently set her book on the table. “Did this girl say anything to you?”

  “Well, no.”

  “Then what’s wrong?”

  “She’s Jason’s sister.” What part of the story was my mom not getting?

  “I heard you the first time.” She took a deep breath. “Do you think she has a problem with you?”

  “Well, I am guessing so since she keeps giving me nasty looks.”

  Mom’s brow creased. “Are you sure?”

  What was going on? “Yes, I’m sure.”

  “You should tell Ken then.”

&n
bsp; “What’s he going to do about it?”

  “I’m sure if he thinks it’s a problem he will do something.”

  “That’s it?” I threw my hands up in the air, exasperated. “That’s all you have to tell me?”

  “Oh, darn, would you look at that.” She lifted her finger. “I chipped my nail polish.”

  “Oh, just spit it out.” Mom was good at sidetracking a conversation when she didn’t want to say what she was really thinking.

  “Fine. But remember you asked.”

  I was starting to think I should have just kept my mouth shut. “Go ahead.”

  “I think this has more to do with her kissing this boy Vincent than being Jason’s sister.”

  “What?” I gaped at her.

  “Now, Amber,” she said in a conciliatory tone. “You know as well as I do that if you hadn’t seen this girl kissing Vincent you probably wouldn’t even know she existed.

  “That’s the point I’m making. I didn’t know she existed until I saw her giving me nasty looks today.”

  “Then who did you think Vincent was kissing?”

  “Ah…” I didn’t want to tell her.

  She lifted her brow and gave me a stern Mom look. “Spill it.”

  “I thought he was kissing Glinda,” I said in a rush.

  Her eyes widened. “The one you went to visit in the hospital?”

  “One in the same,” I muttered.

  “And you found out today it wasn’t her?”

  “Well, yeah.”

  “When did you see him kissing her?”

  “Mom…”

  “Oh, sorry,” she said and added a little eye roll for effect which completely canceled out the “sorry”. “When did you think you saw him kissing her?”

  “Um…” I chewed on my lip.

  “Amber…”She lifted her brow.

  “Last week.”

  “This wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with that mysterious sickness of yours would it?”

  “Maybe…”

  “Oh, honey,” she sighed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Would you have let me stay home from school?”

  “Well, no…”

  “Now you know why I didn’t tell you.”

  “Amber Regina Elisa Davis,” she said in a reprimanding tone but then she lifted her arms.

  I walked around the couch and sat down next to her. She wrapped her arms around me and gave me a big hug. I suddenly felt like crying. I sniffed back my tears and sat up again. “What am I going to do?”

  “About the girl or Vincent?” she asked, looking as confused as I felt.

  “Neither. Both. Oh, I don’t know.” I rubbed my forehead.

  “What about Viktor?”

  “Oh, he’s been around.” I left out the part about me asking if he was a Vampire and then him laughing at me for it.

  “Do you like him, too?”

  “Well…” I chewed on my lip.

  “Amber…” she prodded.

  “Yes. No. Yes…oh, I don’t even know.”

  She reached forward and grabbed my hand. “Does he like you?”

  “Got me,” I sighed. “He runs hot and cold.”

  “What about Vincent?”

  “He runs hot mostly,” I told her and he did, both, literally and figuratively.

  “So, let me see if I got this straight…”

  “Go ahead.”

  “You like Vincent and Viktor. But you know Vincent really likes you but you told him you didn’t like him…” She paused for clarification.

  “I told him I couldn’t date.”

  Her eyes rounded in surprise. “Why did you do that?”

  “Because he kissed me.”

  Her brows shot up to her hairline. “When did this happen?”

  “A while ago.”

  She gave me one of her standard Mom looks.

  “I didn’t mean to. It just happened and then, it was weird. I don’t know.”

  “Did it happen more than once?”

  “No.”

  “How long did the kiss last?”

  “What difference does that make?”

  “Do you want my help or not?”

  “Fine. It was only a short kiss.”

  “How did it make you feel?”

  “Warm, fuzzy, like we were the only two people on the planet—he kisses really good.” My face heated with the remembrance.

  She nodded her head seemingly digesting my answer. “So what changed?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “And you told him you couldn’t date?”

  “Yes.”

  “And he believed you?”

  “Well, he didn’t have much choice.”

  She shook her head. “You sound like one of my books where the heroine…”

  “Mom…” I groaned.

  “Okay, okay.” She sat forward. “So you like Vincent and Viktor. But you told Vincent you couldn’t date and then you saw him kissing this girl and faked sick for two days because you were so upset about it…”

  “I thought he was kissing Glinda…” I interjected.

  “And...you also felt betrayed by your friend…”

  I nodded. Ken must be wearing off on Mom. She sounded like a cop doing an investigation.

  “And you haven’t kissed Viktor…”

  “Well…” I hemmed, chewing nervously on my lip.

  “Amber!”

  “I know.”

  “When did this happen?”

  “Just the other day, after I thought Glinda and Vincent had hooked up.”

  “So you were giving Vincent some payback.”

  When she said it like that, it felt cheap somehow and it wasn’t like that…or was it? “No. I was just…caught up in the moment, I guess.”

  “Been there…”

  “Mom…”

  “Sorry. How did his kiss make you feel?”

  “Confused, breathless…hungry…like I couldn’t get enough and then the world fell away and it was just the two of us…”

  Mom fanned her face. “My, my, you …oh my…”

  “Tell me about it,” I said and laughed.

  She laughed too and then sobered. “Oh, honey, I don’t envy you in the least.” She shook her head. “Did Viktor ask you out, too?”

  “Nope.”

  “Ah.” She looked like she just solved the puzzle of the universe.

  “What does that mean?”

  “Well it’s simple really. A bird in hand is better than two in the bush.”

  My eyes boggled. “What?”

  “Oh,” she laughed. “It just means, I think you like them both, but it seems to me that you might like one a bit more than the other…but since he is not coming up to scratch fast enough…”

  “Wait…” I held up my hand. “What does that mean?”

  “It just means he is not reciprocating your feelings as fast as you would like.”

  “Oh.”

  “So, to me, it seems that you are falling back on the one you like but not as much. Does that make sense?”

  In some weird out there kind of way…it did make sense. “I think so. But what do I do about it.”

  “Amber, I can’t answer that for you. You need to figure that out for yourself.”

  “But how?” I was more confused than ever.

  “You will,” she assured me. ”Just give it time.”

  The problem being, now, with Evelyn in the picture, I didn’t know how much time I had.

  A knock sounded at the door.

  Both me, and Mom jumped.

  “Oh, I bet that’s, Ken.” She ran her hands through her hair. “How do I look?”

  “Beautiful.”

  She gave me a winning smile. “This was fun,” she said. “We should do this more often.”

  “Yeah, it was,” I said honestly. “Thanks, Mom.” She leaned forward and gave me a big hug, squeezing me tightly. I hugged her back just as tightly, not wanting to let go. Another sharp knock sounded at the doo
r. “You better get that.” I reluctantly let go.

  “Oh, right.” She released me. “I don’t want to keep my fiancée waiting.” She gave me a cheesy grin and then took off to answer the door.

  It was after midnight and my eyes kept drifting closed. I forced them open again and stared down at the book in my lap, my mind straying from the pages once more. After dinner, I tried to ask Ken about Kirk and or if he found out anything else about Jason but he told me he didn’t have any more information as of yet. I didn’t believe him but as it stood, I didn’t really have any proof that he was lying to me either. So, after I helped with the dishes, I made my excuses and headed off to bed to finish doing homework. That was the excuse I gave but I really wanted to read another chapter of Twilight before I went to sleep. Bella was about the get chewed on by a rather nasty Vampire and who knew where Edward was.

  “Really? How stupid are you, Bella?” I stared at the page as the words came back into focus once more—for a supposed immortal Edward seemed to be taking a really long time to find the love of his life. Or so it seemed to me. But what did I know. It’s not like I had any real Vampires to compare him too…or did I?

  Shaking my head at where my thoughts drifted again, I closed the book. I would have to wait and find out what happened to Bella tomorrow. Now, the characters would stay safely tucked in the pages until I opened the book again.

  The wind howled outside and rain slashed against my window. I burrowed deeper under the covers and fell into a fitful-dreamed-filled sleep, where there was no happily ever after…only death.

  twenty seven

  I was late. I didn’t even have time to take a shower. Dark circles hung under my eyes and even though I couldn’t remember my dream, I had a feeling it had a lot to do with the craptastic mood I was in. Rushing down the sidewalk to get to class, I dodged a large puddle and hopped over a big red earthworm stretched across the concrete.

  Curtis was standing on the sidewalk, his blue hair slicked back from his face, blocking my way into school. He glanced up at me. “What’s up, new girl?”

  I slowed my pace. “I do have a name.”

  “Yeah, I know.” He smirked at me.

  “Excuse me.” I tried to move around him without stepping in the mud.