Dark Heart Forever

by Lee Monroe

  I sat down at the table, feeling flat. I’d been looking forward to seeing them all. Evan and I had had a good morning. The strange events of the night before had seemed harmless. I hadn’t brought up the papers in the boot of the car. It was nothing to do with me. And though it was intriguing, in a sad, morbid kind of way, it was for Evan to tell me, if he wanted to. If it had been the other way around, I would have been furious if he’d pried into my business and asked nosy questions.

  And he had not stopped apologising about his macho behaviour.

  ‘I guess I’m just a guy,’ he’d told me. ‘Turned on by a beautiful girl. But I’m more than happy to wait. For as long as you want.’

  The clock chimed two p.m. I relaxed back in my chair, wondering about what to eat. I’d had a huge breakfast, but I was still hungry. Must be all the excitement … nervous energy. But if I carried on eating like a horse, I’d never be able to fit into that blue dress.

  Thinking of the dress inevitably led me on to thoughts of Luca. It had been nearly two weeks since I’d seen him. It was odd. I didn’t like it.

  Perhaps he had lost interest in me now. Perhaps Lowe had been working his particular brand of meddling malice.

  I didn’t want to think about the other possibility. That this whole thing could just be in my head. Made up. Like some kind of psychosis.

  I crossed to the fridge and took out a slice of quiche and a pint of milk. Pouring myself a generous glass, I sat down at the table and thought of nothing but satisfying my hunger. It was so unlike me, this appetite; it was as though I was trying to fill another void. Not one in my stomach. One closer to my heart.

  When I’d finished I wondered whether I should take the dog out. Maybe see Evan again? I had nothing else to do and for once I didn’t want to be alone.

  But I didn’t want any old company.

  I sighed and leaned back, wondering whether to raid the biscuit tin, when a soft thudding sound made me sit up straight and and look out of the window.

  ‘Dad?’ I said, seeing nothing there. I got up and dumped my plate and glass in the sink, peering out into the front yard. A flicker of a shape moving behind the shed caught my eye and made my heart do a quick flip.

  I waited silently, watching as the shape moved carefully into view and I allowed a smile to creep over my face.

  There he was. A little flushed, his dark hair flopping sweetly over his face. He smiled back.

  Keeping my eyes on him, I opened the window wide.

  ‘Hey you,’ I said, happily. ‘I was beginning to think you were never coming back.’

  Luca’s face coloured a little, pleased.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ he said, his green eyes doleful, apologetic. ‘I got caught up in all the work at the palace. Celeste was personally supervising the preparations and she has the eyes of a hawk. She knows exactly who’s shirking their hours and sneaking off.’

  ‘So the palace is all done?’ I said lightly. ‘Ready for the ball?’

  ‘It is,’ he grinned. ‘Ready for the grand entrance of Miss Jane Jonas.’

  I knew he wouldn’t let me down.

  ‘I got a dress. Kind of vintage. My grandmother made it for my mother when she was a teenager.’

  ‘Excellent.’ He hesitated. ‘I will look forward to seeing you in it. It is bad luck for me to see it before that. An old tradition of the ball.’

  ‘Like a wedding,’ I said, raising an eyebrow. ‘The groom never sees the bride’s dress before she walks up the aisle in it. An old tradition of mortal Earth.’

  He laughed, rubbing his arms. ‘A fine tradition. Can I come inside, do you think? There is a bit of a chill out here.’

  ‘Sure, but I don’t know when my family are getting back, so be prepared to leave at short notice.’

  ‘Of course.’ Luca disappeared to wait by the back door.

  ‘I saw your man …’ he said casually as I let him in. ‘Evan. Driving down the hill.’

  ‘He didn’t see you?’ I asked quickly.

  ‘I’m very discreet.’ Luca shut the door behind him and followed me into the kitchen. ‘Have you been somewhere?’

  ‘Yes,’ I said, with my back to him, so he couldn’t see me frowning guiltily as I filled up the kettle. ‘We went camping for a night.’

  Luca didn’t reply, but when I turned back I could see he was trying to look unbothered.

  I plugged in the kettle and sat next to him at the table.

  ‘I missed you,’ I said, looking intently at him. ‘More than I thought I would.’

  Luca sniffed, smiling slightly. ‘Sounds like you’ve had plenty to distract you,’ he said, looking away.

  ‘It was just one night, camping,’ I said, wondering why I wanted to explain. ‘And nothing happened.’

  ‘You don’t have to justify yourself.’ Luca shrugged.

  ‘OK, then.’ I got up and poured hot water into a couple of mugs. As I got out the teabags, I glanced out of the window. All was quiet. We were safe for now. ‘You drink normal tea?’ I asked, putting the mugs down on the table.

  Luca grabbed his and sniffed it intently. ‘It won’t poison me, I suppose,’ he said, his eyes dancing at me over the rim of the mug. He took a tentative sip. ‘It’s good.’ He put his mug back down and watched me as I slurped mine. ‘And there I was trying to be polite,’ he laughed. ‘In front of the refined mortal girl and her careful manners.’

  He watched me, every inch of his face smiling. As though I was nothing but a delight to him. I liked that. I liked it a lot.

  ‘We have an expression, “eat like pigs”,’ I told him. ‘Because us mortals don’t all have pretty manners.’

  ‘Thank goodness for that. I like a girl who doesn’t stand on ceremony.’ He put his hands behind his head.

  ‘A girl,’ I said, coyly. ‘Just any girl, I suppose?’

  He hesitated briefly. ‘You know full well not just any girl.’ Though he was smiling, his eyes said something less innocent.

  And I kind of liked that too.

  I reminded myself that Luca and I were friends, nothing more. I fiddled with my mug, determined not to look in any way as though I wanted to flirt back. That would be humiliating.

  And the two of us sat listening to the sound of the clock for a while.

  ‘So …’ Luca began awkwardly after a bit. ‘Everything is going well with Evan?’

  I covered the disappointment I felt with what I’m sure was a prissy expression.

  ‘Of course it is.’ I frowned. ‘Why?’

  ‘Nothing.’ He clasped his hands together looking even more awkward. ‘I just …’ He seemed to be searching for words.

  ‘You just what?’ I knew I sounded cool, but I was annoyed. Annoyed and disappointed that the atmosphere had changed. I didn’t want to talk about Evan either.

  ‘I just had this feeling last night that maybe something wasn’t right.’ He looked straight at me.

  He couldn’t possibly have known how I’d felt … How Evan had made me feel when I’d pulled away from him. I kept my expression steady.

  ‘I sometimes get pictures in my head,’ he went on. ‘And often they mean nothing … But … well, I suppose it’s what you call a “sixth sense”.’

  ‘My grandma had those,’ I said dryly. ‘Usually after she’d eaten cheese late at night.’

  I saw his mouth tilt into a smile.

  ‘You’re right. I don’t always get it correct. I’m sorry I brought it up.’

  ‘It’s OK. Everything’s fine. I’m happy,’ I said, not knowing whether I was or I wasn’t. ‘But you’ll be the first to know if that changes.’

  I sounded way cooler than I felt.

  ‘Good.’ His voice was light, but his eyes stayed on mine for a fraction too long. It was like he had seen into my head and picked out insecurity and discomfort. But my pride wouldn’t let me admit that. Not even to Luca.

  The clock ticking again.

  ‘So.’ I leaned forward, refusing to think about that bundle of documents and clippi
ngs. ‘When is the ball?’

  Finally Luca’s eyes lit up. ‘You still want to come?’

  ‘Of course I want to. I’ve been looking forward to it for weeks.’

  ‘Good.’ He looked relieved. ‘It starts early evening tomorrow.’

  I bit my lip. ‘I’ll tell my mother I’m with Evan,’ I said, more to myself than Luca. ‘I just hope he doesn’t call, or come up here looking for me.’

  ‘You’ll be back before you know it,’ Luca said, studying my anxious face. ‘Literally.’

  Maybe I won’t want to come back, I thought.

  ‘Right. I’d forgotten about the time laws of Nissilum.’

  Luca drank the rest of his tea. ‘I’m so glad you’re coming. It will be a happy night for me.’

  ‘Me too.’ I brushed dog hair from his coat and we smiled at each other.

  ‘I had better be going,’ he said, getting up. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow.’ He paused. ‘If you change your mind I’ll understand.’

  ‘I’ll be there,’ I said, as he stepped out into the yard. ‘I promise.’

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  ‘Do I really look good enough?’ I asked Luca nervously as we stood at the gates of the palace. I had taken ages getting ready for the evening and had been pretty pleased with the result. Putting on the blue dress had turned me from ordinary and shapeless to … a girl with curves, with milky-white skin and long glossy curls. The colour of the dress and a little mascara had picked out the grey in my eyes. Everything about me was just so … feminine. Like a picture in a magazine. And it made me feel like I was floating just above myself.

  Luca’s eyes swept over me. If he hadn’t been the chivalrous boy he was, I got the feeling he would have given the low whistle my dad sometimes gave my mother when she bothered to dress up. Even in the half-light I could see the glow in his cheeks.

  ‘You really need to ask that?’ he said with an impish smile.

  I subtly ran my eyes over him. Out of his scruffy clothes I realised he had the perfect slender physique for formal wear. A taut, lean body and cheekbones all the more prominent after a haircut. If I didn’t think of him as my weird-looking friend, I would have said he looked … handsome. Like a male model. I dragged my eyes away, trying to appear like I hadn’t noticed. But the truth was, we made a good couple. We went together. Our pale skin, our hair colour, our personalities … I forced myself not to think like that. Opposites attract, I told myself. Opposites like me and Evan.

  Luca’s hand skimmed mine and he turned shyly back to the queue in front of us.

  Henora was unhappy about something, judging from the tone of her voice.

  ‘Let’s linger behind a little,’ she huffed to Ulfred, picking up the hems of her long, charcoal velvet frock. ‘I want to wait until that motley crew go inside.’ She gestured at a cluster of small, elfin-faced women, who were hissing at each other on the gravel driveway up to the palace.

  ‘Hen …’ Ulfred shook his head. ‘We have this every year … Just ignore them. They have long forgotten how to bewitch. Cadmium has made sure that all sorcery books and implements have been destroyed. For many decades.’ He sighed. ‘They are keeping up a pretence. It’s all they have left.’

  Henora’s eyes narrowed. ‘Perhaps.’ But she glanced at Luca and I, standing stiffly a few feet away. ‘Luca, Jane,’ she growled, ‘stay with us. Don’t provoke them.’

  Luca nudged my elbow. ‘Henora is paranoid about the witches,’ he whispered. ‘Of all the creatures on Nissilum, she fears them the most.’

  I looked over at the huddle. One of the women broke free from the others and cast a shrewish glance at the four of us. I saw her eyes roam from Henora, to Ulfred, to Luca and then to me. She rested her gaze on my dress, screwing up her sharp little face. ‘A stranger,’ she said to her companions, her voice, piercingly high-pitched. ‘A pretty one.’

  The others followed her gaze, scrutinising me rudely.

  ‘Indeed,’ said one. ‘A wolf-girl, too. Most unusual.’

  ‘Outrageous,’ muttered Henora, pulling me closer to her. ‘Dreadful creatures. Ignore them, dear.’

  I smiled nervously, but before I had the chance to speak, the witch was beside us.

  Luca instinctively stepped forward to guard me. ‘Tilly,’ he said warningly, ‘she does you no harm.’

  ‘Hmph.’ Tilly sniffed, a deep inhalation, as though gathering every scent of me. ‘I shall be the judge of that, Hunter boy. She has been vetted I hope?’

  ‘There is no need for her to be vetted,’ Henora said coldly. ‘She is a wolf. Like myself, my husband and my son. Not that it is remotely your business.’

  ‘Oh, come off your high stool, lady,’ Tilly sneered. ‘I have a right to know who walks in my path.’

  ‘Indeed.’ Ulfred bowed diplomatically. ‘And I hope we have eased your fears, Miss Tilly. We wish you a good night.’

  Tilly pursed her lips, thwarted. ‘Very well.’ She took a step back, rejoining her group in what seemed a millisecond.

  ‘Silly little fool.’ Henora lifted her chin and shut her eyes as though to regain good humour. When she opened them again, a broad smile lit up her face. Her long, straight nose quivered a little. ‘Time to make our entrance, I think.’

  She swept regally past the witches, with Ulfred, Luca and I in her wake. I hung back, tugging Luca’s arm to halt him.

  ‘Are you sure they won’t detect I am mortal?’ I whispered anxiously.

  ‘I told you. Mint and bay leaf is an excellent foil against the smell of mortal blood. It is written in mythology here. Trust me.’ I rubbed at my arms, hoping that ten minutes of rubbing leaves into my skin was enough.

  I was beginning to relax when Luca gave me a serious look. ‘One thing though, Jane. Don’t accept too much wine … Or it will be your own mouth that betrays you.’

  The entrance to the palace shone with dazzling crystal-white tea lights, attached to a delicate gilt rope. The front of the palace was strikingly like the Palace of Versailles, white and glistening, but solid, like a wedding cake set in stone. Somehow the effect was not sugary or twee, but grand and charming at the same time.

  Two sentries stood guard at the gates to the palace, letting guests through. Ahead of us I saw a tall, dark-haired couple. The woman, whose profile was in view, had skin the colour of fresh snow, her thick, black hair hung in a loose chignon at her neck. Around her shoulders she held a fur cape. Her partner, who looked strangely like a young, svelte Elvis, his hair combed into a quiff, wore a stylish take on a dinner suit: his white collar upturned, his jacket draped Teddy-boy style down his long body.

  Luca saw me staring at the two of them.

  ‘Vampires,’ he said in a low voice. ‘They are ridiculously glamorous, but be very careful. They look cool and civilised, but they are master manipulators.’

  I shivered, hoping that what Luca had said earlier was true and his blood antidote would work tonight. I suddenly felt vulnerable and Luca intuitively took hold of my hand. ‘It will be all right. Just stick with me.’

  Eventually we walked into the reception hall. Beneath my feet, marble tiles were polished to perfection, above me a network of snowdrop chandeliers cast light like fairy rain on the tops of our heads.

  To the right stood an Amazonian woman dressed in a silver tulle gown. Her white hair was piled elegantly on her head. She smiled warmly at each guest as they passed her. She had startling sapphire-blue eyes and a small upturned nose. Apart from a few small lines around her eyes, she could have been anything from thirty-five to fifty. Her skin looked as though she had spent her whole life underneath a lace parasol, protected from the elements. She clasped her hands together, showing off a large jewelled ring that glinted powerfully.

  ‘Celeste.’ Luca’s tone was reverent and, as we came closer, her eyes widened fondly at the sight of him.

  ‘How handsome you look,’ she said quietly, straightening his jacket in a maternal gesture. ‘Dear Luca.’ Her eyes turned to regard me, standing awed beside hi
m. ‘And who is this?’ She raised an eyebrow at Luca.

  ‘This is Jane, Mother Celeste.’ Luca pulled me forward gently. I bobbed in an awkward little curtsey, feeling faintly ridiculous.

  Celeste laughed. ‘How charming,’ she said as another group of guests nudged up behind us. ‘Excuse me …’ She turned graciously to greet them and Luca and I continued on towards some grand double doors, through which servants bearing trays of drinks attended to the crowd inside.

  I breathed out loudly, bracing myself for what was to come.

  ‘Brother.’ A familiar voice halted us. Lowe, standing with a couple of angelic-looking boys his age, waved insouciantly. Whispering something to his companions, he left them and crossed the hall to us.

  Luca frowned. ‘Shouldn’t you be making yourself useful, Lowe? Not just hanging around.’

  ‘I’ve done my fair share.’ Lowe’s eyes slid over my dress. ‘Gracious, don’t you look a sweet sight, Jane?’

  The faint derision in his tone made it difficult not to glare at him, but I managed a tight smile.

  ‘Thank you.’

  ‘To think we barely knew of your existence until now,’ Lowe went on. ‘It seems impossible.’ His gaze rested a little too long on me, though I stared unblinking back at him, willing Luca to send him away. Or do something.

  ‘Run along, Lowe,’ said Luca, taking my arm. ‘I’m sure the kitchen staff are short of a pair of hands.’

  ‘Oh didn’t I tell you,’ Lowe said lightly, ‘Celeste has given me special dispensation tonight … to mingle …’ He paused. ‘As a guest.’

  ‘She has?’ Luca looked surprised but smiled, pleased for his brother. ‘You’d better not let her down, then, I suppose.’

  Lowe glanced back at his friends. ‘Don’t worry about us. We won’t embarrass you … or your lovely companion.’ With an infuriating smile, he drifted away.

  Luca shook his head. ‘I suppose I do worry about him. He is too … what do you call it? Cocky?’