FAUSTINE (Bonfire Chronicles Book One)

by Rose, Imogen

  “I think he just wanted to. I’ve seen the way he looks at you,” I smiled. Whomp! And I was down. The witch had elbowed me so hard that I had fallen onto my bed, face first.

  “Oh, shush!” she grumbled.

  “You know I’m right,” I said, laughing at her. “Anyhow, how’s your mom?”

  “Oh, fine! However, she scared the heck out of me, disappearing like that without a word. She still won’t tell me what it was all about. Council emergency. Whatever that means. It must have been important for her to take off like that, though,” she mused.

  “Yeah. There are too many emergencies going on for my liking,” I sighed. “I still haven’t heard from Dad. Not that I was really expecting to hear from him, for a while anyway. But the fact that Dorian still hasn’t heard from him really worries me,” I said, looking at the ring shining from my right hand.

  “Lemme see,” Neave said, taking my hand in hers and peering at the ring. It was simple–a platinum band with a two-prong fork studded with black diamonds. “It’s sort of ordinary looking, isn’t it?”

  “Yeah. But that’s just as well; I wouldn’t wear it if it was big and ugly.”

  “So, have you been told what you are expected to do yet?”

  “Not a lot. Luke said that I have to greet a bunch of dignitaries who are flying over from London tomorrow. Ordinarily, I would fly to London to see them, but school starts on Monday, so it’s easier for me if they come here. They weren’t too pleased, but they’re coming anyway.”

  “Who are they exactly?”

  I shrugged. “I’ve no idea. My guess is a bunch of paranormal fuddy duddies. It’s going to be a barrel of laughs.” I rolled my eyes. “I can’t see them taking kindly to a teenage half demon joining their little group. Anyhow, I want to forget all about that for tonight and reenter the wonderful world of Manhattan parties. I can’t wait to meet everyone!”

  “It’ll be awesome. We scored the Ixis Twins to perform for us. Major wicked.”

  I had never heard of them. They must be a new group that hadn’t made it big in Switzerland, yet. “Okay, let’s go; I’m ready!”

  “You look awesome.”

  “So do you!” I grabbed Neave’s hand and led her into the living room where Luke and Mom were waiting for us. Luke stood up as soon as he saw us. I went over and kissed Mom.

  “Baby, you look so beautiful,” Mom said, hugging me tight. “Take care of her,” she said, looking over at Luke who nodded in response.

  “Ladies, you look great. Let’s go,” he said. We each took an arm and walked out together. Luke looked hot. The suit was perfect on him. As we walked, Luke was leaning toward Neave. There was definitely something brewing there.

  We drove past Times Square on our way to the party in the Village. I was feeling slightly on edge. I had no idea what to expect. If Neave and Luke were going to spend time together, I might be a bit lost. At least I could catch up with Audrey and Viola.

  I could hear the sounds of the party blocks before we arrived. Loud music intermingled with chatter, singing and stomping noises. The excitement and energy were electric! I was ready to party!

  “Faustine, stay close to me at the party,” Luke instructed as we drove up to the entrance.

  “I’ll do my best,” I promised.

  The camera flashes blinded me as we walked into the party. “What’s with the paparazzi?”

  “I dunno. I guess they’re here for the Ixis Twins,” Neave shrugged. “Just smile and keep going.”

  I was momentarily thrown by the sudden contrast in lighting as we entered the club. I felt disoriented, so I grabbed Luke’s arm, steadying myself as I surveyed the room. It was large, with a dance floor in the middle that was completely packed with bodies moving in time with the music. There was a DJ booth on one side, surrounded by people. How would we ever find anyone we knew in this crowd? I looked over at Neave.

  “Follow me, we have a private booth.”

  I was glad she knew where she was going because it was a jungle of pulsating, sweaty bodies. We had to push through them in dim lighting to get to the booth. A sour-looking man guarding the walkway pointed us in the right direction. The booth was a small area with a couple of comfortable-looking sofas and some tables and chairs.

  I collapsed onto the couch next to the twins, who had already been seated. “Wow, this is crowded!” I exclaimed to no one in particular.

  “No kidding,” Audrey agreed. “A bit different from the dances at the Academy.”

  It sure was. Our social gatherings at the Academy had been more traditional, as in old-fashioned–think ballroom dancing.

  “Glad to see you and Viola here,” I said to Audrey. “Very handy that our hearing is so good! I wonder how the regular humans communicate through this noise.”

  “I have no idea...” she shrugged.

  “Did you guys remember to feed?” I asked. Best to make sure.

  “Yeah. You?” I nodded, thinking back to the yummy steak I had devoured before I got dressed. Just the thought almost made me drool. “Have you seen anyone else from the Academy?”

  “Just your little gift from Neave. Sheesh, that girl is persistent. Took us forever to track him down.”

  “Gift? Him? Who?” I asked bemusedly.

  “That would be me,” a voice said from behind me.

  I turned around and found myself looking into the intent blue eyes of Ryker. I stopped breathing.

  “Dance?” he asked, holding out his hand.

  I was going to kill that witch! Where was she? What did she say to Ryker to make him come here? I accepted the dance with him by taking his hand. I was too mortified to refuse. I could feel my cheeks reddening in a deep blush that must have made my face glow as I followed him to the dance floor. I hoped I wasn’t luminescent! I was good at the waltz and could hold my own through a tango or foxtrot–but this? Looking around, I was fairly certain that I was not equipped for this kind of dancing. I could try to copy the movements, but I was sure I was going to end up looking ridiculous, an uncoordinated mess. Perfect. How much more embarrassing could this get? Just as I was about to attempt swaying aimlessly from side to side, Ryker put his hands on my waist and pulled me toward him. I felt flames rip through my body. I tingled all over as he nuzzled against my hair while we swayed gently from side to side with the pulse of the music. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the moment, desperately trying to remain standing, though my legs wanted to buckle beneath me. Ryker held me firmly as the music pounded around us. I felt myself getting lost in his arms, forgetting all the bodies around us. And so we swayed, through music change after change, until Neave nudged me from behind.

  “Come on!” she smirked. “You have others to meet. Enough of the PDA for now.”

  I extracted myself reluctantly from Ryker’s arms. I didn’t want this magic to ever end. It was bizarre. I had never talked to him, yet I felt totally connected with him. What if he left and never came back? This dance may be it, the gift from Neave. He didn’t let go, not completely. His hand slid from my back to my hand, which he squeezed as we followed Neave back to the booth. I wondered if there was a way to maintain this silence between us and communicate solely by touch. Surely, speaking would ruin this, whatever this was. Maybe Ryker felt the same. He didn’t say a word as we walked, just getting behind me and wrapping his arms around me as Neave introduced me to a bunch of people.

  “Nicole, Kelsey, this is Faustine. She’s just back from a prep school in Switzerland.”

  “Cool!” they both exclaimed in unison.

  “It was. It was fun.”

  “And who are you?” Nicole asked, looking up at Ryker.

  “A friend of Faustine’s. We attended the same school in Switzerland,” he explained. The warmth from his breath as he spoke made me rub the back of my head against his chest. Although it was weird for me to be so touchy-feely with anyone, it seemed natural with him.

  “Cool,” Nicole approved. “So, you are Lady Annabel’s daughter?”

  �
��Yes. Do you know her?” I asked in surprise.

  “Everyone knows of her, but I haven’t met her yet. Our moms were debutants together. So was Kelsey’s mom. So, we’re hoping that you’ll sit with us at school.”

  I assumed that sit with us was code for be in our group. That would be cool as long as Neave could sit with us, as well. And the vamp twins. I wanted them in our group, too. I smiled at Nicole. “Yeah, that sounds cool. I assume Neave and the twins will sit with us as well?”

  The smile faded from Nicole’s face. “Well, we...” she spluttered. “I just meant you. The rest of the group would have to approve any other members.”

  “Who’s the leader?” I asked. I would obviously take over when I could be bothered, but whoever it was for now would have to bend the rules.

  “Taylor,” Kelsey said. “She’s not here. She’ll be back from Long Island tomorrow.”

  “Well, run it past her. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a deal breaker. Who else is in the group?”

  “A few others. Let’s meet up for dinner tomorrow. You can meet them then,” Nicole suggested.

  “I can’t tomorrow. I have something else planned,” I said. Something else, indeed. With a bunch of paranormals. If they only knew! “How about Monday, before school? You can come over to my place for breakfast.”

  “Cool!” Nicole smiled. “I’ll get the girls together. You mentioned twins?”

  “Yes. Audrey and Viola. They were here.... Neave, have you seen them recently?”

  “No, they’re probably on the dance floor.”

  “There they are,” Ryker whispered into my ear, and I followed the direction of his finger with my eyes.

  “Hey!” I shouted, beckoning them over.

  “Hey! Did you two finally talk?” Viola laughed, giving Ryker and me the look.

  Awkward. I ignored her. “Viola, Audrey, this is Nicole and Kelsey.”

  I could feel the twins smirking. Nicole and Kelsey were typically Upper East Side, very unlike the twins, who were more at home here in the Village. I was glad that they were going to be at same school, though. It would be a refreshing change from the same old, same old. We’d shake things up a bit.

  “Hey, nice to meet you,” Viola replied. The twins politely extended their hands.

  “We’re all going to the same school,” I explained.

  I felt Ryker suddenly straighten up and look around. It felt like a heavy, dark aura was invading our space. “What is it?” I whispered, looking over at Neave, who was also looking around.

  “What?” Nicole asked. “Why do you guys look so worried all of a sudden?”

  “Come with me,” Luke said, suddenly appearing behind Neave.

  Had he been here all this time? I hadn’t noticed.

  “You too, Ryker, Audrey and Viola,” Luke instructed.

  We followed him out of the booth. As we made our way through the crowds toward the exit, Ryker’s hand was still firmly planted on the small of my back.

  Suddenly, from out of nowhere, we heard an ear-splitting scream. We stopped dead, as did everyone else in the room. We stood frozen in our spots. The music was turned off, and everyone waited. Then, the sound filled the room again–a blood-curling, high-pitched screech.

  “It’s coming from over there,” I said and pointed toward the restrooms. “Let’s go–” Before I could get another word out, mass hysteria ensued. Everyone around us started screaming, pushing and generally freaking out. Ryder took hold of me firmly, pulled me toward the bar and lifted me over it. Neave and the others followed. Together, we hid behind the bar, watching everyone else trying to scramble out the doors.

  Luke crawled over to me. “Faustine, I’m going to take you home. Come with me. Ryker, could you get the twins home?”

  “Home? You’ve got to be kidding! We need to find out what that noise was,” I said.

  “No, we don’t,” Luke said firmly.

  I flashed my ring at him. “Yes. We. Do,” I said firmly and climbed back over the bar. The room was much less crowded now, more than half the people had gone, and the rest were getting ready to leave. Through the open doors, I saw cop cars arriving, and shortly afterward, uniformed policemen strode in. I watched them walk over to the men’s restroom. Within seconds, a lockdown was ordered. The club doors were firmly shut, preventing anyone else from exiting.

  “I wonder what’s going on,” I whispered, looking up at Luke who was standing next to me.

  “I have no idea, but this lockdown is not good. It means we’re all about to be questioned.”

  “Well, we’ll just tell them what we heard,” I shrugged.

  “Princess, they are going to wonder about our eyes. They’ll probably think we’re high and want blood tests. Not good.”

  “Oh, yeah.”

  “I can get Faustine out. But that still leaves you, Luke,” Ryker said.

  “I can temporarily make my eyes seem less red. But, the main thing is that Faustine gets out. Can you take her home?”

  “Attention, everyone!” boomed a loud voice through the speakers. “We have a situation. Everyone remain calm. An officer will come around and take your contact information so we can let you go home. We’ll update you when we can.”

  “Faustine, go,” Luke directed.

  “Hold on! I want to know what’s going on first.”

  “You didn’t hear?” Luke asked, looking at me in confusion.

  “I heard the screech all right. Now I want to know what’s going on.”

  “Weren’t you eavesdropping on the conversation in the restroom between the cops?” He shrugged.

  Embarrassing. What kind of a pathetic demon was I? I bet even the vamp twins knew what was going on. They had enhanced hearing as well. I was the only one who had totally forgotten to use mine. Sheesh. May as well send this ring right back to Dorian. I pursed my lips at Luke and heard Neave let out a snort.

  “Really?” Luke asked, amazed.

  “Just tell her,” Audrey said in an exasperated voice.

  “They found a body in the men’s restroom. It was totally mangled, shredded to bits like an animal had been at it,” he said, looking at the vamp twins.

  “It wasn’t us!” Viola spluttered. “We fed before we came. And I don't care how hungry we are, we would never go into the men’s room to feed. Gross. Besides, shredded? Sounds more like a werewolf’s M.O.”

  “Anyhow,” I said, “that doesn’t explain the sound we heard. It couldn’t have come from the victim; it was too... well, not human.”

  “Faustine, I need you out of here. Now. The cops are just starting to make the rounds. So, unless you can dial down the red, get out of here. Now,” Luke ordered.

  “Ready?” Ryker whispered, and drew me close to him. I had no idea how he was planning to get me out. All I felt was a warm blanket of peace and a floaty feeling as I closed my eyes. When I opened them seconds later, I was back in my bedroom.

  “Wow! How did you do that?” I asked.

  He smiled. His lips curled more on the left side of his mouth. Cute.

  “Do you know that’s the first thing you’ve ever said to me?”

  I nodded.

  “Do you know what I am?”

  “A Wanderer,” I whispered.

  “Close. I’m a Sigma-Wanderer, which means I can travel geographically, as well as through time and dimensions. So transporting you over here was relatively easy.”

  “Well, thanks. I owe you one.”

  He laughed. “Let me take you out to dinner.”

  “Sure. By the way, how did you know about the party, anyway? Did Neave contact you?”

  He plunked himself down on my bed. I sure hoped that Mom wouldn’t pop into my room. I would be so grounded for having a boy in here!

  “It was Audrey, actually, who told me about the party. But, I’m guessing Neave initiated it. I’ve wanted to ask you out for ages, so it was pretty cool to hear that you have the hots for me,” he grinned.

  “Now, wait...” I protested, feeling m
y face turning a molten shade of red.

  Ryker grabbed my hand and pulled me down to sit next to him. “I’m just messing with you. But seriously, I’m glad they set us up. I've totally had a thing for you for a really long time.”

  “Why didn’t you ever speak to me?”

  “To tell you the truth, I was–am–a bit afraid.”

  I laughed. “You’re afraid of me?”

  “You’re a demon,” he replied matter-of-factly.