“Hey, Lonz, check out the back seat.” Warren suddenly peered through Mauve’s open window and leaned over to wave at me. “There’s another girl.”
“That’s Rayah,” Sadie chirped. “She had a wild night and spewed in a parking lot this morning. She’s kind of out of it.”
“I’m just tired,” I said with an exaggerated yawn, hoping Warren would get the hint and leave me alone.
But no such luck.
“Party Girl, come out and party with us,” Warren urged.
“You go ahead without me.”
“Come on, Warren, let Rayah rest.” Sadie moved closer to Warren, obviously realizing that two guys divided by three girls weren’t great odds unless you removed one girl from the equation.
Warren ignored her and tapped on my window. “Come on, join our road party. You’ll have more fun with us.”
“I’m enjoying the music,” I said, pointing to the front seat where Sadie had kept the power on and music playing. I bobbed my head to the rhythm to show I was having plenty of fun sitting by myself.
“If it’s music you want to hear, Lonz and I have some cool CDs in our car.”
What was it with this guy? Sadie was practically dripping all over him yet he wouldn’t leave me alone. So I shook my head in a firm no.
“Forget her, I’d love to hear your CDs,” Sadie told Warren. “Let’s go to your car.”
“And leave your friend?” Warren stared me in a way that gave me shivers.
“If you know what’s good for you,” Mauve put in with a wicked grin. She raked her black-tipped fingernails through her pink head and gave Warren a warning look. “You better leave Rayah alone.”
“Why?” he asked, frowning.
“After a night of partying, she’s got a short fuse.” Mauve turned so I could see her face (but the guys couldn’t) and winked at me. “If you push her, she could get dangerous.”
Me, dangerous? Was Mauve trying to help me or stirring up drama for her own amusement? I was like the most non-violent person ever. I rarely lost my temper — not even when my little sisters turned an essay I’d spent a week writing into paper diapers for their dolls.
Mauve’s lie was ridiculous … or was it? What if Sharayah’s personality change included violence? How could I be sure until I knew more about her? I needed the GEM to tell me the truth. Then I wouldn’t stumble around in this borrowed body like an actress without a script.
“Let’s go sit in your car,” Sadie urged Warren, gently pulling on his arm.
“Sure.” Warren glanced over at Alonzo. “You coming or staying here?”
“Coming, as soon as I’m done listening.” He tilted his head toward the car stereo, which was still playing loud and strong. “I didn’t know this album was out yet.”
“It’s new. I’ll burn you a CD, for a price.” Mauve smiled.
“A price?” Alonzo asked, grinning. “What did you have in mind?”
“What can you give me?” Mauve asked playfully.
“I can think of a lot of things — but not in public.” Alonzo rubbed his thumb over his lip ring. “Maybe we should wait till this traffic clears up and go somewhere private.”
“Whoa, you’re moving too fast,” Mauve said with a flirty laugh. “All I’m offering is a CD … for now.”
“Excuse me, but that’s my CD.” Sadie whirled from Warren to glare at Mauve. “You can’t give away my stuff.”
“I’d never take anything of yours,” Mauve said, with a hard emphasis on “yours” that abruptly shut Sadie up. Sadie pressed her lips tightly and stepped away from Mauve.
What was that about? I wondered, leaning closer so I wouldn’t miss a word. I was puzzled yet intrigued, like watching a movie with subtitles.
I was relieved to watch them leave and sit anonymously in the back seat, analyzing my feelings about this “college girls gone wild” drama. Part of me was appalled by the way my “friends” were acting, yet another part was impressed. Mauve handled the guys with enough attitude to stay in control. Even over-eager Sadie carried herself with a bold confidence.
And I felt like a high school girl — for good reason.
Sharayah wouldn’t be sitting nervously in the back seat like me. But without the GEM I didn’t know enough about her to know what to do. What did I know about spring break? Only what I’d watched on TV.
Of course Sharayah probably didn’t know much about spring break, either. According to Eli, she used to be so studious that she never had time for anything except homework and volunteering. A far cry from this new Sharayah, who partied hard, trashed her dorm room and randomly hooked up with guys. I didn’t think her behavior had anything to do with drugs — I would have suffered symptoms or cravings by now. Something traumatic happened to change her. But what? Was it the older boyfriend, Gabe? Hmmm … where was Gabe anyway? If he was “my” boyfriend, why did Mauve say Sharayah didn’t have a steady guy?
Suddenly there was a roar of shouts, honks and cheers. The traffic was moving! I leaned forward to peer out the window as the others rushed back.
“Taillights are flashing!” Sadie announced, jumping excitedly.
“So soon? Too bad, I was enjoying the view.” Alonzo leaned on the open door, his gaze lingering on Mauve.
“We can hook up later.” Mauve smiled. “We’re staying at Sadie’s cousin’s beach condo.” She rattled off an address on Tide Pool Street, which I memorized so I could let Eli know where I was next time I called him.
“A beach condo? Sweet deal,” Alonzo said as he nodded. “Count on seeing me again … really soon.”
Sadie turned from her conversation with Warren and lowered the volume on the stereo. “We can all hook up later.”
“Or sooner,” Mauve said with a wicked gleam in her eyes.
“You guys better hurry,” Sadie interrupted. “The traffic jam is over.”
“Hey, Party Girl, be seeing you, too.” Warren moved away from Sadie and peered into the back toward me.
“The car behind yours is honking,” I told him, pointing.
“We can talk more next time.”
Or not, I thought, disliking him strongly although I wasn’t sure why.
“Come on, War!” Alonzo called as he turned to leave.
But Warren hesitated, staring at me with that intense look again. “Do we know each other? There’s something familiar about you … Were you at Preston’s big bash last month?”
“No!” I said firmly — though I had no idea if it was true.
“Really? You remind me of this girl I saw there. I’ve got a great memory for faces … hmmm … guess I’m wrong. Bye, Party Girl.” He offered his gloved hand like he wanted to shake good-bye.
But I froze, staring at his glove with its bloody fire dragon design. A horrible suspicion chilled my heart; there was a reason why he’d wear gloves in unseasonably warm weather. What if the gloves were more than a tacky fashion choice? The gloves could be camouflage for glowing gray hands.
Was Warren a Dark Lifer?
Grammy Greta had warned me that Dark Lifers would try to suck my glowing energy by touching me. A brief touch would leave me with a sick, drained feeling like my soul had been violated. I never wanted to go through that. I had to stay away from Warren.
Cars behind us honked as the traffic moved but we remained parked.
“War,” Alonzo said. “We have to leave now.”
Finally, Warren turned to leave.
But Mauve had other ideas.
“Not so fast,” she told Alonzo in a sultry tone. “Aren’t you forgetting someone?”
Alonzo couldn’t take his gaze off Mauve. “Who?”
With a wicked smile she pointed to herself. “Me.”
She clasped Alonzo’s hand and before anyone could protest, the two of them raced back to the convertible — and drove off.
Leaving Warren with nothing else to do but go with us.
He took Mauve’s place in our car.
An arm’s reach from me.
&n
bsp; 6
How do you make small talk with a creepy guy you suspect is a Dark Lifer?
Well, it wasn’t easy. At least he was in the front with Sadie, not back with me. Still, I lied about my seat belt being stuck and slipped over into the next seat — as far as you could get from someone inside a moving car.
All the while I was thinking of how I wanted to get revenge on Mauve. Didn’t she care about anyone other than herself? Even if Warren wasn’t a Dark Lifer, being stuck traveling with a random guy was all kinds of uncomfortable. How could Mauve do this to her friends?
“Mauve is like the best friend ever!” Sadie exclaimed, her attention focused on driving and Warren. I glimpsed her dopey lovesick expression when she glanced up at the rearview mirror.
“Yeah, sweet trade. Two girls to one guy,” Warren said. From the back seat, I couldn’t see his face but knew he was grinning from his tone.
“I’m just glad to have more time with you,” Sadie practically purred. “On a long drive, we can really get to know each other.”
“And Party Girl, too.” Warren pointed toward me.
“Don’t call me that,” I snapped.
“Ignore the grouch in the back seat. Rayah has been in a bad mood all morning,” Sadie said as if joking, but there was no joking in the glare she shot me through the rearview mirror. “Warren, I think it’s amazing you started your own website business. I want to hear all about it.”
I tuned out while Sadie ooh and awed over everything Warren told her. A few times Warren tried to bring me into the conversation, but Sadie quickly shifted the topic back to her. It was obvious she wanted all of Warren’s attention on her; zero on me.
Did she really think the biggest goal in my immediate life was to steal him? Ha! So far from the truth. I wanted to warn her that Warren might be evil and dead — but she’d never believe me.
I wasn’t sure what I believed myself. I could only see the back of his head and one of his gloves, and had no way of telling if he was a dead guy lurking in a stolen body. He acted ordinary enough — except he seemed unusually interested in me. Was he merely curious or waiting for a chance to suck my energy?
“Sadie, can I borrow your cell phone?” I asked, deciding I had to do something or I’d explode from nerves.
“What for?” she asked.
“To call my boyfriend.”
“Your boyfriend? Oh, sure!” Her tone was all friendly again. “I didn’t realize you were so serious with James.”
“Uh … ” I gnawed my lower lip, thinking fast. “It surprised me, too.”
“Well, I’m thrilled for you. It must be hard going off for a week without him.”
“Miserable.”
“I can’t believe you finally settled on one guy.” She flashed me a huge smile. “Maybe I’ll get lucky and find someone special, too.”
“You never know,” Warren told Sadie.
“It’s a goal,” Sadie said with a significant look at him. “Anyway, Rayah, you can tell James that there’s always room for one more at the condo if he wants to join us.”
“Sure,” I lied.
Sadie reached for her phone, which was propped in a cup holder. But one glance at the phone and she grimaced. “Oh, crap.”
“What?” I asked.
“No signal. Too many hills, I guess.” She returned the phone to its holder. “You can try later.”
How much later? I thought dismally as I glanced out the window. I could see only brown and green hills with occasional oaks or wild scrubs; it was as if we were driving into an infinity of nowhere. A few homes flashed by, but mostly it was empty hills and gravity-defying cows grazing vertically on steep inclines. Traffic continued on sluggishly, slowing then speeding up. We kept to the left, moving swiftly in the fast lane, passing the slow lane where trucks chugged with exhausted effort like out-of-shape joggers. It seemed like we were driving on endless curving ribbons of concrete. Where were the McDonald’s, Taco Bells and gas stations?
I shifted uncomfortably, hoping we’d stop soon so I could use a restroom.
When I mentioned this to Sadie, she held up her empty Starbucks cup plus the Diet Pepsi she’d finished. “Me, too,” she said with a pinched expression. “These hills are going on forever.”
“There’s an exit with fast food and gas stations about thirty miles ahead,” Warren said. “A pit stop sounds great. It’s cramped sitting for a long time.” He lifted his arms for a stretch, his gloved fingers reaching out toward me as if by accident. The fiery dragon design seemed to flame like a predator seeking a victim — and I jerked away.
Warren and Sadie kept talking as if nothing unusual had happened, but my stomach rocked with revulsion. Having my energy sucked by a Dark Lifer was personal, and emotionally invasive. But I wasn’t positive about Warren, so what could I do? The GEM’s advice for dealing with Dark Lifers was to retreat and report.
Unfortunately, in a moving car without the GEM, I couldn’t do either.
Fortunately, Sadie kept Warren’s focus away from me as she flirted on cruise control. She chattered about favorite foods, music and malls. I’d never been so grateful to be shut out of a conversation. While they talked, I stared out the window, aching to be anywhere else and longing for my real life. What were Mom, Dad, Alyce and Dustin doing right now? Were they back at the hospital, still waiting for me to wake up from the coma? I assumed Sharayah was sleeping in my body, but what if she wasn’t? I’d almost been disconnected from life support once already this past week.
How long could I stay away without risking harm to my real body?
It had to be miserable for my family — waiting in a hospital room for me to wake up, unaware I was miles away living someone else’s life. I wished I could get a message to them — but even if the GEM rules allowed it, why upset them with the truth? Besides, Grammy had put a lot of trust in me and I didn’t want to let her down. If I worked quickly, it would only take a few days to complete my assignment. Then I’d return to myself.
Conversation from the front seat interrupted my thoughts when I realized that Sadie was speaking to me. “ … you agree it’s nothing like expected?” she asked.
“Um … expect what?” I asked.
“Didn’t you hear anything I said?” Sadie glanced back at me with exaggerated drama. “I was telling Warren how we’ve been planning this trip for weeks and thought we’d already be on the beach by now. It’s crazy how nothing is going as planned.”
“You can say that again.” I sighed, thinking of my friends and family.
“The thing is,” Sadie added, “sometimes I get feelings about things that are going to happen, and my intuition says this week is only going to get crazier.”
I groaned, hoping her intuition was wrong.
“I’m a fan of all things wild and crazy,” Warren said. “I’ve heard it gets really insane on the beach — lots of music, contests and partying.”
“Mauve wants me to enter a wet T-shirt contest,” Sadie said. “What do you think?”
“You should.” Warren twisted toward the back seat, his gaze narrowing at me. “And so should you.”
“No way,” I said. “Too embarrassing.”
“Rayah, you’re such a kidder,” Sadie said, giggling. “You’re the one who showed Mauve the photos of last year’s wet T-shirt contest you found online. And you said you’d be first in line to enter.”
“Oh, well … I’ve changed my mind about entering.” I paused. “Standing on a stage and being drenched with water doesn’t sound very fun.”
“It’s plenty of fun for the guys watching from the audience,” Warren retorted.
“You would say that,” I replied, frowning.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he accused, his muscular shoulders straining at the seat belt as he twisted around toward me. “You know, I’m getting tired of your attitude. I’ve been really friendly to you, so why are you so cold?”
“He’s right, Rayah,” Sadie agreed. “You’ve been rude to him.”
“Did I do something to piss you off?” Warren asked.
“Of course not.” I squirmed uncomfortably in my seat belt. “I’m just not feeling social after a rough night.”
“I warned her not to stay out so late,” Sadie added with a reproachful glance back at me. “Don’t take it personal, Warren. She’s cool with your being here. Right, Rayah?”
What else could I do but nod?
Time to change tactics, I decided. If Warren wanted to get aggressive, I could, too — but in a more subtle way. Remembering advice from a book on dealing with awkward social situations called Disarming Your Enemy With a Smile, I decided to turn this conversation into a fact-finding opportunity.
I summoned my most disarming smile. “If I’ve been rude — sorry.”
“No problem,” Warren said.
“Sadie’s right, I’ve been a grouch. I’m a little hung-over still, but that’s no reason to take my bad mood out on you.”
“I’ve been hung-over, too, and it bites,” Warren replied. “Lucky for you, I give great neck rubs. When we stop, I’ll massage away your pain.”
And try to suck away my energy, I thought suspiciously.
Trying to be polite, just in case he wasn’t an energy vampire, I pasted on a smile. “Sure, that sounds cool.” Then, with stealth purpose, I added, “While you’re massaging, I’d like to try on your gloves. The dragon design is cool and the leather looks so soft.”
“Forget it. No one wears them but me.”
“You can’t give a massage with gloves,” I argued.
“Yeah, I can. It’s better that way.”
“I’d love a massage,” Sadie said, her hand on the steering wheel as she turned toward Warren.
“Sure, babe.”
“But Rayah’s got a point about the gloves. I’d rather feel your strong hands on my shoulders.”
“It’s either with gloves or not at all. I don’t take them off in public; they’re my personal icon.” His tone was friendly but when he waved his hands my direction, I felt a chill that made me shiver despite the stuffy warmness inside the car.
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