The Violet Hour (The Violet Hour Series)

by Wells, Andrea L

  “Are you friends with the Callahan’s?” I asked.

  “No,” she replied. “Your dad and Kate took them in after their parents were killed in a car accident late last summer but I’ve only seen them around school, haven’t gotten to know them much.

  “Just gossip I’ve heard that’s gone around school about them. But, I’d totally go for any one of them, especially Luke, if he’d give anyone the time of day. He seems content just being alone,” she said, as if maybe she’d already tried. “And of course, if I didn’t have a boyfriend,” she added for good measure.

  “Sorry about this,” I said, changing the subject, “I guess I overreacted a little in the classroom. I’m not used to people being that mean to my face.”

  “It’s no biggie. I heard about your mom – everyone did. That’s how the whole school knew you were coming here. I’m sorry for your loss, Logan. If you ever need someone to talk to, let me know.”

  Ashleigh must have sensed my uneasiness with the topic. Instead, she talked about after school functions, sports, guys, girls and classes instead. She never asked me questions, leaving my mind free to plot my conversation with Luke. I knew I had to confront him again and I didn’t care if he got upset. He owed me answers. He had never even mentioned Rachel until she was sitting three feet away.

  The bell rang, startling me. I couldn’t believe we’d spent an entire hour in the girls’ bathroom. Ashleigh and I jumped off the counter. When I got to the door first, I paused, turned around and hugged Ashleigh.

  “Thanks for checking on me and staying to talk,” I said

  “Oh. No problem. Maybe we could hang out sometime? I mean…” she asked with an undercurrent of hesitation.

  “Sure! That sounds great.”

  Without a moment’s hesitation, she gave me her cell phone.

  While I typed my number into her phone, I realized I had no other choice. I wasn’t going to let Luke lead me on any longer. It was time to man up, answer my questions and tell the truth like he’d promised so I wasn’t hit by any more curve balls. Ashleigh relaxed as she took my mood shift as a sign I was genuinely grateful for her, which I was. She had helped me come to these conclusions.

  Standing just outside the door, waiting with a concerned look on his face, was Luke. He handed me my bag and textbook. I smiled at Ashleigh as she stepped around us and back into the classroom. Luke stiffly led the way toward our last class. I wondered if he suspected Ashleigh had told me something she shouldn’t have. I wondered how much more to the story there was. We walked in silence to the gym while I pondered.

  Mr. Hunt came out of the locker room and introduced himself to the class. He wasted no time and got right into discussing the semester, not torturing me with another mundane student introduction. The school was late filling his position, so, thankfully, this was one class I wasn’t behind in. At the bottom-row bleacher, I noticed Jack and Jesse. Jesse was surrounded by a few freshman girls smiling and giggling amongst themselves. It seemed Ashleigh and Rachel weren’t the only ones enamored with these boys.

  Mr. Hunt informed us we would dress in gym clothes the next day and, as long as we kept it down, we could chat the rest of the hour. Perfect. I turned my stare on Luke as soon as Mr. Hunt finished. Jack and Jesse both raced up the bleachers toward us as if they knew they needed to save their brother.

  “Not now,” Luke mouthed to me as they took a seat on either side of us.

  “Why?” I asked, loudly. He was not going to put me off any longer. Especially since we had an hour to do nothing but talk.

  “Not now,” he growled again. Both Jack and Jesse snapped their gaze toward Luke.

  I got up from the bleachers and headed toward the girls’ locker room. Was I really going to hide from everyone in bathrooms all afternoon? Thankfully, it was my last class of the day. Mr. Hunt was in his office and didn’t notice me as I passed his window and walked down the locker room hall.

  Upon entering the girls’ side, I immediately noticed the emergency exit door propped open. I looked behind me to make sure no one had followed and slid out the door, finding myself in the parking lot. Perfect. I ran to my car and jumped in. I’d never skipped school before, but I wasn’t about to stay any longer. I turned the key to start my car and looked up to see Luke outside my door. I rolled my eyes and cracked my window.

  “What do you want?” I asked rudely.

  “I want you to move over so I can drive.”

  I sat there torn. If I let him in, I’d be giving in again and condoning his mood swings. If I didn’t let him in, it could be the end of any relationship we had or might’ve had.

  I rolled the window up and put the car into drive.

  Luke took a step back and watched as I sped past him.

  There was nothing strategic about my decision. I was letting the teenage girl inside of me call the shots. The same teenage girl that led me to a fast food joint parking lot to eat French fries, drink soda and skip class. The same teenage girl that hoped Luke would come crawling back with an apology and explanation as soon as I got home.

  I sat in the parking lot until class ended so my dad wouldn’t suspect I had skipped. As I navigated to the interstate, I wondered how Luke would get home. If he stayed at school waiting for Jesse, he wouldn’t be back for hours. That would give me time to get situated before he arrived.

  When I pulled down the drive, I noticed both my dad and Kate’s vehicles were gone. The boys’ truck wasn’t there either. I parked my car and left the garage door open so everyone would know I was home. As I shut the trunk door, I screamed and dropped my bags.

  That’s when everything started to move in slow motion.

  Andrea Wells – The Violet Hour

  Chapter 10

  I knelt over to pick up my things scattered on the garage floor. Almost everything had stayed inside my open book bag except for my makeup and a tattered copy of Romeo and Juliet. It had fallen out and landed between Luke and me. We both reached for it, but I grabbed it first. It hung open at my bookmarked page. As I looked down, my eyes were drawn to nine simple words I’d underlined earlier:

  “For you and I are past our dancing days.”

  Slapping the book closed with one hand, I looked up at Luke standing above me. Waiting.

  “What do you want from me, Luke?” I spit.

  “I don’t want anything from you, Logan,” he answered coldly.

  “Then, what the hell are you doing here?”

  “I live here.”

  “You know, I’m tired of your humor and you snapping at me, your web of stories and broken promises.”

  He said nothing and I was too upset to argue any further. I quickly turned to walk away so he couldn’t grab my arm and stop me. My steps felt big, but my movement seemed small. Leaving Luke in the garage, I went inside and immediately headed for my room, feeling anxious that time seemed to be standing still. I got to my room, locked the door and leaned my back against it. Standing on the porch outside my window was Luke.

  I froze. “Impossible,” I mumbled under my breath.

  “Logan…” he said as he climbed inside.

  “I didn’t stop for anything when I came inside. You couldn’t have gotten up here this fast,” I whispered horrified as he approached.

  “Well, I’m standing here now, aren’t I?” he said sarcastically.

  I didn’t respond, still frozen against the door. One step before he reached me, he put his hand out to take mine. I moved out of his way and walked to the window, slipping onto the porch. My mind raced as I tried to think. I was lost inside my own skin. I had every reason to send him away, and yet part of me wanted him to stay. I was trapped in conflicting emotions I had never felt for anyone and no words to describe the feeling. I looked down the length of the deck and another overwhelming wave washed over me.

  In a zombie-like state, I walked to the end of the porch. There were no stairs to get down from the second story nor did it wrap around to the front of the house like I had originally susp
ected when I arrived. I searched the side of the house for the first time, realizing there were no other windows or doors leading onto the deck. My heart raced at an uncontrollable speed. I turned back toward my room and found myself nose to nose with Luke.

  His kind eyes offered me a seductive warmth and comfort I had to avoid, so I stalked past him back toward the window. As I stepped inside, I allowed myself one last look. He was still standing at the other end of the porch watching me leave.

  ‘Wait,’ he mouthed.

  Torn again, I mouthed ‘why’ back to him and he took advantage of my hesitation.

  He reached out and assisted me back onto the porch, taking my hand as if we were about to waltz. Leaning in close to my face, he took a deep breath. The kind of breath you take before you’re about to confess a crime. I closed my eyes and listened to my heartbeat race. It felt like Luke was getting warmer. I felt him tremble as he released my hand.

  “Do you still trust me?” he asked with both his hoarse voice and questioning eyes.

  I felt a lump in my throat and my fingers tingled. I stared as deep as I could into his blue eyes, searching for an answer.

  “I do,” I breathed. It defied explanation. I trusted him while my heart was splintering.

  “Do you promise?” he whispered.

  “I promise.”

  Time came to a halt as Luke backed away from me. I analyzed his every move, afraid of what would come next. I began to shiver, though it was at least seventy degrees outside. Luke shifted his gaze to something behind me and my heart began to hammer in my chest. My breath was quick. I knew the answer was behind me, and I willed myself to face it. Turning slowly, as if I wasn’t moving at all, I let my eyes follow his stare. I struggled to focus on the shadows emerging from the forest in front of me.

  Horrified, I turned to Luke. He had moved to the edge of the deck as if to protect me from the four large wolves that now waited below. I looked back at them and then to Luke, suddenly terrified. As time sped up, my fear turned to panic and I launched myself toward Luke.

  I yelled his name and reached out to stop him, but was too late. In one quick leap, Luke jumped off the second story deck. I crashed hard into the railing and struggled to keep myself from falling over. The wolves didn’t move a muscle as Luke hit the ground and leisurely joined them.

  His clothes, now in pieces, were still falling out of sky like confetti. He turned to face me, sitting down next to two of the wolves. Gracefully, the other two trotted up to join, while a sixth wolf emerged from the trees.

  I stood as still as I could, feeling the hair on my neck stand up on end. My lungs were going so fast, I felt like I was panting. My knees felt weak and the coldness that had been building in the pit of my stomach surged throughout my body. The last thing I remember was six pairs of wolf eyes watching as my legs finally gave out.

  *****

  I awoke gasping for air like I was drowning. I lay as still as I could, trying to assess the room while struggling to take deep breathes. The sun had begun setting, painting the walls shades of pinks and purples. I leaned my head off the pillow to ensure I was alone and slowly relaxed back into the safety of my covers. My mind flooded with images of wolves and I silently hoped it was another bad dream.

  “I know you’re awake,” Luke called from outside my window.

  I couldn’t see him. It was impossible he had heard me wake because I hadn’t made a sound. I refused to respond. He finally stuck his head through the window as if to make certain he was right before stepping inside. A slight grin grew when his eyes met mine. Cautiously, he approached and knelt down beside me on the floor.

  I watched Luke while he continued to smile sadly back at me. I didn’t know what to say or where to begin. Vivid images flashed through my mind. Luke slowly reached for my face, and his smile faded. I leaned back into my pillow slightly. He gently swept back my hair and smoothed it on top of my head.

  “It wasn’t a bad dream,” Luke whispered while he brushed my hair with his fingers.

  “Can you read my mind?” I whispered back.

  “No,” he chuckled, “I can’t read your mind but I do have sort of a sixth sense.”

  Neither of us said anything for a long time. I didn’t move an inch in fear of passing out again and he didn’t move in fear of what I might say next. My mind raced with questions I couldn’t answer.

  “I didn’t dream it,” I concluded.

  I hadn’t realized I’d spoken aloud until Luke responded to the one question I had already answered for myself.

  “No dear, you didn’t,” he said. With the lines of communication open again, I pushed for more.

  “Was this what you’ve been hiding from me?”

  “Part of it, I guess. There’s more.”

  “So,” I started, trying to find words I could force out of my mouth, “You were going to tell me that you’re a wolf?”

  Without missing a beat, Luke replied, “No, I was going to tell you that I’m a werewolf. There is a difference,” he joked, lightly.

  “I’m not sure I’m following the humor in any of this,” I replied flatly.

  I turned over to look him directly in the eyes for the first time since he’d come through the window. He didn’t look back. Instead, he reached for my hand and laced his fingers into mine. I went numb. He pulled my hand up to his face and kissed the back of my hand as his eyes finally met mine.

  “I’m still the same person I was five days ago, Logan. Always have been and always will be,” he whispered.

  I didn’t know what to say or do. I was caught on the words, ‘always have been…always will be.’

  “I’ve been a werewolf for a while, but it’s a long story. Would you join me downstairs?” he asked, as if this was no big deal.

  Horror washed over me as I realized my dad, Kate and probably Jack and Jesse were likely home and downstairs by now. He bit his lip while he watched my eyes widen, almost as if he anticipated my reaction.

  “They know, they all know,” Luke confirmed.

  He pulled the covers off me and helped me out of bed. I got to my feet and followed him down the stairs. I didn’t know what else to do. I froze mid-step as we neared the bottom.

  My dad and Kate emerged from the kitchen and stood patiently in the hallway below. I looked down at my father and tears began to fill my eyes. I had no idea what was going on, and had never felt so relieved to see my father, a beacon of hope. He stepped around the corner and up the stairs, lifting me into his arms before my knees gave out again. Carrying me back down the steps without an ounce of effort, I began to question the normalcy of this. The great room smelled of burning firewood as he sat me down gently on one of the leather sofas. Sitting down on the coffee table across from me, he never took his eyes off mine. Kate came to his side with a fur blanket she unfolded and wrapped around me. I hadn’t realized how cold I felt until then.

  “Are you okay?” my dad finally asked.

  “I don’t know, am I?” I countered, unsure how to really answer.

  He frowned and handed me a glass of water. I sat up and took a sip. I didn’t realize I was still crying until tears spilled over my eyes when I set the glass down. I looked at anything and everything in the room except for the three people standing in it. The front door opened and Rachel stepped inside, followed by Jack and Jesse. My body tensed when Rachel glared at me. Of all the people to be here right now, she was the last person I expected or wanted to see.

  My father handed me the large picture frame he had retrieved from atop the fireplace. I took a deep breath and looked down at the old weathered photo. The picture was sepia shades of brown and tan with two women in long dresses standing beside two men in cowboy boots and hats. One woman was holding a newborn baby in her arms and standing beside her, with his arms wrapped around her leg, was a little boy. The photo was dated March 17, 1881.

  I looked up, now with more questions than answers. Across the room, Luke’s back was to me as he gazed through the large window outsi
de. Rachel was sitting on the floor next to the fireplace with Jack and Jesse was stretched out on the couch. Each of them looking in different directions, none daring to look at me. Kate was quietly concentrating on knitting beside me, leaving my dad the only one in the room who wasn’t pretending everything was normal. I stared back down at the photo again, trying to put the pieces together. When I finally looked up, Luke was standing next to me.

  “That’s my mother and that’s my father,” he said, pointing to each of them.

  I waited for him to explain.

  “And that,” he pointed to the newborn in his mother’s arms. “That’s me and the little boy is Jack.”

  Across the room, Jack finally turned to look at us. I looked at Jesse before I even thought of the question, he answered it.

  “I wasn’t born until January 11th,” Jesse said. When I didn’t say anything or move, he finished. “In 1882.” I winced. This wasn’t real.

  I swallowed the lump creeping into my throat again and pointed to the last two people remaining in the photo. My father’s eyes told me it was him but I needed to hear the words.

  “That’s me. And that’s,” his voice broke, forcing him to swallow. “That’s your mother.”

  My mind went blank.

  I shut my eyes and held the photo out toward him. He took it from my hands and I let the couch devour me as I sunk against it. My dad asked what I was thinking, what I was feeling, what I wanted to know. I lay, wrapped in blankets on the couch for hours, dozing off at some point after everyone gave up on talking to me.

  I woke to a house blackened in darkness except for the low, flickering light of the fire place. In a chair next to the fire, Luke sat reading. I pushed myself onto my elbows checking if everyone else was gone. Luke got up and walked over to me saying nothing and utterly expressionless. Also having nothing to say, I stood and exited the room. Just as I hadn’t that day, I didn’t look back to see if Luke was following. I didn’t care. I went into my bathroom first and locked the door. And just like the date in the restaurant, when I opened the bathroom door, he was there. Sitting in a chair he’d pulled from the desk, next to my bed. I didn’t look at him as I turned out the light and climbed under the covers.