Fight For Me

by K. A. Last

  “You don’t know who you are, do you?” she asked.

  “What?” Anger coursed through my veins. I was sick of people questioning me. “Who do you think you are, asking me that?”

  “Sorry,” she said. “My mistake.”

  The girl stared at me as if waiting for a reply, but what did she want me to say? I didn’t know her.

  My phone vibrated in my pocket and the buzzing broke the silence. I didn’t move to answer it. It was probably my dad again; he hadn’t called for a few hours.

  “Aren’t you going to get that?” She raised her eyebrows.

  “It won’t be anyone important.”

  “Right … thanks for the directions.”

  From the shadow of the balcony, I watched as the girl elegantly descended the stairs to the street and walked in the direction I’d told her. Her hair rippled around her shoulders, the light glinting off the golden strands. She had a grace I’d never seen in another human before, and that was when it hit me. Why had I not wanted to sink my fangs into her? Why had she not stirred the burning in my throat? Usually when I stood in such close proximity to any human my senses started roaring. I could smell the victim’s blood and sweat, and usually their fear.

  This girl had not smelt human, but she couldn’t be like me. Maybe she was an angel or a hunter, but all the ones I’d met had wanted to kill me within the first minute, sometimes less. They had a knack for seeking out and dusting vamps. Puzzled, I watched until she turned the corner.

  “What are you?” I asked, staring at the place she’d been a moment before. I decided to make it my new mission to find out.

  FOUR

  Grace

  Friday morning

  The wind assaulted me as I jumped down from the Defender, and I wrapped my arms around myself in an attempt to thwart the chill.

  “I hate this time of year.” Archer huddled close to me and we walked through the front gates of Hopetown Valley High. “Maybe we should start chasing the summer.”

  I grunted and rubbed my arms—I really wasn’t in the mood for light chitchat. All I wanted was to get through the last day of term.

  I’d tried calling Josh another four times with no success. His twenty-four hours would be up by the afternoon. The seconds stretched into minutes, and I hoped he’d call soon to save my sanity. Somehow, I didn’t think he would.

  My gaze drifted over the entry to the girls’ dorm as we passed. Since Emma’s death, I hadn’t set foot inside. I couldn’t bring myself to go near her room. Someone else occupied it, and the thought of another person using Emma’s space made me sad. I had too many memories of our friendship and time inside that room, and it hurt too much. I missed her.

  We quickened our pace and walked around the dorm into the main yard. With Josh fresh on my mind, my thoughts drifted back to all the things that happened that first week of our final school year. The day Josh left felt as if it had only been minutes ago. Every time I thought of him my lips burned with the memory of his kiss, and the way he’d held me. What we’d done before the heated words of our argument in the city. His eventual hostility cut me to my core, but I couldn’t blame him. I’d abandoned him when he’d needed me most. Every time I closed my eyes I saw the way he’d looked at me—not with the beautiful blue eyes he’d once had, but with the black ones that came after he was changed.

  Actually, when I closed my eyes I saw a lot of things I didn’t want to: Emma’s scared face when Matthew bit her and killed her; my fingers pressed into Josh’s neck, covered with his blood; Charlotte’s glistening fangs as she bit into his wrist; Seth’s cheeky smile, his furrowed brow, the way he looked when he was angry with me, and his wings turning to mist when Angelica stripped him.

  So much had happened that had caused so much pain, not only for me, but everyone close to me as well.

  A light drizzle fell as we made our way to the cafeteria. I pulled the hood on my red coat over my head and hunched my shoulders, shivering against the cold. When we finally walked into the cafeteria, a warm wave of air hit my face and I felt as if I could breathe properly again.

  “What do you want today?” Archer asked.

  “Nothing. I don’t think I can stomach it.”

  “Come on, Gracie, you have to eat.” He frowned.

  “I’ll be fine.” I waved him off and went to sit at our table by the window.

  The noise level lifted as more and more students rushed in to get out of the weather. I watched the clouds as they finally let go and rain poured down in a sheet. It hit the glass and trickled along it, forming tiny rivers that ran into each other.

  Archer pulled me from my reverie when he dumped his tray on the table, making me jump. Ryan joined us shortly after and both boys sat across from me, staring.

  “What?” I stared back.

  “Arch filled me in on the Josh news. Are you okay?” Ryan asked.

  “Oh. My. God! I’m a big girl. I’m fine.”

  “You don’t look fine. Did you get any sleep last night?”

  “No. But I don’t need to sleep much anyway.”

  “You still need to sleep a little,” Archer said.

  “We’re worried about you.” Ryan picked at the edge of his tray.

  It should have been the other way around. I was the Protection Angel. I should be doing all the worrying.

  Since Emma’s death, Ryan and I had become good friends. They’d only just started dating before she’d died, but he’d crushed on her for years so it messed him up pretty bad. It messed us all up, and we kind of fell together over a common experience. He’d become like a second brother to me, only more breakable.

  “His mug shot is probably being plastered all over town as we speak,” Archer said. “Didn’t you say Mr Chase had a pretty big stack of flyers?

  “Like I said, I’m fine. I’ve … moved on.”

  “No you haven’t.” Archer pushed a plate with a piece of toast on it in front of me. “Eat. It will make you feel better.”

  The last thing I felt like doing was eating, but I picked up the toast and had a bite to humour him.

  I took my phone from my pocket and checked it for the millionth time that morning. If Josh had called back I would’ve heard it, but I couldn’t help checking anyway, in case I’d missed him.

  “Still no go on the call back?” Archer asked as I set my phone down on the table.

  I shook my head and stared at the screen until it blinked off. “I tried calling again this morning, but it went to voicemail.”

  “Stop thinking the worst. The fact his phone is even ringing and not going straight to messages is something.” Archer raised his eyebrows. A goofy grin spread across his face and he crossed his eyes.

  I almost spat my toast out. “You look like an idiot.”

  “Ah! But you smiled,” he said. “You don’t do that enough anymore.”

  “I’m. Fine.”

  I wasn’t. There was something seriously up with Josh, and I wanted—no, needed—to find him. I probably needed to find Charlotte as well. She’d mostly left me alone when I’d gone to the city to see Josh. They’d been staying together, and I was glad he had someone, but not so glad it was her. She’d lied, and I’d been stubborn. But the biggest part of not being fine was Seth. We had so much to resolve, and I couldn’t do that by myself. He needed to be present for any resolving to happen.

  I’d been hanging around Hopetown Valley going through the motions, slaying vamps almost every night, set to auto-pilot, in the hope that an answer would jump out from behind a tree and tackle me. It would say, Hey, Grace, Seth is over there. He’s been there the whole time.

  No such luck.

  Another tray slid onto the table and Abigail West plonked down beside me. Abby and I had a bit of a love-hate relationship, although we’d grown closer since Josh left. Abby felt sorry for me and thought we had something in common. Josh had dumped both of us—at least, that’s what had happened in her eyes. If only she knew the whole story.

  When Abby didn�
�t say anything after sitting down, I dragged my gaze from the window and looked at her. Her green eyes were puffy, and she dabbed at the corner of them with a tissue. She nervously ran her hand through her platinum blonde hair, twirling a piece around her finger.

  “Okay, Abby, out with it,” I said. “What’s wrong?” I already knew from reading her thoughts that she was worried about Josh.

  Archer hid a smile behind his hand and Ryan rolled his eyes. Abby didn’t notice. Most of the time, she was too engrossed with herself to see what was happening around her.

  “Have you read this morning’s paper?” she said.

  “I don’t read the paper.” I also didn’t watch TV or listen to the radio. My iPod was well used.

  Abby reached into her skirt pocket and pulled out a newspaper clipping. With shaky fingers, she unfolded it and spread it out on the table. I leant over to read the headline.

  Local Flats End Teenager—MISSING. Have you seen this face?

  The article had been cut from the Hopetown Valley Gazette. The same photo of Josh that was on Mr Chase’s flyers stared at me. I picked it up and my heart sank further into my stomach. I handed the article to Archer. He sat back in his chair and held the paper so Ryan could also see.

  Archer looked up once he’d finished reading and met my eyes. “This is pretty serious, isn’t it? It made the local paper …”

  “What’s happened to him, Grace?” Abby grabbed my arm so tightly it hurt.

  I felt like saying how should I know, but I bit my tongue.

  “I’m sure he’ll be fine,” I said, knowing full well he was far from it.

  “I went and saw him before he left for the city. He looked pretty sick. What if he got so sick he died? What if he’s lying on the floor somewhere and no one knows?”

  “Abby, he’s not sick,” I said. “Let the police do their job.”

  Something bad had happened. Okay, bad things had already happened, but I had a feeling this was going to be much, much worse. Abby was right in some respects; Josh could be dead. Once I’d had the thought, I couldn’t let it go. What if he were dead, as in not vampire dead, but not-walking-around-anymore dead? What would I do?

  Looks like we’ll be taking a road trip. Archer stared at me as he spoke in my mind.

  It hasn’t been twenty-four hours. Josh has time to call me back.

  And you really think that’s going to happen?

  Before I could answer, the first bell for the day sounded through the cafeteria. It sent everyone into a flurry of movement.

  “Go to class, Abby. I’m sure they’ll find him.” I stood and shouldered my bag. “It’s probably something really stupid like his phone is flat … I wouldn’t blame Mr Chase for panicking. Everything will be fine …”

  “What are your plans for the holidays?” Archer asked Abby as he rose from the table.

  I smiled and sighed with relief when Abby followed him. He was trying to help take her mind off Josh. Archer didn’t particularly like Abby, but she had grown on all of us this year.

  “Jesse is picking me up after school; he’s taking me out tonight,” Abby said. “He seems to think now his little sis is eighteen, I need to be initiated.”

  “See?” Archer said. “Something to take your mind off things.” He gave Abby a quick pat on the arm.

  “I guess,” she said.

  I waited until Abby was outside before facing the boys. We were pretty much the last ones in the cafeteria. “Something really, really bad has happened.”

  “That’s stating the obvious,” Archer said. “Maybe …”

  I waited for him to continue, but he didn’t.

  “Maybe … what?” I twirled my hand in the air. “I’ll look in your head, so tell me before I do.”

  Archer shuffled his feet and adjusted the strap of his backpack. “Maybe we should call Charlotte.”

  “No. N. O. No. We are not calling her.”

  “Why?” Ryan asked. “If Josh is staying with her, maybe she knows something.”

  “I don’t want her help.” I scowled and headed towards the door. “I’ll think it over today and we’ll talk about it later.”

  “Okay, boss, whatever you say.” Archer ducked out the door and made a run for it through the rain to the main building.

  Ryan followed, leaving me standing in the doorway. I stopped for a moment under the eaves and braced myself for the drenching that was to come.

  FIVE

  Josh

  Friday night

  My encounter with the strange girl was fresh in my mind. I’d been sitting in the wing chair for several hours, racking my brain and trying to remember who she was. Sifting through my thoughts and memories was not a hard process as I didn’t have that many to catalogue. I was certain she was from my past, but who was she?

  “Are you going to tell me how you know that girl? I saw you talking to her.” Lilith stood at the bottom of the stairs. I was so absorbed in my thoughts I hadn’t registered that she was in the room. Was that jealousy I detected in her voice?

  “You should’ve been sleeping,” I said.

  “It’s hard when I sense someone who isn’t welcome.”

  “Why should I tell you if I know her, Lilith? Do you?”

  “No,” she said quickly, her face darkening.

  I didn’t believe her.

  “It depends, then,” I said. “Are you going to tell me whose house this is?”

  “Why does that matter?”

  I let the silence fall between us, knowing she’d be the first to speak again. Lilith wanted an answer, and so did I. All I had to do was wait.

  “Fine. I grew up in this house. There, are you happy?”

  “No. Keep going.” I motioned with my hand.

  Lilith huffed and folded her arms over her ample chest. The pale skin of her cleavage glowed in the dim light.

  “My parents bought this place in 1897. A year later, I was born.”

  “Wow. You’re older than I thought.”

  Lilith pursed her lips. “Nineteen years after that, they died.”

  “How?”

  “Josh! It was almost a hundred years ago.”

  I fixed a neutral expression on my face and simply waited for her to continue. Eventually, Lilith grunted and launched into her story.

  “In 1917 I met a charming young man who courted me.” A smile played at the corners of Lilith’s mouth, but she wrapped her arms tighter around herself. “I asked him why he wasn’t fighting the war with all the other brave young men. At the time he told me he didn’t meet their physical standards for recruits, but that turned out to be a lie. He would take me to the theatre, and out dancing. He was a true gentleman, and I was a lady.”

  The snort I made didn’t impress Lilith. The thought of her being a lady was rather funny, what with her long, sleek hair, dark eye makeup and pierced nose. Not to mention the large tattoo that spread across her lower back from one hip to the other. A labyrinthine weave of Celtic knots in the form of a bat. She was definitely not a lady.

  Ignoring me, she continued. “But one night … let’s just say he changed me forever.”

  “Ah, your creator.” I predicted what was coming next. “You killed your parents.”

  For a brief moment Lilith looked like a frightened child; in all the time I’d known her I had never seen her appear so weak.

  “My parents, yes, and my twin sister. The war had taken care of my two older brothers,” she said. “Josh, I helped wipe out my entire family.” Her voice sounded surprised, as if this were the first time she’d actually thought about what she’d done. Lilith wrung her hands together, and the numerous silver rings on her fingers made a metallic clink. She looked at them then stopped and folded her arms again.

  “Please continue,” I said.

  Lilith scowled. “I left the house pretty much straight away. Locked it up and didn’t come back for a very long time. Being here now, it’s hard. It brings back memories I’d rather forget.”

  “See, it’s nice to
have a history, to know your past. Isn’t it?”

  “How do you know that girl, Josh?” The frightened little girl was suddenly gone. Lilith stood tall and pushed her shoulders back. “You’re very brave to step outside during the day. Is she worth dying for?”

  “I don’t know who she is. I’ve been sitting here all day trying to work that out.” I got up from the chair. “And I get the feeling you already know anyway.”

  “That’s right, you have amnesia,” Lilith said, ignoring my last comment. “How convenient for you when a gorgeous blonde happens to knock on our door. I’ve worked hard to keep this place hidden so the angels and hunters don’t find us.”

  Lilith stared at me with her coal-black, angry eyes. She did have a bit of a temper, which I found very attractive, and right then I felt like a fight. For so long I’d been wandering around aimlessly, knowing nothing about myself. I was even angrier still, now I knew a piece of Lilith’s past. At least she had one she could remember.

  “Obviously we haven’t been careful enough then, have we?” I said.

  “If I discover you’ve betrayed me—”

  “You’ll what, kill me?” I laughed. “I’m stronger than you, but you don’t want to admit it because it should be the other way around. Isn’t that why you helped me in the first place? What do they say, Lilith? The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

  She glared at me, speechless. Finally, I’d put her in her place.

  “Why didn’t you kill her?” she said. “Let me guess. You didn’t want to scar her pretty face.”

  “She isn’t human.”

  “Then what is she?” Lilith came across the room, her long, black dress trailing out behind her.

  I studied Lilith’s face, so close to mine her breath brushed my lips. An overwhelming desire to kiss her washed over me, but I held back. I sensed she knew something about this girl, and she was holding out on me. If I’d learnt anything since I’d known Lilith, it was that I couldn’t completely trust anyone, even her. If I played my cards right, I’d get the information I needed out of her eventually.