The Blood and Light Series (Six Books Boxed Set)

by Rue Volley

  I looked at her and she stopped and looked down.

  “Well, they don’t know what I am Sara. You on the other hand, are very human.”

  She looked back at me and nodded.

  “Yep… clever human,” she said and she opened the door up.

  I stood up. I shouldn’t do it, I know it… once again. I just couldn’t let Sara go to a cabin with a couple of boys that she didn’t even know. Uncool. I walked up behind her and she walked till she spotted the number. She looked at me and adjusted her boobs. I smiled and she knocked on the door. I hoped that they were not even in there, but as soon as I felt like we may not have to, the door opened and I leaned back against the window. Crap, we have takers.

  Sara smiled at her tall boy with blonde hair and I looked down the hallway, half tempted to run. Sara looked back at me and nodded her head at me. I grinned, not the real one… the grin that said, “I love you, that’s the only reason I am doing this.”

  The boy opened the door wide and I looked in. Their cabin was similar to ours, only it had two beds, of course. I looked at the table and saw the dark haired boy sitting there. He smiled at me but I didn’t smile back. He rubbed his neck. I think I gave him the awkward feeling that I didn’t really care about the situation. Sara walked to the window by their booth and leaned over the table. She pushed her butt up in the air and stared out the window.

  “Oh, this is an excellent view you boys have here,” she said. The tall boy stared at her body and smiled.

  “Absolutely,” he said.

  I walked past him and bumped him as I made my way into the seat across from the other boy. I glanced at him and then up at Sara. She winked at me. Sara turned around and looked at him.

  “So… what do you have to drink?” she asked him. The blonde boy leaned towards their refrigerator and laughed.

  “My name is Colin, this is Blake,” he said, as he pointed at the boy across from me.

  “Uh huh,” Sara said, as she walked to the fridge and leaned down.

  I looked at Blake and grinned.

  “I’m Rue and that is Sara,” I said.

  “Sara,” Colin said as he leaned down behind her.

  Sara lingered at the door and then rose up slowly. She found a treasure. She twisted the cap with her teeth and spit it on the floor. Colin watched it roll and grinned. She swallowed it and had some run down her chin. She reached up with her hand and wiped it. She smiled at him.

  “Ooops,” she whispered.

  I rolled my eyes and looked out the window. I kind of felt bad for Blake. I didn’t even care that he was there… even though any other girl would probably have found him irresistible. He was staring at me and I could feel it. I heard his heartbeat speed up a little and I caught him looking, and he looked back at his friend.

  “Could I get one?” he asked him.

  Colin pulled one out and threw it to him. He fumbled to catch it and I grabbed it too quickly and set it down in front of him. He smiled at me. I grinned. My reflexes seemed to get better every day but I just never imagined myself as someone who could catch anything. He opened it and nodded to me.

  “Thanks,” he said.

  I bit my lip. I looked over and Sara was rolling her drink in between her hands. She sat down on the bed and Colin sat down next to her. She lifted her leg and slowly crossed it. Colin was hooked. It didn’t matter if Sara called him Ed… he’d listen. Sara leaned over and whispered something to him. They laughed and looked at us.

  “We are going to find food. I am hungry,” Sara said.

  I looked at Blake. He pulled out a menu and held it up.

  “We can order,” he said. Sara stood up and placed her hand on her hip.

  “We are going to the restaurant, you two order,” she said as she turned towards the door.

  I didn’t panic, but I was not happy. I raised my hand up, like I was still in school. Colin looked back and grinned big. He grabbed Sara’s waist and she laughed. They walked out the door and I could hear Sara laughing down the hallway. It finally faded and there I was with Blake… awesome. I looked at him and he had the menu held up high. I tapped on it. He lowered it and grinned.

  “I’m sorry,” I said to him. He kept grinning and laid the menu on the table.

  “I vote pizza,” he said as he ran his finger along the menu. I nodded my head.

  “Sure… pizza is good,” I said to him.

  I guess he was ignoring that I really wasn’t into him. He was maybe one of those people who just make the best of it or worst case scenario or a serial killer. That would be my luck. I reached forward and turned the menu sideways.

  “Okay… so you eat meat?” I asked him.

  “Oh, sorry, I am a vegetarian,” he said.

  I raised my eyebrows at him. Oh he would crap if he knew that I eat all meat… blood too, well minus humans, although I guess I am built to do it. I sighed.

  “That’s cool… all veggies then,” I said.

  Blake smiled and picked up the red phone on the wall. I watched him press one of the three buttons on it and he placed an order for a large with all the veggies they could pile on it. He hung up the phone and crossed his hands in front of him. He looked up at me and bit his lip.

  “Listen… Colin is ummm…” I interrupted him.

  “So is Sara,” I added to the short but understood conversation we seemed to be having.

  He nodded.

  “Okay then… well, where are you two going?” he asked me. I looked out the window.

  “I really don’t have any idea,” I said as I watched the last of the light fading from the sky.

  I looked back at him and he leaned back in his seat.

  “Interesting,” he said. I leaned back too.

  “Yea, Sara kidnapped me and now I am at her mercy,” I said as I shrugged my shoulders.

  “We are heading home, on break from school. I could have stayed, to tell you the truth, my house is mostly empty anyway,” he said. I looked at him.

  “Your family travels a lot?” I asked him. He looked out the window.

  “Without sounding like I am looking for sympathy, my Mom passed away a year ago… car accident. My Dad works all the time and my sister is always out.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said. What else do you say? He grinned and held out his hand.

  “Your turn,” he said to me. I cleared my throat.

  “Well, my parents are no longer with us. It’s just me and my brother Kai now. We have a house that we share with friends,” I said as I started to pull back from my story.

  I had no idea why I was being open with him… maybe it was because I didn’t know him at all.

  He leaned forward and looked at me.

  “Well then… misery loves company,” he said. I tilted my head. Maybe it does.

  He stood up and tilted as the train started to go around a curve. It bounced a little. He caught his balance and opened up the fridge. He reached in and pulled out two drinks for us. I looked at him and smiled as he handed me one. He sat back down and opened his up, took a drink and set it down on the table. I looked at mine and considered not opening it up. I looked at him and thought, ‘what the hell’. I opened it up and drank it down then set it down and looked at him.

  “So… what do you want to be when you grow up, Rue?” he asked me.

  Wow, what a question? Let’s see, since I basically stop aging at 21, I guess I could be about a million things over time. I looked at him as I thought about all the things I will probably do if I only survive.

  “Okay… that’s a loaded question,” I said as I stood up and walked to the fridge.

  I leaned over and opened it up. All the thing had was alcohol… great. I grabbed two more bottles and brought them back to the table. I glanced at him and he had that look. You know the one, where you just know they like you. I sat back down and pulled my braid over my shoulder. I looked up and he was staring at my hair.

  “Your hair is amazing,” he said.

  Okay… now we have jum
ped to the compliment giving. What do I say? I like your lips? Erm… no.

  “Thanks,” I muttered as I took another drink. He leaned forward.

  “You are one of those girls who think they are not pretty, right?” he said to me.

  I looked at him. The whole flirting thing was bizarre.

  “I guess, I never really think about it,” I said.

  “Well, you are, very pretty,” he said.

  “Huh,” I said.

  I guess that is the weirdest response someone could have. He laughed and I did too.

  “Thank you for hanging out with me. I hope you don’t feel like I am a creeper,” he said.

  I grinned.

  “No, if you tried anything I’d just stab you in the heart anyway,” I said to him before I realized.

  I just love how I open my mouth up and crap just falls out of it. He paused, then laughed again.

  “Okay then,” he said.

  We heard a knock on the door and he jumped up. He slid it open and the pizza had saved me, at least temporarily, from having to talk to him. He turned around and closed his eyes as he smelled it. He walked to the table and set it down in front of me, it was a monster. I hoped he won’t be offended by my unbelievable appetite. My stomach growled and I was going to give that pizza a what for. I opened the box and grabbed a slice. I shoved it in my mouth and sat there chewing it, without shame. He smiled and grabbed one too. I liked his energy; it was even… no up and down. It made me feel close to normal, I guess.

  We ate the entire thing before we knew it. He leaned back and held his stomach.

  “Oh my god, I can’t believe I ate so much,” he said.

  I felt totally fine in fact we could have had another one to split, and I would have eaten just as much. I decided to act like I was full too. I leaned back and rubbed my stomach. I sighed.

  “Yea… oh god,” I said.

  He flipped the top closed and had a look of pain on his face. He looked at me and smiled.

  “I would have never expected a girl as small as you to be able to wreck that pizza,” he said.

  I wasn’t offended. He was right. I weighed all of a hundred pounds maybe, fully clothed.

  Well, maybe more like ninety pounds. I smiled.

  “I am a pig,” I said as I laughed.

  “You?” he said as he rubbed his stomach.

  “You too,” I added and I smiled at him. I looked out the window and saw lights popping up.

  The train seemed to be slowing down. He looked out too.

  “It makes a stop here every time,” he said.

  “Oh,” I said, as I watched the houses start to go by us.

  “It takes about an hour to move again,” he said to me.

  I looked at him wondering where he was going with that. He shrugged his shoulders.

  “We could walk around or something, if you want,” he said.

  I stood up and the train started to hit its breaks. I almost lost my balance. Blake stood up and grabbed my waist. It jerked me forward and I hit him in the chest. I pushed off of him and cleared my throat again. He grinned.

  “You have a boyfriend, right?” he asked me.

  “No… well… no,” I said as I juggled that thought.

  “Just break up?” he asked me. I looked at him.

  “I guess, I really don’t know,” I said to him. He smiled.

  “Well, if you figure it out let me know first, okay?” he asked me.

  I laughed. I had to. When am I going to figure anything out? Never, ever.

  I didn’t verbally respond to him. I didn’t want to. I walked to the door and opened it up. He was right behind me. I looked out and watched people starting to walk around. Some were getting off; some were stretching their legs out. I scanned the people and wondered where Sara could possibly be with Colin. She had been gone long enough.

  I walked to our cabin and knocked on the door. I opened it up when no one answered. Sara started to pull her skirt up quickly and Colin was buttoning his shirt. I stood there kind of disgusted. I knew that Sara found it easy to flirt and she had always had a magical way of getting anyone to talk to her, but the idea of her just messing around with some boy on a train made me a little sick. I looked at her and she winked at me. Blake stepped up behind me and looked at both of them.

  “Uh huh,” he said. Colin grinned and pulled his shoes on. Sara fluffed her hair.

  “Well… are we checking this tiny town out or what?” she said.

  I blinked and then looked at Blake.

  “Yea, I guess,” I said to her. Colin walked out and Sara looked at me. I held my hand up.

  “Oh… come on,” she muttered at me. I shook my head.

  Blake nudged me. He leaned over to me.

  “Do you two need to talk?” he whispered. Sara leaned towards us.

  “No Blake, we are cool,” she said to him.

  I stepped out of the room and walked down the hallway. I was not digging the new Sara, she was just a little too easy. I walked to the exit and looked back. Sara was leaning against Colin by his cabin. I rolled my eyes and stepped off the train. I really didn’t care if she came with me, not one bit.

  Blake jumped down behind me and looked around. People walked everywhere. It had to be a hub of some sort. He took my hand and I would have pulled it from his, but he seemed to know where he was going. I let him pull me through the crowd. I thought I felt something strange behind me, but it faded. It felt like a vibration. I looked behind us as he pulled us along. I didn’t see anyone shady, but seeing was not always reality.

  He kept pulling me along until we broke through the crowd and I looked up to see an amazing chocolate shop. It was painted red, with white polka dots. It had a huge piece of wrapped chocolate on the roof. I peeked in the window and saw a chocolate waterfall in the display. My stomach growled and Blake leaned over to me.

  “You cannot be hungry,” he said. I smiled at him and headed for the door.

  I am going into chocolate heaven, what girl wouldn’t? I stepped inside and a little bell jingle went off. A girl trotted out to us dressed like she was from Holland... cute little dress, all fluffed out like a ballerina. She was dressed in blue head to toe. I smiled at her as she leaned forward with a tray in her hand. It was filled with all sorts of chocolate treats. I looked at it and scanned the goods. They were in several fun shapes, a moose, bird and my favorite a rabbit. I picked the rabbit up and looked at him. Poor bunny is so not going to survive this one. I popped it in my mouth and hoped that it would taste like anything. I let it melt on my tongue and there it was… chocolate. I closed my eyes and grinned as I sucked on it. Blake laughed. I opened my eyes and looked at him.

  “What?” I asked him.

  “You look like you have never had it before,” he said.

  I grabbed one more from her tray as she tried to leave me. I popped that one in my mouth too.

  “It has been awhile,” I said. He nudged my shoulder.

  “Is there a chocolate shortage in your town?” he asked, totally joking with me.

  I smiled, chocolate on my teeth.

  He raised his hand and touched my lip and I crinkled my eyebrows at him and turned away.

  “I’m sorry,” he said.

  I touched my mouth and felt the pain in my stomach. I could hear his heartbeat in my ears.

  I closed my eyes and pushed my urge to cut him out of my mind.

  “Rue?” he said. I turned back to him.

  “Sorry,” I said as I started to walk around the chocolate shop.

  I really wanted to get us on a new subject. He followed me and I stopped at a display of eggs.

  I leaned in and looked at them. They were absolutely beautiful. Blake leaned up next to me.

  “It takes them almost three days to make those,” he said. I looked at him.

  “Really? How do you know?” I asked him. Blake stood up.

  “Well, my family owns this shop and many others,” he said. I stood up and looked around. “How cool, so
your family is into chocolate?” I said. He shrugged his shoulders.

  “Chocolate, wine… cheese… art,” he said.

  I stared at him. He glanced at me.

  “I am the heir; I am supposed to take over everything at some point. I don’t think that my Dad would have me do it until he is dead though.”

  I looked up at the ceiling and stared at the painting on the ceiling. I laughed and looked at him. He glanced up. It was a replica of the famous painting the creation of Adam, only it was two chocolate bunnies. I glanced at him. He rubbed his neck.

  “Yea… my Mom had a great sense of humor. We have that in our house too.”

  I looked back up and then turned when I heard the jingle go off at the door. A boy walked in with a young girl. I felt a slight vibration in my hands and I glanced at them. Something was odd about them. I couldn’t quite figure it out though. I looked at Blake and smiled.

  “You have the hook up here right?” I asked him. He grinned.

  “Yea,” he said as he looked around.

  “How about you grab some freebies for us and I will look around. We should get back soon anyway,” I said.

  He nodded and walked to the counter. It was packed with anything you would ever dream of eating. I looked behind me and caught the boy looking at me. I looked back at Blake as he leaned over the counter, then he stepped around it and started to pick all kinds of goodies out for us. I looked back and the boy was gone. I scanned the shop and didn’t see him. I had not heard the jingle go off, so I didn’t think that he’d left. He couldn’t have right? He was just there. I didn’t imagine it.

  Blake had three bags full of stuff when he walked up behind me.

  “I am the man,” he said as I turned around.

  He held them up in front of me and I smiled. I could smell it, it was awesome, more than awesome, heaven. I peeked in one and shook my head.

  “Wow, I said. He nodded. I turned and walked towards the door.

  I felt another small vibration and stopped and looked back. I didn’t see anyone. I didn’t know if I was going crazy or what. Maybe I was just paranoid… damn magic muffin.

  Blake and I walked back to the train and we heard someone scream. I scanned the crowd and tried to find the source. I ran toward the train, as I heard the scream again. Everyone crowded around the side of the train. The drop, from the platform to the track, was about fifteen feet. I pushed through everyone and peeked over. A girl laid down there, she wasn’t moving. I kind of had a panic attack.