One of them, YA Urban fantasy A.D. Duling (Author of The Anna Kippling Series)

by A. D. Duling

  One night, his moment came, when on the way home from a nice dinner; the happy couple got a flat tire. So they of course pulled off to the side of the road to fix it and while the new beau was busy with the lug nuts, Thomas snuck up on him and shot him in the back of the head. He then rushed around to the screaming ex-fiancée and dragged her out of the car by the hair, kicking and screaming. He beat her unconscious and then threw her and the dead boyfriend into the trunk of the car. He then drove the car across the state to a remote area and finished her off. A few days later, at a bar, he started bragging to a fellow drunk about torturing her…

  “Wait!” she interrupted him, “Did he chop her up or something? Cause if he did, you can stop there; I don’t want to know…” she stopped him.

  Brian nodded, “That’s ok, I understand…it is pretty gory…” he sympathized. “I’ll skip the details of that then, ok?” He opted and she nodded her thanks.

  “So this guy then went and talked to the cops and they put a search out on them. They found the boyfriend’s car, but never found the bodies. With no bodies or even a gun, Thomas Meyer got off!” He paused and took a drink of his Dr. Pepper, “He did get fired from his job and came back here for work, but since this happened in another state and the dead fiancée’s family lived out east, rumors didn’t really get out about him around here. He was actually dating another girl when he got attacked.” He finished, just as their waitress came over with his wings. He thanked her and picked up a wing. He took a bite out of it and chewed; Evie leaned back in her chair and absorbed what he had just told her.

  “What are you investigating about?” he asked her between chews.

  She shrugged, “Nothing big, just some silly inclination that it was actually a serial killer rather than an animal.” She quickly fabricated, surprising herself by the ease in which she did it in.

  He shook his head, “Nah….it was definitely an animal.” He assured her and finished off his hot wing.

  “Thanks for doing this Brian, I really appreciate it.” She thanked him.

  He grinned and wiped his mouth with a napkin, “I have to confess, I only did this to get a date out of you.” He revealed, sheepishly.

  Evie laughed, “That’s ok, but I don’t think I’m making much of great date.” She admitted.

  “Well, maybe you can make it up by going to the dance with me next Saturday…” He tried persuading her.

  “Oh, Brian…I’m sorry, I’ve already got a date…” She declined and he frowned in disappointment, “But I’ve got something better than that!” She cheered him, “You can ask me to the prom.”

  He smiled, “Would you like to go with me to the prom, Evie?” he asked her.

  “Why Brian…I thought you’d never ask!” She responded with a southern drawl.

  Chapter eight

  The dance…

  Nathan’s few days turned out to be longer than that and it wasn’t until that Friday, the day before the dance that he showed up again. Evie had not seen Jonas around school for a while either. Even her own mother had gotten lost, in her studio painting and was either found sleeping in there or passed when Evie had finally arrived home. That week had also been first semester exam week for the seniors and Evie had spent many evenings hanging out at Cass’s, studying.

  Monday, before the exams, Brian had talked her into going to a movie with him and she spent the entire date anticipating a very upset Nathan interrupting it, but Nathan never came and the date turned out to be an enjoyable one regardless. When Brian had dropped her off at her house, Evie had surprised herself by allowing him to kiss her on the lips to say his goodnight. It had been politely kept to a short one, but Evie still found out, that along with being attractive, smart and sweet, Brian was also a very good kisser.

  She spent the remainder of the school week, looking for Nathan, watching out for Jonas and flirting a little in math class with Brian. Evie knew the day Nathan returned; it was going to be a very uncomfortable one for her. When Nathan showed up at lunch that Friday, Evie was glad she had told Brian about him and that Brian had never pressed to sit with her at lunch. Cass knew about her and Brian, but remained a good friend and spoke nothing about them at lunch that day to Nathan.

  Evie had asked Nathan about his trip, which he then politely avoided discussing and Evie didn’t press it, feeling guiltily about Brian. They separated after lunch and Evie didn’t see him again that day. She later spent the night at Cass’s and spent the following day hanging out at the mall until it was time to get ready for the dance, where they then spent two hours, getting their hair, nails and makeup done at the mall salon. Afterwards they drove home to Evie’s, where her mother surprised her with brownies and her sobriety.

  Evie was grateful for both, but could only eat one brownie per Cass’s demand, so they wouldn’t look bloated in their gowns.

  “Hey… what happened to your back?” Cass asked her, surprised when she saw the wound on her back, as Evie pulled off her bath robe to get dressed.

  Evie had forgotten about the scratch, having by then no longer needing the bandage and feeling no pain from it. It had actually healed up very nicely, leaving only thin, red marks down her back that probably would fade within a few months.

  “I took a spill on the deck and scratched it on some nails.” She lied.

  “Do you think your dress will cover it?” Cass asked her and walked over to the dresser for her makeup bag, “Because if it doesn’t, I can put some foundation on it…” she suggested and walked over to her. “ Wow! It looks like it had hurt!” Cass told her, applying foundation anyway.

  “You have no idea!” Evie mumbled under her breath.

  Luckily, her dress did cover it and when the girls looked at themselves in the mirror, they squealed in excitement. The shoes Cass had picked out for her weren’t that bad and her pulled up hair had been a good call by her friend. Cass had left her hair down and the heels she had opted for were high. Evie knew her friend would be out of them halfway through the evening.

  “Here, I bought a bag for you…” Cass told her shoving a tiny soft pink evening purse in her hands. It was shaped like a seashell and had a gold snap closure at the top.

  “You know I hate carrying one…” Evie started to complain and the girl ripped it from her hand and opened it in front of her, revealing a wrist band.

  “It will hang there nicely and you won’t have to worry about losing it…” she told her, signifying the purse would be taken. When the doorbell rang, Cass quickly shoved a travel size pack of tissues and her lip gloss at her, to put inside of it. Her friend then grabbed her hand and pulled her into the hallway, but stopped just around the corner, to keep them hidden a little longer from their dates.

  “Evie, your dates have arrived!” her mother called up to them.

  Cass then made them wait a few more minutes after that, “to not look desperate” before she let them descended the stairway, which she did with grace. Evie however was not as graceful, but still looked elegant as she went down after her. At the bottom Nathan and Cass’s date, Charles stared gawk eyed at them, looking very handsome in their tux’s. Nathan was dressed in a simple one and he even gotten his hair cut, which Evie found she liked it shorter. A corsage was gracefully slipped onto her wrist when she reached him at the bottom and a gentle hand touched her waist guiding her to his side.

  “Wait, let me get my camera!” her mother yelled out and ran down the hall to get it from her studio.

  “You show up in pictures, right?” Evie whispered to him and he laughed in response. He nodded his head when she looked at him and smiled big for her mother when told to say “cheese!” Her mother took a couple more before she let them depart and waved vivaciously from the doorway as she watched them climb into the awaiting limo; which Charles had proudly stated he and Nathan had rented together. Of course per Cass’s request.

  Like a perfect gentleman, Nathan helped Evie climb in. He climbed in after and had the door shut behind him, since Charles wanted to do the s
ame and took Cass around to the other side. Evie stared out the window up to her mother who still stood, watching them, by the open front door. Evie rolled the window down a little and lovingly waved back at her waving mother, as they drove away. Her mother had stayed sober the whole day just for her, her shakes revealed the sacrifice and Evie appreciated it.

  For a brief time it had even felt like before. Her mother had told her while serving them brownies, she had also went to the grocery store that afternoon and had purchased all of their Thanksgiving ingredients for the upcoming up holiday. Evie hoped this was the start of a positive change for them, but knew the chances of that would be slim.

  “You worry about her a lot, don’t you?” Nathan asked her, guessing at her thoughts.

  She nodded, “After my dad left, she crumbled. It’s been a long hard year and a half for us.” She answered him.

  He smiled and took her hand.

  When they arrived at the school, Evie found herself excited about going inside and gave her best pose for the photographer waiting for them at the entrance. The gym had been decorated in a winter wonderland theme and there were already many couples dancing around the floor when they walked in. The hours after their entrance seemed to fly by rather quickly, as they filled their evening with dancing, laughter and teenage fun.

  When another slow dance came around, Nathan pulled her out once again onto the floor, leaving their group of friends to finish the conversation without them.

  “I finally get a moment alone with you!” He teased her and she smiled in response.

  Nathan had already proven himself to be a competent dancer, whereas Evie had found herself to be the complete opposite. After two dances, Nathan solution for her was to keep their dancing simple and just swayed her back and forth, saving his feet and her, her pride. Evie enjoyed dancing with him and both had barely taken any breaks the entire evening.

  She rested her cheek against his shoulder and closed her eyes, allowing him to guide her. Evie had discovered early on, if she nuzzled her head in the right position she could inhale Nathan’s fragrance as much as she wanted without being obvious. She loved his smell, which consisted of three distinctive scents: soap, deodorant and cologne; the blend to her, a perfect combination. Evie inhaled and moved her face down into the crook of his neck, bringing a soft growl past her lips. Her eyes shot open and she lifted her head.

  She looked around to see if anyone else had noticed, but no one acted differently. Nathan continued to sway with her and the thought of him playing stupid quickly crept into her thoughts and she hoped he really hadn’t.

  It took a few minutes for her to finally relax again and another one before she returned her head to its place at his neck. As soon as she closed her eyes and inhaled him, she felt a growl move up in her throat and she quickly clenched her mouth shut before it could pass through. What the heck…? She thought and pulled her head up. Immediately a familiar pain returned in her stomach and she tensed.

  Nathan must have noticed and whispered something in her ear, but the pain had already increased and Evie heard nothing he said. A harsh jab of pain shot into her gut and she grabbed her stomach and hunched over, Nathan grabbed her arm to steady her. Beads of sweat dripped from her brow as Nathan’s face came down in front of her and she could see him mouth, “Are you alright?” to her.

  She nodded, “I just need to use the ladies room….” She heard herself say and then raced off, leaving him there, towards the locker room for the bathrooms.

  Evie plowed through the crowd of dancers like a shovel and pushed open the locker room door so hard; she sent it slamming into the wall behind it. She reached the stalls quickly right after and locked herself inside the first one, just as another wave of pain hit her. Evie went down onto her knees and hunched over the toilet, feeling like she needed to throw up. Her period wasn’t due for another week and she had no idea what this could be. She had never felt anything like this before, except the other evening.

  Maybe it was her appendix? Or a bladder infection… she thought as a wave of nausea hit her, but she didn’t throw up. After another minute, the pain subsided a little and she managed to sit down and leaned herself against the side of the stall, wasted.

  “Evie…are you in here?” Cass’s voice echoed into her stall.

  “In here.” She called out to her.

  She listened to the echo of her friend’s heels on the ancient tile floor as she approached her stall. “Are you ok?” her friend asked, “Nathan told me you were clutching your stomach and ran off in here, you ok Evie?” She asked again, sounding worried.

  “I have a really bad stomach ache.” Evie told her.

  “Are you hungry, maybe?” Cass suggested. Evie had not eaten since four and perhaps that could have been the reason.

  “Do you want me to go and grab you some nibbles and see if it helps?” her friend suggested.

  “That would be great, thanks Cass…” Evie agreed and listened to the echo of her friend’s heels as she left. A minute later the echo of shoes returned, but sounded a little heavier and more spread out. She leaned down and peeked out from under the stall door and saw a pair of men’s dress shoes on the other side.

  “Nathan?” she asked.

  “Open the door, Evie.” answered Jonas’ voice.

  “What do you want?” she complained on the other side.

  “I can fix your stomach ache.” He replied, calmly.

  Evie grabbed ahold of the toilet paper dispenser and pulled herself up. She reached over and unlocked the latch and Jonas reached in and helped her over to the nearby benches of the changing area. He reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled out a vial. “Drink this.” He instructed her.

  “What is it?” she asked him.

  “Your solution…” He answered.

  She eyed him, untrusting.

  He leaned over and stared her straight in the eyes, “You can trust me or keep suffering, your choice.” He plainly put and she opened the lid and drank the liquid. Instantly the pains subsided and she looked back up at him for an explanation.

  “Old family remedy...” he told her, smiling a little.

  “Well, is this something you think I should get checked out?” she asked him.

  He smiled, “No, you need to eat something. You’re lacking protein.” He explained.

  “Well, I’ll get my date to take me somewhere for a burger.” She responded.

  “You mean the vampire.” He corrected her, harshly.

  She shot him a nasty look, “That’s really none of your business.” She pointed out and stood up. “Thank you for the help.” She told him and handed the vial back to him. She turned for the exit, but stopped and turned back to him, “How did you know I was in here, are you following me again?”

  “I’m here on a date just like you and saw you run in here holding your stomach. My family gets a lot of these similar stomach aches and I came to help.” He explained to her and Evie felt a little stupid and mean, but didn’t apologize.

  The locker room door opened and she heard Cass’s footsteps come in, when the girl rounded the corner; she had a plate full of finger foods in her hands. She spotted Jonas and stopped, “I was wondering who you were talking too.” she spoke up finally, her eyes darting between the two and Evie knew she would be explaining this afterward.

  Jonas smiled at her and stood up, “I’m a friend of Evie’s…I saw her run in here and came to help.” He acknowledged her.

  Cass smiled, “Well you must have done something right, she looks better!” and looked over at Evie for confirmation.

  Evie gave her a smile and walked over to her, “I am...” She told her and took the plate, “Thank you.” Evie picked up a pig in a blanket and took a bite of it, “Thanks again.” she told him and followed Cass out where they found Nathan and Charles waiting just outside for them.

  “I’m feeling better, but I think I need to get something more substantial to eat.” She told them as soon as she stepped out.

  “
The Dairy Queen is still open; we can go there, unless you want to go into Kalispell?” Charlie told her, hopeful.

  “Evie may need to eat something right now…” Nathan spoke up and patted Charles’s back, “We could probably do something else afterward.” he insinuated and Evie glared at him, picking up on what he meant.

  Cass however perked up with a huge smile and grabbed Charles arm, “We could go bowling afterwards, they’re open till one tonight!” she suggested, missing the point, sending a pout on Charles’s face only Evie and Nathan noticed.

  Nathan laughed, but Evie gave him another scowl. He pouted and offered his arm too her. Evie took it, but mumbled a complaint about how nasty boys were, loud enough for him to hear and he laughed again.

  Charles ran ahead and got the limo, while they gathered their things at their table. When they stepped outside, they found it had become windy and Cass rushed down the steps quickly to the awaiting open limo door that Charles held open and jumped inside to save her hair. Nathan helped Evie down the steps and into the limo after her.

  “Burr…it’s freezing out there!” Cass declared as soon as Nathan shut the door.

  Evie laughed, “It’s not that cold out, it’s only what…” she looked at the temp gauge on the ceiling’s dash and saw it was twelve degrees out. “ …Twelve degrees.” She finished softly. It had not felt like twelve degrees to her, in fact she was already sweating inside her coat and was already pulling it off when her friend had made the comment.

  Probably still overheated from the pain of her stomach ache…. She convinced herself.

  The diver drove them to Dairy Queen and parked around back. The couples climbed out and rushed inside to the warmth of the franchise and ordered their meals. Evie ordered the largest burger and upsized her order, immediately receiving a “naughty” stare from Cass. Nathan ordered nothing and paid for her meal, proclaiming aloud to their friends he had snacked a little too much at the dance and wasn’t hungry; only Evie knew the real truth.