Magic and Shadows: A Collection of YA Fantasy and Paranormal Romances

by T. M. Franklin

“What a nice young man,” Mom said, as we pulled out of the parking lot. “I bet his parents are very nice.”

  “I really like him, Mom,” I said quietly. “Do you think, after Dad meets him, that it will be okay if he asks me out? Stacy and Samuel really like each other, too.”

  “I think your father will be fine with that, Elizabeth. He really does seem nice, and you have always been a very good judge of people,” Mom said, as she reached over and gave my hand a squeeze.

  I rode the rest of the way home thinking about this phone call tonight. I couldn’t wait until we got home so I could take a shower, change, and meet up with Stacy to compare notes about the brothers. I was wondering if Samuels’s eyes were blue, too. I didn’t seem to be able to remember.

  I helped Mom get everything into the house. After my sisters took their baths, I had a shower and washed my hair. As soon as I was dressed I looked out my window and saw Stacy coming across the road, looking as happy and as excited as I felt. I ran down the hall and out the front door. We grabbed each other’s hand and ran for my back porch so we could talk.

  “Oh my gosh,” Stacy said, all flushed and excited. “Samuel is so nice. He has the most beautiful blue eyes you ever wanted to see. I feel like I could get lost in them. And his voice! It’s like honey when he talks. It’s so smooth and soft. ” She looked at me with the biggest, goofiest grin on her face. “I really sound stupid, don’t I?”

  “No, you don’t. I feel the exact same way about Isaiah,” I said, knowing I had the same goofy grin on my face. We looked at each other, fell back against the cushion and sighed at the same time, which set us into a fit of giggling. When I finally could catch my breath and talk again I said, “He’s calling me tonight at eight. I’m so excited. I can’t wait.”

  “Samuel is calling me at seven thirty,” Stacy said just as excited as me. “How can we both be so lucky?”

  “I don’t know, but don’t pinch me, because if this is a dream I don’t want to wake up any time soon,” I said to her. “So we are both getting called: that is great. Stacy, who would have ever dreamed that we would get so lucky to find them, and that they would like both of us? It really is almost like a dream, isn’t it?”

  She sighed. “Yes, a dream that I don’t want to wake up from either. I really mean it.”

  We sat and talked more about the brothers, and how well they had handled meeting our moms and talking to them. Just as it started to turn dusk, Stacy heard her mom calling her. “Well, I have to head home, Elizabeth. I’ll talk to you later.”

  “Good night, Stacy! Have a nice talk with Samuel, but don’t run over into my time with Isaiah,” I joked. Stacy laughed, and took off running so her mom didn’t have to yell again.

  When I went back to my room, Bess was waiting for me. She closed the door and looked at me. “Wow, I’ve never seen such beautiful boys. Do you think that they have a touch of fae in them?” She sighed. “I wish I could have met Samuel before Stacy. Do they have another brother?” she asked, with pleading eyes.

  I gave her a hug. Bess believed so much in magic, and wanted faeries to exist in our world so badly that she was always thinking anyone who was really beautiful had to have fae in them. “I don’t know if they have fae blood or not, but I have to agree with you, they are beautiful boys.” Maybe fae blood would explain a lot about those two. Just when I was going to ask Bess what she thought about the brothers Mom called us to dinner.

  4

  After dinner I went to my room and got out the book on Hyattsville. I figured that I would read for a while, until Isaiah called me.

  It seemed that a lot of people in Hyattsville thought there was a family of vampires in the town. The family had moved in from another state, and looked different than the other people. Most of the townspeople were afraid of them, and avoided speaking to them.

  The author didn’t really say why they were different, just that they were. I wish that he had written about the reasons people had felt that way.

  When people started going missing, the new family was blamed. One family member was killed, and the others left during the night, abandoning their home and all their belongings. I got a notebook out of my desk and started making notes for when I went to the library, things I wanted to look up about vampires and Hyattsville. I really didn’t understand this sudden desire to know more about the subject, other than the fact that I was reading about it. I’d never been interested in vampires before, except for the fact that Bess and I both believed in magic. I guess most of my initial interest was because my father had been born in Hyattsville.

  I heard the phone ringing and mom called down the hall that the phone was for me. I put my book back in the drawer, and headed out to the dining room. “Thanks Mom,” I said, as I took the phone. “Hello.”

  “Hello, Elizabeth,” the beautiful voice on the other end said. He sounded even sexier on the phone, if that were possible.

  “Hello, Isaiah. How are you doing tonight?” I felt my heart beating faster again, just from the sound of his voice.

  “I’m doing wonderful. How are you tonight? I had a really nice time today. Samuel wouldn’t stop talking about Stacy on the way home.” I could hear from his voice that he was smiling.

  “I’m doing great. I had a wonderful time today. Stacy couldn’t stop talking about him all afternoon either.”

  “So what have you been up to since you got home?” he asked me, and it sounded like he really wanted to know, not like he was asking just to make small talk.

  “I was reading a book I bought last week while I was waiting for you to call,” I replied.

  “That’s right, you love to read, too. What book are you reading?”

  “Oh, it’s just a book about the town where my father was born and raised. I found it at the bookstore.”

  “Where was your father born?”

  “Hyattsville. It’s a small town, about thirty minutes from here.” Since he wasn’t from around here, I didn’t think he would know where it was.

  There was silence on the other end for a minute. “Isaiah, are you still there?”

  “Yes. I have heard about that town,” he said slowly. “My father mentioned it to us before we came here.”

  “You’ve heard about Hyattsville? I didn’t think many people knew about Hyattsville!” I said, surprised.

  “My father said my grandfather lived there for a while. Not for very long, though. Dad said that the people in the town were not very welcoming to him. That’s about all I know.”

  “You’ll have to read this book, Isaiah, it’s so interesting,” I replied. “The author lived there, starting about two years after the town was founded. It tells about how people started disappearing, and some of the residents in the town thought a family of vampires took them.”

  “That sounds rather strange. What would a family of vampires be doing in a little town in Maryland?” he asked. “I thought they had to live where it wasn’t sunny most of the time.”

  “Sounds like you know something about vampires?” I asked, hopefully. If he or his family had heard anything maybe I could ask them about the book.

  He laughed softly. “Only what I’ve seen in movies. My dad never said anything about any vampires.”

  “Oh, I was hoping maybe you could read the book and help me out a little here.” I knew I sounded disappointed, but I couldn’t help it. That was the one thing about me that my mom always said she admired. When I get interested in something and I need answers, I search until I get them.

  “I’ll read the book if you like. We could always go to the library and look stuff up about it, if you want.”

  “I would love that! I was just thinking about how to ask Mom to take me. I figured I could do some research on it. I can’t tell her about this, as I’m afraid she’ll make me stop reading the book.”

  “Did your father ever say anything about it?” he asked.

  “No, but my dad’s mom is really funny about things. She would never let her kids talk about anything
that was not totally straight and up front. Heck, she won’t even talk about her brother having seizures. She says it is no one’s business but theirs.”

  “Well, we can do some research. I think it will be fun.” Isaiah seemed to be really interested in helping me out with the research.

  At least he didn’t laugh at me, or think I am nuts.

  “Elizabeth, I really must go now. Mom doesn’t want us to tie the phone up for too long. Would it be all right if I called you tomorrow? Maybe you could talk to your mom about going to the library.”

  “I would like that. I’ll talk to her tonight, and see what she says. I was thinking this would make an interesting thesis for school anyway. So I can tell her I’m doing research for a senior project it will probably be okay with her.” I figure that way I’m not telling her a lie. It would be wonderful to see him tomorrow and spend time with him by myself.

  “Good, I’ll call you around ten, then?” he asked. “Is that a good time, or is it too early?”

  “Ten sounds good to me. I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Goodnight, Isaiah.”

  “Goodnight, Elizabeth. Sweet dreams.” I heard the phone disconnect on his end.

  I felt my heart sputter again. His voice was so musical. I hung up the phone and walked into the living room. “Mom, would it be all right if Isaiah and I went to the library tomorrow?”

  She looked up from her knitting “What time do you want to go, and how long do you think you’ll be gone?”

  “He is going to call me at ten, so I could ask him what time he wants to go, if it’s okay.”

  “Well, let me know and I’ll decide then,” she replied, and went back to her knitting.

  “Thanks Mom.” I knew that meant she would be fine with me going, as long as I wasn’t back too late. “Mom, do you think it would be all right if I call Stacy?”

  She glanced up at the clock, and said, “That’s fine honey.” She smiled as I went to use the phone.

  As soon as Stacy answered the phone, I said, “Stacy, Isaiah is taking me to the library tomorrow. I can’t wait. I get to spend some time with him by myself without all my sisters there!”

  “Wow! That is cool!” Stacy said. “Samuel told me that they would be back at the pool on Monday, so I’m going to make sure Mom will take us.” Stacy sounded disappointed that she wouldn’t be seeing Samuel tomorrow.

  Since we had been friends for so long, I knew she wouldn’t ask me if they could tag along, just as I would never ask her. “Hey, do you want me to ask if you and Samuel can go?” Part of me was kind of hoping that she would say she had something else to do, but I also knew that she wouldn’t bother us, either.

  “Only if you want to ask him. I don’t want to impose if you two want to be alone,” she said, trying not to sound too excited.

  “You know I do, or I wouldn’t have asked you,” I said to her, feeling a little guilty about wishing she didn’t want to come.

  “You are the best friend anyone has ever had,” she replied. I could hear the excitement in her voice. “Let me know so I can ask Mom about going.”

  “Thanks.” I said with a laugh. “He is supposed to call me in the morning to see what Mom said so I’ll ask him when he calls, and let you know.” Lowering my voice, I said, “Hey, I read some more of that book. It’s so weird all the stuff that the author claimed was happening. He said that there was a family of vampires that moved to the town. I would bet you that my grandmother knows about the stories, but won’t talk about them. You know how funny she is.”

  “Well, can you blame her? I don’t believe that there has ever been any such thing as a vampire. They are myths, just like the dragons and fairies,” Stacy said as if it was fact.

  She had no idea how I felt, of course, because believing in the possibility of vampires, dragons and fairies was the one thing that I only shared with Bess. “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

  I was feeling a little irritated at her for shooting me down like that. I almost didn’t want to ask Isaiah if she and Samuel could come along.

  “Okay, don’t forget to ask Isaiah and call me back,” Stacy said, as she hung up the phone.

  I knew that I would ask, even though I was irritated with her. I laughed at myself. She is my best friend, after all. I told Mom goodnight, and headed into my room.

  Bess was in bed already, reading her book, so I decided to make a few notes from my book. That way, I would be organized for my research the next day.

  One of the homes I wanted to look up was Tuckers Hill. An Englishman named Robert Tucker had built it in the 1840’s. The book mentioned that house as the one the family of vampires had lived in. I also wanted to do some research on vampires living amongst humans. None of the movies I’ve ever seen or heard about had ever said anything about the house.

  I glanced over at the clock and saw that it was almost eleven. I looked over at Bess, and saw she was sound asleep with her book on her chest. I quietly got out of bed, took her book and put it on her nightstand. I tiptoed over to put my notes on the desk, and turned off the light. I lay awake for a long time, thoughts racing through my head. Just as the sky began to lighten my eyes fluttered shut.

  Suddenly, Bess was shaking me, whispering, “Wake up, Elizabeth. I can’t believe you’re sleeping so late! Mom wants to know what time you went to bed last night.”

  “Did you tell her I was up late?” I asked sitting up quickly, trying to think of what to say to her if Bess had told her.

  “Nope, why would I do that? I would be telling on myself, too, if I told her.” She giggled.

  I smiled back at her. She could be a pain sometimes, but she was a pretty cool sister. I hurried out of bed, brushed my teeth and headed for the kitchen.

  “Sorry Mom, I couldn’t get to sleep last night.”

  “I thought that you were going to sleep all day,” Mom replied. “Stacy called and said something about you all going to the library? I thought you said Isaiah and you were going.”

  Gosh, I can’t believe Stacy said something to her when I haven’t even talked to Isaiah yet! I was going to have to say something to her about this. After all, I always try to have her back. “We were talking about it last night, Mom, but I haven’t asked Isaiah if Stacy and Samuel can go along. She sort of likes his brother.”

  “Well, that’s nice that you want to include them. Are you going to look for more books? I can’t believe you have read both of the ones that you bought already,” Mom said.

  “Oh, I haven’t started one of them yet. But you know me, I love books.” I smiled at her.

  “What time is Isaiah picking you up?”

  “He is calling me at ten, remember? I guess I better go get in the shower.” I glanced over at the clock and saw it was almost nine thirty, so I figured I’d better hurry.

  As promised, right at ten the phone rang. Bess beat me to it, and was trying to keep the phone away from me. When I finally got it from her, I had to shoo her away.

  “Hello.”

  “Good morning. I trust you slept well. I hope you didn’t stay up too late, reading that book of yours.”

  “I didn’t sleep too well at all. I was up last night reading, and jotting things down I want to research. I can’t get some of the things I read out of my head. Wait until you see all the stuff I want to look up.” I was so excited that everything came out in a rush.

  He laughed. “Well then, I guess it is okay for me to pick you up to go to the library?”

  “Yes.” I hesitated for a second. “Stacy wanted to know if Samuel was coming with you.”

  “Well, if you would like you can invite Stacy along. Samuel has been pestering me all morning to ask you if she was coming. I’m sure he will be very excited,” he replied.

  “Great! What time do you want us to be ready? I have to give Stacy a call, and let her know.”

  “I can be there in an hour, if that’s enough time for you,” he replied.

  “That is perfect. I’ll call Stacy and let her know. Thanks, Isaiah. Go
odbye.” It was really nice that he didn’t mind that Stacy came along with us.

  “You’re very welcome, Elizabeth,” he said softly. “I’m just happy you don’t mind my brother tagging along. I’ll see you soon. Goodbye,” he said, as he hung up the phone.

  I called Stacy quickly then rushed to my room, trying to decide what to wear. I thought the shorts set that Mom had bought me last month would be perfect.

  I carefully placed my book and notes into my bag, got my sandals out of the closet and went to fix my hair. I decided to wear it down today, as Isaiah had never seen it out of a ponytail. I looked at myself in the mirror I guess this will have to do. Just as I started to gather up my things, Bess came into the room.

  “So, I guess Stacy is going with you guys to the library? I was sort of hoping that I could come along.” She sighed so loudly I was sure Mom could hear her in the living room.

  “I’m sorry, Bess, she asked me last night if she could go. You do know that she and Samuel like each other, right?”

  “Yeah, I know, it just kind of sucks. I think he is so cute, and you know how Stacy is. She’ll lose interest in him pretty quick once school starts.”

  I smiled at her, and gave her a hug. “Bess, you know there is nothing I can do about it, right?”

  “Yeah, but I don’t have to like it.” She flopped down on the bed and grabbed her book. I knew she was done talking for now.

  I gathered up my things and went to wait in the living room. Just as I sat down, I saw Stacy walking up to the door. “Come in!” I yelled at her.

  “Hey, thanks again for asking Isaiah for me!” She was out of breath, and blushing bright red. I couldn’t help but laugh. She looked at me, and started to giggle, too. “Aren’t we a pair?” she asked.

  Before I could answer, there was a knock on the screen door. I glanced over, and there stood both Isaiah and Samuel, looking cuter than anyone should ever be allowed to look. Seeing them standing together, I was shocked at how much alike they were. They both had the same color hair, eyes and skin. Gosh, they even stand the same way. I wondered how much they looked like their parents.