by Dima Zales
Tanner let go of him. "Now if you like rumors so much, go tell everyone how Emma and Hailey spread lies about this beautiful girl because they're so jealous of her."
He grabbed his bag and ran off.
"Let's get you to class," he said. "I'll be back when it's over, and then I'll walk you to your next one."
The rest of the morning went the same way, and by lunchtime, word had spread that anyone who messed with me would have to get through Tanner first. I didn't want to go to the cafeteria, but he insisted that I go so that I could eat.
Amanda came up to me. "Are you still mad at me?"
"Of course I am," I told her. "I can't believe what you did to me. You really should be friends with Emma again because I can't be around you."
Are you going to sic Tanner on me if I don't?
I felt like hitting her, but instead I thought that this might be a good time to practice the mind control. I knew her well, so she would be more susceptible. I didn't know what I was supposed to do, so I looked her in the eyes and got close to her. "You will go and be friends with Emma again. You will also tell people that the rumors about me are lies."
She stared at me for a minute and said, "I'll see if Emma still wants to be my friend and then I will start telling people that the rumors are lies."
"Thank you," I said, hoping that it worked and that she wasn't making fun of me.
She walked away, and when she passed a group of people she stopped and said, "Those rumors are lies."
Tanner whispered, "Did you just control her mind?"
"I hope so," I said. "It was my first time, so I didn't know what I was doing."
"It looks like it worked. You'll have to keep working on that," he said with a smile. "You might just put me out of a job though."
I gave him a confused look.
"My job as your bodyguard," he said.
"Oh, right." I laughed. "Sorry, I'm not so quick today. I didn't sleep a lot last night."
"Why is that?"
"Clara is training me and she thought that the middle of the night would be the best time."
"Don't do that every night," he said. "You need to make sure that you get enough sleep."
"I do seem to need less sleep these days, but I do need some. I will get some rest tonight. She isn't going to do any more training with me until Saturday."
"During the day?"
"Yes, during the day. It sounds like she is planning on spending the whole day preparing me to fight."
"Are you doing anything this afternoon? I have no practice today, and I would love to go somewhere with you."
I smiled. "I'd really like that. I'll treat you to some coffee or whatever you want to eat or drink. It'll be my way of saying thank you for threatening to punch people for me all day."
"Whatever I want?" he asked with a twinkle in his eyes. "I'll have to think about that. I might want to be the drink."
"Already?" I asked. "Was yesterday not enough for you?"
"Yesterday was perfect," he said. "I was just teasing you. Warm coffee sounds heavenly—as long as you're with me."
We had agreed to meet at a local coffee shop and risk running into kids from school. As I was getting out of my car, I saw Braydon.
I walked over to him. "Hi Braydon."
He seemed surprised to see me. "Uh, hi Alexis."
"So how's Natalie?" I asked.
He looked around us and said, "What do you want?"
"I just asked how Natalie is. You would know, right? Since she's your girlfr…"
"Let's go talk over there," he whispered, pointing to an area near some bushes where nobody else was.
"Sure, sounds great," I said, and we walked over there.
"What do you want?" he demanded.
"I want to make sure that you're treating my sister as well as she deserves."
"Why wouldn't I?" he asked.
"You tell me."
"Look, I don't know what you want from me."
"I just want you to treat her like a princess. None of this secret boyfriend garbage, and certainly no skipping school with her to smoke pot."
"How do you know about all of that?" he demanded.
"I overhear things and I don't like what I've heard."
"I'm a senior, and she's a sophomore," he said. "She doesn't seriously believe that she's my only girlfriend."
"I knew it."
"Well, you're the smart one."
I got in his face and said slowly, "You will either stop seeing your other girlfriend, or you will break up with Natalie. You will stop using her."
"I'll stop using her," he said.
"You will break up with her or you will break up with your other girlfriend."
"I will break up with Natalie."
"That sounds wonderful," I said, backing up. "I'm so glad that we could have this talk." I made a mental note to check on Natalie that night.
I walked back to the coffee shop and saw that Tanner was just getting out of his car.
"What was that all about with Braydon?" he asked when he got to where I was waiting. "That looked serious. Was he picking on you?"
"No. He's been using Natalie, and I convinced him to stop."
He laughed. "I'd better watch out before you start using that power on me."
"Tanner, I wouldn't use that on you. Ever."
"You're so sweet, Alexis. I believe you," he gave me a hug, and I hugged him back. Even though I was losing my sensitivity to temperature, I felt his warmth and it was intoxicating. I could stand in his embrace forever.
After we had gotten our coffees, we sat down at a table in the back.
"I have a confession to make," he admitted.
My heart sunk a little. "What is it?"
"This ring," he said, showing me a silver ring on his middle finger, "actually protects me from being mind controlled by a vampire. Samantha gave it to me, and I've just kept it on."
My skin crawled with jealousy. I did not want to hear her name even though Tanner would have never approached me if she hadn't told him about my transformation. I hated the thought of him wearing jewelry that she gave him. "You don't trust me?" I asked.
"It's not that," he said. "It really isn't. I know that vampires are around here often, and I don't want any of them to be able to control me. I can't tell the difference between humans and vampires unless it's really obvious."
"Okay. I believe you. Can you do me a favor and never mention her name again? It makes my skin crawl."
He smiled. "You don't need to worry about her. Even if she were still around, she pales in comparison to you. You're perfect."
I blushed. "Hardly."
He rolled his eyes. "You're too hard on yourself. On my way here, I saw a park with a big pile of leaves. You know what I was thinking?"
I smiled. "You want to jump in the pile and ruin the day of the poor person who made the pile?"
"That wasn't exactly the way I would have put it. But basically that's what I was thinking."
"After how much fun we had yesterday, I think that is a great idea."
He suggested that we walk to the park because it wasn't too far away, and he grabbed my hand as we walked along. I didn't stop him, and we walked quietly, just enjoying the afternoon.
"I see what you mean about that pile of leaves," I said when we got to the park. The pile was at least five feet wide and about two feet high.
"Wanna race?" he asked.
"Of course." We ran, still holding hands, and dove into the pile, sending leaves flying in all directions.
We started laughing and throwing leaves at each other. He knocked me over and I pushed him down, shoving leaves down his back.
"Hey, you can't do that."
"I think I just did." I laughed.
"Two can play that game." He grabbed a bunch with both hands, and I ran out of the pile and hid behind a tree.
"You can run, but you can't hide," he called.
I peeked around to see where he was, and he was right in front of me
and dumped the pile on my head. I chased him back to the pile and tackled him, and we landed with a thud and burst out laughing again.
"I never knew how weak my stomach muscles were. It keeps hurting to laugh."
"Me too. I never knew how much I needed some fun in my life."
"Same here," I said. "Sometimes life gets to be a bit much."
"Here's some more fun." He grabbed me, and we rolled around in the pile.
I squirmed away and stood up putting my hands on my hips. "You'll never catch me." I started running toward the woods and hid just as I entered them.
He came running after me, and I grabbed him. He screamed and said, "You really scared me!"
I giggled. "You just screamed like a girl."
"I did not."
"You most certainly did," I said, laughing.
He grabbed me and pulled me close, kissing me.
All of a sudden, there was a gust of wind and a loud noise that I knew could only be the sound of hundreds of crows cawing. We pulled apart and sure enough, right at the edge of the woods was a flock of crows flying around and cawing.
I sighed. "I hate these things. We've got to get away. They have been chasing me since about the time I started my transformation."
"They've got us blocked in," he said. "We can't get out of these woods."
"I know how to find my way out of the woods," I said. "Let's just run."
The crows started flying faster and faster, and for some reason, I couldn't pull my eyes away from the sight. They looked like a mass of black. It was impossible to see even one single crow.
The black mass took on the form of a man in a black cloak.
"Alexis, we've got to run," Tanner whispered to me, looking completely scared.
"We can't," I told him.
"Why the heck not?"
"There are vampires surrounding us from behind," I said.
"How do you know that?"
"I can sense them. There are at least five of them."
"Alexis Ferguson. We finally meet," said the vampire in front of us. "Or should I say, Marguerite Westerfield?"
"We haven't met," I informed him. "I have no idea who you are."
"My name is Adam and I've been looking forward to meeting you for a very long time."
Tanner grabbed my hand. "Adam, we have no interest in talking with you. Step aside so that we can go home."
"That's not possible. I'm not leaving without Alexis."
"You're going to have to go through me first," Tanner explained.
"Don't do this," I whispered to Tanner. "He's a vampire and he can rip you to shreds. I need you alive and well."
I sensed that the other vampires behind us were moving towards us. They stepped forward standing in a half circle around us.
"Samantha," Tanner exclaimed. "I thought you were dead. What's going on?"
I whipped my head to the other side of Tanner to get a look at Samantha. I saw a drop-dead gorgeous vampire, and my heart sank.
She gave him an evil smile. "Of course that's what you thought. That's what I wanted you to think."
I looked at Adam and demanded, "What's going on here?"
"I already told you. I'm not leaving without you."
21
"Are you one of the Morettis?" I asked Adam.
"Don't I wish," he said. "Once I hand you over to them, then my family and I will be second in command when they take over the kingdom."
"That will never happen."
"It will, and I can't wait to be in the position of royalty. I have been following you for some time, Alexis. The Morettis have had a bounty on you for years, ever since they discovered that you were actually alive. Whoever brings you to them will be richly rewarded."
"If you think that I'm going to go willingly, you have another thing coming," I said.
"Trust me, I don't expect anything to be easy. I have been taking great pains to do this the right way. I've been planning this out for a long time."
Samantha stepped forward and smirked at me. "Don't you love how Tanner here helped us out?"
I dropped Tanner's hand and looked at him in shock.
"Alexis, I had nothing to do with this. I swear. I would never do anything to hurt you."
Samantha looked at him and ran her finger across his cheek. "Oh, but you did, darling."
"Don't you call me that. You are a liar and deceiver."
She smiled seductively and leaned in toward him. "Guilty as charged. I do have to admit how much fun it was to use you. It was definitely worth my while."
Jealousy burned throughout my body.
"Do you know how much easier it is to use mind control on a human who thinks that he's immune to it?" She laughed.
Tanner looked at his ring. "So this ring does nothing?"
She licked her lips. "It certainly does do something. The blessing placed on it makes any vampire going through their transition fall in love with the person wearing it when they drink your blood." She smiled at me. "It worked like a charm, wouldn't you say?"
I glared at her and then looked at Tanner, who looked like someone had shoved a dagger through his heart.
"Tanner, remember how long I went without drinking your blood before yesterday? It was nearly three weeks. There was no way any of your blood was still in me, and the last two afternoons together have been the best we've had."
He didn't look convinced.
"The only thing this proves is why I threw myself at you the first time that I did," I told him.
He reached for my hand again and gave me a half smile.
"As sweet as this is," Adam said, "time is ticking, and I need to get Alexis home with me. I have an appointment with the Morettis in a few days. I've got to weaken her so that she goes willingly. That may take time."
Samantha smiled and said, "And I need to take Tanner with me to make sure that he doesn't run to any of Alexis' vampire friends. Maybe we can reminisce about the great times that we had together."
Tanner spit in her face just as I was starting to feel jealous again. I made sure to smirk at her.
She hissed and went to bite him. I jumped in between the two of them. "You aren't touching him."
"Maybe not now, but when you're gone…."
"Not then either," Tanner informed her.
"It'll be fun to relive old times, don't you think?" she asked with a wink.
"No, actually I don't, Samantha."
"Oh, come on, Tanner. You used to love it when I pretended to love you. You used to really love it."
I clenched my fists and gritted my teeth.
"I don't want to spend any time with you whatsoever. I can't believe that you used me to get to Alexis," Tanner said. "Was that your plan the whole time?"
"Of course it's always been about getting Alexis."
"Why me?" he asked. "I never said one word to her until after you disappeared."
She ran her fingers down his arm. "You were definitely some fine eye candy. Still are. Aside from that, you were open to the idea of vampires. I tried to hook up with several other human boys, but mortals these days are such nonbelievers. It's all about science and proving facts."
"You really are a piece of work, Samantha. Did you come up with that story about the redneck vampire that you were scared of so that I wouldn't come looking for you after you disappeared?"
"Yep, and it worked like a charm, didn't it? Both of you fell right into our trap. It was almost too easy."
"You're never going to succeed with the rest of your plan," I told her. "You may have made it this far, but you will not find yourselves living in the castle. Unless it's in the dungeon."
"You're so cute when you're feisty," she told me. "I can see why he likes you so much."
"Are you done having fun with them yet?" Adam asked Samantha. "I really would like to get going if that works for you."
"Sorry, sir," she said seriously and then smiled. "I just couldn't help myself."
"You take the boy to the place that we discussed and I
will take her so that I can deal with her. Do what you want with him," he looked at Tanner, "just make sure that he doesn't get away to tell anyone what's going on."
"It'll be my pleasure," she said, twirling some of his hair. "He's one of my favorite toys. I'll keep him around for a while."
I wanted to take that vampire down. I vowed to myself that I would do it one day when I was a full vampire.
I looked at Tanner. "I'm so sorry that you got dragged into this. You're such a good person, Tanner. You don't deserve any of this. If that thing," I said, and motioned toward Samantha, "doesn't let you go, I will come back and rescue you."
He gave me a small smile. "Not if I rescue you first." We both knew that was impossible, but it was nice to know that he wanted to take care of me.
One of the big, male vampires behind us grabbed Tanner and three of them including Samantha ran into the woods and were out of sight within seconds. My heart sank, and I knew that I was going to have figure a lot of vampire skills on my own, and fast, if I was going to save myself and rescue him too.
Adam turned to me. "Now it's your turn."
"You'd better make sure that he doesn't get hurt," I demanded.
"Or what? You'll get me?" he laughed. "Soon I will have you weakened, and once the Morettis get their hands on you they are going to kill you once and for all. They will personally make sure that it's done right this time."
"Why don't you kill me yourself?" I taunted him. "Are you too weak?"
"You foolish princess. That would do me no good. The Morettis want you alive, and that's how I will get my reward."
"Unless my friends come to my rescue and take you down. Then you will have nothing. Don't you think that when my parents find out what you've done they will put you to death?"
"Why would I worry about them? The Morettis are going to take you all down and then I'll be living in your cushy castle. I think that I will request your room. I will take great pleasure in turning that into my own."
I restrained myself from attacking him. I was sure that he wanted me to attack from emotion. What I needed was a plan, and I didn't have one yet.
"Grab her," he told one of the remaining vampires.
A vampire that was even bigger than the one who took Tanner grabbed me and held me with the strongest grip that I had ever felt. I tried to squirm and fight my way out of his hold, but it was useless. I couldn't wait until I was the strongest vampire in the world.