by Unknown
Not that Rhonda helped matters. Right now, she was lying to her mother’s face. Her mom would find out sooner or later, wouldn’t she? Rhonda was surprised that the cops hadn’t already named her as a suspect, that they hadn’t already tracked her down and arrested or at least called her to come down to the police station for an interview. How negligent were they to not even contact the dead girl’s roommate? No wonder so many murderers walk free nowadays.
“So, have you met any guys at school?” Colette asked from across the table, chewing on a piece of onion from her salad.
Rhonda shook her head. “Nope, no one.”
Colette glanced at her daughter. “Is that why you’re so down?”
“I’m not down, Mom,” Rhonda replied. She wanted to tell her mom the real reason she was down; it had more to do with the fact that she had no idea where she could live right now. She couldn’t go back to the dorms. She couldn’t go back to her mom’s house either; even if she wanted to live there, the police would surely track her down eventually. There was only one place Rhonda could think of to go. Standing up and tossing her linen cloth on the table, she said, “I have to get going now. It was nice seeing you.”
Before Colette could say another word, Rhonda ran out of the restaurant. She knew what she had to do . . . and it wasn’t going to be easy.
Chapter 17
****
That night, Lexi rested her head on Dan’s chest as she tried to fall asleep. Being this close to him made her feel safer – like she wasn’t all alone on this river bank, just waiting to be attacked by vampires.
For the first time since they had time traveled, Lexi’s stomach felt really full. Belinda had noticed them lying beside the river bank and had snuck out of the house, away from Albert, to bring them each a big piece of fruit cake. Since Dan didn’t have to eat, he’d given Lexi his piece, too.
Looking up at the stars, Lexi pretended that she was playing a game of connect the dots. She wondered if, back in the 21st century, Gabe was looking at the same stars . . . or if it was daytime there right now. It was all so confusing. Even though she’d encountered a lot of confusing things in the past year – from learning that vampires existed to finding out that they needed her blood – time travel was, by far, the most confusing.
Sighing, Lexi looked up at Dan, whose eyes had also been fixed on the stars. “I think I figured out what I need to ask Belinda,” she told him.
Dan looked down at her, his blue eyes shimmering. “What’s that?”
“I think I need to ask if she can make me a vampire,” Lexi told him. When Dan didn’t say anything in response, she went on. “If I become a vampire, they won’t be able to drink from me. I won’t be the person who can cure everyone, so they won’t need my blood anymore. It will be useless to them.”
“This is true,” Dan agreed quietly.
“That’s all you have to say?” Lexi asked. “Do you think I should become a vampire?”
Lexi felt Dan’s body move as he shrugged his shoulders. “I think if becoming a vampire is what will make you happy, then you should do it.”
“What would you do if you were me?” Lexi asked. “Would you become a vampire?”
Dan didn’t say anything for a few moments, which gave Lexi the impression that he was choosing his words carefully. Finally, he said, “Probably. But . . . I’m sure your decision is about more than just living.”
“What do you mean?” Lexi asked, confused.
Dan pressed his hand against the small of her back, lightly running his icy cold fingers against her warm skin, and pulled her closer to him. “If you live forever, you and Gabe will get your happy ending.”
Lexi frowned. She hadn’t even considered Gabe in all of this. It was a good thing that Dan was the one who had time traveled with her because Gabe would have objected to her becoming a vampire because he hated his own eternal life. It shouldn’t matter what Gabe wanted for her, though. This was Lexi’s decision to make – hers and hers alone. And it was what she really wanted right now. “First thing in the morning, let’s go talk to Belinda,” Lexi told Dan.
He nodded. “Okay. If that’s what you want, I’ll go with you.”
Closing her eyes, Lexi allowed herself to drift off to sleep.
*
“Lexi.” Her mom’s voice filled her ears.
“Mom,” Lexi said, looking around for her mother, but all she saw was an empty field. “I can hear you, but I can’t see you.”
“I know,” her mom replied. “It takes a lot out of me to visit you too often, but I can send you messages. That’s why I came to you in a dream the other night.”
“I miss you,” Lexi said quietly. “I wish I knew how to get out of this.”
“Lexi, you have to be patient. You’re not going to get back right away,” her mom said. “You will get back eventually, though.”
Lexi breathed a sigh of relief. At least she knew now, for sure, that she wasn’t going to get stuck here. That had been one of her biggest worries. And if her mom was right, it also meant that she wasn’t going to be killed by a vampire while she was here – which also made her feel so much better.
“I came here to tell you something else, though,” her mom said, interrupting Lexi’s thoughts. “No matter how wrong the witch might seem, you need to listen to her and do what she tells you to do. It’s the only thing that will save you.”
“But, I thought that becoming a vampire is what would save me,” Lexi protested. “At least, I think it will save me.”
“I can’t tell you if that’s what will save you or not, but you’re thinking with the right mindset,” her mom told her. “I have to go now. I love you, Lexi.”
“I love you, too, Mom,” Lexi replied. When she opened her eyes, waking herself up from the dream, they were glistening with tears. Seeing her mom made her happy, but it was also a painful reminder that she was gone. How could you ever really get over something when you were constantly reminded of it? The painfulness of her mom’s death would never be out of her mind until her mom was out of her sight, but Lexi wasn’t sure if that was what she wanted either.
It was still really dark out, but Dan was sitting up, fully alert. When he saw that Lexi was awake, he smiled at her. “Did you sleep well? You were smiling.”
“Really?” Lexi asked, surprised. She’d never been told that she’d smiled in her sleep before. Then again, she normally didn’t get to see her mom in her sleep. “I guess. I saw my mom again.”
Dan raised his eyebrows, but he didn’t crack any jokes about her seeing Casper again. Lexi was pretty sure it was because he actually believed her, now that he knew that she had been right about the witch. “Anyway, my mom told me that I had to listen to whatever Belinda says. I’m a little nervous. What if she won’t let me become a vampire?”
“Then you have to remember your mom’s advice and listen to her,” Dan replied, shrugging.
“I know, but –” Lexi began, but she quickly stopped. She heard the sound of someone’s shoes crunching over the leaves. “Do you hear that?” she whispered to Dan.
Dan nodded. He grabbed what looked like a stake that he had carved out of a tree branch and stood up, holding it at his side, ready to attack whoever was about to cross their path.
Someone stepped out from behind the trees and took a few steps closer to the river. Lexi let out a loud sigh. “It’s just Albert,” she whispered to Dan.
Sitting back down on his place on the rock, Dan kept his eyes on Albert.
And then it happened, before they could do anything about it. The light brown-haired vampire who had attacked them the other night stepped out from behind a tree and lunged at Albert. His hands were at Albert’s throat, and his teeth had sunk into Albert’s flesh, before Lexi or Dan had even stood up.
Clutching the stake, Dan ran over to them and peeled the vampire away from Albert.
This must be Zachary Wilkinson, Lexi thought to herself, as she debated what to do. Should she try to interfere or should she s
tay away from him? He wanted her blood just as much as he wanted Albert’s, so going any closer would only put her at risk for an attack.
Lexi watched as Zachary threw Dan to the ground and began feeding from Albert again. Albert screamed in pain as Zachary hungrily drank from him. As Albert tried to struggle, Zachary hit him over the head, knocking him unconscious as he continued.
Dan looked at Lexi desperately, as though he were expecting her to tell him what to do.
“Don’t kill him yet,” Lexi hissed. “Remember what the witch said. We can’t change the past. So, we can’t kill him until he turns Albert into a vampire.”
“But that will just make being here even more dangerous,” Dan protested. “Think about it, Lexi. If there’s a newborn vampire running around, whose blood do you think he’s going to go after first? Blood from a Hunter, who just so happens to be sleeping outside. That’s like saying, ‘I’m here, come and eat me.’”
Lexi tapped her foot anxiously against the rocky ground. “Please just do this one thing for me, Dan. Maybe I just feel bad. I want Belinda to be able to see what he’s going to turn into. Otherwise, she’s always going to remember him as the man she loved. It will make it easier for her to move on if she remembers him for the evil monster that he’s going to turn into.”
Dan threw his hands up in the air in defeat. “Fine. I guess we’ll do things your way.”
“Thank you.” Lexi gave him a smile. She turned away from Zachary, who was still going to town on Albert’s blood.
Dan kept his eyes on them and, after a few minutes, he said, “Okay, he turned him.” Before Lexi could ask him any questions or tell him to be careful, he was running towards Zachary with the stake.
She watched as Dan stepped up behind Zachary Wilkinson and shoved the stake through his back. Lexi listened to the sound of Zachary’s screams, which were weak and reminded Lexi of what she imagined a dying cow to sound like. His screaming stopped and was followed by the sound of a loud thump as his body hit the ground but before his eyes closed, Lexi saw him glaring at her.
Though Lexi knew what was going to happen all along, the sight of Zachary lying on the ground in front of her frightened her. “We have to go see Belinda now! We have to tell her what happened!” Lexi screamed at Dan, who stood there frozen, as though he were in some sort of trance.
“That won’t be necessary,” Belinda said from behind them. “I witnessed the whole episode. Thank you for allowing Albert to become a vampire instead of killing him.”
Dan nodded, even though Lexi knew that he disagreed. He was probably still more worried than anything else, though. “We’re afraid that Albert will try to kill me,” Lexi told Belinda.
“Nonsense,” Belinda replied, waving a hand in the air. “I will keep my eye on him. You just need to get back home as soon as you can.”
“We do,” Dan agreed.
“Speaking of going back home,” Lexi said, choosing her words carefully. “I have a question for you. Can you make me a vampire?”
Belinda looked over at Lexi, her eyes filled with terror. “Why would you want to become a vampire? Don’t you see how much they destroy lives?”
“Listen up,” Dan said, his cheeks an angry shade of red. “I’m a vampire. Have you seen me harm anyone since I’ve been here?”
“Well, no,” Belinda replied hesitantly.
“If I were as destructive as you believe all vampires are, do you think that Lexi, who has Hunter blood, would still be alive right now?” Dan continued.
Belinda shook her head. “No, she wouldn’t be. You are the first vampire I’ve met who doesn’t seem to be encouraged by the sight of blood.”
“So, if Lexi wants to become a vampire, you should let her become a vampire,” Dan said. “She’s in love with a vampire.”
Lexi looked over at him, trying to decide if the look in his eyes was a sign of jealousy or not. “I – umm,” she began, before Belinda interrupted her. “Are you in love with a vampire?”
“I might be,” Lexi replied. “I’m not sure. This whole time travel thing has made things very confusing.”
“I believe that if you are meant to be, if you are truly in love . . . traveling through time should only solidify your love,” Belinda said. “Never mind that, though. Why do you wish to become a vampire?”
“So that the vampires of Briar Creek – the ones that you cursed – won’t be fighting for my blood anymore,” Lexi replied. “If I’m a vampire, they won’t be able to drink from me without getting Wilkins’ Syndrome.”
Belinda studied Lexi’s face before saying with a sigh, “I think there’s something I may be able to do for you. Follow me.”
Chapter 18
****
Austin led Anna up the narrow staircase that Larry and Mike, the two vampires who had been guarding Ben, had just gone up. He felt her warm sweaty hand clutching his arm tightly; there was no doubt that she was just as scared as he was right now. Austin realized that even though most of the classes at Huntington High were useful, they didn’t teach the students one important thing: how to cope with the nerves and anxiety that you felt the moment you found out you might have to kill a vampire.
He knew that he had to be the brave one. If something should go wrong, he had to be brave enough to protect Anna. Besides, would she really want to be with a vampire who was too weak to stand up for his human girlfriend? It would only make him unworthy of her love – even though he felt like, deep down, Anna should be the one protecting him. She had been training for months to be a vampire hunter; he might as well have failed in Stakeology, which was probably the most important skill one must have in order to kill a vampire.
Natural instinct told Austin that, no matter what happened, he was going to have to do his best to try and protect everyone in the house from these guys. He couldn’t let Anna die because, quite frankly, he was beginning to fall in love with her. He would never forgive himself if she died and he had been so much of a chicken that he had just let it happen.
Austin also couldn’t let Gabe die – not after everything that he had done to help him and Lexi over the past year. If something happened to Gabe, Austin was pretty sure that Lexi would never forgive him. Ben had to stay alive because without him, they might never figure out how to get Lexi and Dan back. And, although Austin couldn’t figure out a reason why he had to save Craig, he knew that he couldn’t let him die here either. He didn’t know what was going on between Lexi and Craig, but Austin was pretty sure that she wouldn’t be happy if their professor died.
When they reached the top of the staircase, Austin pulled one of the matches out of the box. One wrong move and he was going to light these guys on fire – and hope that no one else in the house would get in the way.
As Austin and Anna approached the bedroom that Ben had been staying in, they heard the yelling. “How the hell did you get loose?” Larry’s voice boomed from the other side of the wall.
Before Ben had the chance to say anything in return, Austin took a step forward. “I let him loose.”
Larry and Mike both glanced in Austin’s direction, their eyes widened and their faces full of utter fear.
“Austin Graham?” Mike asked, his voice merely a whisper.
It took him a minute, but Austin quickly realized why Mike and Larry were so shocked to see him, and why their faces looked like they had just seen a ghost. It was because they thought he was a ghost. They didn’t know that he wasn’t really dead. Maybe Austin would be able to use this to his advantage. He laughed out loud. “Yes, guys, it’s me . . . good ‘ol Austin Graham back from the dead.”
“He’s a ghost,” Larry muttered weakly to Mike, who continued to stare at Austin like he was a four-headed dinosaur.
“Indeed. I am a ghost,” Austin replied. “This is my ghost girlfriend, Anna.” He motioned towards Anna, who gave the guys a very forced smile. Austin allowed himself to lose control of his voice; without any anger or emotion, there was no way these guys were going to believe his act. �
�We have come here to warn you both to leave Benjamin Hunter alone,” Austin boomed, his voice echoing throughout the mostly empty room.
Mike and Larry both backed away from Ben, their faces still a shade of ghostly white. They crept out of the room, edging their way past Austin before running down the steps. As Austin heard one of them slip and fall, he stifled a giggle. Things couldn’t have worked out more perfectly.
Once Austin heard the front door slam shut, he motioned for Ben to follow him. “Come on! And hurry up. We might not have much time before they realize they didn’t just see a ghost.”
Ben followed him out the door, and Craig and Gabe climbed out of the closet that they had been hiding in together. When Austin raised his eyebrows in question at them, Gabe explained, “Well, we had to hide somewhere.”
“Well, let’s stop hiding and get in the car,” Austin replied, whirling around and walking down the steps. Thankfully, no one had found that he was really alive yet or this wouldn’t have been so easy. Would his parents – if he could even call them that – put two and two together now, or would they believe that Larry and Mike had really seen his ghost?
Austin felt relieved that he wasn’t going to be around to find out. And right now, he couldn’t worry about what his parents would think if they did find out that he was alive. He had to worry about finding a way to get Lexi and Dan back.
He led Anna, Gabe, Craig, and Ben out the front door and raced over to the car. As they all got in and slammed the car doors closed, Anna bursted into laughter. “Austin, that was freaking awesome! And they totally bought it!”
Austin grinned at her in the rearview mirror. “It was pretty funny.”
“It was pretty risky,” Ben said, sternly. “If anyone takes those two seriously and figures out that Austin’s still alive, it isn’t going to be pretty.”
“You’re telling me,” Austin muttered, as he pulled the car off the road. “Where should we go now?”
“I don’t think we should go back to Long Island,” Anna spoke up. When Austin glanced at her for an explanation, she continued. “It’s just that Mary-Kate knows we were there. You told her on the phone. She might come looking for us or rat out where we are.”