As Carl stepped out the side entrance of the school that afternoon, a flash of red off to his right caught his eye. A girl in a red sweater stood leaning against the building, one foot braced against the wall and a book in one hand. She had curled her black hair carefully under, framing her face. With a slim figure, high cheekbones, and flawless chocolatey skin, she looked like a model. Carl grinned and sauntered over to her.
She didn't notice his approach and jumped when Carl leaned next to her on the wall.
"Hey, Tiffany. What are you reading?" Carl asked, trying his best to look cool and suave.
Tiffany rolled her eyes at Carl. "Carl, what do you want?" she sighed. She leaned her head against the building, pursing her full lips in irritation.
Carl shrugged. "What? I just wondered what you were reading."
She raised an eyebrow and held up the book so he could see it.
"Ah, 'Salem's Lot. Isn't that about vampires?" Carl asked.
"Yeah."
"Why, Tiffany. Don't you know that vampires don't exist?" Inside, he was chuckling. If she only knew the truth.
She met his gaze, a seriousness in her brown eyes. "How do you know that for sure, Carl? Maybe they do exist and we don't know it. You're so narrow-minded."
Carl raised his eyebrows, surprised. "How can you say I'm narrow-minded? You haven't even gotten to know me. Yet."
She sighed and rolled her eyes again. "Carl," she warned.
"Aw, c'mon Tiffany," he groaned. "Go out with me. Just once."
She leaned toward him. "Carl, I've told you a hundred times. I already have a boyfriend. I can't go out with you."
"But . . ."
She held up a finger. "No buts, Carl. No. That's all there is to it. No." A car pulled up to the curb and honked twice. "There he is now. I've got to go." She picked up her bag lying next to her and headed for the car. Carl stared after her, frowning dejectedly. Tiffany walked to the other side of the car and opened the door, pausing to mouth the words, "I'm sorry," to him before she got in.
Carl started to wave goodbye, but paused when he looked at the driver of the car. Tiffany's boyfriend glared at him, then pointed a rather large finger menacingly at him. Carl raised his hands in front of him and shook his head. No, he didn't want any trouble. The boyfriend gave him one last look, then peeled out of the parking lot.
Carl covered his face with one hand and leaned back against the building again, groaning. He had been trying like crazy to get a date with Tiffany, ever since he moved here from Chicago two months ago. He shook his head and started walking for home, hands in his pockets, vowing to himself that he would get a date with her before he graduated. He would. He just had to think of some way to get the boyfriend out of the picture.
As he walked, his mind was immersed in thoughts of Tiffany. For that reason, he didn't notice a figure step from behind a tree and walk quickly after him. By the time Carl realized he was being followed, it was too late.
***********
The Executioners met in their building later that night. Jenny found it difficult to concentrate on what everyone was saying. She couldn't get Damian's face out of her mind. That afternoon had really scared her, right down to her bones. Just the thought of being soulmates with a vampire was enough to make her queasy. Mari sat next to her and gave her worried looks throughout the meeting.
"Jenny. Jenny!" Jenny snapped herself out of her fog and looked at Raina. Raina sighed and rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Jenny. You're such a space-case tonight," she said nastily.
"What? Oh, sorry," Jenny muttered. "What did you say?"
"I asked you what you found out this afternoon. Mari told me you followed the vamp." Raina's tone of voice said that she didn't really believe that Jenny had done it.
Jenny shrugged. "Well, not much. I followed her to this log cabin way back in the woods out on County Road 23. After she left again, I got inside the house. Most of the rooms were locked. I didn't find anything in the other rooms." She stared solemnly at the rest of the group. She noticed that Carl wasn't there, and she vaguely wondered why. She didn't stay focused on it, though. She was trying to decide if she should tell them about Damian. She didn't want to tell them about him because she was afraid they'd find out that he might be her soulmate. Raina would definitely use that against her to gain an advantage in the run for leader.
Most of the group looked content with her answer. Raina narrowed her eyes at her suspiciously, though, and Michael was looking at her intently.
Raina suddenly pursed her lips and nodded. "I see. So how did you get that bruise on your forehead?" she asked triumphantly.
"Bruise?" Jenny asked. "What bru-" She stopped when she found a tender spot on her forehead with her hand. She couldn't believe she had missed that. Yes, it was definitely a bruise right above her left eye. Damn. "Oh, well . . ." She paused, thinking what to say. "Yeah, there was one more thing. Ashton has a brother and he's here."
Raina looked startled and Mari gasped. Gunther stared at Jenny blankly.
Mari grabbed Jenny's arm. "You mean he did that to you?"
Jenny shrugged. "Um, yeah. We had a little bit of a . . . confrontation. He caught me in the house."
Mari's eyes widened. "So what happened?"
"Yeah, Jenny," Raina asked snidely. "What happened? I suppose you must have killed him, naturally."
Jenny gave a small smile. "Well, we fought and . . ." Jenny swallowed. Everyone was staring at her. What would they think if she told them that she hadn't killed him? That she had in fact almost been killed and in the end they both sort of let each other go. She could see Raina's evil smile already. That was exactly the sort of thing Raina was hoping she'd say. Raina had been trying to tear down Jenny's image since the start. Until now, Jenny hadn't done anything to warrant worrying about. Jenny met Raina's eyes and sat up straight, lifting her chin. "Yeah, he's dead. I don't think Ashton will know either, for a while. I don't think they saw each other a lot."
Mari grinned. "Wow, Jenny. Good job. It looks like it was some fight."
"Yeah, Jenny," Gunther added. "Excellent." He grinned at her, a dopey smile crossing his face.
Raina sat back, an angry expression in her eyes. She crossed her arms over her chest and bit her lip.
"Thanks," Jenny said softly, looking at her feet. The meeting continued in other directions and Jenny forced herself to pay attention. They were discussing what they were going to do with Carl for not showing up. Once Jenny looked at Michael and was surprised to discover him watching her, a peculiar expression in his eyes. She felt her cheeks grow warm and looked away.
After they decided to just keep going with their plan, Raina adjourned the meeting. "Just keep your eyes and ears peeled for news. And tell Carl if you see him that he better have a damn good reason to miss this meeting." She turned and stalked out of the room, still furious that Jenny had won again. The others filed out behind her, Mari waving at Jenny.
Jenny was the last out of the room. She blew out the lantern and walked slowly down the stairs. At the bottom, she found Michael leaning against the door, waiting for her. Jenny could hear cars starting out in the parking lot. Headlight beams filtered between the boards on the window, lighting up the small foyer. The light swept across Michael's face, letting Jenny see him momentarily. Jenny felt the familiar ache in her heart at the sight of him.
Jenny stopped on the last step, hugging her arms around her. "Michael. What are you doing?"
He stepped away from the door and came toward her. "Waiting for you." He stuck his hands in his pockets and stared at her. She could barely make out his face in the dark, but as her eyes slowly adjusted, she could see the black holes of his eyes.
She tried to sound casual. "Oh? Why?"
"I think you know why," he said softly. "You weren't telling the whole truth back there, were you?"
Jenny laughed nervously. "What? I don't know what you're talking about."
He reached out and grasped her upper arm with his hand. Jenny took a deep breath, trying not to let it affect her. "Yes, you do. What really happened this afternoon?" He stepped closer to her.
Oh jeez, she thought. If he moved any closer, she'd spill everything without even thinking about it.
"I . . . I told you what really happened." Her voice sounded too high and hollow.
He stared at her for a minute. "All right," he said, letting go of her arm. "I can see you're not going to tell me. Not tonight anyway." He suddenly reached up and brushed his hand lightly over the bruise on her forehead, shaking his head. Jenny stiffened, her breath catching. He gave a wry smile and turned to go. He grabbed the doorknob and turned back to her. "If you're in some kind of trouble, you can tell me. I can help you. Or try at least." With that, he opened the door and disappeared into the darkness.
Jenny stood in the stairwell until she heard his Harley start and roar off down the alley. When there was nothing but silence, she took a deep breath and sank down onto the stair. She rested her head in her hands and shut her eyes. It was amazing how complicated her life had become in such little time.