Darkness (33 page)

“How dare I what?”

She shot Carter a look then returned her attention back to me. “I thought you were my friend.” Her date stepped up behind her. “How dare you come here with him and, and…” She got flustered and turned away from me into her date for comfort. Carter was saying, “She’s all yours man, you have fun with that.” to her date, while I reached out for her arm to turn her around. She jerked her arm away from me and backed into the table, knocking a beer bottle onto the floor where it to popped and exploded up our legs. Kiera let out a little scream and I made some rude comment about how her world was so simple that broken glass was a tragedy to her.

The last words I heard before Carter rushed me out the backdoor of the bar were Kiera’s, “I hate you!” And although I hoped she was directing it to Carter, I was pretty sure she was talking to me.

Chapter 45 - Smells Like Crazy

“Who do you think she was talking to?” I asked quietly as we descended the old wooden stairs down the back of the bar.

“Pretty sure she was talking to both of us.”

There was a mist in the air. Like fog was rolling in and the chill in the air had an icy hint to it. The wooden landing was damp and as I stepped onto it and reached for the gate to let us out I slipped, and grabbed the gate, which came unlocked and swung open. I swung with it, the gate dragging me backwards. And I landed flat on my ass.

Although I was upset about Kiera, irritated with Carter’s adventure and sure Oliver was going to be ragging pissed off–I laughed. Cracked up laughing while sitting there on the ground. I laughed so hard I remembered that I had to pee and that I hadn’t taken the chance while we were inside the bar. Carter was laughing too, just not as hard as I was as he pulled me off the ground. I swayed where I stood and snorted and giggled as I brushed dirt off my butt.

The back gate led out into an alley. Carter took my hand as I trailed along behind him, giggling, and he led the way down the alley and out onto the sidewalk. Very soon after leaving the alleyway, it became apparent that Carter had a crappy sense of direction. We were lost in a not so nice area of town in the dark of night.

“Crap!” Carter spit out.

“What?”

“I don’t have any idea where we are and my phone’s dead. Call Felix to come get us, k.” He laughed quietly after he said it and I gave him a look like he’d lost his mind. “It’s nervous laughter, okay? I’m just kinda freaking out here!”

I reached for my phone in my back pocket only to find it wasn’t there. I searched every pocket but my phone was gone. We both let out a curse. I felt totally helpless. And scared.

I could see our breath on the night air as we scanned the area. The houses were spread farther apart than what I was used to in our little town. They had large yards that were mostly fenced by some sort of spindly metal fencing. The few street lamps that lined the street were very dim, if lit at all. Dilapidated cars sat in several of the yards and an occasional glow of animal eyes appeared from somewhere within a property line. We stood in the middle of an uneven road searching around for signs of life or a way back home, or even a way back to the bar. It was like we’d stepped through the back gate of the bar and entered into another world. I wasn’t positive we hadn’t.

Suddenly the sound of heavy footfalls approaching jarred us out of our pity party. Carter rushed me to the side of the road to a solid stretch of fence line that was covered in some sort of vine. We pressed ourselves between the fence and a large tree that was beside it. He stood in front of me protectively as we listened. I felt scared to death and very small cowering behind my friend. And let me tell you, fear will sober you right up.

The sound of something crashing through the bushes caused me to let out a sharp scream before I could cover my mouth to stifle the rest. I felt a blast of heat hit me from where Carter stood and he reached back for my free hand and squeezed it. He already had me pinned against the tree with his body. Someone would have to get him out of the way before they could get to me. But I wasn’t sure how easy that would be. I had no idea, nor did he, if any special skills had surfaced with his injuries. For all we knew, he was just a guy with a bad scar across his face.

A thick fog began quickly rolling in, making things even eerier, and I trembled in the darkness with my back against the tree. We heard a rustling again, this time coming from the vines we were near. I looked around wildly, trying to see what the cause of the sound was but with the fog and the dim street lights I could find nothing. But I felt unseen eyes watching us. My skin was crawling and my heart was thudding so hard I was sure it could be heard a mile away.
Man, Oliver is going to be pissed.

He shot me a look in the dark of the night. He put his fingers to his lips for me to be quiet and said very quietly himself. “I told you, I laugh when I’m nervous.”

I whispered back, “Umm, why are you so nervous and just what the hell
does
crazy smell like?”

“Me,” a deep scratchy voice barked from behind me.

I screamed as we whirled around to see a man’s face pressed in the crack between the tree and the fence. I let out another scream as the man’s hand reached out for me. I stumbled back into what I thought was Carter only to find that the man had a friend. I jumped back and he smiled coldly at me as Carter was pulling himself off the ground.

It’s amazing how many thoughts can go through your head in a split second’s time. I wondered why Carter was on the ground, how the hell we were going to get away, why I suddenly smelled a very familiar scent, how mad Oliver was going to be, where my phone was, why I was just standing there when clearly I should’ve been running. I watched Carter stand to his full height. His chest heaved as he took a step forward, towards me and the creepy man that was making his way closer to me. But before either of them could reach me, the first guy tackled Carter from the side and then the vine covered fence exploded with vines and boards splintering apart. I dropped to a crouch and covered my head. I expected more of the creepy guy’s friends to appear but was shocked when I looked up to find Oliver and Felix. Oliver glared down at me and growled “Go, now!” I scrambled to my feet, as did Carter, and we took off in the direction Felix was pointing.

The sounds of snarls, yelps and crashes rang out from behind us as our shoes pounded the pavement. My lungs burned. My face felt hot and red. My body ached and my head was throbbing by the time we hit the grassy area outside the apartments. We couldn’t get the key in the door fast enough and I was yelling at Carter to hurry up when he finally shouldered the door open and we fell inside the apartment. We sat in the dark with our backs against the front door until I realized I still needed to pee, badly, and I rushed off to the bathroom. The next thing I knew, it was morning.

Chapter 46 - The Morning After

The sunlight streaming into the room was too bright and the dull ache in my head was barely tolerable. Carter smiled at me from the pillow next to mine.
Oh Crap!
He had Scooby-doo Band-Aids across the scar on his face and he was shirtless.

“How you feeling?”

Before I could say a word or panic or make sure my clothes were on, Oliver’s voice cut through the silence of the room. “She feels terrible. I can tell you that much. What I can’t tell you is if it’s because she’s hung-over or feeling guilty.” I’m sure my eyes were just as wide as Carter’s and I’m sure I looked just as terrified as he did at that moment. Carter shot up and scrambled to get off of the bed. I had an unconscious death-grip on his thumb and he had to pry my fingers away. He stumbled back and hit the wall under my bedroom window. We were in my apartment.
How the…No wonder the key wouldn’t work.

“If what happened last night ever happens again or goes any farther, I will not be able to control my actions.” The anger in Oliver’s voice was very apparent. But even still, Carter narrowed his eyes across the room towards where the sound of Oliver’s voice was coming from, which was behind me. “You are reckless and impulsive and if you ever take her out into the night again it will be your last.” Carter continued to glare at the space behind me. He bent down, picked up his shoes and left the room without a word. I heard a couple weird sounds like he’d tripped or something and then I heard and felt the front door slamming. I jumped. Not just because of the door, but just then Oliver said, “Look at me, please.” I guess it was probably more of a growl than a pleasant request.

I took a deep breath and exhaled before I sat up and turned to face him.
Oh, my head.
The room swayed. He was sitting in my desk chair facing the bed. His jeans and T-shirt were dirty and he had a stainless steel water bottle in his hand and two more were sitting on the desk behind him. In one quick movement he tossed my phone onto the bed. It landed on the blanket that was still covering me.

“Where did you find it?”

“Behind the bar.”

I looked up at him from my phone. “How did you find it there? Did you call it and listen for it or something? Is that how you knew where we…”

The expression that flashed across his face gave it away.

“You followed us?” He was bad at hiding his emotions when he was that angry. “How dare you!”

His eyes glowed with an angry light as he sat forward and locked them with mine. “How dare I? You were out with another man,” he snapped.

I drew out each word and with each one I grew seriously angry. “You
forbid
me? Who the hell do you think you are?”

His jaw tightened and I saw it twitch. That emerald stare flared. Before he was able to say another unreasonable word I flung the blanket back and jumped off the bed revealing that I was only wearing my panties and a T-shirt. Carter’s T-shirt.
Oh crap.
He was out of the chair then, so fast and hard that he sent it flying back and onto the floor with such force I was sure the downstairs neighbors heard it. His face had darkened and his jaw set so tight I thought it might snap. A deep rumble sounded in his chest as our eyes met and rage marked his words. “Tell me he did not touch you.” His voice shook and his hand tightened around the body of his water bottle and I heard it crunch as his eyes narrowed on mine.

I violently shook my head and the room began to spin. Then I collapsed to my knees and threw up on my bedroom floor.

Chapter 47 - The Porcelain God

I’d heard the phrase “praying to the porcelain god” before but I’d never thought I would experience it firsthand. After I fell very near where I’d blown chunks onto my bedroom floor, Oliver had hoisted me up like a ragdoll and taken me into the bathroom where he dumped me onto the floor in front of the toilet. He was sitting on the floor with me with his back against the door. He had his knees up and was focused on his fingernails, like he was avoiding looking at me.

I was hugging the toilet. I’d probably thrown up three times when he finally started speaking to me again. His voice had lost most of its edge. Maybe he felt Karma kicking my ass was payback enough. “Why did you let him kiss you?”

I rested my head on my arm that was draped over the rim of the bowl. There was a hint of pain in the way he was looking at me and I felt it in my heart. “I…I…,” I shrugged, I had nothing. No answer for that. “It was stupid. The whole night was stupid. I should’ve never left the house with him. I just, he…he needed me.” The ache in my head had its own heartbeat. “I know what I did last night was totally stupid and I understand you’re mad at me but I’m going to be there for him when the moon is full.”

He closed his eyes and put his head back against the door with a thump and sighed heavily. After a moment he lifted his head and looked into my eyes again. “I understand that you two share some sort of connection because of what you’ve both been through and because of the world you’ve both been thrown into but I would’ve thought, no, hoped–I would’ve hoped you would’ve found that connection in me.”

Ah, damn it. Now I felt like I was going to be sick for a different reason.

“I need you too, you know.” His voice was unusually small for him and I realized then that he too carried a great pain in his heart. That the pain I felt was nothing compared to his. I’d lost my aunt. A parent figure I’d been close to. He lost both his parents, his sister, who was his best friend, and his twin. He’d also lost his life. The life he’d been used to, only to be thrown into a world most of us don’t believe is real. “You’re all I have left too, you know,” he said softly.