First Light (17 page)

‘If you want to,’ he said softly.

‘I want to.’ I looked at him, so he knew I meant it.

His face remained impassive, but I thought I saw something in his eyes, as though he was half expecting me to tell him I wanted nothing more to do with him. I watched his car drive away, knowing in my heart I would never do that.

Rachel and Jared were sitting in the lounge. I checked my watch to make sure I hadn’t imagined the time – it was past midnight.

‘What’s going on?’

‘Cloud is in Dad’s bed asleep. We thought we’d stay here tonight.’ Rachel’s tone was cutting, so I knew I was in for a lecture.

‘Okay.’ I tried to slip out and up to my room.

‘You’ve changed, Ronnie.’

I slumped and fell back on the sofa.

‘Your attitude, this attitude you have right now. Who are you these days?’

‘Rachel, do you have a point?’

‘Yes, I have a point! Mrs Carpenter told us that boy has been over here a lot. She called me. She’s concerned you’re being led astray.’

I slid even further into the depths of the settee, wishing it would suck me into the back of the cushions to a world where Mrs Nosey was mute.

‘Ronnie, we care about you. Since you started hanging around with those boys your whole attitude has shifted. You don’t care about anybody any more.’

‘You mean I don’t wait on you hand and foot any more.’

Jared flapped his arms. ‘That’s not fair!’

‘I don’t expect you to wait on me, Ronnie, I know you’ve always been the grown up in the family, but Dad isn’t here any more and I know he wouldn’t want you behaving this way. What about your old friends?’ Rachel snapped.

‘What old friends? If you opened you eyes for just a second you’d see that all I’ve ever done was take care of you and Dad – I have no other friends. This is the first time in my life I’ve had people to have fun with, what’s so bad about that?’

‘What about that My girl?’

‘I still see
Mae
,’ I stated pointedly.

‘And what does she think of what you are doing?’

‘
Rach, Mae doesn’t like Kalen either, but I do. I wish you’d just try to be happy for me, like I’ve been for you since–’ I stopped myself from insulting Jared, much as I was tempted.

‘Go on,’ she insisted angrily, ‘say something mean and prove everybody’s point about what a nasty little cow you are these days.’

They both stared back at me like I was the worst person in the world. I got up; there was nothing left to say.

‘I got a job today, Rach. I start work next week.’ With that, I walked up to my room and closed the door.

***

The morning brought with it a feeling of guilt. I couldn’t remember my dreams, but I was sure what Rachel had said had been on my mind all night. I headed for her room, tapping lightly on the door. There was no answer. Pushing gently, I peered in. The room was empty and the bed made. Letting out a sigh, I went back to my own room for my phone and called Mae, inviting her over to meet Kalen in an attempt to make peace. I needed at least one person on my side.

Reluctantly she agreed, but as soon as I hung up the phone rang again. My new boss, Chris Hanno, spoke with his heavy Greek accent, asking me to spend a few hours in the office training before I started in the new year. Of course I said yes. I hurried to get ready and left the back door unlocked for Mae in case I didn’t make it home on time.

A few hours turned into a whole day. I panicked as I pictured Mae arriving to meet Kal without me there. Chris was taking forever to type an email that he’d asked me to read. I offered to type it for him. His mouth turned down at the corners, far enough to change the shape of his chin.

‘
Veronica, I can type an email. You see, watch me as I type! All I want is for you to tell me what you think of it once it is written. You don’t mind, ah?’

‘No, of course not.’ Yes, actually, I really do!

Thirty minutes later, I was able to leave. I rushed home to find Mae walking out.

‘Hey, sorry I’m late. Are you going already?’ The disappointment in my voice was clear.

‘Sorry, Ron, I have plans later.’ She smiled in a sweet and reassuring way, like I imagine a mother might smile. ‘I met Kalen and we had a nice chat. That’s what you wanted, right?’

‘Yeah, I guess.’ I felt my shoulders slump. ‘So what did you think?’

She sighed, ‘He seems to care for you a lot. As long as you’re happy and safe, that’s what matters.’

Then she left, and I couldn’t help but notice her parting words were louder than they needed to be.

‘Is everything okay?’ I asked a clearly brooding Kalen when I walked into the living room.

He looked up at me with a tight, forced smile. ‘Of course.’

‘Did you have a nice chat?’

‘She’s a great girl – you’re lucky to have her as a friend.’

‘Okaaay.’

‘Are
you
okay?’ Kalen tapped the seat beside him.

I threw myself down. ‘I just wish I could have one day without the aggravation from my sister, or pointed looks from Mae – just a day when I don’t miss Dad so much. I don’t know what to do for the best any more. I seem to be hurting everyone at the moment.’ I was surprised at the truth of my words. I hadn’t meant to be so blunt.

He looked at me sympathetically, yet there seemed to be something more that he wanted to say. He remained quiet.

I gulped. ‘Did Mae say something to upset you?’

‘Let me take you out tomorrow,’ he offered, without answering my question. ‘I know we’re just friends but, maybe for a day we could pretend nothing else matters. Let me try to give you that one good day.’

18 – Subterfuge

I didn’t remember falling asleep,
but I was in bed when an alarm on my iPhone woke me. I reached for it, a reminder note had flashed up on the screen:

Be ready at 9. Warm casual clothes
.

K

It was seven. I jumped up and into the shower. Hurriedly, I toweled my body dry, dressing in jeans and a navy hooded jumper and pulling my hair on top of my head. Outside, the sun was shining brightly, a sharp contrast to yesterday's rain.

He arrived punctually, wearing steel capped boots, cargo pants and a black leather jacket, his eyes masked by a pair of Wayfarers.

‘So, where are we going?’ I asked, pulling the front door closed behind us.

‘It’s a surprise.’

I shielded my eyes from the brightness all around me, following him down off the porch.

‘Have I mentioned I don’t like surprises?’

‘No, you haven’t,’ he said, with a smile.

I’d expected the Audi, or even the Ford, but a shiny black motorcycle sat by the side of the road. The same one he’d sped away on the day we met. I glanced at him anxiously, but he wasn’t looking at me. If it was possible, he was even quieter than usual.

Suddenly, my fear of riding on the back of a motorbike was the last thing on my mind. I wanted to ask if he was okay, but the words caught in my throat. He handed me a spare helmet.

‘I’ve never been on a bike before,’ I said instead.

‘Are you afraid?’ There wasn’t a trace of humour in his voice, he wasn’t joking or trying to scare me. His question demanded a legitimate answer. I should have been afraid, but somehow I knew this would be yet another thing he did with perfection.

‘No.’

With a small nod, he swung one leg over the seat and straddled the bike.

‘Can I ask a question?’ I ventured.

‘It seems so.’

‘What?’

He smirked and I knew I’d missed some joke again. ‘Where did you get this bike?’

‘It belongs to Nash.’

‘And the Audi?’

‘That’s mine.’

‘How did you afford it?’

‘They’re not stolen if that’s what you’re asking.’

I wasn’t blind to the fact that he hadn’t answered my question, but I wasn’t sure I really wanted to know. It was easier to accept if I didn’t think about it.

‘Hop on, Red.’ Removing his sunglasses, he pulled on a black helmet, so I could see only his eyes. So often overshadowed by his distracting smile, alone they were more striking than I’d ever realised. The problem right now was that they looked sad. He was definitely hiding something. Before I could ask what, he flipped the visor down. I slid silently on behind him.

Once in my seat, which felt further from the ground than I’d anticipated, Kal reached back, taking both of my hands and wrapping them around him. My stomach flipped with the contact, but it was nothing compared to when the engine roared to life and we took off. I pressed myself tightly against him.

Eventually I dared to open my eyes. I doubted that any car in the world could go as fast as the bike and if it did, it wouldn’t feel the same. There was no room in my head for negative thoughts – all I could focus on was the wind, the speed, and Kalen’s firm body. At one point, I felt the front of the bike tip upwards, the engine screamed as we wheeled through a set of lights. I squealed, but it was all good. A jolt of pleasure pulsed through me.

When he pulled to a stop, I slipped off and rubbed my thighs. I’d been gripping so tightly it took a minute for the feeling to come back to them. As I glanced up, however, I became distracted by where we were.

‘Oh, God,’ I blurted, straightening and staring at the airfield in front of us.

‘Don’t panic, Red,’ he smiled crookedly, ‘you trust me, right?’

‘Um... I think so.’

He laughed. ‘Did you know when you’re nervous, you tug at your hair?’

‘No, I don’t.’ I let go of the strand I’d been holding.

‘Yeah, you do. You twist and pull at it. It’s cute. But hey, there’s nothing to be scared of.’

He took my hand then, leading me across the field to a plane that looked small enough to be a toy.

‘Hey, mate,’ Kal greeted the pilot with a handshake and his fake British accent.

‘Morning, Mr Smith. She’s all ready for you both, pack is over there on the ground, as you requested. I’ll give you some time to get sorted. Just hop in when you’re ready. Weather is great for it, which is surprising for this time of year.’

‘Ah, Kevin, I told you not to worry. The weather’s always on my side.’

The pilot hoisted himself into the plane after that, with a fleeting look in my direction. Kalen stepped over to a big piece of material on the floor. A parachute. It looked more like a shiny bed sheet.

‘Don’t we need two of these?’ I asked nervously. Noticing I was twisting the end of my hair, I quickly shoved my hands in the pockets of my jeans.

‘You want to jump on your own?’ he looked up at me with a quizzical expression from his crouched position, where he was running his hands along the material and checking things I had no idea about
.

‘Of course not. I’m not even sure I want to jump.’

‘That’s okay,’ he chuckled silently, ‘I’ll jump and you’ll be attached to me so it’s all good.’

‘But what I mean is, don’t we need to be strapped to people who do this all the time?’

‘Yep, you’re looking at him.’

I nodded to myself, another chill running through me. Kalen continued to check the chute without looking up at me again.

When we were in the plane the engine was so loud I couldn’t muster the energy to yell above it and Kalen was without doubt the most excited I’d ever seen him. I pushed away the stirring in my stomach and repeated in my head that he knew what he was doing. Inside the plane was bitingly cold and as though feeling it too, Kalen wrapped his arms around me. The next thing I knew, the pilot was calling out something about twelve-thousand-feet. Kal stood us both up my heart went crashing into overdrive.