Flutter (22 page)

“Have fun,” Milo gave me a half-wave, but his focus
was still on Mae. She chewed her lip and didn’t even notice me
leaving.

Back in the living room, Ezra was making Peter watch
that Planet Earth documentary because of how amazing it looked on
the new TV. Jack came over to me and took my hand. As he said his
goodbyes to the guys, Peter gave me a weird look, and I hurried
Jack along. I wasn’t sure how well I could hide my emotions from
Jack.

Maybe I’d have to talk to Milo about all of this.
He’d be really disappointed in me, but he’d help me out, assuming
there was a way to help me out.

We got to the zoo in time for Jack to see the otters
and the prairie dogs, and he was overly excited about both of them.
We spent a long time in the nocturnal exhibit with the bats, and
Jack had way too much fun. As usual, his happiness was contagious,
and I was having a great time.

The best thing about the zoo was that most of the
people there were children, and children didn’t react to us the way
adults do. Some people still stared at us, and a small cluster of
people followed us closer than was polite, but it was nothing that
I couldn’t shake off. Jack didn’t even notice it at all.

The highlight of the trip was the dolphin show. Jack
made sure we sat right down in the front row, so when they jumped
out or came to the edge, we got splashed. Afterwards, we went down
to the lower level so we could see them in the aquarium. I stood
next to the glass, watching them swim as if they were dancing with
each other.

“You know, I swam with dolphins once,” Jack said
casually. “Mae had always wanted to do it, so the two of us went
down to Florida, and we spent all day in the ocean. It was this
thing we paid for, so it wasn’t like we randomly found wild
dolphins or anything. But it was super awesome. We asked Peter to
come with, but he said no, because dolphins are just big fish, and
there’s nothing exciting about swimming with fish.”

“Dolphins are mammals!” A little girl was standing
next to me, her face pressed up to the glass, but she sounded
completely offended when Jack called dolphins “fish.”

“Yeah, I know,” Jack grinned at her. “My brother
thinks they’re fish.”

“Your brother is an idiot,” the little girl said.

“He sure is,” Jack laughed.

The girl’s mother just noticed her talking to us, and
she apologized profusely as she dragged her daughter away, all the
while managing to ogle Jack as she did.

“So you and Mae swam with dolphins?” I asked, walking
away from the tank and changing the subject from Peter. Even in
jest, I was uncomfortable with Jack saying anything about him.

“Yeah, it was a really spectacular trip. We should go
again,” Jack suggested. We wandered around the aquarium, and he had
his hands shoved in his pockets as I admired the seahorses. “Milo
would love it, and I know Mae would be up to going. We have to go
during the day, and the sun gets pretty hard on you, but if you eat
a lot and just crash the whole next day, you should be okay.”

“That would be really awesome.” I couldn’t imagine
anything cooler than swimming with dolphins, but the thought of Mae
made me less enthusiastic. “But do you think Mae would really
go?”

“Yeah, why wouldn’t she?” Jack asked, but then it
dawned on him what I meant. “Oh. Well... when this is all over, I’m
sure she’ll want to go.”

“You really think so?” I raised an eyebrow. “Because,
from the way Ezra makes it sound, there is no happy ending to all
of this. She’s gonna be miserable.”

“I know,” he sighed.

In the center of the aquarium, there was a shallow
pool full of stingrays and sharks that people could pet, and Jack
stopped at it. He reached in the tank to touch them, but he wasn’t
that into it. I’m sure he actually adored that kind of thing, but I
had him worrying about Mae now too.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring the entire day
down,” I said.

“No, you’re fine,” he said, taking his hand out of
the water. “Were you talking to her today before we left?” I
nodded. “How is she doing?”

“Not so great,” I admitted. “But at least she hasn’t
made a decision yet.”

“You mean she’s still considering doing it?” Jack
looked at me with wide eyes and his skin paled a little. “I thought
that after Ezra gave her that ultimatum, she’d just kinda get over
it. I mean, not quickly or anything, but I thought that’s where
she’d be headed.”

“You didn’t see her when she fought with Ezra.” I
thought about how she had literally been on her knees begging him.
“For her, I don’t think there is any getting over this. Ever.
Either she loses Ezra, or she loses a child.”

“I know Daisy means a lot to her, but she’s not
really her child.” Jack chewed the inside of his cheek. “She didn’t
give birth to her or raise her or even speak to her. I understand
that there’s a connection, but I don’t get why she’s willing to
sacrifice everything for it.”

“I don’t completely get it either, but then again,
I’ve never been a mother,” I said. “And that’s really all Mae has
ever been.” I took Jack’s hand in mine. “But you don’t think she’ll
actually do it, do you? Or even if she does, her and Ezra won’t
really split up over this? Will they?”

“I honestly don’t know,” he sighed resignedly. “Once
I would’ve said that nothing could break them up, but the longer I
live, the more I realize that nothing lasts forever.” Realizing the
implications of what he said, he smiled at me and looped his arm
around my shoulders.

“Except for you and me. We’re in this ‘til the end,
baby.” He kissed the top of my head, and I leaned onto his
shoulder, and I really, really hoped he was right.

By the time we left the zoo, Jack managed to cheer me
up. On the car ride home, he forced me to sing along with the
Backstreet Boys, and he started making threats about taking me to a
karaoke bar someday.

When we got home, Matilda was the only one watching
the brand new TV in the living room. Jack had bought her one of
those pet DVD’s that were all images and sounds dogs would like,
and this one had wacky misadventures with cats or something.

Matilda was so engrossed in the movie that she hadn’t
run to the door to greet Jack, so we decided to watch it with her
and see what all the fuss was about. He sat down in the recliner,
and I sat on his lap, resting my head on his shoulder.

“Maybe we should get a cat,” Jack said. Matilda was
parked on the floor right in front of the TV, staring intently at a
kitten chasing a string. Every time the kitten meowed, she’d cock
her head and prick her ears up.

“She would probably eat a kitten.”

“Oh, she would not. Mattie would never hurt anything,
would you, girl?” His voice got higher when he talked to her, and
she glanced back at him and thumped her tail on the floor. “See?
Harmless.”

“That’s hardly an assertion,” I laughed. “But still,
that’s not a reason to get a cat. You don’t get cats so your dog
has something to play with and possibly snack on.”

“Sounds like a good enough reason to me.”

When I came home, I hadn’t noticed anybody’s
heartbeats. I was well-fed and less inclined to it. But I was
naturally tuned into Jack’s and Milo’s. Even if I wasn’t paying
attention, when they were distressed, I’d pick up on it.

Upstairs, I suddenly heard Milo’s heartbeat racing in
a panic. I think it had already been beating fast, but it hadn’t
been terrified. And on top of that, I could smell blood. I pushed
off of Jack’s lap, but he got up, so he noticed it too.

Before I could do anything else, Milo started
screaming.

“Help! Oh my god
, help!”
Milo yelled at the top of
his lungs, and I raced up the steps. Jack flew past me because he
was faster, and Ezra and Mae weren’t that far behind.

When I reached the top of the stairs, Peter and Jack
had already zoomed into Milo’s room, but Milo still stood in the
hallway. He was shirtless, and all the color had drained from him.
His eyes were wide and horrified, and tears already slid down his
face.

His cheeks were flushed unnaturally red, contrasting
even more with the white of his skin. Fresh blood stained his lips,
and a few splatters of it were on his bare chest, most of it
smeared. He just stared at his bedroom, until Ezra pushed past me
to get to his room, and then Milo turned to look at me.

“I killed Bobby.”

- 22 –

Milo looked like he might faint after his confession,
and I ran over to him. Mae stood behind me, not moving. I wrapped
my arms around my brother and stole a glimpse inside his room.

Everyone blocked the view, but Bobby was definitely
immobile on the bed. Peter knelt next to him, and Ezra bent over
Bobby. Jack stood in the doorway, his arms crossed.

“Everything’s gonna be okay,” I lied. He cried silent
tears, and he was in shock.

“I need O negative!” Ezra shouted.

“O negative?” Jack repeated.

“Yes! Now!” Ezra barked. Jack rushed past me and
leapt down the stairs. “Where’s Mae? I need the IV!”

“I’m right here, and I’ll get the kit!” Mae sprang to
life and darted down the stairs.

“He’s alive?” I asked.

“Get Milo downstairs!” Peter growled, glaring at
me.

I listened for the sound of Bobby’s heart, but over
the frantic beating of Milo’s and my own, it was impossible to
hear. That didn’t mean anything, though. If he’d lost a lot of
blood, his heartbeat would be really faint, probably too faint to
hear over all the noise.

“
Alice!” Jack shouted as he came
barreling back up the stairs. “Get Milo out of here! He doesn’t
need to see this, okay?”

Using all my strength, I pulled Milo away from his
room. I had no idea where I would take him, but away was as much as
I planned. By the time we made it to the stairs, Mae was already
bounding back up them.

“Everything will be okay, love,” Mae promised with a
sad smile, but Milo didn’t even notice. After his initial
screaming, he’d gone catatonic.

Milo needed to be someplace where he couldn’t hear
everything, and he needed to get cleaned up. So I took him into the
main bathroom downstairs, and I turned on the sink to drown out all
the other sounds. Putting the lid down on the toilet seat, I forced
Milo to sit down. I got a washcloth wet to start wiping off his
chest and mouth.

“Did I really kill him, Alice?” Milo asked, staring
off into nothing.

“They’re working on him.” I evaded answering him.
“They saved my life like that before, too. Ezra is really good at
giving blood transfusions, apparently.”

“I didn’t even…” He trailed off, and I stopped wiping
at his chest to look at him. “We were fooling around, the same way
we had been, and then… I bit him. And I didn’t even realize how
much…. I didn’t know his heart stopped.”

“You didn’t mean to.” That was the best I could come
up with.

“The thing is…” Milo became more animated, and his
tears got heavier and louder. “I know that he isn’t ‘the one’ or
whatever, not like what Peter was to you. But I love him, you know?
I really do love him.”

“I know, sweetie. It’s gonna be okay.” I wrapped my
arms around him and hugged him.

He was sobbing by then, and I just kept telling him
it would be okay. I had no idea if that was the truth, but that was
the only thing I could say.

We stayed down in the bathroom for what felt like
forever. I folded up towels and laid them on the floor, and I sat
down with my back up against the tub. Milo lay down next to me and
rested his head on my lap. All I could do was brush his hair back
with my fingers, and eventually, he even stopped crying.

When Jack opened the bathroom door, Milo jumped to
his feet. I was too scared to move, as if me standing up would have
an impact on whether Bobby lived or died.

“He’s alive,” Jack said, but he wasn’t smiling. Milo
almost fainted in relief, and he grasped onto the counter to keep
from falling. I got up to catch him if he needed it. “But he lost a
lot of blood. He’s not exactly stable yet.”

“Can I see him?” Milo asked and wiped at his
eyes.

“Yeah, Ezra’s up there, and he’ll probably wanna talk
to you too.” Jack touched Milo’s shoulder in an attempt to comfort
him, but Milo just sniffled and hurried past him.

“So… how is Bobby?” I walked over to Jack.

“Not good,” he said grimly. “He
really almost didn’t make it. I mean, Milo drained that kid dry. It
was
bad
.” Then he
forced a smile at me. “But his heart’s beating, and that’s
something.”

He wrapped his arms around me, and I buried my face
in his chest, surprised to find myself crying. Milo would never
hurt anyone, and he really loved Bobby. It was terrifying to think
that Bobby might die, and it’d be because they were in love and
careless.

It scared me even more when I thought about my
relationship with Jack, and how I almost lost control with Peter.
Milo was way more in control of himself than me, and he nearly
killed Bobby.

What would I do to Jack? Even with him being a
vampire, I could find myself in the same situation, and that was
too much.

Worse still, Jane was still out there, doing that
kind of thing all the time with strangers. Most of the vampires she
picked up were probably more experienced than Milo and me, but
maybe they weren’t. She had no way of knowing. And either way, they
were still draining her of her blood, over and over again.

Accidentally or on purpose, the odds of her dying
were getting exponentially higher ever day that passed. I couldn’t
let her do it anymore. As soon as things were settled with Milo and
Bobby, I was taking Milo to the club, and we were taking her away.
I don’t care if we had to kidnap her; I wasn’t going to just let
her die.