Juliet Immortal (22 page)

Melanie waves her hand. “Will you come inside? You’re making me cold just looking at you.”

“You believe me, don’t you?” I ask, hesitating on the last stair.

“I believe you,” Melanie says, making me sag with relief and take the last few steps into the house. Inside, the kitchen smells as sour as always, but at least it’s warm. And there’s bread and peanut butter in the pantry. No matter how upset and confused I am, I have to keep eating. I have to keep my strength up.

I head toward the cabinets, hoping Melanie will get the hint that we should end this conversation if I start making a sandwich.

“But Ariel …” She drops her purse on the counter and crosses her arms.

“But what?” I ask, fetching a plate and a knife.

“I’m not sure what everyone else is going to think. You and Gemma have been friends for almost your entire lives.”

“Gemma?”

She bites her lip, obviously not wanting to tell me what she knows.

“Please, Mom, I don’t—”

“Gemma’s the one who said she heard you planning to hurt Dylan. She says you said something to her this morning at the bakery.”

“Gemma,” I repeat dumbly. Why would she lie for Romeo? Because she’s mad at me, or is it something more?

She lied about her true opinion of Dylan from day one, and welcomed him into the barn yesterday. Who knows
how close she’s grown to Romeo? She’s been listening to his lies for at least a day, maybe longer. For all I know she could be getting ready to drive a knife into Ben’s heart at this very second, while I’m wasting time making a peanut butter sandwich.

The knife in my hand clatters to the counter.

“I have to go back to school,” I say, heading for the door. Melanie stops me with a hand on my arm.

“Ariel, you can’t.”

“I have to. I have to see Gemma and find out why she’s lying.”

“Honey, I’m so sorry she—”

“It’s fine. I don’t care, we just …” I take a breath, trying to keep the hysteria from my voice. “Gemma and I have to talk.” About how she’s never going to lay a hand on Ben, how I’ll kill her if she even
thinks
about making that kind of bargain. Gemma will
never
become a Mercenary. I’ll make sure of it—one way or another.

“Please, Mom.” I shrug her off and reach for one of the coats hanging on the pegs by the door. If I can’t be dry, I can at least be warmer. “Can you just take me back to school? Or let me borrow the car for a few hours?”

“Ariel, you’re not allowed back onto school grounds until the meeting tomorrow.”

“But I have to go.” I
have
to go back. I have to get to Gemma before Romeo sways her completely to his side. She’s already telling outrageous lies for him; how much further is she willing to go?

“We can’t,” Melanie says, her voice admirably patient. “Why don’t you go take a shower and warm up? I’ll make you a peanut butter and banana sandwich, and while you’re eating
you can tell me exactly what happened. All about Ben and Dylan and Gemma and the rest of it. People telling that many lies always have holes in their stories. We’ll find them and be ready to point them out in the meeting tomorrow and everything will be fine.”

I shake my head, struggling to think straight, wishing a talk could solve this problem.

Melanie wraps her arm around me, pulling me close. “Come on, you’ll feel better after you’re clean and dry. And I bet between the two of us we can think of lots of ways to make Gemma suffer for being such a complete b-word.” My head snaps in her direction. She smiles at the surprise on my face, trouble sparking in her usually tired eyes. “What? You know I never really liked her. Her mother is a snob, and I honestly think Gemma is suffering from a nasty case of borderline personality disorder. And she treats you like a puppy. One she likes to kick.”

“She does,” I say, not caring anymore that Ariel is so attached to Gemma. She’ll just have to get
un
attached. Gemma isn’t best friend material. And despite that red glow, she isn’t soul mate material either.

My decision is made. The Ambassadors can take her glowing aura and shove it. I’m not going to do anything to help Gemma get closer to Ben. I don’t care what they do to me. They can come for me, strip me of my power, and send me to the mist, but I’m going to take care of Gemma before they do. Maybe I’ll lock her and Dylan away in some dark, cramped cellar—someplace similar to the tomb where I spent my last days—and let them fester there together until I make sure Ben is far away from both of them.

“But from the look on your face, I’m guessing the puppy
has learned to bite.” Melanie gives me another hug. “Go on, shower.”

I hesitate, clenching the jacket in my hand. I still feel driven to find Gemma, but if what Melanie’s saying is true—if I’m not going to be allowed back on campus until tomorrow’s meeting—chances are that Ben won’t be allowed back on campus either. That means he’s probably safe at home, secure under the watchful eye of his would-be-dictator brother. A phone call will confirm it.

Maybe his brother will even let me talk to him, let me tell him I was wrong, that maybe he and I … he and
Ariel
 …

Bliss and misery, expectation and despair—this situation is all that, wrapped up in an impossible package. Still, the thought of talking to Ben lifts my spirits, makes me feel there’s something in the world worth looking forward to, worth fighting for. But this time I’ll be fighting to extinguish his glow, just as many a Mercenary has done before me. If I haven’t switched sides, I’m definitely dancing on the line.

One, two, three, one, two, three
—careful, or I’ll stumble into the dark.

“Okay.” A little drunk on my decision, I hang up my coat and head out of the kitchen, spinning back around at the last moment. Melanie is watching me leave, a relaxed look on her face that makes me smile. I’ve failed in many ways, but I haven’t failed completely. Ariel and her mom are going to have a different life now, a better life. I’m sure of it. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. And in case you were wondering, you’re not grounded.”

“Oh … good.” I didn’t consider the possibility of being grounded. Ariel’s never done anything worthy of a grounding before.

She shrugs and smiles. “We’ve made it eighteen years. I don’t see any reason to start with the grounding now. And you’re right, it’s time I start trusting you more.” She points a warning finger at my chest. “As long as trusting you doesn’t involve any more calls from the principal, or running off into the woods and making me worry that you’re dead. Or hitchhiking. Especially hitchhiking. That’s a good way to get killed by a sex pervert.”

I could hitchhike from here to New York City and probably not encounter anyone as evil as the boy we’ll be sitting with in the principal’s office tomorrow, but still … I appreciate the fact that someone cares enough to worry. Even if it isn’t really about me.

“No more. I promise,” I say, hoping Romeo will allow me to keep that promise.

I hurry down the hall, darting into the bathroom to start the water before heading to my room to fire up the computer. I open the Internet browser and type in
Luna, Solvang
, sagging with relief when I see that Ben’s brother is listed. I’ve never gotten Ben’s cell number. Professions of love, a kiss I’ll never forget—but no phone number. We’re going at this backward, but it feels so right; it has since the first day. It doesn’t matter that his aura is glowing for another girl. He and Ariel can be happy together. I know it.

And in the meantime, maybe it’s okay to let myself love him. Even if it isn’t forever. I pluck the phone from its cradle and dial.

“Hello?” A woman’s voice answers on the second ring. Ben’s sister-in-law, I’m guessing.

“Hello. Hi, this is Ariel Dragland.” I clear my throat. “I was wondering if I could speak with Ben?”

“Of course! Ben has said so many nice things about you,” she says. “Let me get him.” The sound on the other end is muffled as she calls Ben’s name. When she comes back on the line, her voice is a hushed whisper. “Don’t give up on him, okay? He’s talking to Gemma right now, but I think he’ll be grateful for the interruption.”

Oh no. Gemma. Why isn’t she at school? “Gemma’s there?”

“Yes, but Ben’s making it
very
clear he’s not interested in being friends anymore. In a nice way, but still, very clear,” she says. “I’ve been eavesdropping while the baby’s sleeping. I just couldn’t help myself. He’s such a good kid, and I really want him to find someone who—”

She breaks off with a worried
humh
. “Hold on a second, Ariel.” She puts the phone down with a soft thunk. I listen to her footsteps fade away and hear her calling for Ben again at a distance. Once, twice, three times, her cries getting higher and more panicked with every shout. I know something’s wrong even before she comes back on the line.

“I’m sorry, Ariel,” she says. “I’ve got to go. Ben’s left the house.”

Left the house. With Gemma. Oh god, oh no.

“I’m going to have to call his brother.” She sighs. “I’m sorry. But call back later. Don’t give up on Ben. He’s got such a good heart.”

“I know,” I whisper. “I won’t give up.”
Not ever
, I add silently. I’ll find him. I’ll keep Gemma from hurting him, and do whatever it takes to keep him safe.

I hang up and run for Ariel’s window but freeze with my fingers on the pane. I can’t do this. I can’t sneak out of the house. It would destroy the fragile new beginning between
Melanie and Ariel, betray the trust Melanie has obviously worked hard to give me. To give her daughter, the one who’ll be reclaiming this body—maybe very,
very
soon if Gemma is intending to sacrifice Ben today.

Sacrifice. Ben. There’s no time to waste caring about Ariel Dragland.

Still, for some reason my feet carry me away from the window, back down the hall into the kitchen, where Melanie is putting away the bread. She turns to smile at me, but the smile fades when she sees my face. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Ben needs me. I have to go to him, Mom.”

Melanie shakes her head. “Ariel, I don’t think that’s a good idea. You two have already had a traumatic day. I think you should give him some time and—”

“There isn’t any time. I have to see him. Please, Mom,” I beg. “Let me take the car. Please.”

She hesitates only a second. “No, Ariel. You need to stay home. You’re stressed and exhausted and—”

“I love him, Mom,” I say, the words catching in my throat, so true it hurts to speak them. “And he loves me. He told me he loved me, but I was too scared to say it back. And now I’m afraid I won’t get the chance. I think he might be …” What lie to tell, what cover story to explain how desperately I need to go to Ben? “I think he might be running away. I need to stop him, and let him know we can get through the thing at school tomorrow. That we can get through anything.”

Melanie stares at me for a long moment before she speaks. “Go change into some dry clothes.” Hope dies inside me. I’m going to have to sneak out the window. I have no other choice. “And then you can have the keys.”

“I can?” I ask, shocked.

“Yes, you can. But you’re going to take my cell phone and answer the second I call and wear your rain clothes and not drive too fast or do anything stupid with this boy.”

“I won’t. I won’t!” I dash across the kitchen and give Melanie a quick hug. “Thank you, Mom.”

“You’re welcome,” she says. “He’s lucky to have you.”

I look up at her, wishing I could tell her how much her words mean to me. Instead, I hug her one last time and run from the room, determined to change clothes faster than anyone has ever changed before.

Hold on, Ben. I’m coming
.

W
here are they? Where has she taken him? Where would I go if I were Gemma and wanted a nice, private place for a murder?

Murder. Ben’s blood on the floor, Ben’s sightless eyes staring up at—

I swallow and grip the wheel tighter. Maybe they’re just talking. Maybe things aren’t as dire as I fear. Surely Gemma can’t have been turned completely. Just yesterday, she seemed to care for Ben. Just this morning, she warned me away from him. No matter what Romeo promised her, no matter what Ben might have said this afternoon, surely she isn’t ready to take his life. At least, not yet.

I cling to that hope as I steer through the streets of Solvang, searching for any sign of Gemma’s or Ben’s car. The rain pounds so hard the windshield wipers can’t keep up, barely swiping away one sheet of rain before another riot of wet takes its place. I have to lean forward, strain to see the flooding streets.

School hasn’t let out yet, and half the businesses have closed early. The usual tourists have been scared away by the crazy weather, and the town feels eerily deserted. The emptiness makes my anxiety spike higher and higher.

Where are they? Where have they gone?

I paw through Ariel’s memories, searching for any clue as to where Gemma might go, but I can’t find anything solid to hold on to. Ariel’s life still feels so much more distant than it should. I’ve let my own desires take up too much space inside this skin. I’m crowding out information I need to keep Ben safe.

He
has
to be safe. What will I do if he isn’t? What will I do if I’m too late? What if Romeo has—

Romeo
. I might not know Gemma as well as I’d like, but I know Romeo. I know the way he works, know the places he encourages his converts to go. He likes isolated locations with a touch of the macabre. Cemeteries, deserted buildings, the ruins of ancient churches. There aren’t any church ruins in Solvang. There are plenty of cemeteries, but it’s raining so hard that they wouldn’t be ideal. Maybe a deserted building, someplace where Gemma knows she won’t be observed.

Someplace where she can turn off the security cameras and clean up the mess at her leisure.

One of her father’s barns! But not on the Sloop grounds like yesterday. She won’t want to be seen driving Ben through
the gate, and my gut tells me he wouldn’t hide under a blanket a second time. But the Sloops own a lot of land, miles of vineyards spread out all over the area, clear down to the ocean. Most of those vineyards have outbuildings to store farm equipment. And didn’t Ben say something about being with Gemma at a barn?