King 02 - Breathless (13 page)

Disbelieving outrage burst from me. “Something
did
happen to me. And to Michael, and to Amber. The fact that it wasn’t fatal doesn’t let you off the hook.”

She continued as though I hadn’t spoken. “As for Amber, well, I regret that she was pulled into a situation that was clearly beyond her. That was obviously Nell’s delusions at work.”

I suppose my face reflected my skepticism, for Ms. Lacusta sighed and shook her head. “I can see that this is not going to be easy for you. How can I persuade you that this doesn’t have to be a painful experience?” She studied me for a moment, and then brightened. “I know! You enjoy history, don’t you? You said something about it to that boy. That’s where we will begin.”

“History?” I queried. “Do you mean the history of… chemistry? Or the history of…” I hesitated. “Something else?”

“I told you, we’re not here for chemistry. I want to teach you a little about a different kind of history.” She opened a drawer at the bottom of her desk and pulled out an ancient looking book. “Here. We’ll begin with this. You can take it home with you, read it… we’ll meet here again on Monday. I’ll look forward to hearing your insights.”

I looked at her blankly. “You don’t want me to come here for the rest of the week?”

“No. Take the time to read. Go to the library, or sit outside… I don’t care, as long as you stay out of trouble, which I doubt would be an issue.” She shook her head in bemusement at my expression. “What did you expect, Tasmyn? Did you think I was going to require you to be with me each day so that I could better brainwash you? Trust me, if that was my intent, it would be already accomplished.” Ms. Lacusta gestured with her hand. “Go ahead. The class period is nearly over anyway. I can see that you are anxious to be on your way.”

I stood up, taking the book from her desktop. “I don’t know what I expected. Not a reading assignment, I guess. Well… thanks. I’ll see you Monday.”

As much as I had dreaded being in the room with her, I was now strangely reluctant to leave. As I walked toward the door, her smooth voice called me once more.

“Ah, Tasmyn, one last thing. This Rafe Brooks. I would stay away from him, were I you. My advice only, of course, but I didn’t care for the way he looked at you.”

I gazed back at her over my shoulder, perplexed. “Yeah… thanks.”

When I was back outside, on the walkway, I was more confused than ever. Nothing was as I had expected it to be. How could I trust anything that Ms. Lacusta said? But without the benefit of hearing her mind, it was impossible to discern how much was true and how much was a façade.

And her last comment about Rafe troubled me, too. My senses—all of them—told me that he was annoying but harmless. I wondered if that, too, was a false reading on my part.

My world was suddenly much too complicated.

I made it to the lunchroom well ahead of my friends, bought my lunch and sat down at our empty table. People began to slowly filter into the room. I wasn’t trying to listen to anyone’s thoughts, nor was I concentrating on blocking completely, so a few slipped in here and there.

That was a killer class. I can’t believe I stayed awake… wow. That guy is incredibly hot. Too bad he’ll never look at me… lunch looks pretty awful today. Ugh…

And then I picked up a much more familiar sense as I heard Amber’s approach. Her relief was palpable.

Thank heavens, she’s here. Good. I can breathe again.

I looked over my shoulder and shot her a reassuring grin. Amber rolled her eyes and picked up a tray. A few moments later, she was sliding onto the bench next to me.

“Quick, tell me what happens before Cara and the juniors get here,” she said in an undertone.

I glanced around. No one was looking at us or paying any attention to our table. I leaned slightly toward Amber.

“It was… fine. Weird, but fine. She doesn’t want to teach me chemistry. She gave me a book to read. Oh, and get this. That Rafe guy, who came by the table yesterday? He wanted the chem. study. He tried to talk her into it. You should have seen it, Amber, it was crazy!”

Amber’s eyes widened only slightly. “Yeah,
crazy
is something I usually associate with her, so I’m not at all surprised. Rafe was actually there?”

I nodded. “Yes. He always seems to turn up when I least want him around.” I frowned. “Would I sound too paranoid if I wondered if it were more than just coincidence or bad timing on his part?”

Amber laughed without too much humor. “Any place else but King, maybe. He did say his family had always lived here. Do you really think something else is going on?”

I shook my head slowly. “I’m not sure. I hadn’t thought of it until just now. I haven’t heard anything odd in his head, just—annoying stuff, you know. But Ms. Lacusta told me I should stay away from him.”

Amber snorted derisively. “Well, from my somewhat jaded point of view, that’s practically a glowing recommendation. And if you haven’t heard anything out of the ordinary from him, I’d say it’s nothing to worry about. Why is he annoying?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m just not interested, you know. Not the way he seems to be. He makes me uncomfortable.” I could feel my face heating, and I couldn’t quite meet Amber’s eyes.

Before she could comment, Cara dropped her tray on the table and sat down across from us. She was closely followed by the trio of junior girls who had taken up residence at the other end.

Cara immediately launched into a diatribe about her morning. If she noticed that she’d interrupted Amber and me, she gave no indication. Instead she maintained a steady stream of conversation, and we just tried to keep up with her.

I half expected Rafe to join us again, this time full of questions about Ms. Lacusta and the whole independent study mess. That would have been awkward, since Cara was totally in the dark about the situation. But I didn’t see Rafe at all during lunch or for the rest of the afternoon, to my utter relief.

On some days, I stopped at home before work to change clothes and check in with my mom. But today I had already planned to drive directly out to the nursery after school. I was eager to spend some time with Marly and Luke. It seemed like forever since we’d had a really good visit.

The nursery was quiet when I pulled through the main lot. Out of habit I continued up the dirt road and parked back at the Sawyers’ cabin. The late afternoon sun was still strong, but here among the trees, a welcome coolness countered the heat. I breathed deeply and felt the tension of the day melting away.

I opened the back door of the shop and stuck my head inside. Belinda, the older woman who ran the shop in Lela’s absence, was standing behind the counter, flipping through some papers. When I called hello, she looked up and smiled.

“I’m just going to say hello to Marly, then I’ll be right in to get to work. Is she in the greenhouse?”

Belinda nodded. “I’m pretty sure. She’s working on some new hybrids, I think.”

I gave her a quick wave before going around the building to the line of glass-enclosed buildings that flanked the parking lot. Marly’s special space was in the center green house, and I found her there, next to a long wooden table.

I could hear her before she realized I was there.
If I can make this work, we’ll have the hardiness of one plant married to the beauty of another. Perfect. All marriages should be that way… the strength of one complementing the weakness of the other. I have to remember to tell Luke that tonight…

I cleared my throat. I could gather where this line of thought was going, and I didn’t need to hear it.

“Tas! Sorry, I didn’t hear the door.”

“It’s okay. You were pretty involved in your work there.”

She rolled her eyes and peeled off her gloves. “Yes, you know me. I get an idea and that’s all I can think about. Or practically all.” She winked at me and motioned to a folding chair. “C’mon, join me for a bit. I need a break.”

I sat down, curling my legs up under me. Marly stooped in front of her mini-fridge and pulled out two glass bottles of her favorite iced green tea. She handed one to me and twisted the top from her own.

The air inside the greenhouse was warm and moist but not uncomfortably so. I drew in a deep breath and enjoyed the familiar scent of soil, fertilizer and growing things.

“So.” Marly swallowed a swig of her drink. “You’re more than half way through your first week of school. How’s it going?’

I hesitated only briefly. “It’s going. You know, senior year, all the teachers warning us about how much harder we’re going to have it next year in college. But I’m okay.”

Marly leaned against the table. “Are you sure? Michael filled us in on everything with Ms. Lacusta.”

That didn’t surprise me. “It’s taken care of,” I told her. “There’s no need to be concerned.”

She smiled, her eyes taking on the soft burnish I saw so often in her son’s, and I missed Michael with a deep hurt. “He is, though,” she said softly. “He worries about you, quite a bit. I half expected him to appear on our doorstep late Monday night. He was pretty upset.”

I dropped my head back and closed my eyes. “I tried to tell him that I could take care of myself. I don’t want him to-to worry.”

Marly laughed. “That’s what I told him. You’re stronger and more resilient than he thinks.” Her smile faded as she continued. “But you know, Tasmyn, he’s not wrong about Ms. Lacusta. Don’t forget I was there last fall when Amber told us her story. I heard about how involved that woman was in what went down last year. She’s trouble. Don’t underestimate her.”

I suppressed a sigh. “I won’t,” I promised, telling myself that I wasn’t really lying… I wouldn’t trust Ms. Lacusta for a minute. I stood up, draining the end of my tea. “Now I’d better get back to work before my boss fires me,” I teased.

Marly affected a stern expression. “You know it,” she replied with feeling. “She’s a mean one, your boss. Get moving. I’ll see you before you leave.”

The afternoon passed pleasantly and quickly. Belinda and I took advantage of the quiet to do some restocking and reorganizing, and I waited on the few customers who wandered through the shop. Belinda assured me that the lull in business was typical for this time of year.

“You know, we’re between seasons. The summer rush of all the people buying stuff for their gardens and yards is pretty much over, and no one’s thinking about holidays quite yet. It gives us a little time to catch our breath.”

I wrinkled my forehead and frowned. “Great for us—but doesn’t it hurt the nursery?”

Belinda chuckled. “Nah. Luke might not seem like he worries about much, but he’s a savvy businessman. This is the time of year that the landscaping end of the business is more active. He and the guys are working all over the county, cleaning up yards, getting things ready for the autumn.”

Since Belinda had worked for the Sawyers since the nursery had opened, I tended to believe her. It was certainly true that Luke wasn’t around as much as he was during the winter months.

About ten minutes before closing time, I was in the back room, moving merchandise around, when I heard the bell that signaled a customer had entered. Belinda and I exchanged looks, and I sighed.

“I’ll get it,” I told her, wiping dust from my hands as I went through the swinging doors. Almost instantly, a chill went up the back of my neck, and I felt as though I were suffocating. There was a heavy atmosphere of fear and some other indefinable emotion filling the store and a barrage of thoughts assaulted my inner ear.

HER! I forgot she might be here. Lord, protect me from all evil that seeks to do me harm… there’s something about this one. I know what Cara says, but she might not recognize the threat.

The Reverend Matt Pryce stood just inside the door, staring me down with drawn brows and a heavy frown.

I faltered, nearly undone by the troubling feelings that surrounded me as well as the direction that Rev. Pryce’s mind was taking. Our eyes met across the room, but after a moment, he looked away.

I forced myself to take a breath and move to the counter.

“Hi, Rev. Pryce. Can I help you with anything today?” My voice was falsely bright and cheery, and I knew he was picking up on my nerves.