Silverlighters (7 page)

I could actually see them shining from where I was sitting. Not in a creepy way, it was more that his eyes reminded me of the moon. Both dark and silvery at the same time.

A darkness seemed to surround him, somehow both exciting and frightening.

He was sitting on a table, his feet on the seat, wearing jeans and a black leather jacket. He didn’t look much older than me, but something about him seemed older than time. Like he knew things no one else knew. Dark secrets lurked in his eyes.

He reminded me of a sleek black panther, the way he sat there, watching, observing. The dangerous energy surrounding him exuded a sense of expectation. Like something was about to happen.

“Who’s that?” I nudged Beck, harder than I meant to, and jerked my head in his direction.

I swear, it was as though he felt me looking. There was a strange, knowing look on his face as he caught my eye.

I turned away, confused by the feelings he evoked in me. Feelings that made my reaction to Jonathon pale into insignificance. What I felt for Jonathon was immediate and strong and confusing and – if I was completely honest with myself – stirred feelings in me no other boy had stirred before. It was like Jonathon had a direct connection to my hormones.

But this – this boy – somehow I felt that I knew him.

“Where?” Beck asked.

Steeling myself, I turned, something inside me awakening.

But he was gone.

I thought I saw a shimmer in the air – a silvery haze – but when I blinked, it was gone.

A fierce and unexpected surge of disappointment surged through me.

“Never mind,” I whispered.

Deep inside me there was a place I usually tried to ignore. It consisted of an empty ache that sometimes threatened to consume me. I’m not sure when I first became aware of it. I always assumed it was the hole my mother’s death had left.

But right then – at that moment in time – it thudded dully.

Beck nudged me, and I looked up.

Jonathon was watching me, his brow raised slightly. They all were.

This time I didn’t look away. I wasn’t going to let Madison intimidate me.

“Wow – what did you do?” Beck asked.

I shrugged. “Um – I don’t know. I sort of ran into Madison and Jonathon this morning. Then she saw him talking to me at my locker.”

“Madison probably put them up to it,” Melissa said. “She’s always playing mind games.”

“She’s not the sort of girl you want to get on the wrong side of,” Chris warned.

I shrugged, uncomfortable with the attention, and was glad when the conversation returned to the weekend.

After lunch Jonathon was waiting at my locker.

“Careful,” I warned, still thinking about the boy with the strange silvery eyes. “Might become a habit.”

“Waiting for you?” Jonathon leaned closer, his words whispering past my ear. “I can think of worse things.”

I was secretly pleased by his comment. Just being this close to him made me feel a little giddy and breathless. It also helped push the empty ache away a little.

He smiled – a friendly smile that reached his eyes this time.

I felt myself softening. Damn hormones were getting the better of me.

But it was more than that. Jonathon seemed more relaxed this time – not so cocky. I found myself wondering if it was some sort of defense mechanism. If maybe just being near me made him feel as nervous as I felt.

Or maybe it was because Madison wasn’t watching.

Or so I thought.

“Déjà vu,” I murmured as Madison headed straight for us, a furious scowl on her face. “What’s with you two, anyway?”

“Absolutely nothing,” he grinned, proving he was human after all as a dimple formed in his right cheek. “I’ll see you around, Ellie.”

Confused, I just stared after him as he walked toward Madison, wondering if there’d been a point. I had no idea why he was waiting at my locker. Or had Madison scared him off again?

Madison threw a brilliant smile my way, her eyes hard and cold as she linked her arm through Jonathan’s, and I decided then and there I had enough to worry about without getting involved in their strange mind games.

I didn’t want anything to do with either of them.

8

My father was already waiting out the front in the car for me when school finished, and I was pleased to see he’d taken my advice and had his hair cut. He’d also trimmed his beard.

“Better,” I said as I opened the door. “But you still need a shave.”

He started drilling me before my bum even hit the seat. “Anything I need to know?”

“Like what?” I shot back. “I still have no idea what’s going on. How can I possibly know
what
you need to know?”

He grunted. But he didn’t ask me any more questions.

Instead, he left me to my thoughts.

All up, I thought my first day living a lie went well. Better than I could have expected, really. As far as I could tell, I didn’t make any blunders of the sort that would worry my father, unless you consider having a photo of my boobs taken risky.

“You didn’t see anyone acting suspicious?” My father tried again as soon as we walked in the front door.

“They’re teenagers, dad.”

“Point taken.”

I couldn’t get to my room fast enough.

I didn’t think to mention Jonathon and the rest of
them.
There was no crime in being strange, and I was just glad my first day was over and done with.

Besides, I was still confused by my strong reaction to Jonathon. The way he made me feel nervous when I was near him.

Sure – he was good looking – not to mention he was put together in a way that made my heart stutter.

But it was only when I was near him that it overwhelmed me. As though just breathing him in, being in his space, did something to me.

I didn’t like the way it made me feel – I wasn’t that girl – the one that turned into a bumbling idiot the second a hot guy showed me attention.

And I didn’t like his cocky attitude earlier that morning, or understand how I could see two completely different sides to him all in the space of a few hours.

Which one was the real Jonathon?

And why the hell was I still thinking about him?

I dumped my bag on the bed, and took a deep breath.

Even though I hadn’t admitted it to my father, I liked my bedroom. It was on the second floor, and was nearly twice the size of my last bedroom.

It had a bay window with a seat built into it that overlooked the enormous tree in our back yard.

The down side – the walls were covered in horrid pink wallpaper with little yellow flowers on it – but I planned on fixing that if we stayed long enough.

I also liked that we were living in a house and not an apartment. First time
ever
that I can recall. Maybe we could get a dog. The only pet I’d ever had was a fish.

The verdict was still out on whether I liked Berrywood or not. I’d never lived in an actual town before.

In some ways it made me feel safer. The street we lived on was so quiet I figured if anyone came after my dad, we’d notice. But it was also harder to hide in such a small place.

I groaned in frustration, wishing my dad would just tell me what was going on.

We had no idea back then that the wheels were already turning. That the danger was already headed straight for us, even then.

Despite the fact I had decided I wanted nothing to do with Jonathon or Madison, they featured in my dreams that night. All of them did. Every time I turned, they were there, their cold eyes boring into me. And always, from the corner of my eye, was the boy from the cafeteria, his silvery eyes shining brighter than ever.

As though he was trying to tell me something, trying to warn me.

But whenever I tried to look directly at him, they were there instead.

The frustration I felt was so real it carried over when I woke, and stayed with me all that morning.

I asked Melissa about him as soon as I saw her. I figured if anyone knew who he was, she would.

“Hot, sexy guy in a leather jacket?” Melissa’s thin, pointy nose crinkled. She shook her head. “Nope – I would
definitely
have noticed.”

“But – he was right there – in the cafeteria. You must have seen him around school.”

She shrugged. “I don’t know, Ellie. Maybe he was picking up his girlfriend.”

That thought hadn’t even crossed my mind and annoyed me more than I was comfortable with. It made the hollow space inside me thump.

I made a point of staying out of Jonathon and Madison’s way that week, but Jonathon made a point of running into me at every turn. At first I thought it was just coincidence, the way we would arrive at class at the same time, or how he’d be walking past as I closed my locker. Or standing behind me in the cafeteria line.

This amused Beck to no end.

“He’s looking at you again,” she said as I sat down with my tray.

“There’s hope for me yet,” Chris sighed dramatically, his hand covering his heart. “If only Lanita would look at me that way.”

“Hey,” Melissa thumped his arm playfully, her eyes narrowing as she looked over at them, studying Lanita, a pretty girl with dark eyes and long, shiny black hair. “You wouldn’t know where to look if she did.”

“You’re not jealous, are you?” Chris teased. “You know there will always be room for you in my life.”

“You’re dreaming.” Melissa laughed along with the rest of us.

“I dream about you every night,” Chris threw back with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Of course, by then I had figured out the one Chris really liked was Melissa. But he wasn’t the sort of boy someone like Melissa would look twice at. Not that way, anyway. It made me wonder what their story was. It was obvious they were close, but sometimes I wondered if she knew how he felt and was just stringing him along.

You couldn’t help but love Chris. Slightly overweight, he was like a big fuzzy bear. The sort of person you just wanted to cuddle. He was one of those people that just made things seem brighter.

He was the all-round nice guy, the sort of guy any girl would feel safe with.

But he was also the guy who never got the girl, and I couldn’t help but feel for him when I saw the way he looked at Melissa.

By Friday afternoon I finally felt like I was beginning to get my bearings.

Somehow, despite my earlier fears, I was finding my feet as Ellie Fitzpatrick. It hadn’t been as hard as I thought it would be, but then, I’d had a lot of practice pretending I was someone else.

That was the biggest mistake I could have made. I should never have let my guard down.

“That’s just creepy.” Beck shuddered as we walked to our lockers.

They were standing at the end of the corridor. All five of them. And they were watching me.

A chill passed through me. They just looked so – so empty. As though all the life had been sucked out of them.

I hadn’t realized until then how all the fleeting expressions that constantly shifted and changed on a person’s face made up such a large part of who they were.

The only one showing any sign of life was Madison, her cold blue eyes boring into mine, completely at odds with the strange smile on her face.

Jonathon was staring at the floor, his face as emotionless as theirs, until Madison moved toward me.

He stepped forward, finally looking up, and I saw the spark of life in his eyes that was missing from the others.

“Let me.” Morgan’s arm shot out, lightning fast, holding him back. Even his voice was cold and flat.

Jonathon nodded, his face so calm, so controlled. Just like them.

But his eyes betrayed him.

He was trying to tell me something. Only I didn’t understand what it was. How could I?

They had all the pieces, and I had none.

“Madison.” Morgan’s voice was firm.

“What?” she stopped, but she didn’t turn. Her eyes were on me still.

“Look at me.” He grabbed her arm.

I heard the soft murmur of his voice as he spoke to her, low and flat and monotonous, but I couldn’t hear what he said.

“No. You can’t make me,” Madison’s loud voice rang through the air.

“You know the rules,” Morgan hissed as Melissa and Chris walked past, slowing down to watch when they realized something was going on.

“I don’t see what’s so special about her, anyway,” Madison growled, her face blazing with anger as she kicked the locker.

“Wow, she really does have it in for you,” Beck said.

“Tell me about it,” I muttered.

I don’t know what Morgan said to Madison after that, but it worked. I watched it happen. Her face suddenly went slack. Her eyes went hard and empty.

Everyone in the corridor watched as Morgan led her away, the others falling into step behind them.

Except for Jonathon.

He was still standing there, sending messages I couldn’t understand with his eyes.

“Did you see that?” Melissa hurried over.

Beck just looked at her.

“Told you they’re on drugs,” Melissa hissed. “He just gave her something.”

Beck rolled her eyes. “It wouldn’t work that fast.”

“How would you know,” Melissa huffed, turning away to watch them.

“Jonathon,” Morgan snapped, and Jonathon took his place, following after them.

Then Chris grinned, and his face went dramatically blank as he spun around, making Melissa laugh. His movements were stiff and exaggerated as he shadowed them through the corridor, his antics easing the sudden tension as the other people who had stopped to watch began to laugh.

Chris turned and bowed, before jogging back to us, a grin splitting his face.

“I’ve finally figured it out,” he said, his blue eyes shining mischievously. “Morgan’s collecting followers for his cult. Be careful,” his tone suddenly became ominous as he pointed at me. “You’re next on his list.”

I laughed along with the others, but a chill shuddered through me as I watched their stiff backs moving away from us. Though I could have sworn Jonathon’s shoulders were shaking with silent laughter.

“Let’s get out of here,” Melissa said.

“You heard the lady.” Chris linked his arm through Melissa’s and they skipped out the door. “Let the weekend begin.”

“So – you still coming to the movies tomorrow night?” Beck asked as we walked out of the school.

I nodded. “Yeah, but my dad still insists on driving me. There and back,” I mumbled. “Thinks we still live in the city where everyone either wants to mug me or rape me.”

“Talk about overprotective.” Beck rolled her eyes.

My father was waiting in the car at the front of the school.

After that first day I told him I wanted to walk home. It was embarrassing being practically the only person who got picked up in such a small town. But he wouldn’t have it.

I tried ignoring him, but it was even more embarrassing when he drove slowly beside me until I eventually got in.

Instead I settled for walking to school in the mornings, refusing to get in the car, and pretended not to notice that he was trailing after me on foot – it unnerved me that he was that worried.

“Leave him to me,” Beck grinned. “I already have a plan.”

“Uh – I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”

“Trust me.”

“You don’t know my father.”

“And you don’t know mine.” She smiled at my father as we reached the car. “Hi, Mr. Fitzpatrick.”

“Dad, this is Beck,” I said.

“Hello, Beck. Can we give you a lift?”

“No thanks. Dad’s picking me up. By the way – he said to invite you over for poker night.”

“Tell your dad I said thanks, but I’m not really much of a poker player–”

“My dad’s not used to taking no for an answer.” Beck shrugged helplessly as a police cruiser pulled up in front of us. “It’s not really about the poker, anyway. It’s kind of an unofficial Berrywood rite of passage. Dad says it’s the best way to get to know new faces in town.”