The Equinox (20 page)

“Really? We talked about where I came
from remember? Spring Lake, North Carolina.” And as much as I want to dispute
the
throne
comment I stop myself.

Trisha giggles, which helps dissolve my
discomfort. She’s only kidding. Somewhat. Obviously those things were in her
head or she wouldn’t have said them.

“I know
where
you came from, but I know nothing about how your life was
back there, with your mom. Or about your friends. Activities you enjoy. These
are things you talk about with your friends. The only thing I know about you
really is that you’re Rose’s granddaughter, gorgeous, and you know how to take
on Ava and Iris when they are being their devilish-selves. Oh—and I know
you’re mysterious.” She giggles again.

I guess I haven’t shared much about my
past with anyone here—except for Alec. Again, the thought is a sad one so
I brush it aside.

“Well I can tell you whatever you want to
know, but I’ll warn you. My life before Apollo Beach wasn’t very exciting. I
guess I don’t think there’s much to talk about. I’m not the same person I was
back home.” This is very true.

Trisha pokes my tummy. “See, that’s
interesting!”

A warmth spreads in my chest and I smile
at her. “Well let’s concentrate on throwing you the best sweet sixteen party
ever and
then
I’ll spill my life
story to you.” I wink at her but something about her expression halts my cheer.
“What?” I ask her.

A pink color fills her cheeks and I gasp.
She looks around desperately, checking to see if anyone is within hearing
distance. “Matt kissed me.” She says the words so carefully and at first I
can’t tell how she feels about this, but then a grin spreads from ear-to-ear.

“No!” I’m grinning now. I knew Matt liked
her. He didn’t exactly hide it, but I couldn’t tell if Trisha felt the same
way. She flirts with him but one could think that Trisha flirts with everyone
she speaks to because of her bubbly personality. Well, good for Matt. They will
make a great couple. Except—she’ll need to keep her Enchantment secret from
him. Maybe she will have a better time handling that than me.

“It was just yesterday,” she’s still
whispering but her tone is filled with excitement. “We were just messing around
at his house, in the pool, and he kissed me.”

Her excitement makes me both happy and
sad. As far out of my mind as I’ve put Alec, it still seems like everything
reminds me of him, and I’m anything but over him. I had such high hopes, but
then again, I knew how popular Alec was. He was never mine to begin with.

“We’re all set. Ready?” Johnny approaches
me from behind and I tense. Why does he make me feel like scrambled eggs every
time I’m with him.

I turn back to Trisha and take her hand.
“Tonight will be so much fun. I’ll see you—okay?”

Trisha grins and walks to where her mom
and dad are admiring the photo backdrops of flower varieties in the large
vases, shaped like cement columns.

Johnny’s eyes are on me—I can feel
them. Why don’t I know how to handle myself around him? It’s as though he’s always
overpowering me. Perhaps because he’s so unpredictable. One second he’s fine
with me and the next he’s jumping all over me for something ridiculous—like
folding napkins.

He starts the van but something down the
beach catches my eye. A dark gray object at the shore of the beach. Water
rushes over it and then fades back into the bay.

I sharpen my eyes and gasp when I realize
what I’m seeing. “Johnny. Look.” He follows my stare and he must see what I
see.

He’s quick to act—unbuckling his
seat belt and throwing open the van door. “It’s a manatee.” There’s a creek as
the door slams backwards and for a second I wonder if the door will unhinge
from the force.

Johnny is halfway down the beach by the
time I exit the van. Half of me is scared to see the washed up mammal up close,
for fear that it’s dead. The other half is surprised to see Johnny react so
strongly. My legs run fast but I let Johnny run faster. As we approach the manatee,
my movements slow, letting Johnny approach the scene first. Something clutches
my gut as I see it laying there. I can’t tell what’s wrong but the opening and
closing of his beady eyes reveal pain. One of his flippers moves at Johnny’s
touch, almost like he’s trying to hold his hand.

Johnny moves to his knees, alarm on his
face. His hands softly brush the mammal as his voice barely reaches a whisper.
“Hang in there buddy.” Johnny reaches for his phone, pushes a few buttons and
lifts the phone to his ear. “Reg, get the boat and come to Apollo Beach. We’re South
of the Island. One’s been hit and he’s in pretty bad shape. Must be a broken
rib and hip—or something.”

How in the world does Johnny know what’s
wrong with this manatee? How does he know anything about manatees?

“No, this one is a baby, probably around
eighty pounds.” He hangs up.

I kneel down, slowly, beside Johnny, near
the head of the creature. I’ve never seen one up close before. His nose is
pug-shaped with whiskers, his eyes small and round, just like the stuffed
animal. I reach my hand out to touch his nose but pull back and look at Johnny.
“Is it okay if I touch him?”

“Yeah. You can touch him. He’d like
that.”

The manatee’s eyes open as my hand lands
on his rough skin. Green splotches of algae cover his back.

Johnny must see me reach for it out of
curiosity because he’s answering me before I can even ask. “Fish in the water
feed off of him.”

As he continues to examine the young mammal
I watch him shake his head in anger by the mammal’s state. “You know. These
guys are the most harmless creatures. They just glide through the water,
content with their leisurely lifestyle. They are so gentle. Yet boaters act so recklessly
and pay no attention to their surroundings.”

I frown sympathetically.

“He’s in a lot of pain,” he finally says
as his eyes scan the grayish-brown skin of the manatee in front of us. “He
likes your touch.”

“He does?”

“Yeah, just don’t tell anyone you touched
him. You can get fined. There are laws around here to protect these guys while
they are under endangered status.”

I frown. “I would say this is an
exception to the rule.”

Johnny agrees. “I would too.”

There, at least we agree on something.

“What happened to him?” I run my hands
over the side of his face, wondering if his injury is something I can heal, and
that’s when I see it—a dark brownish black symbol of the infinity
serpent, branded into the neck of the poor manatee.

Bile rises to my throat but I press it
down with a force. I won’t know how to explain this to Johnny. “You said he was
hit?” I sit back on my legs, trying to mask my horror.

“By a boat,” Johnny responds. “There are
a lot of careless boaters out there who pay no attention to the speed zones. Manatees
congregate near the energy plant during the winter months.” Johnny points to building
where the smokestacks stand high above the town. “Even though this isn’t the
season for manatees to be in Apollo Beach I can usually spot a few every now
and then along the coast. That’s why the coastal boating speeds are strictly
enforced all year around, but you’d be surprised by the number of manatees still
killed yearly. It’s in the hundreds.”

Our wait seems like eternity. When the
rescue team finally arrives and maneuvers the injured mammal onto a boat’s
gurney I’m relieved.

As we watch them speed off I look at
Johnny whose face is filled with an odd mix of anger and concern.

“You ready to go?” I ask, hoping to break
him from his spell.

He nods and we return to the van in
silence.

* *
*

Back at the Island Grille break room I
clock out of my shift and turn to see Johnny removing his damp t-shirt. I take
this as an invitation to stare.

My eyes glide over his body until they catch
the scar. It’s long, mean, and runs diagonally across his back and side. It was
painful once.

His eyes catch mine and I forget to
breathe for a second. He pulls a new shirt on quickly and turns away from my
gaze. Mortified, I rip my eyes away and focus on a spot in the corner of the
room.

“Can you help me with one last thing?”
His question is a get out of jail free card so I take it with a nod.

I don’t think I’m able to form a proper
sentence quite yet but my feet manage to carry me to the couch where he’s
flipping through some sheets of paper. I take a seat next to him, making sure
there’s a sufficient amount of space between us.

“I have some menu options for the food
stands we’re setting up at the carnival. Can you go over them with me? Usually
Roy does it but he’s been pretty tied up lately.”

As he examines the first one he slides in
closer to show me the lineup of food for booth one.

I’m not processing anything on the menu
actually, but I do a great job of pretending to read thoroughly. My chest
pounds too loudly for me to actually think and my entire body feels hot, as if
I’ve been placed in the center of a dormant volcano.

“Kat,” his voice is gentle.

I look at him. His eyes questioning me.
“Why do you clutch that necklace so much?” He reaches for it. I release my grip
and let my hand fall to my lap and freeze as he lifts the stone from my neck.
No one has ever touched my amethyst before. What will happen to him?

He twists and turns it, inspecting it
closely. “Is it one of those stones that emits energy?”

I’m caught off guard by his pleasant
interest. I didn’t even realize I was holding my breath but I release it
slowly, as to not attract attention.

“It’s a family heirloom passed down to
me. It contains energy for healing and calming—well you know—that’s
what they say.”

His eyes flicker back up to mine and I’m
lost in them. Obviously my amethyst is useless when I’m around Johnny.

“Am I making you uncomfortable?” The way
he says this isn’t a question. His eyes are steady on mine, as if challenging
me.

I have no words but my mouth is slightly
open but I don’t dare speak a word. I shake my head to appease him. He drops my
amethyst so it lands on my chest with a light thud.

“You believe in that stuff?” He leans
back, putting enough distance between us for me to breathe again.