The Fire Starter (9 page)

I took my hand back, which proved easy since he didn't have the energy to fight with me. "Call Alice, Evan. Tell her about his condition."

Evan looked confused. "I don't think--"

"Spencer needs her." I stood up, clutching the hand that was burning from Spencer's touch, my shoulders feeling warm too. I tried to hide the pain that was eating me inside, because once again Spencer had tricked me. And once again, Alice had won.

"Okay…" Evan said, scratching his head.

"No…" Spencer breathed with difficulty, his eyes opening and closing slowly. "Kayleigh…"

"Shh," It was my turn to shut him up. "Alice will be here soon. You'll be okay."

"I want you, Kayleigh," he replied with surprising conviction.

It took me by surprise with how strong he said those words, but then again, it must just be me imagining things. I shook my head, tears already making it hard for me to see. "No, you don't, Spencer. You don't."

I left the room despite Evan calling after me or Spencer trying to stand up to follow me.

I didn't go back to my room mainly because I felt that Spencer might ask Evan to go and talk to me while he and Alice spent some time alone together. Instead I crept out of the castle, carefully crossing the bridge with only the light of the full moon guiding me. Every once in a while everything would darken and I would stop, waiting for the clouds to move and for the moon to shine again. Before knowing it, I had come to the back of the castle, at the mouth of the forest I had wanted to explore but had never had the chance to.

This seemed like a good time to go outside the gate, and to keep my mind off things, I should use this obstacle in front of me. I hesitated, since the forest would be dark, the light of the moon not able to seep through the canopy, but I didn't care. It's not like I have something else to do anyway.

I stepped inside the forest, touching the cold trees to dispel the burning sensation Spencer had left behind. I had never known someone who burned with fever like that. It was as though it wasn't a normal fever at all. And Evan wasn't even worried for his brother's safety? That was highly unlikely if it was really that bad.

Various sounds greeted me inside the forest. There were owls hooting, crickets singing, and even various other animals scurrying around. I had nothing to worry about except the cold.

It wasn't hard to find what I was looking for. All I had to do was follow the path lit by the fireflies. Honestly, it was as though they were doing it on purpose. It wasn't a real path, but there were dead or depressed grass on an almost straight line that made you think that a lot of people had walked through it. This must be it.

There was a pair of eyes looking at me from upstairs, and when I checked, it was an innocent owl looking over the lands. I continued a few more steps before I heard, surprisingly, another howl. This made me want to continue forward, since it had been nagging at me for a while now, that every once in a while there would be a howl such as this. And if there's one place where it's most likely to come from, it would be here. In this unexplored forest.

I heard the unmistakable sound of a twig snapping. And another. And yet another. And then, from in front of me, I felt something big move and saw something faint glowing from afar. I shivered, taking a step back. The glow came closer as I hurried to take another step back. But there was something in my way.

I had bumped into something--someone? I turned around to catch a blue light slowly dissipate right before my eyes. I swear it was hovering in mid air! "Who's there?"

"Is that you, Kayleigh?"

That voice. I can't be mistaken. "Kyle?"

As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I noticed that there were not only one, but two persons standing before me. Kyle and… "Blake."

"Told you we'd find her here, this girl has a penchant for misadventures," Blake chuckled, reaching over to rumple my already messy hair.

"Why are you outside at this time?" I asked, curious.

"We're looking for you," Kyle answered, holding my arm to steer me back the way I've come. We didn't talk until we were outside the forest, and by then I was already shivering.

Blake draped his jacket over my shoulders wordlessly as he took the flank and Kyle and I walked back to the bridge and into the castle. "Didn't I warn you before not to go to the forest?"

"I was upset," I murmured, not in the mood to explain.

"Kayleigh," Kyle looked toward my direction, already opening the front door. "You have to promise us not to go back there again. No matter how upset you are."

"Why?"

"Because it's dangerous. I told you I got lost there once, remember?" she looked at me with concern.

The events of tonight and of last night came rushing back to me unexpectedly, and I couldn't help but break down. Fresh tears sprang from my eyes and I couldn't help them. They just kept coming unbidden. "Where else would I go then?" I asked in between sobs.

Kyle draped his arm around me and patted my back. "You can always come to me. To us. You're our friend, remember?"

Blake chimed in. "Yeah. You can even talk to me if you'd like. I swear I'll make you feel better," then, with a wink, he laughed.

Kyle elbowed him and he shut up, feigning a serious mood. "You should go to bed."

I nodded moodily.

"Everything will be better in the morning," Kyle promised.

Did I believe that everything will be better in the morning? No. Was I right? Yes. It turns out, Spencer was gone the entire day, and so was Alice. They were probably out having fun somewhere. It was against the rules to leave school grounds except for select occasions, and as far as I knew, there was no special occasion whatsoever. And considering that Spencer had recently been suspended, I didn't think he would risk disobeying the rules blatantly.

I guess this was supposed to be better for me, since I don't know how I would react with Spencer around. And it seems everyone else didn't too, as they kept throwing me strange glances when we sat together for lunch.

Reid handed me a slice of cake saying he didn't feel hungry anymore, but I knew it's his way of making me feel better. I took the delectable cake without hesitation and savored every bit of it. Evan threw me worried glances, being the person who had experienced the tension last night between me and Spencer, but he didn't say a word. I know though that he had told everyone. That's the only reason they are affected.

Even Xander, who usually paid me no attention, was hanging by every word I said, probably secretly eager to know how I was doing.

"That tasted good," I said by way of thanking Reid. He nodded to me with a small smile on his lips, but he was looking at something taller behind me.

I glanced around, and it proved to be a mistake. There was Spencer looking down at me, his full height towering over all of us who were sitting down. His hands were leaning on the arm of my chair, his brown eyes trained on me soberly. "Can I talk to you?"

There was tension in the table. No one dared speak. It was enough torture for the uninvolved already. I have to step in. I stood up, leading the way for Spencer to follow. I wouldn't be talking to him in front of the others. When we finally reached the end of the hallway and the two staircases were in front of us, I stopped.

"I believe I have some explaining to do," Spencer began.

"I don't know," I answered without interest. "I think you made it pretty plain last night."

"No, I haven't."

"Then by all means, enlighten me. Because the only thing that makes sense right now is that you and Alice--"

"Are not together," he clarified. "We are not. We've been together once, and it's over."

That still doesn't explain why they had to spend so much time together. It wasn't normal for friends to disappear every night and even sometimes during the day, and as far as they showed everyone, they weren't even really friends.

"Alice has a problem."

"Let me guess? You're the only one that can help her," I crossed my arms over my chest. It was all just too typical.

He stopped for a second or two before speaking. "Actually, it's Kyle and I. We're the only ones who can help her."

"Then why is it that you are the only one I notice missing?" I told him my observations.

"Because Kyle and Alice never really got along. Kyle helps her if I'm not available," he explained, though it wasn't doing anything to convince me. "That's also the reason we've been together once. I figured it would be easier for us to do things that way. But I was wrong. It ended in disaster."

"What important problem could this be that you have to drop whatever you're doing for her," I tried, though I knew he wouldn't tell me anything.

As expected, he didn't speak.

But someone else did.

"Since you're so curious, why don't I just show you?" Alice showed herself from behind one of the trophy cabinets in the hallway. She walked past us, pushing open the door without any difficulties. "Come with me if you're brave enough."

I followed her, but Spencer grabbed my arm. "You don't have to go with her."

"But I need to know once and for all. If you want me to believe you, I need to know. Because otherwise-- then you've been playing with me all along."

This seemed to silence him, and I caught up with Alice outside. Spencer followed too, despite Alice snarling at him.

"I've grown quite strong, you know," Alice was saying as she led us into the backyard, just at the beginning of the forest. It was so different from how it looked at night. Today it wasn't as menacing, but it still caused me to remember the howl, the glow from afar, and the shivering I felt.

When we had walked deep enough into the forest, Alice began to shudder. She shut her eyes, shaking all over uncontrollably.

"What's happening to her?" I asked Spencer, but he was only looking at Alice with gritted teeth.

I noticed some changes in Alice's features. Her arms and legs grew longer, thicker hair, she bent over as though her spine had collapsed, and more facial hair framed her face. Her nose was also gradually becoming longer and longer. I looked away, horrified at the sight. It was then that she let out the familiar howl I had heard again yesterday. "It was you," realization dawned on me at last. "It was you all along."

Alice--now in her wolfish form--nodded at me in acknowledgement. She took a step towards me, her paws making no noise against the earth. Her eyes were liquid gold, the same shade as the faint glow I saw the night before. It was her, and she was coming near me last night. If it wasn't for Kyle and Blake, I would have been attacked. That must be it. Kyle had no choice last night, since Spencer was sick. She had to go and fend Alice off, maybe stop her from hurting someone. It all makes sense now.

"That man--you killed that man," I said, shivering in remembrance of the dead man's body, how the entrails were scattered, how his eyes registered pain even beyond the grave.

"That's enough, Alice," Spencer commanded, though Alice didn't seem to heed. She was still advancing towards me, her eyes trained and unblinking. There was a thin trail of saliva running down one side of her mouth where her tongue was lolling. She looked like a deranged animal to me.

Spencer warned her again, but she didn't seem to mind him. It looked as though she wanted to attack me. Then, when she was just about a few feet away, she lunged, gracefully and lightly, as though she didn't weigh anything at all. She was going to fall directly on top of me, her easy and unmoving prey.

But Spencer pushed me at the last minute and ended up under Alice, who was licking his face like a pet to an owner. "I told you to stop it already," Spencer reprimanded, looking as though he was trying desperately to keep his emotions in check.

Alice bared her teeth, two columns of sharp and jagged ones that looked ready to bite onto flesh--in this case, Spencer's flesh. She snapped her head back before lunging forward, aiming for his throat.

"No!" I screamed helplessly.

Something happened then, something I wasn't sure I had really seen. Alice had backed down, whimpering like a scolded animal. She averted her eyes, not making eye contact with Spencer who had stood up, his hand extended before him, palms facing upward. And a few inches on top of his hand, hovering in mid air, was a blazing green fire.

Alice crumpled to the floor, shuddering once again. She must be turning back.

"What--" I stood gaping as the fire slowly dissipated. "What was that--"

"That's how it is every full moon," Spencer answered the question I haven't even formed in my mind yet. "Last night was a full moon. I thought you knew. You told me you didn't want to be a victim and--"

"You mean Alice--she's a werewolf?"

He nodded, sighing as it all now made sense to me.

"And she was attacking me! She's dangerous!" I told him.

"Yes, which is why I have to stay with her every time she turns to make sure she doesn't hurt someone," Spencer patiently clarified. "I can't let what happened to that man happen again…"

But that's just one part of what really confused me. "What you did, that was--"

"It was fire,"

"And you made it appear," I pointed at him accusingly.

"Yes," he nodded, amusement evident in his voice. "Kyle and I can both conjure fire, and werewolves are scared of it."

I looked at Alice, who was throwing me a vicious look too. Spencer didn't notice, as he was concentrating on me.

There was something else that clicked. "That night when we--you left after I heard a howl. It was her too." This time I was the one throwing Alice a straight-on scary look. Werewolf or not, she seemed to know just when things were getting serious with us. It wouldn't surprise me if she knew what we were doing and she cried on purpose to call Spencer's attention. "You did it on purpose, didn't you?"

She didn't answer, but instead shrugged me off and strutted before us out of the forest without another word. I must have been right. "How desperate can she be," I said, not caring if I hurt her or not. It wasn't right to mess with the personal life of others. It was already too bad that she was bothering Kyle and Spencer every month, let alone stop them from doing what they want to do.