The Legend of the Blue Eyes (18 page)

‘That’s the same thing
grandfather said,’
Arianna
added.

‘For once, I agree with
him. Promise me, until I return, you will keep two guards with you
at all times,’
Gabriel begged.

‘I promise, but I only have
one with me right now,’
Arianna
replied.

‘Turner counts as a
guard,’
Gabriel explained.
‘He is as strong as most purebred
dearg-duls.’

‘Oh,’
Arianna added, still unsure why they worried so much about
her.

‘Please follow anything
Devin tells you to do. He is watching out for you, and trying to
keep you safe. I know you get frustrated because you don’t like to
be lied to, but cut him some slack. He is a seventeen-year-old
taking on the responsibility of protecting the rarest night human
to ever come along,’
Gabriel
explained.

‘I know,’
Arianna replied. Gabriel was right. Devin was
holding a great responsibility to take care of her and from what
she could tell, he was getting nothing in return.
‘I’ll be a good girl until you return. Then can I
be a bad girl again?’
Arianna
teased.

‘Of course,’
Gabriel replied. How could one keep a teenager
from not acting out and testing the rules? She needed to find her
own place in the world. Gabriel let go of his niece’s hand and
quietly slipped out of the store, unnoticed by everyone.

“Now that we have bought clothes and a dress
for tomorrow night, is anything else left?” Arianna asked Turner as
they left the store. Arianna listened as Gabriel continued to move
father away from her. She had known all along he was following them
on the train. Like Devin, Gabriel had become a constant in her new
life.

“I figured we can stop and get something to
eat before we head back,” Turner suggested. “Your choice.”

Arianna grabbed his arm to turn him back the
way they just walked. She stopped before a store window and smiled.
“This is what I want,” she said, pointing at the large ice cream
cones displayed in the candy store window. “I’d always had ice
cream on a mid-summer’s day when the sun was the hottest. That was
my old life. Since I’m getting used to a new life, how about ice
cream at,” she glanced at her watch, “11:37?”

“I was thinking more like real food,” Turner
replied, and she pulled him into the candy store.

“Last time I checked, this is all real,” she
said. “Besides, I can find all the food groups here. See, here are
your fruits and vegetables.” Arianna pointed to the wide assortment
of jelly beans lining the wall in clear canisters. “Grape,
strawberry, banana, orange, carrot,” she read the labels. “Carrot?”
she repeated while scrunching up her forehead. “Eww.”

“What about grains and meat?” Turner
asked.

“Well obviously this is meat,” she said,
picking up a hotdog-shaped bubble gum. “Looks like a hot dog to
me.” She laughed, and Turner reluctantly nodded. “And grain along
with dairy is over here in the ice cream cone.” Arianna posed in
front of the row of cones that came in multiple shapes and
sizes.

“Fine, you win,” Turner said, giving up his
protest. “Just as long as I get to pick out your jewelry from these
for tomorrow night.” Turner pointed to the candy rings, bracelets
and necklaces.

“Mmmm, looks good,” Arianna joked.

“That way, when you get bored, you can just
eat some candy and get a good sugar high. I’ll be able to tell how
bored you are from how many pieces are missing,” Turner
laughed.

After hours shopping and walking around,
Arianna was actually ready to go back to Turner’s home and rest. As
she entered her room to put her bags away, Arianna found Devin
sitting with his laptop, typing away.

“Do you want to see what we bought
shopping?” she asked, and he didn’t reply. “Your scent is
different,” she commented, as she moved closer and looked at the
computer screen. “Your blood doesn’t smell as strong as
normal.”

Devin nodded without meeting her eyes as he
continued to type. Arianna sat down and stared at him. He was back
to being the same as he was the first time she met him, almost like
he didn’t even notice she was in the same room as him.

“Are you not interested at all in what we
did today?” she asked, wanting to grab his computer and demand his
attention like a child.

Devin stopped typing and finally looked up
from the computer screen. “No,” he replied, and then continued to
type. “I can read Molina’s report tonight.”

“You’re no fun,” she complained. Devin
continued to ignore her. Arianna leaned closer and stared at him as
he typed. Arianna tried to read his emotions like she had
accidentally done before.

“Do you need something?”
Devin asked, and she shook her head
no
. Arianna continued to stare at
him. His cool exterior seemed to extend to his core. He was not sad
or happy; he was completely indifferent to Arianna sitting beside
him.

“Why do you get this way?” she asked. Devin
continued to type and ignore her. Arianna waited, but he didn’t
reply. Arianna could feel herself beginning to get angry. He was
the one who told her he liked her, and now he was completely
uninterested. She knew he was keeping secrets from her, like
everyone else, but she was trying her best to forgive him. His
apathetic attitude wasn’t helping her at all.

Devin closed his computer and stood up. “We
should head to bed,” he suggested. “Do you need to feed?” he
asked.

“I’m fine,” she lied.
Arianna stood and glared at him.
He’s
treating me like a child again
, she
thought. She could feel the hunger in the pit of her stomach, but
ignored it. Devin shrugged and walked over to the bed. “I need to
get some fresh air.” Arianna turned and left the room. She closed
the door hard and stood outside the room.
Boys are too confusing
, she thought,
as she slid to the floor outside her room door.

He says he likes me, and
then acts like he doesn’t
, she
thought.
How am I to know if he is lying
or not? Am I just another assignment?
Arianna sat on the floor as tears began to trickle down her
face. Her new life wasn’t anything she wanted: a strange new home,
strange people, strange customs, and blood. Arianna ignored the
strange scent of Devin’s blood inside the room. She heard him as he
lay down on the bed. He really was going to go to sleep. He didn’t
even seem to mind that she was just left alone. Gabriel had warned
her not to go out by herself, but Devin didn’t seem to care.
Does he really care less for me than
Gabriel?

“Do you want to go for a walk?” Turner
asked, kneeling beside Arianna. Startled, Arianna looked up at
Turner expecting to see Devin.

“Sure,” Arianna replied, as he offered her
his hand to help her stand.

Dashing to his room, Turner returned and
placed his coat around Arianna. Taking his arm, Turner led Arianna
down the hallway, stopping at the last room.

“We’re going out,” Turner said, peeking his
head into the room.

“Who are you telling?” Arianna asked as her
question was quickly answered by Jackson and Nelson exiting the
room. Silently, they followed behind Turner and Arianna as they
walked through the house. As they reached the garage, Turner threw
keys to both Jackson and Nelson.

“I thought we were going for a walk?”
Arianna asked.

“I know a great place to go for a walk, but
we have to get there first,” Turner explained, smiling slyly like
he was up to something.

“Why do I always get the feeling you are
always two steps ahead of me?” Arianna asked, and Turner
winked.

“The two red ones over there are mine,” he
called back to Jackson and Nelson as he hopped on the nearest bike.
“Are you coming?” Turner asked, extending his hand to Arianna.
Arianna listened inside the house. Devin was still in bed, probably
asleep by now. He wasn’t coming to apologize to her like she
expected. Taking Turner’s extended hand, Arianna hopped on behind
him and grasped him around his waist.

“I was only twelve, when my mother died,”
Turner explained, as Arianna snuggled into the coat Turner had
given her. Arianna stared at the bright sky filled with stars.
Turner was right; it was the perfect place to take a walk. When
they stopped outside a forest with just a small dirt path entering
it, Arianna was as hesitant as her two guards, but Turner reassured
her that they were still safe. Climbing the last hill, to the large
stone she was now lying on, she understood why Turner would choose
such a place. Below them was the city, with lights twinkling, and
around them were the tall, snow-capped mountains.

“I’m sorry,” Arianna replied.

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. She
struggled to live for three years after her diagnosis. Death was
the kindest thing for her,” Turner stared into the sky. “It’s taken
me a long time to realize that much. She was always in so much
pain.”

“What was she like?” Arianna asked, often
wondering the same thing about her own mother.

Turner pondered the question. “It’s been
five years now. I feel like my memory of her is fading somewhat.
Most of my memories are from after she was diagnosed. Dad has
always said she became a much different person after that, trying
to fit a lifetime into as much time as she had left. She would
often talk about what sort of men she wanted my brother and me to
grow into. Her expectations were high, and hopefully, someday, I
can achieve them.”

“Was she human?” Arianna asked, knowing it
was a strange question.

“Yep,” Turner replied. “She grew up here in
town and knew about everything. Dad always said his in-laws were
more than happy to have her marry a night human, but I guess they
expected her to have at least one child like her. Since both my
brother and I were not what they expected, they drifted away from
us after she died.”

“But you still have your dad and brother,”
Arianna added.

“My dad is great, Eric, not so much,” Turner
replied. “Don’t get me wrong. He’s my brother, and I’ll always love
him. I just don’t plan to stay around here forever and have to deal
with him. The greatest thing about moving to go to school was
getting away from him. My dad says Eric treats me the way he does
because of jealously, but I think it’s because he’s an immature
brat.”

“He wasn’t that bad,” Arianna added,
thinking back to the only meeting she had with his father and
brother after they arrived in town.

“Why does everyone call you Turner?” she
asked, changing the subject. “I saw Devin’s files on all the
students in our class, and it had your real name on it.”

“Well, technically, Turner is my real name,”
he corrected. “It’s just my middle name. I stopped going by Brenton
after my mother died. She was really the only one who called me
that anyways.”

“Do you miss her?” Arianna asked, turning to
watch his expression as he responded, expecting him to try to lie
and cover up.

“No,” he replied honestly. “I wish she were
here with me, but I don’t miss her. One morning two weeks before
she died, we talked for such long period of time that it was almost
morning before we realized how much time had passed. Together we
watched the sunrise. She told me that that was where she was going
to be. If I ever missed her or needed to talk, she would be waiting
in the sunrise.”

“Is that why you always go for a run before
you go to bed in the morning?”

“Yep. I know she’s somewhere out there,
listening to me,” he replied. “How can you miss someone who isn’t
completely gone?” Arianna smiled.

“She sounds like she was a good mom,”
Arianna replied.

“The best.” Arianna and Turner sat in
silence for a while as they both gazed at the night sky. “Arianna,”
Turner began, turning to face her as he talked. Shocked by his
serious tone, Arianna faced him as well. “What do you think of me?”
he asked.

“What do you mean?” she asked back. Arianna
blushed as she thought of how he had kissed her.

“That’s exactly what I mean,” he replied
watching her blush more. “This probably isn’t the best time to ask,
with you fighting with Devin and all, but I want to know what you
think of me.”

Arianna blushed more. She’d never met anyone
as direct and carefree as Turner. He lived life to the fullest, and
on his own terms. Arianna didn’t know how to respond. She tried to
turn onto her back, and continue looking at the stars, but he was
even quicker as he caught her and made her face him.