Two Halves Series (17 page)

Without warning, the wind pulled us back, pushing at our chests. I sensed trouble; a low growl rose from the back of my throat. My hand flew to cover my mouth. My eyes went straight to William. The serum warmed, then cooled in my veins.

“It’s working quickly, isn’t it?” he whispered, then peeked between the buildings where the form of my house was still visible.

Two men stepped out on the front porch of my house. They inhaled and, like well-trained hounds, began sniffing the air, nostrils flared. Their heads turned, their gazes fixing in our direction. We round the corner before they saw us. William quickened his pace and seconds later, we were running. Buildings, cars, people flew past us in a blur. No one reacted. They couldn’t see us.

Then another feeling, one not so new to me, surfaced—shame. This was exactly what I’d been trying to suppress. Was I sacrificing my mortality by doing this? Though I wasn’t sure, I knew I could trust William—even Helen had said so. I concentrated more, feeling the acceleration of my feet.

William turned toward the park, and we ran through it in seconds. He veered around a tree near the park’s edge and whacked at a branch to set it swaying; then we ran to another and climbed up—more like flew up—into the dense canopy of yellows and reds, the leaves barely swishing behind us.

“We can’t outrun them, and for our sake, I hope the serum has spread.” William pulled my body against his. His sweet breath warmed my ear and cheek.

“Was that what made me growl?” I whispered, barely audible.

“Shh . . .” William placed a finger on his full lips, inches away from mine.

The two men were approaching and stopped directly below us. Fear crawled up my spine. William’s arm tightened around my shoulder. I peeked through the curtain of leaves at their odd, elongated postures.

Long black cloaks concealed much of them. Hoods over their heads revealed nothing of their faces but orange eyes, with neither pupils nor irises, that radiated hatred and determination. Their only mission was to find their target. Pale, bony hands resembling sticks protruded from the edges of the cloaks.

I’ve seen them before.
I sucked in a quiet breath. Eight years ago. These were not vampires, but they were not men, either.

The creatures sniffed like well-trained terriers, glancing toward the branch William had slapped at earlier. They spoke words I didn’t understand, interspersed with high-pitched shrieking; then they turned and followed the false trail. My body sagged against William’s. He didn’t object; his arms held me tightly.

“They’re gone,” he whispered. “The seekers are quick, but not that bright. They’ll retrace their steps. We have to go.”

I nodded.

We jumped down, landing on the soft ground below us, our legs acting as springs. I liked this new feeling of greater power and agility.

“Who exactly are the seekers?” I asked.

“They’re demons,” he hissed. “Where’s the chest?”

“My store. I know a shortcut.”

I took William’s hand guiding him through the newer part of the park, closer to my flower shop. We flew over shrubs and dashed past Mrs. Fox’s backyard, the wind of our passage blowing her freshly washed laundry on the clothesline. The last hurtle over the Gaples’ hedge lead us to the parking lot at the back of my store.

I never got to work so quickly.
I allowed a cautious smile.

“If they can follow your scent from the house to here, they’ll come here next,” William warned. He sniffed the air. “We have another minute.”

I unlocked the back door of the flower shop with a spare key under the flower pot. William had no trouble finding the chest and seemed to know his way around this forest of green a little too well.

“You’ve been here before?” I said.

“Yes.” William’s eyes fixed on the chest.

“Other than that day I saw you?”

“Yes. I had to make sure you were all right after finding Helen’s letter,” he admitted, ducking his head. His innocent shame surprised me.

“You know about the letter?” I asked.

“I asked her to write it. Although I wish she hadn’t been so dramatic about your father,” he said. “Things are complicated, Sarah. You—I mean we—have to save everyone. We have to stop the extinction.”

“Who’s everyone?”

“The world.”

I pulled my hand away from his and stepped back.

He peeked through the front window. “Sarah. Don’t panic, please. After we get out of here, I’ll explain everything, I promise. If the seekers catch us ,they’ll kill us.” William looked cautiously toward the window again as he picked up the chest in his other arm. His softened gaze returned to me, and I took his hand.

I followed him like a week-old pup, trusting his every move. My senses tuned, the same instinct guided me when the mist at the lake had carried my legs toward the blue orchid.

A green jeep was parked across the street. He led me to it, and we climbed inside. I rested my head against the elevated back of the cushioned passenger seat, still eyeing William. “Are we coming back?”

“Not for a while, hon. Not for a while.” He exhaled.

I stared out the window as William pressed his foot on the gas pedal. We squealed away from the curb, and I saw in the mirror the tires leaving black streaks on the road. I leaned my head back. My eyes moistened as we passed the Thank
you for visiting Pinedale sign.

Chapter 7

The road weaved. I didn’t know where we were going or how long we’d be gone for, and it didn’t matter—I wanted to get far away from the orange-eyed seekers, but at the same time, I couldn’t help feeling homesick. This was the first time I’d left, since my camping trip. Pinedale had always felt as if it had a bubble wrapped dome around it. Somehow, I’d always felt safe, especially with Mira and Xander at my side. Now I may as well have left the country, because I felt like a foreigner. Would my friends panic when I didn’t show up for dinner tonight? Would they notify the sheriff?

While keeping his gaze on the narrow road, William handed me another syringe.

“It will help you sleep,” he said. “You need to rest.”

Although I recognized the blue liquid inside, I hesitated. “Um, not really—”

“I know you think you’re not tired, but the human part of your body needs rest. You can’t feel the aching muscles, but if they don’t rest, they won’t perform well.”

I gasped. William knew what I am. We’d both run with unnatural speed; his senses were as strong as mine; we understood each other without having to speak. In my dreams, he was always human, but subconsciously, I knew William was like me, I just never admitted it for fear I’d reject the vampire inside him, the same way I rejected myself.

After I injected the new dose, my eyelids grew heavy. My head tilted back against the seat, and I slept, free of nightmares, free of dreams.

When I woke, I didn’t know where I was. With my eyes still shut, I rolled my head to rest on William’s shoulder. Our closeness sent waves of warmth through my body. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt such tingling in my stomach. Snuggling, I inhaled his sweet smell.

William was still driving. I opened my eyelids a crack to see dense forest whizzing by on my left and green rolling hills on the right. The square, yellowed fields near Pinedale were nowhere in sight. The sun was gently setting, casting its glowing spell on the horizon. I finally lifted my head.

“How did you sleep?” William asked.

First I smiled, wondering whether his scent would intoxicate me the same way it had in the park. I welcomed it into my lungs but maintained control over my body. “Unusually well.” My knees hit the dashboard when I stretched. “Oops.”

“It’s all right. I apologize—this is not the most comfortable place to sleep.” William smiled. “You were out for a while.”

My stiff thighs lacked blood circulation, so I rubbed them. Out of nowhere, questions spilled from my mouth as if they were water spraying from a punctured hose. “What kind of serum was that in the park? How did you know Helen? Where did the creatures come from? Why were they here? Are they still chasing us? How did you find me?”

William laughed. “Slow down. Just relax and let me do some of the talking.” He gave me a crooked smile, dangerous and strong, but inviting.

I licked my lips, sinking back in my seat. “All right.”

“Here.” He gave me a syringe filled with pink liquid. “Take this before we speak again.”

I took the new serum and scanned the side of the road for orange eyes. “You think they’ll follow us?”

“I know they will. We have to lose our scent.”

I frowned. “How?”

“The serum you took helps, and so will a stopover at the motel. We’re almost there.” He glanced at the empty syringe I now held. “We should be safe until morning.”

“We’ll be staying overnight?”

“It would take too long to drive to where we’re going without stopping.”

I was going to ask him about the long drive when my gaze drifted ahead to a long, one-storey building illuminated by bright fluorescent lights. A blue-and-pink neon sign on its roof flashed
Quick top Motel
. The
S
was unlit. Brown paint peeled off the clapboard siding on the front office and revealed faded patches of beige.

Two women strolled the sidewalk and rounded the corner. Their loud conversation about working the north side of the motel made me shudder.

William opened my door. “Sarah, please excuse the accommodations, but it’s unlikely they’ll sense us here, since they’ll be concentrating on the more luxurious hotels.”

I didn’t have enough courage to ask him about the luxurious hotel. Heck, I still couldn’t get used to the way my name escaped his mouth and suppressed the uncontrollable giggles I felt bubbling inside me.

Smiling mirthfully, William placed his arm around me, and we walked across the parking lot.
What is he smiling about?
Why was I acting like a fourteen-year-old one minute and a scared cat the next?

“Everything will make sense soon. I promise. I’m glad we got out of town in time.” He squeezed my shoulder.

A red-haired woman in her late forties sat behind the counter in the office. She sighed heavily, leaning her elbows on the countertop as if too tired to stand on her own.

William spoke first. “Good evening,” he purred.

She smiled back at him and batted her fake lashes. “Good evening. A room for two?” The hostess leered at William but did not spare me a look.

“Yes please, for one night. And if anyone asks, there’s only one person occupying it.” William slid his hand across the counter and left a fat roll of bills in her palm. “I’m sure discretion is common here.”

“Of course!” She stuffed William’s gratuity into her cleavage, then winked at him. “I understand.”

William rubbed my shoulder. His touch was calming, but it quickened my pulse. His heart sped up to match mine. The weight of his palm made me feel more secure, despite the confused rhythm in my chest.

The landlady handed him a key.

“Come on,” he whispered, sliding his hand to my waist. Our hearts skipped a beat.

We walked quickly along the front of the building and passed closed doors. The stench of day-old cigar smoke—how did I know it was a day old?—wafted from under one door. William stopped at number 109 and turned the key in its lock, the click of the tumbler louder than normal in my ears. He pushed the door open, and I stepped inside.

The motel, a two star accommodation, wasn’t much worse than the conditions I lived in back in Pinedale. The room was neat but outdated, the patterns on wallpaper and fabrics mismatched. Avocado green shag carpeting, flower-patterned curtains, and gold glass swag lights were holdovers from the seventies. Neon light shone through the large window to illuminate the interior in uneven flashes. William opened the window, which helped to flush the stale air from the room.

“There’s one bed,” I noted. My cheeks heated.

“I’ll sleep on the chair.” William stretched his arms out, and his shirt lifted above his navel, baring a defined pelvis above low-cut jeans.

Turning away, I felt the heat increase in my face. “I don’t need to sleep, but you must be tired.” I shut the door.

William dropped my backpack onto the chair. I had grabbed it when we rushed out of the store; it always contained a few useful toiletry items.

He gestured for me to sit down on the bed. “I’m not tired.”

The phone in the motel office began ringing, and I jumped, frowning. “Why is my hearing so sensitive?”

“You’re not used to the combination of so many serums. Your senses will adjust as your body learns to use their components in the right proportions.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You and I—we’re unique,” he started.

“Really?” I said sarcastically, and William apologized with a smile. I bit my lip, regretting my rudeness.

He read my face. “You have nothing to be sorry about. Your hormones aren’t dealing well with the serums.”

“Is that what caused my reaction in the park? I was acting like one of those women street-walking on the corner.”

“You inhaled the remains of my serum. I’m used to it, but you’re not.”

I lifted my brows. “What kind of serum did you take?”

“I . . . I was nervous to meet you and wanted to make sure you liked me, so you would listen to me.”

“There’s a difference between liking someone and wanting to jump their bones,” I retorted, then slapped my hand to cover my mouth.

William laughed. “Maybe it’s better if you let the serum wear off a bit.”

I changed the subject. “Why are they chasing us? Who are they?”

“We’re somewhat special.” William raised a finger to stop my interruption. “We have to use the serum to protect ourselves from the bad guys. We are the only human-vampire offspring in both this world and the underworld.” He said this slowly to make sure I grasped every word.

“The underworld?” I asked. “You don’t mean underground shopping malls in downtown Toronto, do you?”

“No, not that kind.” William sighed. “You and I were similarly conceived. Our parents were best friends. Our fathers were vampires and our mothers human.”