Two Halves Series (21 page)

Us.

Inside, I promised myself not to be separated from William. I couldn’t allow it; I couldn’t allow my heart to go back to its normal beat. It would not feel right—it would not
be
right. Yet somehow, the pressure constantly pushed against my chest like the veins weren’t thick enough to support the flow of blood into my heart.

The middle of my ribcage itched, as if healing from a wound. The feeling confused me—I’d never had a scar in my life and cuts healed in seconds so I never had the time to itch the injury.

I dismissed the ache and looked at him from under my eyelashes. “You said we are vampires with additional qualities. Is one of your qualities ‘unbelievably handsome’?”

“I wish.” William took a deep breath. “I had a spell cast on me, as well; one to make me fearless.” He looked at me as if waiting for a reply, but his eyes glazed over, as if he was lost in thought. His jaw tightened.

“Here I thought you were my knight in shining armour, but you were getting magical help after all,” I teased.

William half smiled. “The side effect of my spell was fiercer than yours. I’m able to sense people’s—or demons’, for that matter—worst fears and greatest desires.” His eyes focused on me. Thinking about my own fears made me swallow. “But that isn’t the worst part. I can manifest these fears into reality and make my victims live their nightmare. It can stop them in their tracks, break their concentration . . . and maybe make them lose their mind.” William’s eyes again grew distant again. I touched his face. He shivered and caught my hand, holding it in his.

“So if someone fears drowning in a swimming pool, you could make the pool appear?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“What if it’s an ocean? How do you do that?”

“No, I wouldn’t have to make the ocean appear.” He forced a laugh. “We would use a time vortex to travel to the ocean, and it would happen there.”

I frowned. “Time vortex?”

“We would appear there as soon as I let the thought through,” he explained.

“I don’t believe it,” I said, my voice flat.

“Do you want to find out?” His grin deepened the dimples in his cheeks.

My eyes widened. “You wouldn’t dare!”

He laughed, but behind William’s eyes, I noticed a spark.

“Why can’t we use a time vortex now?”

“I can’t make it happen unless the right amount of true fear or desire is present; it’s hard to change your innermost feelings.”

“Wow.” I shook my shoulders, letting the shudder continue through my body. Then I remembered the orchid on his hand and showed my wrist with the identical flower. “How did you get your tattoo?”

“Helen sent me a picture of yours. I loved the idea of having the orchid so close to me, feeling its power and protection.” William smiled.

“Copycat!” I joked

“I’ll remove it if you’d like me to.”

“No! I really like it.” I sighed. “We must be connected somehow.”

“Now you believe me?”

“I don’t think I ever doubted you—after all, I’ve known you all my life.” I smirked.

He showed a kind smile.

I yawned.

“You’re tired.” He lifted the covers beside me and plumped the pillow.

“I’m not tired.” I yawned again.

“It’s the serum. Your body’s not used to so many injections. Lie down. If you don’t want to sleep, you don’t have to. Just relax.”

I couldn’t argue with William. Though I didn’t need to sleep, he insisted I rest on the only bed in the room. He settled in the chair. As I thought about all I’d learned, I finally, involuntarily, doze off.

For the first time since her death, I dreamt a memory of Helen:

We were planting tomatoes in the backyard. She wore her favourite flower-printed dress, its skirt gracefully dancing in the wind.

“Are there others like me?” I asked.

Helen was quiet for a moment. “There are many beings in the world, all of whom must be respected. We all have a reason to be here, although that purpose does not always reveal itself when we want to know.”

That hadn’t answered my question. “What do you think my purpose is?” I pressed.

“You’re the only one who can figure that out, dear. If you have trouble doing that, I’m sure you’ll meet someone who’ll be able to help you. Then you’ll know it in your heart, the way I do, how special you are.”

Helen had known this would happen. She knew I would meet William.

After two hours of sound sleep I awoke feeling a newfound peace. A set path I recognized had been unveiled in front of me and I knew what I had to do. It didn’t matter who I was. What mattered was that I was created to bring peace. If I could change one life for the better, I’d have justified my existence. Maybe I could save my father, who had given up his freedom for me. Maybe I could honor my mother, who had given up her life for me. If that meant going to the underworld with William, then that’s what I would do. Finally, I accepted who I was—both of my halves. With a sucked in breath, my heart skipped a beat.

William sat up with a puzzled face. His heart had skipped the same beat as mine. He inhaled as well. “What happened?”

“I don’t know. I felt it too.” I placed my hand in the middle of my chest. The throbbing pressure was gone.

“Yes, but yours skipped first, mine second. What changed?” he asked.

“I accepted who I am. My other half.”

“That would explain why the beating went back to the way it was before I met you.” He came to my side, leaning over so his ear was against my chest, separated only by my T-shirt. I used all the willpower I had to control my desire. The butterfly-like flutter in my stomach returned and I bit my lip. But William was a gentleman and went back to sit in the armchair. “I was certain of my path, and then when I saw you . . . when I saw how alike we were—the loneliness and isolation—I hesitated. I wasn’t sure whether I could do this. But now my heartbeat is adjusting to yours. It always wanted to beat to the same rhythm but couldn’t. Not until now.” He looked up at me. “We’re on the same path now.”

“How exactly could you have been lonely at school? I mean, look at you.”

“Now, is this a question for me or you?” He raised his eyebrows.

I bit my lower lip. “I just thought—”

“I was home-schooled,” he interrupted.

“Why?”

“I’d lived with my parents in seclusion. I never had to keep the secret of being a vampire, and never wanted to. I don’t think I would know how.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to assume you weren’t lonely.” I yawned.

“It’s all right. You couldn’t have known. Go back to sleep, Sarah.” He came over and gently pushed at my shoulders until I sank into the mattress.

“Good night.”

“Good night.” He shuffled back to the chair.

I turned to lie on my right side, then on my left. Then I flipped on my back and stared at the ceiling. After a while, I looked back toward the window and the chair where William was resting.

The ticking of the alarm clock pounded in my ears. It was close to two in the morning and William was still sitting upright, snoring with his eyes open. I went to his side and brushed the back of my hand against his cheek. He didn’t flinch. With my right arm behind his shoulders and my left under his knees, I braced to lift him. This would be the first time I’d used my strength since my run in with the bear.

When I held William a few inches above the chair, he murmured, “I’ll find you, Sarah. I’ll never let you go.”

I carried William to the bed, where he stretched his long limbs, and lay down beside him, close enough to feel the heat radiating from his body. His warmth wrapped around me, just as it had in the park. It didn’t seem to matter how far away he was; I was beginning to understand his presence and how to sense him. With my eyes closed, I listened to William’s deep, rhythmic inhalations and loud exhalations.

I stared at the yellowing ceiling, noting my first night away from home. Would I ever return to Pinedale? My instinct told me I would, but it wouldn’t be home anymore.

Chapter 9

After forty minutes of tossing, I turned to my right side, rubbing my stomach to settle its loud grumbling. It didn’t help, but the whiteness of my hands distracted me; they were so pale they almost glowed in the dark. The last drop of saliva passed through my throat, scratching it, and I reached for a water bottle on the bed table. My stomach growled again.

Not wanting to wake William to ask for more blood, I scribbled a note, left it on my pillow, and crept toward the door, remembering a vending machine around the corner at the end of the long building and the Cheetos and bubble gum within it. When I turned the doorknob, it squeaked, but William’s breathing remained deep and even. My foot nudged the door open, and the hinges squeaked even louder. William still slept. Sliding through the crevice, I slipped out and pulled the door shut behind me.

I fiddled with the coins in my pocket, but my stomach pulled me toward the end of the building. The alley was dark, only lit by a streetlight at the motel’s entrance. As my eyes adjusted, my ears tuned in on rustling behind the garbage bin. My throat itched. Feeling a hook in my stomach, I was drawn toward the smelly bin to the discarded leftovers it held—and the rapid heartbeats of five rats. My mouth watered. Hunched lower, I focused on the prey, then leaped over the bin.

They had no chance. Four rodents wriggled in my grip while I fed on the first one. I concentrated on the warm, fresh blood flowing into me, into my veins, and contemplated what else I might find once the rats were done—the burning in my throat had eased, but my stomach wasn’t satisfied.

My ears perked up. A raccoon across the road groomed itself in the bushes. Anticipating its blood, I turned toward the street—and froze.

About ten feet away stood a tall man, observing me. His glowing purple eyes pierced mine. He wasn’t just a man. If he had been, I would have run away already.

I squeezed my eyes shut, afraid he’d extract secrets from my brain.
Is he still there?
I peeked through thin slits in my eyes. He hadn’t moved, but the glow in his eyes softened. The lump in my throat passed with more ease, and I opened my eyes, taken aback by the familiar shade of his purple pupils. Frozen, I was unsure whether to run or let the seeker do as he pleased, but again, he didn’t move.

Is he a seeker?
He looked like one, but he wasn’t dressed like one. The plain jeans and a hooded vest were a far cry from a long cloak. Despite the casual clothes, his demonic mien was undeniable. Seekers’ eyes were orange, his purple. Taller than the others I’d seen, his feet were planted in a wide stance. Long fingers clutched an object he held in his left hand, the blue streaks emanating from it were diluted by the light from the streetlight around the corner.

The man looked at me as if this wasn’t the first time he’d seen me and I recognized something familiar about him. I noted the twitch of my right arm as I prepared to defend myself. My hips shifted, positioning my body to lunge while he scanned me from the bottom up as if to make sure he’d found the right person. His head cocked to the right, and I thought I saw a smile. I frowned. According to William, seekers could not show genuine emotions. So maybe he wasn’t a seeker after all. I wasn’t ready to fight one; at least, I didn’t think so.

I moved my right foot back; he moved his foot forward. Could I outrun him? I hesitated, noting the outline of powerful thigh muscles under his jeans. Maybe I could outsmart him.

“Can I help you?” I tried to sound calm and untroubled, but my voice shook.

“I think I’m the one whose help you need,” he said.

His comforting tone did not match his demeanour. I recognized it but couldn’t remember from where. Was this a trick? “I don’t understand.”

A door slammed loudly in the motel; it didn’t startle either of us.

“Are you Sarah?”

I knew I shouldn’t reveal my identity to anyone and wished I’d stayed in the room with William. The gurgling of my stomach disagreed. I glanced toward the five carcasses piled in a small pyramid, wishing I’d had time for the racoon across the street.

A cloud floated away and allowed a few stars and the thin crescent moon overhead to light the alley. The neon sign flashed around the corner, sporadically splashing its brightness into the illumination from the streetlight and the blue glow in his palm. Only the rustle of leaves broke the quiet of the forest.

He cocked his head to the other side.

“Who are you?” I asked, trying to add some bravado to my tone. His stance seemed familiar, as did the purple eyes that held mine.

“I’ve been looking out for you for a while. It’s never been the right time to formally meet.”

I took another step back. My heartbeat quickened.

“Don’t fear. My name is Eric.”

The name sounded familiar. Could he be here to help us?

“I’m a demon, and I’m bound to you forever. They call me the evil-bender—”

In front of the garbage bin, a motel door slammed into the wall as it flew open. William dashed into the alley. His gaze darted to me, his eyes pleading for me to come to his side. I didn’t move, remembering Eric’s almost identical step earlier. Then William refocused on the demon. His eyes sunk in and contours of his cheekbones intensified. William’s forehead wrinkled as the vampire instinct took over. Only then did I see a dozen fleshy spikes just below Eric’s chin. I hadn’t noticed those before; my gaze had been hypnotically fixated on the purple eyes.

William tore an iron bar from the railing along the side entrance. He came at the demon with speed I didn’t think possible and swung the bar behind him, prepared to strike.

The evil-bender stretched out his hand. A bright light shot from his palm. It hit William in the center of his chest and lifted his feet off the ground. He flew backward and indented the asphalt when he landed, bones cracking and air gusting from his lungs on impact.

“No!” I ran to kneel beside his limp body. William lay on his side, unconscious.

The evil-bender smiled wickedly. Furious rage boiled in my veins. My muscles tightened, shoulders broadened. First I’d take care of this demon, then I’d tend to William. I let out a roar, turning back toward the attacker.