Dangerous Girls (2 page)

B
y eleven o'clock, the campfire had burned down to a pile of crackling red and purple embers. The beer had run out—a mountain of empty cans poked up over the rim of a metal trash can—and bottles of red wine were being passed around a circle of six or seven counselors.

Destiny joined a group of junior counselors who had their own circle around their own small fire and were singing the familiar camp songs they had been forced to sing all summer, but adding crude and extremely gross new lyrics. They laughed and hugged each other and sang under the full moon, their faces reflecting the dying firelight.

Several couples had wandered away from the big campfire to make their way through the trees to the lake. Destiny saw Livvy disappear into the woods again with Cory Field.

“Good night. I'm outta here. Gonna get my
beauty sleep.” Nakeisha crushed a Coke can in her hand and tossed it onto the pile of cans in the trash. “Catch you in the morning, Dee. Don't leave without saying good-bye, okay?”

Destiny laughed. “We've already said good-bye twelve times!” She watched her friend climb the hill to the cabins.

I'm going to catch some sleep too, Destiny decided. I know Dad and Mikey will be here at six
A.M
. on the dot.

She waved good night to her friends, climbed to her feet, and began to walk to her cabin. She was halfway up the hill when a figure stepped out of the shadows and blocked her path.

“Renz. Hi,” Destiny said, nearly walking into him.

“I've been looking for you,” he said softly.

“Really? Me?” She could feel her cheeks growing hot.
Don't sound like such a jerk.

His smile was dazzling, even in the darkness. She could feel his eyes burn into hers. “It's still early. You're not checking out, are you?”

“Well…”

He took her hand. “Want to take a walk? Down by the lake? We haven't had a chance to talk for a long time.”

“Yes. Okay,” she heard herself say.

Renz squeezed her hand. “Good,” he whispered.

He slid his arm around Destiny's shoulders and guided her down the hill. He pointed at some counselors dancing around the dying fire. “Have you ever seen such bad dancing? It's a good thing it's dark and they can't really see each other.”

Destiny frowned. “They've had too many beers to care.”

He stared hard at her. “You don't like to drink?”

She shook her head. “One beer and I start giggling like a ten-year-old.”

Why am I telling him this?

She followed him down the grassy hill to the narrow dirt path that led through the trees. “Isn't it a beautiful night?” He pulled her close as they walked. “But also a sad night. No one wants to go home.”

“It was an awesome summer,” she replied. “Livvy and I…we had a very bad year. Camp was the perfect escape.”

Renz lowered his hand from her shoulders and slid it around her waist. “You want to escape from your home?”

He helped her over a fallen log. They followed the path past a row of low pine shrubs. “No. Of course not,” she said. “I'm looking forward to going back. You know. Senior year and everything.”

“It's so nice down here,” he said softly, bringing his face close to hers. “The pine needles smell so fresh, and I love the way the lake glows under the moonlight. Let's pretend we're not going home tomorrow, Destiny. Let's pretend we're going to stay here in the woods forever.”

She laughed.

Is he for real?

He led her to a broad tree stump near the water, and they sat down. The lake shimmered like silver under the light of the pale full moon. He wrapped his hands around hers and held them in her lap.

My hands are ice cold. Can he tell how nervous I am?

“The lake looks beautiful without a hundred screaming kids splashing around in it,” she said.

He flashed her his dazzling smile. “I've been watching you all summer,” he whispered.

She raised her eyes to his. “You have?”

“I hoped we would be able to spend time getting to know one another.”

Destiny rolled her eyes. “It's the last night of camp, Renz. What makes me think I was the last girl on your list?”

He didn't answer. Instead, he placed a hand gently under her chin, brought her face to his, and kissed her.

A short kiss, but sweet.

Destiny blinked. “You're very nice,” she said. “But I know you've brought every female counselor and J.C. down here this summer.”

“They weren't like you,” he whispered.

“Oh, right,” she said.

“But I'm telling the truth,” he insisted. “They weren't like you, Destiny.
Believe me. They weren't like you.
”

R
enz kissed her again, longer this time, holding his hands on the sides of her face. He saw her eyes close. He felt her body relax.

She's enjoying it. She's beginning to feel what I feel.

But when she finally pulled away, Destiny laughed. “You're much too old for me, Renz.” She squinted at him. “How old are you, anyway? Nineteen? Twenty?”

He grinned. “I turned two hundred last month. You're right. Much too old for you.”

“Well, I know one thing. You're not like the guys in my high school. Where did you grow up? In Italy?”

Renz nodded.
I don't want to talk. I didn't bring you down here to talk.

“I grew up in the north, in the hills where there is poverty—and strangeness.”

He squeezed her hands. The pale moonlight
sparkled in her blond hair.

“Strangeness? Like what?”

“The people in my village had many superstitions and many fears,” he told her, speaking softly, holding her close. “They were most terrified of the ancient vampires who lived in the caves that circled our village. The vampires were said to fly out at night in the shapes of blackbirds and bats. They would attack the villagers—men, women, and children—and empty their veins of blood.”

Destiny gave him a playful shove. “You're trying to scare me, right?”

Renz nodded. “Yes. Actually, I was born in Philadelphia.”

She laughed at his joke.

Pulling her closer, Renz's skin tingled with excitement. His mouth, his throat—they suddenly felt so dry…. He felt alert. Alive. Ready.

He held her by her arms and lowered his face to hers. He whispered, “Do you believe in vampires, Laura?”

With a short gasp, Destiny jerked her head back. “Excuse me? Vampires? And who's Laura?”

He stared at her, licking his lips. His whole
body tingled. He knew his hands would tremble if he let go of her. “Laura? Well…you remind me of someone, that's all.”

He pulled her close again. Her expression softened. “I've thought about you, too, this summer,” she said, avoiding his eyes.

She's shy like Laura, he thought. Not like her twin.

“And did you notice me watching you?” he asked eagerly.

She hesitated. “Well…”

He kissed her again. Lightly. He was so afraid to move too fast. He had waited so long to bring her here, to bring her to this moment.

But now the moment was here.

“I'm so happy I found you again, Laura,” he whispered, gazing into her eyes. “I've been searching for you for so many years. I knew I'd find you again.”

Those words made her struggle to pull free. But he grasped her arms tightly and held her in front of him. “Don't pull away, Laura. Tonight we are reunited.”

“Renz—what the hell are you talking about? Let go of me! Now you're really scaring me.”

“Don't be scared, darling. I know you have
waited for this moment as I have. It won't hurt for long. I promise it won't hurt for long. And then we will be together once more, together forever.”

She squirmed, struggled to swing her arms, to lash out at him with both fists. “Let go. Let go, you creep! Are you crazy?”

Staring into her eyes, he let her struggle. Staring deeply…penetrating her mind.

She uttered a long sigh and settled back, limp in his arms.

“That's better, Laura. You feel calm now. You don't want to resist me. Tonight under the full moon I shall drink your blood, and you shall drink mine. Two long drinks, that's all it will take, darling. And then you will be Laura again. Then you will be immortal like me. And we will live together forever.”

Destiny made a weak attempt to squirm free.

“Shh,” he whispered. “Don't try to move. Don't try to think, darling. Keep staring into my eyes. That's right. See? Your mind is emptying. You remember nothing. You are floating in a cloud.”

Bleating sounds escaped her lips, like a tiny, frightened animal caught in a trap. Her head fell
back, her throat pale in the moonlight.

Pale and soft. And delicious.

“I have fogged your mind, and you won't remember a word I've said. You won't even remember
me
until I want you to. Until I am ready to fly with you, to spend every night—for eternity—with you.”

Renz leaned forward, lowering his face to her throat. “You feel nice, don't you, Laura? You feel dizzy and happy, and the stars are spinning so gracefully, aren't they? It's all so beautiful and soft, isn't it, darling? So romantic. You always were so romantic.”

Her soft cries stopped. Destiny stared up at him open-mouthed, her eyes glassy, her chest moving rapidly up and down.

Renz gently pulled down the neck of her sweatshirt. His curved fangs made a wet
slick
sound as they slid down from his gums. He worked his tongue over the fangs, trying to wet them. But his mouth was dry as sand.

Finally, he could resist no longer. He lowered his head, pushed out his bristled tongue, and licked her neck. Licked it, his rough tongue scraping over the soft skin. Licked it hungrily.

Then he opened his mouth wide and with a
groan from deep in his gut, brought the fangs down. Pierced the pale skin. Sank the sharp fangs deep into her throat.

And began to drink.

D
estiny gazed up at the purple night sky. White dots of light shimmered and danced. The full moon, surrounded by glimmering stars, grew brighter, brighter…until she had to lower her eyes.

She felt Renz's hot forehead against her chin. His thick black hair tickled her flesh. She heard a lapping sound, like water running. No. Like a dog drinking noisily from a bowl.

Destiny felt a gentle pain at her throat, softer than the bite of a mosquito. With a sigh, Renz raised his head.

What was that dark liquid spilling down his chin?

Destiny struggled to think. But the moon shone so brightly—like a harsh spotlight—and the stars danced so giddily, she felt dizzy, sleepy. She couldn't focus.

She liked Renz's smile, his wide eyes, his
forehead gleaming with jewels of sweat. But why were his teeth curling over his chin? And what was that dark liquid that smelled so sharp and metallic?

Focus. Focus.

She blinked hard. But it all seemed fuzzy, far away.

She gazed into Renz's eyes, glowing black, staring down at her. And as she stared, she realized to her amazement that she shared his thoughts.

She saw a young, black-haired boy, six or seven, bare chested, in ragged, stained trousers that came down just below his knees. The boy, dirty faced, ribs poking out, carried a fishing pole much too long for him. He dragged it along a dusty road.

Destiny knew it was Renz—Renz as a young boy. Renz in the northern Italian village where he grew up in poverty.

It's as if he is showing me his life, she realized. He's sharing his story with me.

She saw the boy return home slump-shouldered, tears running down his cheeks. No fish on the line. Destiny recoiled as she saw the grizzled, weary-looking man—Renz's father—give
the boy a backhanded slap that sent him reeling into the wall.

Ouch.
She could feel the slap, feel the pain spread over her cheek.

She tried to blink the pain away. And when she opened her eyes again, the boy was on a ship, ocean waves tossing against its gray sides. Frothy water washed over the swaying deck where the boy—young Renz—stood so uncertainly at the rail, frightened, one little face in a crowd of older, frightened faces.

Destiny could see the pictures clearly in her mind.

She saw the boy covering his tattered clothes with a heavy, gray overcoat that was much too big for him. Saw him arriving in New York City, then trudging through the streets, dodging horse-drawn carts and carriages, everyone dressed in black, the street a sea of black hats, all the men wearing hats.

How long ago this must have been.

She closed her eyes, and now the boy had grown into a young man. She recognized Renz—his proud way of standing, his loping walk, the black hair bouncing on his head as he strode down the street.

She watched as Renz suddenly turned into a narrow alley crammed with trash and stacks of old newspapers. And then she saw another man, lanky and pale, with straight white hair pulled back in a loose-flowing ponytail. The man had silver-gray eyes, a stubble of white beard. He wore a navy-blue suit and had a navy cape draped over one shoulder.

Destiny watched the two shake hands. She understood. Renz recognized the man from his ship, the ship that carried him to America. Yes, the man was from Renz's village.

Destiny cried out as the happy reunion suddenly turned violent.

The white-haired man pushed Renz against the building wall. Destiny watched the yellowed fangs curl down. Watched the man sink his teeth into Renz's throat and drink, blood running down the front of his dark suit.

Then Renz bit hard into the old man's neck and began to lap up his blood. They were drinking each other's blood! She couldn't bear to watch.

She closed her eyes, but the images continued to flood her mind. She saw Renz prowling the streets once again, but this time at night, only at night. She watched him attack birds and
squirrels in the park, sink his teeth into their bellies, and drink.

And she felt his thirst, felt the overpowering need that forced him to seek out victims—human victims—and drink, drink until the thirst was momentarily quenched.

She saw him struggling to keep his secret. And then she felt his fear as he realized his secret had been uncovered. Men were collecting weapons, preparing to hunt him down. She felt his terror, and then she watched him flee.

She saw a blur of towns and villages cloaked by the dark of night. And she watched him settle far away from the city, far away from those who meant to destroy him. A small New England town where the winters were long and the days were short.

Another blink. She saw Renz in the moonlight with a beautiful young woman. The woman dressed in a simple blue gown, her blond hair flowing down the back of her dress.

She looks like me, Destiny realized. And at once, she knew the young woman's name: Laura. The high cheekbones, the green eyes, the fine blond hair…Laura resembles me so much.

Except for the sadness in her eyes.

Such sad eyes.

Destiny saw how much Renz loved Laura. He adored her. And then in another blink of her eyes, she saw Laura's open casket. The sad eyes shut forever. It happened so quickly.

She saw Renz's angry tears. And heard his angry, desperate vow to find Laura again. To be reunited with her no matter how many decades or centuries it took.

Destiny saw it all as the stars swirled above her and the sky continued to spin.

But I'm not Laura, she told herself, the world so distant now as if she saw it through a curtain of gauze.

I'm not Laura.

So what does he want with me?