Daniel Taylor and the Dark Legacy (6 page)

Colleen looked a little miffed. “Well, crap, I would have liked to at that party — I could have given Cupid a helping hand. You’d definitely make a cute couple.”

“We’ll never be a couple, because we’re just FRIENDS, you incorrigible matchmaker!” Vanessa retorted, although just the thought of Danny and her together sent a tingle down her spine.
Would he be a good kisser?
she asked herself. Surely he would be, with those shapely, soft lips.

“Did you know that Rebecca lives next to that creepy house — old Mrs. Adams’ house?” Colleen changed the subject.

“Coll, you know me better than that.” Vanessa placed her chewing gum back in its wrapper, because the flavor was all gone. “I don’t believe in ghost stories.” Of course, she had heard that weird things supposedly happened in Edna Adams’ house, but in a tiny town like Little Peak, rumors flew, and the truth could be quickly distorted. Edna was probably just a harmless old lady, nothing more. All the talk of witchcraft and black magic, the story that she had killed her husband — Vanessa took that for nonsense. She’d rather believe in her daydreams than in supernatural beings.

After Daniel reached the shore, he shook out his coal-black hair, the drops of water glittering like pearls in the sun. For just a moment, he looked directly at them. Vanessa held her breath. Had he seen her?

But Danny simply turned away again and walked off into the forest.

“Nessa, what’s the matter?” Colleen shook her shoulder. “Did someone turn you into a pillar of salt?”

“There was a bee.” This was only a white lie, Vanessa told herself, since she really did have a fear of insects. But the truth was that she had sensed something when Danny had looked at her. It was as though he had cried out for help, even though he hadn’t moved his lips.

She shook her head almost imperceptibly, scolding herself for her dumb ideas. Love was making her stupid.

Her heart was still beating faster than normal when Coll suddenly called out, “There’s Tommy! Hey, Tommy!” Coll waved to her brother. A young man who closely resembled Colleen waved back. Tommy was four years older than his sister and had the same white-blond hair, like everyone in the Clayton family.

Colleen jumped up. “I have to take off; we’re leaving early tomorrow morning. Should we give you a ride home? We can put our bicycles in the back of the truck.”

Tommy had been given an old pickup truck on his eighteenth birthday, and Colleen took advantage of this whenever she could. At first, Tommy had basically been Colleen’s chauffeur, and now that she had her learner’s permit, he was the designated responsible adult. Colleen was very lucky to have a brother who bore all her demands without complaint. This was another thing that Nessa, an only child, envied about her friend. She would have liked to get her driver’s license along with Colleen, but Vanessa’s parents rarely let her drive …

Smiling, Vanessa said, “Nah, I’ll stay a little longer. Besides, I can make it up Peak Hill no problem.”

Making sure that her brother didn’t overhear her, Colleen whispered, “Because of Daniel, right?”

Vanessa grinned; blood rushed to her cheeks. “Busted.”

Colleen ran over to her brother, pushing her bicycle, then turned and waved back to Vanessa. “Have fun at the party!”

“You have fun at Disney World! Have a good flight!” Vanessa called back to them. She waited until the siblings were out of sight; she then quickly packed up her T-shirt, skirt, and towel in her backpack, set herself on her mountain bike, and followed the gravel path around the lake until she reached the spot where Danny had disappeared into the forest.

I’ll just say a brief hello, then I’ll leave him alone
, she decided, leaning her bicycle against a tree and dropping her backpack alongside it. There was nothing valuable inside, so there was little chance it would be taken. In any case, if someone took her things, she could always ask Danny to loan her his T-shirt for the way home. Heart pounding, she imagined some lurid scenarios while she followed the footpath into the woods. She was suddenly torn, wanting to go back; she didn’t want him to think she was stalking him.

Vanessa glanced down at her padded bikini top and thought that she might just look acceptable — and then she spotted Daniel. He had spread out his towel in a shady glade and was stretched out across it, tossing and turning. His body convulsed, his back seemed strained to the breaking point, and his hands were pressed firmly against his head.

Vanessa stood there, frozen, her heart beating twice as fast as normal. Dear God, what was wrong with him? A panic overtook her, and she had no idea what she should do. Damn it, why didn’t she have her cellphone with her? Did he need a doctor?

All these questions and more were flying through her head when Daniel suddenly cried out, “Go away! Leave me alone!”

Did he mean her? But he couldn’t have seen her! Vanessa was bewildered. Her pulse was thundering so loudly in her ears that it seemed fully possible that it could be audible to others. “Daniel?” she ventured hesitantly.

He immediately stopped writhing and lay there motionless. “Vanessa?”

“Yes, it’s me!” Her heart drummed on wildly.

Daniel was shaking, although he was clearly trying to suppress it.

“Go away!” he hissed without looking at her. It was like a blow to the stomach, but he wasn’t going to get rid of her so easily. Something was wrong with him!

He groaned and clutched at his head again.

“Danny!” Without any further hesitation, she ran over to him. “What’s the matter?”

“Just a headache,” he said, panting. “Just leave me alone. Please!” He made a dismissive gesture in her direction but still avoided looking at her.

His back to her, he sat up and groped for the sunglasses that lay on the mossy forest floor near his towel. Only when he had put them on did he turn toward her.

Vanessa was shocked. “Danny, you’re white as a sheet!” She knelt next to him and put her hand against his forehead. It felt cool to the touch.

He knocked her arm away. “Stop trying to mother me. Just go!”

At first, Vanessa was tempted to jump up and run away. She had to clench her teeth to stop from bursting into tears. She had never known him to be so hurtful! But when she saw how he clutched at his temples again, she stayed seated next to him.

“Get out of my head!” Groaning, he fell back onto his side.

“Danny!” Vanessa leaned over him and touched him on the shoulder. “Should I call an ambulance?” Tears were streaming down his cheeks. He must be in unimaginable pain.

“Leave me alone!” The palms of his hands pressing against his forehead, Daniel writhed in agony.

“Daniel Taylor, you can’t actually believe that I’d just leave you here when you’re so sick!” Nessa moved closer to him and said in a commanding tone, “Come on, put your head in my lap.”

“WHAT?” His mouth fell open. He looked shocked, but Vanessa couldn’t really see the expression in his eyes through the mirrored lenses of his sunglasses. He had probably just put them on so that she wouldn’t notice that his eyes were red from crying.

“Maybe you’re having a migraine, or a maybe tension headache — those can be incredibly painful, too.” That would at least explain why he was always holed up in his dark room. Migraines could make your eyes sensitive to light. But then he’d probably prefer to lie motionless, since the slightest movement could unleash hellish pain. Vanessa knew this from her mother, who had had some terrible migraine headaches in the past.

When Danny propped himself up on one elbow, Nessa took the opportunity to pull him toward her. Now he was lying on his side next to her, their bodies forming a T. She pressed his head against her thigh, and to her amazement he let his cheek rest there, his face turned toward her. His body was still fully tensed, his knees bent. As he writhed in pain, his hands brushed against her legs. Danny pressed his lips together, and she could feel his intermittent breathing against her skin.

She carefully took his sunglasses off, as they were pressing into her thigh, and laid them aside. Daniel kept his eyes tightly shut and trembled slightly.

Gathering up all her courage, she began to gently stroke his hair. It felt just as soft as she had always imagined. It was still wet from swimming, and it stuck to his forehead. Her heart was pounding so hard that she could hear the thumping in her ears.

Danny’s eyelashes fascinated Vanessa — the two dark semicircles were unusually long and thick. She gently stroked his evenly arched eyebrows, the straight nose, his jawline, and even dared to run a finger across his lips, which were as soft as velvet.

Danny gasped.

She quickly moved her hand across to his neck, which she massaged in a circular motion. “Do you feel any better?”

“Hmmm.” It seemed like Daniel was relaxing a bit.

Vanessa’s heart rattled like a jackhammer against her ribs.
I’m going crazy
, she thought.
Danny’s lying here with his head in my lap, letting me comfort him. This has to be a dream!

“Mmmm, that feels good.” Daniel was almost purring like a cat, looking more like one than ever.

How I love you, you handsome thing
. She couldn’t stop the thought from running through her mind. “Why don’t you tell me what happened.”

“I don’t know. Maybe I was just out in the sun for too long,” he murmured, but Vanessa sensed that he wasn’t telling the truth.

Daniel turned to lie on his back, and Vanessa shifted her hand to his chest. His heartbeat was steady and strong, and she marveled at his slender but athletic build.

The massage was forgotten immediately. Vanessa caressed his muscular arms, stretching further down to the light hairs on his forearms, then back to his nipples, which hardened under her touch. She was leaning so far over Daniel that her hair almost touched his face. Why did he fascinate her so? He was driving her crazy!

His body trembled even more as she drew a palm across the gracefully swelling muscles of his chest. With her other hand, she stroked Daniel’s hair until he suddenly opened his eyes and stared at her. His pupils were completely dilated, and his grey-green eyes looked almost black.

Heavens, what was wrong with him?
Nessa was shocked.
Has he been taking drugs?

His voice was raw with emotion as he said, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have snarled at you like that earlier.”

She quietly asked, “How are you feeling?” Her hand was still lying on his chest, his heart beating just as quickly as her own. But now that he seemed to be feeling better, she no longer dared to caress him.

Daniel’s gaze wandered across the glade, and he cleared his throat before looking at Nessa again. His eyes had returned to normal. “Good thing she’s gone.”

“Who?” Danny must be confused. What bizarre kind of attack had he just had?

He quickly replied, “Oh, I mean, the headache.”

“Do you get them often?”

“Just a few times recently.” He seemed to be telling the truth now, as he didn’t avert his eyes.

“You should really get checked out by a doctor.”

Without responding to this, he stood up and ran a hand through his hair. “Thanks,” he said, then bent down to pick up his sunglasses.

“No problem.” Nessa stood up as well. She sensed Daniel’s awkwardness, likely because she felt just the same way. They had never been so close to each other as they had been just now. The friendly camaraderie between them had disappeared, replaced with something totally different. More adult, more intimate.
There were sparks flying between us, I felt them!

Vanessa would have gladly let this moment last forever. She had been imagining this scene for months now. She thought back to Colleen’s words. Maybe tomorrow at the party they would actually end up kissing … It was no longer outside of the realm of possibility. But she was still worried about Danny. Hopefully there was nothing seriously wrong with him. She decided to keep an even closer watch over him.

Perhaps Coll was right — maybe there is something odd about him
, Vanessa thought as she rode back home with Daniel.

When Vanessa opened her front door, she gasped. “Wow, you look fantastic!” she cried. “Just like a real vampire!”

Daniel smiled, flashing his artificial teeth. “I didn’t know that you had met any real vampires,” he mumbled, then took out his fangs and tucked them away in his cape.

Nessa simply couldn’t take her eyes off him. He had slicked his hair back with gel and powered his entire face except around his eyes, which were outlined in black. The ruffled white shirt and the dark trousers suited him to a tee, emphasizing his long legs. The image was completed with a cape almost long enough to touch the floor.

Daniel bowed gallantly and quietly said, “In that dress, you look good enough to bite, m’lady.” He tried to kiss her hand, but Vanessa pushed him away playfully. Her cheeks were burning. “You joker.” She was flattered that Danny liked her burgundy dress. It was rather old-fashioned and was made out of a very fine velvety fabric, with a sophisticated lacing at the bodice that made Nessa’s slender waist seem even smaller and lifted her breasts. She had taken special care with her upswept hairdo; it had taken her more than an hour to get it just right.