Dark Realms (16 page)

“Okay, thanks.”

“Just remember two of the most important
rules: the customer is always right, even when they’re wrong, and
to always smile, even when you want to slit their throats.
Especially the super picky customers.”

I smiled. “Okay.”

She stared at me for a minute.

“What?” I asked.

“You know, you look very similar to Amy.
Different color hair, but your features are similar.”

My cell phone began to vibrate.

“It’s my ride,” I told her and answered the
phone.

“Hi,” said Nathan. “My car won’t start.”

“What do you mean?”

He sighed. “The battery must be dead or
something. I’m trying to get ahold of Duncan, to see if he can give
you a ride home.”

“What about mom?”

“I can’t find her keys anywhere. Caleb’s
already picked her up, and she forgot her cell phone here on the
counter.”

“Great. Okay, let me know if you talk to
Duncan. I’ll just hang out here for a while.”

I hung up the phone and Susan tapped me on
the shoulder. “Sorry, I wasn’t trying to listen in but… do you need
a ride?”

“I might.”

“My brother should be here in a half hour.
I’m sure he’ll give you one.”

I smiled. “Thanks. I can’t wait until I get
my own car. Relying on someone else for a ride all the time is so
frustrating.”

“I know. I’m going outside to have a smoke,
you want to join me?”

“I don’t smoke but I’ll come out with
you”

We both grabbed a couple of sodas and I
followed her out the back door of the diner where there was a
picnic table. We sat down in the darkness and she cleared her
throat. “At least it’s a nice night. The moon is full and there
aren’t any clouds.”

It was true; the stars were bright and it
was a little cool outside, so we weren’t getting bitten up by
mosquitos. It seemed really peaceful, although I kept thinking
about Amy and her warnings about how dangerous it was at night in
Shore Lake.

Susan lit up a cigarette and took a long
drag. “Oh, man, I needed that.”

“So… you were friends with Amy?” I
asked.

“Yeah,” she said, looking away. “I still
can’t believe she’s gone.”

“She seemed really nice when I met her.”

Susan looked at me and
nodded. “She
was
a sweetheart. Her boyfriend, though, he was scary. I’m glad
she dumped him.”

“She had a boyfriend?”

She blew out another stream of smoke. “Yeah,
Ethan. He hangs out here sometimes at night with his crew. They’re
all kind of freaky if you ask me.”

“Why, what do you mean?”

Susan shrugged. “I don’t know; there’s just
something strange about them. They come in here, hardly saying a
word to each other. They just sit and stare at us, sipping their
coffee. Ethan is the scariest. He’s cute, but there’s something
about him that makes me nervous. He has these penetrating blue eyes
that give me the creeps. Anyway, I really hate serving them, but
they’re paying customers, so we can’t exactly kick them out.”

I cleared my throat. “Weird. So, why did she
break up with this Ethan guy?”

She laughed. “Amy always had quite the
imagination. Everyone thought she was a little… nuts, and maybe,
she really was. I mean, she did kill herself. Anyway, she once told
me she thought he was a vampire.”

“What?” I choked on my diet soda.

“I know, right?” she smirked. “A freakin’
vampire! Although, if I did believe in vampires, he’d be the first
on my list of suspects.”

My throat was really dry as I took another
sip of soda. First Abigail, and now Amy; both believed there were
vampires roaming the town.

“We’d better go back into the diner,” she
said, putting out her cigarette. “My brother will be here soon.
I’ll see if he can give you a ride.”

My cell phone went off again as we entered
the diner.

“It’s Nathan,” said my brother. “Duncan’s
coming to pick you up.”

“Great, thanks,” I said.

“Make sure he brings you straight home.
Don’t go jumping his bones or anything.”

“Ha-ha. You are such a comedian.”

He laughed and hung up.

“I’m getting a ride from a friend,” I told
Susan. “Thanks for the offer, though.”

“No problem. Oh, my brother’s here,” she
said, looking at her phone. “He just texted me. I’ll see you
tomorrow, at four o’clock again?”

“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”

After she left, I sat down at one of the
booths, to finish my soda and wait for Duncan. As I watched the
front door, a group of kids around my age walked through. One of
the other waitresses seated them.

“Same as usual?” asked the older waitress,
who I’d met earlier. Her name was Darlene and she was close to
retiring.

“Just coffee,” said a broad-shouldered,
dark-haired guy, ordering for everyone. He handed her back the menu
and our eyes met.

Embarrassed,
I looked away quickly and stared outside at the
parking lot, watching for Duncan.

Before I could blink, someone slid into my
booth and I was suddenly facing the stranger whose eyes I’d just
met.

“Um, hi,” I said, sitting up straighter.

“Um, hi, yourself,” he said with a slow,
lazy grin.

Oh wow…

“I’m Nikki,” I replied, feeling myself blush
at the intense way he was staring at me. I knew it had to be Amy’s
ex-boyfriend, and he was undoubtedly gorgeous. He had thick, dark
eyebrows with icy blue eyes; his face was perfectly sculpted with
high cheekbones and a strong chin. His lips… they were sensual and
even fuller than mine.

“You’re new in town?”

“Yes,” I replied, now studying his face more
closely. He was definitely a little pale, which reminded me of the
fact that Amy had accused him of being vampire. As I stared at him,
I reasoned that most girls my age would have swooned at such a
good-looking guy, but after everything that had happened the last
few nights, I felt a cold shiver run down my spine.

“Welcome to Shore Lake,” he replied, looking
into my eyes again.

“Thanks.”

It was weird, but we sat there and stared at
each other for a while without talking. Soon, I started feeling a
heat somewhere inside of my belly that turned into an overwhelming
ache of desire, further south.

“I, ah…” My heart was pounding in my chest
and I felt a strong urge to touch him. It was almost
overwhelming.

“Nikki,” interrupted Duncan, standing next
to our table. “Are you ready to go?”

I looked at Duncan and the spell, or
whatever it was, was broken. “Yeah,” I said. “I’m ready.”

“Goodbye, Nikki,” said Ethan, with a small
grin. “I’m sure we’ll meet again.”

“Goodbye,” I murmured, looking away. I was
confused at the intense rush of desire I’d had for Ethan. He was a
total stranger. How did that even happen?

“Who was that?” asked Duncan as he followed
me out to his truck.

I don’t know how I knew, but there was no
doubt in my mind that Ethan was still staring at me through the
window. I shivered and wrapped my arms around myself. “You might
think I’m crazy, but I’m pretty sure he was a vampire.”

Chapter Fourteen

“Excuse me?” he asked, unlocking the
truck.

We both slid inside and I looked at him.
“Amy was convinced he was a vampire, and there’s something about
him that’s totally… unnerving.”

He shook his head and smiled as he started
up the truck. “Okay, your imagination is really getting the best of
you. It’s bad enough that there might be a ghost haunting your
cabin, but a vampire in the local diner?”

I nodded. “I feel the same way, but there
was something so strange about him. He made me feel…”

He raised his eyebrows. “He made you feel
what?”

I swallowed hard. “Um, weird.”

I wasn’t about to tell Duncan that at one
moment, I wanted to jump Ethan’s bones and probably would have, if
we’d been alone. It didn’t even make sense to me.

Duncan looked back towards the diner. “If he
gives you any problems, let me know.”

I smiled. “Sure.”

We pulled out of the parking lot in silence
as I thought about the strange encounter. Duncan glanced at me a
couple of times, and I could tell there was something on his mind,
as well.

“What’s wrong?” I asked him.

He pulled over to the side of the road.

“What is it, Duncan?”

He tapped the steering wheel a couple of
times and then looked at me. There was a funny smile on his face.
“When I approached you with Ethan, you almost looked like you were
ready to tear his clothes off or something. I don’t know; it just
made me feel a little… jealous.”

I’m not even sure how it happened, but the
next thing I knew, I was straddling him in the front seat and our
mouths were crushed against each other.

“Nikki,” he groaned against my lips.

My heart was pounding madly in my chest and
I rocked against him, causing him to suck in his breath. He pulled
away and looked into my eyes.

“I don’t think…” he whispered.

“Don’t think,” I said breathlessly, pulling
him back towards my lips. There was an intense hunger inside of me,
one that I’d never felt before. I wanted to tear off both of our
clothing, just so I could feel our skin moving against each
other.

His mouth was hot, and soon he was kissing
my neck while his hands moved under my shirt. As he was about to
slide his fingers under my bra, my cell phone rang, startling us
both. He quickly removed his hands and I got off of his lap.

My face was burning with embarrassment as I
fumbled for my phone. “Yeah?” I said into it, unable to look at
Duncan.

“Hello to you, too,” mumbled Nathan.

I cleared my throat. “Sorry.”

“You guys almost home, yet?”

I nervously bit off a hangnail.
“Almost.”

“Okay, I ordered a pizza and it’s already
here, so hurry the hell up.”

I hung up and stole a glance at Duncan.

“I’m sorry,” he said, although his eyes were
still smoldering. “I don’t know what came over me.”

I smiled sheepishly. “I, um… it was me. I
practically raped you. I’ve never done that before, to anyone. I’m
sorry.”

“At least I know you like me.”

I burst out laughing. “Do you think?”

“I’m sure you could probably tell that I
liked you, too,” he said, grinning.

My cheeks grew hot and I changed the
subject. “So, I hope you’re hungry. Nathan has a pizza waiting for
us.”

“Oh, I’m starving, alright,” he said under
his breath.

I looked at him and sighed. “Duncan, I…”

He stared at me for a minute. “It’s okay,”
he said. “I’m not in a rush for anything.”

I smiled. “Thank you. I really do like you,
you know. I’m just…”

He held up his hand. “Hey, it’s okay.”

It wasn’t okay. I really liked Duncan but
I’d never attacked anyone before in my life like that. It was
almost like the burning desire I’d felt towards Ethan had carried
over towards Duncan. I was beginning to wonder if Ethan really was
a vampire and had given off some kind of weird pheromone.

We rode in silence the rest of the way to
the cabin. Nathan was sitting on the porch, holding a BB gun, when
we arrived.

“We come in peace,” teased Duncan, raising
his hands in the air.

Nathan grinned. “Sorry. I was beginning to
freak myself out, so I grabbed my old BB gun. I thought I heard
some noises in the woods. But then, I actually found a couple of
raccoons prowling around.”

“Is the video camera still set up?” asked
Duncan.

“Yeah. I think we should hang out on Nikki’s
balcony and watch from above. See if we can see anyone sneaking
around,” said Nathan. “Just in case it isn’t a ghost, but some
jackass trying to screw with us.”

“Good idea,” replied Duncan.

We went inside, grabbed the box of pizza and
some plates, and then headed up to my bedroom. On the balcony,
Nathan had set up three chairs and a bistro table. We sat down and
started eating.

“How was work?” asked Nathan.

“Busy. I met this girl named Susan who was
friends with Amy.”

“Is she cute?” asked Nathan.

“God, is that all you think about?” I
asked.

“Is there anything else, Dunc?”

Duncan smiled but didn’t say anything.

“Anyway, Susan was telling me that Amy
believed her ex-boyfriend, Ethan, was a vampire.”

Nathan snorted. “Yeah, I’d say Amy was a
little messed up.”

“I don’t know,” I said, staring at my
pizza.

His eyes narrowed. “What
do you mean
, you don’t
know
?”

I swallowed. “I met Ethan tonight and there
was something really strange about him.”

“He was dating Amy at one point, that tells
you enough right there,” said Nathan.

“No, he came over and sat by me at the
restaurant. When he looked into my eyes, I almost felt like… I was
under some kind of spell.”

“How do you mean?” asked Nathan.

“I can’t explain it,” I said, looking
sideways at Duncan. There was no way I was going to explain my
desire to jump Ethan’s bones, especially after what had happened
between us, in the truck.

Nathan sat back and groaned. “There is no
such thing as vampires, period. Quit letting Abigail’s and Amy’s
crazy notions play with your mind. I mean, come on, Nikki, you know
better than that!”

I shrank down in my seat. “I know. It’s
just…I can’t explain it.”

Nathan looked at Duncan. “What do you think
about all of this?”

Duncan shrugged. “I don’t know. I think
something strange is going on and I’m not ruling anything out.”

Nathan snorted. “Even vampires?”

“Maybe this Ethan guy believes he’s a
vampire and knows how to manipulate other people into believing it,
too.”

“That sounds more reasonable to me. Maybe he
knows how to actually hypnotize people. That would explain how
Nikki believed she was under some kind of spell.”