Darkest Day (14 page)

She nipped at my ear as she said, “I love you, Winn.”

Power surged through me, bringing to life every nerve ending in my body. Rolling her beneath me, I un-tucked her hands from my chest and brought them above her head, clasping them together. I held tight as I breathed her in, touching, feeling, running my hands over the plane of her abdomen, up to her breasts and down to her own jeans.

She arched underneath me, the pale skin of her stomach exposed where her shirt rode up. I ran a hand over it.

Mac burst out a laugh.

“You’re ticklish?” I covered her mouth with my hand to prevent waking up Zoe, thankful Dad had left for a trip he’d accepted, despite not wanting to.

Mac clutched at her stomach, pulling the hem of her shirt back down. A second later, her hands gripped my collar and pulled me onto her again. We rolled onto our sides, legs braided together, arms around each other.

She groaned. I waited for the moment I’d explode from everything that ran through me. If we proceeded, our lives would be entwined—if only for a little while. If we didn’t, we could miss out on the opportunity to share of ourselves in the most intimate of ways.

Gazes locked, I said, “I have condoms.”

Her kiss grew even more desperate—if possible. I wanted her. I could tell she wanted me. Nothing prevented us. We wouldn’t be interrupted. There would be no consequences.

Mac’s hands reached for my waistband, her fingertips trailing along the top. Mine snaked under her shirt, inching their way up along her side, careful not to make her laugh.

Excited nerves danced within me and even as comfortable as I thought myself—as much as I wanted my first experience to happen—something stopped me.

“Mac,” I whispered at her ear.

She hummed a response.

“I know I said I have … stuff … but I think—”

“Attack of the conscience?”

That we could be so in tune with each other shot frustration through me. I loved her. She loved me. Yet, we only might or might not be able to be together in the future; no one would tell us for sure.

I wanted her beyond measure.

I wanted to savor her, too.

Even as my lips continued, my heart faltered, my mind slowing my progress and purging my deep desire to take at that moment. “Mac?”

“After,” she said.

Yes, after. After you choose and your life is set. If we can. We will.

Her understanding meant more to me than anything she’d ever done, including the last three weeks.

I pulled her up to my pillows, covered us with my comforter, and with our lips still together, let night take over.

• • •

I
woke without my girlfriend at my side. For a moment, as I scanned my room, I considered that our night may have been a dream, but her lingering scent told me otherwise. With an arm draped across my forehead, I listened for the sounds of my sister, but nothing reached my ears.

A glance at the clock showed it to be almost nine.

Rising, I went to my dresser, grabbed clean clothes and headed for the shower. At some point that day, I expected my dad home from his latest quest to secure the secrets of the underworld—something I wouldn’t even know he did soon.

• • •

Emptiness greeted me as I stepped from bathroom to stairs and walked down toward the kitchen. “Zoe?” Her room door had been opened, and as I’d passed, I’d checked for her, but found it empty. “Anyone home?”

No one answered.

Zoe often went out with friends, and if Dad hadn’t yet arrived, she’d leave a note.

I found nothing on the counter.

No word from Mac. No note from Zoe. No Dad.

I have the house to myself. Of course, that means Zoe will come prancing in here with fifteen friends in about ten minutes.

Back up in my room, I grabbed my laptop and opened to my notes about Mac. Since I’d learned humans could be involved, somehow, but Mac would still have to go through the formality of giving me up, I wanted to find a way to get around the memory removal. That, or pick my own non-human form so I could get around the Council’s rules, anyway.

My conversation with Mac, from when we initially began our Senior project together, played through my mind. I’d named a potential creature to study and she’d negated me. She did that for every option I mentioned until we reached Changeling.

I’d been sold.

I’d been sunk ever since.

Closing my laptop, I withdrew my phone and dialed the girl who invaded every inch of my life.

“Yo.” She answered on the first ring.

I laughed as I said, “Hi, back. How’s Caroline?”

“Taking her home now. She’s a little … um … confused.”

“Is that Winn?” Caroline’s voice came muffled through the phone. “Will you please tell him I’m sorry I screwed up your night last night?”

“I heard her,” I said to Mac so she wouldn’t repeat. “It’s no big deal.”

“He says it’s no big de—”

“It
is
a big deal!” Caroline squeaked as she talked. “I mean, the whole plan. I screwed it all up.”

“Tell her we’re good, Mac,” I said.

“We’re good, Caroline. Trust me. Winn and I still had … a really great night.” A wistfulness took over her tone. “Ooh!”

“What?” I asked, curious at her exclamation.

“Looks like someone had a wreck.”

“Don’t rubberneck,” I said.

“Oh, yellow tape, and oh! Oh, my god!” Caroline’s exclamation brought a surge of worry.

“What’s going on?” I asked, wishing I could be in the car with them only so I could see.

“Looks like there was a fire. They’ve got it blocked off with a tow truck,” Mac said. “We’re sitting in traffic.”

“Where are you?” I asked.

“Ooh! Man, isn’t that Jenny Owens’ car?” Caroline asked.

Jenny Owens?

“How many red Honda Civics do we have at school? Like ten? And we’re in a city of a million. I doubt that’s anyone we know,” Mac said.

“Hey, Mac. What road are you on?” I’d moved to my laptop and pulled up a browser. A car fire might have made the news.

“Jenks. On the way from my house to Caroline’s.”

“Any ambulances, or anything?” I asked.

“No. It looks old,” Mac said. “Oh, we’re moving. Hey, let me get Caroline home, and I’ll come over, ‘Kay? We can talk about … someone … and figure out what to do.”

With the biggest news site in our area up on screen, a Breaking News headline in bright red scrolled across the screen, reading: TEEN DIES IN FIERY MIDNIGHT WRECK.

“Yeah, sure.” I clicked off and scrolled through the article.

At midnight Saturday, four teens, riding in a red Honda Civic along Jenks Road in Rune, North Carolina were involved in a single-car wreck. Police and fire investigators suggest speed and texting were factors in the crash.

Authorities have not named the driver, other than to say she was a sixteen year old Sophomore at West High.

I gasped. Caroline and Mac had seen it; they could even have been right about the driver.
Wow.

Eyes back to the page, I continued reading.

Of the four female passengers, one died at the scene. Two were air lifted to Children’s Hospital—both listed in critical condition. The driver suffered only minor injuries and is expected to recover. Charges in the crash are pending.

For all I knew, Zoe lost a friend. She’d be crushed if she did. At least with Mac and I together, we could help her through it.

The crash of the front door and an “Oops” pulled me from my laptop. “I’m home!” Dad’s voice carried up to me.

“Up here,” I said.

Shuffling and thuds continued downstairs. I closed the computer and traipsed down, jumping from the last step to the first floor. “Hey,” I said.

Dad turned from the table, where he’d stacked a couple boxes.

“What are those?”

He faced me, and with a grimace, said, “Work stuff.”

“Oh. Mac’s on her way over.”

“She is, is she?” He rifled through the top box, slipping papers from within and returning them.

“Yeah. That okay? We might go out later.”

Dad nodded, his focus not on me. “Zoe out?”

“Yeah. At Clara’s I think. They were hanging out last night.”

Dad plunked himself down on a kitchen chair.

“You look tired.” I pulled out the one next to him. “Anything I can help with?”

He raised an eyebrow. “I know you want to, but I’d rather you just focus on school and finish your senior year.”

I huffed a laugh. “There’s not much left to it. Month and a half and I am finito.”

Dad chuckled. “You know, when I was eighteen, I wanted out of the house and pretty much ran the moment I graduated.”

With a shrug, I said, “Well … I guess I like you better than you liked Grandma and Grandpa.”

His lips curved up. “Different generations.” He gave me a light fist bump. “So … you and Mac?”

“Yeah.” Heat crept into my cheeks both at the memory of our previous night and that he’d asked.

“Well, good, then.”

“Yeah.” It seemed I’d lost my power of speech.

“Just remember what I told you. Live. Love. And when it’s all over, be thankful you had the time with her that you do.”

Right, Dad. Easier said than done.
“Sure.” I gave him a nod. “I’m just going to go wait for her outside.”

“All right. You guys be careful tonight.”

“We will.”

Mac

Suze had come back and told us Maddie’s mom planned to deal with her punishment and for us not to worry—it wouldn’t happen again. I had my doubts, but figured I didn’t have much say. Of course, Winn and I agreed to do our own investigation, so we sent Suze out to dig—Superman costume, and all.

“Okay, I have to admit,” I said as Winn sat at our table at Dulces that night. “You picked an awesome place for makeup dinner.” Like some four-year-old, I traced my finger through the drizzle of caramelized onion and chocolate on my steak.

“I didn’t
really
pick it though—”

I stopped him before he could take away my moment. “Take the credit, Winn.”

“But you’re payin—”

My glare stopped him. “I said it was your choice, but I would pay. You chose well, young Jedi.”

Winn laughed. “Fine. You win.” He skewered a piece of chicken with his fork, one that had been cooked with orange-soaked pineapples.

I’d initially gone to Dulces with Maddie and Caroline—my first girls’ night with them—ages ago. The scents of sugary treats mixed with steak or chicken made my mouth water every time I thought of the place. It stayed packed, too.

“I heard the driver of that wreck last night was texting,” came a voice from a table to the right. Because of the small space, conversations from one table overlapped another. “Texting? Dammit, why do kids do that?” the other occupant said. I didn’t text much myself. Old school, Zoe called me. Old soul, Alina said. “Will you marry me?” a guy asked as a small screech left from a girl. I glanced over but pulled myself back to Winn as the girl said “Yes!” and the room erupted in applause.

Winn clapped. I clapped, too. Neither of us commented. Marriage might have been too far in the future for either of us, and I hadn’t really put much thought into it since we had no real future anyway, unless I could come up with a way to prevent the Council from taking our memories—both of ours since, according to Alina, truly removing a memory required adjustment of all parties that held it.

“You want to go to a movie, or something, when we finish?” Winn asked, breaking our silence and my growing internal irritation at our situation.

Tuning out the other conversations, I said, “Are you trying to spend time with me, Winford?”

His lips curved as mine did, too. “Maybe.”

“A movie sounds good. Or … it’s free-movie weekend at your house.” I angled my head at Winn, giving him a sly wink and trying to forget the proposal that had just made two people seriously happy.

His cheeks turned a slight pink—an effect I loved seeing in him.

With my fork in hand, I held out my last piece of steak to him. “Home, then?”

He bit in, his lips stealing my dinner and my heart. “Yes.”

• • •

We drove home, the renewal of our relationship filling me with a happiness I wouldn’t have admitted to a month before. Even with the end approaching, a sense of vindication swept through me. I’d met my mom. I’d learned I had a sister. Winn came back into my life. The expression that ‘everything fit right’ seemed appropriate.

The lights in all the windows of the house and the cop cars in Winn’s driveway deflated the metaphoric balloon I held in my hand, withering it away to a heap of rubbery goo.

“What’s going on?” Winn asked.

“How would I know? Been with you all day.”

“Zoe.” Winn jerked the car to a stop, threw open the door and raced toward the house. “Dad!”

My heart pounded in my chest as I walked around and closed the car door, joined by the dread overtaking me with each step. Winn thrust open the front door, leaving it wide.

Voices grew louder as I approached, fear creeping its way in, in a way I’d never experienced, even when Zoe had been taken before. At least then, I hadn’t known our familial connection.

Above the few stairs to the entry, Bernie sat at the table, his head in his hands, the cops on the opposite side. Winn had reached the group, his tone ratcheting up as he said, “Tell me what’s going on!”

Bernie turned to him, his face ashen and said, “Zoe is missing.”

I knew it.

The cop held out a hand toward Winn. “I’m Detective Simms. Your father just called us to report your sister missing. Have you had any communication with her today?”

Had Zoe been taken by one of mine? Again?
Is there yet another test I have to go through? Are they using my sister?
With her gift, she’d be a value to many—assuming anyone even knew. Why hadn’t Bernie called the Council? Or had he already and the police were a second option?

“I thought she was staying with her friend, Clara.” Winn glanced at me, pain and worry in his eyes as he took a step toward the stairs.

Privacy. Suze.
He may not have said the words, but I believed he thought them.