Finale (3 page)
Authors: Becca Fitzpatrick
“Do you really want me to start listing reasons? Because I’ll keep you here all night. You’ve got to be at least five years oldce=ve yearer than me in human years—total scandal fodder—you don’t have a sense of humor, and—oh yeah. We can’t stand each other.”
“It’s a natural connection. I’m your first lieutenant—”
“Because Hank gave you the position. I had no say in that.”
Dante didn’t seem to hear me, charging ahead with his make-believe version of events. “We met and felt an instant and mutual attraction. I comforted you after your father’s death. It’s a believable story.” He smiled. “Lots of good publicity.”
“If you say the
P
word one more time, I’m going to . . . do something drastic.” Like smack him. And then smack myself for even considering this plan.
“Sleep on it,” Dante said. “Mull it over.”
“Mulling it over.” I counted to three on my fingers. “Okay, done. Bad idea. Really bad idea. My answer is no.”
“You have a better idea?”
“Yes, but I’ll need time to think it up.”
“Sure. No problem, Nora.” He counted to three on his fingers. “Okay, time’s up. I needed a name first thing this morning. In case it isn’t painfully obvious, your image is headed down the tubes. Word of your father’s death, and subsequently your new leadership position, is spreading like wildfire. People are talking, and the talk isn’t good. We need the Nephilim to believe in you. We need them to trust that you have their best interests in mind, and that you can finish your father’s work and bring us out of bondage from fallen angels. We need them to rally behind you, and we’re going to give them one good reason after another. Starting with a respected Nephilim boyfriend.”
“Hey, babe, everything okay back here?”
Dante and I swung around. Vee stood in the doorway, eyeing us with equal parts wariness and curiosity.
“Hey! Everything’s fine,” I said a little too enthusiastically.
“You never came back with our drinks, and I started to worry,” Vee said. Her gaze shifted from me to Dante. Recognition sparked in her eyes, and I knew she remembered him from the bar. “Who are you?” she asked him.
“Him?” I cut in. “Oh. Uh. Well, he’s just some random guy—”
Dante stepped forward, hand extended. “Dante Matterazzi. I’m a new friend of Nora’s. We met earlier today when our mutual acquaintance, Scott Parnell, introduced us.”
Just like that, Vee’s face lit up. “You know Scott?”
“Good friend of mine, actually.”
“Any friend of Scott’s is a friend of mine.”
Inwardly, I gouged my eyes out.
“So what are you two doing back here?” Vee asked us.
“Dante just picked out a new car,” I said, stepping aside to give her a, ao give n unobstructed view of the Porsche. “He couldn’t resist showing it off. Don’t look too closely, though. I think the VIN number is missing. Poor Dante had to resort to theft, since he used up all his money getting his chest waxed, and boy, does it gleam.”
“Funny,” Dante said. I thought maybe he’d self-consciously fasten at least one more shirt button, but he didn’t.
“If I had a car like that, I’d show it off too,” Vee said.
Dante said, “I tried talking Nora into a ride, but she keeps blowing me off.”
“That’s because she has a hard-A boyfriend. He must have been homeschooled, because he missed all those valuable lessons we learned in kindergarten, like sharing. He finds out you took Nora for a ride, he’ll wrap this shiny new Porsche around the nearest tree.”
“Gee,” I said, “look at the time. Don’t you have somewhere to be, Dante?”
“Turns out my night’s open.” He smiled, slow and easy, and I knew he was relishing every moment of intruding on my private life. I’d made it clear right off the bat this morning that any contact between us had to be done in private, and he was showing me what he thought of my “rules.” In a lame attempt at evening the score, I glared my meanest, coldest look at him.
“You’re in luck,” Vee said. “We know just the thing to fill up your night. You’re gonna hang with two of the coolest girls in all of Coldwater, Mr. Dante Matterazzi.”
“Dante doesn’t dance,” I quickly interjected.
“I’ll make an exception, just this once,” he answered, opening the door for us.
Vee clapped her hands, jumping up and down. “I just
knew
this night was gonna rock!” she squealed, ducking under Dante’s arm.
“After you,” Dante said, placing his palm on the small of my back and guiding me inside. I batted his hand away, but to my aggravation, he leaned close and murmured, “Glad we had this little chat.”
We haven’t resolved anything,
I spoke to his mind.
This whole boyfriend-girlfriend thing? Nothing is settled. Just a little something to bear in mind. And for the record, my best friend isn’t supposed to know you exist.
Your best friend thinks I should give your boyfriend a run for his money,
he said, sounding amused.
She thinks anything with a beating heart should replace Patch. They have unresolved issues.
Sounds promising.
He followed me down the short hall leading to the dance floor, and I felt his haughty, goading smile the whole way.
The loud monotone beat of the music drove into my skull like a hammer. I pinched the bridge of my nose, cringing against a swelling headache. I had one elbow perched on the bar, and I used my free hand to press a glass of ice water against my forehead.
“Tired already?” Dante asked, leaving Vee on the dance floor to slide onto a bar stool beside me.
“Any idea how much longer she’s going to last?” I asked wearily.<
“Looks to me like she’s caught her second wind.”
“Next time I’m in the market for a best friend, remind me to shy away from the Energizer Bunny. She keeps going and going. . . .”
“You look like you could use a ride home.”
I shook my head. “I drove, but I can’t leave Vee here. Seriously, how much longer can she possibly last?” Of course, I’d been asking myself the same question for the past hour.
“Tell you what. Go home. I’ll stay with Vee. When she finally drops, I’ll give her a ride.”
“I thought you weren’t supposed to get mixed up in my personal life.” I tried to sound surly, but I was exhausted, and the conviction just wasn’t there.
“Your rule, not mine.”
I chewed my lip. “Maybe just this once. After all, Vee likes you. And you actually have the stamina to keep dancing with her. I mean, this is a good thing, right?”
He nudged my leg. “Quit rationalizing and get out of here already.”
To my surprise, I sighed with relief. “Thanks, Dante. I owe you.”
“You can pay me back tomorrow. We need to finish our earlier conversation.”
And just like that, any benevolent feelings washed away. Once again, Dante was the thorn in my foot, relentless in his pestering. “If anything happens to Vee, I’m holding you personally responsible.”
“She’ll be fine, and you know it.”
I might not like Dante, but I did trust he’d do what he said. After all, he reported to me now. He’d sworn allegiance to me. Maybe my role as leader of all Nephilim would have a few perks after all. On that note, I left.
It was a cloudless night, the moon a haunting blue against the black of night. As I walked to my car, the music from the Devil’s Handbag echoed like a distant rumble. I inhaled the chilly October air. Already my headache ebbed.
The untraceable cell phone Patch had given me rang in my handbag.
“How was girls’ night out?” Patch asked.
“If Vee had her way, we’d be here all night.” I stepped out of my shoes and slung them on my finger. “All I can think about is bed.”
“We’re sharing the same thought.”
“You’re thinking about bed too?” But Patch had told me that he rarely slept.
“I’m thinking about
you
in
my
bed.”
My stomach did one of those flutter things. I’d stayed the night at Patch’s place for the first time last night, and while the attraction and temptation had definitely been there, we’d managed to sleep in different rooms. I wasn’t sure how far I wanted to take our relat peke our ionship, but instinct told me Patch wasn’t quite so indecisive.
“My mom’s waiting up,” I said. “Bad timing.” Speaking of bad timing, I unwillingly recalled my most recent conversation with Dante. I needed to bring Patch up to speed. “Can we meet tomorrow? We need to talk.”
“That doesn’t sound good.”
I smacked a kiss into the phone. “I missed you tonight.”
“The night’s not over. After I finish up here, I could swing by your place. Leave your bedroom window unlocked.”
“What are you working on?”
“Surveillance.”
I frowned. “Sounds vague.”
“My target’s on the move. I have to roll,” he said. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
And he hung up.
I padded down the sidewalk, wondering who Patch was keeping an eye on, and why—the whole thing sounded a little ominous—when my car, a white 1984 Volkswagen Cabriolet, came into view. I threw my shoes into the backseat and dropped behind the wheel. I stuck the key in the ignition, but the engine didn’t roll over. It repeatedly made a strained, chugging sound, and I took the opportunity to think a few choice and inventive words at the worthless piece of scrap metal.
The car had fallen into my lap as a donation from Scott, and had given me more hours of grief than actual miles on the road. I hopped out and propped the hood, glaring speculatively at the greasy labyrinth of hoses and containers. I’d already dealt with the alternator, the carburetor, and the spark plugs. What was left?
“Car trouble?”
I flipped around, surprised by the sound of a nasally male voice behind me. I hadn’t heard anyone approach. More perplexing, I hadn’t sensed him.
“It would appear so,” I said.
“Need some help?”
“Pretty much I just need a new car.”
He had a greasy, nervous smile. “Why don’t I give you a lift? You look like a nice girl. We could have a nice talk while we drive.”
I kept my distance, my mind spinning wildly as I tried to place him. Instinct told me he wasn’t human. Nor was he Nephilim. Funny thing was, I didn’t think he was a fallen angel, either. He had a round, cherubic face topped with a thatch of yellow-blond hair, and floppy Dumbo ears. He looked so harmless, in fact, that it made me instantly suspicious. Instantly uneasy.
“Thanks for the offer, but I’ll catch a ride with my friend.”
His smile vanished and he lunged for my sleeve. “Don’t go.” His voice rose to a whine of desperation.
I took several startled steps back.
“That is— I mean— I was trying to say—” He gulped, then hardened his eyes into glittering beads. “I need to talk to your boyfriend.”
My heart beat faster and a panicky thought seized me. What if he was Nephilim and I couldn’t detect it? What if he really did know about me and Patch? What if he’d found me tonight to get a message across—that Nephilim and fallen angels don’t mix? I was a brand-new Nephil, no match for him if it came to a physical confrontation.
“I don’t have a boyfriend.” I tried to stay calm as I turned back toward the Devil’s Handbag.
“Put me in touch with Patch,” the man called after me, that same desperate squeak pinching his voice. “He’s avoiding me.”
I picked up my pace.
“Tell him if he doesn’t come out of hiding, I’ll—I’ll—smoke him out. I’ll burn down the whole of Delphic Amusement Park if I have to!”
I glanced over my shoulder warily. I didn’t know what Patch had gotten himself mixed up in, but I had an uncomfortable feeling swelling in my stomach. Whoever this man was, cherubic features aside, he meant business.
“He can’t avoid me forever!” He scurried a
way on his stumpy legs until he blended into the shadows, whistling a tune that sent a jitter down my spine.
A
HALF HOUR LATER, I PULLED INTO MY DRIVEWAY
. I live with my mom in a quintessential Maine farmhouse, complete with white paint, blue shutters, and a shroud of ever-present fog. This time of year, the trees blazed fiery shades of red and gold, and the air held the crisp smells of pine sap, burning wood, and damp leaves. I jogged up the porch steps, where five portly pumpkins watched me like sentinels, and let myself in.
“I’m home!” I called to my mom, the light in the living room giving away her location. I dropped my keys on the sideboard and went back to find her.
She dog-eared her page, rose from the sofa, and squeezed me in a hug. “How did your night go?”
“I am officially drained of every last ounce of energy.” I pointed upstairs. “If I make it up to bed, it will be by sheer mental power alone.”
“While you were out, a man stopped by looking for you.”
I frowned. What man?
