Hunted (31 page)

All the girls were assembled in the conference room, waiting for her so they could get started.  She couldn’t help but notice the look of relief that passed over both Devyn’s and Johnna’s faces as she entered and took a seat at the long table.  Obviously, they hadn’t believed she would really show up.

Well, she showed them, didn’t she?  She was there, in the conference room, ready to discuss hot dog wieners, paper cups, and which annoying Dubstep cd to play because truly, there was nothing more important happening in her life.

An hour later, the meeting was adjourned and after several phone calls to confirm deliveries and donations, it was declared that all the bonfire details had been settled and laid to rest.  The pre-game festivities could commence.  That was, if the parents didn’t put the
kibosh
on the whole thing, to borrow a word from Devyn.

After the meeting, as Lanie and her friends piled into her Bug, her phone went off and she pulled it from her purse, seeing that it was a text from Brady. 
Wr at the miller “s feed stor.
 
Come and hang ut f4 a while@
   So, without over much discussion, it was decided that they would indeed
come and
hang ut f4
a while with the boys at Mr. Miller’s feed store. 

The Feed Store, located on Jefferson Street, was housed in a little block building that sat beside Hal’s Smoke Shop.  Yes, the God fearing people of Fells Pointe worried about the salvation of their soul and the well-being of their town, but lung cancer, not so much. 

The little store was filled with the pungent scents of fertilizer and birdseed and was humming with more activity than it had probably ever seen.  Clearly, the residents of Fells Pointe wanted to help out the family and had descended upon the business to buy more fall mums, sacks of cracked corn, and bags of pet food than they probably knew what to do with.

Finn and Brady and some of the other Panthers were busy ringing up purchases and loading cars up with 50 pound bags of fertilizer or dog food and Lanie and her friends all jumped into help, Lanie making for the outdoor area where the plants were kept.  She helped a few people carry their mums and pansies to the register and then loaded the flats into their cars.  She helped ring up some purchases on the arcane old cash register, and then was pulled aside by a group of concerned citizens wanting to know if her father was handling “the situation” the town was facing. 

Which was her cue to make a quick exit. 

She found Johnna with Mrs. Mitchel over by the wall of seed packets, in a deep discussion over when was the proper time of year to plant Poppy seeds.  This was something that Johnna knew absolutely nothing about, yet Mrs. Mitchel was still questioning her in depth on the topic and meant not to let her walk away until she had the answers she sought.  Lanie slid into the conversation to tell the girl that she was leaving and to grab a ride from Finn and Johnna couldn’t argue, thank to Mrs. Mitchel, so the elderly lady’s timing was quite fortunate.

Stealing out of the little store, Lanie hopped into her Bug and sped away, actually thankful that Mrs. Mitchel had created a blind for her.  She really didn’t want Johnna and Devyn going around with her, knowing what might be flying at her at any second.  She would never forgive herself if something happened to one of her friends just because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

On her way home, Lanie decided to stop by the Miller’s house to see how they were doing and found the house still filled with people, so she only stayed there for a couple of minutes.  She just wanted to give Mrs. Miller a hug and make sure the woman was alright, to let her know that she hadn’t forgotten about Stacy or the family. 

Her guilt assuaged, she texted her father to tell him she was going home to start dinner and he texted her back saying that he was starving and he’d be home as soon as he could.  Since he didn’t mention it, she assumed he knew nothing of her little foray into truancy, which gave her a measure of relief. 

At home, she exited her car and hurried toward the house, expecting to see Kyle appear out of the evening gloom, but he didn’t and she didn’t wait for him.  She had that feeling of eyes boring into her again, making the hair on her neck stand up and since she couldn’t be sure which pair of eyes it might be, she didn’t dawdle.  Once she had bolted through the front door and closed it behind her, she let out a breath, feeling glad that she’d made it one piece.

That contentment didn’t last very long though because Johnna, Devyn, and Chase Wylie all showed up, which meant more mess and more noise and as the three of them trooped into the house, dropping their things in a heap in the entry way and then storming the kitchen in search of food, Lanie feared she just might snap.  But, she somehow held it together and refrained from putting a butter knife through someone’s temple. 

It was getting late in the evening so she made dinner, consisting of spaghetti and garlic toast because it was easy to make enough to feed a small horde of perpetually hungry teenagers with hopefully enough left over for the man of the house.  They ate without her dad, though, who texted to say he was doing paper work and would be home later.

Once the food had been scarfed down, Lanie was left alone to clean up the aftermath while the other three went off to watch TV and make a mess in the living room.  Annoyed, Lanie stood at the sink rinsing dishes and grumbling to herself, only to suddenly realize there was a face peering at her through the kitchen window. 

She took a step backward and opened her mouth, but managed to stifle the scream rising up in her throat as she grasped the fact that it was Kyle Vincent she was looking at.  Letting out a shaky break and quickly drying her hands on a dishtowel, Lanie rushed to the back door and pulled it open, shoving through the screen and finding Kyle right there waiting.

“Hey.  What are you doing here?” she asked him, trying to sound nonchalant.

Kyle looked slightly embarrassed.  “I came by to check on you,” he told her.   

“I-I’m fine,” she breathed, trying to calm her racing heart.

“Are you sure?  You looked kind of upset a second ago,” Kyle pointed out, worried.

Yes.  She was upset a second ago because she was tired of having a house full of messy, thoughtless teenagers.  “I’m good.  My friends are just getting on my nerves a little,” she told him.

Kyle’s expression softened with sympathy, but he said nothing on that subject.  “I’m going out to look for Frederik, but I’ll be back around to check on you every little while.  So, you don’t have to be afraid tonight, alright.”

“Do you think he’ll come back here?” she wondered, shooting a quick glance toward the back door to make sure her friends weren’t coming.

“I don’t know.  But, I want you to stay away from the windows and the door tonight.  You’ll be safe as long as he can’t call to you,” Kyle stated reassuringly.

A little shiver went through Lanie at the memory of her encounter with Frederik.  “As long as I don’t make eye contact then he can’t…do that to me, right?”

“Right.  So, stay away from the doors and windows,” he reiterated sternly.

She nodded her understanding.  “Will you be okay?  I-I mean, what if you…find him?  Will he…I mean—“

“Don’t worry about me.  I can handle myself,” he told her.  “You just need to try and get some rest.  You look tired.”

That was probably because she
was
tired.  “I’ll try.”  She would most likely fail, but she would try.

For a second Lanie thought Kyle might want to say something else to her, but instead he took a step forward and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug.  Lanie allowed herself to lean into him, amazed at how strong his arms were, how steady and unyielding the wall of his chest felt.  In those few seconds that his arms were around her, she found herself wondering if he was hugging her to comfort
her
or to comfort
himself
.   And then she decided that it didn’t matter.  By his own admission, Kyle hadn’t had any real contact with the human side of life in so long that it was…sad.  If he needed this from her, then she did not mind.  If he needed a friend, then she was there for him.

Also in the few seconds, she realized again that she could not hear the heartbeat that her rational mind expected to be hearing.  But, there was also another sound that was missing.  She could hear the sound of her own breathing, but there was not a sound to be heard from Kyle Vincent. 

No heartbeat.  No breath.  Not hearing those things should have repelled her, yet didn’t.  Not hearing those signs of life made
her
still beating heart tear for Kyle Vincent.  This was a young man who had nothing left.  His family was gone.  His sister had been killed.  His parents had passed away.  He had no home, no means, nothing left to his name.  And he could not even take comfort in the fact that he had his life and his health.  Even those basic things had been taken away from him.

Kyle suddenly dropped his arms and took a step back.  “I’ll be close by,” he told her and then turned and was…gone.

“Lanie!” Devyn’s voice exploded, making Lanie jump and let out a startled shriek.  “What are you doing out here?”

Lanie turned to look at the girl, trying to plaster a neutral expression on her face.  “Nothing.  I was just—“

“Oh my god!  He was out here, wasn’t he!” Devyn gasped, her gaze darting around the back yard, searching for someone who clearly was not there.  “Lanie, who is this
boychik
!  Why won’t you tell me about him!”

Because he’s a vampire.  Well, half vampire, but still.

“This isn’t fair!  It would tell you!  It’s a
shtuken nisht in hartz
!” Devyn proclaimed, really putting some emphasis into those last words and pelting Lanie in the eye with droplets of spittle.

Lanie understood Devyn’s frustrations, but she could not tell the girl about Kyle, despite it being a stab in the heart to her.  So, she simply turned and walked back inside, ignoring Devyn, who was right on her heels, huffing and demanding details.  Lanie was actually thankful when Chase appeared in the kitchen to try and flirt her up, which squashed Devyn’s attempt to pry information out of her.

“Why don’t we go to The Pub for some chili fries,” Chase suggested, leaning against the center island to watch her finish up the dishes.

“How can you be hungry?  You just ate fifteen minutes ago,” she pointed out, thinking the boy must have a tape worm.

“It’s just chili fries,” Chase shrugged.  “Come on.  I’ll buy.”

“Maybe some other time,” Lanie said to him.  “But, you guys can go if you want to.”

Chase was unaffected by her rebuff.  “You’re still coming with me to the bonfire tomorrow, aren’t you?”

Oh crap.  She really did not want to go to the bonfire with Chase, but she’d promised him.  And it was short notice.  All the cheerleaders probably had dates already.  “I’m still going with you.”

“Good,” Chase grinned crookedly.  “Standing me up might break my heart.”

That might be, but she somehow knew that he would recover fairly quickly.  “I’m not standing you up,” she assured him, putting the last of the dishes into the washer and starting it running.

“Lanie, I’m home!” a deep voice suddenly called through the house and Lanie felt relief wash through her. 

Her dad was home, safe and sound, which meant that Chase could be on his way.  When her dad appeared in the kitchen, Lanie took his plate from the oven and sat it on the center island for him. 

“Hey, kids.  Keeping Lanie company, I see,” Sam said in a cordial tone.

“We are,” Devyn stated with a wide grin.

“So, are you all having fun hanging out here?” he questioned, taking a seat at the island and starting on his plate.  “Lanie’s not driving you nuts with her OCD, is she?”

Lanie shot her father a glance, finding him smiling good-naturedly at her.  She took umbrage at that statement.  Umbrage!  She did not have OCD!  She just did not like living like an animal!

“Nah.  She’s been pretty laid back, actually,” Devyn said easily.

Ha!  Laid back!  She had been cleaning up after everyone non-stop!  They were just too unaware to even notice.  Or care!