Mortal Kiss (15 page)

“Oh,” said Aunt Pam, the relief clear in her voice. “Oh, Finn, It’s you. Come in, come in. Get out of the cold.”

Finn did as he was told, still looking at the book in Aunt Pam’s hand. “I really don’t want to get in the way,” he said.

“No, no, not at all. I was just helping Faye with her homework on, on …” Faye watched as Aunt Pam, flustered, checked the title of the book she was holding. “The, um, ancient fishing habits of the Basque people of northern Spain.”

Finn looked amused. “Right. Guess school’s changed a bit since the last time I went.”

“Yes, well,” said Faye’s aunt. “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that. You know what I think about your schooling.”

Finn grinned. “Yes, I do. Which is why you’ll be pleased to know that I dropped off my enrollment papers at Winter Mill High this morning.”

“Finn! That’s wonderful news!”

“You’re going to be a student?” Faye exclaimed, surprised.

Finn looked at her, his eyes full of his smile. Faye felt her heart flutter as he shrugged. “Well, your aunt said I should, so … I start next week.”

“That’s—that’s great,” Faye said, her mind whirling. She’d be seeing him every day, then. He might even be in some of her classes.…

“Why don’t you stay for some dinner, Finn?” suggested Aunt Pam, her words cutting through Faye’s thoughts. “I was just about to go and get it ready. I made lasagna, and we’ve got plenty of salad.”

Finn looked a little surprised by the offer but was obviously tempted. He glanced at Faye, as if wanting to be sure it was OK with her before saying yes.

“Oh, you definitely should stay,” Faye said, though she felt herself blushing. “Aunt Pam’s cooking is the best.”

Finn smiled again, and her heart turned over. “In that case,” he said, “I will.”

#

Dinner was far more relaxed with Finn there than Faye had expected. He was eager to help Aunt Pam prepare the food, and Faye wondered how long it had been since he’d had a home-cooked meal instead of one cooked on the road.

“So,” he said, once they were all seated and eating. “I’ve been seeing posters around town for this Battle of the Bands. It seems kind of cool.”

“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it,” said Faye. “We’ve got some really good musicians at Winter Mill High, so it should be a good night. I know at least four groups of my friends are entering.”

“Have you got a favorite?” Finn asked. “You know, someone you want to win?”

Faye shook her head. “No. It’ll just be a fun night, that’s all.” She laughed. “It’s not often we have something like this come here! We’re a pretty quiet town, usually.”

“Not right at this moment,” Aunt Pam interjected. “What with the bikers, this awful weather, that poor man freezing to death and that Morrow family—and now poor Jimmy …”

Faye sobered at the thought of her friend. Finn looked from one of them to the other with a frown. “Who’s Jimmy?” he asked.

Faye sighed. “A friend of ours. He works with me on the school paper—he’s missing. Didn’t get home last night. No one knows where he is.”

Finn paused, his fork halfway to his mouth. “Anyone know where he was last seen?”

Faye shook her head. “No. But he lives up on the edge of the mansion estate in the woods.”

Finn was quiet for another moment, thinking. Then he smiled. “I’m sure Jimmy’s fine. If you like, I’ll have a look around up there. I know the woods pretty well now.”

Faye smiled gratefully. “That would be fantastic. The police don’t seem to have done anything at all.” She shook her head. “Things have been really strange around here recently. But usually, nothing much happens at all.”

Finn smiled. He was doing a lot of that this evening. Faye liked it—his face was softer when he smiled. Then she realized she was thinking about him again, and she blushed, looking down at her almost-empty plate so that he wouldn’t see.

“I like this place,” Finn said softly. “I thought I didn’t at first, but it’s great. It’s quiet. The people care about their town, and their neighbors. And it’s … beautiful.”

As he said the word “beautiful,” Finn looked right at her, and Faye felt her breath catch. Was he talking about her? She felt her face burn red, but this time she couldn’t bring herself to look away.

Aunt Pam cleared her throat and began tidying their plates. Finn flushed slightly, breaking eye contact and standing up quickly to help.

“The forest, I mean,” he added, sounding slightly flustered. “The woods are just beautiful.”

“Oh yes, they are,” Faye agreed, a little too quickly. “You should see them in the summer, too, when all the flowers are out.”

“Well now, since I did all the cooking, I’m going to leave you two to clean up,” Aunt Pam announced. “I’ll leave you both
alone
and go back to my reading.” She
shot her niece a grin that made Faye groan with silent embarrassment, especially since Finn had seen it too!

Faye waited until her aunt had disappeared downstairs before she risked looking at Finn again. “Sorry,” she said. “She’s just—”

“She’s great,” Finn told her.

Faye smiled. “Yeah, she is. Without her—I don’t know what I’d do.”

They stood in silence for a second, and after a moment Faye realized they were staring at each other again. She shook herself, moving to pick up one of the dishes left on the table.

“So,” she said, searching for something to say that wouldn’t cause either of them further embarrassment. “You’re a biker. How did that happen?”

Finn turned on the faucet and leaned over the sink. “Well, my dad’s always been one. He’s been on the road as long as I can remember.”

“What about your mom?”

Finn shrugged. “She died when I was very small, so small that I don’t even remember her. I lived with an aunt for a while, but she had her own family, you know? And I was never any good at school. So I guess it just made sense to follow my dad as soon as I could. I was pretty young. Most bikers don’t move around as much as the Black Dogs do, but it’s really all I’ve ever known. It feels … normal.”

“You didn’t like school?” Faye asked, picking up a dish towel and standing next to him to dry.

Finn shrugged. “I just never fit in properly. I’m better with my hands than my head.”

Faye glanced at his hands. They were large and tanned and looked as if they’d seen a lot of rough work. A sudden memory flashed in her head, of Finn running his fingers down her face.…

“Hey,” he said in a low, soft voice. “Penny for your thoughts?”

Faye looked up. He was very close, looking at her with warm, dark eyes, and her heart nearly thumped its way right out of her chest. Blushing furiously, she shook her head, grabbing something without checking and running the dish towel over it vigorously. “Oh, nothing, it’s—Ow!”

Finn dropped the bowl he’d been washing and grabbed her hand as a tear of blood began to flow from her palm. What she’d picked up was a knife. “Idiot!” Faye berated herself. “I’m so clumsy!”

“No, you’re not,” Finn protested, his two wet hands cupping her injured one. “You were just …” He trailed off, and when she looked up she saw that his eyes were laughing. “Well, maybe just a little bit …”

She laughed, and he reached out to run the water again. He pulled her nearer to clean the wound, and Faye found herself pressed against him, their legs close together. Finn turned off the faucet and dried her hand before pulling his bandana from his neck and winding it around her hand.

“There,” he said softly. “Good as new.”

“Thanks,” Faye whispered. She didn’t want to move, and as they stood there, he slid one arm lightly around her waist. She looked up at his face, just inches away, and was hardly able to breathe. Finn looked down at her, his thumb gently stroking her back where his hand held her to him. For a second he seemed to hesitate, but then something sparked deep in his dark eyes. He leaned in, his breath mingling with hers as their lips almost touched—

“Hey, you two!” Aunt Pam’s voice called from the bottom of the stairs, loud enough to make them spring apart. “There’s some ice cream in the freezer if you want dessert.”

Faye glanced at Finn, but he avoided looking at her, turning away instead. He was breathing hard, his shoulders bunched as he leaned against the sink.

It took Faye a moment to find her voice. “Um, thanks, Aunt Pam!” she called as loudly as she could manage.

The uncomfortable silence stretched between them. After a few moments, Finn reached out and picked up another dish, but he didn’t look at her again. Faye kept her distance, her mind whirling.

They didn’t have dessert.

“So, do you think this is going to be mainly pop, or mainly rock?” Liz asked, staring into her closet.

The two girls were trying to decide what to wear to the Battle of the Bands. Faye had headed over to Liz’s early to get ready, but now neither of them knew what outfit to choose.

“I think there’ll probably be a mix of both,” Faye said with a sigh. Liz looked over as Faye held up the clothes she’d brought with her—a favorite pair of jeans and a cute blue T-shirt. Liz thought her friend looked great, but Faye wasn’t so sure.

“I think that works really well,” Liz told her, “but if you want to borrow some of my stuff, go ahead.”

“Really?”

“Of course! But you have to tell me what to wear, because I think my head will explode if I try to figure it out for myself.”

“What about that punk print top you got online?” Faye suggested. “Have you even worn it yet? That’s really cool, and no one else will have anything like it.”

Liz clapped her hands together. “Omigod, Faye, you are so right. See, this is why we’re such good friends. You always know what to do!”

Faye pulled out a pale pink shirt and held it up to her chest. With another sigh, she hung it back in the closet and picked out something else, making a face as she looked at herself in the mirror.

“You know,” Liz told Faye, “you should just wear what you’re comfortable in. That blue top you brought along is great.”

“But it’s boring!” Faye protested. “I’m tired of people thinking I’m bookish and that I don’t know how to have fun!”

Liz raised her eyebrows. “Do people think that?”

“I think some people do,” Faye mumbled. “Let’s face it, Liz, I’m a bit of a boring geek.”

“You are not!” cried Liz. “Look, you can never go wrong with jeans, and that top has great potential. All you need to do is funk it up a bit.”

“What, with accessories?”

“Yes—and makeup.” Liz went to her dresser and picked up a handful of brightly colored bottles. “I bought these the other day—they’re the latest colors.”

Faye took what Liz held out to her. “Wow. These are great. I love the yellow nail polish.”

“The fluorescent green eye shadow is awesome too,” Liz pointed out. “And it’ll really contrast with that top, especially if you sweep it right over your eyelids and then mix it with the turquoise eyeliner.”

Faye grinned. “I’ve never tried makeup like this before.”

Liz shrugged. “Well, you wanted a change, go for it. You’ll look great!”

Faye began to paint her nails as Liz looked at herself again in the mirror. This was such a crucial night in the school calendar; she was determined to look amazing.

“Is your dad still acting weird?” Faye asked as Liz began to choose a pair of heels to go with her outfit.

“And then some,” Liz said, shaking her head. “It’s actually getting kind of scary. I think Mom’s trying to pretend there’s nothing wrong, especially since Poppy went back to college, but something’s definitely not right. This morning I tried to ask him about Jimmy, and I swear he just spent the whole time staring into space.”

“He didn’t tell you anything?”

“No—I couldn’t get anything out of him at all.” Liz sighed. “I can’t stop thinking about Jimmy, Faye. It’s horrible. How can someone just … vanish? Here in Winter Mill?”

“I know. I keep wondering if there’s anything we can be doing to help find him.”

“Yeah,” Liz agreed, “there must be something. Maybe we can make some posters and start putting them up all over town? I mean, I know we’re not supposed to go up to the woods, but someone might have seen something somewhere, right? Do you think Ms. Finch would let us use the newspaper equipment?”

Faye frowned. “Usually, I’d say yes. But honestly? She’s another one who’s acting really weird at the moment. Aunt Pam says something is happening to the whole town. And she had an argument with Mercy Morrow. I actually think she’s scared of her.”

Liz snorted. “Sometimes I think it would have been better if the Morrows had never turned up at all.”

Faye looked up at her friend. “Are you still upset about Lucas?”

Liz waved her hand dismissively. She was determined not to dwell on him. “Oh, not really. Anyway, let’s not talk about the Morrows anymore. I’d rather spend my energy talking about Jimmy.” Liz had actually been thinking a lot about Jimmy since she’d heard the news. It was strange; she’d hardly noticed him when she’d known he was there, but the idea of him not being around at all … for some reason, it seemed wrong. It wasn’t just that something awful might have happened to him, which was really horrible to think about. Jimmy was a part of their lives, Liz had realized, a part of
her
life. As geeky as he was, things wouldn’t seem right if he wasn’t around. And Liz kept thinking about the little conversation they’d had in the
mall right after her fight with Faye. Jimmy had been so sweet.… Liz shook herself. “I guess we can ask around about him tonight.”

Faye nodded, starting on her other hand. “Yeah, that’s a good idea. And Finn said he’d take a look around in the woods to see if he can find any sign of Jimmy up there.”

“Wait a minute—Finn?” Liz repeated, shocked. “The biker boy? When did you see him?”

“He, uh—he came for dinner a couple of nights ago,” Faye said, and Liz watched as her friend’s cheeks turned pink. “It was sweet, actually. He came to check that the heat was still working. And Aunt Pam has been lending him books to read. She asked him to stay for dinner, so he did.”

“God. I would have thought she’d know better,” Liz said, shaking her head. “I wouldn’t have even let him in!” She hadn’t missed the flush on Faye’s cheeks as she’d talked about Finn. It really worried Liz—she didn’t want her best friend getting into trouble with the wrong kind of guy. Faye was usually so smart, but the bikers and the mystery of what was happening in the woods really seemed to have caught her attention. Liz was worried for her friend.