Rouge (37 page)

But when she came downstairs
and found Eli waiting for her in a smart black tuxedo and red tie, all thoughts
of her mother vanished. His eyes lit up like Christmas lights at the sight of
her, and she blushed feverishly.

“You look like an angel,”
Eli whispered, coming towards her and slipping the white corsage on her wrist,
blooming with red roses. “I knew that dress would go perfectly with your hair.”

She twirled playfully for
him. “You like?”

“I’d like more to rip it off
you,” he replied with a wink and she opened her mouth in false shock. Oh how he
had changed since the night they met.

“And for the final piece de
resistance-” Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out her mother’s silver
necklace. “I bought you a new chain after we broke the other one.”

“Thank you.” She turned
around, staring at the pair of them in the hallway mirror.

As Eli attacked the chain,
he brushed a small kiss against the scar on her shoulder, giving Hunter
goose-bumps.  Behind his glasses, those green and brown eyes sparkled.
“Get ready for the best night of your life,” he whispered and swept her into a
passionate kiss.

Mr. Akerman came downstairs.
“Limo’s here,” he grumbled. “Have a nice evening.”

“You too Mr. Akerman,”
replied Hunter, for nothing, not even the hatred in Mr. Akerman’s eyes, could
ruin her mood. “Don’t wait up for us.”

The first trace of a smirk
crossed his lips, but then it turned into a scowl and he trumped off into the
kitchen. Eli took Hunter’s hand and guided her to the limo outside.

The air was warm and brushed
Hunter’s loose curls around her neck as she climbed into the limo. Inside,
there was non-alcoholic champagne and soft music playing. Eli slipped in beside
her and they enjoyed the ride alone, laughing about Mr. Akerman’s reaction and
school and life. Normal things that were rare and beautiful for Hunter.

The limo arrived outside the
Iris Hotel where seniors and their partners were already entering. The golden
light from the lobby spilled onto the red carpet that had been set up for the
prom and Eli and Hunter climbed the steps inside. Being their first public
appearance together as an official couple, the two of them smiled and greeted
some of Eli’s friends - all of which looked Hunter up and down in awe. She had
never seen Eli so happy, and the grip he kept on her arm was so tight she
couldn’t help but laugh inside.

They linked arms and lined
up for photos, mingling with other students and marveling at the decorations
inside the foyer and banquet hall where the prom was held. Silver and gold
sparkled from every corner of the room, right down to the over-the-top
chandeliers and balloons to the glittering confetti that covered the floors.

The prom was everything
Hunter imagined it to be. She hardly noticed the stares, which were no longer
disgusted. Her classmates now looked at her just like her customers in the
restaurant; curious and sometimes even enthralled. Everyone was suspicious that
she was the red-headed heroine who had run into the burning building. She was,
after all, involved in Miss Smart’s rescue. They’d be blind not to put the
pieces together.

Regardless, she ignored it
all. It was a magical night that she wished would never end. They danced each
song together. They laughed as they ate at a table with Eli’s friends. They
clapped and cheered for the awards given for ‘best dressed’ and ‘most likely
to’. Hunter delighted in every moment that she shared with Eli. She began to
wonder when things would start to go wrong again, because how could her life be
any more perfect?

“So how does it feel to be
graduating?” she asked as they swayed to the music on the dance floor beneath
the golden chandelier. Other couples around them were immersed in their own
conversations, or just simply enjoying the feel of being in each other’s arms.

“It’s been a long time
coming, that’s for sure,” he replied. “I just can’t wait to get out there and
start helping other causes. There’s a benefit at the aquarium next weekend.
We’re raising money for a trip to Canada to save the Polar bears.”

“For the love of Sushi, Eli,
could you be more selfless?”

He chuckled. “Did you want
me to start doing drugs or something?”

“No. But if you told me you
were an assassin, I wouldn’t care.”

“As a matter of fact, last
night when you were asleep I crept out of the house, flew in my jet to China
and battled against the Asian mafia. They were after an ancient Japanese relic
believed to have healing powers.”

“And did you retrieve said
relic?” she asked solemnly.

He sighed. “Unfortunately
no. We were sabotaged by Jackie Chan.”

They chuckled together,
swaying to Aerosmith and kissing sometimes. The dazzling lights and electric
disco ball cast a dream-like haze around them. They danced a while longer and
when the song was over, Eli offered to get some drinks. He kissed her on the
cheek.

“Try not to miss me,” he
whispered.

“That’s impossible.”

The crowd swallowed Eli and
an odd feeling of loneliness washed over her. Hunter moved through the throng
of swishing dresses to the chairs and tables decorated in white cloths and
beautiful candelabras. She sat at their empty table and took the time to absorb
the night. A popular song was playing, and the seniors and their dates were
jumping and laughing and dancing to the music. Everywhere she looked there were
smiles and laughter. She let herself relax and waited for Eli to return.

Instead, her pleasant moment
was interrupted by Clare Holloway.

“Hey Hunter,” she said
timidly, eyeing the seat beside her but not sitting down. She wore a pink silk
dress with a white sash around her waist. “Can we talk somewhere… private?”

Frowning, Hunter stood
immediately. This could only be about Jack, and Hunter had been worried sick
all week about him. She quickly scanned the crowd for Eli but saw no sight of
him. He was probably still making his way to the drinks table.

“Sure.” She and Clare
hurried out of the main auditorium and into an empty hallway. “Is this about
Jack?”

Clare’s honey brown eyes
saddened as they faced each other in the dim light. Hunter realized that Clare
didn’t look her usual bubbly, arrogant self. Her eyes were dark and hollow,
covered by make up to hide the bags. Her entire body sagged.

“Have you heard from him? He
went to the hospital to visit you on Sunday, and he hasn’t come home since.”

Hunter’s heart began to
pound with worry. “What?”

“I’m freaked out. It’s been
nearly a week. I’ve had to scrounge up food and called everyone Jack knows.”

“What about the police?”

Clare’s bottom lip shivered.
“I don’t want to lose him Hunter!” she sobbed. “If I call the police, it will
just prove how serious this is. If Jack is gone, I’ll have no family left.
None.”

“Hey-” Hunter put a comforting
hand on the young girl’s shoulder. She didn’t know how to reassure her, because
she didn’t know where Jack was. But she could promise to get him back. Because
after hearing nothing from Joshua all week, the doubt swirling inside her was
becoming clear. He had something to do with it. He had to. “Clare, I promise
you I’ll find him. I’m sure he’s just worried about his studies and has
forgotten to let you know. Just enjoy your night, okay?”

Clare let out a long, shaky
breath and nodded. “Okay.
Th
-thank you Hunter.”

“You’re welcome.”

Clare pulled out a compact
mirror. “I can’t believe I’m ruining my make-up. I have to look my best
tonight.”

Hunter smiled.
There’s
the Clare I know and… well, there’s the Clare I know.
“You look amazing.”

Clare beamed at her. “So do
you. And… if you do see Jack? Can you just tell him that I love him no matter
what?
He’ll know what I mean.” Hunter frowned in confusion, but nodded all the
same. “I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Sure.” Hunter watched her
hurry back to the prom and reached into her clutch. As much as she dreaded
this, she needed to talk to Joshua. If he knew where Jack disappeared to, only
she could get it out of him.

But there was already a
message from him in her inbox.

‘Hunter, I’m losing it. I
can’t stand this distance. I know you’re at Prom and I hope you’re having a
wonderful time but… please come back to me. I’m sorry for whatever I did to
upset you. I’m only doing what’s best for you. But I’m afraid that I can’t
control it anymore. I’m truly sorry.’

Hunter’s hands shook as she
lowered her phone and lifted her gaze. Her head was swimming. What did he mean
by that? As she stood in the corridor and ran through everything Joshua had
done since discovering her powers, a new message appeared on the screen of her
phone. She shakily opened the window and read the note.

‘I’ve got a surprise for
you. Meet me in room 23 on level 8. The key is in the pot plant. Love you.’

Hunter’s heart fluttered in excitement.
Just when she thought things were going to take a turn for the worst again, Eli
swooped in to save the night.
He did say he wanted to get me out of the
dress,
she thought to herself as she ran to the elevator.
Screw Prom,
I’ve got better things to do.

Hunter couldn’t keep her
breathing even as she took the elevator to level 8. The golden doors slid open
flawlessly to a long corridor with rows of doors. It was brightly lit and well
furnished, but she didn’t care. When she came to the end of the corridor, she
found room 23 and, as the text described, the key-card stuck up in the soil,
the fake fern looking dead and droopy. Hunter reached for the key and froze.

Wait a minute… Eli hates fake plants.
He
said so himself the night we met at the university benefit. It was just moments
before we left the hotel.

He
wouldn’t even touch this poor-looking decoration, let alone leave the key there
for Hunter to find. Then why-

The answer struck her like a
slap in the face. Miss Smart knew of her powers. Now she was dead. Jack also
held her secret in the palm of his hand, and he’d been missing for a week. The
only person left who knew the truth, the only person she cared about the most,
was Eli.

Hunter’s fingers closed
around the key card, her heart thumping, her eyes filling with tears she
couldn’t explain. Fear, perhaps. Even though she prayed to whoever was
listening that her hunch was wrong, she knew what she would find inside room
23. Her hands were clammy on the handle, and she braced herself before shoving
the door open and stepping inside.

It hit her like a thousand
shards of glass the moment she entered the apartment, sinking into her skin and
making it shrivel. Cold. The kind of cold that dwelled in the deepest pits of
the ocean, that froze inside an iceberg, the kind that washed away even the
most lethal flame. The suite was a silent so deadly, Hunter could only hear her
shallow breathing and the increasing pounding of her heart.

The evidence that spread
before her in a sheet of snow covering the room was more than enough to tell
her that her hunch was right. It was as if the roof of the apartment had been
removed, and a blanket of snow had fallen atop the furniture and the floor so
that everything was white, peaceful like death.

What kind of monster had
been here?

Hunter knew the answer as if
her conscience had put together the pieces and lit it up like a Christmas tree.

Joshua’s obsession with all
things cold.

The pale blue in his eyes.

His fear of fire and warmth.

Miss Smart’s shocking death
caused by some strange disease to do with frozen blood cells.

Her mother’s letter, the
warning signs, the video of Joshua injecting himself with her powers…

Hunter’s feet crunched on
the snow in the doorway and suddenly all became clear.

“Joshua is like me,” she whispered.

A sickening feeling of dread
boiled from within her and she realized it was the flame, curling in fear,
bubbling with panic and rising fast. It was impossible, but it made sense.

Joshua had a power, just
like her. Only his power was her opposite. She was fire. He was ice.

Joshua had been here. It was
a trap to bring her straight to him, or straight to something worse.

So she ran. Her heels
slipped across the marble floors of the entryway into the bright living room
where floor-length glass windows much like her own displayed a foggy view of
the city. Everything was covered in ice. Questions burst from her mind and she
prayed that Eli wasn’t there, that the snow didn’t come from who she knew in
her heart it belonged to and that this was all just a dream.

“Eli!” she screamed,
crossing to the kitchen. But no reply came. Hunter flew through the living room
to the bedroom door, leaving a trail of sizzling footprints. It was as if her
heart had stopped in anticipation, her fear of what lay behind the bedroom door
was darker than anything she’d ever experienced. Her hand shook as it rested on
the handle and she pushed it slowly open.