Time's Daughter (13 page)

“
I’d introduce you to my little
sister but she’s at a friend’s house tonight,” Alex
said.

No one mentioned the others that had been in the
room when I’d first arrived, blindfolded and bound. Where had they
gone? Were they not part of the “clan”?

I glanced around. “Where are all the cameras?”

Alex was part of the same documentary I was in. That
meant the entire house ought to be wired with cameras. But I’d seen
none. I hadn’t really been looking but it stood to reason that they
couldn’t kidnap me while being recorded.

“
There and there.” Alex pointed out
the little digital eyes. “Everywhere.”

“
Did they…”

“
Drew hacked the feeds the day they
were installed. We control what Mark sees.”

“
Oh.”

“
Do want something to drink?” Drew
asked helpfully.

“
No, thanks.” I dropped my eyes
again and spoke tentatively. “My mom is going to be worried if I’m
not home soon.”

“
Alex will take you home, whenever
you’re ready,” Arthur gestured beside me.

I bravely lifted my gaze. “If you don’t mind, I’d
like to go home now. I might be able to beat her home.”

The patriarch gave a regal nod. “Of course.”

“
My car is out back.” Alex gestured
to the French doors at the back of the room.

“
It was…interesting meeting you
all,” I said before stepping toward the doors.

Arthur chuckled with good-natured mirth. “Our next
meeting will be on better terms, Aeon. This I promise.”

I murmured good night as I stepped outside. The
youngest waved with a smile then twisted back to the fire.

Alex crowded me out, closed the door behind us and
walked across the deck we’d emerged onto. Down the stairs into what
sounded like a gravel drive he walked. I followed several feet
behind him.

“
Be our downfall and he doesn’t
care,” a snarling female voice echoed from within what I assumed
was their garage.

“
He cares,” a male voice said. “He
thinks what he is doing is right.”

Yet another male voice answered impatiently. “You
always defend him, Aaron.”

The response from the first male voice was sour.
“And somehow I’m always outcast with you two.”

“
My car is just over there,” Alex
said far louder than he needed to. I assumed it was for their
benefit.

The trio inside immediately ceased their discussion.
One by one the intimidating figures emerged from the darkness.
Their raven hair, dark eyes and penetrating gazes were all
hallmarks of the clan. The suspicious glares they gave me weren’t.
I stood stiffly while they walked around us into the house.

“
Let me back it up first.” Alex
disappeared into the pitch-black garage.

The headlights flipped on and I could see that it
was a four-car garage much like every other except theirs actually
had four cars within instead of seasonal storage like most. The
black Chevy Cobalt backed up beside me. Alex reached over and
unlocked the door for me then sat back to wait.

I got in quickly, but only because I’d rather get
home than remain where I was. Sitting in a car alone with him was
the price I had to pay to get there.

He backed around the house, turned in a hundred and
eighty degree angle in front of the van they’d used to kidnap me
then started down a narrow driveway. Several turns, bumpy roads and
miles passed before I realized the Chattan family must live near
the lake on the outskirts of Junction Hill.

Alex broke the silence once we’d pulled onto a
smoother road. “Do you like Indie?”

I glanced over at him in confusion. “Indy?”

He gestured at his stereo. “Indie rock or
independent music.”

“
Oh.” A moment later I was able to
give a better reply. “I like some of it.”

He reached forward, turning up the volume on his
stereo. One of the songs Stan had given me that week played in the
background. I wondered if Alex had heard it before I’d gotten the
CD from my music buddy.

Once again I had dozens of questions.

Did his entire family shapeshift?
Even the
ones that didn’t like me? What about his little sister? Why were
three of his family members upset about the decision to protect me
instead of kill me? And how could a black panther hope to protect
me from a rogue witch or vampire? Had he ever seen one?

I didn’t dare ask any of those. Instead I sat in the
passenger seat mutely staring out the window all the way to
downtown Junction Hill. My hand was ready on the door handle when
he pulled up outside our apartment building.

“
See you tomorrow.” Alex waved as I
stepped out of the car in front of our apartment.

I waved in distraction while looking up at our
windows. They were dark. I didn’t know what time it was but that
either meant my mother hadn’t gotten home yet or she’d already gone
to bed. Either way, it was a good sign.

I unlocked the door, stepped through and saw the
open bedroom doors. The DVD player’s green LED readout said it was
nine fifteen. My mother would be home in forty-five minutes.

After tossing the note I’d written into the trash I
retreated to the bedroom. Time to attempt my homework once
again.

I was no closer to a finished paper when my mom got
home than I had been when I’d sat to read. With a sigh I got up to
greet her.

She chattered about her day, a particularly rude
customer and how she’d paid the last two hundred dollars on one of
her medical bills thanks in part to my bonus. It was very good news
but not nearly enough to make-up for the day I’d had. We hugged
goodnight and went into our respective bedrooms.

I flopped onto my bed and stared at the wall. It
would be another long night. Each time I closed my eyes I saw the
piecing gaze of a black panther with steel blue irises. That was
enough to keep anyone awake.

CHAPTER
ELEVEN

It was my
turn to play the avoidance game. I couldn’t look Alex in the eye
the following day without seeing the
black panther
. So I
didn’t look at him at all.

Evasion was easy in history class because I arrived
moments before Mr. Zimmerman began lecturing. Alex seemed to have
been watching the door in concern. His shoulders relaxed when Guy
and I appear around the corner. I intentionally walked in front of
the class to get to my seat in an effort to avoid him.

Lunch would be more difficult. He knew the few
places I went to hide from my friends. He also knew who they were
and where they sat in the lunchroom. I would have to find a new
place to hang out.

I headed to the photography studio after the fourth
period bell rang in the hope that I could catch Mrs. Lozano before
she left to eat.

“
Hi, Aeon,” she said with a smile.
Her hand was on the studio door as though she’d been about to shut
it. “Do you need in?”

I shook my head. “I was hoping to talk to you for a
minute.”

“
Sure, what’s up?”

“
I’m already finished with my
project. Now I’m just taking up space and chemicals by printing
stuff I don’t really need. Is there any chance I can cut class so I
can finish my AP History homework?”

Mrs. Lozano nodded. “Sure, I owe you a free period
anyway.”

“
Thanks. I really appreciate
it.”

“
No problem.” The older woman smiled
warmly. “Good luck with your homework.”

We waved to each other then departed in different
directions. I took the back hallways to the school library. Maybe
there’d be enough material about my history topic there that I
could finish what I’d neglected to do the evening before. More
importantly I hoped Alex wouldn’t think to check for me in the
library.

Guy settled in to record two hours of a dull
performance. I printed the paper for Friday on the library printer
with two minutes to spare. Guy and I hurried to drawing class
across the school. I pushed through the door minutes after the bell
had rung.

“
Tomorrow we’re doing critique of
the still life drawings you’ve done,” Mrs. Finch said as I hastily
fetched my drawing from the rack.

I looked down at what I had and frowned. With the
deadline over my head, I worked feverishly to make up for the two
days I’d been distracted. At the end of the period I had a finished
piece that was a poor example of my skill but it was a finished
piece all the same.

Unintentionally I had forgotten my things for gym.
Guy and I had to hightail it to my locker and then to the
locker-room. I stepped onto the field out of breath and dismayed
that we were still playing something that required mesh shirts.

I pulled the shirt over my t-shirt and pretended I
hadn’t seen Alex starting for me. He’d not been wearing a mesh
shirt. He wouldn’t be able to follow me to the end zone. When I
turned around again I caught him watching me with a frown before I
glanced away. After that point Alex concentrated on playing the
game of soccer.

Class dragged on. Finally the bell rang. Guy and I
walked speedily from the locker room, out the door and toward
Burning Idea. My trepidation grew the closer we got to my after
school job.

Would Felix ask me for the money back?
Had
they gotten Trey’s arm stitched up? Would Alex attack someone
else?

Now that I knew what the new kid was, I had to
reconsider the attack on Trey. How had Alex been able to scratch
him without shifting into a big cat? Could he shift parts of
himself without a full transformation? Did the fact that he could
turn into panther explain how he was able to run faster than a
normal human?

Felix was arguing with a customer when I walked
through the door. “Never had talking Invader Zim key chains.”

“
Not Invader Zim,” the woman said.
“His dog, Gir.”

“
We’ve never had talking key chains
period.”

I grabbed one of the items the woman was asking
after on my way to the register. “Maybe I can help.” I smiled at
them both and then nodded toward the back room.

Felix took a few steps back so I could take the
counter. I waited until he disappeared into the back before pulling
the key chain out and hitting the button that made the plastic box
speak a quote from the television show.

“
That’s it!” The woman jabbed a
finger toward where Felix had gone. “That guy is an
idiot.”

“
Were you looking for anything
else?”

“
No. This is what my daughter
wanted.”

“
Good choice.” I smiled and rung up
the purchase.

With the customer happily on her way I did a circuit
around the store, tidying up the displays. As usual, my two-day
absence meant the place was a mess. Guy hovered around me taking
noticeable shots of my actions from new positions. It annoyed me,
but not enough to gripe at him.

At the end of the evening I hadn’t seen Trey. Felix
had neglected to mention anything about the hundred and twenty
dollars he’d given me. Guy and I took lower Eagle Drive to the
apartment at quarter after nine. Though neither of us mentioned the
attack on Saturday night we were both more aware of our
surroundings while we picked through the darkened streets.

I felt eyes on me at all times. There was little
doubt what was watching me but I didn’t know which of the
black-haired, steel blue eyed creatures it was.

Protected wasn’t what I felt. I felt stalked.

* * * *

“
William wants to go to the lake.”

“
Isn’t it a bit cold to go to the
lake?”

Jenny’s question had been the wrong response.
Ashley’s glare proved that. I turned my head so I could roll my
eyes without being seen. The movement was an unfortunate one
because I caught Alex’s eye because of it.

He was seated alone across the lunchroom with the
cameraman standing a short distance behind him. The expression on
his face was grim as he watched me. I faced forward and dropped my
gaze to my tray.

“
The Mount Washington is still
running,” Ashley said with a disgusted snort. “Besides, if it’s
cold, who do you think will warm me up? I think it will be
romantic.”

“
Lake Winnipesaukee is boring in the
summer,” Jenny said. “I can’t imagine how bad it would be if the
slides and arcades were shut down.”

“
Lake Winnipesaukee is not boring in
the summer.” Jen’s lifting pitch emphasized her dismay. “Fun Spot?
Hello?”

“
Pffft.” Jenny snorted. “A glorified
bowling alley. We have a bowling alley in Junction Hill. We don’t
need to drive two hours to bowl there for twice as
much.”

“
And like five different kinds of
Pac Man, dozens of games, indoor golfing, miniature golf, go carts,
pizza. Plus there’s the beach and boating. You’re crazy if you
think it’s boring. Junction Hill is boring.”

“
I gotta agree with Jen,” I said.
“Lake Winnipesaukee was always fun when we went during the summer.
The Hill is pretty damn boring.”
Or at least it was until
shapeshifting southerners moved in.

“
In
any
case,” Ashley said
sharply. “William’s family has a sailboat. We’re going to go
sailing too.”

“
Sailing on the lake when it’s forty
degrees? What fun,” Jenny drawled sarcastically.

“
You have to ruin everything just
because you’re jealous, don’t you?”

My eyebrow lifted. It was one of the most
hypocritical things she’d ever said. None of us spoke. Eventually
she sighed and took her tray to the trash.