Vamped (6 page)

8

I
t was the weirdest thing. I’d never been to prison, but the bizarro-world I’d entered through those double-doors looked like one of those Club Fed kind of places where they kept the shoplifting starlets of the world. It was, like, a dormitory. Boys and girls living together, complete with product and accessories. It was enough to bring tears to my eyes—only when I wiped them away they were more plasma than saline, and it totally skeeved me out.

There were a ton of questions I wanted to ask—from who to how to when. It seemed like a cross-section of Mozulla High had been drop-kicked into Mellisande’s basement. Why in the world? Why kids? Why
us
?

But I didn’t get the chance to ask any of my questions, since Marcy quickly found a sink and dunked my head into it, scrubbing my hair to within an inch of its life. I relaxed into it. It was like the light at the end of the tunnel, making me realize I could have my life and cheat it to. Maybe I
didn’t
have to crash graduation to get my groove back, though I wasn’t giving up on the idea just yet. I still had friends. I wasn’t a total misfit, cut off from everything I cared about.

It seemed like all was right with the world … until Marcy had me fling my sopping wet head up out of the water and I came face to face with my arch nemesis since childhood. And behind her, nasty smirk on his face and hand on her waist, was my ex, Chaz. My non-beating heart sank right to my toes. It just figured that eternal life would come with a catch. Or with two, in this case.

Every girl has an image of how she’d like to face down her ex, and never does it involve looking like a drowned rat. Generally, there’s a
Miss Congeniality
–level makeover to be considered, and I was only on step one. But hey, since our breakup was fairly non-traditional, being that it involved separation by death, I guess our reunion fit right in.

Marcy froze when she saw them, but I flung my hair about a few more times, lashing them all with my run-off—even Marcy, who was cruising for a talk about priorities and what constituted need-to-know.

“Look, honey,” Tina said with a sneer. “It’s night of the living bed-head.”

I sneered right back. “Hey, if you’d come up with that on your own, I’d be impressed, but it looks like you get everything second hand.” My gaze flicked over to Chaz and then back to the very bane of my existence—bottle-blonder-than-thou Tina Carstairs, with her knock-off designer duds and her warm and fuzzy feelings about other girls’ boyfriends. She’d been throwing herself at Chaz for, like, ever, and lucky her, he’d finally made the catch.

Speaking of which, my ex-arm-candy didn’t seem any too happy to see me.

“I hear you traded down,” Tina continued, not smart enough to realize she was outmatched. “I knew you didn’t have any taste, but to go trolling with the chess club … ”

I grinned evilly, because, I mean,
come on
. “Have you
seen
Bobby recently?”

There was more to him than spankin’ new looks, but I had to put it in terms Tina would understand. Besides, if she knew I was really interested, he’d probably be next on her “to do” list.

Whatever response she was going to make died on her lips as the double doors slammed open.

I was guessing that Rick had been found.

9

M
arcy leapt back with a squeak, leaving only Tina to be pushed aside from her position up in my grill. I didn’t even have time to appreciate her indignation before two burly beefcakes grabbed my arms in vice-like grips. Yeah, because one beefcake wouldn’t have been enough. I could tell by their strength and perfection that at least smelly Melli had shown enough respect to send actual vamps. Thing One had this whole Polynesian-male-model thing cooking for him, and Thing Two looked like the slightly shaggy young professor girls fantasize about, right down to his button-up Oxford shirt and frame-hugging dockers. If I had to be manhandled, at least it was in style.

My first instinct was to fight like the wet cat I resembled, but that went against my new plan, which was to try to make a place for myself. So instead, I whipped my hair back out of my face, lashing the naughty professor’s chest and leaving a honking big wet spot across his spiffy white shirt. “I’m ready,” I announced.

Thing One and Thing Two exchanged a look of disbelief and tightened up, like my very passivity showed I was up to something. But it was the look on Marcy’s face I was worried about. Her eyes had gone as wide as saucers. Far from defending me, she looked like I might be armed and dangerous or have some kind of communicable skin disease. It hurt. I wondered what kind of sweet deal the others had here that she’d react so badly to me causing trouble. I made a mental note to ask—if I was ever allowed back.

“Misunderstanding,” I told her. “I’ll be back.”

Melli’s thugs didn’t look too sure of that as they dragged me off with them, down the hall and up some stairs, totally ignorant of the realities of walking in a skirt and heels.

“
Slow down
,” I ordered. “If I break a leg on these heels, you’re gonna end up carrying me.”

They ignored that entirely.

For the second time that night I was trapped in Melli-noma’s office. Thing One buckled my knees with pressure to the backs, bringing me to the floor. There really was no need to put me on the ground, since I was totally going along with them—unless it was, like, a power thing. And going along was not going to be quite as easy as I’d thought, ’cause now I was spitting mad. And if there was one thing I hated—besides pleather and wannabees like Tina Carstairs—it was biting my tongue.

Kneeling just a few feet away from me was Rick. It looked like he felt a bit differently about the whole thing—about-to-pee-his-pants frightened, in fact. I was betting
he’d
say … or not say … whatever it took to save his bacon. I wondered what that would be, and whether this was about to become some lame he-said/she-said session, ’cause I wasn’t exactly Melli’s golden child.

Bobby was still in the office, held back from coming to me by one of Melli’s perfectly manicured talons. On Melli’s other side stood Connor, looking like maybe things had just gotten interesting.

My eyes narrowed. “Get your hands off my boyfriend,” I told the witch.
Crap
, this mouth was going to get me into trouble. How hard could it be to play nice?

But Mellisande ignored me, just as her thugs had. “You’ve caused quite a bit of trouble already,” she began, now stroking Bobby’s arm instead of merely gripping it. He shook, oddly, but didn’t draw back. I shot him a
look
. If that was the way the cookie crumbled, maybe I should have run off with Rick. The very thought made my lip curl. “Make no mistake. Regardless of how attached this one is to you,” she gave Bobby’s arm a final squeeze, and I wondered why he didn’t snarl at being treated like a piece of meat, “I
will
kill you if you give me any more cause. But first,” she turned on Rick, “I want to hear why you were where you weren’t supposed to be.”

Rick’s eyes rolled like he was looking for rescue. “I was just … just … checking on a former classmate. That’s all. And she jumped me.” The not-making-eye-contact thing screamed “fishy” to me, but of course, I’d been there.

“Rick,
look
at me.” Apparently, Melli thought so too. There was some serious extra weight to her words, and Rick’s gaze snapped up to hers in the blink of an eye. “
Tell me
,” she continued, with that same strange emphasis. My skin pricked with goose bumps. My dripping hair chilling my skin, maybe? But I didn’t think so.

“I offered her a deal,” he said, all creepy monotone. “Her freedom for my transformation. She said no.”

All eyes in the room turned on me. I could even feel the thugs behind me staring in disbelief.

“What?” I asked. “Like I was really going to bite
him?
As if.” I thought fast. No way was I bringing Bobby into this after he’d let the witch paw him. “Plus, I’m kind of interested in the setup you’ve got here. It has certain perks.” I gave Connor a wink, just to give Bobby some of his own back.

Mellisande eyed me like a brightly colored bug, pretty but best pinned to a board under glass. “So you think I’ll make you a better offer?”

I crossed my arms. “I don’t think the competition’s very fierce.”

“Let me … ungh … talk to her,” Bobby said through clenched teeth. I wondered if Melli somehow had him frozen, and
that’s
why he was letting her play around. I instantly felt badly about giving Connor that wink, and my blood began to boil.

Melli smiled, and it wasn’t a nice one. She looked from Bobby to me, those pearly whites flashing like she was some kind of toothpaste ad with a brilliant punch line.

“You’ve got five minutes. In return, I expect full cooperation. I can enforce it, as Bobby has just found out, but it’ll be so much easier on all of us if I don’t have to. If I grow weary, I’ll simply take it out on you,” she said, spearing me with her gaze, which might have been intimidating if I was, like, six, or if her eyes glowed red—but they stayed that same cornflower blue, which was hard to take seriously.

So I just stared her down. With a snap, she summoned Connor to come with her as she walked toward the door of her office. I saw resentment flare on his face.

“Bring the boy,” she called over her shoulder. Rick’s guards grabbed him, one on each arm, and hauled him kicking and screaming toward the door.

“What’s going to happen to him?” Bobby called suddenly, free of his paralysis and stumbling forward with the unexpected release.

“Not your concern,” she answered.

Given the whole looming-threat thing, it wasn’t the reunion it could have been, but I still rushed into Bobby’s arms. He held me so tightly it was a good thing I didn’t need to breathe. After a second, though, he pulled back.

“What was with that wink?”

I winced. “I was just trying to get even because you were letting the dragon lady claw you.”

He pulled back even farther so he could see my face. “You were jealous!”

I blushed. “We have five minutes and
this
is what you want to talk about?” I asked.

He had a smug guy-grin on his face. “Well … yeah. That and if you want any freedom around here you’re going to have to play nice.”

“That
was
me playing nice.”

“Oh … um, then I’ve got to say, you kind of suck at it.”

“Thanks.”

“Well, I mean—”

“Relax. I know. Meanwhile, do
you
know that your sugar mama has a buttload of our recently deceased classmates hiding out in the basement?”

“Yeah, she sort of said something about that in between crap about party-crashing bimbos and how prophecies ought to come with time stamps. She called it an orientation, but it sounded more like ranting to me.”

“Did she say anything about why she’s collecting kids?”

“Let me think. Blah blah blah … honored guest … blah blah blah … use my talents … No, I don’t think so.”

I’m sure my eyes flashed. “Is that how you hear women—
blah blah blah?”

I could actually see the white all around his eyes. “No, no, just her.
You
I listen to.”

“Riiight.”

“I do. Remember in tenth grade when you and Tanya and that other girl did the Su Surrus song ‘Bite Me’ for the spring talent show?”

“The one where Tanya forgot half the moves?”

He nodded. “I bought the video tape. Watched it, listened to it, probably every week for a year.”

That was so totally sweet … in a kinda geeky, desperate sort of way.

“And hey, I did all right on those clothes I brought you, right?” he added.

I softened; I mean, I had to throw the poor guy a bone. “Okay, maybe, but if I find out you’re glossing me—”

“Hell to pay, right?”

“Totally.” I let that sink in before asking, “So, why is Melli-noma giving you the royal treatment? Does it have anything to do with that glowy stone?” I asked.

“Maybe, that and the prophecy.”

“You mean the one that ought to come with a time stamp? That’s about you?”

“Um, yeah, I think so. Haven’t I mentioned it?”

“
No
, I would have remembered.”

A bang on the door made me jump, and I figured it was a warning that our time was running out.

“I know it’s hard,” he continued, “but maybe we should give this thing a shot.”

“What about Rick?” I asked, not liking the guy but not loving the idea of what Mellisande might do to him. I remembered Rick saying, “If you’re not one of hers, you’re no one.”

Bobby shrugged. “He got himself into trouble. I guess he can get himself out. Anyway, I don’t see what we can do right now but watch and learn. Maybe we can figure out how to use our powers for good.”

It was such a Bobby thing to say. And it was what I’d been thinking … more or less, anyway. But despite my resolve, I wasn’t sure how long I’d be able to hold my tongue or delay settling up with Hawkman over the little matter of my death.

The office door slammed open and the two beefcake thugs from earlier stood in its place. Behind them was Connor, who seemed to be Melli’s right-hand man.

“Time’s up,” Connor announced. “Bobby’s needed in training.”

“What about me?” I asked, hand automatically going to a hip.

“What about you?” he asked back.

I wasn’t used to being the one ignored, and it was a crappy, crappy feeling. At school, half the girls had wanted to be me, and the guys mostly wanted my digits. I flung my hair, but nearly dry it was no longer the weapon it had been. “I was in the middle of something anyway.”

“Take her,” Connor ordered.

But before they could, I stretched up to give Bobby a kiss. His tongue darted between my lips, sending tingles all over, and then I was peeled away.

Thing One and Thing Two dragged me right back down to general population and tossed me in.

“Keep an eye on her,” Thing One ordered the room at large. “Team Alpha, you’re with us.”

Half the room cleared out, pouring around me but not too close, like I might be contagious. Weirdly, they headed not toward the door but toward the back wall. The other kids cleared to the edges of the room, like someone had dripped soap into a greasy pot. I watched in disbelief as Things One and Two rapped out a little ditty on the floor, and the panel under their hands peeled back.