Vampires Rule (21 page)

She was cute when she babbled. He stopped
walking, touched her face and smiled. With gentle fingers he traced
her jaw line and smoothed over her lips. Her eyes finally met his.
He said, “I think we’re a couple.”

A huge smile transformed her face. “Okay.
Cool.”

“And I think we should meet in the school
parking lot tomorrow. We’ll walk in together like a real
couple.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah. I’ll put my arm around you like this.”
He demonstrated by placing his arm around her shoulders. “Then
we’ll go inside. I’ll walk you to all your classes and carry your
books, and we’ll eat lunch together every day.”

They continued on the slow walk to his
brother’s car. Far too soon, they reached their destination. He
sighed and leaned against the side of it. She joined him. They
stood next to each other in silence for what seemed like forever.
He didn’t want to leave, but he had to. It was getting late, and
Billy would worry.

“I’m glad we’re a couple,” she said.

He was too. Unbelievably glad. He turned to
her, cupped her face before he kissed her. It was a gentle kiss,
like wings of a butterfly. His eyes didn’t close, but merely took a
long blink. As his lids were lowering he caught sight of something
unusual down the street. Several seconds passed before the image
registered in his brain.

Summer?

Summer was watching them.

Jack’s head snapped up, but it was too late.
She was gone. He sniffed the air in the hopes his vampire scent of
smell had returned. He couldn’t smell her, and he couldn’t see her.
She’d probably gone home to the abandoned house they were staying
in. Knowing Summer, she would have a fit. She’d throw a few things
in a wild tantrum. Then she’d get dangerous. She’d want to kill
Silver.

Silver asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” He didn’t want to freak her out.
“Better get inside. It’s cold out here.”

Her eyes narrowed on him, but she nodded. She
hurried inside while he jumped in the car and started the engine.
He made sure Silver was safely behind locked doors before he left.
He also took another quick look around for Summer to be sure she
was gone.

****

Jack drove straight to the abandoned
house.

Even in the dark the place looked hideous.
The house had once been painted blue, but the parts that hadn’t
peeled off were now a dull gray. Most of the windows were broken.
The torn remains of a dirty white curtain hung out one of the
ground floor windows, gently blowing in the breeze.

Jack climbed the broken steps. The screen
door had been almost completely ripped off since his last visit. It
dangled from a solitary screw at the top. The main door was shut,
but the locks were busted. Jack pushed it open, entering without
knocking. His friends were vampires, so they probably already knew
he was there.

He walked over the litter-covered floor into
the living room. His friends had taken the dust covers off the
furniture. One of them had set a small radio on the fireplace
mantle. The volume was turned down low. Someone had recently been
in the room, but it was empty now. Were they hiding from him?

“Summer!” he shouted. “I want to talk to
you.”

Someone flew past him, striking him on the
cheek. His anger burned. It had to be Summer. She wasn’t going to
face him. She’d rather play games. He wished he had more of his
power back so he could take her on and survive.

Again she whipped by him, hitting him in the
back this time. She returned at lightning speed. This time she hit
him with something, a hard object to the knees. He went down on the
floor and gritted his teeth together to keep from crying out in
pain. Before he could recover, she struck him in the head with the
weapon.

Color exploded behind his eyes. He thought he
actually saw stars like a cartoon character. Pain sliced through
him from one ear to the other. He shut his eyes against a wave of
dizziness. A trickle of blood made a line down the side of his
face. He had no chance winning a fight with her now. He waited for
the final blow, the one that would kill him.

Lily appeared in front of him, blocking him
from Summer’s wrath. The hem of her long floral dress brushed his
face as she shouted into the air. “Stop it! I won’t let you hurt
him. He’s my friend.”

“Traitor!” Summer yelled from somewhere deep
in the bowels of the old house. “If you care about him, make him
leave.”

Lily spun around, grabbed Jack under the arms
and helped him to his feet. She brushed the dirt off his knees.
“Are you okay?” When he nodded, she grinned. “Still enjoying being
human?”

“It has its moments.”

Jack went to the uncovered sofa and sat on
it. He needed time to catch his breath. Lily crossed over to sit
next to him. She placed a hand on his thigh and smiled at him. He
covered her hand with his. It was good to have at least one friend
with powers.

“Thanks,” he said. “Where’s Cowboy?”

She shrugged. “I have no idea. I was out
running in the field. It feels so good to have the moonlight on my
face and the wind in my hair.” Her smile faded. “What’s it like to
feel the sun? I think out of everything I miss the sun the most.
Describe it for me.”

“It’s a big ball of fire in the sky.”

His lame description removed every trace of
happiness from Lily’s face.

Jack’s gaze traveled to the rickety
staircase. He wanted to go up and have a talk with Summer, maybe
threaten her life if she didn’t leave Silver alone, but Lily
deserved better from him. The least he could do was share the sun
with her.

“Sorry,” he said. “The first day I woke to
the feeling of sunlight on my hand. The warmth is incredible like a
million hugs from your favorite person. Then I leaned out the
window and looked at it. The sky didn’t look real, more like a
watercolor painting. There were colors like yellow, orange, pink,
and maybe a splash of purple. They blended in perfect harmony.”

Lily’s eyes sparkled. “I wish I could see it
too. How did it feel the first time the warmth of the sun touched
your skin?”

“Scary beyond all belief.” She giggled while
he explained the circumstances. “I had no idea I wasn’t a vampire
anymore. When I woke up and the sunlight was on my hand, I totally
freaked. I thought I was going to burst into flames, but once I
learned the truth, I went to the window and let it touch me full
force. It felt incredible. There are no words to describe it. I’m
sorry.”

“It’s okay. You did a good job.” She went to
the fireplace and picked up the radio before playing with the
dials. “You’re lucky to have this second chance. I know Cowboy and
Summer don’t agree, but that’s what I think. I would give anything
to feel the sunlight again. It’s what I miss most. Not my family or
my old life. I barely remember them. Anyway, my parents are
probably dead by now.

“They were already old when I was born, early
forties I think. I had a younger brother, but he’s probably dead
too. I didn’t like him anyway. I remember him sticking his tongue
out all the time and he put a lizard in my lunchbox once. We didn’t
get along.”

“Most siblings don’t,” he said. “Billy and I
used to fight over everything. He followed me around, got in the
way. Sometimes I felt like I couldn’t breathe. My mom used to tell
me I should be glad to have a little brother who looked up to me,
but I didn’t think so. Now he’s older and loves bossing me around.
It’s hard.”

Lily frowned. “That doesn’t sound good. You
should tell him some of the things you did with us. Your older than
him both mentally and emotionally if not physically. You have lived
longer than him. You have seen things most mortals never do. He
should show you respect.”

Jack couldn’t agree more. “We’re working
things out. It will be okay as long as he doesn’t revert to
form.”

His eyes went back to the stairs.

“Why did you come?” Lily asked. “Why do you
need to see Summer, and why is she mad at you?”

“She threatened this girl I know, and she was
watching us tonight. I’m here to make sure Summer doesn’t hurt
anyone I care about.”

Lily sang, “Jack is in lo-ove.”

“I am not.”

“I saw it in the cards, moron. You’re in love
with the girl in the fuzzy pink sweater, the one I warned you to
stay away from. Am I right?”

“I wouldn’t pay too much attention to those
cards if I were you. They were wrong before. Obviously I didn’t
die.”

“Death comes in many forms. Your vampire-self
died, and you were reborn as a mortal, so the cards were right. I’m
happy you didn’t listen to me though. I’m glad you have the girl in
the fuzzy sweater.”

They talked some more about the good old days
and shared a few laughs. He missed Lily the most. He and Lily had
always had a special bond. It was good to be with someone who would
love him no matter what. Lily hugged him.

“Maybe I should be jealous of you, Lily.”
Summer spoke from the doorway. “Not the little human girl.”

Jack released Lily and stood to face his
former girlfriend. Summer wore a disinterested expression, but he
wasn’t fooled. She had come down for answers. She wanted him to
tell her what she saw meant nothing, wanted him to reassure
her.

“Leave Silver alone or else,” he said.

“Is that really her name or does she use a
nickname too?”

“She is Silver, the werewolf hunter. She’s a
legend, has her own book and everything.”

Summer made a face of disgust. “Is that what
turns you on now?”

“She has a family of hunters. She has me. She
has my brother and his hunting friends. Do you really want to take
us all on? You’ll lose.”

Summer turned and slowly walked to the bottom
of the staircase. She faced him once her foot was on the bottom
step. “Fine. I’ll stay away from her. I’m not the one you should be
worried about anyway.”

“Meaning?”

A malicious smile curved her lips. “Cowboy
has taken matters into his own hands. He’s probably killing the
little tramp as we speak.”

****

Jack drove like a maniac, praying the whole
way he wouldn’t be too late. He made it to Silver’s house in record
time and immediately spotted his former friend. Cowboy stood on the
other side of the street, propped up against a telephone pole,
waiting on Jack. He had a bottle of booze in his hand. Tossing it
into the air and catching it several times, he didn’t seem to be in
a hurry to talk to Jack.

Was he drinking?

Vampires were allergic to alcohol, so that
couldn’t be it. Jack didn’t take the time to turn the engine off.
He jumped out and sprinted over to Cowboy. His eyes went straight
to the bottle, checked it out. It was filled with whiskey. Jack’s
eyes narrowed on Cowboy’s face. Cowboy wasn’t the type to hurt
himself to spite someone else, so there had to be a plan involving
the alcohol. Maybe he was going to force it down Jack’s throat to
make him sick.

“I was beginning to think you weren’t going
to show,” Cowboy said.

“You’re pissed at me. I get that. Take it out
on me, not Silver and her family.”

Cowboy gaped at him. “You really have a thing
for these people, don’t you? Hah! I thought Summer was just being
Summer when she told me you had hooked up with this girl. And she’s
a hunter? What is wrong with you? We were buddies, but you have
spit in my face for the last time.”

Jack steeled himself for a fight. Summer
could play with him, knock him down a few times, but Cowboy could
tear him in two without breaking a sweat, and they both knew
it.

Only Cowboy didn’t attack him.

Instead, Cowboy turned away from Jack and
opened the bottle. Before Jack could gauge his intentions, Cowboy
cocked his arm. He threw the bottle across the street. There was a
rag stuffed into the top, and it was burning with an orange flame.
The bottle crashed through the Reign’s living room window.

With a sudden burst of speed Jack didn’t
think he was capable of any longer, he flew across the street and
into the house. He was inside before the bottle hit the floor. He
could have caught it, could have stopped the fire from spreading,
but shock kept him from thinking straight. Standing frozen in the
entryway, he watched in horror as the area rug ignited.

Jack watched in horror as the drapes caught
fire. The scorching heat sucked the air from his lungs, making it
almost impossible to breathe. Sweat broke out on his entire body.
He considered trying to put the fire out, but it was spreading so
fast he felt it would be a waste of time. Silver’s home would burn
to the ground in a matter of minutes, and the entire family was
upstairs asleep.

Flames nibbled at the furniture.

Jack hurried up the stairs.

Andrew jerked his bedroom door open as Jack
reached the second floor. “What in the hell is going on?”

“The house is on fire!” Jack would save blame
for later. “You need to get out quick.”

Vanessa yelled, “Silver!”

“I’ll get her,” Jack said. “Take the back
stairs.”

Andrew said, “I have to get the diary. Go,
Vanessa! Call the fire department. I’ll meet you outside.”

“I’m not going anywhere without you.”

Jack left them in mid-argument and rushed to
Silver’s room. He burst through the door, found her slipping into a
baby-blue robe. A startled cry burst passed her lips, and her wide
eyes landed on his face.

“What’s going on?” she asked.

“Fire. Grab whatever you can, and let’s get
out of here.”

Her stunned gaze drifted around the room,
slowly moving from one item to the next. She stood frozen. The only
part of her that moved was her throat as she swallowed several
times. She wasn’t trying to save anything—so Jack did. He went to
her closet and grabbed several pieces of her clothing, yanking each
item off the hangers. He hurried to the window and tossed them
out.