Bite Me! (11 page)

“Oh, and one more thing. When Ryan gets back, be sure that my stereo is blasting with something angsty. And if it slams his current choice of a girlfriend, you'll get bonus points.”

They both giggled and wandered into the house singing, “Don't ya wish your girlfriend was hot like me; Don't ya wish your girlfriend was a freak like me; Don't ya?”

Freak. That was the truth of it all right there. Lindsey was a lot of things, but there was no way in hell she was a freak like me.

“W
here to?” Malia asked as she spit gravel with the tires and pulled out of my driveway.

“I haven't thought that far ahead. Anywhere is better than here,” I said, glancing out the window. He was there. I couldn't see him, but he was there.

“AJ, I think this is a bad idea. I don't mean to be a prude here, but your mom is gonna be pissed off and you'll be screwed,” Bridget said.

She was right, but honestly, I didn't care. “I know, Bridge. Hopefully, the twins will be able to cover for me and if Momma finds out, well, I'll just deal with it when it happens. Does anyone have any aspirin? My birthmark hurts so much right now, it feels like it's growing.”

Malia looked at me a little funny and handed me her purse. “Help yourself.”

We drove through town for about an hour, stopping at the local Sonic rip-off for chili-cheese dogs and vanilla malts.

“Hey, I just realized the time,” Bridget said. “I've got to get to Grady's house. We're studying tonight.”

“You seem to ‘study' a lot these days.” I laughed.

“Ha-ha. I'll have you know we really do study. It's just, sometimes I'm sitting on his lap at the same time.”

I shot her a look.

“
Fully clothed
. We haven't gone there yet. And I don't plan to for a while. I really like him,” she said with a goofy little smile. “Malia, can you take me back to school so I can pick up my car?”

Malia's phone rang, so she just nodded as she answered the call. “Hello?”

We could hear someone talking frantically on the other end, but we couldn't make out the conversation.

“That's so cool! We'll be right there!”

She closed her phone and started the car. “AJ, that was Mr. Charles! He said he tried to call you but he just got your voice mail. The bookstore lady found two more scrolls and he thinks he's discovered something in them.”

“Awesome. Where is he?” I asked, digging my phone out of my purse. “Hm. He must've dialed the wrong number. I don't have any missed calls. How did he get your number?”

She looked at me. “He's the class sponsor. Why wouldn't he have my number? Anyway, he's at school. So we'll take Bridget to her car so she can have her face time with Grady and I'll go with you to Mr. Charles's room.”

Bridget's face took on a severe expression. “AJ, I know I sound like a broken record here, but—” she managed to say before Malia interrupted her.

“But are you sure this is a good idea? Wah, wah, wah! When did you become such a damn goody-goody?” she asked.

“I'm not a goody-goody. But she's suspended! If she gets caught on campus for any reason, her suspension could be doubled, or worse, she could be expelled! That's a bigger freakin' deal than just not listening to her mom, Malia. Jesus. When did you become such a bitch?”

“Okay, you two. That's enough. Bridget, I'll be with Mr. Charles, who I'm sure will come to my defense if I need him to. Besides, this is for my thesis, so it's important. And hell, I'm already in this much trouble, what's a
little more? Now, do you wanna come with us? I'd really like you to be there.”

I did want her there. This was important to me, and even though I couldn't tell her why it was so important, I needed my best friend with me.

Bridget sighed. “I want to, I really do. But we have a quiz tomorrow, and I know you think we're not studying, but we are. Mom has already told me I don't get to go to Spain with the Spanish Club if I don't make straight A's. So I have to study. Will you fill me in tomorrow? Every detail?”

Disappointment sizzled in my belly. “Of course.”

She leaned over the backseat and hugged me, then whispered in my ear, “Be careful. I really think this is a bad idea.”

I nodded and squeezed her neck once more.

“Who put a bug in her butt?” Malia asked as she drove around to the far end of campus.

“She's just worried because I haven't been myself this week,” I replied. Have I ever really been myself?

“No shit. It's kinda hard to be yourself when you're being questioned for murder.”

“Stop being so dramatic. I'm not a suspect. They just
suspect
I'm covering for Ryan. Which I totally am, even
though I don't know why. He might be an asshole, but there is no way he hurt Noah like that.”

“Are you one hundred percent sure about that?” she asked, parking her car right next to Mr. Charles's.

Despite the fact that he had motive, had the time, and had bruised and bloodied knuckles, I
was
surprisingly sure he had not hurt Noah. “One thousand percent sure.”

It was strange, this lack of doubt. I couldn't explain it other than to say that I knew he was innocent like I know I'm a vampire. It's just inside me. And I had to fight for him, even if Ryan couldn't fight for me.

Mr. Charles met us at the door wearing a big dimpled smile. I don't know how he hadn't managed to find himself a wife. He must be high maintenance or gay.

No way was he gay. No way.

“Hey, ladies. C'mon in.”

The heavy door slammed shut behind us, chasing the echoes of our footsteps with its hollow clang.

We walked past Mr. Charles's classroom, into a lounge area. “The lighting is better in here,” he said.

“So Jill found some additional scrolls?” I asked.

“Yes. She called me last night saying she'd found another secret compartment in the chest and two more scrolls. It's all very exciting, isn't it?” Mr. Charles said.

The three scrolls were spread out across one long table. Malia and I sat down and Mr. Charles pulled out a laser pointer. “Okay, Malia reported that the writing beneath the seal seemed to just appear when you guys touched it. Does it look the same now?” he asked.

“Yeah. It looks like it did after we touched it,” I answered. “Jill said it roughly translated to ‘the lost has been found.'”

“Yes. That's pretty much what it says. And y'all didn't touch the other scrolls?” he asked.

“No. We didn't even know there were other scrolls. Besides, I was kinda freaked out, so even if there had been others, I wouldn't have touched them.”

Malia shot Mr. Charles a look and nodded. “It was weird. AJ seemed to zombie-out on me.”

“You had a physical reaction to it?”

“I guess I did. It just seemed to hum when I touched it. I know that sounds weird and I know you probably don't believe me, but that's what it felt like.”

“But I do believe you, AJ. I've come across similar phenomena in my research. If there's one thing my studies of the occult have taught me, it's to never underestimate the power of magic. The modern world has lost its connection to old-world magic. But you can't lose touch with
genetics. AJ, didn't you say that your grandmother used to tell you stories about the Serpentines? Is that why you're so interested in vampires?”

“Um, yeah,” I said, twisting my hair around my finger. That had totally been a lie. But I suppose if I had known my dad's mom, she probably would've told me stories about my evil ancestors.

He smiled and, I swear to God, I saw his eyes twinkle. “I want to do a little experiment. Do you trust me?”

Right now, Mr. Charles was about the only person I could trust. Mrs. Blanchard had gone to the dark side with Crabby Crandall. Ryan was off chasing Lindsey's skirt. Bridget was choosing Grady over me. The cops were hot on my trail, and even my mom didn't believe a word I uttered. “I guess I do.”

“Okay, I want you to touch the seal of the second scroll.”

“I dunno, Mr. Charles. I'm telling you, it was really freaky. I don't wanna feel that again.”

“I know it must've been scary. But I'm here and I won't let anything bad happen to you.”

“You should've gone into sales,” I said. I smiled, but a current of nerves seized my lungs, making it hard to breathe.

Malia's phone rang. “It's my grandmother,” she said, looking at the caller ID. “I'll be back in just a second.”

Mr. Charles wrapped a strong arm around my shoulders. “Do you want to wait for her?”

I sighed. “No. Let's just do this while I have my nerve up. I'll give her the play-by-play when she gets back.”

Mr. Charles led me closer to the second scroll and stood with me as I looked over the parchment. The air around me tingled with electricity, kind of like it did when I was with Ryan. My birthmark didn't burn this time, though it did ache with an intensity that made my knees buckle. Mr. Charles steadied me, and I tried to pull away as the magnetic force of the scroll began to tug me forward.

“Don't be frightened,” he whispered.

I wasn't frightened. A sense of calm washed over me like a warm bath. I closed my eyes and held my hand to the seal. Shocking heat seared my skin, and though I sensed the burn, it didn't hurt at all.

And this time the voices spoke to me.

This is the call to power. Let us bring you to life.

The fire cooled beneath my hand, but did not burn out.

Feel the darkness; feed in light; with your blood, reclaim the rite.

The chant purred through me and I gave myself to it. I fell into the other world again, and this time I was in a room full of jewels. I was sitting on a throne; people were bowing before me. There was a man, a beautiful man, with eyes like sapphires and a smile so perfect, he didn't seem real. But he was real, and he sat on a throne next to me. We were holding hands, and he was smiling. When I looked into his eyes, I knew he was promising me the world.

The desire for power I had felt in the bookstore barreled to life inside me again. My body pulsed with yearning. Deep inside, I felt a part of me tug away from what was offered. There was something in me, frail and quiet, but firm in its belief that what I saw, what I felt, was evil, but it was so weak, it didn't stand a chance to win.

Just when I had decided the picture before me was real, a stinging slice to my palm jolted me away from fantasy land and back to my reality.

“Jesus!” I screamed. “What the hell was that?” I said before I remembered I was standing with a teacher and probably, no matter how cool that teacher was, I should watch my mouth around him.

“It's okay, AJ,” Mr. Charles said, wrapping my now bloody hand in a paper towel. His face was pale and his
hands were shaking. His words were laced with nervous excitement. “I had to force your hand off the seal. It…it was like it wouldn't let go of you. I finally wrenched it away, unfortunately, at the cost of some of your skin. I'm sorry. I obviously let it go on longer than I should have.”

Still a little dazed, I looked at the blood soaking through the paper towel. It was almost like I had just run five miles on empty. I was light-headed, my legs were wobbly, and I saw stars when I closed my eyes.

Mr. Charles supported me, and I leaned in to him to steady my footing. When I opened my eyes, I noticed there were drops of blood on the document. “Oh no! Jill is gonna kill me! I can't believe I bled all over an ancient scroll.”

“I'll handle Jill. She'll be fine with it. Oh my God, AJ. Look!” He pointed at the droplets of blood and we watched as more writing appeared.

“It's like it feeds on your blood,” Mr. Charles said.

“Can you decipher that?” I asked.

“This is amazing! Truly fascinating!” He ran out of the room and I followed him. In his classroom, he marched over to his junked-up desk and began to shuffle through the papers and books. He opened drawers, moved the chair out of the way, and searched beneath the desk. “I was
just using it. Where has it gone? Think, Charles, think. Where were you last?” Mr. Charles stood there among the wreckage tapping his chin and talking to himself like a cartoon professor.

“That's right!” he muttered after a few seconds. He took off back to the room we had just come from. “In all my excitement, I forgot that I had prepared for this possibility by bringing the text into the room with me. I would lose my head if it weren't attached.”

He picked up the old book and flipped through the pages. He had already bookmarked some of the pages in advance with Post-it notes. After skimming several pre-marked pages, he finally seemed to find what he was looking for.

His brow furrowed as he glanced from scroll to book, trying to translate the ancient script.

“This is very perplexing,” he said.

“What is?” Malia asked, finally returning from her phone call. “Did I miss anything?”

“The translation reads: ‘One has been found. There is another.'”

“What does that mean?” I asked.

“I have no idea.” Mr. Charles peered at me. “AJ, is it possible that you're somehow a descendant of the
Serpentines? With your grandmother telling the story, it stands to reason—”

“Me? A descendant of an evil clan of vampires?” My heart jumped into overdrive. I trusted Mr. Charles, except…even I wasn't that stupid. And I certainly couldn't let him guess. Dammit! Why did I make my interest in the Serpentines family based?

“Mr. Charles, I know you're really into occult myth and all, but seriously, vampires aren't real. I think you've been walking that line between fantasy and reality a little too long.”

“My dear, every myth has a foundation in truth.” His smile was warm and friendly. “I know it's a scary thought, but think about your family history. It would be an amazing discovery, don't you think?”

“If I had a vampire in my family? No. That would
so
not be cool. Besides, it's not possible. I thought vampires couldn't see themselves in mirrors or burn in daylight. Wouldn't I know if I had been bitten?”

There you go, AJ. Play it off.

“There's more to vampires than what you hear from tall tales. Vampires can be born. They aren't just bitten and turned. And they've evolved way beyond the mirror and daylight thing. In order to survive, they've had to
adapt. That's why stories about them keep changing.”