“I have none.”
Those three words slammed against my soul like he’d physically belted me. I flinched. I didn’t know what Sarah was doing. I didn’t look at her. The ground gave up its hold and I ran for the doors, away from the man I loved, wondering how I could have gotten it all so wrong.
Chris walked up the path. His posture reflected that of an injury-ridden old man. His shoulders hunched forward. His steps were small and slow. I ran to catch up to him.
“Chris. Chris, stop. Please, let me help you,” I panted, catching up to him.
The sun landed on his face and emphasized the pain which radiated across it, a long slithering tear drifted down his cheek.
“Go away, Amy,” he grunted.
“Chris, please, let me drive you to hospital.”
He stopped. The pain erupted into anger.
“You know what he is. He’s a cold-blooded killer, and you date him.” He looked at me like I was nothing but a putrid morsel, more tears rolled down his face. “You’re just as bad as he is.”
I recoiled at his words, but it was the look he gave me that dug the deepest. My lips trembled.
“I’m sorry,” I said. It was all I could manage.
He walked away, leaving me staring after him, staggered by dismay.
Chapter 70
Cafe
The next day, under a crystal-clear sky, I sat at the café waiting for Georgie and Sarah to arrive.
The dark wings of the birds were in stark contrast to the blinding blue sky behind them. I was about as comfortable as a festering sore with a screw being drilled into it thinking about spending time with Sarah. But Georgie had insisted I come, and I had no reasonable excuse not to. So here I was, emotions buried under the rubble of pain, mask on, able, but not necessarily willing.
A young couple walked past hand in hand. She looked doe eyed at him and giggled. Obviously, a new relationship, still stuck in that honeymoon phase. My fingers tightened around my glass and I fought the urge to throw it at their heads. Three older women dressed in tracksuits, power walked past, mouths moving as fast as their legs. Across the road a lady who owned a local clothing store stepped out onto the pavement and looked up and down the street, shaking her head, she wandered back inside. Business must be slow.
Just up from the store, standing under the shade of a silver birch tree, was a lady wearing a long, hooded, beige trench coat.Her attire was unusual given the warm day. I couldn’t see the outline of her face but I was sure she was looking at me. Was she the woman from the parking lot, or someone else? An image of BJ tied to the chair, eyes wide and brimming with tears, flashed in my mind.
I tensed, ready to lurch from the table when the sound of the metal legs of a chair against concrete turned my head. I put my hand up to block the sun’s rays from my eyes, expecting to see Georgie. Instead, Caron slid in beside me.
She smiled, like she was a friendly neighbor. “Hello, Amelia.”
My whole body tightened. “Don’t you ‘hello’ me, you bitch,” I grated, reaching to remove my ring.
“Uh, uh, I’d leave that on, if I were you.” Her head flicked to across the road where three people lingered, pretending not to watch. The woman, I noted, was gone.
“Never use your powers in public, you put both yourself and others in danger. If you’re spotted and word gets out. Well, I’m sure Dahlia has explained what that means.” She spoke so smoothly the threat could have been missed, but it wasn’t.
I wanted to yell at her. To scream obscenities, but I couldn’t. My jaw clenched so tightly it began to ache.
She looked around casually, everyone was deep in chatter and paid no attention to us. “I realize we didn’t get off to the best of starts, but you must understand we did what was necessary. We needed you to realize what you are. We’re not the bad guys.” She paused and studied my face as if taking my measure. I simply glared. “Dahlia said your training has gone well.”
“Can I get you anything, ladies?” The waitress asked. She was a tall curvaceous girl with smooth olive skin and short spiky dark hair. Her name tag read Lisa.
“No thank you, Lisa, I shall be going shortly.” Caron smiled warmly. If I didn’t know any different I’d think Caron was someone’s sweet mother.
Lisa moved off to another nearby table. I kept my gaze on Caron. Her blonde hair was swept up in a neat bun. She wore black pants and a blue blouse that emphasised her eye colour, and a thick gold bracelet with a large blue stone covered her wrist. A three-layer gold necklace, each strand holding varying shades of a black oval crystals, hung from her neck.
“You stuck knives in my friend’s leg and you led three men like animals to the slaughter. You most definitely are the bad guys, Caron,” I rasped.
“To be fair, we didn’t kill those men. Karson did. He could have let them live but he chose otherwise. As for Benjamin, we do feel bad about that. It was an extraordinary situation that required extraordinary circumstances. And you do live with vampires after all, so in comparison.” She fluttered her hand in a dismissive gesture.
