Fortunately, the Tinker Bell pajamas were unnecessary. He had most of our clean laundry—including a pair of pants for himself—in his saddlebags.
He washed while I stood shivering on the gravel shoulder. I pretended the shivers were a reaction to his muscled back flexing each time he bent to rinse away more blood. In reality, exhaustion had claimed its due. The sprint through the trees, the fight, and the blood loss took their toll. Dreams whispered to me, and the insistency of them depressed me. What more could I possibly learn other than more pain and death? And sadly, I didn’t have the strength to wrestle Luke down and Claim him, like I’d threatened to, to stop them.
Standing in the cold facing the inevitable, I just wanted to get on the bike, wrap my arms around his waist, and let them have me. I knew he wouldn’t like me sleeping while we drove, but I didn’t want to delay getting to the Compound by stopping at one more hotel and falling asleep there. It just increased the chances of another run-in with the others.
He doused his hair one more time and turned toward me as he shook the water from it. Sunlight glinted off the droplets that flew. Rivulets ran down his chest. Steam rolled off him. When he turned still dripping water, his eyes roamed over my face for a moment. Concern crept into his eyes as his gaze flicked to the arm I held to my middle. I didn’t try to straighten or pull it away. The cut hurt. I couldn’t hide that. But it wouldn’t stop my determination to push on.
“If we drive straight through, how long ’til we get there?”
“If nothing happens? Ten to twelve hours depending on the roads we take.”
“We need to push through. I can’t take another run in,” I said. He opened his mouth to argue. “No, Luke,” I sighed before he spoke. “I can’t. I’m done. Do you get it? Just, done.” I hurt too much physically, and I had the depressing knowledge that I would hurt more in the near future due to the dreams. I lacked the optimism to fool myself into believing we’d make it through what waited.
He strode over to me with an intense light in his eyes. Both hands gripped my arms lightly. He gave them a gentle squeeze and then pulled me to his chest, hugging me close despite the arm still wrapped protectively around my stomach. His lips grazed my hair, and he laid his cheek on top my head.
“Don’t give up,” he whispered. “Not now.”
He held me for a moment. I soaked up the comfort and the heat he radiated. I really wanted everything to be okay. I just knew we were in too deep for it to be that way.
“We need to get moving,” I said. “Every minute we stay in one place, the more likely they are to find us again.”
He pulled back and lifted my chin so my eyes met his. We studied each other for several minutes. His eyes expressed more than his words because his worry and fear shone there. “We’ll get there,” he promised.
He wanted my acknowledgement, but I wouldn’t lie. Instead, my gaze drifted down to his lips. The memory of his kiss started my heart thumping in a heavy rhythm. I didn’t want to think about the Compound, the journey there, or the men who’d be waiting to attack us. I wanted to lose myself in the way he made me feel just one more time.
My other arm took on a life of its own and drifted from my side to his back. The heat of his skin warmed my cold fingers as I traced the ridges on his muscles.
“Bethi,” he begged. “Don’t.”
His stupid, misguided moral compass was a pain in my butt. “Don’t what? Don’t think of how that kiss felt? Don’t wish that you’d let your guard down enough to let it happen again so I can forget everything else and imagine a world where just you and I exist? A safe place where I can sleep without haunting dreams? A place where men don’t chase me down and cut me? Yeah, I better not. Reality and morals are way better, anyway.”
I pulled away from him and walked toward the bike. He hesitated a moment and then followed. He didn’t leave me waiting long or remind me that I’d technically cut myself. I dug through the bag and handed him a clean shirt without looking at him. I couldn’t. I’d start drooling and become more bitter. It didn’t matter. The memory of his pecs and his muscled shoulders… I sighed and eased my leg over the bike settling behind him.
I flung the strap of my bag over his head and wrapped my arms around his waist. No air existed between us. My cheek pressed against his back. I closed my eyes even as he warned me not to fall asleep.
“Just get us there before I bleed out. And don’t stop because I fall asleep. Just nudge me or something.”
He pulled off the gravel shoulder with ease. A chill wind whipped my hair around my face. Even with the layers I wore, I’d freeze by the time we got to our destination. Only a werewolf would bring a motorcycle for a human in November.
We drove north pushing straight toward our destination, forgoing the erratic back road routes. We met up with a group of five other riders on motorcycles. I smiled at one before lying my head back down on Luke’s back. We would draw less attention with others.
{dream} Penny grabbed the toy from my hand and hit me.
“It’s mine,” she yelled, her face turning red.
It wasn’t her toy. It had been lying on the ground when we’d both arrived at the park. Her mother tried reasoning with Penny, but Penny swung out a hand and hit her mother’s face. Her mother, shocked by her daughter’s sudden tantrum, didn’t move to stop the second swing.
I liked Mrs. Hught and didn’t want to see Penny hit her anymore. “Stop.” I said it softly, but clearly, pushing the thought and the inaction toward Penny. Penny’s arms dropped to her side. Her face grew even redder, and she turned to glare at me.
She knew what I could do and had made me promise never to do it to her. It was a promise I had to break.
“You can’t hit your mommy,” I tried to explain.
“I can do anything I want,” she screeched at me. But we both knew that wasn’t true. The hatred in her eyes burned me, and I released her will.
She turned away from me, threw her arms around her mother’s neck, and cried. “I want to go home,” she sobbed. “I don’t want Charlene to have a sleepover anymore.”
I emerged from the dream slightly when Luke reached around to push me toward the center of his back. I’d slid to the side, dangerously unbalancing us. Shivering, I sank right back into the next waiting dream.
Sitting at the long black counter in biology class, I tried to ignore Penny’s quiet mutterings from the table behind me. We hadn’t been friends since first grade, which suited me fine. Middle school had killed any lingering traces of friendship. For two and a half years, she’d tormented me, spread rumors, and caused me nothing but trouble.
I’d been pulled into the counselor’s office at least twice a week for the last three months to discuss the malicious relationship we had. The school was just trying to cover themselves in a bullying case, but I had sat there and listened to Penny’s pathetic explanations for the rumors she’d started.
Something hit the back of my head. I turned as I reached back to feel my hair. Gum. Penny didn’t meet my eyes but looked straight at the teacher as if she’d been paying attention the whole time.
“Ms. Farech. Is there a problem?” Mr. Melski asked from the front of the room.
“Yes.” I struggled to keep all the emotion from my voice. “Someone just threw gum in my hair.” I stood and picked up my books. “I’ll see if someone in the office can help.”
His eyes flicked to Penny. The faculty knew. So why in the heck did they let her sit behind me? It was a small school. Because we were in the same grade, we had most of our classes together. Not all, though, because I’d managed to squeak into a few of the advanced ones. Hard classes, but I loved them because she wasn’t there.
I kept my pace even as I walked out the door.
The secretary, an older woman who yelled at most kids, made a sympathetic noise when I walked in and showed her the gum. I hadn’t touched it much and had walked carefully so it wasn’t too embedded.
“Why on earth does Penny dislike you so much?” she asked as she worked.
“Because when we were kids, I told her not to hit her mom.” The truth, yet not all of it. Penny was the only one who knew my secret. Never once did I give the rumors she had started any credence. But, she and I both knew I could do what she claimed. I just didn’t let her push me to do it openly.
The secretary extracted the gum wad within minutes, only taking a few strands with it.
“Make sure you don’t sit near her at the assembly,” she warned just before I left.
As if I would purposely do so.
I went to the bathroom to check my hair before heading back to class. Hopefully Penny wasn’t chewing more gum in anticipation of my return. The door opened behind me. Penny’s eyes met mine in the mirror.
“Why?” I asked, turning. “What do you get from doing this? You were never mean when we were little.” She continued to eye me hatefully. I tried again. “We were friends once.”
“Ha!” she barked bitterly. “You were never my friend. You never listened to me.”
I knew exactly what she meant. She’d wanted me to use my ability to make her mom look away so we could sneak candy when we went to her house. She didn’t understand as I did that my ability wasn’t meant for that. Somehow I’d always known I shouldn’t misuse my power.
“You always asked too much,” I said sadly. “Just let this go.”
“No. At some point you’ll make a mistake, and I want to be there so everyone knows I was right about you.” She reached out and slapped the books from my arms. They tumbled to the floor.
“All you’re going to prove is how mean you can be,” I said glancing down at the books. She didn’t answer.
When I bent to pick them up, she pushed me over. I snapped and grabbed hold of her will.
“Stop.” She froze poised in a half-crouch ready to come after me. I held her still with my will, but I forced nothing else on her. I felt bad enough for holding her like that. “I’m really sorry, Penny, but this has gone on long enough. Forget your hate. Remember the friendship we once had.” I picked up my books and stood. “Don’t try to hurt me again.”
I walked out the door intending to get a good head start before I released her. From behind, I heard her yell through the door, “I still can’t move!” {dream}