Blayke Read online

  Fuming inside, knowing Brittany was well aware that I liked Noah because of a conversation she’d overheard the week before, I shrugged and looked away. I also knew it was no coincidence that she chose one of my best friends to pair with Noah, but I refused to rise to the bait. Chloe would never go on a date with Noah because she knew how I felt about him, and she wouldn’t want to hang out all night with Brittany. “Sounds like fun.”

  I just bet it does. We all know how much you want Noah. Don’t try to hide it.

  My head snapped around and my eyes connected with hers. “What did you say?”

  Arching one delicate eyebrow, Brittany laughed lightly as she looked at me curiously, “I didn’t say anything, Blayke.” Shaking her head, she leaned down and picked up her purse, then rose from her seat. “I see Logan just got here. Talk to you later.”

  My eyes narrowed as I watched her walk away. I knew I had heard her voice. It had been loud and clear, and in that same snotty tone she always used. I had heard her. Brittany looked back at me when she reached Logan, then leaned close to him and said something, laughing as they both glanced my way.

  Choosing to ignore her, I stood and went to get some pizza from the buffet table in the front of the room. I learned the hard way a long time ago to steer clear of Brittany Barrington, and I tried my hardest to do just that. She would act like your best friend one minute, and stab you in the back the next.

  “Hey.”

  Noah’s voice interrupted my thoughts, and I almost dropped the plate I was holding. When I managed to save it, and was sure I could speak without sounding like an idiot, I glanced up into his crystal-blue eyes and murmured, “Hey.”

  He grinned, nodding at my plate, “Nice moves.”

  I flushed in embarrassment and fought the urge to lower my head. Forcing myself to hold his gaze, I smiled, “Thanks, I’m thinking of trying out for the football team next year.”

  Noah laughed, reaching over to take my plate from me. “Let’s not push it, although you did a great job recovering that fumble.”

  I blushed again as he walked back to my table with me and set my food down. Nodding to my friends who had shown up while I was gone, he gave me one last smile before going back up to the buffet to fill his own plate. Sitting down next to Katie and Chloe, I watched out of the corner of my eye as Noah made his way over to where the football team was sitting.

  “So,” Katie grinned, taking a drink of her soda, “spill, girl.”

  “What?” Quickly returning my attention to my dinner, I picked up a piece of pizza and took a bite.

  “What?” Chloe squealed, kicking me under the table. “You know what!”

  I shook my head, laughing, “Seriously, there’s nothing to tell.”

  Katie slid her chair back and rose. “I don’t believe you, but I’m starving. You can talk when we get back.”

  I ate in silence while I waited for my friends to return, my mind wandering from Noah, to my dream, and back to Noah.

  “Now,” Katie said, sitting back in her seat with a plate full of pizza in front of her, “tell us.”

  Wincing at the expectant looks on both of their faces, I shrugged, “Really, there isn’t anything to tell. I had a clumsy moment and almost dropped my plate full of food. He carried it to the table. That’s it.”

  “Mmmhmm.”

  “Really!”

  Glancing back over in Noah’s direction, I stiffened when I saw Brittany sit down next to him. When they looked over at us, it didn’t take a genius to figure out what she was talking to him about. I sighed when I saw Noah’s gaze go from me to Chloe, and then stay there. Unfortunately, it did not surprise me. No one could resist my friend. Tall, slender, long dark curls, big brown eyes. She was beautiful, both inside and out. My heart fell when Noah nodded and replied to Brittany. She smiled widely before standing and walking toward us. I swallowed hard, pulling my gaze from Noah. Our two minutes together before obviously hadn’t meant to him what they did to me.

  “Hey, girls,” Brittany said, her huge, fake smile including all of us, even though I knew it was really just for Chloe. “Chloe, I was wondering if you had any plans tomorrow night?”

  Chloe’s hand stopped halfway to her mouth, and her eyes widened in surprise. Setting the pizza down slowly, she shook her head. “No,” she admitted hesitantly, “not really.”

  “Great!” Brittany replied, a mischievous grin crossing her face as she glanced at me. “You do now.”

  “I do?” Chloe asked in confusion.

  “Yes! Logan and I are going to dinner and a movie, and you and Noah are coming with us. Logan’s driving. I’ll call you with the details tomorrow.”

  I watched as Brittany turned and left, walking back over to sit beside Logan. She had really done it. I didn’t know what I did to upset Brittany, but she had made it a point to try and hurt me, and she’d succeeded. Taking a deep breath, I bit my bottom lip, refusing to let the tears escape.

  “I won’t do it,” Chloe promised, reaching over to squeeze my hand gently. “I’ll tell Noah later that I can’t go.” I won’t go, even though I really want to.

  I froze, looking from the hand that still covered mine to Chloe’s big, bright eyes. “But, you want to,” I said softly.

  Chloe’s eyes widened and she shook her head, “No, Blayke. I would never do that to you.” I wouldn’t. No matter how much I like Noah.

  “You like him,” I whispered. What was going on? I had no clue how, but I knew no matter what my friend said, she really did want to go on the date. She wanted to be with Noah, and had just been holding back because she knew how I felt. It was becoming more and more clear to me, as images flashed quickly through my mind. How she watched him when she knew he wasn’t looking. He was her main focus when cheering at the games. She waited by the gym sometimes after school just to catch a glimpse of him. It wasn’t just an idle crush, she really cared about him.

  “I wouldn’t do that to you,” Chloe insisted, removing her hand from mine and lowering her gaze to her plate. “Friends always come first.”

  When Chloe’s hand left mine, so did all of the impressions I was somehow getting. They were just gone. What was going on? Taking a deep breath, I picked up my glass of water and took a sip. Something was happening to me. I had no idea what, but I did know one thing for certain. Chloe liked Noah way more than I did, and there was no way I could stand in the way of that. “I agree,” I said, taking one more sip of water before putting my glass back down and picking up my pizza. “Friends should come first. That’s why I think you should go tomorrow, Chloe.”

  “You do?” Chloe asked in surprise, her brow furrowing in confusion. “But, I can’t do that.”

  “Of course you can, and you will. Not only will you go, but you are going to have a blast.”

  “But…”

  “Chloe,” I said softly, interrupting another denial, “I want you to go. I really do.”

  “I agree, you should go,” Katie said, a smirk forming on her face, “as long as you can put up with Brittany for that long.”

  Chloe grimaced, and then glanced over at Noah’s table, a small smile curving her lips, “You’re sure, Blayke?”

  Seeing the look on her face, the excitement in her eyes, my answer was an easy one. “Yes.”

  It was getting late. We’d gone into overtime, and my voice was getting hoarse from screaming for our team as they fought to get one last touchdown to win the game. “Here we go, Blue Jays, here we go!” I yelled, jumping in the air and kicking out with one leg while raising my arms up high. “Here we go, Blue Jays, here we go!” The chant was loud through the bleachers, everyone from Blue River, Iowa cheering on our team. We always had a huge turnout at the games, and we almost always made it to state. Not this year, though. Tonight was the closest we had gotten to a win in the past three weeks. We really needed it.

  Ignoring the cold seeping into my bones, I screamed and yelled with the rest of the squad, as we tried to push our team to victory. We had the ball, the
score was tied, and there was less than a minute to go. Our cheer captain shouted out the next cheer, but I stood frozen as Kyle Parker launched the football into the air, straight for Logan who was sprinting down the field. Holding my breath, I watched him jump and catch the ball, falling to the ground just inside the end zone when two of the other team’s players tackled him in mid-air. The crowd grew quiet as they waited for the referees to make the call. Touchdown or fumble?

  “Touchdown!”

  I squealed loudly, jumping up and down with the rest of the squad. It wasn’t enough to get us to state, but we would take it. “Way to go, Blue Jays,” I screamed, watching the football players high-five each other, some being tackled to the ground in excitement. Katie grabbed me in a brief hug, one arm over my shoulders, the other around my neck, and I stiffened when she squeezed and then let go. Reaching back, I tentatively touched a spot at the base of my neck, wincing in pain. Pulling my hand back, I looked at it expecting to see blood, but there was nothing. Frowning, I reached back and touched it again, biting my lip to keep from crying out in agony.

  “What’s wrong?”

  I turned toward Chloe, smiling through the pain as I shook my head. “Nothing,” I lied, all the while trying to figure out what was going on.

  “Um…” Chloe stuttered, her eyes on my hand.

  “What?”

  “Your hand,” she said, leaning in close, “It’s kind of glowing, or something.”

  My eyes widened, and I glanced around in horror to see if anyone else had noticed, but no one seemed to be paying attention to me. All eyes were on the field, as people stood clapping their hands and cheering for our team. I frowned in confusion when my hand began to warm, becoming almost hot, and my gaze quickly swung back to Chloe. Luckily, she was once again staring at the football players, her eyes on one in particular.

  Reaching up, I tugged on my hair tie, removing it and letting my thick, dark hair drop down to cover whatever was happening on the back of my neck. It was against regulations to have my hair down while cheering, but the game was over, and I was getting out of there now.

  After one last look at the team and my squad, I turned and swiftly made my way off the track and past the bleachers. Running up the hill to the school, I went through the back door and into the locker room. Glancing around to make sure no one else was there, I crossed the room to a full length mirror and pulled my hair to the side. Twisting to see what I could, my eyes widened at the bright yellow glow radiating off the back of my neck. “Oh…my…God,” I rasped, quickly letting go of my hair and looking around frantically.

  My gaze came back to the mirror, and I gasped when I got a good look at my eyes. Stepping closer, I stared in awe as the greens and blues started to swirl together, first becoming brighter, then darkening as another sharp pain hit me. Slowly, my hand came up to rest on the mirror, my mouth opening in a silent gasp, before the pain struck again. Moaning, I dropped to my knees, my hands going to the floor and my head lowering as ripples of agony flowed through me. My body shook, waves of dizziness overtaking me, and I prayed I wouldn’t pass out. I had no idea what was going on, but I did know that no one could find me like this.

  Taking a deep breath, I fought through the pain and crawled across the floor to the locker I had left my bag in. Reaching up, I fought with the latch, struggling to get inside. Finally, there was a click, and the door fell open, my gym bag tumbling out onto the floor. Letting go of the locker, I slid down beside it, my legs out in front of me. Tugging the bag over, I opened it, sifting around blindly inside for my cell phone. It seemed like forever before my hand connected with it. Resting my head back against the locker, I held it in front of me, searching for the name I wanted. After pressing the call button, I held the phone to my ear and waited for the only person I had ever fully trusted to answer.

  “Hey, sis. You need a ride?”

  One lone tear escaped, making its way slowly down my cheek as I whispered, “Please hurry, Chandler. I need help.”

  “I’m on my way.”

  I knew she would come. My sister was always there for me, no matter what. I had no idea what she could do, but there was no way I was going to be able to figure this out on my own. Rubbing my hand over my forehead, I zipped up my bag and took a deep, ragged breath. I was so tired, and I felt incredibly weak. My eyes began to drift shut, and all I wanted to do was fall asleep.

  I don’t know how much time passed before I began to notice that the pain was slowly ebbing away. It was still there, centered mostly around the spot on my neck, and seeming to spread from there throughout my entire body. However, it was more of a dull ache now. Not the blind agony it was just moments before. My heart still beat erratically in my chest, and I felt incredibly weak, but at least the pain was now bearable.

  At the sound of a door opening, I forced myself to push through the fogginess in my mind. I rose to my feet, one hand on my bag, and one on the locker beside me. Collecting my backpack from inside, I slipped it over my shoulder and slammed the door shut. Gripping my gym bag tightly, I trudged to the door, ignoring the rest of the cheerleaders as they swarmed in, making plans for the night.

  “You want to come to a party at my house, Blayke?” Ginny asked, as I passed her by the door. “It’s going to be epic!”

  Shaking my head, I continued down the hall, not bothering to reply. I had to concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other, or I wasn’t going to make it. I went out the front door, sighing in relief when I saw Chandler’s car turning onto the school grounds. Pulling up in front of me, she jumped out, and I noticed how her gaze scanned the parking lot and beyond before she closed the distance between us. Taking my bags from me, she walked beside me to the car, her eyes never resting.

  We were both silent until we were in the vehicle and on our way home. I was trying to stay awake so that I could tell her about what happened, but it was a fight I wasn’t winning. Although I was not in the kind of misery I had been before, my entire body still ached, and it was all centered around that one spot on my neck.

  “Talk to me, Blayke.”

  I heard the words, but I was beyond responding.

  “Blayke! This is important. You have to tell me what’s going on!”

  Dropping my head back against the seat, I whispered softly, “You wouldn’t believe me,” before losing consciousness.

  Smoke filled the room, and the little girl gasped, clutching at her throat as tears streamed down her face. “Mommy,” she screamed hoarsely, her throat raw and burning as more smoke filled her lungs. Her small body shook as she coughed and coughed, trying to catch her breath.

  Suddenly, she felt strong arms wrap around her, lifting her high in the air. She cried out in fear and confusion, trying to pull away. “Hush, sweet child,” a deep voice said, “I’ve got you.”

  “Mommy!”

  She felt the man moving, and her eyes widened when she saw they were going toward the window and not the door. She started to fight him, her small fists hitting his chest as hard as she could, but it did no good. Soon she was grasping his shirt tightly in terror, hiding her face in his shoulder as he jumped right out of the window and landed lightly on the ground below, and then they were moving again.

  Several minutes later they stopped, and she slowly leaned back to look around. They were by a small body of water, one her mother had taken her to before. She’d said it was their special place. One that no one else knew about. So how did he?

  She shivered, inhaling deeply, and then whimpering when the cold air hit her sore throat and she started to cough again. The man held her close, patting her gently on the back as he talked softly. “Don’t worry, little one, everything is going to be alright. Your mommy will be here soon.”

  When she was finally able to breathe again, the child took her first real look at the man who had saved her. He had short, dark blonde hair, a face her mom would call handsome, with a small smile on his lips. Her eyes widened in surprise when she found herself gazing into ones identical
to her own. Reaching out, she gently traced the corner of one. “Yours are like mine,” she whispered softly. She had never seen anyone with eyes like hers before…until him.

  The man’s smile grew wider and he nodded. “Yes, just like yours.”

  “Blayke!”

  The little girl turned, squirming in the man’s arms when she saw her mother running toward them, reaching out to her with both arms. “Mommy!”

  “It’s alright, Alyiah. She is safe.”

  Her mother grabbed her from the man, holding her tightly as she buried her face in her neck. “That’s just it, Alex. She will never be safe. Not living this life. None of us are.”

  “I know.”

  The girl looked back over to the man, at the sorrow now filling his eyes. Who was he? How did her mom know him?

  Taking a step closer, he whispered, “I have to go, my love.” Running a hand down the child’s hair, he said, “I will be missed soon. Meet me here tomorrow night.”

  “No,” her mother said, shaking her head and hugging the girl closer.

  “What?”

  “We can’t do this anymore, Alex. I love you, I always have and I always will, but I can’t be with you. It just puts Blayke in more danger. If anyone were to find out about us, about the girls...”

  “No one will ever find out,” Alex insisted. “We just need to be careful.”

  “No, this ends here,” her mother insisted, slowly backing away from him. “You must go. Now!”

  His eyes began to glow, a dark red emerging, covering the blue-green that was unique to hers, and he opened his mouth, hissing, “I will not give you up, Alyiah. Never! I need you.”