Chapter 40. Lorena #2
“Tomorrow.” I whisper the word, suddenly afraid he followed me and is listening to us. I know this whole conversation is a big risk, but I can’t help it. I’m done keeping secrets from Sal.
“What did he tell you … about where he’s been? Has he met other vampires? Stokers?”
I shake my head. “There are only fifty-four vampires left in the world, and none of them are Stokers. And they don’t attack people to feed—they steal from blood banks.
Their only concern is to stay hidden, and that’s why we can’t talk about him or vampires at all until he’s gone.
If he hears us, and he knows you know, he could—”
“What?” she asks, her forehead creasing. “Kill me?”
I shake my head. “He’ll compel you to forget. And just so we’re clear, if he does, then I’m going to wait until he’s gone to refresh your memory.”
Salma’s face narrows like she wants to argue. “That’s nonnegotiable,” I warn her. “So please don’t do anything stupid.”
“Stupid?” she asks, angling her head. “You mean like falling for a vampire?”
“I’m not—”
“Oh, please. You and he may have lied to everyone about everything, but there’s one thing you can’t hide.” Her brown eyes drill into mine. “You’re in love.”
I try to argue or laugh or even roll my eyes—but no reaction comes. My best friend has seen what I dare not, and while I can keep lying to myself, I won’t deceive her anymore.
“You have to let him go.” She grips my arms as she stares into my eyes. “Or this won’t end well for any of us.”
“TODAY, I want to discuss the character of Count Dracula,” says Director Minaro on Friday.
William and I barely spoke at lunch or breakfast, opting to trade glances instead.
It’s as if last night awoke a new shyness between us.
All day, I’ve been torn between wanting to fast-forward to later today and get our parting over with, and wanting to hit slow-motion to savor these final hours as much as possible.
In other words, time is my tormenter.
“How would you feel if you were Jonathan Harker, and you came across such a man?” asks our teacher.
“Not a man,” says Salma. “A monster.”
William twists around to study her.
“Or is Dracula just being true to his nature?” asks Minaro, and William faces forward again.
I pinch Salma’s thigh, and when she looks at me, I glower and shake my head slightly. She rolls her eyes but slouches in her chair.
“Just because he is not human, does that make Dracula a monster?” probes Minaro, her gaze lingering on me and then William, as if expecting us to go back to our old ways.
“Humans can be monsters, too,” says William, and I’m sure he’s thinking of the Legion targeting human Stokers.
“Go on,” the director encourages him.
“Monster is a construct,” he says. “So its meaning is ever-changing.”
“That is a lovely way to put it,” she says. Then our teacher looks at me, her dark gaze nearly as inescapable as William’s. “What do you think of Count Dracula, Lorena?”
I still can’t shake the feeling that she’s paying me particular interest for a reason. Like she wants something from me.
“I think he’s worse than a human or a vampire,” I say, and William looks at me curiously. “He’s a powerful white man with money and means—that’s why he thinks he can have anything he wants and force his will on everyone else.”
William winces just the slightest bit, and I get the sense my answer wasn’t as diplomatic as I’d hoped.
When class ends, Zach pulls William aside to talk to him alone, while Salma tugs me along with her and Tiffany toward our room. Even though it’s only Friday, she urges the three of us to get a head start on Monday’s homework—but I know she’s just trying to keep me away from William.
As much as I want to defy her, Salma’s right. William is leaving tonight—what good could come from spending more time with him? Better that he just go.
When we get to dinner, my stomach is too full of nerves to be hungry. We arrive before the guys, and I hang by the table—which is once more set for six—while Salma and Tiffany go fill their plates.
“Navarro,” says Trevor, tipping his head in greeting as he picks up his plate and beelines for the food.
“Hey,” I say to Zach, curious what the vampire told him when they spoke after class. “You and William talk?” I ask in a low voice.
“Yeah,” he says, coming closer to me so we won’t be overheard. “I told him I’d talk to Fran about the story.”
The story?
“You mean, your article?” I ask in confusion.
“I’m not the one writing it. William told me Fran came up to you guys at the dance and asked to feature you in their Valentine’s Day spotlight on school couples.
Will said it could hurt your mom’s career if it comes out that you’re in a relationship, so don’t worry—I’ll tell Fran you’re not comfortable and not to bring it up again. ”
“Oh, thanks,” I say as Zach grabs his plate and heads to the buffet line.
I don’t get it. Why would William mention that article at all? And why wouldn’t Zach bring up the undercover investigation? It’s almost like—
William compelled him to forget.
Any possibility of recovering my appetite is gone, and I take off before Salma’s returned to the table. If William altered Zach’s memories, he’s probably making final preparations to leave. He might even already be gone. And all I feel is a desperate need to say goodbye.
If there’s any chance he’s still here, I have to find him.
“Where are you going?”
I turn around in the hallway. Salma followed me out.
“To say goodbye.”
“Why? Lore, just let him go.”
“I can’t do that. I’m not like you. I can’t be cold to someone out of the blue, the way you’re being to Trevor.”
She flinches like I struck her. “Fine,” she murmurs, and she turns back into the dining hall.
I know I should go after her and apologize. But I have plenty of time to do that—and possibly only seconds to find William. If he’s here at all.
I rush to the first tower and race up the steps. Then I swing open his door, bursting inside.
The space heater is on—but the room is dark and empty.
“Hello?” I call out loud, as if he might materialize out of thin air.
Did he take off? I see the box with his clothes, and when I dig my hand inside, I find the green book. Then I look behind the loose stone, and his things are there. Is he leaving everything behind, or is he still nearby?
“Looking for something?”
The velvety voice makes me inhale sharply, and I whirl toward the window.
William steps inside, and there’s something hard in his gaze that wasn’t there earlier today. Like he’s angry with me.
“What is it?” I ask.
“You told Salma.”
He isn’t asking—he knows. I feel my mouth go dry, and as much as I’d like to lie, I know there’s no point. “She won’t tell anyone.”
Light flashes in his eyes, like a bolt of anger. “How could you betray me like that?”
“You were gone! I had no idea if you were ever coming back. I needed my friend—”
“Then you are weak.”
“So are you!” I snap, and now his brow is a hard line, but I ignore the threat. “Why else are you still here, confiding in a human who can’t be compelled?”
“Watch yourself,” he warns.
“Why are you still here?” I demand.
“I was patrolling to make sure there are no vampires nearby.” His voice is low and constrained, but his eyes are explosive.
“Yet I fear I may have made my perimeter too wide—Nate and Cisco could have slipped past me if they approached from a different direction. I am now going to do a final sweep of the manor, then I will gather my things and leave for good.”
The last three words are a dagger in my gut.
“Right after I compel Salma to forget what you told her.”
“No,” I say, shaking my head. “Please, she won’t tell anyone! I promise.”
“Do you understand that she will be in the same grave danger as you if I don’t erase her memories? You are my Familiar, so I have a chance at keeping you safe—but the same cannot be said for her.”
“Listen,” I say, “Salma has been obsessed with vampires since forever. She’s always said that you guys are real, and no one’s ever believed her before, so why should that change now? She has no proof! Please, let her be.”
His anger softens at the edges, like it is battling sadness. “Do you not see?” he asks. “This is why we cannot be friends. You will always be a human first, and I will always be a vampire. Our allegiance will always be to our kind.”
“Maybe there’s a third option—”
“Leave,” he commands me. “Go now, or I will make it to your room before you and take Salma’s memories with me.”
In this moment, I think I hate him.
And since I can’t stand the sight of him, I run.
When I get to our room, I open the door, looking for Salma. I need to make sure he didn’t lie. But she’s not here, and neither is Tiffany.
It’s too early for the LUB. Maybe they went to the library. And right as I turn to leave, I notice something on the door.
A note has been stuck there, written on one of Tiffany’s hot-pink Post-its:
URGENT. Meet me at the LUB.
—Lorena