"Which was to kick me out!"
Everyone at and near our table stopped talking and turned to stare at us. I took a deep breath, crossed my arms over my chest, and made a point of clamping my mouth shut.
Sav, I get that she freaked out. But she went too far. She kicked me out of the Clann in front of everybody-
She was only doing what she knew they all expected her to. She had to prove her loyalty to the Clann first and you second-
Oh, and I guess that's why she never called or texted me afterward?
She was probably afraid the other descendants were watching her too closely and she'd get caught. Besides, I'm sure Emily kept her updated on your status.
If Mom is so sure she's being watched, why risk having me over for dinner tomorrow night?
Because for one thing, she can do spells to hide your presence at her house. And second, that would explain why she wants to meet with you in private instead of somewhere public. It would also explain why she had Emily send you the invite instead of sending it herself.
I scowled at nothing, making a girl walking by jump and scurry past a little faster. Savannah might have a point. But it still seemed pretty far-fetched.
You really think Mr. Williams would go that far?
It was Savannah's turn to frown and slouch down in her chair. I wouldn't put anything past him and his ambition. She sighed. Look, just go have dinner with your mother already. Then you can find out what she wants. If I'm wrong about her wanting to apologize, then I'm wrong. But at least we'll know what this is all about.
My phone buzzed again. I glanced at it then looked again, sure this time I was either dreaming or Emily was drunk texting.
She said u can bring Sav 2.
Savannah heard me read the text in my mind. She sat bolt upright in her chair. "Seriously? She said that?"
"Apparently. Em wouldn't joke about something like this." I smiled grimly and arched an eyebrow at her. "Now how do you feel about Mom's dinner invite? Still think it's a good idea to go?"
Eyes wide, Savannah opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again and cleared her throat. She reached for her purse, suddenly intent on checking her lip gloss in a tiny mirror inside. "Um, sure. I guess I could find something to wear." Though why she wants me there... she added silently.
I grinned, unable to resist the urge. Who knows? Maybe she just wants to get to know you. It could be fun. Maybe you'll even become best friends by the time the night is over.
Yeah, right, Savannah thought then cringed. Sorry. It's just... She took a deep breath. I can see her wanting to reconcile with you. But me? The girl who turned her baby boy into a vampire? She gave me a wry smile.
I reached for and held her hand, turning serious now. Or maybe she just knows I would never go without you.
Of course you would. She's your mother. You have to go, even if she hadn't included me.
If she can't accept you, then she can't accept me. I squeezed her hand while firing off a quick text with the thumb of my free hand to Emily.
We'll be there.
CHAPTER 9
Friday evening, Tristan and I rode to his house in silence. Thanks to Charmers practice running late, we, too, were running late, which I knew was driving Tristan nuts and making him even more nervous, though he didn't say anything.
He wasn't the only one nervous tonight.
What if I said something stupid and ticked off Mrs. Coleman? She already had plenty of reasons to hate my guts, since I'd basically taken her son from her and the Clann when I turned him.
I caught my thumbs drumming against the steering wheel and forced them to be still. Usually Tristan liked to drive my car, but tonight he had chosen to sit in the passenger seat instead. From the turmoil of his thoughts, I guessed he had too much to think about to want to pay attention to the road.
"It's going to be fine." I tried to reassure him yet again as we headed east toward his house.
He didn't say anything. Nor did he smile. He just sat there, staring ahead at nothing, his left knee bouncing so fast it was a blur.
I sighed. I couldn't wait to get tonight over with. Hopefully by the end of it, Tristan and his mother would have settled their differences, and we could all finally calm down and focus on the real challenge...getting through the daily life of being two hybrid vamps surrounded by humans and descendants in the heart of Clann territory. That was stressful enough without all this family angst thrown in on top of it.
I felt in my jacket pocket for my MP3 player, considering plugging it into the car's stereo. But then I spotted the entrance to the Coleman property a few yards ahead. Too late for music. Maybe we'd listen to it on the way home. With a sigh, I left the MP3 player in my pocket and focused on slowing down the car for the turn.
As soon as we turned onto the Coleman property, we felt it. Someone was using power, and lots of it. The wroughtiron gate was already open, the code box beside it smoking and charred.
Tristan hissed out a curse, the rapid-fire thudding of his heartbeat filling my ears. "Hurry!"
Oh, God.
I stomped on the gas, the car's back end fishtailing on the gravel before the tires caught and shoved us forward down the winding lane toward the Coleman mansion.
The two-story English Tudor quickly loomed into view. Once we reached it, I hadn't even shifted the car into Park yet when Tristan was out and at the house's front door, which, like the gate, someone had left wide-open.
I hurried to catch up in time to hear him calling out to his mother and sister as he entered the dark house.
The smoke hit me first, making me gag and my eyes burn and tear. From the stench of it, something seemed to be burning in the kitchen. Multiple smoke alarms pealed on both f loors, forcing me to clap my hands over my ears to save my eardrums from rupturing. Tristan and I ran in a crouch through the foyer, tripping over stuff along the way, until we reached the kitchen. He grabbed something off the stove that was filled with f lames and started to shove it into the sink.
I caught his wrist, stopping him just in time. "Use baking soda to put it out!" I had to shout over the screeching smoke alarms.
He left the saucepan in the sink to dart away somewhere and came back with a small box in one hand. When he poured it over the pan, the fire went out in a billow of powder.
Then we heard Emily scream upstairs.
"Emily!" Tristan yelled, running back toward the foyer while bent over to try to avoid some of the smoke. He disappeared up the stairs.