It would be so easy to close my eyes and reach out to him with my mind. To meet him like the hundreds of times I had before, always in the moonlight, usually in an imaginary version of the backyard behind his house or the Circle in the Coleman family woods. To see him smile, feel his fingers lace through mine, his lips against mine...
I lay there in my old bed in my new bedroom in the dark, watching the pine trees in the backyard sway in a breeze as if they were dancing. Dancing like Tristan and I used to do with our arms wrapped around each other as if we were two trees that had grown intertwined, never to be pulled apart. I had been so stupid, so naive to think he and I could make it last in spite of all the people and beliefs and fears against us.
Stifling a groan, I curled into a ball and pressed my pillow over my head, wishing I could press the memories out of my mind.
* * *
The alarm went off way too soon the next morning. Between fighting nightmares of Nanna and memories of Tristan, I hadn't gotten much sleep. Groaning, I slapped the clock's off button. Ugh, time to get ready for Charmers practice before school.
The thought made me freeze. Would Tristan be there?
I'd called Mrs. Daniels yesterday to let her know I'd be returning to practice today. I should have asked if Tristan would be there, too. Surely he wouldn't. His parents would keep him as far away from me as possible. Maybe I'd get extra lucky and they had even pulled him out of the history class we shared every other day, too.
I tried to relax as I got ready for school. I'd considered microwaving a bowl of oatmeal in the kitchen in a feeble attempt to recreate Nanna's cooking, but one look at the grubby mousetrap of a room and I changed my mind. Vampires couldn't eat regular food, so Dad probably wouldn't think to renovate in there for a while. There was no way I could choke down anything from that nasty, cobweb-draped dungeon until I cleaned it up. Besides, knowing my luck lately, if I tried to use the microwave I'd probably end up starting a house fire from the old wiring.
I should tell Dad I was leaving. But where was he? I followed the sound of hammering to the living room-then my feet skidded to a stop. My father had his head stuck inside the fireplace, his entire upper body swallowed within its cavernous darkness. Clouds of soot poofed out with each blow of his tools.
He was wearing...jeans? I'd never once seen him in anything but a suit.
"Uh, Dad?"
He ducked out of the fireplace. "Good morning, Savannah. Sleep well?"
Oh yeah, like a baby. "Um, you're working on the fireplace yourself?"
"Yes. It just needs a little cleaning to remove the nests inside. Then it should work fine."
I had a sudden vision of him trying to start a fire and blowing up the house. I cringed. "Shouldn't you hire a professional?"
"I am more than qualified to serve as a chimney sweep, Savannah."
Maybe he had a point. He was old enough that he'd probably been around when chimneys were invented. "I've got to go. Charmers practice." I checked my watch. "Which I'm going to be late for if I don't get moving."
He nodded. "What time will you be home this evening?"
"I don't know. We've got more practice after school."
His dark eyebrows shot up, hiding themselves under the wavy black hair that had flopped out of its usual precisely combed style onto his forehead. "You do not know what time the after-school practice will end?" His tone sounded either suspicious or accusing, I couldn't figure out which.
I stared at him. The man had had almost no involvement in my life for years. Now he'd decided to be a control freak just because I'd been forced to move in with him?
"Savannah, I am not your lackadaisical mother or grandmother. I will need to know your daily schedule with precise times at which to expect you home each day."
Lackadaisical? Did anybody even use that word anymore? And besides, my mother and grandmother had raised me just fine. Just because I made one mistake that caused a huge mess...
Fine. I saw his point. "Usually I do know what time practice will end. But right now the Charmers are getting ready for our annual Spring Show in a week. So we'll be practicing every morning before school starting at 6:45 a.m., and again after school until at least seven or eight o'clock. I never know when the evening practices will end exactly, because it depends on when each group of girls decides to quit for the day, and I have to stay until the last person leaves so I can lock up the building. So that's really the best guess I can give you. Would you like me to call when practice ends each day?"
"Yes, please do. I programmed my number into your phone." He reached into his pocket, pulled out my phone and tossed me the digital dog leash.
I dropped it into my blue leather Charmers duffel bag and turned toward the freedom of the front door.
"And Savannah?"
I stopped and looked back over my shoulder, trying very hard not to huff out a sigh of impatience. If he kept this up, I'd never get to practice on time.
"If you begin to feel strange in any way, do not wait to call me." His tone was a stern warning.
Or else I might go on a killing spree before he could get to me and stop me? Yeesh. "Yes, Dad," I muttered then made a hasty escape.
Annoyance continued to knot my stomach during the short drive across town to the school's front parking lot.
As I walked across the dark campus, I remembered how scared I had been with the watchers there. Now that I was turning into a full vampire, I was the scariest thing imaginable here.
Shaking my head, I headed up the sports and arts building's cement ramp toward its blue painted rows of doors and then had to stop as a sharp pain spiked through me.
For the first time in months, Tristan wasn't waiting for me.
My steps became jerky as I forced my legs to move. I swallowed hard and searched for the right key to unlock the doors.
This is all wrong, a voice at the back of my mind moaned. He should be here, leaning against the doors, as perfect-looking as a catalog model. He should be reaching out to hold my thermos of tea, made fresh by Nanna, while I struggled to think straight.
But I didn't have my usual cup of tea from Nanna. And I was alone.
Inside, I stopped, too aware that I was the only person in the dark, empty building. I scowled. I had been just fine before Tristan came along. I'd been in this building alone countless times and had never felt lonely.
I had to get used to being on my own again.