I checked my watch, cursed and broke into a jog toward the field house, bracing myself for the punishment I'd get for being late. Laps, probably, at least five of them. Maybe more depending on Coach Parker's mood today. Oh, well. It'd be worth it. Along the way, I tried to figure out what I would do about the Creepy Three. Or the toads, as Anne had called them.
I had to focus during weight training. Part of my punishment for my lateness was being paired up with some wimpy kid who needed a spotter to save him from the evil bench press every few seconds. But as soon as practice ended and I finished all ten laps around the outdoor track that ringed the practice field, my brain went right back to the problem at hand.
All joking aside, Anne's claim that she could take care of the boys herself was overconfident. Sure, maybe she and Savannah could handle one boy. Maybe two. But three at a time? No way. And what about when Savannah wasn't with Anne?
I had options, though none of them were great. Beating up the toads would make my fists happy and ensure the jerks got the point. But there was that whole problem with Jacksonville High's no-violence policy again.
I could settle for threatening them instead, but I doubted they'd be smart enough to listen and stay away from Savannah.
That left me with only one solution that couldn't be traced back to me, at least by normal methods, and would take the choice away from the creeps. For that, I'd need my sister's help.
I got to the car before Emily. Kicking back, I propped my feet on the dashboard and waited. I must have drifted off.
"Hey, sleepyhead." Emily tossed her poms onto my face as she got in. "Get those grubby feet off my dash, please." Using her index finger like a wand, she magically lifted my feet in the air for a few seconds. Man, I hated it when she used telekinesis on me! It made me feel like a puppet. Seriously creepy. Not to mention the small pinpricks that raced over my skin whenever she used magic around me. And that was just from a tiny use of power.
Swatting away the annoying piles of plastic, I sat up. The sun was already setting. "What took you so long?"
"Cheerleading practice. Remember? Cheerleaders have to train hard, too."
"Uh-huh." I frowned at the fast-sinking sun then glanced at my watch and swore. I was running out of time, and no way could I risk waiting another day to get rid of Savannah's stalker club. "Listen, sis. I really need your help. And I know what you're going to say, but hear me out first, okay?"
Her eyebrows rose, but she nodded and started the car.
As we drove, I gave her a quick rundown about Savannah's newest fans and how scared she'd looked. I might have played it up a little, but they had acted half crazed over her, and she'd seemed pretty upset at the end of class. "So, I need your help."
"You want me to use my power to make them leave her alone?"
"No. I want to do it." With Savannah's looks, this could become a weekly problem. And I didn't want to have to go to my sister for help every time.
Emily didn't even hesitate. "No."
"You won't teach me?"
"No. You know the rules. Not just Mom and Dad, but all the elders would kill me or worse if I teach you anything I know. You can only learn from an elder, no one else."
I groaned and ran both hands through my hair.
"Oh, calm down, you spoiled brat. You're a Coleman. You know you'll get your way in the end. You're just making this way too hard." Emily pushed a button on the remote clipped to her visor. The wrought-iron gates swung open ahead of us at our driveway's entrance and we pulled through, the gravel crunching like potato chips under the car's tires.
"Oh, so you think I should just beat them up, lose any chance of going to college and break our mother's heart? Okay, but remember, it was your idea."
"Of course not, you idiot. I meant that you need to learn from an elder how to protect her." She pulled into the garage and let me think over her suggestion while the door slid shut behind us.
"Yeah, I guess I could ask Dad. But you know their rules about her. They would kill me just for saying her name, let alone for trying to help her."
"Who says they need to know how the information will be used? You know Dad's been waiting for you to start taking your training seriously. So why not make our dear old dad happy for a change?"
I stared ahead into the gloom of the dim garage, thinking over everything Emily was and wasn't saying.
She was right. Dad did want me to "buckle down and train harder"-harped on it, in fact. And self-defense was the first thing he'd taught Emily after she'd learned to ground her energy. So the odds were pretty good that I could get him to start on the same type of stuff with me. A hint or two from me about being ready to focus and needing help in the self-defense area should do it. But would I learn what I needed to fast enough to help Savannah? The Creepy Three might come to their senses with a little distance, time and sleep tonight. Or they might not. What if they were making plans right now to catch her alone somewhere?
"What time did Dad say he'd be home tonight?"
Emily glanced at her watch with a smile. "In half an hour."
I jumped out of the car, leaving my books on the seat. "I'd better go change."
"Don't you need your books?"
I shook my head and gave her a grim smile. "I'll be too busy. Got a different kind of homework tonight."
"Okay. Just be sure to ask Dad how to do a targeted memory confusion spell. Every time those creeps try to get near Savannah, they'll become confused and go away again. Put it in something small to hide in her backpack, and you're all set."
"Thanks." I shot her a grin then ran inside and up to my room.
Savannah
I thought about telling my family about today's algebra class. But they all seemed stressed about me already. I knew if I told them, Dad would have to tell the vampire council. Both the Clann and the council already thought I was a ticking time bomb. If they knew I was changing already, what would they do? Would they take me out of school? Would they take me away from Nanna and Mom and my friends?
So on the way home from dance class, I decided to give it another day and see what happened. Then if I felt like I really couldn't handle things, I would ask for help.
"Hey, hon, how was your day?" Mom called from her couch office as Nanna and I entered the house. Mom seemed tense, her elbows braced on her knees, her cell phone strangely quiet for once. Had she been waiting for me to come home and report?