Dirty Blood (28 page)

“Another time, then,” said Leo.

“No time like the present,” said Wes, stalking
towards Leo. I could see he wasn’t going to let him go so easily
this time.

“You don’t deserve your strength. There’s only one
who does,” he said, a harsh growl lacing his words. And then he was
running, heading for the trees.

As soon as he took off, Jack and Fee raced after him.
The tingling under my skin receded and then disappeared.

I spotted Cord, standing over the dead wolves and
talking on her phone. She saw me watching her and turned her back
to me. I watched the trees until Leo was gone and then I turned to
Wes, surprised he’d stayed behind. He was still in his wolf form
and he was standing rigidly still, staring at the trees where Leo,
Jack, and Fee had gone.

I watched him, a little curious. The only other time
I’d seen him as a wolf was a little foggy to me. It was strange to
see him like this but not in a bad way. And it was nice to be able
to look at him, in this form, without the disgusting crawly feeling
under my skin. I remembered I was still holding the plastic pieces
and dropped them on the ground, beside me. He didn’t turn at the
noise.

“Wes,” I finally called.

Reluctantly, it seemed, he turned to face me. I took
a step towards him, still staring. Even like this, there was
something commanding about him.

“He’s gone,” I said.

“I know.”

“You can change back if you want,” I added.

“I’m going to help Cord clean up. You should get to
class.”

“Right.” His words brought me back to reality and I
realized I’d almost forgotten that I was at school. I tried to
think of something to say; the silence suddenly felt awkward. “I
called you.”

“I know.”

“Why didn’t you call me back?”

“There was nothing else to say.”

“There’s plenty to say.”

“Like what?”

“Like, how could you just walk away like that?”

“I’m not walking away. It’s just a break, Tara.” He
sounded tired.

“You’re being ridiculous.”

He didn’t answer and I felt myself panicking. “What
about Vera’s visions? About the future, and me and you being
leaders together? You’re giving up on that, too? Or it wasn’t true
to begin with?”

“It’s as true as it can be, for something that hasn’t
happened yet. For now, being apart is what’s best for you.”

“Really? After what happened today, with Leo
attacking me, you really think so?” I felt kind of low about using
Leo as a reason for Wes not to leave me, but I was desperate.

“I’m not going to be far, at least not until Leo’s
dealt with. But we can’t be together. It’ll just create more
problems and it’s not fair to you.”

“Right, none of its fair or safe or right. Heaven
forbid I should have a say in my own life,” I snapped.

He looked away. “Goodbye, Tara,” he said, his voice
strained.

I opened my mouth to argue but he turned and sprinted
away before I could.

I stood there for awhile, hollow and numb. Cord still
had her back to me, even though I knew she’d heard everything.
Finally, I turned back to the school.

~ 29 ~

I made it through the doors and down the hall without
passing anyone I knew. Everyone was still in class. I didn’t know
which one, though. It had felt like hours passing, out there.

At my locker, I stopped and leaned my forehead
against the metal door, squeezing my eyes shut and trying to clear
my mind of the image of Wes leaving - twice. I still had to go to
the principal’s office for punching Cindy and deal with my mother
when she found out about it.

“Tara?”

I spun around and found George standing there. “Hey,
George,” I mumbled.

His curious expression clouded over with concern the
second our eyes met. “Are you okay?”

Tears stung and threatened to spill over. I nodded,
not trusting my voice.

“What’s wrong?”

“I just…”

The look on his face tugged at me. Tears ran over
onto my cheeks. George rushed forward and put his arms around me,
pulling me close. “It's okay, Tay. I’m here,” he murmured.

He didn’t ask me any more questions, just held me and
let me cry. When the fabric of his shirt was soaked through, and my
sniffling had somewhat subsided, I pulled away, realizing it
probably wasn’t a good idea to let George have his arms around me.
Standing this close, I recognized the scent of his cologne that
clung to him like a second skin. It was heavy and musky and so
completely George and it filled my mind with too many memories of
being held by him, exactly like this.

“Sorry,” I mumbled, wiping my cheeks with my sleeve.
“It’s been a rough day.”

“You can talk to me, Tay. You know that right?”

Just like the other night when I’d talked to him on
the phone, I thought about it. It would feel so good to unload on
someone, and there was a time I’d been able to tell George
anything. It was tempting. But I knew better. “I’ll be fine. I’ve
gotta get to the principal’s office before Mr. Knowles realizes I’m
lurking in the halls.”

“Principal’s office? Why?”

“I sort of punched Cindy. In the face. Twice.”

George’s eyes widened and his brows shot up,
disappearing into his sandy hair. “Seriously?”

I nodded.

“Wow, Tay. That’s… impressive.” A grin tugged at the
edges of his mouth. “I guess it has been a rough day.” His smile
disappeared, and he suddenly looked nervous. “Is this about what
happened? I mean, you’re not going to punch me are you?”

“No, I think I’m done punching people for today,” I
assured him.

“Good.”

“So, I’ll see you later,” I said.

“Yeah, you better get going,” he said. “Good
luck.”

I moved to go around him but he reached out a hand to
stop me. When I looked up at him, I found him eyeing my arm, with a
weird expression.

“What is that on your shirt? Is that… blood on your
arm?”

I looked down and realized I’d completely forgotten
about the scratches Leo had left. My shirt sleeve was ripped open
where his claws had raked my skin, revealing the raised, bloody
slashes underneath. At the reminder, I realized I did feel a dull
sting from the wound.

“Oh,” was all I said out loud. I was trying to figure
out how to explain this when George cut in.

“Did Cindy do that to you?” he asked, angrily.

“Uh, yeah, I guess,” I lied. “I didn’t really notice
it before.”

“You should stop off at the nurse and get that
checked out.”

“I will.”

“Do you want me to walk you there?”

I hesitated. His concern for me was sweet and
reminiscent of the George I’d fallen for. It made me want to do
whatever I could to keep this version of him around, but I didn’t
really have any intention of letting the nurse see my wound – or
anyone else, for that matter.

“No, I’m good,” I said. “Thanks, George.”

“Yeah, okay. Well, call me if you need anything. You
know I’m here for you,” he said, his voice heavy with meaning.

I nodded and gave him a tight smile and walked
away.

As soon as I was out of sight, I ducked into the
bathroom and cleaned my arm as best I could. I had a change of
clothes in my gym locker, but my mother would be sure to notice it
and ask, so I put my hoodie on, instead, to cover the damage on my
shirtsleeve. The wound burned a little but it was more of an
annoying throb than anything else. At least I could manage it on my
own.

Inevitably, washing the blood away made me think of
the fight – and Wes. A dull pang had developed in my chest and the
more I thought of him, the sharper it got. I tried to think of
something else, to distract me. I couldn’t really accept that it
was over. If I did, I was afraid I’d crumble into pieces, and until
Leo was dealt with, I couldn’t let that happen. The people I loved
were depending on me, whether they knew it or not.

Presenting myself at the principal’s office wasn’t
nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Probably because I wasn’t a
repeat offender. The kid that went in before me was – I recognized
him from a couple of classes as always being slouched over in the
back of the room – and Principal Sellers’ raised voice could be
heard all the way into the waiting room while that kid was in
there. So, when they came out and Principal Sellers gestured that
it was my turn to enter, I shuffled slowly into his office, feeling
like a criminal. I took a seat in one of the hard backed chairs in
front of his desk and waited. My fingers fidgeted nervously with
the shoulder strap on my bag. I stared down at a brown stain on the
carpet.

Principal Sellers rounded the desk and stared at me
over a mess of paper coffee cups and thick files being held down by
what looked like homemade paper weights. He was picking at his
stubbled chin. “Miss Godfrey, I’m surprised to see you here,
especially for the reason that brings you. Do you want to tell me
what happened?”

I suppressed a sigh. “What do you want to know?” I
asked, wearily. I really just wanted to get this done and get to
the really scary part – my mother.

“I want to know why you punched her,” he said.

“If I tell you, will you change your mind about
calling my mother?”

“No.”

“Okay, well then I’d rather not get into it.”

“And why is that?”

“Because it’s not like my reason will sound good
enough to warrant hitting her. So, it doesn’t really matter why,
does it? She made a stupid comment, like she always does, and I
snapped.”

“That’s it?” he asked, clearly skeptical that I
didn’t want to say more or try to tell my side of the story.

“That’s it,” I assured him.

He eyed me for a minute, probably waiting to see if I
was really finished. But I really was. I didn’t feel like giving
excuses, not to him. It wouldn’t change the situation, and it
wouldn’t help fix any of my real problems. Not that punching Cindy
wasn’t a real problem, I mean I did feel bad, sort of. But when
compared to Leo or my mother or Wes…

“Okay, well.” Principal Sellers cleared his throat
and stood. “You mother should be here soon.” He must’ve caught my
grimace because he added, “We’d already called her before you got
here. You can go wait for her in the front office. You’ll be
suspended from school for the next three days, which is school
policy for a first offense. Mrs. Fletcher will give you the
paperwork.”

I nodded and followed him back out the door.

“I do hope this is an isolated incident, Miss
Godfrey,” he said, as I passed by him on my way out.

“Me, too,” I mumbled.

Mrs. Fletcher, the gray haired office assistant,
handed me some official looking papers as I passed her desk. She
tried giving me a disapproving look to go with it, but I ignored
her and found an empty chair to wait in.

~ 30 ~

An hour ticked by, and I could feel my muscles
getting sore and stiff. The cotton of my jacket chafed against the
scrapes on my arm, and Mrs. Fletcher gave me a dirty look every
time I shifted in the chair. Finally, Stacey - one of Julie’s
friends, and my mother’s new employee -showed up to get me. She had
her bright blond hair pulled back in a harsh ponytail and her eyes
were rimmed in red.

“Hey,” she said, smiling a watery smile.

“Hi,” I said.

Stacey was halfway through her junior year of
college, so in a way, I felt like she was more my age than a grown
up. And even though I didn’t really know her, (I’d met her a couple
of times when she’d been in the store to see Julie) the fact that
she didn’t give me the same disapproving glower that an adult would
made me instantly glad it was her, instead.

“Where’s my mom?” I asked, gathering my stuff and
following her out of the office.

“She said she would close up and see you at home,
later,” she answered, holding the door open for me and then falling
into step beside me.

“Oh, okay,” I said, kind of shocked my mother had
opted for work instead of guarding me like a house arrest
prisoner.

“Did you want her to be the one to get you?” Stacey
asked, giving me a sideways glance with eyebrows raised.

“No, it’s fine,” I said, quickly.

Stacey smiled knowingly and led the way to her
second-hand Mazda parked at the curb. As soon as we were on the
road, I waited for her to start questioning me about what happened,
but she stayed quiet. Maybe it was my preoccupation with my own
problems, but it took me a minute to realize Stacey was just as
distracted.

“Everything okay?” I asked, hesitantly. I knew what
happened to Julie had to be rough, but I wasn’t sure I was the best
person to reassure her.

“Hmm? Yeah, just thinking about something that
happened at the shop earlier,” she said. “Actually maybe you can
help. This guy came in, around your mom’s age, and asked to see
her. Wouldn’t give his name, just said he was an old friend. But
when she saw him, her expression turned all weird.”

“Who was it?”

“I don’t know. She asked me to come get you and
basically kicked me out the door.”

“What did they talk about” I asked, feeling uneasy
though I wasn’t really sure why.

“They didn’t. At least not in front of me. It was
this awkward, tense silence,” she said with a shrug.

“What do you think it was about?”

“No idea. She locked up behind me, too. She’s never
closed the store in the middle of the day like that before. Weird,
right?”

“Weird,” I agreed.

“Do you have any idea who the guy could be?” she
asked.

“What did he look like?”

“Forty-ish, brown hair and beard with streaks of
gray…” She squinted in concentration.

“That’s about all I remember.”

“I don’t know,” I said, shaking my head. “Doesn’t
sound familiar.” I tried thinking of people my mother knew that
might fit that description but the list was short. She didn’t
really have a lot of friends and the ones she did were middle aged
neighbors, all female, that she used to have keep an eye on me,
when I was home alone. I briefly wondered if it could’ve been
another Hunter or member of The Cause, but dismissed it. The only
one she said she knew of in the entire area was Vera, and even that
connection was made recently. Besides, Stacey’s description didn’t
sound like any of the group I’d met.