Drift (Drift Series) (11 page)

“Still want to? Why wouldn’t I?”

“Well, you know what happened to Darryl, right?”

“Yeah, I think everyone knows. It’s the main topic of discussion around here.”

“Maybe you know what happened between Darryl and I
prior
to him jumping to his death?”

“Without getting into your private business
, I did hear that you two had a small disagreement. Nothing more. Besides, it’s none of my business, anyway. No big deal to me.” I tried to put her at ease.

Shade met my eyes with hers and gave me another smile of relief. “Yeah, well, it seems everyone these days has an opinion on my private life.”

“Well, as far as I’m concerned, others’ opinions worry me as much as a cloudy day. Those who live in glass houses shouldn’t cast stones, ya know?”

Shade flashed me her beautiful smile again without saying a word
. I was the recipient of her precious smile three times already, well worth the risk taken for showing up to school today.

In an effort to change the stressful subject, I reiterated to her about our upcoming date
. “So, how about this Friday or Saturday we get together?”

“Sounds good to me. Can I call you?”

“I would say sure if I actually had a cell phone.”

Taking a humorous shot at my expense,
she called me out. “Way to get into the twenty-first century there, Leo.” She started to giggle and added to the insult. “Have you heard of Google, or do you still use a thick paper phone book?”

Shade struggled to hold in her laughter as I laughed
, too. “Ha. Ha. Very funny. Are you finished?” I grinned.

Shade blasted her head backwards and blurted out some buoyant laughter. “Yes, I think I am. Here, let me give you my cell number. You can call me from your rotary phone, caveman, whenever you want to set up our date. You can call me anytime, actually.” She smiled once more after taking her last blow at me.

“Man, something jumped into your Kool-Aid this morning, you’re feisty today,” I joked.

“Yeah, I have to admit, right now, this is the best I
’ve felt in awhile.”

I grinned at her adoringly. “Glad I could help lift your spirits, Shade.”

Her face turned flush, and just as she was about to reply, the late bell rang and suddenly we realized we were the only two left standing in the hallways, well, give or take the one or two students rushing to get into classrooms, slamming the doors in a mad rush.

“Oh crap, I gotta go. Call me later, Leo.” Shade jogged backwards. Then she faced forward and hit a dead sprint down the hallway, only to stop before going fully outside to shout at me again, “Buy a cell phone!”

“Okay!” I answered as she waved at me and steamrolled out the hallway doors. I was just as late as she was, but I didn’t care. I strutted to my next class high on sweet emotion.

For the rest of the day, all I could think about was my conversation with her and what may become of our weekend date coming up. I didn’t even consider that Christian could show and quash any plans I ha
d.

Since all I could do was fantasize about Shade the rest of the day, while dodging Scruffy, the rest of the afternoon flew by in record time. Quick as a hiccup, school ended and I was hurrying out to my car, being sure to stay on the down
low when it came to searching eyes. But, much to my surprise yet again, a soft, but upbeat voice almost drowned out the sound of pattering footsteps catching up to me.

“I
’m serious about that cell phone, Leo.” Shade placed her hand on my shoulder to get me to face her. Here she was again, touching me, acknowledging me. For so long I desired this kind of attention from her and now she was tracking me down to give it to me. I loved it.

“Okay, okay, okay. Do you have to keep busting my chops, chick?”

“That’s what I do.” She playfully skipped next to me as I walked. This was a side of her I hadn’t seen before, so full of life. Much different from the quieter, almost reclusive side I saw in her before. Maybe with all the heat she was taking from people as of late, it was nice to have someone like me who was completely open to her, on her side, so to speak. Whatever the circumstances, I enjoyed this side of her.

Oh hell, who am I kidding? All her emotional sides, as well as her physical ones too, were attractive to me. It was crazy to think that at this
moment, this beautiful piece of human artwork was supposed to be gone from this life. The world was a more beautiful place with her still in it.

“So, besides being the rep for Sprint or Verizon at Mountain View, what else do you like to do?”

She smirked. “I don’t know…I like to hang out with my girlfriends, catch the hottest new movies. I don’t know, the norm, I guess.” She shrugged. “What do you like to do besides play with Mark and push out testosterone by flexing car muscles on dangerous roads?”

I giggled, blowing off another good, fun potshot at me.

“I don’t know. I pretty much keep to myself in my spare time. I keep a low profile, just me and my cat, for the most part.”

“Awww…you and your kitty?” She smiled. “Maybe sometime I can come over and meet her or him?” She flashed her big beautiful eyes up to me.

“He’s a he, and I’m sure he would love to meet you sometime.”

We walked in between cars in the parking lot. Just as we were getting closer to my ride, a very serious look came over her, like she wanted to get something off her chest. To be quite honest, it made me nervous, I was still a little uptight about her potentially knowing more about me than I cared to share. I was a little relieved when she finally told me what was on her mind.

“Leo, I don’t know what you may have heard. I mean, about what happened between Darryl and I before he died, but I promise you I didn’t do anything to him, regardless of what some other people say. I hope that what others say doesn’t affect what you may think about me…”

I placed my hands on her shoulders, meeting her eye to eye. “I told you
, Shade, you don’t have to explain a thing when it comes to your personal life…to me, or anyone else. I
know
you didn’t do anything. I realize this sounds cold, but that dude got what he deserved, if you ask me. Let’s not bring this conversation up again. Let’s focus on you and I getting to know one another, and me getting a cell phone.”

Shade just grinned in relief. “You know, Leo, you
’re easy to talk to. Thanks.”

I grinned at her reassuringly and pushed the button to open my car door. I sat in my driver
’s seat and slid my keys into the ignition. “Besides, if some jerk had the stomach enough to beat his girl and try to toss her over a railing, there’s no telling what kind of monster a person like that may grow up to become. Maybe it’s a good thing his evil didn’t get a chance to take root.”

Shade looked completely perplexed. She stepped into my car door, grabbing it so I could
n’t close it as she looked down at me. “Wait, how did you know what happened? I never told anyone about that, I only told them he beat me. I never mentioned what he really tried to do…not the police, not even my closest girlfriend. I kept quiet out of respect for his parents. I figured that since he was gone, no one needed to know. I could at least give his parents that. So Leo, how could you possibly know?” She glared at me with squinted eyes, waiting for me to respond.

The only thing I could do in response was spatter out a series of fragmented words as I struggled to make eye contact with her, “Umm. Well, you see…Well, umm…”

Then, before I could make a feeble attempt at piecing together a sentence, a look came across her that went from completely bewildered and suspicious, to certain and excited. She raced around my car to my passenger side and opened the door, hopping inside and sitting next to me as she slammed the door. She stared at me hard, struggling with what she wanted to say. I kept my view fixed on my dashboard.

“It…it was you!” Shade spoke with great enthusiasm, like she had just found the missing piece to
the long awaited completion of a puzzle. “You were there.”

I tried to think of what to say, but again, nothing came out of my open mouth but a few awkward sounds. She was smiling from ear to ear, but I didn’t think it was because she was happy
. I think it was more because she’d put together the mystery that had plagued her ever since that night.

“I thought I was crazy, like maybe the blows to my head made me imagine what took place, but it
really
did happen. Didn’t it, Leo? It was you. You’re the shadow man, aren’t you?”

I gazed out my car window. A part of me wanted to tell her the truth, but this law that stood for centuries was made not to be broken for so many reasons…good reasons. I couldn’t tell her, a human, what and who I really was
. I couldn’t tell her the truth about me it was forbidden.

“I
—I don’t know what you’re talking about. I—I think you should leave.”

We sat there briefly in a moment of silence. I did my best to not look in her direction, trying to avoid diving deeper into the situation more than we both already were. She shuffled her backpack around on her lap like she was struggling to gather herself to get out.

“Fine!”

She reached for the door and opened it, forcefully jumping out of my car as she spun around and slammed the door, making my ears pop. I watched in my mirrors as she stormed off.

I’d probably just ruined my chances with her. But I guess it didn’t really matter anymore anyway, considering the situation. I guess in a way, this kind of needed to happen between Shade and I…separation, much to my dismay. So, I threw my car into gear and booked it home.

CHAPTER 9

DISCLOSURE

At the top of my driveway, I shot out of my car like a bullet from a gun. Shade flew in behind me, almost running into the back of my car as a huge cloud of dirt kicked up, causing me to take a big step backwards for my own safety.

“You need to leave!” I pointed, trying to intimidate her as she was fumbling to get out. In a whisk of fury, she slammed the door with a huge thud and approached me.

“Leave? I
’m not going anywhere until you explain what in the world went on that night. You hear me, Leo?” Shade got right into my face and stabbed her finger into my chest.

“You couldn’t possibly understand. It
’s best you leave things alone and stop with the questions.” I turned away in a vain attempt at ignoring her.

S
he snatched my shirt and yanked me back to face her. “Well, why in the hell don’t you try me, Leo? I’m tired of being led around on a leash, like everyone knows what’s best for me…not my parents, not Darryl, not the ignorant people of this town, and certainly not you. I have news for you, Leo. Shade knows what’s best for Shade. So why don’t you open up your mouth and offer an explanation?”

“You wouldn’t understand.” I shook my head, I knew I could never break a sacred law, at least I didn’t intend to right now.

Shade took a step back and looked into the distance. Tears welled up in her eyes as she too seemed to reach her wits end.

“You know,” she started as a tear streamed down her cheek. She sniffled a little bit. “I have been ridiculed, antagonized
, and judged by the people of this town. I kept Darryl’s integrity intact when he was alive, and I continue to do so even in his death. He doesn’t deserve it…alive or dead.” She wiped the tears that continued fall. I walked up closer.

“That guy kept me prisoner in his fortress of hate and distrust for quite some time and I never spoke a negative word against him. Never. His insults, his harsh evaluations of my behavior, his dishonor towards me, all of it. He treated me like I was worth nothing, completely expendable. Then, he rewards me by trying to end my life. Why did I stick with him so long? I don’t know. Maybe it was because he was so popular at school, or that his family is so well known. I guess being the girlfriend of the most popular guy in town outweighed my common sense. I think most of all I was scared of being just Shade. Like not being with him would make me less important or something…I don’t know.”

I placed my palm on her back, consoling her.

“The entire time…the entire time, he manhandled me
. All I could do was pray, hoping something, someone would get me out of that situation. Even when he threw me over his balcony like trash…as I fell, I made a final plea. And then, help arrived.”

I stopped rubbing her back as she showed me her red, irritated eyes.

“I couldn’t make it out but this dark, smoky figure appeared, plucking me from the sky and placed me safely on a tree branch. Although its appearance seemed unlikely to be the type to save someone… Well, actually, the being looked very menacing, but for some strange reason, I didn’t fear it. If anything, it calmed me.”

I took my hand off her back, walking away, fearing every word that m
ight come out of her mouth next. Shade pressed on, telling her side of the story, a story that I, of course, knew all too well. This didn’t stop her from walking around me so she could face me once more. I kept my gaze above her.

“As quickly as the being came, it was gone, and I was alone with my thoughts…dealing with the aftermath. On one hand, I was grateful to be alive, but on the other, I was spiteful, because now I was alone again, not able to tell the full story about this mysterious, heroic figure that saved me. People would think I was crazy if
I spoke of such things—but maybe that would have been better, because at least
me
being crazy would have given them an excuse to condemn me, not just call me a murderer like they’re doing now. That jerk tried to kill me! I don’t know what happened after he tossed me over the railing, maybe he went back and killed Darryl, I don’t know. I just can’t understand what, or why this whole thing had to happen. Now I’m the beast, and Darryl is a saint, it just isn’t fair.”

I stared into her beautiful sparkling eyes.

“As the days went by, I began to question myself…my sanity. I started to doubt what really happened. Then you come along with knowledge that only Darryl and I were privy to. Now, it seems I may finally get some clarification, and maybe proof that I’m not crazy, my source goes cold and quiet. I ask you, how would that make you feel?”

I said nothing as she pulled my chin back down.

“I’ll ask you again…please, how did you know what happened? Were you just snooping on us, or is it something more? Do you know more than you’re telling me, Leo?”

I didn’t want it to be me that finally
erased one of the lines that have been drawn in the sand for centuries between God, the Devil, and man, or between good and evil in general. Telling her meant spilling an honored and sacred secret that would forever damn me. Then, I thought, I’m already condemned. So I figured I didn’t really have anything to lose. If I could save this girl’s sanity, at least I could walk away knowing that, for all the bad I must have done in my human life, the last thing I did was of true heart. That’s how I felt about it, anyway. On that note, I decided to answer her questions as honestly as possible. In this moment, I would forever change my destiny.

“Okay, Shade. Okay. You deserve to know…everything. You’ve earned it. You
’re right…there is more, a lot more. Here, let’s go sit down and I’ll do my best to clarify things.” I stretched my arm out.

Her face was clouded with
both fear and anticipation. We walked up to a few small boulders buried in the dirt. Only the tops of them were exposed, making them a great spot to sit. Shade promptly sat on one as I stood before her.

I took a deep breath, trying to feed her hunger for information.

“No matter what I tell you, no matter how ridiculous it sounds, what is about to come out of my mouth is one hundred percent truth, take it or leave it. But since you insist on knowing, you have to promise you will stay and hear every word I say until I’m completely finished…no matter what. Plus, you can’t tell a soul about anything we’re about to discuss. Your life depends on it. For all I know, it may already be too late for you anyway. Got it?”

Without skipping a beat, Shade complied with a nervous “Got it.”

Sucking in another chest-raising breath, I pushed further, single-handedly altering my fate and everyone else’s around me. I paced in circles in front of her as I struggled to find the best place to start.

“As I said before, I know a lot more about you and Darryl than I
’m letting on…more than you could ever imagine. But before I delve further, I must let you know what I am, what I’m truly about.”

Shade pushed aside a strand of hair from her face, but the slight breeze blew it right back.

“I am not as I appear, Shade. You’re simply looking at a shell, a cover so to speak. I have been created precisely to convince even the most skeptical critic that I am exactly who I say I am, a human. But, I’m a beast, cold, deliberate, and precise enough to persuade and mislead the smartest man that walks this world. I’m everything that dare not be spoken aloud…everything that has been feared by mankind since the dawn of time. I’m the ultimate corrupter, the wittiest of persuaders; there’s nothing worse than I, except more like me.”

“Sooooo, what are you trying to say
, you’re some kind of vampire or something?”

I was insulted she thought
it was a joke. “Vampires.” I giggled egotistically. “Vampires are nothing.”

Shade stared at me and chuckled, as if waiting for me to join in, but when I didn’t, she turned serious.

“I’m much more than that. Sound outrageous, Shade?” I gave her a half smirk. I could tell she still wasn’t absorbing the reality of the situation.

“So, wait…are you trying to tell me you
’re some mythological creature or something?”

I raised my eyebrows
.

“Okay, okay, what
’s going on, Leo? Get to the point.”

I stammered out the rest of my truth
. “I wish it was as simple as that, as basic as a mystical creature, but it isn’t. I have been reborn in the fires of Hell…”

Shade stood up from the rock and squinted as she absorbed
my words. “You’re…you’re…”

“Say it,” I urged. “You know what I
’m trying to tell you. Say what you know I am.”

“It can’t be. You can’t be. It’s not possible.” She spun around.

I circled back in front of her but she avoided looking at me. “Say it, Shade. Say what you know…out loud. Is it so hard?” I placed my hands on her shoulders, trying to get her to look at me.

“It-it’s true. Heaven and Hell…I thought that maybe it was made up. It can’t be real.”

I lightly shook her shoulders, wanting her to recognize and fully understand, wanting her to say it with her own lips. Lowering my head to hers, very slowly, she raised her head, meeting my stare.

“You’re a Demon.”

My hands left her shoulders and swung loosely to my sides. “Yes. Yes, I am.”

Unexpectedly, she
headed back to her car, throwing out her open palms in front of her. “There is no way. I must be going crazy, or you are.”

I jogged up to her before she could get to her car and politely grabbed her. She pulled away.

“It was me; I was the smoky figure that night. I was in Darryl’s room. I saw what happened. I know what he did to you…what he tried to do. It was me that caught you when he threw you off his balcony.
It was
me
who placed you on that branch.”

Swatting my outstretched arms, she backed away. She looked completely terrified.

“Wait. Then if it was you the other night, I saw you fly back up to Darryl’s room. Did Darryl really commit suicide or did you…get away from me!” She abruptly sprinted backwards.

“Shade. Wait, please.”

She jumped into her car. Before she could close the door, I grabbed the door frame.

“Go away!” She yanked on the door.
It failed to close. Instead, the frame wrapped itself completely around my wrist in a chunk of twisted metal, shattering the window.

When she saw the heavy metal door twisting and bending around my arm, she looked absolutely baffled. But what I think puzzled her even more was that the force of the blow didn’t give me an ounce of discomfort. She pulled my arm to her, releasing it from the creaking metal cast and looked it over, not a scrape was on it.

“Look, like I asked when you were clinging to the tree that night…trust me, please. Besides, you promised you would hear everything I had to say, so at least give me that.”

Her stare was still fixated on the remarkable scene of my unblemished hand resting in hers. I pulled it away. I let her know I was indeed okay and invited her delicate ivory hand to grab mine. Pausing only briefly, she placed her hand into mine, allowing me to escort her out of her car. Gracefully, she stood before me, pushing aside the contorted car door.

“C’mon, let’s talk.” I gently tugged her hand.

She walked with me, holding my hand the entire time, much calmer than moments before. Maybe she was still in shock. Needless to say, the touch of her hand was peaceful. I made sure not to let go as we walked to my favorite hangout spot, my tree.

“So then, what Darryl said about you keeping his car from skidding off the hill is true?”

I only smiled reassuringly.

“Soooo, the handprint imbedded in his car…that was really yours?”

Again, I said nothing.

“There is no way.
No way
.” She shook her head.

I couldn’t help but chuckle under my breath. I decided to remove all doubt about my abilities with a hint of sarcasm. “You don’t believe me yet? You just closed a steel door on my hand with enough force to castrate an elephant. I didn’t whimper or receive a scratch of any kind, and you still don’t believe?”

I let go of her hand. “Well, I guess you need a little something more, huh?”

Just like every single male in every single species in the world, I felt the need to show off to impress the girl. Except there was one distinct advantage I had over any male walking the planet, I
’m not human or animal. I possessed unbridled raw power and ability. I had no problem whatsoever displaying it to Shade. I slung out my enormous dark wings and shot into the air like a missile. My sudden departure caused a thrust of energy that blew Shade’s clothing around and stirred up a cloud of dirt. Before she could turn her head enough to see where I had gone, I had disappeared into the deep blue sky.

While in the weightlessness of space, a small meteor hovered just within reach, so I grabbed it and blasted back to where Shade was anxiously
waiting. I hit the ground with a thud, landing in a perfect three-point-stance like a linemen in football, kicking up another cloud of dirt just feet in front of her. I raised my head and smirked; the look on her face spoke volumes. Her eyes were the size of softballs; her lips quivered and struggled for words.