Shiver (Night Roamers) (3 page)

“Where’s mom?” I asked, walking through the door. It was after ten o’clock and my arches were killing me. I took off my shoes and began rubbing the soles of my feet.

Nathan was sitting on th
e couch eating a large bowl of cookie dough ice cream. “I think she’s at Caleb’s again,” he said between bites. “How’s the car running?”

I shrugged.
“It’s running, okay. It kind of hesitated when I started it tonight, though.”

“Hmm… I’ll take a look at it tomorrow. It might
just need an oil change.”

My mom had
graciously loaned me the money for a used Camaro she’d spotted in town last month, when I’d turned eighteen. It had needed some work but thankfully, Nathan knew enough about engines to make it drivable. With the rust and scratches, it wasn’t the most attractive vehicle, but it got me where I needed to go.

“Thanks,” I said.

“You going out tonight?” he asked, standing up.

I shook my head. “No, I’m too tired.”

Plus, it wasn’t like I’d had made a lot of friends in school as of yet. There were a couple of girls I sat with at lunch, but after what happened last summer and the things going on with my mom, I still had a hard time getting close to anyone.

“Okay, well I’m going out
with Duncan and Celeste later. If you need anything, you have my cell phone.”

My jaw dropped. “You’re
actually hanging out with Celeste, too?”

He nodded. “Yeah, she’s a nice girl. Plus, she has some
really hot girlfriends.”

I looked at him incredulously.
“She’s a freakin’ vampire, Nathan! I can’t believe you don’t remember anything that happened last summer with Ethan. Celeste was involved with all of that, you know.”

His face darkened. “
Ethan was just a loser who wouldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. You know, you’re starting to really scare me with all of this vampire talk, Nikki. Jesus, don’t you know how ridiculous you sound?”

“Listen to me, Nathan! Celeste is dangerous and so are her friends. I wish you’d believe me.”

He snorted. “The only thing dangerous about Celeste is her choice in clothes, which,” he said with a devilish grin, “is dangerously sexy.”

“You’re so naïve,” I mumbled.

He laughed. “For the love of God, Nikki! Celeste is
Caleb’s
daughter. You know, the sheriff; mom’s boyfriend? Jesus, we’re practically family now.”

I scowled.
“Don’t even go there. We are not family and never will be. Caleb and Celeste are both vampires, and the sooner you realize that, the safer we’ll all be.”

He waved his hand
in exasperation and started walking up the steps towards his bedroom. “I don’t have time for this. You obviously need help.”

That hurt. My twin brother didn’
t believe me, probably thought I was a total nutcase, and there was nothing I could do to persuade him otherwise. Feeling overwhelmingly defeated, I decided to take a shower and go to bed. I was tired, crabby, and totally on my own for the night. After grabbing an apple from the kitchen, I went upstairs to my bedroom and turned on the television. The news was on and the story being covered left me totally breathless.

“Two teenaged girls
’ bodies were discovered in the woods early this morning near Bearpaw Cove, a private beach located in southern Shore Lake,” said the young woman, standing outside of the Sheriff’s Department. “The girls, Ashley Caruthers and Jenny Friedley, both longtime friends and seniors at Shore Lake High School, were last seen by their parents shortly before nine o’clock Friday night. Although officials are not commenting on the condition of the bodies, foul play is suspected. Unfortunately, no other information is being released at this time. Back to you, Jim.”

I stared at the screen in horror. 
Ashley and Jenny were two of the most popular girls in school. They also had a reputation for partying with college students and sneaking into trashy bars. Even with that, however, there was no doubt in my mind of what kind of evil befell them.

Vampires.

Nathan stuck his head into my room as I turned off the television. “Later, Twerp.”

I loo
ked at him, unable to form any words.

His lips thinned
. “Okay, what’s wrong?”

I cleared my throat.
“Ashley Caruthers and Jenny Friedley were both found murdered,” I said, my voice hollow.

He eyes widened.
“You’re shitting me?”

I
shook my head and sat down on the bed. “Their bodies were found near Bearpaw Cove. They think it’s foul play.”

“I wonder if Caleb will give us any more details,” he said
, running a hand through his brown hair. “That’s just crazy. They seemed like nice girls, although I heard they liked to party pretty hard; must have caught up with them.”

Nice wasn’t the word I’d used to describe
Jenny. Ashley was friendly, enough, but Jenny was a total snob. Or, rather, she used to be.

Nathan’s phone began to ring and he answered it. From the goofy grin on his face
, I could tell it was a girl. He stepped out of my room to talk in private then returned after a few minutes.

“Li
sten, I’ve gotta fly; you going to be okay?”

I nodded.

The truth was that I was more worried about him than anything. Hanging out with a vampire whose intentions were probably not in his best interests didn’t sit well with me. The only thing keeping me from going totally insane was Caleb’s promise to keep Nathan and my mom safe. I hoped that included being unharmed by Celeste.

He walked over and planted a kiss on the top of my head. “Don’t let this thing drive you crazy,” he
said. “Obviously, those two got themselves in over their heads with someone or something. Who knows, maybe they were into drugs?”

My eyes narrowed.
“Or maybe…”

“Don’t even say it
,” he interrupted.

I folded my hands under my chest.
“Why won’t you ever believe me?”

He threw up his hands in exasperation
. “Because there are no such things as monsters, werewolves, or vampires. You have to wake up. Whoever got to these girls is just some sick fuck that needs to be locked up. Hopefully, Caleb can stop whoever’s doing this shit before anything else happens.”

I rolled my eyes.
“Caleb, right.”

“
Caleb’s a good guy and you just keep ripping him to shreds. Look, I’m finished with this conversation. Keep the doors locked and call me if you need me.”

“F
ine,” I mumbled, looking away.

Nathan stared at me like he wanted to shake some sense in
to me. In the end, he just left me alone to sulk.

After I took a shower, I went downstairs to the den for something to read. With an entire library of books nestled in the pine cabinets, I had more than enough choices to help get my mind off of my own horrific realities. As I went down the various rows, I came across a nonfiction book about vampires.

“See
, Nathan,” I muttered. “There is a book written about vampires. It’s even a nonfictional book.”

I brought the book upstairs into my bedroom and
collapsed onto the bed. As I began reading about Dracula or Vlad Tepes, a.k.a. “Vlad the Impaler”, my lids grew heavy and soon, I drifted off to sleep.

***

“Nikki,” said Jenny. “Hurry up.”

“I’m trying,” I said, following her into the dark club. I was wearing sp
iked heels and wobbled like a young doe. “Where’s Ashley?”

Her eyes sparkled as she looked back at me.
“She’s waiting for us.”

“Where is everyone?” I called.

“Hurry up, slow poke, they are waiting for us.”

Everyone was waiting for us?

I thought that was strange, but then so was the fact that I was wearing stilettos.

“This way,” urged Jenny
, still far ahead of me.

We walked downstairs to a long hallway. At the end of it was a large door. Jenny pushed it open and I followed her inside.

“What is this place?” I whispered.

A group of p
eople were gathered around something in the center of the room. 

“Let’s go,” said Jenny, pushing through the crowd while I hesitated.
Something was wrong; I felt it in my gut.

“Come on, Nikki!” called Jenny
, disappearing.

I swa
llowed my fear and pushed through the crowd. When I made it to the center, the blood rushed to my ears.

“Hi,” said the girl lying naked on the bed. Her throat was cut and blood trickled down her neck.

“Ashley?” I whispered in horror.

She lifted her head, exposing more of her wound. “What do you think?” she asked.

“What do you mean?”

She smiled dreamily. “Do you think he’ll like it?”

I shook my head, confused. “Who?”

“Him,” she said, looking behind me.

I turned around and gasped in surprise as my eyes locked with the vampire’s. “Ethan?”

***

A warm breath whispered into my ear, “Nikki…”

I gasped and sat up, pulling my blankets around my shoulders. When I realized I’d been dreaming, I let out a shaky sigh and looked at my alarm clock.

It was after two a.m.

I stretched my legs and yawned
, then got up to use the bathroom. When I was finished, I flicked off my lights and got back into bed, prepared to sleep until late in the morning. Just as I was drifting off, I heard a soft thump. When I opened my eyes, a shadow moved across my balcony.

Oh
, my God!

I
leaped out of bed and raced out of my bedroom, hysterical with terror. As I rushed downstairs to grab a knife or something to defend myself, the front door opened and Nathan walked in with Celeste.

“Nathan!” I choked. “Thank God you’re home!’

“What’s wrong?” he asked, moving towards me, his eyes full of concern.

“Someone was on my balcony!”
I said, pointing upstairs.

Before I could stop him,
Nathan bounded up the stairs to investigate.

“I’m sure it’
s nothing,” said Celeste, a small smile on her face.

I glared at her.
“It’s probably one of your bloodsucking friends. Why don’t you go and help him!”