Created (Book 1 of the Created) (41 page)

"Had it been all a dream?" I asked Veronica.

"How did you know it was me because Mathias is blocking
your abilities at the moment with precious technology?" She stepped into
the light looking radiant in a black mini dress with a single black flower
adorning the band in her hair.

I answered honestly, "I knew there could be only one of
two people who would be with me in the middle of the night while I was chained
to a bed, and since one of them is
Sunnie
, and there
was no way she could get past security, I knew it must be you."

"No. Mathias has taken you into his possession to
ensure that he helps you make the right decisions."

"You mean his decisions," I replied.

           
She nodded
in agreement.

"How much of them had been real? Were you ever
there?" I asked.

She moved to the head of the bed. "I was there the
whole time. Ethan, I didn't know he would do this. I didn't. I tried to stop
him, but he is too strong even for me."

I said as I stared into her eyes. "He is also your
dad."

"Yes," Veronica said.

"Biological or sire?"
I
asked.

She replied, "Both, but that is a complicated story for
another time. We don't have much time before the plan I have set in place falls
apart."

Veronica ripped away the bonds that held me and helped me to
sit up. "You have been here a week and it has taken me this long to put
everything into place. Darby and Logan are waiting outside with Chloe to carry
you to the Bash tonight. There is a change of clothes in the trunk of the
Camaro. We need to hurry."

Helping me from the hospital bed, Veronica wrapped an arm
around my waist and the other around my shoulders as we inched toward the door.
I wanted to ask so many things, but the determined look in her eye dissuaded me
from speaking.

The more I moved the less the drugs maintained control over
me. We crept through the already ajar door at the end of what had been my cell
and down the hall toward the main entrance. The journey would carry us slowly
at first,
then
steadily increased with each of the
right turns we would have to make to escape. My body was racked by bouts of
nausea and immense, almost debilitating pain. My limbs were making moving a
complicated task, but we progressed as the rest of the trip was filled with
grunts and groans as we stumbled closer to freedom.

Finally, as we were within feet of the front door, I finally
mustered up enough strength to move on my own and enough courage to ask the
nagging question in my mind. "Veronica, why are you doing this? Because,
once I leave and go to her tonight, there will be no undoing this?"
 

Taking my face into her hands, she kissed me on the lips as
Logan grabbed my elbow to help me to the car.
"Because
at least one girl deserves not to have her heart broken tonight."

Veronica's words had torn out my heart. How could I do this
to her I wondered? Darby must have seen the stress in my face as I sat in the
back seat.
 
In record time, I had downed
the bag of fresh plasma that Chloe had tossed me upon flopping down in the
front seat of the Camaro.

Darby leaned through the small gap in the seat and patted my
leg to get me to remain at ease. "I know you are worried about her, but
she will be alright. She is a big girl, and I am sure that she has done worse
and survived. You need to worry about having fun tonight. She will meet us at
the dance she said." It hit me that my crew was also dressed to go to the
Bash. The girls were dressed stylishly in dresses, and Logan was wearing a slim
fitted black tux and red tie. Knowing I wasn't going to be alone eased my mind,
but I was concerned for Veronica. I rested my head against the passenger side
window as Logan ushered us closer to my promised date with
Sunnie
.

The road disappeared as we made good time in route to the
school. Pulling into the parking lot, The Bash was in full swing. Students and
cars hustled around. We narrowly missed a gaggle of seniors who stepped in
front of the Camaro as we rocketed down a full isle in the parking lot. If
Logan had been human, the students would have gravely injured or dead. Logan's
fast reaction time darted us through the now splintered group and into an open
space in one move.

If we had needed to breathe to survive, I imagine we would
have been grasping for breath at the narrow miss, but instead, we all looked at
one another with relief.

Looking down at the hospital gown I was wearing triggered
thoughts of getting dressed which brought forth thoughts of dance preparations
and
Sunnie
. "Did anyone remember to contact
Sunnie
? If she doesn't know I am coming then..."

I was interrupted by Chloe. "It was all taken care of
by us."

Startled by Chloe being the one to issue a response that
seemed decent and not abrasive, I sat watching late comers playfully running
through the school yard. The world seemed the way it should.
At
peace.
If the humans only knew the truth, I thought.

Logan pointed across me toward a door at the rear of the
school to my right. "You and I are going to head to that door. According
to the information that Veronica gave me, it should be unlocked. Once inside,
there is an open locker room for you to get a shower and in which to get dressed."

I took the keys from the ignition and turned to Logan.
"No. I am okay enough to cover the distance alone. You take the girls
inside and have fun."
Addressing the two in the cramped
backseat then Logan in turn.
"Thank you so very much. I don't think
I could ever repay you for putting yourself on the line for me."

Darby giggled and winked at me.
"On
the line?
What do you mean? Veronica got this written up as a field
training exercise. Operatives need to know how to act in awkward social
settings like normal people."

Leave it to Veronica to find an angle to cover our asses, I
lamented to myself.

Stepping from the car, I helped Chloe and Darby from the
backseat. Darby waved as the three moved across the grass toward the high
school gym. She excitedly hollered back at me. "Save me a dance!"

She was in her element. Hell even Chloe seemed happy.
Grabbing the bag from the trunk I did my best to contain the excitement inside
of me. This night seemed full of promise and hope as I made my way into the
school to change.

A close inspection of my wounds showed that most were healed
so I discarded the bandages in the trash and preceded into the shower. The
water felt great against my scared pale skin. Within the bag had been two more
units of human blood which I sat in the cutout in the wall that had been
designed to hold soap and shampoo. Tonight it was being more than effective at
holding the twin bags as I washed away the accumulated filth of lying in a
hospital bed for over a week.

Taking hold of a bag, I opened it and drank heartily. The
blood was less needed than the bag had been in the car, and I was allowed to
savor the flavor since my hunger had been abated earlier. The bag was dropped
to the floor when it was empty. I phased and tore the next bag open with my
teeth. Spitting out a fragment of stray plastic, I ingested the blood slowly.
The bag brought me back to feeling stronger and more alive, but it did not make
the painful reminders of the past month go away. I began to wash furiously. The
scrubbing seemed to take forever as I tried desperately to erase the memories
of the past. The shower could have taken all night if it had been allowed, but
I was limited by time constraints. As hard as I tried, my damn mind would not
be quieted. Still, I scrubbed until the repetitive action finally settled down
the things haunting me as they drowned in the water. Turning off the water, I
stepped from the shower with the realization that
Sunnie
deserved someone free from his demons. Drying myself, I vowed to not let myself
get the best of me, not tonight. I was going to enjoy tonight and make sure it
was one she would never forget.

Getting dressed quickly, I stood before the lone unbroken
mirror in the locker room and admired myself. Through all that I had been
through, I was no worse for wear I surmised. I was a little pale, but still
standing and getting better every second now that Mathias's drugs were almost
out of my body. Certain that I was suitably dressed in a custom tailored tuxedo
that Veronica had spared no expense to
purchase,
I
began to walk through the darkened hallways of the school.

There was an eerie solitude as I walked through beams of
moonlight that shone through the tall windows lining sections of the hall. I
occasionally would find myself looking out upon the school grounds. The only
sounds were the echo of my footsteps until I got closer to the gym. I paused
briefly to absorb the lonely silence, but was driven back by the sound of a
soft ballad. The song amplified the mood I was feeling.

With the door to the gym within reach, an odor that was
reminiscent of a dog wearing human cologne alerted me to the fact that I was no
longer alone. "Hello Haley. If you came to fight, I am not really in the
right frame of mind to not kill you tonight."

The wolf stepped from the nearby shadows dressed in an aqua
blue suit that was ill fitting. "I didn't come here to fight. I just
wanted to say I was wrong before. Hell, we all were. The others won't say it,
but I will. I am sorry for what happened, and that it had to come down to
people from both of our sides dying recently to make me see that we are all in
this together." He offered his hand in friendship.

I wasn't sure if this was a way to disarm me or occupy me.
An attack was always imminent, so why should now be any different.

We shook. I offered my response to his admission. "I
could say that I understand, but I don't. There was no reason for the hate
other than selfish need, but I warmly accept your apology and offer my own. I
wish that we could live in peace for as long as we work for the U.S. and
beyond."

The hand shake completed, and satisfied that at least
temporarily I had an ally within the wolf clan, I gestured for my new friend to
enter the gym with me. Haley took hold of the gym door. "I cannot speak
for the whole of my kind, but for me, you are okay."

We walked through the door together into a sea of streamers,
lights and glitter. The music was extremely loud even if I didn't have the
ability to detect sounds easily.

Smiles spread across both our faces as we watched the others
of our kind enjoying themselves on the dance floor amongst the humans. My time
of quiet reflection and growth was over. It was no time to embrace being a
vampire. Tonight was our night to be part of what we were created to protect.

We both stood in the doorway taking in the scene as the
throngs of teenagers before us writhed to the music. Scanning the room, I saw
Sunnie
sitting with a cluster of girls at a table on the
opposite side.
   

Placing my arm around my new found friend, I shouted into
his ear. "This is our night to shine.
Our night to be
one of them.
Make the most of it."

He knowingly looked at me and smiled. We graciously went our
own directions. Making my way across the dance floor to her table, the madly
chatting girls grew silent when I stepped forward to take
Sunnie's
hand. She beamed with excitement as I took her to the dance floor with me. Her
short dress of satiny red reflected the sparkle in her eyes.

We settled in. The song ended changing to a slow song which
allowed me to pull her near. We didn't speak. We just danced and held each
other close until the second refrain.

Tussling with my hair,
Sunnie
spoke for the first time since we had been reunited. "Long week you have
had from what I hear."

"Well you have heard correctly. Who should I thank for
keeping you informed?"

Her hand gently stroked my face.
"Your
friend Darby.
I really like that girl. There is something about her
personality that is completely infectious. She is so bubbly."

I retorted, "You better watch her, she has teeth you
know."

Sunnie
smiled and laughed.
"Don't you all?"

"Most of us."

We continued to sway to the soft sounds of the female lead
who was singing. "I thought you weren't going to make it tonight. I was a
little worried when the rest of the base kids showed, and Veronica and you did
not. Thought maybe you had decided you liked her better."

"Let's erase any doubt about who I want to be with
right now." I pulled her closer and kissed her lips.

The kiss ended as the song faded to a stronger, faster rock
beat. "I am not sure that proves it, but it is a start."

We both laughed as we mutually decided, without saying a
word, that
we would sit this one out to catch up. She and I
rushed from the dance floor to get out of the way of the intense dancing of
several teens that were digging the music being played.
Sunnie
pointed to a remote location in a corner as we stepped from the dance floor. We
were quickly yanked back to the middle by Logan and Darby to join in the fun
with them. The four of us reveled in the song which became another then
another. We danced until
Sunnie
gave me a look as if
to say she needed a break. Pushing through the crowd, we were intercepted by
Veronica at the edge of the dance floor. Our eyes locked together. With a wave
of her hand to the DJ, the music changed to another ballad.

Veronica spoke, "
Sunnie
would
you be a jewel and let me enjoy this dance with Ethan. We have a matter we need
to discuss."