Discovery of Death (5 page)

“
No, Mommy dearest is keeping your feet stuck to the ground.” Wil leaned in close and whispered, “Don’t worry, she did the same thing to me. Cassie, on the other hand, well, she woke up ‘intact,’ so to speak, and had a complete meltdown until Mom explained everything.”

“
Yeah, well, no one’s perfect,” Cassie said, pulling her black hair back in a ponytail and binding it with an elastic band.

Zach thought the plaid-skirted schoolgirl outfit she wore fit beautifully and complimented her in all the
right places.

“
Dude, she’s your sister,” Wil said.

“
Huh?” Zach said.

Wil tapped his temple with his forefinger. “I can read your thoughts.”

“
What?”

“
Okay, kids, that’s enough,” the man said. “Look, Zach, I know all this is hard for you to take in. I understand, I really do. Tell you what: this thing goes both ways. We’re here for you and will do our best to let you get used to things. But we also need you to listen to what we say and believe what we tell you.”

“
I don’t know what to say.”

“
You don’t have to say anything,” the man said, love in his eyes.

“
No, that’s not what I meant. I don’t know
what
to say. I’m standing here without a clue as to what’s going on other than I got people standing around me telling me they’re my family. I got some woman who can apparently give
me
weird
dreams
and
keep
my
feet
stuck
to
the ground. I’m in a tomb, it stinks in here and I’m really, really thirsty.” That last statement wasn’t meant to come out.

“
Has he fed?” the man asked his mother.

“
Not yet. Tonight he will. He’ll have to as he was entombed for so long.”

“
Good, I’m hungry,” Zach said.

“
Wait and see what’s on the menu,” Cassie said.

The man stuck out his hand. “I’m Rain, your father.”

Zach didn’t want to take the man’s hand, but what felt like an invisible one grabbed him by the wrist and raised his forearm and hand to meet the man’s anyway. Rain took his hand and shook it.

Rain said, “And that’s Mira, your mother.” He finally let go of Zach’s hand; Zach snapped it back to his side immediately.

“
Did Mother tell you what happened to you?” Wil asked.

“
No. Not really. Only that I was in a coffin and something about a ‘change’ and . . . I can’t remember the rest.”

Mira came up beside him and put her mouth to his ear. “What once was human is now no more.” She leaned in even closer. “Zach, my son, you are a vampire.”

7

I
t was near
seven o’clock, and Rose’s parents were still not home yet.

Probably another late-night client,
she thought.

She sat on her bed cross-legged, a pink shoebox in front of her. She ran the fingertips of one hand along its top, tracing the outline of the red sparkling heart on the lid. Each side also held a heart, a red one made of felt. This was Zach’s box, the one he made for her when they exchanged their feelings for one another. She had made a similar one for him. Purple, with a blue felt heart glued to its lid. She had decorated the sides of the box she gave him with tiny silver hearts and diamond stickers, writing “I love you” in different colored markers in and around them. It was in these boxes they decided to keep anything precious they gave to each other.

Heart aching, Rose opened the lid and went through its contents: notes, movie tickets, the bill from their first dinner together, a handmade bracelet, Zach’s picture, a stick-figure drawing of them he doodled during chem. class. It was the letter on the bottom she wanted. It was two pages of regular lined loose-leaf, folded in thirds.

She pulled it out, unfolded it, and let her eyes wander the words without really reading it. Right now, she just wanted to see his handwriting, know he once touched the pages.

She set the papers down. “You have to stop doing this to yourself.”
He’s missing. He didn’t leave you. He just . . . vanished.
“What if something happened to him? What if he’s . . .” She couldn’t say it. To do so would give in to what she feared the most.

Tears welled up at the bottom of her eyes. When she blinked, they ran down her cheeks. “I just really miss you,” she whispered.

Rose looked at the first page again, Zach’s printing bringing him to life as if he was with her now. Out of all the things in the Heart Box, it was this letter that was the most precious. It was in this letter where he poured his heart out to her.

It read:

Dearest Rose,

What can I say to a girl like you? I’ve been sitting here thinking how to even start a letter like this. Even just thinking why I’d put all this stuff in a letter to begin with. The truth is, I don’t think I could ever say these things to you. Not that I wouldn’t want to, but because I know that if I started, I’d probably break down crying like a kid. You know me: I love the mushy stuff, but am just not good at saying it. At least, not in the way I want to right now. Besides, if I write it down, then you’ll have something to read later if you want to hear it again.

So, yeah, how to start? What can I say that doesn’t come off cheesy, or even stupid?

I’ll just be honest, and who cares what comes out. Just gonna roll with my heart on this one. I hope you’re okay with that.

I love you, Rose. I really, really love you. I mean, when we first started dating, I thought I loved you. I was excited all the time, each thought of you making me smile. Couldn’t wait to see you in between classes and after school. But somewhere along the way, all that stuff faded and a new world opened up to me. You became more real, more authentic, more intimate to me.

I go crazy when you’re not around, so much so that I get scared. Especially at night when I’m alone in my bed. When I lie there thinking of you, I can’t sleep my heart aches so much. I sometimes imagine my pillow is you and I take it in my arms and hug it tight (even kiss it sometimes, as goofy as that sounds).

When I see you in the morning a sudden rush of relief washes over me and I know I have the strength to face one more day.

I’m excited, sure, but now the excitement is over where we can go with our relationship. Like I said, I get scared because I’ve fallen utterly and completely in love with you. You’re such a part of me now that the very thought of us not being together—for whatever reason—makes me feel like I’ve lost a part of myself. The incompleteness is so overwhelming that I think I’m having a heart attack. Then I remember you and that we’re together. Then I’m okay.

Everything is okay.

The touch of your skin, the way your hand fits perfectly into mine
—
the way you give it the occasional squeeze when we’re walking . . . it sends electricity through me. All I want is to just pick you up, hold you and kiss you and tell you that I love you.

Those three little words
—
those three life-changing words
—
are all I want to say. Even when I’m alone I think of you and out loud I keep saying I love you. I just need to tell you, you know? Need to get it off my chest and fill your ears with those special words because no matter what happens or where life takes us, I deeply want you to know that I love you and that I always will. That you can always count on me. I won’t be perfect. No one can be. But I’ll be the best guy in your life, if you keep me around. I’ll try my hardest for that, and if I mess up, if I somehow let you down, please know that even now I’m heartbreakingly sorry and will try my best to never screw up again.

When I kiss you, Rose, your lips are delicious. Not just physically, but emotionally, too, because through our kisses I can feel everything you feel about me. There’s fire between us. Red, hot scorching fire that blows me away every time I think about what you and I have.

I could drink of your lips forever. I really could because if I did, then that’s like me telling you a zillion times over that I love you and that you mean the world to me.

I’d do anything for you, Rose. Anything. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do.

I’d die for you. Even a thousand times if it came to it. Any amount of pain or torment, if it somehow was tied to your happiness, if it could somehow express how I feel about you, yes, absolutely, I’d do it for you.

And I want to thank you for
—
and here’s where it might get weird
—
you and I abstaining from, well, you know. We’ve both said that at times it’s been hard, but I also think that, at least right now, it’s a good call. I’ve been thinking about it and what I think is happening is because we don’t do that stuff, we grow closer together despite others maybe arguing that you-know-what is the be-all and end-all of intimacy. Sure, I agree with that, in a way, but I also know that because that’s not what we do, we then have to express ourselves to each other in other ways. All those looks you give me, the hugs, handholding, notes, kisses, late night phone calls, morning phone calls, surprise letters in my mailbox, in my binder
—
it really deepens things.

I’ve never known anything like this before and my hope and prayer is that I never will again, meaning that what I have with you is all I want. You’re all I want. You’re all I need.

You’re the greatest, Rose. You’ve changed my life and given me a reason for living.

I just love you so, so, so much that I want to tell you again and again.

I love you!

I love you!

I love you!

Rose, my dearest Rose, I love you.

Yours forever and always,

Zach

Ps. I love you! (Sorry, had to say it again.)

Rose set the pages down and let the tears fall. “I love you, too, Zach, forever and always.”

8

“
Y
ou didn’t call
her, did you?” Marcus said as he went to drop Shelly off downtown. His wife wore a long overcoat, concealing her armor and weapons.

“
I thought you did?”

“
No, I thought you did.”
So much for being an expert at secrecy.

“
Great. Now she’s probably wondering what’s going on.”

“
Probably just assuming we have a late-night showing or something. Wouldn’t be the first time.”

“
I hate all this hiding!”

“
I know. Me, too, but right now it has to be done. You’ve said as much before yourself.”

She glanced over at him. “Like the saying goes: ‘Easier said than done.’”

“
No kidding.” He drove Shelly up to the far side of the Exchange District, where it ran along the river. Aside from the light from the condos lining the street across the way, the river side was dark, the trees dividing the road from the river even darker. It was a perfect place to begin their hunt. “Use the cell phone if you need anything.”

“
Likewise you.”

“
You ready?”

“
Always am. Besides, seems around here is a favorite spot for the bloodsuckers.”

She was right. The trees lining the river were thick and dark enough that they made a perfect place for someone without a home to spend the night. It was safe there, away from the sidewalks and streets, and if you built your shelter on the river side, it was too dangerous for anyone to come calling.

Unless that person had nothing to fear. Unless they were a vampire.

He pulled the vehicle up to the curb. Shelly leaned in and gave him a kiss. “Love you.”

“
Love you, too.”

She exited the vehicle and, as was their rule, didn’t look back as he pulled away, one small thing they did to change modes and get to work.

Marcus hoped she would be safe tonight.

♦ ♦ ♦

The phone rang and Rose answered, wiping away the tears.

“
Hey, it’s Parker. Told you I’d call.”

“
As if you wouldn’t,” she said, replacing the lid on the Heart Box.

“
You coming out tonight?”

She really didn’t feel like it. Not that she was tired or anything, but even the simple act of going out with friends had lost its luster recently. She looked at the box and could envision Zach’s letter lying within. Reading it soothed her aching heart, but once she was done, the sharp pain inside her chest ignited anew.