RESURRECTED (17 page)

As they walked through the throngs of girls and saw who was out on the field today, Scarlet felt a sense of dread. Of course. There was Vivian, already warming up, practicing her soccer skills, kicking it deftly back and forth between all of her friends. All of the popular girls seemed to be not only cheerleaders, but expert soccer players; somehow it was Scarlet’s fate to always be at their mercy to get picked, as one of the popular girls was inevitably in charge of the picking.

The coach suddenly blew a whistle and the girls huddled around, preparing to be picked.

“Vivian and Doris are team captains today. They’ll pick,” the coach announced.

Of course
, Scarlet thought.

The picking began, and of the group of about twenty girls, Scarlet was picked close to last. Of course, she was picked by Doris, not Vivian. But luckily, at least Doris chose Maria to be on her team, too.

The coach blew another whistle, and Scarlet ran out to the field with the other girls, who were all screaming and yelling as the soccer ball was put into play. They all raced back and forth, kicking the ball to each other, passing expertly. Scarlet was distracted, looking over and catching a glance of Sage. He was still looking at her. At her, and no one else.

Scarlet forced herself to look away, to concentrate. She hardly knew what to make of it.

She hurried to catch up to the action, but found herself a bit winded, not in the best of shape.

Moments later, though, the ball broke free from the pack, and to Scarlet’s surprise, it went flying right for her. Her heart started pounding. This had never happened before, and she hardly knew what to do.

She started kicking the ball down field, running alongside it. There was no one near here, and she, amazingly, soon found herself in range of the goal. She felt her heart race, as she might actually get her first chance ever to even attempt a goal.

“Go Scarlet go!” Maria encouraged behind her.

The goal was in sight, and there was no one between her and the goalie.

Scarlet took a few more steps and geared up to kick.

Suddenly, she felt a sharp cleat dig into her ankle, felt her foot kicked out from under her, and landed hard on the grass.

“That was such a foul!” screamed Maria to the coach. But he ignored it, as he let the game continue.

Scarlet looked up to see Vivian standing over her, smirking down.

“Sorry,” she said sarcastically. “Must’ve thought you were the ball.” Vivian, smiling, high-fived one of her friends, and raced back downfield with the others.

Maria held out a hand for Scarlet and she took it. She got up slowly, disoriented, her ankle in pain, and her side hurting from the fall. Most of all, she was embarrassed: she hoped that Sage hadn’t witnessed that.

“God, I hate her,” Maria said. “That was so wrong. She totally robbed you of that goal. I’m gonna get her back.”

As Scarlet stood there, fuming with the indignity of it all, she suddenly started to experience something she never had before. She began to feel something burn up inside her, rise up from within. A sense of outrage and injustice burned inside her, and she began to feel a heat rising through her veins. She could feel the sensation tingling in her arms; it almost felt as if the veins were popping out of her skin.

For the first time in her life, she felt a burning desire for revenge. Her anger burned, grew stronger and stronger, as she felt a surge of energy race through her. A superhuman strength. In that moment, she felt she was capable of anything.

“No,” Scarlet said, taken aback by the strength in her own voice. “I got this.” Scarlet suddenly raced down the field, running right for Vivian. Vivian was a good fifty yards away, but something was happening to Scarlet, and she found herself able to zoom in on her, in crystal-clear detail. She had never had vision like this before.

Or speed like this. As she ran, it was as if her legs ran for her. It was as if everyone else was running in slow motion, as if she were a gazelle among kids. In just moments she covered the entire field and was closing in directly on Vivian.

Vivian, of course, had the ball, and was moving it downfield. And she never saw Scarlet coming.

Scarlet kicked the ball out from under her, drove it further downfield, then turned around, all in the flash of an eye, and about ten yards away, kicked it hard, right at Vivian.

The ball went flying in a line drive, and hit Vivian right in the stomach. She keeled over, on the grass, clutching her stomach, as the coach blew the whistle.

Several girls came running over to Vivian, helping her up, making sure she was okay. Vivian got to her feet, fine but embarrassed. She glared at Scarlet with a look of death.

Scarlet stood there and smiled back, feeling vindicated.

“You little witch,” Vivian said threateningly.

She approached, but now, Scarlet was completely unafraid. On the contrary, she felt a power unlike any she’d ever known, and welcomed the confrontation.

Vivian lunged at Scarlet, claws out, aiming right for her face. But before she could get close, several of her friends grabbed her from behind, pulling her back.

“Vivian, it’s not worth it,” her friend said.

More girls got between them, and slowly, reluctantly, Vivian backed away.

“You’re dead,” Vivian yelled, pointing at her.

Scarlet looked over to the sidelines, and saw Sage still there, watching her. Now, he had a small smile on his face.

The coach blew the whistle, and again the ball was put into play. One of Vivian’s friends managed to get it, and instead of moving it downfield, she passed it to Vivian, setting her up.

Vivian turned away from the goal and instead prepared to kick it directly at Scarlet.

But Scarlet, with her new reflexes, sensed it coming. As Vivian geared up to kick it at her, about ten yards away, Scarlet burst into action. With lightning speed, she raced for the ball and reached it before Vivian could even finish winding back her leg. She stole it right out from under her and ran with it downfield. Vivian kicked at nothing but air, and her leg went flying up and she fell right on her butt, humiliated.

By then, Scarlet was already far downfield. There was no one who could get within ten yards of her as she zigzagged between everyone deftly. Soon, it was just her and the goalie—and the goalie didn’t stand a chance. Scarlet wound up and kicked the ball so hard, it went past the goalie and into the net with force enough to lift the entire goal and send it crashing back, it’s metal frame crashing to the ground.

Everyone stood there frozen, hardly believing what they just witnessed.

“OMG, Scarlet?” Maria said as she came running up to her. “That was like—amazing. Like unreal. How did you do that?”

Scarlet stood there, hardly registering what had just happened. She’d been so caught up in the moment, she hardly understood it herself.

The coach blew the whistle and screamed out. “Gym is over! Everyone back to class!” The other girls filtered off the field slowly, giving Scarlet amazed looks.

“Nice kick, Scarlet,” a girl said admiringly.

“Yeah, nice kick weirdo freak,” came a snotty comment from one of the popular girls, as the group of them brushed passed her.

But Vivian now looked at Scarlet with something like fear, and she kept her distance, clustering with her friends. She glared at her, but this time she didn’t dare come anywhere near her. Scarlet realized, with satisfaction, that she must have shook them. Finally, she felt vindicated. Even if they did think she was a freak.

“OMG, he’s staring at me again,” came Maria’s voice.

Scarlet turned and followed Maria’s glance to the sidelines. There stood Sage, hands still in his pockets, a smile on his face, staring right at Scarlet.

“Am I imagining it, or is he really looking at me?” Maria asked.

Scarlet hardly knew what to say. As she stared back into his eyes, she found herself mesmerized, unable to look away.

“OMG, he’s coming over here!” Maria announced, and turned away, blushing. “Like, what do I say?”

Scarlet noticed it, too. He began to walk in their direction, and as he did, staring right at her all the while, she felt her heart begin to pound.

“Hey, nice goal!” suddenly came a voice from behind her.

Scarlet turned to see Blake standing there, holding a football, with two of his buddies, cheeks flushed.

Scarlet was overwhelmed—it was too much going on at once. She hardly knew which direction to turn. She looked back, over her shoulder, for Sage.

But when she turned, he was gone.

She was amazed. She didn’t know how it was possible. How could Sage have disappeared like that? There were nothing but open fields all around them, and nowhere to hide. How could he have just vanished?

Scarlet was mad at Blake for scaring him away.

Damn it, why had it all have to happen at once?

“Um…thanks,” she said, flustered.

“Anyway, like, a few us thought we’d cut for the day. Head down to the lake. You guys like, want to join?”

Scarlet was taken aback. She hadn’t expected this. She didn’t really know Blake’s friends well, and doubted Maria would want to go, since she never missed class. She was nervous at the idea of missing class, and of going herself—but she was more worried that if she said no, it would be like rejecting Blake. Wouldn’t that seal her fate for the dance?

“You mean cut class?” Maria asked, disapprovingly. “Like the rest of the day?”

“It’s no big deal,” one of Blake’s friend said. “There’s only a few classes left.”

“Well, I have a quiz next period,” Maria said. “I can’t. And we don’t cut class.”

“Whoa,” Blake’s friend said back, mocking her. “Excuse me. Goody-goody.”

“Come on Scarlet, let’s go,” Maria said, grabbing her wrist.

“I think it’s a great idea,” came a voice over Scarlet’s shoulder. “We’d love to go.” Scarlet cringed. She looked and saw Vivian standing there, with two of her popular friends, grinning back at Blake. Blake’s friends lit up at the sight of them.

“Awesome,” two of them said.

Blake himself looked unsure. After all, he’d invited Scarlet, hadn’t he? How dare Vivian come over and pretend like
she
was the one invited.

“Let’s go, Scarlet,” Maria said.

Scarlet stood there, torn. She didn’t want to cut class. That wasn’t her. At the same time, the thought of Blake hanging out with Vivian made her sick. This was her chance. After all, the dance was Friday. And if there was any chance of Blake’s asking her, she felt she had to do this.

“I’ll come,” she said to Blake.

Blake broke into a smile.

“Scarlet, seriously?” Maria said. “Your parents would kill you.” Scarlet turned to her.

“It’ll be fine. Like they said, the day’s basically over anyway. Come with me.” But Maria shook her head and stormed off without another word, clearly pissed.

Scarlet watched Maria leave. That left Scarlet all alone, with Blake and his friends—and Vivian, and these popular girls. The thought of it churned her stomach. But she felt like she had no choice.

She had to do what she had to do.

When Scarlet turned back around, the group was already several feet away, their backs to her, walking quickly across the fields, down towards the woods. Vivian, she noticed, had already stepped-up and locked Blake’s arms in one of hers, yanking him close to her, as they strutted off.

Scarlet swallowed hard. This was not going to be easy.

Caitlin sat in her office in the university library, elbow on her desk, head in her palm, poring over the book before her. She had spent all morning pulling rare books from the stacks, and now her desk was covered with them.

But these were not the usual books she worked on. When she’d arrived this morning, the first thing she had done was clear her desk of all her work books—and made room for a whole new set of books. She had walked into work today determined, obsessed with finding out exactly what was happening to her daughter and figuring out how to help her.

After her horrible argument with Scarlet the night before—the first argument she could ever remember the two of them having—Caitlin had a terrible night, tossing and turning with little sleep.

She kept thinking of Father McMullen, of their meeting. She recalled the look her husband and daughter had given her when she’d asked Scarlet to come to church. Caitlin couldn’t help feeling that her own family now hated and distrusted her.

Caitlin felt increasingly alone, and more and more she wondered if she was losing her mind, imagining the whole thing. She desperately needed to find proof that she was right. That she was not crazy.

Caitlin had awakened determined to take action, and had figured the perfect plan, had realized at least one thing that she could do. She could use her expertise. She could go back to work and use all the library’s resources, read up on anything and everything related to vampirism. She could learn about its history, its origins, its rituals, and anything and everything even peripherally related to it, including all forms of magic and sorcery and occultism.

Caitlin had entered the library at seven AM, an hour before it opened, and had let herself in. She had walked down the empty lobby with a newfound energy, determined to use all her skills to understand and decode what was happening to Scarlet. Whether it was myth or fact, civilization had been recording vampire legends and stories for thousands of years, and surely, all the collective knowledge and wisdom of thousands of years had to contain
something
that could be of help to her.

Caitlin had crossed the corridors of the university’s ultra-modern library, the walls a sleek modern white, her shoes echoing on the marble floor beneath her. She’d felt a bit creepy walking through this huge empty structure, the only one in the building, but had put it out of her mind as she’d hurried up the steps, her shoes clicking as she went, and quickly lost herself in the stacks.

Luckily her library had a reputation for its vast collection of rare volumes, which is what had lured her to accept a job here. They also had a constant traveling exhibit, books on loan from other universities and collections; as fate would have it, October was “Occult Month,” and they had several additional volumes on loan that they normally didn’t—some of the rarest in the world, in fact.