Shadow Bound (Wraith) (16 page)

“Turn here,” I said when we came upon our intersection.

After a minute or two, we found the cluster of cars identifying a party nearby. Ava pulled the SUV into a spot on the street.

“I hope the car is safe here,” I said. I started to say something else when I realized I sounded scarily like my mother and clamped my mouth shut. Like Ava said, I needed, no had, to get out of the house and have some fun.

We hopped out of the car and into the sticky, humid night. I smoothed the front of my sundress and adjusted the straps on my shoulders.

“I love that dress,” Ava said, rounding the corner of the car.

“Thanks. My aunt brought it for me in New York.”

“Your aunt is so cool.”

I smiled. “She really is. Crazy sometimes, but very awesome.” When she gave it to me, Jeannie spent 20 minutes explaining how the colors in the fabric balanced my aura. I stopped listening when she said the blue counteracted the orange and made me a more sexual being. Sex was the last thing on my mind, for once.

Ava and I found the line for the party easily. We fell in with a large group of kids walking toward the huge brick and steel warehouse. The loud music from inside spilled into the street and when we reached the door, I dug around in the tiny purse I had slung over my shoulder for the $5 admission fee. A burly, older guy waited to take our money.

“How are you two tonight?” he said, eyeing us.

Ava raised an eyebrow. “Fantastic. You?”

“Better since you two showed up.”

I tried to stifle a laugh at his cheesiness but failed. Unfortunately, unaware that I was laughing at him and not with him, he grinned wide. When he stamped my hand his touch lingered.

“Have fun,” he said, winking before we slipped inside. ”Bar’s in the back.”

I giggled, running into the building, holding onto Ava’s hand.

“He’s cute.”

“In a steroid-taking, Hulkish kind of way,” I said, rolling my eyes. “What time is Christian coming?”

“Not until later.”

The warehouse vibrated with music and kids dancing. I followed Ava through the crowd, pushing to the front so we could see the band better. I had to admit, they were pretty good. The guys strutted around the stage in that “I’m in a band” kind of way – trying to look cool. My eyes landed on the bassist. He pushed his floppy, sweaty hair over his forehead and I caught a glimpse of his face. He was hot – but then again, weren’t they all?

Ava pointed at him and smiled. She thought so, too, of course, but she already had her own guitarist. Everything about this kid reeked of the opposite of Connor. Small, all smiles and energy. I bet he carried minimal baggage and a less complicated record. I tried not to look at the muscles in his forearms. Jeez.

“That’s Christian’s friend,” Ava shouted over the music. I narrowed my eyes at her. Did she really plan a set up? She didn’t say anything about it earlier. I shook my head in reaction.

“What? He’s cute, don’t you think?”

I rolled my eyes and turned away. I hoped that if I ignored her she would get the hint and drop it. Instead, I listened to the band. The music shifted, turning moody and hypnotic. The swaying crowed made it seem even more so. I found myself happily lost in the moment, moving my body to the beat that vibrated off the metal ceilings of the old warehouse. Ava danced next to me, arms floating through the air. She looked coordinated and hot when she danced. There was no way I looked like that. I’m pretty sure the word spaz described my moves on the dance floor.

“Drink?” I mouthed to her after a couple songs. She nodded and we pushed through the crowd toward the makeshift bar. I paid the bartender five bucks for two bottles of water. “I’m sweating like a pig,” I said, handing the bottle to her.

“Fun though, right?”

“Yes, thanks for making me come out.”

“Have you seen her?” she asked. I took a quick glance around. I had forgotten to look for her.

“Not yet.”

Ava jerked her thumb over her shoulder toward the back of the warehouse. “Christian should be here soon. I told him we would wait for him by the back door. There’s a courtyard of some kind out there.”

I nodded and followed her to the wide freight doors that led to an old loading dock outside. Just as many people milled around out there as inside the building. The warehouse was cooled only by huge, loud fans situated around the room that only helped so much, so the fresh air felt nice. Ava sat on the edge of the platform, and I did the same.

“Have you had a chance to read the book yet?” she asked.

“I’ve had nothing else to do.”

“What do you think? Is it any use?”

“I don’t know. It’s interesting, I guess. There are parts in it about the way we are connected. From one side to the other.”

“What about how your ghosts can touch you?”

“Yeah, that’s mentioned,” I fought a shudder. “I’m what you call Shadow Bound.”

“Like the book name?”

I nodded. “If the information is accurate I’m part of a weird line of ghost channelers, or whatever. Not only do I get the lost and directionless spirits, I also get the disgruntled ones.”

“Why you? Some kind of loophole?”

“I have no idea.”

She took another swig of her water and said, “Does it give you instructions about getting rid of these suckers? The bad ones?”

“A little bit, but honestly they all sound hokey and like witchcraft or something. Herbs and wards against evil spirits. I need something that gets rid of her permanently before she does me or anyone else harm.”

“And by anyone you mean Connor.”

I made a face. “I don’t want him to get hurt.”

“There’s Christian,” Ava said, pointing across the back lot. Her face lit up and I saw him push through the crowd at the door, waving when he spotted us. To my surprise, the bassist from the band trailed behind him.

“Ava…” I warned.

She smiled but said nothing. Christian walked up and laid a hand on Ava’s knee and kissed her cheek.

“This is Louis.”

From the corner of my eye, it was easy to tell Louis looked better up close than from the stage. His light brown hair, adorable dimples and nerdy hipster glasses made him seem tame, but the dark green eyes behind them gave off a warm, compelling light.

“Hi, Louis, I’m Ava and this,” she nudged my shoulder with her own, “is Jane.”

I smiled and waved. This situation felt more and more like a set up. An unspoken one though, since Ava and Christian enthusiastically began talking to Louis about the band, making sure I knew how amazing he was on bass. I gathered Christian sometimes played with them.

“Christian, will you come with me to find the bathroom?” Ava asked, jumping down from the platform.

“Don’t you think Jane is a better bathroom companion?”

She yanked his hand with a fake smile. “Come. On.”

“Umm…” I began, but they ran off before I could stop them. I looked over at Louis, who seemed to feel as awkward as I did about being left alone together.

“So, they ditched us,” I said.

“Yeah, looks like it.”

We both laughed and the tension eased slightly.

“Are you on a break?” I asked, gesturing with my head to the building behind me. A DJ played throbbing dance music inside.

“We were just opening for some other bands. Our set is over.”

“Oh, well you were really good.”

A couple of guys walked by and stopped to talk to Louis. I waited, becoming very interested in the hem of my dress. He seemed to know a lot of people. Once they left, he turned back to face me.

“Where do you go to school?” I asked.

“Westchester.”

Jackpot. The same school as Sarah Mae and Charlotte. Now I knew why Ava ditched me with him. Their school had the reputation of being very liberal and innovative with curriculum. From our research, I gathered most of the kids were stoners.

“Oh. Right. Hippy-alternative-call-your-teachers-by-their-first-name-school.”

“Pretty much,” he laughed. “And you go to Bates? With Christian?” I nodded and I busied my hands twisting the cap on and off the bottle of water. Stay calm, Jane, I thought. I needed dirt. And flirting with this boy may get me exactly what I needed.

“Christian says you’re an artist.”

Twist on. Twist off. “He did?”

“Yeah.” He looked at his feet. Scuffing his black sneakers into the pavement. “I’m looking for someone to paint my guitar case. He mentioned you.”

“What kind of design are you looking for?

He shrugged. “Nothing specific. Whatever inspires you.”

“What? I couldn’t do that. What if I made something stupid or silly that you hated?”

“I don’t think I would hate it,” he smiled. “If I did, I suppose I could paint over it, right?”

I placed my hand over my heart and pouted. “Ouch. You’d paint over my masterpiece? I’m hurt.”

Louis moved closer. He rested his hand on the cement wall next to my leg. His movements implied nothing other than minor interest, but my heart pounded like an alarm. A completely unwarranted reaction. Totally premature. Or so I thought until his hand grazed the side of my own and he said, “Maybe we could meet up sometime then, and we can talk about it some more.”

I opened my mouth to speak. I started to say, “Okay, sure, when would you like to meet?” even though my heart and mind told me to run. To self-preserve. I felt sick to my stomach. Guilt. That’s what I felt. Guilt.

“Did you know Charlotte Brady?” I blurted out. Humiliation wiped away the guilt.

He nodded. “Yeah. She was in my class. Kind of a friend. Did you know her?”

“A friend of a friend, I guess. He took her death really hard.”

“Charlotte was a tough chick to get to know. She liked trouble and spent a lot of time out of school. We partied some together, but that’s not saying much, she partied with everyone.”

I’d like a better definition of party. “It’s sad. I’ve been depressed before, but nothing like that.” I reached for my hair and tried not to think about the box of hair in my drawer at home and the desperation I felt at the time.

“Speak of the devil...” Louis said with a raised eyebrow.

Panicked, I turned to face Charlotte but instead saw Sarah Mae standing against one of the back doors.

With Connor.

Charlotte would have been preferable.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. “What?”

He pointed in their direction. “See that girl? That’s Charlotte’s BFF. Sarah Mae.”

I forced myself to look. Her back pressed against the wall and her earrings glimmered in the shadowy light. She lifted a cigarette to her lips, blowing the smoke away from his face. And Connor. I hadn’t seen him in days and it took everything in me to not go to him. And beat him senseless.

Jealousy did not suit me well.

“They did everything together. And I mean everything.” He gave me a knowing look, having no idea that what he insinuated pushed beyond my comfort level. “Drugs, guys, running away.”

“Ew… guys?” I burned a hole in the back of Connor’s head.

He shrugged. “Some girls are into all that. The shock value more than anything else. That’s why she’s here tonight, I suppose. The self-destructive never know when to back off. I guess she found her newest victim.”

By the grace of God, Ava appeared with Christian in tow and I hopped from my seat. “Which way to the bathroom?” I asked, and broke into a run in the direction Ava pointed.

On the long way back from the bathroom, I talked some sense into myself. I came to this party to get information. I just got more than I knew what to do with. I walked back to the group. Smile on my face. Normal pace. Until…

Connor stood in the middle of the group I’d just run away from. Sarah Mae clung to his side.

Ava caught my eye and I ignored the sympathetic look. “I’m back,” I said squeezing between Ava and Christian, jostling them with my elbows. It’s not like I could stand next to Louis. And I refused to stand next to Connor.

“Hey,” Connor said, his eyes darting around. Busted.

“Surprised to see you here,” I said. I decided against a follow-up comment about his ankle monitor.

“Released on good behavior, I guess,” he said. Sarah Mae snorted next to him. When he adjusted his hat, I noticed a leather cuff around his wrist. Yeah, he better feel nervous.

Ava jumped in, all smiles and diversion. “Jane, Louis just told us how he and Connor have been friends for years.”

“Yeah, Little League.”

Great. I’m trying to stay mad at Connor, but really? Baseball pants? I thought of hipster-cool Connor wearing baseball pants and felt a little swoony under my anger.

“Hard to imagine.”

“You guys go to school together?” Louis asked Connor, his eyebrows raised in an interested manner.

My not-boyfriend replied, “We do.”

“I asked Jane about painting my guitar case.”

“Oh, really. Huh.” Somehow during all of this, Connor had moved away from Sarah Mae and now stood by my side. His shoulder pressed against mine. I gave him a look. A hard look.

“I’m Sarah,” the short-haired girl said, stepping forward.

Connor waved between the two of us. “Yeah, Sarah, this is Jane.”

Her eyes narrowed, checking me out. I could only nod in reply.

“Could you guys give us a minute,” Connor said.

“Sure,” Ava said. “Come on, Sarah. I need something to drink. Wanna come?”

Louis hesitated and I looked away during some sort of non-verbal exchange that took place between the boys. When I looked up, he had followed the others.

“What was that?” Connor asked me.

“What was what?”

“Louis, really?” his eyes flashed with anger.

I shot back. “Sarah whatever-her-name is? Really?”

His hand went back to his hair. “That’s nothing.”

“I’m tired of you telling me it’s nothing but then acting like it’s everything. What are you even doing here? No way your mom let you come to a party.”