For the Love of Lacey

***********Dante

This is an extra short chapter!! Sorry!!! But that means I'll upload a second chapter just to compensate.

Dedicated to: Candygirl135 for liking my story!!

For some reason the hair on the back of my neck is standing on end and I stop walking and look around behind me. There's nothing there that I can see, but I'm still feeling creeped out. I pick up my pace and start praying that I'm being over sensitive and crazy.

The bushes beside me rustle and I jump and a small scream escapes as Dante steps out in front of me. "Oh! Dante, you scared me! Have you been following me?" I'm ultra nervous now and look over my shoulder to see if there's anyone else around if I need help.

He laughs as he moves closer and starts to crowd my space, "Sorry about that. Just wanted to say 'Hi!'."

"Umm, hi. Where's Xavier?"

"Oh, he's around somewhere." He puts his arm around my shoulders and physically directs me to walk again. "Sorry I missed you yesterday. I heard you stopped by."

"Yeah, Xavier invited me to watch a movie."

"Let me guess...Men In Black?" He laughs.

I laugh too, relaxing a little, "You guessed it. He told me it's his favorite."

"There's no accounting for taste.....although his taste in women is pretty good," I swear he actually licks his lips as he says that.

My hairs prickl again. I try to step out from under his arm, but he pulls me in closer and lowers his head to my neck. He sniffs and I feel the brush of his lips on my neck, and I quickly pull away from him and out of his grasp, "What are you doing!!?" I exclaim.

"I felt like a nibble. Don't tell me Xavier hasn't had a taste or two. He's quite the ladies man when he wants to be. But then, so am I." and he starts toward me again.

It almost looks as though his eyes are glowing in the dark, but I have to be seeing things, just a trick of the moonlight, "Yeah, I soooo don't play that game! I told Xavier, and I'll tell you, I have a boyfriend! What is it with you guys? Can't you respect that some people actually stay true when they're in a relationship?"

He's still walking toward me in a very determined manner and I'm trying to keep the distance between us as I walk backwards. I feel his eyes boring through me and begin slowing in my effort to escape. My limbs are feeling heavy and I don't think I can take even one more step as he gets closer. His eyes are just so dark and deep. He envelopes me in his arms and I automatically move my head to the side, exposing my neck, as his head drops down to that sensitive area along my shoulder.

All of a sudden I feel like I'm falling, and Dante is no longer holding me. My legs are crumbling under me, but before I can actually hit the ground strong arms are lifting me up and holding me tightly to a hard chest.

The air rushes out of my lungs, and I realize I've been holding it. I close my eyes and feel the world slip away.

As I come back to consciousness I feel the arms around me loosen a little. I open my eyes and look up into the dark eyes of Xavier. He's sitting with his back against a tree and is cradling me in his arms, my head resting on his shoulder. I breathe in his woodsy, spicey smell and try to sit up.

"Whoa, settle down little lamb. You're okay, I have you."

"What happened? I remember meeting Dante as I was walking home." I succeed in sitting up and I look around to see if he was still around. "Where is he? He was just here. I felt like I couldn't get away from him," the panic starts to rise in my voice. "What's going on!!?" I demand.

"Nothing Lacey. He's gone. I'll talk to him about this, he won't bother you anymore. He just sometimes forgets that just because we've been friends for so long doesn't mean I'll share everything with him."

"Share with him? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Shhh." He pulls my head down against his shoulder.

I pull myself out of his grip and stand up being sure to avoid his eyes. "I need to get home." I tell him.

'What the hell is going on!' I ask myself. This whole situation is crazy. I make it home without further incident, but I start shaking uncontrollably as I lean against my bedroom door. I don't drink, but I feel like I could use a shot of whiskey right about now.

My cell rings and I see it's Turner. I take a deep breath to calm myself and spend the next 45 minutes talking about his cousins and school. I'm feeling much better by the time we get off the phone.

I pull the papers from my bag and start reading what I'd printed out about Xavier's aunt. The gist of the article is there was an accusation against Brunhilde Grenovich. The local authorities investigated, but before they could finish the town's folk went after her and ran her out of town. They found all kinds of weird things in the basement of her house that made it look like she was practicing witchcraft, and there were coffins found in a room upstairs that were empty, but they burned them along with everything else found in her house.

By the time I finish reading there are goosebumps up and down my arms. I don't know what to think. Coffins? Really? What can that be all about? Lathe knocks on my door and I invite him in.

"How's your shoulder?"

"It's really sore, but it hasn't bothered me too much. Can you pull the bandage off and look at it for me?" I pull my shirt over my head, but leave my arms in.

He pulls off the bandage, "It looks pretty good. It's just a small scratch, but it's bruised there, too."

I try to see it by looking over my shoulder, but I can't so I head to the bathroom to use the mirror. The area is black and blue with a small line of scab down the center. I wonder what could have caused it. I put my shirt back on and head to my room to check around my bed.

"What do you think caused it?" Lathe asks when I walk in.

"That's what I'm checking" I answer as I start to look around where I sleep. "It's just so weird, because in my dream last night I felt it so clearly and there's nothing here that could have caused it."

"So you're saying your bruise came from your dream? That's crazy!" He scoffs.

"You think I don't know that?! God! I just don't know what's going on with me. And look what I found at the library today!" I show him the article I'd printed out.

"She really was a witch!? I wonder where she went when she ran. Hey! Think there were vampires residing in the coffins?" Lathe laughs.

Vampires! Why hadn't I thought of that?

"What's wrong, Lacey? You've gone sheet white!"

I sit down on my bed, or should I say my knees collapse from under me and my bed is there to catch me...vampires! Xavier is a vampire! Oh my God!!