Blood Hunt (Blue Blood Babies sequel!)

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Obsessing over whether Calum’d noticed my slip up got me through the rest of the day.  He wasn’t in History with me but then, at lunch, I watched him.  Carefully.  He acted just like Calum.  Daft, annoying, funny.  Ate three cheese sandwiches because he said he had to make up for missing tomorrow’s pill.  Funny how the withdrawal wasn’t having the same calming effect on him as it did everyone else.

He was either a really good actor, or he hadn’t copped on.

He still had the note, though, and that was worrying.  But I couldn’t think of any way to get it back from him without arousing suspicion.  I would just have to hope he didn’t look at it too closely.  Why would he, though?  For all I knew it was already in the bin.

Still, I had a bad feeling about it.  I felt sick all afternoon.  The final bell rang and I realised I hadn’t thought about Thursday – about going – all day.  Then I just felt sicker.

Anna met me at the front entrance, the fingers on her left hand intertwined with Darren’s.  I noticed, as I walked up to them, that he had his other hand at her neck, absentmindedly playing with her hair.  She was grinning up at him like he was God.  Nausea was momentarily replaced with wrath.  I squeezed both hands into fists and felt the paper cut sting and throb again as the skin twisted. 

“Let’s go,” I said shortly as soon as I was close enough to speak without shouting.

“Alright, Alfie?” Darren greeted.

“Fine,” I retorted.

He smiled blithely at me.  Maybe he didn’t catch the ice in my voice every time I spoke to him, but I had a sneaking suspicion that he did and he just didn’t give a crap.  That didn’t make me like him anymore.

“Darren’s coming back with us,” Anna said as we meandered towards the road.  “He’s going to help me with my Music homework.”

I eyed her sceptically.

“Homework... in Music?” 

Aye right. 

“Yes,” she said, drawing out the word.

I caught a tiny smirk crossing Darren’s lips.  Yeah, he definitely knew he was annoying me.

“Have you asked Mum?” I barked out. 

Anna rolled her eyes.

“I texted her at lunch.  She said it was fine.”

“Huh,” was all I could think of to say.

Tonight, though.  What perfect timing, Anna.  Like I didn’t need one more thing to wind me up when I was already freaking out about tomorrow.  Though I knew it wasn’t anything to do with Darren, it only made me hate him even more. 

That didn’t improve when we got to Mum’s car and she insisted that he, as the guest, get the front seat, so I was squashed in the back with my knees jammed up around my chin.  The Calico was obviously built before things like suspension were invented, because I felt every bump and dip in the road.  I was aching by the time Mum turned slowly – slowly, slowly, slowly – into our driveway.

“You kids go on ahead,” she said as she pulled up the handbrake.  “I’ve got something I need to search for in the glove box.”

Anna jumped straight out and tugged Darren up the path and in the front door, probably eager to get him into her bedroom.  I didn’t really want to rush in after them, so I lingered by the car, watching Mum fiddle about at the dash.  I frowned.  The glove box was empty, I was pretty sure of that.  And it didn’t open.  The lock had stuck a couple of years ago and, since there was nothing in it, Mum had never bothered to fix it.  What was she doing in there?