The Scarlet Dagger (The Red Sector Chronicles, #1)

Chapter 22

I was so consumed by my mission that Thanksgiving literally snuck up on me. Vampires apparently still recognized the holiday; the academy was out of session for the next two days, and they even held a base-wide potluck right on the premises on Thanksgiving Day. But not everyone had the day off. As a commanding officer, Aden had to go in to oversee some "security things," or so he had muttered at dinner the previous night. As for me, I was ecstatic to have two full days to finalize my plan before the next night, when I planned on leaving.

Thursday was pretty uneventful. I remained holed-up in my room for the most part, except for trips to the bathroom and kitchen. Mrs. Knight hadn't been home all day; my excitement grew the night before when she mentioned she was in charge of organizing the potluck, and would be at the base most of the day setting everything up. Hearing her talk about it, the dinner was a big "to-do." Though I would sorely miss the turkey and dressing, I was more anxious to get a good night's sleep, if I could fall asleep.

When Aden knocked on my door that night, I was so strung out by nervous energy that I almost yelped.

"Sloane? You have a second?" he called through the door.

Panicking, I scrambled to hide the map and my notes, shoving them under my pillows before settling myself into what looked like a convincing "homework position."

"Yeah!" I answered.

Aden opened the door, but I didn't look up, pretending to be engrossed in my English Lit. assignment. "Hey, the potluck's starting in about thirty minutes. You celebrate Thanksgiving, right?"

"Hmm?" I said, pretending not to hear him. "Oh, right, the potluck." I put my pencil down and stretched my arms above my head. "I'm actually on a roll with this paper that's due Monday and would like to get it knocked out so I can enjoy the rest of the weekend."

Aden gave me an incredulous look. "But it's hand carved, oven roasted turkey."

"Yes, I figured as much."

"And sweet potatoes."

"You don't say."

"And made from scratch apple pie that's –"

"Okay, okay, I get it. It's going to be out of this world awesome." I sighed, giving him the sweetest smile I could. "Which means you'll have to bring me back a plate?"

My million watt smile never faltered as Aden stared back at me. "Yeah, sure. Suit yourself, but you don't know what you're missing out on."

And with that, he shut the door, and I shot my fists in the air with a silent "Yes!"

I smirked. Guess I picked up some tricks from watching mom act for the cameras.

Tired but determined, I retrieved the map and planted it in front of me, once again trying to devote the precious route to memory.

***

The next day flew by, and it was Friday night. I was in the apartment, lying on my bed. The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was the digital clock sitting on my nightstand. I yawned, rubbing my eyes as the time focused. The neon green digits read 11:30 PM.

I bolted out of bed. My head was hurting earlier, so I had popped some aspirin – or what I thought was aspirin – and taken a nap, wanting to be well rested for my journey tonight. But I must have grabbed the wrong pill bottle, because I had severely overslept my alarm. I should have been gone an hour ago.

I grabbed the kitchen knife I had swiped at dinner and raced to the bathroom, turning on the shower. I stuck my head in so my hair would get nice and wet. Then I turned back to the sink, leaving the shower running, hoping the sound would be enough to mask any noise I might make.