Trouble - CRMNL
There was a full minute that I felt like telling mom everything. Then I saw the the look in her eyes flashing though my mind and my guilty conscious was snuffed out like a lonely candle.
I picked up the burner phone that Peter had given me and saw only one number in the phonebook. Without hesitation, I dialed the number.
Peter picked up on the second ring, "What happened?" He asked skipping all the proper greetings.
"The police were at my house. They questioned me."
There was a beat of silence on the other end of the line and I flicked my eyes to the door.
"We knew they were going to."
I nervously bit into the soft skin of my thumb, "Yeah, but they know you were at Leah's house on my birthday. They also think Noah is helping you."
Peter sighed, "Should have seen that one coming. Just keep your head down for now, we'll figure it out. What did your mom say?"
My anger flared to another level when I thought about it.
"She's trying to force me to talk to the police, she knows I'm lying."
"Well, you better keep the lie up for as long as possibe. We won't be able to help Noah if we're both stuck in jail."
"I know, you just lay low for now."
Peter snickered, "I know what I'm doing, Princess."
I said goodbye to Peter and started wondering how long I could keep this up. How long would I be able to lie to everyone around me? I also still had to face Leah tomorrow at school if she was even going to be there.
Would I be able to look her in the eye after everything? A better question would be if I even wanted to. Just one more death to haunt me for the rest of my life.
Dr. Benette's journal called to me again and I itched to start exposing it's secrets. To find out if she gave a name of someone who could help Noah.
Before I went to bed, I grabbed the book from my bedside table and shoved it into my school bag. There was a good chance that mom would snoop in here later and I didn't want her finding it and taking my only lead in saving Noah.
All my guilt transferred into my nightmares. It wrapped around my throat, choking the life out of me in my sleep. All I saw while I slept were the faces of the people now gone, haunting my sleeping hours.
I rolled out of bed after being awake for hours. The sun hadn't risen yet and mom was still in her room. I knew getting ready for school this early was bound to bring on another confrontation with my mother so I remained seated on the edge of my bed, staring at the same four walls as always.
I didn't feel like going to school but staying home would just make me look guilty. So I mustered up all of my courage and walked to the bathroom.
After an hour-long shower and staring at my bedroom door for a good five minutes, I finally walk downstairs. There was a note stuck to the fridge door and I violently plucked it off, sending the fridge magnet skidding across the floor.
Home. School. No exceptions and no excuses.
I read mom's note before crumbling the paper into a ball and tossing it to the other end of the kitchen. I had no idea how I was going to save Noah's life while I was on house arrest.
It didn't matter what I had to do, Biotech had broken the rules many times over to get to me and I wasn't going to sit in a corner waiting for them. I was going to fight.
I left home with my scooter since I knew Noah wouldn't be picking me up. The realization of that small fact sent my head into a downward spiral. Grief so strong it nearly crippled me, gripped my body and refused to let go.
No, you need to be angry.
As soon as the thought entered my mind my grief evaporated into thin air. Anger was good. Anger meant I wanted to fix things, anger meant I was motivated. Anger pushed me past my limits and insured that I kept a clean head. So as I whizzed through the sleepy strees of Brookfield, I held a tight grip on that anger. It flowed through my veins, prickling my nerve endings.
I reached school and parked on Noah's spot. By now, the whole school probably knew about Noah, Peter and Biotech burning down. They probably speculated that Peter used me and Noah to help him and then killed Noah to silence him. That or, they knew that I was a zombie and so was Noah.
Doubtful.
Again, the lie was far better than the truth. I walked through the double doors, the chatter in the hallway died as every single pair of eyes locked onto my form like a heat seaking missile. So much for anonymity.
I squared my shoulders and started marching through students, silently daring anyone with enough backbone to approach me. My whole demeanor screamed 'back off' and I relished it.
My strip of sanity was dangerously short and I was in no mood to deal with petty teenage drama. Even I couldn't block out the whispers no matter how hard I tried. It was like a sea of locust had descended across the student body. Everyone had something to say but they were too scared to say it loud enough for me to hear.
Weak.
They had no idea. The anger in my stayed close by, a watch dog that kept the pests at bay. With my bookbag over my shoulder, I reached my locker and started getting my books for the first few periods of the day.
Dr. Benette's journal peeked out of the bag and I shoved it into the locker before slamming the door shut. When I turned around, Shawna was standing behind me with her arms crossed over her chest and her eyes narrowed. If she had fangs, she would have barred them.
"So you decided to show your face after all."
I clenched my jaw, slung my book bag higher and turned to walk away from her.
"Oh, so you bring a murderer into Leah's home and then just walk away?"
I balled my fists at my side until I felt my nails sinking into the soft flesh of my plams. The monster inside stirred in me, spurred on by my growing anger.
A hush had fallen in the hallway, tension and fear radiating off of the people around me. I wasn't about to make a scene here, it wouldn't help my cause at all.
So I continued to walk. Until I felt a strong grip around my arm bringing my feet to a halt. My eyes traveled all the way down to the slenger hand attached to my upper arm.
Then I snapped. The monster's hackles rose, she shook out her bony claws and licked her lips in anticipation. In a move faster than my eyes could follow, I ripped Shawna's hand from my arm, pulling her forward and shoving her back into the lockers. A few strangled cries permitted the air and a few started to chant 'fight, fight, fight', little did they know that this wouldn't be a fight. It would be a slaughter.
I leaned closer to her face, shaking with rage but keeping my features even, "You do not want to start this with me today Shawna." I whispered dangerously low.
Shawna pushed her fists into my chest, "You're the reason she's gone! You brought that monster into her life, so yeah. I want to to start this with you and I will damn well finish it too!"
I released my grip on Shawna's shirt, "Leah's gone?"
"Like you even care."
I shoved Shawna's back hard against then locker, "I don't have to prove anything to you but I will only warn you once," I held up one finger to reiterate my words, "stay the hell away from me and don't get in my way."
With one final shove, hard enough to shake the lockers, I walked away from Shawna. The warning bell rang but I marched past my home room straight to the office.
The woman behind the desk looked up and her eyes went wide.
"Leah Freeman, do you know if she's still in school?" I said skipping past all the pleasantries.
There must have been something in my eyes because the lady behind the counter started shaking.
"She, uhm, she tranfered out this morning!" The woman practically screamed.
I cursed under my breath and stormed out of the office. In home room no one wanted to sit anywhere near me and I was fine with that. It's safe to say, I didn't pay attention. Not one bit.
I mean, how could I?
Noah is a zombie with no humanity, Peter is a fugitive and Leah disappeared after her mother died. And me? Well, I'm still your average teenage zombie hunting in the woods of Brookfield, except now, I'm on Biotech's most wanted list and they will do just about anything to get me.
So my mental space was too preoccupied with the mess that was my life to give a rats ass about Shakespeare. The day dragged on, my fight with Shawna was still a hot topic when lunch rolled around but no one dared to look at me, let alone speak to me.
At lunch, I kept looking through the crowd for Noah's unkept black hair. As if he was going to walk up to me like any other day and just be there. There was a hollowness in my chest that was unmissable. As the day wore on, I came to terms wih how much I missed having him there, to crack a joke, to hold my hand, to just be.
He was like my safety net and with that gone I felt like I was free falling over a steep cliff. I was alone and that nearly killed me.
You, need to be angry.
My comfort words came back to me and I managed yet again to shove the feelings of despair down. There was no time to cry, no space to crumble, not yet. Not while Noah's life was at stake. I refused to mourn him when he was still alive, when there was still hope.
I was in my final period for the day, staring at the clock, mentally willing it to go faster when my burner phone pinged softly in my pocket. I pulled he phone out and read the text.
Found a safe place for N. Meet me at 424 Willow Berry Dr after school. Don't be late and delete this text.
I wrote the adress on a small slip of paper before diligently deleting the text. After, I slid the phone back into my pocket the bell finally rung out and I shot out of my chair.
Mom's little fridge note came back to me and I scoffed at the idea of going home now. Peter had found a safe place fore Noah and we needed to start finding a way to save him. There was no way in hell that I was going to ditch Peter.
Oustide, I pulled the strip of paper from my pocket and typed the adress into the phone's map system. It was a big lot on the outskitrts of town a few miles south of the lake. I memorized the map as best as I could and slipped the phone into my book bag before tossing it over my shoulder.
Then I strapped in my helmet and spun the poor scooter, fast enough to shoot pebbles across the parking lot. In a blink I was zooming through Brookfield's street.
I knew I was going to get in trouble. I knew mom was trying to shorten my leash and I also lnew that Sheriff Brice Thomas would be waiting for me but right then I didn't care. Noah needed me.
So, consequences be damned.