It was hard not to take my gun into school with me. I reluctantly left it under the truck's front seat. Sam kept his beneath the pickup's passenger side. We had the sawed off stashed between the seatback and the cab.
I did hide a hunting knife in my bag. Just in case. It made me feel marginally better.
While not as bad as the day before, I received a fair share of looks on my way to and from classes. My self-appointed guides continued to walk with me, even though I now knew the way. Most of my attention went to keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. That included Cullen.
Come lunch, as soon as I stepped into the cafeteria, I sought the table at the far end. Four perfect people sat at it. No sight of the bronze-haired Edward.
I thought of his murderous eyes and his attempt to get out of Biology. Why wasn't he sitting with his family? Was he gone? My mind wandered to the creature last night. Trying to remember Edward's height, I attempted to put him in the corner of my bedroom. Was he the same size as the intruder? I hadn't gotten a good enough sense to say for certain.
Still. I'd shot something last night and today Edward wasn't here. Could be a coincidence, but it was suspicious.
I stood in line with Jessica and Angela, but before we could sit at the same table as yesterday, Mike intercepted us. Jessica started out happy with the new arrangement, but her mood soured when Mike took a seat next to me, leaving her sitting beside Angela. Between walking with me to classes and this, Mike's interest seemed more than friendly.
At least, Jessica seemed to think so.
Cute as he was, I'd probably be gone within the month. I'd never stayed put anywhere long enough to do much more than have a couple of dates. I'd learned real quick that trying to have a boyfriend while on the move was the stuff of fairy tales.
And I was learning the family business. Hunting wasn't the kind of life choice that lent itself to the white picket fence and apple pie.
I resolved to sit beside someone else next time.
I tried to be more reserved with my responses and my smiles as Mike walked with me back to Biology. It wasn't too hard. My mind was on Cullen, and whether he'd be in class. But his seat was empty. I took mine, considerably more at ease than I'd been the day before. Mike lingered by my station, telling me about a trip he and his friends planned to take to the beach. He didn't leave until the bell rang.
I did much better during gym class, scoring a handful of points. Afterwards, I met Sam back at the truck.
"Anything weird happen?" he asked as soon as I shut the door.
I shook my head. Cars were pulling out around us. I watched as they lined up to exit the lot into the street.
"Same." Sam settled his bag down onto the floor. "What do you think? Wait and see?"
The Cullens were crossing the lot, keeping pace with one another. Jasper and Alice held hands. They made their way to a shining silver Volvo. No Edward.
"Not much choice," I replied as they got inside. "We'll keep an eye on the news. See if anything comes up."
We left soon after, stopping by a gas station on the way to pick up a copy of the paper. Sam checked the obituaries while I drove us back to the house. "Nothing strange," he announced shortly before I pulled into the driveway.
Sam was folding the paper back up as I shifted into park. "Anything in town?"
"No," he replied, tucking the paper into his bookbag. "Port Angeles, mostly. Natural causes."
Meaning they'd been elderly. I nodded and reached under the seat for my gun. I tucked it into my waistband before grabbing my backpack. Sam was already reaching for the shotgun, so I shoved the door open and hopped down. "We should set up a watch tonight," I said as Sam's door opened, his sneakers hitting the pavement a moment later.
"Yeah," he agreed, glancing over the top of the truck's hood, shotgun tucked at his side beneath his jacket.
"I'll take first shift," I decided as we walked up to the door. That'd give Sam more rest.
Sam nodded his acceptance, and we both took up defensive positions before unlocking the front door. A glance at the floor showed the saltline hadn't been disturbed. Even so, we brought out our weapons before stepping inside. It took fifteen minutes to sweep through the house.
We found nothing.
I was starting to regret not staying at a motel. One room with a connecting bathroom would've been far easier to secure.
It was a long night given the little sleep I'd had the night before. We decided to take turns sleeping on the couch. Later that evening, after Sam went to sleep, I decided to try finishing my homework. The frustration helped keep me awake. Little of it made any sense. The books weren't like any of the other texts from the past four schools I'd been to that year, and I was pretty sure Government and Algebra were further ahead of where my last school had been.
Still, I was determined not to fail and redo the year. I muddled my way through the reading and answered what I could. I did better in English. The first few chapters of Wuthering Heights weren't as bad as I'd feared. The review questions were tedious, though.
It was three in the morning by the time I was done. But I was caught up. I woke Sam before wearily collapsing onto the sofa. Despite the less then ideal sleeping arrangement, I was out within minutes.
[ = = = ]
The next few days went the same way. Wasn't until four days after the incident in my room, while we were halfway through our microwaved dinners, that one of the burner phones rang.
Sam and I exchanged a glance before I answered. "Hello?"
"Sarah."
The knot that had been sitting in my stomach unwound a little bit at Dad's voice. "Hey dad." Sam set his fork down as I leaned back in my chair. "Did you get my message?"
"Just now. We're close enough to civilization for cell reception. You two alright?"
"Fine."
"Tell me exactly what happened," he ordered.
Straightening up, I told him about the intruder. "It hasn't been back since. And we haven't seen anything in the papers or on the news."
Dad was quiet for half a minute. "What did it look like?"
"Human, I think. I didn't get a good enough look to say for sure. It was too dark to see much."
"You did fine, Sarah. But I'm sending your brother back to keep an eye on things. He should be there tomorrow evening."
Sending Dean to babysit us would leave Dad all alone in the wilderness with something that had taken out eight people. "He doesn't need to. I can handle it." My hand tightened on the phone.
Silence reigned on the other end.
"Seriously. Sam and I are fine. No one's dropped dead. You and Dean keep on the thing actually killing people. Besides, it seemed spooked when I shot it. Hasn't been back since. Could even be dead."
His reply came in a low, serious tone. "You sure it didn't have yellow eyes."
I hadn't seen its eyes. "Like I said, it was dark. But whatever it was broke the salt line. Demons can't do that, right?"
I heard a quiet exhale on the other end. "Never heard of one that could," he acknowledged.
"Then I don't think it was—It. I'm seventeen now, Dad. I got this. I just thought you should know what happened."
There was another long pause. Then, "Alright." A shot of pride rushed through me at the show of trust. "But I want you to check in with Bobby every day from now on."
"Okay," I agreed.
"And call me if it comes back. You hear me, girl?"
"Yes, sir," I dutifully answered.
"Let me talk to your brother."
"Sam." I held out the cell.
Sam wiped his hand on his jeans before accepting the phone. His expression remained serious as he listened. Every so often, he'd give a, "Yes." Mostly, it seemed dad was passing along orders.
"I will," he finished, before holding the phone back out to me.
I took it and held it up to my ear. "How's things on your end?"
Dad gave a low hum. "Still haven't locked down what, but we've narrowed the list. Whatever it is likes to avoid anything resembling civilization. We've spent most of the time hiking in the backwoods. I expect that won't change much."
Meaning he'd be out of contact most of the time.
The conversation didn't last long after that. We exchanged promises to be careful before hanging up.
That Saturday we visited the library, checking out old issues of the paper for any unusual stories about intruders that might match what'd happened. A half a day's search turned up nothing. Forks didn't have much in the way of crime. Not that wasn't domestic in origin, anyway.
Sunday we were scouting around the trees behind the house when Sam found an old, overgrown trail. It was too late in the day to go more than a few miles into the forest looking for tracks. We found nothing. If something had come through the woods, either it hadn't taken the most obvious path, or it left the trail when it got closer to the neighborhood.
With no other leads or unusual happenings, we went back to sleeping in our rooms.
≿━━━━༺ 𝑾𝒂𝒚𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅 ༻━━━━≾
Five were at the table.
Edward Cullen was back. From the distance, I studied him as discretely as I could. He was smiling, hair wet from the snow falling outside.
He didn't look like someone recovering from a gunshot wound. But then, whatever dove out the window obviously wasn't human.
I turned my attention back to Jessica as she was talking about her weekend, loading up my tray for lunch. We all wandered over to the table that had become customary for us to sit at.
It was a few minutes into lunch when Jessica leaned over. "Edward Cullen's staring at you."
I shifted my sights to their table. He was looking in my direction just as Jessica had said. Our eyes locked. Something about his seemed different. To my frustration, I couldn't put my finger on what.
He looked away. I forced my brows to smooth as I turned back to the table. I plucked a chip from the small snack-sized bag. "Guess I'll have a lab partner for the day."
"You sit with him in Biology?"
Still chewing, I nodded. I waited till I was done swallowing to say, "Poor guy."
"I think he's luckier than he deserves," Mike said, a slight frown on his face.
"You wouldn't say that if you saw my grades." That prompted a round of commiseration on everyone's least favorite subjects. My sights sought out Sam. I found him sitting off by himself again. A textbook lay open on the table besides his tray and his attention was fixed on its pages.
That naturally led my eyes to the Cullen table. Edward was looking over again. Our eyes had barely met when Emmett leaned forward and shook his head. Hair still wet from the snow, water ended up flying around the table. The two girls recoiled, Alice bringing up her tray like a shield. Edward's attention turned back towards his table with a smirk. Emmett was laughing.
I wondered how long his good mood would last.
The weather warmed over lunch and by the time it was over the snow had melted. A light rain now fell from the sky once we left the cafeteria and stepped outside. I flicked my hood up as Mike, who was sticking by my side, frowned at the melting snow. There had been plans for a snow fight in the parking lot after school.
Shoving my hands into my pockets, I said, "My brother found an old hunting trail behind the house. Don't suppose you're familiar with it?"
Mike shrugged slightly. "No, but I'm not surprised. There are trails all over these woods."
"Ever hear about anything weird out there?"
His brows cinched together. "Weird?"
It was my turn to shrug. "Like unexplained deaths? Missing persons? Shadowy figures?"
He stared, brows practically becoming one. "Uh, no." He blinked. "Why?"
I fixed a smile on my face. "I just... like local legends. Y'know, weird stuff like ghost stories and big foot sightings."
"Big foot?" He was back to sounding amused. "Not around here. If it's legends you're after, you're better off asking the Quileutes."
"Quileutes?"
Mike nodded as we reached the biology building. "The local tribe. They live in La Push on a reservation." He pulled the door open for me.
"Oh." That was interesting. I stomped my feet off on the mat and shrugged out of my denim jacket, hanging it up.
Mike stayed on my heels as I headed back towards my station. "Y'know, my dad run's the sporting goods store in town."
I swung my bag beside my chair before turning to face Mike. "Given all the woods around here, business must be pretty good."
Mike grinned. "Yeah." He leaned a hip against the edge of the table while I sat. "If you're planning on hiking that trail and need anything, I can get it at a discount."
I pulled my book and notebook from my backpack. "Thanks, but we've already got everything."
Mike opened his mouth to say more when a musical voice said, "Excuse me."
Edward Cullen stood behind Mike, the path to his seat blocked off. His expression lacked any murderous intent, but he was frowning in Mike's direction.
"Sorry," Mike startled, hopping off the table.
Edward strode past as soon as Mike stepped aside. Mike and I exchanged a brief glance before he headed off to his own station.
Opening the notebook, I plucked a pen from my bag and made a heading for my notes. It didn't take long, so I started drawing at the side. From the corner of my eyes, I could see Edward unloading his bookbag.
"Hello." At the warm tone, I turned my head. Edward smiled, showing off those movie star good looks. Especially with his hair wet and slightly disheveled from rain. "I didn't have the chance to introduce myself last week. I'm Edward Cullen." His head tilted ever so slightly. "You must be Sarah Winchester."
There was no trace of that strange, murderous glare from before. His eyes were attentive, his expression friendly. I stopped doodling. "Seems like everyone already knows who I am."
His lips quirked upwards. "The whole school's been buzzing about you and your brother."
Pen waggling between my fingers, I gave a rueful grin. "Awesome. Nothing better than small town gossip." If sarcasm could be bottled, mine would've caustic enough to dissolve metal.
Edward's lips curled higher. "Have you been to many small towns?"
I shrugged. "More than most." His eyes still shone with interest. Time to turn it back to him. "How about you? Are you homegrown?"
"No. My siblings and I moved here with our parents," he said with barely a moment's thought before speaking. The effortless way he spoke, it was either a well-practiced lie or the truth.
"Where are you from originally?" I tried.
He blinked, and I was momentarily distracted by how long and dark his lashes were. "Chicago. You?"
"Kansas."
I was about to ask when his family came to Forks, and why, when he beat me to the punch. "Where in Kansas?"
I spun my pen on the tabletop. "Place you've probably never heard of." The seconds stretched on. I found myself at the center of his steady, unwavering attention. Long enough to notice the color of his eyes—an amber so light and vibrant, it was nearly gold. A nervous energy bubbled up and buzzed along my skin. I found myself admitting, "Lawrence," just to fill the silence.
"What's it like?"
"Wouldn't know." I didn't remember much before mom died. And dad tended to avoid Kansas if he could. "I was barely three when we left."
He again beat me to the question before I had a chance to ask him anything. "So you travel a lot?"
I couldn't help the wry twist of my lips. "You could say that."
His brows lowered lightly before he asked, "How do you like Forks?"
I settled on the same diplomatic, "It's nice," that I'd given to everyone who'd asked the same question.
Edward's gaze narrowed a bit, turning inspective. I had the feeling he'd caught that what I'd said wasn't the whole truth. I was about to try and steer the conversation away when he asked, "Too much rain?"
Thwarted again, I picked my pen up before hooking my feet on the lower bar of the stool's legs and leaning back. The pen waggled restlessly between my fingers. "It's not the rain I mind."
"Then what?" He looked far too interested in the answer.
Half of my family was gone, but I wasn't about to admit that to a stranger. One I was still suspicious about. "We spent the last month in California." I shrugged. "Guess I miss the beach."
Edward's attention had yet to move away, either in thought or in boredom, at any point throughout our conversation. He stared at me like I was the most fascinating person in the room. Even though my instincts were still warning me something was off, I had to admit—someone so unbelievably handsome paying that much attention to me was... really flattering. "It must be hard to move around so much."
I grimaced before I could help myself. I shifted my hands to my lap, tapping my pen against my knee. The lid clicked with every bounce. "It's alright." I whipped out the smile I'd practiced in front of the mirror. The one I used to charm teachers and fool cops. "I'm with family. Y'know. 'Home is where the heart is,'" I quoted. I thought about what I'd just said and cringed. "Wow. That sounds really stupid."
His gaze softened. "Actually, I couldn't agree more."
The buzzing along my skin intensified. I scrambled for something cool or interesting to say in response—and came up blank. I was still struggling against the sudden knot in my tongue when Mr. Banner strode in the door, signaling the start of class.
I redirected my sights with a profound sense of gratitude to my Biology Teacher. Letting out a slow breath through my nose, I brought my hands back to the tabletop and moved the tip of my pen to paper.
My gratitude turned sour as it soon became clear we'd be doing lab work. I slouched forward. My talent for biology was all about anatomy. But as Mr. Banner described the assignment—glancing at slides of onion root cells and categorizing them by their phases of mitosis—I realized I was about to be outed as the biggest idiot in the room.
"Ladies first, partner?" Edward asked with a grin as he indicated the box of slides.
"Chivalry," I said, amused despite my impending doom. Gallows humor, I suppose. "In a moment you're going to regret that." As his eyebrow arched, I angled the microscope and pressed the first slide in. To my complete unsurprise, I had no idea what I was looking at. I shut my eyes and inwardly cursed.
Way to look like a complete moron.
"Mind if I...?" he asked, nodding towards the microscope.
I pushed it in his direction. "Be my guest."
He barely glanced into to the eyepiece before declaring, "Prophase."
I dragged the sheet over and wrote the answer in the line.
He pressed the microscope back in my direction. I eyed it with the same trepidation I'd give a cursed talisman. "Why don't you do the next one."
Edward pulled the microscope back over and plucked a slide out of the box. I watched his long, elegant fingers fix it in place before he bent over the eyepiece again. "Anaphase." Straightening up, he made to push it back towards me.
I was still writing the answer, hoping I was at least getting the spelling right. "I trust you."
He quietly pulled out the next slide and switched it with the last. "Interphase."
The lab work went quick. Edward barely had to look before declaring the answer. Looks and brains. If it weren't for the murderous edge he sometimes took on, he'd have been perfect. I diligently wrote down his findings. We were the first ones done in the class.
With nothing else to do, I went back to doodling in my notebook. After a minute, I realized I was drawing a wendigo. It had been Dad's best guess as to what was doing all the killing. I frowned at the thin, twisted parody of a human figure before scribbling it out.
I stiffened as I sensed someone approach from behind.
"Don't you think you should have given Sarah a chance at the microscope?"
Mr. Banner was examining our lab sheet, though his eyes lifted to meet Edward's before falling back to the paper.
I forced myself to relax as Edward replied, "She said she trusted my answers."
Mr. Banner looked down at me.
I whipped out my best smile.
"It's going to be on the test Friday, Miss Winchester," Mr. Banner warned before walking away with a mutter.
My smile fell into a pout as I slumped over the table. What I wouldn't give to just take the G.E.D. and spend my days doing research or hunting, like Dean. Instead here I was, stuck in one stupid class after another.
"It's my fault," Edward murmured.
I glanced at him from the corner of my eye before shaking my head. "No," I admitted. "I didn't do the reading." I'd researched the town's history on Saturday and spent Sunday watching tv until Sam discovered the trail.
Edward glanced at the book before his sights found their way back to me. "Plenty of people don't like biology."
"It's not that I don't like it. I'm actually good at anatomy." I pulled the box of slides over and lifted one out, examining the thin sample between the glass. "I'm just not interested in this cellular stuff." I pushed the slide back in.
"You do realize that our anatomy is made up of cells," he said, bemused.
I rolled my eyes. "Yes."
He still had his lips pressed together, as if physically hold back his laughter, as he watched me.
I scowled. "I like practical knowledge, alright." I waved a hand at the box. "I'm never going to have to know about this stuff." Like knowing the different phases cell mitosis was really going to be of any use when I was off hunting a banshee or a demon. It wouldn't save someone's life or keep me alive.
"I find it very practical knowledge," he said quietly. When I looked up at him, his gaze was directed towards the front of the class but seemed focused even further off than that. "Cellular knowledge is the first step towards learning about disease. And ultimately curing it." He blinked and turned back towards me. "I'd call that practical."
"I suppose the son of a doctor would," I replied, feeling a bit sheepish. It wasn't as if I could really defend my opinion without sounding like a raving lunatic, but I had to admit. He made a good point, too.
His brow lifted. "You've heard about me."
"Only a little."
His lips twisted into a rueful smile. "Small town gossip."
I shrugged.
"What about your parents? What do they do?"
I looked down, finding his hands bunched into fists over his thighs. I dragged my sights back up to meet his curious gaze. There was no hint of that tension anywhere in his expression, but there was tension. "My dad sells insurance."
"And your mother?" his affect remained polite.
I braced myself for impending awkwardness. "She died."
He winced and frowned. "I'm sorry." The apology was genuine.
I shrugged. "It was a long time ago. I barely remember her." I offered a small smile to show I really wasn't bothered by the question.
"Me either."
I was startled at his admission.
He noticed. His lips lifted into a wry grin. "I assumed you knew I was adopted."
"Yeah. I'd heard that," I admitted.
"Your brother is a bit more of a mystery," Edward added a moment later.
I started drawing the Impala to give me something other than his too-perfect face to focus on. It was distracting, and I didn't want to say more about Sam than I had to. "He's really not." I started by sketching a rough outline of the body. "Sam likes his books, that's all."
"So he's shy."
I frowned. "No, not really. He's actually really good with people. He's just—super serious about college." I shrugged, trying to give the impression that Sam's dreams of going off to college were no big deal. It wouldn't be in most families.
"But you're not?"
I started shading the body, mindful of where the light would hit the car's curves. "I'm planning on entering the family business."
"Insurance." He sounded uncertain.
I looked up and grinned. "Moving around. Never knowing where you'll end up. What you'll be dealing with. Meeting new people." He looked fascinated by my answer. I shifted my stare back towards my sketch. "Figure I'd be good at it."
"I'm sure you'd be good at anything you put your mind to," he replied graciously.
I scoffed before arching a brow at him as I peered up. "Like with cellular mitosis?" I cast a wry smile his way before letting my sights fall back to the paper.
Before he could answer, Mr. Banner called the class' attention to the front of the room. There he started in on a lecture, shutting off the classroom lights and using the projector to show huge pictures of the different stages of mitosis we had just been assigned to label.
I sketched the various images, but my mind was only half on the lecture. The rest of me was glad to have a reason not to engage the boy beside me in conversation. I realized that I'd said way more about myself than I probably should have and learned almost nothing new about him—aside from the fact he was from Chicago.
Usually, I wasn't so far off my game.
I blamed it on his ridiculously good looks. When I was around him, and he wasn't staring murder at me, it was hard to keep my head on straight.
I risked a brief glance in his direction out the corner of my eye. I found him rigid in his seat, leaning away from me, hands still curled into tight fists. My sights wandered back to the front of the room, and I was confused again. He seemed so friendly but was still acting... odd. And there was something apart from his attitude that was different from last week. I just couldn't pinpoint what.
As soon as the bell rang, Edward was up and out of the room as swiftly as the last time he'd been in class. I frowned, wondering if it was something as simple as his next class was further away.
Mike paused by my station with a tortured groan. "Man. That was awful. You're lucky you had Cullen."
"Yeah," I agreed, packing up my books and pen.
Mike and I gathered our jackets together and took off into the still-raining afternoon. "At least he seemed a lot friendlier today."
I glanced his way at the sour tone in his voice. "Guess he wasn't feeling well last Monday."
Mike and I were on the same team in Gym and managed to win two out of three games. He celebrated the second by wrapping his arms around me and lifting me into the air. I was so surprised I almost kicked him in the groin but managed to catch myself before I ended up maiming him.
I kept a good arm's length between us after that. But we lost the next game, so I didn't have to worry about a repeat.
I was still somewhat sour about it as I changed and strode into the parking lot. My mood was obvious enough for Sam to pick up on. "What's wrong?"
I blew out a frustrated breath. "Just—rough afternoon."
Sam's brows lifted in surprise as I climbed into the truck. "Okay. Want to talk about it?"
"No," I replied immediately. When it came to guys who crushed on me, Sam was no where as bad as Dean, but I didn't feel like admitting that a stupid hug had left me so uncomfortable. Not to mention I didn't want the family genius to know how bad I'd done in my lab. Not that Sam would be shocked to hear I was doing crappy in my classes. At my defensive answer, Sam's eyes narrowed in suspicion, but when he reached for the seatbelt, it was obvious he was letting the matter go.
I started the engine and cranked the heater. As the cab warmed, I glanced out the driver side window and caught sight of a familiar figure standing beside the silver Volvo. While he could've been looking at something else, I was pretty sure that intense gaze was fixed on me. I put a smile on my face and offered a friendly wave.
"Who's that?"
Edward's lips twisted up at a corner before he raised a hand, confirming he'd been staring at me. I turned back to find Sam watching the exchange with that suspicious glint back in his eyes. "Edward Cullen. My lab partner in biology."
Sam took another long look at Edward before arching a pointed brow my way. "You realize we're going to be leaving within the month, right?"
This time, I was the one rolling my eyes. "Yes, Sam."
He lifted his hands. "Just saying."
"I know, Sam." I threw the truck into reverse and started backing out.
The sudden blaring of a horn had me stomping the brake. To my horror, I saw a rusted Toyota Corolla in my rearview mirror. Realizing I'd nearly backed into it, my face heated.
Sam, voice dry as could be, asked, "Want me to drive?"
"No," I snapped, waiting for the truck to pass before easing out far more cautiously.
"Your boyfriend is laughing at you," Sam kindly informed me as we passed the Volvo.
Instead of gracing Sam with a response, I ground my teeth and kept my eyes on the road. Unfortunately, my silence did nothing to stop the smug amusement radiating from the passenger seat.