I was aware that someone was approaching me from behind.
Ben, I’m sure.
Sensation after sensation assaulted me, and yet my mind was still predominantly fixed on the way Derek had looked in my dream – pale, distant… heartless. Trembling, I pulled my knees against my chest, gathering the beach sand beneath my heels.
“Derek, please be alright. Stay alright…” I whispered, hoping the morning breeze would carry the message back to The Shade and let him know I was still thinking of him.
“Why all the whispering?”
Ben looked at ease and relaxed for the first time since we discovered each other back at The Shade. Still, even with the lighter tone, every word he spoke came with a heaviness I couldn’t completely shake. He plopped himself down next to me.
“Where do you think we are?” he asked.
“We’re in Cancun.” I had no doubt about it. “It makes sense for them to return us where they found us.”
Le Meridien. That was the resort we were staying at when we got abducted by the vampires. The Hudsons were able to afford the long-awaited vacation because of the substantial sum of money my father sent to support me. The last time I saw him was when he left me under the care of his best friend – Ben’s father, Lyle Hudson. That was eight years ago. The only clue I had that he was still alive somewhere was the quarterly check he sent the Hudsons to continue caring for me. The check wasn’t even sent in my name, almost like a taunt – a painful reminder that my own father had willfully forgotten my name.
Memories of our vacation spent on the sugary Mediterranean beaches of Mexico felt like they happened a lifetime ago – to a different version of myself. The jealousy I felt over Ben dating the gorgeous blonde, Tanya Wilson, seemed frivolous and shallow. Even my bitterness toward my parents seemed to matter less in light of what I’d been through.
I looked at Ben, remembering a time when I practically worshipped the ground he walked on. My hot and popular quarterback best friend, with his charming smile and sun-kissed skin … The young man sitting next to me was nothing like that.
“What do we do now?” I asked.
We were so bent on escaping The Shade, we never actually thought about what we would do once we got out. It took at least half a minute before Ben eventually responded with a shrug.
“For now, I don’t think there’s anything left to do other than go home.”
“Right,” I nodded, wondering to myself exactly where home was. The idea of going back to suburban California, back to the Hudsons’ family home, made me sick to my stomach. That place never felt like home to me. “But I don’t think I’m ready to go back just yet, Ben.”
I was relieved when he nodded and said, “I feel the same.”
A comfortable silence followed, both of us focusing on the sun and its slow, steady rise. The view was magnificent, but it wasn’t enough of a distraction to ease all the conflicting thoughts roaming around in my head.
“Perhaps we should stay here for a day or two, gather our wits about us …” Ben suggested, “Then we can go home.”
“Sounds okay to me.”
I then paid more attention to what I was wearing. The bikini and the cover-up was the exact same outfit I had been wearing when Lucas took me from the beach and brought me to The Shade. I checked out what Ben was wearing – a black vest and red board shorts. I wondered if that was what he had on when he was taken from the beach. Did they return us here with nothing but the clothes on our backs?
As if he was reading my mind, a grin formed on Ben’s face. “Relax,” he said, but then a grim expression quickly replaced his smile. “They didn’t leave us empty-handed.” He nodded toward a spot further down the beach.
I followed his gaze and was able to make out a black backpack on the sand. I breathed a sigh of relief. I was bewildered by the scowl on Ben’s face. Why do you seem so ticked off? You should be happy they didn’t send us here empty-handed.
“Have you seen what’s in it?”
He shook his head. “I’m not exactly excited to find out what I now owe them.”
You and your ego. It was just like Ben to be too proud to accept help from anybody. Although, of course, the fact that this help was coming from the vampires who put him through hell made the whole thing much worse. The horrors he went through at The Shade constantly loomed over him… over us.
“Let’s just see what we have to work with.” I quickly walked over to the backpack, more concerned about our current predicament than any broken pride I might have over accepting help from the vampires.
I already reached the pack when I realized that Ben didn’t even bother to follow me. I knelt on the ground and checked the bag’s contents. There were only a few items: two sets of clothes – one for Ben, one for me – a large wad of cash and a sealed envelope with my name on it. Satisfied that we had enough to get by, I closed the bag and slung it over my shoulder before heading back to Ben.
“So?” he asked.
“We have clothes and probably enough cash to get us on a first class flight from Mexico to… I don’t know… India? Round trip. Twice.”
I was expecting him to at least be somewhat relieved, but no… All he did was scoff at the generous sum we’d been given.
“They throw us their scraps and expect us to be grateful for them. That’s nowhere near enough considering what they put us through.”
I knew he was right and I wanted to be on his side, but no matter how much I tried, I couldn’t bring myself to hate The Shade as much as he did. At that point, I didn’t dare ask myself why.
“So that’s all there is?” Ben asked, glaring at the backpack as though it contained deadly venom.
I thought about the envelope addressed to me. Then I nodded.
“Yeah. That’s it.”
A tense moment ensued before he kicked the sand beneath his feet and said through gritted teeth, “Fine. Let’s go and indulge ourselves, using the oh-so-generous fortune they sent us.”
As he headed off toward the luxurious resorts that lined the white sandy beaches, I lingered behind long enough to look back at the ocean and whisper, “Thank you, Derek.”
CHAPTER 5: DEREK
Focus, Derek. Ignore everything.
I stood still and upright, my feet shoulder-width apart. My left hand kept a relaxed grip on my silver bow’s handle. I retrieved an arrow from the quiver slung across my bare back.
Drown everything out. All that matters now is that you hit the target.