Upstairs, he said. He didnt leave them much choice; Shane was a big guy, and this time he was using his muscle. By the time Claire got herself together, they were upstairs, in the hallway, and Shane was shoving open the door to Eves room. Inside, girls. Lock the door. I mean it. Dont open it for anybody but me.
ButShane!
He turned to Claire, took hold of both of her shoulders in those big hands, and leaned forward to plant a warm kiss on her forehead. You dont know these guys, he said. Youre not safe. Juststay in there until I get back.
Eve, looking dazed, murmured, You have to stop them. You cant let them hurt Michael!
Shane locked eyes with Claire, and she saw the grim sadness. Yeah, he said. Well, thats pretty much done. JustI have to look out for you now. Its what Michael wants.
Before Claire could summon up anything else in protest, he pushed her back over the threshold and slammed the door. He banged on it once with his fist. Lock it!
She reached up and flipped the dead bolt, then turned the old-fashioned key, as well. She stayed where she was, because she could feel, somehow, that Shane hadnt moved away.
Shane? Claire pressed herself against the door, listening. She thought she could hear his uneven breathing. Shane, dont let him hurt you again. Dont.
She heard a breathless sound that was more like a sob than a laugh. Yeah, Shane agreed faintly. Right.
And then she heard his footsteps moving away, down the hall to the stairs.
Eve was sitting on her bed, staring into space. The room smelled like a fireplace, thanks to the fire that had raged next door, in Claires room, but there was only some smoke damage, nothing really serious. And besides, with all the black Goth stuff everywhere, you couldnt even really tell.
Claire sat down on the bed beside Eve. Are you okay?
No, Eve said. I want to go look out the window. But I shouldnt, right? I shouldnt see what theyre doing.
No, Claire agreed, and swallowed hard. Probably not a good idea. She rubbed Eves back gently and thought about what to doand that wasnt much. It wasnt like allies were exactly falling off the trees around here. Besides Shane, they had nobody else. Their second-best choice was a vampire.
How scary was that?
Still, she could call Amelie. But that was a little like arming a nuclear weapon to take care of an ant problem. Amelie was so badass, the other badass vampires backed down without a fight. Shed said, I will make it known that you are not to be troubled. However, you must not further disturb the peace. If you do, and it is your fault, I will be forced to reconsider my decision. And that would be
Unfortunate, Claire finished aloud, in a whisper. Yeah. Pretty unfortunate. And there was no way that this didnt constitute disturbing the peaceor wouldnt, as soon as Shanes dad got rolling. Hed come to kill vampires, and he wasnt going to be stopped by any little considerations like, oh, his sons life and safety.
No, not a good idea to call Amelie.
Who else? Oliver? Oliver wasnt exactly at the top of Claires Best Friends Forever list, although in the beginning shed thought he was pretty cool, for an old guy. But hed been playing her, and he was the second-most badass vamp in town. Whod use them, and this situation, against Amelie if he could.
So no. Not Oliver, either. The police were bought and paid for by the vampires. Her teachers at schoolno. None of them had impressed her as being willing to stand up to pressure.
Mom and Dad? She shuddered to think what would happen if she put in a frantic yell to themFor one thing, theyd already had their memories altered by Morganvilles strange psychic field, or so she assumed, since theyd forgotten all about ordering her home for living off campus. With boys. Mom and Dad werent exactly the kind of backup she needed, not up against Shanes dad and his bikers.
Her cousin Rexnow, there was an idea. No, Rex had been sent to jail three months ago. She remembered Mom saying so.
Face facts, Danvers. Theres nobody. Nobody coming riding to the rescue.
It was her, Eve, and Shane against the world.
So the odds were about three billion to one.
Chapter Three
It was a long, long day. Claire eventually stretched out on one side of the bed, Eve on the other, each wrapped in her own separate cocoon of misery and heartache. They didnt talk much. There didnt seem to be a lot to talk about.
It was almost dark when the doorknob rattled, sending Claire into a heart-pounding terror seizure; she advanced slowly, and whispered, Who is it?
Shane.
She unlocked fast and opened up. Shane came in, head down, carrying a tray on which sat two bowls of chiliwhich made sense, because it was nearly the only thing Shane knew how to fix. He set it down on the edge of the bed, next to Eve, who was sitting like an unstuffed rag doll, limp with grief and dejection.
Eat something, he said. Eve shook her head. Shane picked up a bowl and shoved it in her direction; she took it just to avoid wearing it, and glared at him.
Claire saw her expression change into something else. Blank at first, then horrified.
Its nothing, Shane said as Claire came around to see. It wasnt nothing. It was bruises, dark ones, spilling over his cheek and jaw. Shane avoided looking at her. My fault.
Jesus, Eve whispered. Your dad
My fault, Shane snapped back, got up, and headed for the door. Look, you dont understand. Hes right, okay? I was wrong.
No, I dont understand, Claire said, and grabbed his arm. He pulled free without any effort at all and kept walking. Shane!
He paused in the doorway and looked back at her. He looked bruised, beaten, and sullen, but it was the desperation in his eyes that scared her. Shane was always strong, wasnt he? He had to be. She needed him to be.
Dads right, he said. This town is sick, its poisoned, and its poisoning us, too. We cant let it beat us. We have to take them out.