I look at the clock. 6:45.
I'm not ready yet.
Since I got home from school, nervousness has taken over me. I hate feeling like this, like a mouse being lured into a trap.
Neither Sammy nor Lou have arrived yet.
They're probably at some party I wasn't invited to.
What if he's just messing around with me, what if he doesn't know anything?
But he mentioned Theodore, he has to know something.
I decide to go.
After all, what could go wrong?
I try not to think about all the million things that could go wrong.
I take a quick shower and a good look in the closet (my clothes aren't that bad, plus Lou bought new clothes for me and Sammy recently).
I chose a navy blue dress with a v-neck, fitted at the waist and flared at the hem. Black flats that look cute (I'm not actually a "I hate all girlysh things" kinda girl, nor a tomboy, I'm just awkward and a little depressed ok).
I let my hair down and pin two strands of it back with a blue crystal bow clip. The curly strands at the ends adorn my slightly prominent bust.
Fortunately, the large scar that ran from my jaw to my neck has mysteriously disappeared. Things have been so strange that I don't have much thought to spare and overthink about this little detail, I have bigger fish to fry.
The car beeps at the entrance.
I grab my black handbag and run down the stairs (Indeed I'm a normal girl wearing normal clothes sometimes, there's nothing wrong with that tsk).
I'm home alone and even if I wasn't, no one would miss me.
Lucca is next to the BMW, his black blazer open, showing off his blue shirt (what a coincidence) that highlights the abs and his masculine chest.
"You look wonderful."He says in a seductive voice.
"Thank you." I feign disinterest.
Lucca takes my hand and kisses it gently, but it's enough to send tingles throughout my body. I quickly take it back and pretend it has no effect on me.
"Shall we go?" he asks seductively.
The whole way I keep reminding myself why I'm here with him.
***
We arrive at Bright Hill.
Simply the most expensive restaurant in South Lake.
Lucca opens the door for me, like a typical gentleman.
"So, do you like it?" He smirks.
I just look around and shrug.
"Impressive, you know how to make a girl feel awkward!"
He laughs more.
From the outside, Bright Hill resembles an exceptionally large Renaissance palace, frequented only by high society.
So I had never been there.
Plus it's right next to the beach.
Which is a long way from my old house, and Sammy is thinking about selling it off because it is in her name only.
There is no point in keeping such a big house without knowing how to manage it, even if there's the memories there, right now they are more a reminder of what's lost than anything else.
Besides, we need the money to support ourselves, although we have an inheritance along the house and the life insurance, it's not enough to support us both for life or anything, just capital if we decide to venture to do something or buy two smaller houses in a good place and go to college, I don't want to bother the Hawks with anything else.
Inside, Bright Hill is even more chic than I had imagined.
There are lots of giant chandeliers, live classical music, waiters everywhere, and lots of people I've never seen before.
Lucca chooses the furthest table for two, near a huge, all-glass window, overlooking the sea and the most beautiful full moon I've ever seen.
He pulls out the chair for me to sit down.
"Thank you." I murmur.
A very young waiter comes to serve us.
"I'll have the house special with the best vintage you have," Lucca says as if he were a regular.
"I'll have the same," I say awkwardly, blushing slightly. After all, I don't know what to order here.
If the waiter thinks something about two high schoolers ordering wine, he doesn't show it.
The waiter brings our dishes, which consist of small chicken thighs with mushrooms and shallots, which completely shatters my expectations of satisfying my hunger.
Perfect!
"So you said that if I agreed to come, you would talk about Theodore and "them", and here I am."
" Okay."
"So?" I insist.
His eyes shine.
"I don't know if you would believe it…" He starts and then stops.
"Try it." I'm starting to get pissed.
"If you know everything, it will be a path of no return, are you really willing to move forward?" He suddenly becomes serious.
Am I?
I drink some of the wine, it's delicious actually.
I arm myself with all the courage I have.
"Yes, I'm willing to move forward."
He leans in closer and whispers.
"Theodore is a 'hunter', he turned you and your sister, killed your parents, and left you alone."
"Hunter?"
"They are the 'seekers'."
"Seekers?" I feel like a broken record but this damn guy keeps stopping and looking at me as if he's waiting for me to repeat what he just said, it's maddening and I have to control myself to not yell at him to just say it at once.
"They watch after the hunters claim their victims. They take them to the 'Guardians'."
I try not to grind my teeth and my nails are digging into my palms with the effort.
"Guardians?"
"Guardians of the sororities, and they perform numerous tests to see if the chosen one has any gifts or potential. If the chosen one survives at the end of two weeks, they're sent to the sorority that best suits them. And if the chosen one is special or a troublemaker, 'they' take them to the 'council'."
"Council?" If this continues my hands still start bleeding and I feel myself starting to vibrate with anger.
"The Council decides what to do with the unfortunate person. And I'm here to stop them from getting you and your sister."
I almost fell out of my chair. I feel like my overview is getting overturned and the ground beneath my feet isn't as solid as it was 5 seconds ago.
"That's all impossible!" I whisper.
"Nothing is impossible, Alex." He says gently.
And for some reason the gentleness in his tone and the look in his eyes hit me like a truck.
He must be crazy!
It couldn't be true.
It is a lot at once, and my brain is about to shut down.
This is not true, it can't be true.
I'm left speechless.
My sister and I couldn't have been hunted.
And if it were true… how could he stop them from catching me?
And most importantly, what did he supposedly turn me into?
"How do you know all this?" I say between gritted teeth.
His expression changes and becomes colder, as if he doesn't like to talk about it.
"Because I was already caught, but I managed to escape." He says quietly.
I remember the day of the accident.
The less I thought about that day, the more I forgot.
But now I remember clearly, my father swerving to avoid a man on the road, being pulled from the wreckage, the white-haired man beside me, the needle in my heart, and the car catching fire with my parents inside, and then the void of unconsciousness.
In my heart I know it was all true, but I don't want to believe it.
He gently cuts the chicken and brings it to his lips.
"But why me? An insignificant girl? It doesn't make any sense no matter how I think of it"
He laughs.
"You are special, before you ask me why, you will have to find out for yourself. I can't tell you."
I glare at him but he continues imperturbed.
I feel like breaking something.
I try to rationalize.
"What exactly is a Hunter? A Seeker? Guardians? A chosen one? And the Council? And don't give me those vague responses or don't blame me for hitting you with the table centerpiece." I try to not yell at him, the more aloof he acts the more I want to hit him.
He finally stops eating and looks at me.
"Calm down, one question at a time. Hunters is a pejorative term we rebels use to identify the vampires sent to transform humans. Seekers are other vampires who find and take these transformed beings. Guardians are the… let's say, 'those in charge' of the sororities. You know what a sorority is, right?"
I nod sharply.
"So each sorority has a guardian. The chosen ones are precisely the transformed humans. The council is a kind of parliament. They decide everything. Nothing is done without their permission. The council is made up of members of the noblest families among the vampires and werewolves."
Wtf!
"It's hard to believe that the legends and myths I was told when I was a child are real. All you say sounds like a needed trip to a psychiatrist." I say half mocking.
"We're not legends. In fact, some of them are a bit false. These stories of hideous beings ripping out throats and wolves transforming at the full moon are mostly made up, and real stories are modified to shape our image. Dracula, for example, has a lot of fabricated stuff, like how his image isn't reflected in a mirror because he has no soul."
I look at him trying to find any clue in his face.
"I really can't believe it."
"I thought you were open-minded."
"I am, but what you told me is inconceivable. I feel insane just hearing it." I say.
"Understand that it is very difficult to believe, but it is all true." He looks understanding and empathetic but it feels off to me.
I don't know what to think anymore.
"If it's really true, what did he turn me into? And my sister? And why did he kill my parents?" I whisper.
My heart is racing so fast it aches.
"Yes, it's true. And what I don't know yet, he turned her because if he killed her, you could kill yourself too since you two are very close, and he killed your parents so that you would have no choice but to go with the Seekers."
My head is throbbing.
I look around, nobody is paying attention this way, everyone going about their own little lives, completely indifferent to the earth shattering things Lucca is saying.
Suddenly I just feel so damn tired. My shoulders drop and I stare at the untouched plate, my hunger is completely gone, now I just have my stomach churning.