Reflection

19

"Should we wake her up?"

"Of course, idiot. We have to leave soon."

"Just leave her be."

I peeled my eyes open. Four faces stared down at me, dark against the sunlight bursting between them. I squinted and covered my eyes with my wrist.

"Oh, now look what you've done."

"You were the one who—"

"Just shut up."

I sat up. The sun beat down furiously, and although the temperature itself was cold, the sun made my hair stick to my neck and face with sweat. "Oh, here," said Ellie, grabbing a brush out of her bag and sitting cross-legged behind me. She had twisted her own hair into two long braids, tied off with silver bands that were almost identical to her blazing eyes.

"You're stuff's packed," Serenity said, throwing my bag at me roughly. I ignored it and rubbed my eyes as Ellie proceeded to pull my hair into a loose knot on the top of my head. I felt immediate relief once my hair no longer plastered itself to my skin.

"What time is it?" I mumbled to Adam, then yawned. Adam glanced at his watch. "Eight. What time did you fall asleep?"

I gulped, happy that Serenity and James had left to double check that we didn't leave anything behind. I shrugged, picking at my fingernail. "Six. Maybe seven."

"Why didn't you go to sleep?" Ellie demanded, finishing up my hair and throwing her brush back in her bag. "I couldn't find it," I said, scanning the campsite. They had gotten everything that I could see, nothing but the dirt and trees and leftover firewood was visible.

Adam reached out a hand and pulled me to my feet. My whole body was tired and achy, but vampire powers didn't seem to fix that. I bit my lip as Adam said, "Let's go."

• • • • •

"How much longer?" Serenity groaned. I felt the same. My legs and arms throbbed, and I had no idea how they still moved. My lungs burned, and I had to keep repeating to myself: one foot after the other. Boredom had led me to create my own version of Dory's "Just Keep Swimming" from Finding Nemo.

Just keep walking. Just keep walking.

I hummed to myself as we hiked in almost complete silence, not including the occasional attempt at conversation, though it died as quickly as it had started.

"Oh, shut up. We're almost there."

Serenity shut up. At least, until five minutes later: "Can we take a break?"

James stopped dead in his tracks and slammed his bag against a tree, surprising everyone. "Fine. Let's take a break."

So we stopped and Ellie passed out blood bags, giving Serenity a bag of crackers and a banana. James sat by me, scooting closer than was comfortable. Ellie, with a hurt look, went to sit somewhere else. James didn't seem to notice. "How are you holding up?" he asked.

"I'm fine," I said. I glanced at Ellie, who was staring at the ground, almost in a trance, and appeared to be drinking her blood without thinking about it. Next to her, Serenity and Adam looked deep in a conversation, something about castles and plans. "So, how long have you known Ellie?"

"About fifty years," he answered. "She's my best friend."

"That's all?"

He stared at me blankly. "What do you mean?"

"That's all you are? Friends?"

"What else would we be?"

"Uh, nevermind. Forget I said anything."

A strange kind of blankness came over his face, and he took a sip of his blood bag with a shrug. I stared at him, waiting for him to push the topic, and he looked up when he caught my gaze. "I'm sorry, did you say something?"

I smacked my hand on my forehead. Dang, I thought. I did it again. "No. No, I didn't say anything."

Just then Adam shot to his feet. "Let's go," he said.

"But I haven't even finished my chips!" Serenity protested with some surprise, her voice muffled with the chips that filled her cheeks. "Or started my banana!"

"You'll have to eat it on the way," Adam said, shouldering his bag. Without making sure we were following, he walked off. Everyone stared after him with surprise before quickly scrabbling for our own bags and hurrying after him.

"This way, right Serenity?" Adam asked. She nodded. We turned left. "Does Serenity know a shortcut or something?" asked James.

"Yes, actually," Adam answered. "Thanks to her, it'll only take us a little while longer."

Serenity was being unusually quiet, gnawing on her bottom lip. There was something about her expression, I thought. Guilt? No, it had to be something else—

Then the expression was gone, leaving me wondering what it had been. What could she possibly feel guilty about?

"Woah," said Ellie, breaking the silence. "What is that?"

"That," said Adam, "is our way in. Right?"

Serenity nodded. I noticed, with surprise, that she was trembling. I turned to look at what they were talking about. It was what looked to be a large hole, covered with moss and leaves and low-hanging branches. In front lay a worn wooden sign with barely visible scrawled black lettering that read, "Keep Out."

"This hole mysteriously appeared one day," Serenity explained weakly. "No one knows where it came from, but it leads to the castle. It was meant to be filled in, but they never got around to filling it and they eventually forgot about it."

"Perfect," said James.

"What are we waiting for?" I asked, anxious to find my dad. I took a step forward, but Serenity stepped in front of me and put a hand on my chest, shoving me back. "What—"

"Leave," she demanded. "You have to go. It's a trap—"

"We're expecting a trap," Adam said.

"You don't understand." Her eyes were pleading. "Just run."

"Not without my dad," I argued.

"Please," she begged. I had never heard Serenity say "please" before. But then she said it again, whispering now. "Please."

"Serenity, what's—" What's going on? I wanted to ask, but the words died on my lips. A ringing filled my head, so loud it drowned out all noises around me. I heard the others' muffled cry, heard Serenity's distant "No!" I could see her, but she was blurry, just like everything else. She spun on her heel, turned to the dark eyes behind her—

And then everything lapsed into blackness.