Blood Relatives

36. Something Wicked This Way Comes

Carmine parked her car at the edge of the school parking lot and turned off the engine. Luke's Mustang pulled in right behind her.

It was almost midnight and there was no one around. Of course there was no one around, Carmine told herself. Who in their right mind showed up at school this late? She got out of the car, shutting the door as quietly as possible. Anna and Mia did the same.

The boys climbed out of Luke's car, Conner with a bag full of stuff. It was a little weird for Carmine to watch someone else carry the supplies, but there wasn't much she could do about that. Too much of what they had was dangerous to her now, and none of it would affect Conner. So she'd put him in charge of everything.

Conner solemnly gave each one of them a bottle of the holy water, leaving the salt safely in the bag with him. Carmine took a deep breath – she really hoped this worked.

The group made their way back to the courtyard, right in front of the cafeteria. The small circular tables were all hidden in shadow, giving an eerie feeling to the place. Even the parking lot lights didn't reach back here, and Carmine knew she would have had a serious disadvantage a couple months ago. She was just glad all of her friends could see in the dark. She wondered if Adam could too.

The group waited at the edge of the courtyard for what felt like several minutes. Finally, Zev spoke up.

"He's not here." he whispered, almost sounding relived.

"Where is he?" Anna asked. No one answered.

Carmine could feel her friends' eyes on her – maybe from habit. But she didn't look at any of them. Instead, she scanned absolutely every inch of that courtyard – she wasn't letting her guard down until she was positive that Adam hadn't shown. When she was satisfied, she took a cautious step forward. Then another. Finally, she was in the middle of the courtyard, no one around her.

"Looks like he didn't come." she said finally. She sat down at one of the tables, only then daring to be relieved.

Out of the corner of her eye, Carmine saw something moving at the far side of the courtyard – a shadow shifting behind her. She jumped up, muscles tense. Maybe she was wrong, but she didn't think so.

"You thought I wouldn't show?" someone asked. Carmine recognized the voice instantly. He sounded almost hurt. "Of course I'd come. But I did warn you that if you kept threatening me, you weren't going to like it."

"Yeah? What are you going to do?" Zev asked from behind Carmine's shoulder. Carmine hadn't even realized he'd moved up next to her, but it filled her with relief. And not just because it meant that someone other than Adam was next to her. Zev sounded like he really wasn't afraid of Adam – which was good, because Carmine was terrified.

"Carmine, are you sure you want to do this?" Adam asked, ignoring Zev altogether.

Carmine nodded, eyes wide.

"Really? 'Cause it looks to me like you have your doubts. Besides, remember how much fun we had? You don't want to do that again?"

Carmine didn't say anything. She wanted to tell him that she didn't want anything to do with him. But she didn't. Instead, her mind drifted back to the first couple of times she'd talked to Adam. Those were just dreams, of course. But now that Adam was actually here, maybe it could be like that for real. Now that it wasn't just a dream, that seemed to make it better – more normal. She didn't have to secretly wonder if she was crazy, and it wouldn't be hard to explain to anyone. And Carmine did miss the feeling of someone treating her special like that.

"She doesn't have doubts." Zev told Adam, not even bothering to wait for Carmine to respond. "Look at all she's done to get away from you!"

"And how's that worked out for you, Carmine?" Adam asked a little too sweetly. "Has it really made anything easier?"