Chapter 32: The Academy at night
At the first bite of the homemade sweet potato burger, I got the same flavour that I usually got from the jam that Dave used.
'Will you tell me now what is it that you used in the coulis?'
He smiled at me and replied, 'You were already transitioning to a vampire so you needed the blood.'
I looked at him in horror, 'You were adding blood to my meals?' Incredulous I looked at him, 'Was it yours?'
'He laughed at that. 'Synthetic blood powder. I told you about it. I didn't want you to have cravings.'
'Is this what gave me the energy surges?'
'Yes.' Did I feel bad at his hiding things from me? I didn't really know as he was only thinking of my welfare. But I hoped that that day's intimacy would make him liable to communicate more.
Dave had remembered to unlock the door luckily, as it had completely skipped my mind. Claudia walked right in and smiled brightly. Did she suspect what we had been doing? Or maybe I was feeling conscious about everything.
'What did Lucas tell you?' It felt strange to refer to Mr Pierce as Lucas. 'Oh my god, Claudia, you are sleeping with the boss.'
'According to his records, none of the guest houses are actually occupied.'
I felt deceived to hear that as it reduced the chances we had to see Nadia alive and the clock was ticking. My thoughts also went to Christian who was still tied in his house.
'But on looking at the itemised bills, he discovered that one of the guesthouses was using more electricity than the others,' Claudi added.
I felt hopeful again, but there was only one way we could check it out - by going there.
'We have to be careful,' Dave said after exposing his plan to us. But one thing was bothering me, 'Okay, we're going to go and get the family out without anyone noticing us. But if the two werewolves are here or Guy, what do we do? Are we going to kill them?' I asked with hesitation.
'Leave them to me,' Dave said.
'You haven't answered my question,' I repeated obstinately.
'If you are asking me if I can kill them, then yes. Do I want to? No. Sometimes it's either them or us,' he replied firmly. I had never seen that side of his character. A few minutes earlier, I had been moaning in his arms and now I could hardly recognise him.
'Isn't there another strategy?' Claudia asked. 'Mum has kept some tranquilizer guns in the safe. For emergencies she said.'
'Can't we make them sleep and then send them back to their planet?' I added, looking at him beseechingly.
'Ash, we are not talking about your petty criminals here. These creatures will show you no pity.'
'Yes, but we don't have to be like them. Otherwise, what would be the difference between them and us?' I pressed on.
Both Claudia and I looked at Dave with puppy eyes hoping to make him melt. At the back of my mind I knew that he was right, but I didn't want to think about killing and death. I had already faced so many losses.
Cornered, Dave bit out, 'Fine, we'll do it your way. But at the slight hint of danger, I won't hesitate to kill them.' I could feel the anger radiating from him in waves.
Claudia brought the guns and showed us how to use them. The feel of the cold metal in my hands reminded me that this was not a game, if we were not careful, lives would be in danger, ours included.
The plan was to actually attract the attention of those who were in the house, lure them out. Then Dave would get in, get the family out, provided they were still alive. Claudia would be waiting in her mother's seven-seater car to take everyone out. The question was how to attract the werewolves.
'They want me with the locket,' I said resolutely, 'So, I'll be the bait.'
'Are you crazy?' Claudia screamed. 'That will be playing right into their hands.' Dave tightened his hands into fists, his gaze becoming steely.
'Nadia, Nathan and Luz are in this predicament because of me. I owe it to them.'
'What if they catch you? Did you think of that?' Claudia asked pacing up and down the living room.
'I have my locket. I just need to use it and I'll be transported somewhere else,' I said, pulling the locket from under my shirt. It caught the light of the setting sun and the red diamond shone brightly. I turned to Dave, 'Do you have a better plan?'
'We're leaving in 15 minutes. Wear something warm,' he said before leaving and closing the door behind him. I knew that he hated when things got out of his control. And then I would be facing a dangerous situation without him being able to do anything about it.
Claudia lent me a jacket to keep me warm and luckily we had the same shoe size, so I could get a pair of shoes from her.
'Are you fine, Ash?' she asked me with worry clouding her eyes.
'You know I'm not, but we have no choice.'
'So how will you attract their attention?'
'They have been roaming around the Academy and the forest, so I just need to go there and let them hear me,' I said with more confidence than I actually felt. 'Once they're out, it's up to you and Dave.'
'Keep one of the guns with you.'
'It will be visible and they will know that it's a plan. We can't take that risk.'
Claudia sighed. 'I hate it that you're right,' she said trapping me in a big hug.
'Let's go. Dave must be waiting.'
The plan was simple. Dave and I would drive to the edge of the forest where we would stage a big fight. It would hopefully help us to generate enough noise to attract attention. Dave would then leave me and park at the Academy, then rush to the guesthouse we had identified. By then, the werewolves would have moved to the edge of the forest to look for me. I would keep them busy looking for me for some time. In the meanwhile, Dave would bring Nadia and her kids to the car where Claudia would be waiting and he would come back to fetch me.
The ride to the forest was a nerve-wracking one, especially with a driver who stared ahead, unflinching. Claudia was already on the way to the Academy and would park as near to the guesthouse as she could. Mr Pierce would be going along with her and it made me feel slightly less anxious for her.
'Talk to me please.' I couldn't stop my voice from trembling at the last word and Dave looked at me briefly. He reached out his hand to hold mine and gruffly said, 'I'm sorry. I just don't want you to get hurt.'
'I'm scared too, but you know it, we don't have an alternative.'
'I know, but I still don't like it.'
I squeezed his hand and managed a weak smile as we reached the edge of the forest, 'Don't worry. Everything will be fine.'
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