‘I should think he’s pretty protective of his booze too,’ said April, nodding towards the glass in Layla’s hand. ‘Maybe we’d both better keep quiet about where we’ve been, eh?’
April doubled back towards the lounge. She could hear the sound of trampling feet and laughter coming from the upstairs rooms and some shouting coming from the direction of the kitchen. She guessed they had already searched this part of the house. She turned into the entrance hall and pulled open a door; it was a small walk-in closet crammed with coats. Perfect. She pushed the jackets to one side and got inside, closing the door behind her. It was cosy enough in there, but April couldn’t relax. She kept thinking of one thing: where was Gabriel right now? Was he looking for her, hoping to find her on her own, snatch a few words or kisses, as she was? Or was he looking under the bed with some slut, pretending she didn’t exist. April knew she had agreed to this and yes, it made sense they pretend to dislike one another. But did he have to pretend so well?
She froze as the door opened and a blond head ducked inside. It was Ben.
‘Aha! My superior detective skills pay off!’ he whispered. ‘So now I have to get inside too?’
‘Um, yes, I think so,’ said April as Ben closed the door, wriggled between the coats and sat down next to her, being careful not to spill the glass of red liquid he was carrying.
‘You okay?’ he said. ‘I did tell my idiot sister that you might not be too happy creeping around in the dark, but she insisted it would be “fun”.’
‘Oh, don’t worry, I’m fine,’ said April forcing a smile. ‘Just thinking about … you know.’
In actual fact she was thinking about how she could feel his thigh pressed up against hers and how warm it felt. She knew she shouldn’t be thinking about anyone but Gabriel, but where was he?
‘Well, maybe this will help,’ he said, handing her the drink. April took a glug and grimaced.
‘Bit strong?’ he smiled. ‘I’m not that keen either. Actually, I think Caro might have hit on something with this party food. I think I actually prefer her cherryade to these cocktail things. And I never saw any of Davina’s fancy catered canapés disappear as fast as Caro’s sausage rolls.’
‘Maybe we’re not as old as we’d like to think,’ said April, immediately seeing the irony in what she had said. For all she knew, Ben could be two hundred years old. Still, he certainly looked good. Stop it, April, she scolded herself. Remember he’s a vampire.
‘One thing’s for sure,’ said Ben. ‘We’re all a lot better off since you came along, April Dunne.’
April looked away.
‘I’m not sure everyone would agree.’
Ben raised his eyebrows.
‘You mean Gabe?’
‘I was thinking about Layla, actually. We just had another run-in. In fact none of that crowd have ever really warmed to me. You must have noticed.’
He shrugged. ‘I don’t think the likes of Layla and Chessy warm up at all. But some of us are glad you’re here, me especially.’
April looked at him. He was cute, but was this all an act? Was he really saying he liked her, or was this all part of the vampire honey trap?
‘Well, thanks,’ she said lamely.
‘Listen, can we talk?’ said Ben. ‘Seriously, I mean?’
‘I … I suppose,’ said April warily.
‘Not here, I don’t want any other sardines coming in and interrupting us.’
He pushed open the closet door and, checking the coast was clear, led April towards the front of the house.
‘Well, I’m not sure I should leave the party …’ said April as he opened the front door, glancing back over her shoulder and hoping Caro had seen them.
‘Don’t worry, I promise not to keep you long, I just want to say something to you. I think it’s time I did.’
April was excited and frightened at the same time. She liked Ben, whatever he was; after all, wasn’t Gabriel a vampire too and she loved – liked – him. And why shouldn’t she flirt with other boys if he was doing exactly the same thing? It’s all part of our cover story, isn’t it? If Gabriel can go off with Chessy, why shouldn’t I go off with Ben? And anyway, could you really cheat on someone who had vanished upstairs with another girl? If Gabriel was really in love with her, where was he now when she was risking her neck – literally – trying to save him? Outside, Ben pulled her to one side, their breath steaming in the cold air, their feet crunching on the gravel.
‘April, you know I like you,’ he said, his intense blue eyes searching hers.
She smiled. ‘I have an idea.’
‘And you say Gabriel’s not in the picture any more? Because he is still my friend.’
‘I’m not sure how much Gabriel Swift ever was in the picture,’ April said quietly.
‘Then maybe you and I …’ he said, reaching out a hand to hold hers.
‘You and I …?’ said April, unsure what he wanted, unsure of what she wanted herself.
He pushed a strand of hair out of her eyes, an intimate gesture that made April’s heart beat faster.
‘Ben, I’m not sure …’ she said, ‘I …’
‘Well I am,’ he said, stepping forward, his body against hers. ‘I’m sure I want to do this.’
He bent his head, kissing her softly on the neck. It was so gentle and so unexpected that April actually groaned with pleasure.
‘What are you doing?’ she murmured, half-hoping he’d do it again.
‘What does it look like?’ said Ben, kissing her cheek. ‘I’m kissing you. Don’t you want me to?’
‘Yes … No, I … I don’t know,’ said April feeling his arms around her, an electricity between them, every part of her alive with longing and desire.
‘Oh God,’ she moaned. It was so wrong, but she couldn’t stop. Ben leant in again, his lips coming down towards hers this time. April felt her lips part, then heard a gasp and saw Ben jerk out of her sight. There was a thud and a grunt as he landed on his back. She whirled around to see Gabriel standing over him.
‘Gabe!’ she shouted. ‘Don’t! I didn’t …’ but he wasn’t listening, he was glaring down at Ben.
‘Get out of here, Ben, I’m warning you,’ he growled, his fists bunched at his sides.
‘Come on, Gabe, you made it clear you weren’t interested in her,’ said Ben, getting up and dusting his hands off. ‘Don’t make this into a big deal.’
‘It is a big deal,’ said Gabriel, taking a step forward.
‘Well, if that’s the way you want it …’ said Ben. April was shocked at the speed with which he moved, hurling himself forward, his shoulder slamming into Gabriel’s stomach. Gabriel tried to side-step, but he was too slow and they both landed on the drive in a shower of gravel.
‘Stop!’ she shouted. ‘Enough! Both of you!’
Heedlessly, Gabriel rolled to his feet and flipped Ben over, sending him flying into the wall with a thud.
‘Back off, Ben, I’m warning you.’
Ben wiped a dark trickle of blood from the side of his mouth, looked at it, then launched himself forwards, swinging a lightning-fast punch at Gabriel which knocked him backwards, stumbling into a car. Seizing the opportunity, Ben jumped forward and grabbed Gabriel’s shirt, but April caught his arm.
‘Stop! Right now,’ shouted April, ‘I’m serious, Ben.’
‘He’s asking for it …’ Ben began, but before he could say anything more, April turned on him, her teeth bared.
‘Get off him!’ she hissed. ‘I won’t tell you again.’
Her eyes were blazing and her words full of authority. For a moment, Ben stopped and looked at her, his mouth open.
‘Hey, come on,’ he said, putting up his hands. ‘I didn’t start this. He’s been treating you like dirt, he deserves this …’ he said, making a lunge for Gabriel. April stepped forward and swung a punch that thumped into Ben’s shoulder.
‘Ow!’ he cried, stepping back and rubbing it. ‘That hurt!’
Suddenly April felt herself
lifted and thrown to the side. ‘Stay the hell out of this,’ Gabriel yelled. ‘This is between me and Ben.’
‘Hey, don’t speak to her like that,’ said Ben.
‘She’s just a stupid little slut, what do you care?’
‘Slut?’ April screamed, turning towards Gabriel, unable to believe what she was hearing. ‘How dare you?’
‘Oh and I suppose you came out here to do some bird-watching, did you?’
‘Screw you, Gabriel,’ hissed April. ‘That’s it! I’ve had enough of your two-faced crap. You can’t make up your mind about me, you go off with Chessy at every opportunity, and then when someone else decides I’m worth bothering with, you suddenly coming running back. Is that supposed to be attractive?’
Ben looked from April to Gabriel and back again.
‘Okay,’ he said, holding up his hands and backing towards the front door. ‘It looks as if you two have a few things to sort out.’ He turned towards Gabriel. ‘I’ll sort you out later.’
Gabriel just sneered.
‘And I’ll be here whenever you need me, okay?’ said Ben to April.
‘Thanks,’ said April quietly as Ben closed the door behind him. As soon as he was gone, Gabriel grabbed April’s arm and marched her around to the side of the house.
‘Hey! Slow down!’ she cried. ‘I’m wearing heels!’
‘Bugger your heels. What the hell were you doing?’ said Gabriel angrily.
‘What was I doing? What were you doing? And I’m a slut now?’
He threw his hands in the air in frustration.
‘Don’t be so bloody stupid, April. I saw Ben pulling you outside and I knew he wasn’t planning on showing you the roses.’
‘So now you’re jealous? After you’ve gone upstairs with some other girl?’
‘Oh, grow up, April. If you’d kissed Ben and he’d keeled over with the virus, how long do you think it would take the vamps to join the dots? I was protecting you.’
‘Oh, not this again. You’re always protecting me, aren’t you? Well I don’t want to be protected, I want to be loved!’
His face softened and he put out a hand to touch her cheek.
‘I do love you—’ he began, but April slapped his hand away.
‘Calling me a slut doesn’t really sound like someone who loves me.’
‘I had to stop you! You didn’t know what you were doing!’
‘Don’t be so bloody patronising! You might be four hundred years old, but that doesn’t make you my dad.’
He looked at her, searching her face.
‘You really don’t know, do you?’
April suddenly felt cold. What was he talking about?
‘What?’
‘Didn’t you see Ben’s reaction when you told him to back off? He was genuinely worried. Just for a moment there, April, you were a Fury.’
‘What? No!’
April turned and tried to walk away, but Gabriel followed her.
‘You can’t avoid it, April. You might not like it, but it’s who you are.’
‘It is not! I am not a murderer!’ But her voice wobbled. She wasn’t sure of anything. Was he right? Had she lost control? She didn’t feel like a killer, she didn’t want to hurt anyone. But it was true that her temper had been getting the better of her recently. But that was just the stress and the grief, wasn’t it? Or was it something more than that?
‘That’s why I pushed you aside and tried to distract you,’ said Gabriel. ‘I needed to stop you before you did something serious. You cannot reveal who you are to anyone. They’ll hunt you down and I won’t be able to save you, April.’
‘Like you’d want to!’
‘Listen to me! Stop acting like a spoilt schoolgirl; this is serious! They will torture and murder you without a thought.’
April burst into tears.
‘Why? What have I done? Why me?’
Gabriel took her in his arms. She resisted for a moment, then sank into his embrace.
‘I didn’t mean to hurt you, April,’ he said, stroking her hair. ‘But I needed to throw Ben and the rest of the clan off the scent, make them think I’m not interested in you.’
‘Well that’s how it’s feeling to me,’ said April sulkily. ‘Okay, you ignore me at school and flirt with other girls in front of me … but to go off with Chessy and then get all jealous when anyone so much as looks at me …?’
‘It’s an act, honey,’ he said, his eyes searching hers. ‘We talked about this. I love you with all my heart, I feel it to the bones of me. You must know that?’
She smiled reluctantly. ‘Maybe. But it still kills me when you’re cold and distant and when I see you with other girls.’
Gabriel didn’t say anything more, he just pulled her close and kissed her. Long, hard, lovingly. She felt the tingle spread from her lips, through her body and out to her fingertips.
‘But why do we have to pretend?’ she sighed, looking up at him. ‘Why can’t we just be together, especially after this evening? I can’t take it, Gabriel.’
‘Because …’
He passed a hand across his forehead, stumbled back a pace, then dropped to the ground.
‘Gabriel! What’s the matter?’ she gasped, kneeling down beside him. ‘Gabriel!’
His eyes had rolled up in his head and his skin was burning hot. Oh God, they were too late. He was dying, just like Milo.
‘Gabriel! Don’t you die on me,’ she said, slapping his cheek harder than she meant to. ‘Come on, Gabriel!’
April turned as she heard footsteps coming down the side of the house. It was Caro running towards them.
‘Caro, help me!’ she cried, trying to lift Gabriel’s head.
‘What’s going on? Did you punch him out?’
‘He just collapsed! Help me, please!’
They managed to get Gabriel into a sitting position and finally he opened his eyes.
‘Thank God! Are you okay? Can you stand?’
‘I think so,’ said Gabriel, climbing unsteadily to his feet.
‘What happened?’ asked Caro, supporting him from the other side.
‘It’s the virus,’ said Gabriel. ‘It’s been making me weaker. I obviously wasn’t up to fighting with a full-blood vampire,’ he said, trying to smile. ‘Listen, leave me here. I’ll get home all right.’
‘I’m not leaving you,’ said April.
‘You have to,’ said Gabriel. ‘Caro, tell them I was trying to win April back, but she told me where to get off. Keep her safe; keep this secret. I can’t let anyone know I’m weak – we’ll all be in danger if they realise.’
‘He’s right,’ said Caro, pulling April away. ‘We need to get back inside.’
‘No, I’m not leaving you.’
‘Please,’ said Gabriel, fixing her with an intense stare. ‘You have to. We all have to be strong now.’
April threw her arms around him and squeezed tight.
‘We’re going to fix you, okay?’ she said fiercely. ‘I won’t let you go, not now.’
Gabriel smiled and bent to give her a last lingering kiss, then turned and moved off down the drive. April stood and watched for as long as she dared, then allowed Caro to lead her inside.
‘Oh God, Caro,’ said April when they were back in the hall. ‘He’s dying. What am I going to do?’
‘I’ll tell you what we’re going to do. We’re going to find that white book and get him fit again. It’s the only thing we can do.’
‘But what if he dies? I can’t handle him flirting with someone else, I don’t think I could stand losing him.’
‘He won’t die, honey. We’re going to crack this thing, okay?’
April wiped her eyes and nodded. ‘Okay.’
They walked back into the party and Davina immediately strode over.
‘Ben told me all about it, April. Was Gabe a total pig?’
April glanced at Caro, gathering her resolve to lie and lie well. Now they had started down this road, they had to pull it off – they had t
o.
‘Worse than a pig,’ said April. ‘He had the gall to call me some awful names, and then he tried to kiss me.’
‘Ben told me, but I couldn’t believe it!’
‘Well, you should have heard the language that came out of her mouth when she blew him off,’ said Caro.
‘I can imagine. You just wait until I see him,’ said Davina. ‘No boy does that to a friend of mine and gets away with it.’
‘Thanks, Davina, I should have listened to you in the first place. You were right about him.’
‘Well, you’re better off without him. Why can’t boys control themselves? They’re pathetic.’
April sat down at the table and Ben walked over
‘You okay?’ he asked. ‘Listen, I didn’t mean for any of that to happen …’
‘I know,’ said April with a weak smile. ‘I just want to go home.’
‘Sure. I’ll call you a cab.’
She touched his arm. ‘Thanks.’
‘Look, I just didn’t like the way he was taking you for granted. I’ve seen him do this before – I hope you can see what he’s like now.’
‘Yes, I think so. Thanks for looking out for me.’
‘Can I call you during the week? Just to check you’re okay.’
‘You’ll see me in class tomorrow, Ben,’ she smiled, hoping that it looked genuine.
‘I know, but just to make sure.’
‘I’d like that.’
‘So what does it mean, Fee?’
April had called Fiona the minute she got home.
‘It means that boys are all the same,’ said Fiona, ‘even if they are a hundred and forty years old. Vampires, humans, they all seem to be here to screw us up.’
April was glad she still had her best friend to share things with. Caro always seized on the craziest angle, but Fiona was the direct opposite, finding the calm logic in any situation. Fiona had come down from Edinburgh when she was in hospital and having her there to talk to for a few days had been better than a year of therapy.
‘So do you think Gabe’s still interested?’
‘Of course he is, you nincompoop, why wouldn’t he be? You’re gorgeous.’