Tristan took a breath and raised his bow. He pulled another arrow back. “I can’t leave.” He let the arrow fly.
Gabriel shifted his weight. “It’s not like you’d have to go far. It’s only a few hundred miles away.”
Realizing he was out of ammunition, Tristan lowered the bow and started walking to gather the arrows in his target board. “No, Gabriel.”
Gabriel traced after Tristan, picking up a long stick along the way. “Why not?”
Tristan kept his face forward. “Because A: We’ve already tried to find the fountain and it doesn’t seem to exist. And B….” Tristan swallowed. “It’s worse this time. I can’t leave.”
Gabriel stopped walking as Tristan closed the distance between himself and his arrows. After picking them up, he walked back to where Gabriel stood.
“What’s worse? The pain?” Gabriel raised a brow.
Tristan nodded without looking at his brother. “I won’t be able to leave. I can barely stay in the cabin.” His affliction was progressing without mercy.
When he’d first arrived in Avalon, the pain had subsided enough to where he could breathe easily, he could sleep somewhat soundly, and he could live in the cabin, ten miles away from Scarlet, with minimal discomfort.
But now….
Now he couldn’t move without aching.
It was as though her beckoning soul knew he was nearby and was trying to draw him closer by the minute.
The torment kept him up at night. So much so, he’d contemplated driving to her house, parking on her street, and sleeping in his car. Just so his soul could have some peace and maybe even get some sleep.
Day after day, Scarlet’s heart howled in need.
But he couldn’t give in, no matter how fierce the call.
Gabriel nodded with a furrowed brow. “Okay, then. We’ll do some research and if we find it I’ll go. I’ll tell Scarlet I’m going on a family vacation or something.”
Tristan sighed, frustration and helplessness darting through him. “Has she remembered anything yet?”
Gabriel twisted his lips, darkness passing over his eyes.
“What?”
Gabriel looked at him suspiciously. “Yeah. She remembers this.” Gabriel drew a familiar design in the dirt with the long stick he held. “She sketches it all over her shoes. It’s incomplete, but close enough.” Gabriel looked back up at Tristan, hardness in his voice, “Isn’t that…interesting?”
Tristan’s green eyes fell on the design and his heart swelled. He understood why Gabriel was upset.
But still, he kept his face expressionless.
Now was not the time to explain why Scarlet would think that symbol was significant enough to remember.
Tristan tried his best to act casual. “So, what?”
Gabriel eyed him sharply. “You don’t think it’s weird that the first—and only thing—she’s remembered so far is this?” Gabriel pointed to the drawing in the dirt.
Tristan shrugged. He didn’t need to answer to Gabriel. Not now.
Maybe not ever.
What he needed to do was break the curse.
As soon as possible.
Tristan shrugged. “I think we need to focus on undoing the curse.”
Gabriel eyed Tristan for several long seconds. “Right.”
“So, you can start looking for the fountain again if you want. But I’m still going to pursue my plan.”
Gabriel kept his eyes narrow a moment longer before finally nodding. “All right, then. I’m going to start reaching out to our old contacts and see if anyone has any new information on the fountain. Starting with Nate.”
Tristan nodded.
Hopefully, Nate would keep his mouth shut and not give Gabriel any details about Tristan’s plan. The last thing Tristan needed was Gabriel interfering.
Gabriel turned to head back into the cabin.
Before Gabriel was out of earshot, Tristan asked, “How are her eyes?”
He didn’t look at Gabriel as he walked back to his shooting post.
Gabriel turned back around and fiddled with the stick in his hand. “Blue.”
Tristan lowered his bow, looked at Gabriel, and waited.
Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Normal blue,” he clarified. “She’s still healthy.”
Tristan swallowed.
For now.
Soon, though, Scarlet’s eye color would intensify, signaling the end of her life. Her eyes would become an electric blue and hope would be lost.
His palms started to sweat. “We still need to hurry.”
Gabriel nodded and headed back into the cabin.
Tristan concentrated on the large tree in the distance as he lined up another arrow.
Tonight, he’d have another chance. Another opportunity to kill.
Tonight, he could not fail.
Whoosh.
Bull’s-eye.
Time was running out.
15
The next suspicious Gabriel sighting didn’t occur for another two weeks and Scarlet was beginning to think her doubts about Gabriel had been ridiculous. But her fears came back to life when Heather dropped into a seat next to her before first period and said, “Gabriel’s up to something shady.”
Scarlet looked up. “Not again, Heather.”
“No, I’m serious. Didn’t he tell you yesterday that he couldn’t hang out because he had to work on his English paper?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I saw him. Right after school. In the warehouse district.”
The warehouse district was considered the ghetto of Avalon. But Avalon had a population of only two-thousand, so “ghetto” was a bit of a flexible term. Either way, it was strange for anyone, especially an Avalon High student, to be in the warehouse district at all.
“What were you doing in the warehouse district?” Scarlet asked, putting her pencil down.
“Getting my nails done. Duh,” Heather said, like Scarlet was supposed to know her friend went to the slums to get pedicures. “But I saw him, Scarlet. And he was definitely not working on his English paper.”
“What was he doing?”
Heather leaned forward. “He was talking to some weirdo in an abandoned building.” Heather blinked. “An abandoned building. Who chit-chats in the warehouse district?”
“Who gets their nails done in the warehouse district?” Scarlet retorted.
“You’re not taking me seriously, Scarlet. Gabriel is hiding something.”
Scarlet paused, thinking of the possible reasons Gabriel would meet with someone in an old warehouse.
She thought of none.
“There has to be some reason why—“
“He’s shady,” Heather interrupted. “I’m telling you, Gabriel is up to something. He’s dealing drugs or selling organs on the black market or something. He’s bad.”
Scarlet’s heart started to pound.
No. Gabriel couldn’t be bad.
He didn’t feel bad.
…Did he?
Scarlet furrowed her brow, confusion seeping into her chest. “No.” She slowly shook her head.
“Why else would he lie about working on his paper? Why else would he lurk around a creepy warehouse?” Heather tapped her freshly-polished nails on the desktop.
Scarlet shook her head again. “It just doesn’t feel righ—“
“Good morning, ladies,” Gabriel said, entering their first period. “Hey, beautiful.” He leaned down and kissed Scarlet’s cheek before taking the open seat on the other side of her.
Scarlet wanted to say something to Gabriel. She wanted to ask him a million questions.
But she wasn’t sure if she wanted to know the answers.
“Hey, Gabriel,” Heather said, slowly. “You weren’t by any chance in the warehouse district after school yesterday…were you?”
Scarlet shifted her eyes over to Heather, hoping to halt her friend’s investigation. She wasn’t ready to hear Gabriel’s answer. She wasn’t ready for him to lie to her.
> Gabriel swallowed and waited a beat. “Nope.” He shook his head. “I had that English project thing.”
“Oh.” Heather shrugged.
The bell rang, signaling the beginning of class and Scarlet turned to look at Gabriel.
His eyes were buried in his notebook as he opened to a fresh page.
Why would he lie?
16
Several weeks passed and Scarlet couldn’t seem to shake her feelings of distrust.
No matter what she did, no matter how wonderful Gabriel was, there was always a sense of suspicion gnawing at her insides.
Seated across from Heather in the school library thinking about how little she really knew Gabriel, Scarlet doodled on her notebook. She repeated the familiar symbol, over and over.
Doodling helped her think.
“I don’t know where Gabriel lives.” Scarlet stopped sketching and waited for her best friend to respond.
Heather didn’t look up from the magazine she was flipping through. “Yeah, that’s weird.”
Scarlet bit her bottom lip. “And I’ve never met any of his family members.”
“Nope.”
She sighed heavily, succumbing to what her instincts told her. “Gabriel’s hiding something from me, isn’t he?”
Heather looked up. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. Gabriel Archer is a hot delicious man of mystery. And, possibly, a mobster.”
Scarlet leaned her head back. “I don’t want a man of mystery. Or a mobster. I want a regular high school boyfriend who invites me over to meet his pets and look at his baseball card collection.”
“Baseball cards? Really? Gabriel’s seventeen, not twelve. Do people even buy baseball cards anymore?” Heather went back to flipping through the magazine. “You know what I think? I think he owes you. I mean, you told him about your amnesia thing right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, that’s super personal. It’s like the biggest secret you have. And you shared it with him. And he was cool with it. I think the least he could do is confide in you about…oh, I don’t know…his address.”
Scarlet didn’t regret telling Gabriel about her amnesia because that’s what girlfriends and boyfriends did. They confided in one another.
But she wished Gabriel trusted her as much as she had trusted him. “You’re right, Heather.”
“Yes, I am.” Heather grabbed a new magazine to peruse and glanced at Scarlet. “B-T-W,” she didn’t fully pronounce the ‘W’ but instead shortened it to dubb, “those earrings don’t match that top.”
Scarlet touched a finger to the hoops she had on. “You know what I need to do?”
“Buy new earrings?”
“I need to fully embed myself in Gabriel’s life. I need to get to know the real Gabriel Archer.”
“You need to buy new earrings,” Heather said.
Scarlet ignored Heather and went on. “No more excuses. The time has come. Today, I am going over to Gabriel’s house after school.”
“Good for you. Now let’s talk about your shoes.” Heather put her magazine down. “They suck.”
17
Gabriel had forgotten how much he hated school.
Homework...P.E....cafeteria food? What had he gotten himself into?
School had been a very bad idea.
He grabbed his lunch food, bit back a sigh of despair, and made his way over to where Scarlet and Heather were seated.
“Hey.” Scarlet smiled up at him with her perfect, kissable lips and radiant blue eyes. He studied them for a moment. Were they bluer than they’d been yesterday? It was hard to tell.
A pang of concern shot through him as he took in her sweet face and, suddenly, he was overwhelmed with the desire to keep her safe.
“Hey, beautiful,” he said.
“So, I was thinking.” Scarlet leaned forward. “How about I come to your house after school today?” She smiled. “We can ‘study’ in your bedroom this time.”
Well, that certainly wouldn’t be happening.
Tristan would kill him.
Scarlet batted her lashes. “Please?”
Oh, crap. He was going to sound like a jerk. “I would love that, but today won’t work.”
Why won’t it work? Come up with something good. Come on, come on….
“It won’t?” Scarlet’s big eyes looked hurt.
“Unfortunately today…” What do I say? Think, think… “My house is being fumigated.”
Wow. Terrible excuse.
Heather coughed.
Scarlet raised her eyebrows. “Fumigated?”
He was committed now. “Yeah, you know, we have lots of those big…Georgia bugs.”
What in the world was he saying?
Scarlet nodded slowly. “Oh.”
Gabriel wanted to kick himself.
“Maybe next week,” he said, putting as much charm as possible into the smile he gave her.
Scarlet tucked her lips in and nodded her head. “Yeah. Sure. Next week.” She looked down at her food.
Gabriel moved his eyes and caught Heather glaring at him with an eyebrow raised.
I know, I know.
Busted.
18
Scarlet decided not to hang out after school. Gabriel had wanted to watch a movie or “study” with her—at her house, of course—but Scarlet hadn’t been in the mood.
Fumigated?
She wanted to believe him, but the lie was so bad she was almost ashamed of him. What was he hiding from her? What could possibly be so bad at his house that he didn’t want her there?
With those thoughts, Scarlet drove herself downtown after school. Downtown Avalon pretty much consisted of the town square, The Millhouse, and the public library.
Heather was working at The Millhouse after school, so Scarlet’s plan was to grab a cup of coffee from Heather and head to the library to study.
The real type of studying.
That’s how depressed she was; she actually wanted to study.
Scarlet’s boyfriend was a liar.
Agh.
She steered her car into the parking lot of The Millhouse and waited for Heather to arrive. Heather’s car was nowhere to be found because she was late for work.
Of course.
Scarlet tapped on her steering wheel and listened to the radio as she watched people mill about downtown.
She felt a pity-party coming on and let herself indulge for a minute.
Look at all these people. Happy, content. None of them have amnesia. None of them have identity issues. None of them have a lying boyfriend.
Poor Scarlet.
Lost, abandoned, lied to by her boyfriend.
If it hadn’t been so pathetic, Scarlet would have cried.
Maybe.
Scarlet wasn’t much of a crier, but she could see herself crying over Gabriel lying to her.
Maybe.
She sat in the car and tried to conjure up some tears.
Nothing came.
She sighed, looked across the street, and froze.
There was Gabriel, exiting the public library, looking as sexy as ever.
Her heart began to beat erratically.
What had he been doing at the library? Had he been studying?
Apparently, Scarlet and Gabriel needed to actually study during their next “study” session.
Scarlet watched him walk down the sidewalk and couldn’t help but sigh.
He was so perfect.
So handsome.
She almost got out of the car to call after him. Maybe they could get coffee together. Maybe they could talk about Gabriel’s secrets. Maybe Gabriel’s house really was being fumigated.
Maybe Scarlet was an idiot.
She moved to open her door when a thought hit her.
Or maybe…she could spy on Gabriel and see where he was going.
It was a naughty thought. It was wrong.
And it was absolutely what Scarlet was going to do.
How else was she going to learn
things about Gabriel? He, clearly, had no intention of telling her himself.
She reached for her sunglasses—a universally accepted form of disguise—and started her engine.
Gabriel walked for another minute until he reached a black car she’d never seen him drive before. Usually, Gabriel drove a silver car.
Strange.
Scarlet stealthily pulled out behind Gabriel, keeping a good distance between them, and followed him out of downtown.
Heather would love this.
It went right along with her theory that Scarlet had been a spy.
Gabriel drove out of the city limits and into the thick wooded area outside Avalon, the same general area where Scarlet had woken without her memories.
Very strange.
She trailed him deeper into the forest until the dirt roads and lack of cars made it impossible for her to be sneaky.
She pulled off the road and waited until Gabriel’s car had disappeared into the woodlands, giving him a very generous head start, and then proceeded to track him down.
Like an assassin.
Maybe she had been a spy.
She drove through the forest for several minutes until she was sure she was lost and on the wrong trail. She couldn’t see the black car anywhere. All she saw were the many, many Georgia trees.
She’d lost him.
Maybe she’d failed as a spy in her other life and that’s why her memories had been erased.
Maybe Heather had been right.
Then Scarlet spotted him. The black car was a few hundred yards in front of her, cruising down a long driveway.
She slowly drove closer, trying to keep her little car as hidden as possible in the thick foliage.
She watched as Gabriel pulled his car up alongside an enormous cabin and parked.
Was this his home?
He got out of the car and headed up to the front door, where he let himself in. The cabin door closed behind him and Scarlet blinked.
The large cabin, made entirely of knotty pine, looked like a mansion with dozens of windows and a four-car garage. It stood two stories high with a short set of stairs that led up to a wrap-around porch and a huge front door.