“I’ll figure it out on the way. Not sure what’s safe anymore.”
“You think she’s watching Arsenio’s?”
“I know she is. She’s watching everything. She’s like an overbearing mother.”
Pride.
“Do you have any human friends?” he asked me. I closed my eyes, trying to think. Friends, in general, weren’t really my thing, let alone human ones.
“I could call Jeremy.”
“Who?” We turned off the sidewalk and started into the trees behind my complex. I stumbled over the uneven ground.
“The second shift manager for the theater. The one who always covers for me when I’m late.”
Desi looked back at me with a raised eyebrow, and I raised my shoulders. “I don’t know! Doyouhave human friends?” I shot back.
“I barely have you. You think I have friends?”
Good point.
He tightened his grip on my hand and pulled me through the woods. The woods were not gentle on my body. I kept getting scratched by fallen tree branches or random bushes, but then my skin would heal in moments, only to be cut again. It stung like a mother fucker.
When we finally climbed out of them, Desi directed me to try Jeremy. Thankfully, he answered.
“I’m already home, Scout. I’m not going back to work.”
“No, it’s not that. Thanks, by the way.”
“What do you need?” He sighed. I glanced at Desi. He was growing impatient. He was pacing and shooting dirty looks at me.
“Desi and I need a ride out of town.”
“Where to?”
“I don’t know,” I answered honestly. “Somewhere safe.”
“What’s going on?” he asked.
“Jeremy, if you come to get us, I will never ask you for anything again.”
There was a pause and then a sigh. “Where are you? This is it, Scout. No more favors.”
I rattled off the general area and told him we’d meet him at the street corner. Twenty minutes later, we were in the back of his car. He had a woman in the front with him.
“Hi.” I waved awkwardly at her. She seemed uncomfortable. She kept looking back at Desi and me as if we were going to bite her.
“Do you need a blood-friendly hotel?” Jeremy asked as he took us out of town.
“No,” Desi spoke up. “We need somewhere to hide. During the day. Can you drive us as far away from here as possible to the sun comes up?”
Jeremy looked at his friend. “This is a bad first date, isn’t it?”
“Oh yeah.” She snapped. Guilt flooded me. Poor Jeremy. He looked in the rearview at me.
“Let me take her home, and then I’ll get you guys out of here.”
32
