Escaping from the wolf

I drank a second cup of coffee to warm up. I was in Carolina's room, wearing pajamas and a blanket. I was still very cold, and my hands felt frozen. For a moment, I thought that maybe I wasn't going to make it, that the air would run out, and

that would be the end. But then Thomas arrived and saved me.

"I don't know, friend, things don't look good... What's going on with Apolo and you... I don't believe it. I have a feeling there's something more. And you know that when I have a feeling, it usually turns out to be true," she murmured, fixing her hair into a bun and leaving a strand as bangs. "And you know that when I have a feeling, it usually turns out to be true."

I took a deep breath, feeling much better now. I hadn't seen Thomas since then.

"Honestly, I don't know what to believe anymore."

She dropped her shoulders in defeat.

"But your mom might have some answers, right?" she questioned. "She's the mother. She should know."

I shrugged. Mom had always been very reserved about her things, sometimes talking about her past. Dad also preferred not to talk about it. Would he know something? I mean, if I were really his daughter, he wouldn't have treated me so badly all these years. As if I weren't his. As if I were a nuisance.

I stood up.

"You're right; we need to find out everything." I grabbed the coat she had lent me and put it on. Carolina followed suit with a half-forced smile on her face. She also feared that what we were about to find out might not be good. "Let's go."

We went downstairs to the living room, and I looked for Thomas but he was gone, I suppose he left. We went out to the yard and I was surprised to see almost no one at the lake. There were more warning signs. The booth where they rented the skates was gone.

It seemed strange.

"It looks like they won't be skating anymore," she murmured, following my gaze and opening the car door in the process.

I raised my eyebrows.

"And all because of me." I opened the passenger door and got in. Carolina closed her door and started the engine.

"Please, Anne, that's not true. The ice was thin, that's all. It's not your fault."

She drove slowly down the road before accelerating. I hadn't noticed that Carolina was no longer driving her mom's car but rather another one... I think it's Kayler's.

"Did Kayler give you this car?" I asked, somewhat surprised.

She huffed.

"If it were up to him, yes, but I didn't accept it."

I looked at her incredulously.

"Why?"

"Well, because no, I prefer to earn my things with my own effort. He has more cars, or at least that's what he told me. And I don't know where he gets the money to have all that."

I wasn't really surprised by what she said. Even before Carolina came, we already knew that Kayler and his group were involved in shady things, had expensive cars, threw parties, and they provided everything. Only Kayler's dad worked, and it was impossible for him to give them all that money. It would be different if the dad were a businessman, but no one knows what he does for a living.

"I understand."

The rest of the drive was spent in silence until we arrived at my house. The lights were on, and the damaged car was in the open garage. At that moment, I remembered that I had left my bike at Carolina's house.

"It can't be. I forgot my bike at your house." I looked at her.

"Don't worry about it, Anne. It's not a big deal."

I nodded as we got out. We headed to the door, I opened it, and we went in. The house was silent.

"Dad? Mom?"

Nothing.

"Maybe they went out."

"It's very likely."

I collapsed onto the sofa, exhausted.

"Just when we were about to get answers," I complained.

Carolina sat down next to me.

"I understand."

We both sighed in unison, causing us to release a small laugh. "You'll see that we'll get to the bottom of this," she murmured. "I hope so."

***

"Anne, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at home resting?" The Spanish teacher intercepted me, causing me to stop abruptly.

"Uh... I'm actually feeling better now."

She narrowed her eyes, unconvinced.

"Are you sure? You look pale."

I nodded.

I dodged her and continued to my classroom. Students were chatting animatedly in the hallways, some giving me strange looks, which made me feel uncomfortable. As I turned a corner, I bumped into someone. I looked up and tensed immediately. It was Kara with Paige's old entourage.

"Don't you watch where you're going or what?" she snapped, placing her hand on her hip. The others crossed their arms.

"Or what?" I replied and tried to pass her, but they blocked my way.

"Look at her, she seems like such a good person. She's nothing but a goody-two-shoes. If I were Thomas, I would have let her drown in that lake. It would have done the world a favor."

I had said that I wouldn't let anyone bother me, but her words hurt more than they should have.

"Why do you hate me, Kara? We barely know each other, and you act like we've known each other for years." I confronted her.

Her face looked a bit puzzled, but then she acted normally.

"You're a nerd. We're the popular ones. It's the law of life, library rat," she spat.

I chuckled softly and shook my head. I don't know why I waste my time with them.

"Paige used to make her life miserable," one of them spoke.

"Now that there's no one else, someone had to do it," another added.

"And I see you replaced her pretty quickly. Very friendly, huh?"

They fell silent, and since none of them said anything, I walked past them and continued on my way.

You're learning.

I stopped dead in my tracks when I heard Thomas's voice in my head. I looked around but didn't see him.

"Thomas?"

I got no response. Did I imagine it? I shook those thoughts from my mind and kept walking. When I reached my classroom, I stopped short upon seeing Kenzie talking to Clark.

"What's wrong with you? You're not going to threaten me," she said softly. But I managed to hear it.

"You'll soon find out that you don't mess with me, Mackenzie Coleman," the vampire responded. He grabbed her hand and looked at her finger. "And I see you've stopped wearing the ring. Bad girl. That will cost you." What?

"That's not your problem."

"Yes, it is. I was the one who put it on."

"I hate you."

"We both know that's not true."

And in an instant, Clark pulled her by the waist, drawing her to him, and then gave her a huge kiss. I covered my mouth with my hand at what I had just seen and wondered what Kenzie was doing. With Clark. With the enemy. What shocked me the most was that she didn't pull away from him at any moment.