Still, as I walked to the door, I channeled my power. The lights in the foyer flickered, and I inhaled deeply, calming myself. The flickering stopped.
Holding my breath, I opened the door.
A girl with short brown curls and bright hazel eyes smiled at me. “Oh, hi.” She dropped her hand, which had been about to rap on the door again. “I knew you were here.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. She was probably my age, and she had a t-shirt from Misty Hill High School football team. A student and probably a cheerleader.
“Hm, can I help you?” I asked.
She extended her hand to me. “I’m Caroline, your neighbor.” I stared at her hand, but didn’t take it. Never losing the three thousand-watt smile, she dropped the hand and pointed to the house to my right. “I live there with my parents.” She bounced on the balls of her feet. “I noticed someone had moved to this house a couple of days ago, but it was only this morning that I saw you and your mother, I’m assuming.”
“Yes,” I muttered.
“I was leaving for school, so I couldn’t come say hi. But now I’m back and I wanted to say hi.” She raised her hand and waved at me. “Hi.”
“Hi.”
“So … what’s your name?”
“Kenna.”
“And your mother?”
“Lia.”
“Where did you guys move from?” When I didn’t answer right away, she continued, “Are you transferring to school here? There’s only one high school, quite small actually, so I bet we’ll be in most of the same classes. Why did you guys move here? Your mother got a new job?”
Her words were like bullets coming from an automatic rifle, fast and hitting hard. With each question she shot, I got dizzier and dizzier. “Hm, Caroline,” I interrupted. “You said you just came back from school, right? Don’t you have homework?”
“I did it all on the bus,” she said, sounding proud of herself.
“What about your parents. Are they home?”
She shook her head. “They are doctors at the emergency room here. They work crazy hours. It’s rare when we’re home together.”
For some reason, that made me feel a little bad for her. I didn’t remember much before being taken by Slater when I was eleven. I didn’t even remember my parents, or if I had any siblings, but I knew how much I had longed for them, for faceless figures to find me and rescue me and take me home and care for me.
Knowing this eighteen-year-old girl spent most of her days alone made me a little less irritated with her, but not enough to invite her in. I opened the door slightly more and gestured to the mess everywhere. “As you can see, it’s a little chaotic in here, and I have a lot to do, so …”
The girl's smile faltered. “Hm, of course. You just moved, and I know this house needs some serious love and care.” She took a step back. “Well, when you’re done or need a break, you can come spend some time with me.” She gestured to her house again. “Now you know where I live.” She let out a nervous chuckle.
“Sounds good,” I said, attempting to smile too, but I was sure it had come out more like a grimace.
Head low, she turned and raced down the porch steps and across the yard to her house. I closed the front door, suddenly feeling heavy. Dirty. If only I could tell her that I wasn’t trying to be rude, not really, but this was my way of protecting her. Lia and I couldn’t make friends. We couldn’t. If we did, they would be at risk too. They could be killed.
And there had been already too much death around us as it was.
Devon
My new neighbors had been here for three fucking days, and I had learned nothing about them. That had never happened before.
By now, I should have known their names, date of birth, where they were born, and why they were here. But so far, I had only learned from the old man across the street that their names were Lia and Kenna. No last names. I couldn’t even search them online like that.
Not knowing who they were and why they were here bothered me. I had woken up twice last night after dreaming they were demons disguised as humans trying to kill me in my sleep.
So, when I saw Lia arriving home with her trunk full, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to approach them. Lia bent over the trunk, trying to pull a box from inside when I halted beside her.
“Hello.”
She dropped the box and jumped, her eyes wide and her face pale, as if she had seen a ghost. No, as if she had something to hide.
“Oh my word.” She pressed a hand over her heart. “You startled me.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, trying to sound friendly. I usually didn’t come off as such. “I didn’t mean to. I just thought it was the perfect opportunity to introduce myself.” I extended my hand to her. “I’m Devon Knight. Your next-door neighbor.” I gestured to my house, almost an exact copy of hers. Just better cared for.
She took my hand. “I’m Lia Jones. Nice to meet you.” She pulled her hand away.
“Let me help with that.” I reached for the box in the trunk.
“Oh, no, there’s no need,” Lia said, her voice tight.
I picked up the box, realizing there were plenty of bags from the hardware store. Cans of paint, brushes … they were fixing the house. “It’s okay. I can do it.”
I didn’t give her a chance to tell me no again as I hurried to the front door. Carrying bags, Lia rushed after me and opened the door for me. “The house is a mess …”
“It’s okay,” I said again, but I confess I was a bit surprised when I stepped into the foyer.
The handrail was gone. A few boards from the hardwood floor were missing. There were more cans of paint and brushes in the hallway leading to the kitchen. To the right of the door, a plastic sheet covered most of the floor, and to the left, a chandelier rested on the floor.
“The house is great, but it was in a bad shape, so we’re fixing it.” Lia dropped her bags on the first step of the stairs. “You can leave it here.” She pointed to a corner of the foyer.
“We?” I asked, pretending I hadn’t seen the younger girl with her.
Averting her eyes, she wiped her hands on her jeans. “Yes, my daughter lives here with me.”
It might be just me, or my warrior training, but I was convinced these two women were hiding something.
As I deposited the box in the appointed corner, a bang resounded from the back of the house. My body stiffened, on alert.
“Shit!” a voice said.
I sniffed the air. “Something is burning.”
“Oh no,” Lia muttered. She pivoted and raced to the kitchen.
I followed her, ready to protect the human. I skidded to a stop in the kitchen doorway. Smoke billowed from the open oven. The other girl, Kenna, retrieved a pan from inside wearing cooking mittens. She kicked the oven closed with her foot, cutting off the smoke, and dropped the cake on the kitchen’s island. She coughed and fanned the smoke away from her face.
Unlike the rest of the house, the kitchen was mostly intact. The walls and cupboards were intact, and apparently the appliances worked—when Kenna wasn't setting the oven on fire.
“Shit,” Kenna muttered again.