JACOB
In the shed, Jacob was fine-tuning the last details on the motorcycle, grateful for Embry's absence. Lately he'd been betting with Jared about his relationship—or rather "non-relationship"—with Lana. About who would make the first move or how long it would take for him to lose his cool around her. It was hard enough dealing with his imprint without putting up with everyone else's teasing on top of it.
No matter what he did, his thoughts always returned to her. Every time he'd seen her, she'd managed to surprise him. Though it pained him to admit it, he liked the way she always said what she was thinking, and how she remained unshakeable in front of him. Lana was a tempting enigma, and Jacob felt a growing need to decipher it.
But of course, Bella still occupied a special place. He couldn't erase her from his mind overnight, nor silence the worry her silence over the past month caused him. Her father had told him she was fine; that she was going out with school friends to clear her head a bit. He understood she had a lot to process: discovering his transformation into a wolf, the bloodsucker Edward Cullen's abandonment. The only thing Jacob could do was have patience and wait for her to come to him. Because she would. They were friends after all. Weren't they?
—I figured you'd be here. — Embry said, pulling him out of his thoughts.
The peace had been short-lived.
—Come on, bro. You can't be mad forever about that. We were just joking around. — he defended himself. Jacob sighed and set the parts aside.
—I'm not mad. At least, not now. It's just... this is all weird.— he admitted. Embry made a face.
He knew he was referring to his imprint. Jacob hadn't had much luck when it came to love anyway. The girl who'd been stealing his sleep for a while didn't return his feelings, and to top it off, his imprint turned out to be everything he hated: a self-centered, superficial girl. He really didn't understand what he'd done so wrong in his life to deserve such misfortune.
—I know. It's not something you see every day— Embry replied, hands in his pockets—. But I guess our ancestors know more than we do, right?—He tried to cheer him up.
—I guess.— he acknowledged, feeling a bit better. He gave him a pat on the shoulder that Embry returned. That made them both laugh.
—By the way, I heard there's a Halloween party this Saturday—his friend began—Your... girl is going, in case you're interested.
That made him frown.
—How do you know?
—Morgan told me.
At Jacob's confused expression, he got ahead of him:
—Before you say anything, yes. Morgan Berry. The same one we were trashing a few months ago.
A mocking smile slowly spread across Jacob's face.
—Now you're friends? Weren't you the one warning me I'd end up friendless for hanging out with one of them? How things have changed.
Embry rolled his eyes, anticipating the teasing, though he deserved it.
—We're not friends. My mom sends me to shop at her store, and since she works there, well... we talk a couple of times.
Jacob blinked, surprised.
—Now that's something I didn't see coming.
—Me neither— he admitted, shrugging—They're not as bad as we thought. Well, at least Morgan isn't.
Jacob shook his head, smile still in place.
—Go ahead, gloat. I guess I deserve it.
—Now you know how it feels.
Embry punched him in the arm.
—Shut up.
●●●
LANA
Saturday arrived with a thousand reasons to feel enthusiastic: it was the weekend and she could sleep in, and the party Quinn had been planning since autumn had finally arrived.
However, the weather was one of her least favorite things: it had started pouring and it was cold, and by nightfall, loud and alarming thunder was rumbling. It was, in short, the perfect setting for a night of terror. Lana just hoped it wouldn't ruin her makeup.
Her sister Kate and her mother had been complaining about the storm since she got out of bed. Apparently, they had to catch a flight to New York, but due to the bad weather, it was canceled at the last minute.
Fall and winter made anyone's life less glamorous.
At least the rain gave her the perfect excuse for Morgan to pick her up at home. She was absolutely refusing to use the car Raymond had repaired and owe him a debt. Definitely not.
Morgan's call snapped her back to reality.
"—Are you still getting ready? I'm downstairs."
"—Give me a few minutes."
"—Okay, but don't take long or I'm leaving without you." she threatened with a laugh.
"—Yeah, I'd like to see you try."
Lana crossed the hallway to Kate's room. She was standing in front of the vanity with her phone in hand, until she turned toward her.
—Wow, Little Red Riding Hood. I want to be your big bad wolf. —her sister joked when she saw her. Lana shook her head—Are you going to a party?
—DUH, do you have the glitter lip gloss?
—Hold on— she searched her purse and handed it over—Guard it with your life—she begged.
—Obviously.
She crossed the room and opened the double balcony doors. Unfortunately, it was the only bedroom that had one.
—What are you doing? You're going down that way?
—I'm not planning to run into Mom or give her explanations about the party.—she explained, while pulling up the red velvet hood. It wasn't the most original costume, but it was the only one she'd found at the store that she liked.
—Okay—Kate said, not very convinced—But you know if she asks...
—You'll tell her where I am, I know. —she finished for her. Her mother didn't approve of her sneaking out, and she always ended up grounded. But she didn't care much.
—Be careful—she said, watching her climb over the railing.
It wasn't the first time she'd done it, so she knew the way. She grabbed the ivy hanging from the trellis, strong and resistant, and climbed down slowly before jumping to the ground. She was grateful to be wearing boots and not stiletto sandals.
From the side she could see her sisters Gracie and Elizabeth eating pumpkin cookies; and her mother talking on the phone, surely with the travel agency. She picked up the pace to reach Morgan's car before getting completely soaked.
—Finally! I was getting bored waiting so long— she exclaimed, starting the engine.
Lana rolled her eyes.
—It's been five minutes tops; don't exaggerate.
Morgan was wearing a well-fitted pirate costume, accentuating her figure. She had an eye patch on her head that she was using as a bandana.
When they arrived, they barely had space to park. It was more packed than a nightclub. Lana was surprised to notice the neighbors hadn't called the authorities about the blaring music heard from outside. Maybe they hadn't yet, so she would take advantage to have as much fun as possible.
It probably wasn't a very good idea to wear a heavy cape among so many bodies, especially given that most of the girls had tight outfits and headbands with cat ears or devil horns.
—Well, finding her has become a difficult task. And she's not answering her phone either. —Morgan complained between huffs.
—What did you expect? We can barely hear each other with this noise. —She took her by the arm and dragged her to the center of the dance floor—Come on!
Lana did the impossible not to bump into anyone. The lighting was dim and the place was packed; a bottleneck of blurry faces and flashing lights. Suddenly, she saw a swirl of reddish hair moving away toward the garden, a couple of meters from her.
"Quinn," she thought, before shouting her name. But with the music noise it was impossible for her to hear. So she decided to follow her. She moved through the obstacle course of legs and arms. She heard Morgan's voice calling her, but she didn't stop.
She tripped over someone, yelled at them to watch where they were walking, and hurried on. She called for Quinn again, without losing sight of her. She didn't hear her either. She pushed the patio door open, feeling the fresh breeze slip through her cape. It had stopped raining, but the sky promised a new storm.
She looked everywhere, searching for her friend's figure, until a shadow with reddish hair entered the forest. Lana furrowed her brow, confused because, for starters, her friend had a certain phobia of those places; she followed her anyway. And if it wasn't her, if she was mistaken, she'd return to the house and end of story.
Her steps resonated with an unnatural volume against the branches and leaves scattered on the ground. She wasn't sure where she was going; what she was sure of was that a mane of reddish hair had entered that place.
—Quinn?!—she screamed. Hoping that with the sepulchral silence of the environment she could hear her, or perhaps she had gone too far, or taken another path.
Suddenly a sense of awareness struck her. An internal alarm that stopped her abruptly in her tracks. Something was wrong, it was a feeling similar to what she'd felt that time at the park: unease, dead silence. She stayed with that word resonating in her mind: Death. A shiver ran through her body.
At that moment, she felt someone grab her shoulder forcefully and throw her against a tree. The blow was so hard it made her bleed. Her head hurt and her vision was blurry. She saw someone in front of her. A woman with reddish hair. But she wasn't Quinn.
Lana tried to move backward, or attempted to, however her body wouldn't respond. The blow had left her too dizzy. From the chaos of her thoughts, panic surfaced when she saw a dark shadow pass over her head. An enormous figure positioned in front of her; ready to pounce. It had a snout, claws and reddish fur. It was a wolf.
In her confusion she tried to make sense of that; of what she had just seen, but soon everything went black. And the last thing she saw before falling into unconsciousness, was a pair of wolves running after that female figure while the reddish wolf stayed by her side.