Half-Blooded | The Dark Child Prophecy Series [✔️]

Chapter 15: 2:20AM

The next thirteen days passed in near silence. I stayed confined to my room, refusing to leave for the full moon. Jason had knocked a few times and called my name in hopes I would answer; but after his fourth attempt, he would only come to talk to Thomas and ask questions. But I continued to ignore him completely.

He had made me feel like a monster, and I was the kind of monster who preferred to be left in her own loneliness.

Maria came to my room almost every night to bring me food and blood and remained friendly. I was thankful for her gracious attitude. On my last night at Meadowlark, she came by to see if I needed anything before I would leave at sunset. She told me that I could take whatever I wanted from my closet and that my escort would be by in the evening to take me home.

And there I sat, riding shotgun in a Jeep next to a dark-haired guard named Peter. He was quiet and didn't hardly talk beyond a few monotone words, so I continued my marathon silent treatment. I propped my elbow against the window to rest my chin on my palm as I stared at the world outside. It rushed by to be left behind in darkness as Peter drove down the winding highway road. We were almost to Portland.

The radio played quietly, and I enjoyed its song selection. Humans had interesting tastes that I didn't always get to experience while in the States.

"How am I supposed to / keep on standing tall / when everything around me, / it falls apart..."

We began to pass through Portland and I glanced over my shoulder at my little duffle bag of belongings I had decided to bring with me. I didn't want to take anything that Victoria would miss, so I had only grabbed a change of clothes from my jeans, lace tank top, and purple leather jacket.

Thinking about Victoria, and then Jason's last words made me feel angry all over again. I was over the Wolves and I was over Jason Hellmuth. I suddenly wanted one more chance to kick his ass, just one time. It would definitely make me feel better just like a very strong drink would.

I needed a break.

"Pete," I began, my voice slightly sarcastic, "I can call you 'Pete,' right?"

"Yes, Miss Mezdor," he answered in a gruff voice.

"Good. Let's take a little break. I need to stretch my legs. We've been at this for almost four hours," I said, smirking. "Ten-fifteen minutes are all I need. And you probably want to gas up before we head into higher elevations."

He sighed heavily, not liking the idea. But he glanced at the gas gauge and nodded. "Fine. Ten minutes."

"Perfect."

Peter pulled into a gas station that looked familiar, and I peeked around. We were right down the street from the familiar strip of bars and clubs. I grinned. Perfect was right. Peter pulled up to one of the pumps and I hopped out onto the pavement.

"I'm just gonna go take a quick walk. I'll be back in ten," I told him, turning to walk towards the convenience store attached to the gas station. I glanced over my shoulder to see him hand the attendant cash to fill the gas tank, and I dodged around to the backside of the building. I pulled my hair down from its knot and shook it out. I tugged on the lapels of my leather jacket so it would hold open to show the white lace tank top beneath with its plunged v-neckline. I pulled out the tube of tinted lip balm I had stolen from my bathroom and slicked the dark mauve shade across my bottom lip.

I needed a drink.

I found my way back to the alley within a couple minutes and sure enough, the same bouncer was working. I grinned at him and waved lightly in the most girlish way possible and he smiled, his missing teeth still obvious. "Hey, darlin'. Got room for one more?" I asked, using my fake southern accent again.