Dark Angel

Chapter 11

Ethan

"Ethan."

I can hear her calling out to me. I'm standing in the woods, the moon just barely peeking through the canopy of redwood leaves.

"Ethan."

I run frantically deeper into the woods, trying to find Camilla. I finally reach a meadow, but instead of the natural green of plants, I am greeted by a red substance. As I step into it, I can see that its blood.

"Ethan."

I look and see Camilla looking at me, a bloody snarl on her face, and a devilish look in her eyes. She has fangs and claws, but that's not what catches my eye; she has large black wings sprouted from her back. I gasp and almost fall.

"Now Ethan, don't be afraid." She is suddenly right in front of me I can smell the blood erupting from her breath.

"Camilla, I'm confused." I say. Her eyes glint with what I believe is pity before they go back to their murderous glare.

"Don't worry, my love. This will only hurt a little." I go to ask what is going to hurt, but she already had sunk her fangs into my neck.

I wake up gasping, sweat dripping from my brow. I look at the alarm clock on my bedside table; 8:02. I get up and rush to get to school on time. The whole way there, I try to brush off the dream of Camilla.

***

I walk into homeroom just as the bell rings.

"Late on the second day, Mr. Chase." The teacher scolds, but I wasn't paying attention. I was too busy looking to see if Camilla was there. Instead, I was greeted by an empty chair. I sat down glumly, as the teacher began his lesson. I didn't pay attention to a thing he was saying; I was too caught up in doodling in my notebook.

"I'm sorry for being so late mister, I just had some business to tend to."

I look up and see Camilla standing in the doorway. She was wearing dark jeans, black heeled boots with a black leather jacket. Everyone stared at her beauty and animosity, including the teacher, who was just as awestruck as a teenage boy.

"Uh, uh, it's quite alright miss, um," he stuttered.

"Petrova." She finished for him, smirking. As she walked across the room to her seat, everyone watched in amazement at her gracefulness and confidence.

"Hey there, Nature Guide." She says to me as she takes her seat.

"Hey, Camilla." I say. Why was she acting so weird?

I shrugged it off; at least she was still talking to me after what happened between us last night.

***

Camilla

I drank human blood for the first time in 150 years. I forgot how much strength and power you feel when you drink human blood. Nothing in the world could ever top that feeling.

After I drained the man in the woods, I transformed back into my domesticated form, and decided to rid Covington of their "roaches". I hunted the druggies and low-lives that contributed to the crime rate in Covington.

Midway into exterminating, I realized a way to feed during the day without hunting; blood bags. So, I swung by the small local hospital and swiped less than a quarter of their stock. I compelled the nurse on duty to have forgotten that night.

Now, sitting at my desk in homeroom is when I finally give thought to the kiss Ethan and I shared. I can remember the spark of electricity I felt when our lips touched. I remember the warmth of his body and the scent of his blood. I stop myself from thinking anymore about it, knowing I'll throw myself into another blood frenzy if I do.

The bell rings, throwing me out of my daze. I leave the class and make my way to my locker when Zoey and Alexa bombard me.

"Did you hear the news?" Zoey asks.

"No." I say, slight panic rising into my throat. Did they find the bodies of my victims?

"The deer were killed by a bear, picked apart by wild coyotes. Totally nothing to worry about." Zoey says.

"Lucky for you! My parents won't let me go near there again!" Alexa complains. I shake my head at my foolishness; no human could possibly find the bodies. I dumped them into the Pacific Ocean miles and miles away from Covington.

Alexa and Zoey continue chattering amongst themselves as I go through my locker and find the book I need for next period.

"Hey there, Camilla." I look up and see Ethan casually standing next to my locker. A tingle of electricity goes up my spine.

"We'll leave you two alone." Zoey says, looking back and forth from Ethan to me.

As Zoey and Alexa walk down the hall, Alexa turns around and mouths 'Get some'. Zoey laughs at her and yanks her right side forward.

"So, um, how's it going?" he asks. I stifle a laugh as I close my locker and look at him.

"You want to talk about the kiss, don't you?" I say. Human boys are very easy to predict.

"Look, Camilla, I'm really sorry if I went too fast─" I interrupt his clearly rehearsed speech by kissing him softly on the lips.

"Still want to talk about that kiss?" I ask him, grinning.

"How about we talk about this one?" He says, smirking.

"What ki─" This time he interrupts me with a kiss as people all around us cheer at us and yell a few "aww"s and "get it"s.