Matthew Silver and the Monster Hunters, Book One: The Darkest Waters

Chapter Thirty-Seven

SilverCHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

I spent two whole weeks moping about. It wasn’t really moping, but I went back and forth between my duties and classes in a trance. Most people gave me pity, but that didn’t help either.

            Everything, and I mean everything reminded me about her. That sounds so cheesy, even to me, but it was true. Every single bit of the Virginia Sector, even the tiniest details, produced happy memories with Jay. It got so bad that I wanted to tear down every bit of the Sector.

It was friends that managed to coax me out of my pity-pout. Friends who never gave up on me and told me that they could never replace Jay, but they would be there for me like a best friend. I wasn’t fully used to the feeling of loss, but I was on my way.

The day eventually came when I was to be assigned a new partner. That brought some seriously conflicting emotions. I didn’t know whether to be angry that Jay was being replaced, or excited at a new partnership. The idea of starting over both terrified and excited me.

I didn’t know much about the new girl. I knew that her partner had been killed on a mission, and that she was good enough to be moved from the California Sector to the Virginia Sector. I sat in Ms. Amber’s office, waiting for her to arrive.

I sat there reading her file. “Cindy O’Hara. Highest honors…Expertise…Hmm. That’s interesting…”

Ms. Amber leaned forward trying to catch a glimpse of the file, but I pulled backwards. “What? What is it?”

“Expertise in Pursuit Driving skills, Evasive Driving skills, and shows marked talent in Thievery? Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

She smirked. “Expertise is self-proclaimed, but at least we can count on someone who won’t completely destroy two boats on one mission.”

“Shut up.”I continued reading, scanning back and forth on the page. “Huh. This is interesting. It says here that she was put under temporary suspension for insubordination, blatant lack of respect, and complete disregard for ruling commands.”

“Sounds like you two will get along just fine.”

“Shut up. One other sibling who—Whoa! One other sibling who is currently stationed in the Virginia Sector right now?”

Ms. Amber looked surprised too. “That is strange, but not uncommon. Does it list the sibling’s name?”

I was about to look for it when someone knocked on the door. I closed the file in a hurry and practically threw it at Ms. Amber. I hurriedly straightened my jacket. First appearances are everything, after all.

A very pretty girl of about 13 or 14 stepped in. Her strikingly blonde hair fell almost perfectly along her face and down her shoulders a length. She was wearing a brown, deerskin jacket with a few patches over a navy blue CCU t-shirt.

Emerald eyes glinted with mischief, lacking the common trace of shyness. The way they expertly surveyed the room in a less detectable way gave hints to a very clever mind. They met mine, and I started to feel uncomfortable.

She kind of reminded me of someone. Maybe it was Jay. I’d always thought that Jay was pretty cute. That had to be it. She reminded me of Jay.

She waggled her fingers at me. “Hi.”

Ms. Amber cleared her throat to break the ice. “Hello, Miss…O’Hara, is it?”she pretended like she hadn’t heard it mere seconds ago.

“Uh, yes!”The girl nodded enthusiastically. “Cindy O’Hara. But I have another na—”

“Oh, no, that’ll be fine. Now, this is Mr. Silver. You two will be assigned to each other for partnership.”

“I’m Matthew.”I shook her hand.

“And I’m Cindy,”she returned. She handed me something. With shock, I realized that it was the switchblade that I had in my back pocket.

“Wow, you’re good at that.”I put it back into my pocket.

Her eyes gleamed again. “Oh, that‘s nothing.”She stuck out her hand, and in it were my badge, a pen, other switchblade, and even a picture of Jay that I kept in my jacket.

I probably should’ve been a little mad or creeped out, but that type of thing always impressed me. “How did you do that?”

She winked at me. “I’ll teach you sometime.”

She handed me back my stuff, but I let her keep the second switchblade. “Didn’t really need it anyways,”I said. “But it still works fine and everything!”I blurted out, so as not to give the impression that I was giving her a second-rate gift.

Cindy smiled.

I blushed.

Ms. Amber smirked. “Miss O’Hara, Mr. Silver will show you around the campus to give you a feel for things, and then when you feel like it, you can come back any time to discuss matters in field work.”

“Ooh!”she said suddenly, as if she’d remembered something. “Do you think I could stop by and see my sister, who’s also here? I never told her I was coming. It’s kind of a surprise.”

“No problem,”I said. “What’s her name?”

“Sandy? Sandy White? You know her?”

I was dumbstruck. “Yeah, you could say that.”

And so ended the wildest adventure of my life. But it also marked a new chance. A chance to succeed where I had failed with Jade. I had a feeling that it was only the beginning of something big. I’m not going to lie, I was scared, I was lonely, and I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I took comfort in knowing three simple things:

I am bound by blood.

I will fear no evil.

My name is Matthew Silver, and I am a Monster Hunter.