Vendetta (A Lapidot Fanfiction)

Chapter 5: Concealed

I turned around. "Peridot?"

She smiled gently and held out her arms towards me. I ran to her, and I threw myself into her arms.

"Peridot," I said quietly, sniffling.

"Why are you so upset?" She asked.

"...I don't want to talk here," I said. "I don't want to be here."

"Alright," Peridot replied. "You know this will mean make-up work, right?"

"Right." I nodded.

Peridot let me go and knelt down. "Hop on," she said.

I climbed onto her back and wrapped my arms around her neck. She was going to run very fast to avoid being seen, and the last thing I wanted was something else to be upset about. Before I had prepared myself for the speed I was about to feel, Peridot flew to her car. I was in the passenger seat before I had even become aware of it. Peridot hopped into the driver's seat and turned on the ignition.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"We're going a forest," Peridot answered. "Not the one by the beach. A different one. You're not the only one who will get in trouble if you get caught."

I smiled and put on my seatbelt. Peridot pulled out of the school's parking lot and began her drive down the road. She tapped her fingers to the beat of the song on the radio. I found myself just staring at the trees flying by.

"You needed a break, didn't you?" Peridot asked me.

"Yeah," I responded.

I felt her grip my hand. I pushed some of my hair away from my face and looked at her. She was still focused on driving, though every once and a while, she would take a quick glance at me. As our drive continued, I began to notice more trees. They were unlike the ones by the beach. The ones that still had their leaves were greener. I looked back at Peridot, hoping she would realize how lost I felt. She looked back at me and placed my hand by her side.

"You'll be okay," she said.

"Are there vampires here?" I asked.

"Honey," Peridot replied. "I haven't seen any vampires since December."

"Since we defeated Jasper?" I asked.

"Right," Peridot said.

I became silent again. Peridot turned the car and drove slowly into a parking lot by the forest. She got out, and I followed.

"How are there so many green trees?" I asked.

"This forest is known for its evergreens," Peridot answered me.

We walked onto a dirt path that led into the forest. I clung to Peridot out of instinct. She didn't seem to mind. As we walked, I noticed a paper that had been nailed to a tree. It was dusty and ripped, and it looked to be about a month old. It was a missing person report. There was a picture on the paper with a blonde haired girl who appeared to be a young teenager. She had last been seen in December. My eyes widened.

December.

The images crept into my head once more.

Topaz fled, Jasper is gone. Topaz fled.

I felt like I was piecing something together.

Topaz.

I shook my head. I was being ridiculous. The chance that this random girl had been caught by a vampire was very small. She had probably gotten lost somewhere. Maybe she had even died. Despite the darkness of the thought, I had to force myself to believe that she had died and wasn't a vampire's victim. I looked back at the paper, only to realize that I was farther away from it than I first was. My head was too clouded to read her name. I looked at Peridot. She was eyeing me. She had one eyebrow raised. Only then did I figure out that her grip on my hand had gotten tighter. She knew something was up. She always knew when something was up. As much as I wanted to get everything off of my chest, I didn't want her to think I was stupid.