Tyler set up the laptop in the kitchen, receiving the call from Starr and excepting once seeing her picture pop up. I'm sat on the countertop behind him. The bags have been packed and waiting by the door with our shoes and coats. Tyler has more than seven thousand pounds on him and has the laptop and charger bag ready.
Starr pops up on the screen with Elijah beside her. "Evening."
"Tell me you have good news? Please?" Tyler asks, jumping up beside me.
"Afraid not. The lab has known where you've been for a couple of days and you need to move. They are sending guards to you tomorrow at four AM. Do you have somewhere to go?" Starr asks.
"So we need to leave tonight?" I say at the same time as Tyler says, "my mother's."
I nearly choke. I've had the miss fortune to meet Tyler's mum, suffocatingly Christian and bat shit crazy. She gave up Tyler and Hope because she believed they were spawns of Satan and didn't like me because I'm black. She especially didn't like me because I happened to have a crush on her daughter. Great idea Tyler. But then, where would I have planned to go if I were on my own? No one I knew could have me and I wouldn't even have a car.
"I'll fill up the car and we'll leave right after this call. She's already expecting us." Tyler says, avoiding my stare.
"Something wrong, Esmé?" Elijah asks and I shake my head. I will take it up with Tyler in our three-hour drive!
"Also, Pete is going to be stalking you, you kneed to be careful. Take all the back roads and don't stop. Make sure you are far away before four." Starr looks at papers on her desk," and we have more information. Esmé is apart of something called Beatus women- technically means that she's not human. There are two kinds of Beatus, Mutanas, and Beatus."
"What's the difference?" I ask.
"Mutanas are said to be direct descendants of Lucifer himself, they are more powerful and normally live in secret. The women they descended from are the woman who started the fire of London, hoping to kill all of the men who believed in killing witches. Mutana kind is known to be brash and cruel, but they aren't all like that these days." Elijah says.
"Does the lab have any of those?" Tyler asks, jumping off of the side.
"Not that I know of." Starr says."How many times has Esmé drank from you?"
"Three, four times. Why?" Tyler sounds confused. I don't blame him.
"There's a chance you two could have imprinted, making you a Published." Elijah says, "the lab wanted me to become a Published."
"What the hell has publishing got to do with this?"Tyler yells, pure jealousy obvious in his tone.
"It means to other Beatus or Mutana women, you are property of Esmé's. You could end up having similar powers to her's too, although they will be more controlled. And you will also... Change." Elijah explains.
"Change how?" I ask.
"He can become more protective of you. It gets worse the more you drink directly from him. That's your own choice." Starr sighs, looking more tired than usual. "Now go. I don't want them getting to you."
_*_
The bags are packed in the boot of the car, even Jace's things weren't left behind. I'm sitting in the car, heater cranked all the way up and Tyler said he needed to grab something from the flat, full knowing that he was going to get an earful in the next four hours. His black clothes make an appearance when he steps out of the apartment entrance, walking toward the car. He looks good walking towards me and I won't lie and say I didn't feel better seeing him. I can physically feel myself relax when I see him, and it kind of pisses me off more. He reaches the car and buckles up, starting the car and reversing. Until we are on the motorway, there is a silence, filled by the heater. He knows I'm pissed. Damn, right I am.
"I'm sorry. She is the only place we can go to." Tyler explains. It's not mad thinking, but last time I met her, she wouldn't even let me in the house. "I promise her medication has been working."
"I understand it, but if you aren't going to at least give me a warning, I'm just going to take off. I know this is hard on you, but it's hard on me too and the woman doesn't even want to tolerate me."
"It won't be like that. I messaged her and she said it was completely fine. Plus, we won't be staying long." He swallows, "we're be putting her in danger."
Looking st the clock, it said it was ten PM, we should get there for two AM. Great. My eyes ich and I feel exhausted. Today could've gone better if we just stayed in- if I'd just refuse blood from Tyler and kept us both safe. I should've taken off the moment I had the chance. Now Jace is with someone he's never met, Tyler is stuck with me and now Elijah knows exactly where we are and where we're going. Tyler is trapped in a situation where he's used as a blood bag and maybe a set of powers he never even wanted- roping him in to be killed.
"Running from this won't change anything," Tyler says out of nowhere. "We're all in this."
"We should have just stayed home." I lean my head against the door. Tyler laughs.
"They knew where we were anyway, Es."
"I know. It was just better there." I feel like I was moaning but I don't know what else to do.
"Take a nap. By the time you wake up, we'll be there." his eyes are so focussed on the road. Can he not even look at me? Does he think this is my fault?
As if hearing my thoughts, he places his hand on my knee, rubbing my thigh. If I'm running from death, I'm glad it's with Tyler.
_*_
My shoulders are being shaken and the windows are open, letting in freezing air. Tyler's kind eyes are close to mine, observing me with care.
"We're just stopping for petrol. Do you want anything?" He asks, petting the bottom of my head gently with his thumb, his finger wrapping the back of my neck comfortably.
"No, I'm okay." He doesn't look convinced. I don't feel convinced. "I promise."
"Okay," he looks out the window at the twenty-four-hour gas station, "I'll be right back. Don't leave the car." He leaves and I hear the car fill up. It only takes half a minute and then he walks into the garage to pay. A grumbling noise churns from my stomach, distracting me from my cloud-like thoughts. The clock on the radio tells me it's half one in the morning but it feels later than that. My whole body aches, making me feel like achy shit. Settling myself on the car door was easy, getting back to sleep was easier, that is until Tyler slams the door when he sits in the car, my stomach speaking up again. He has a white bag in his lap. He takes out a milkshake cup with the garage logo on, a bandage, princess plasters, doggy tissues, and a water bottle. He places the milkshake between his thighs, taking off the plastic lid and straw.
"What are you doing?" I say, drowsy from the promise of sleep.
"You need blood, because I'll be fucked if you're puking in my car, and I can't exactly do it here. So I'm bleeding into a milkshake for you," he flashes me a smile, "because I'm charming like that." Tyler takes the blade from his pocket and flicks it up.
Suddenly, very much more awake, the blade shimmers and I'm sat up. "It won't heal if I'm not drinking from you- and I thought it hurt more with the blade?"
"It does, but here? Do we have a choice?"
"Yes! We wait until we reach your mum's!" The blade is sitting in his lap, looking like a rogue shark.
"I heard your stomach all the way here. Trust me, you won't make it to the house. That's the only reason I stopped." And he slashes his wrist over the cup, letting more than a little blood drip into the cup. Holding myself back from just taking his wrist was hard, knowing the option was right there, and I wasn't taking it. The smell was rich, dark and perfect. Like a food that you couldn't shake and, unsurprisingly, be addicted to.
The blood starts to clot after a worrying period of time and Tyler rubs the wound with tissues, wraps it in a bandage and secures it with a princess plaster. He then mixes the blood with the milkshake and pops the lid on, holding it out to me. "Bon appetit."
I take the cup and stare down the straw while Tyler starts the car. "If you could not puke until we arrive, that'll be great."
YOU ARE READING
Teenage Bones
Teen FictionEsmè Peters is a British teenager that is ready for the second year of college, but things are holding her back. Her mental health is in problems as much as her surprisingly low weight. So you can imagine how frustrated she becomes when she is kidna...
