The Devil's Prey (The Demon Within) Read online

  ‘Oh my god, you believed it!’ She walked off, laughing with her friends.

  ‘Amber, you don’t joke about things like that!’ I yelled to her as she walked away. I felt two pair of eyes looking at me.

  ‘Summer, what did you do?’ Ethan’s voice was firm.

  ‘Nothing! She was joking around about suing my mum and me, and I told her it is not funny!’ He looked at me with pity, which I hated.

  ‘Ethan, please! Don’t look at me like that!’

  I looked at Amanda, who seemed to be in a world of her own. She looked up. ‘Was someone talking to me?’

  ‘Umm, Amanda, are you going to move?’

  She turned around to see a car waiting for her to move. ‘Oh, sorry.’ She stepped aside and let the car drive past. We stood there for a few seconds before we all got in Ethan’s car.

  ‘Wait, I need to tell Amy I don’t need a lift.’ I got out my phone and told Amy I did not need to stay at her house anymore, and thanked her for having me.

  ‘So you were at Amy’s the whole time?’ Amanda asked.

  I sat silently.

  ‘So I assume that is a yes,’ Ethan muttered.

  ‘Ok, I was at Amy’s! So what? I needed space, and her place is safe.’

  Amanda shifted in her seat as Ethan spoke again. ‘So what? I thought you had been caught, or worse, killed! Do you realize how special you are?’

  ‘Here we go again,’ Amanda said, like she had heard this before.

  ‘This is part of why I left! I am sick of special treatment. Why can’t people treat me like anyone else?’ The sun was now covered by clouds that had appeared out of nowhere.

  ‘Because you are not everybody else.’ Ethan did not look at me, keeping his eyes on the road.

  ‘You think I don’t know that? I have sudden power bursts that come from nowhere. For once I would like people to just stop thinking of me as special, and turn around and say, “Hey, Summer, how are you doing?” Because if anyone in that house had a brain, they would realize that I am not doing fine! Just look at me! My life is a mess, I am freaked out by anything that sneaks up on me or follows me, I nearly killed an innocent animal because I thought it was…’ I stopped because both Ethan and Amanda were looking at me. The light rain outside had appeared as suddenly as the clouds had earlier.

  ‘Summer, I know how hard it is for you.’

  ‘Ethan, please. Don’t push it. Remember what Lauren said about her abilities being unpredictable.’ Amanda stared straight ahead as she spoke, and I followed her gaze, realizing we were at the house already.

  ‘Summer, what you went through…I can understand…’

  I cut him off. ‘Understand! You cannot begin to understand what is going on inside me.’ I opened the door and burst into the house, running to my room. The few people that were home took notice of me, but the rest were still not back. The rain outside fell down harder as I sat down on the floor and leaned against my bed. I was having trouble breathing, and I felt claustrophobic. I knew I was having a panic attack. I sat there, trying to breathe.

  I closed my eyes and ran my hands over my head. I heard someone come into the room. Why couldn’t anyone leave me in peace?

  ‘Summer.’ The voice was soft, like an angel’s, and I groaned inwardly.

  ‘Why won’t anyone get it?’ My breath was slowly returning to me.

  ‘Get what, Summer?’ I knew the voice, but I did not want to talk to her.

  ‘Get that they will never understand what I went through! Everyone wants to understand, but no one wants to ask how I am coping.’ The rain outside was still coming down, but had died down a bit.

  ‘Well, Summer, the best I can do for you is let you talk to someone who can help you.’

  I looked up to see Lauren move from her place by the door and walk towards me. ‘No. I will not see a shrink. They already think I am crazy. That would make things ten times worse!’ I felt the anger inside of me. I had promised myself I would never ever see a shrink, no matter what the situation. The rain outside got heavier, and it felt a bit like the emotions that were creating their own storm inside me.

  ‘Interesting,’ Lauren said, looking at me like I was an alien.

  ‘What? The fact that you think I am going crazy enough to send me to a shrink?’ At that moment, Ethan and Amanda came bursting into the room. It happened so suddenly that I jumped to my feet, ready to throw a lambo at them both.

  ‘What is this about?’ Lauren quickly turned her gaze to me. I was breathing hard, two lambos in my hand.

  ‘Summer, it is only Ethan and Amanda.’ She had a very worried look on her face, but behind her worry was something like…satisfaction. I glanced over to the door where Ethan and Amanda stood, stunned. I got rid of the lambos just as someone else came bursting into the room. This time I did overreact, and it was not a lambo, but a blue light. I threw it at the door before I could even comprehend what I was doing.

  Chapter 6

  Lightning cracked outside when I realized I had thrown the blue light. Luckily, everyone near the door managed to duck in time. ‘Summer, what the hell?’ Brandon exclaimed, looking at me in utter shock.

  ‘I am sorry…I thought…you were…I just…people can’t do that to me!”’ Everyone had a serious look of concern plastered on their faces, and I just wanted to crawl under the bed and disappear.

  ‘Well, I just came to tell you that we lost power- but it is back on again, so never mind.’ He looked at me, cringed, and left the room.

  ‘Summer, are you ok?’ Ethan placed his hand on my shoulder, and I felt my body light up like a light bulb. Outside, the rain hammered hard on the roof.

  ‘Depends on your definition of ok.’ I turned to face Lauren, who seemed to be looking outside with a hint of interest and amusement.

  ‘Summer, may I ask- when did the clouds appear in the sky?’ Her gaze did not leave the window as she spoke to me.

  ‘When I started to argue with Ethan. What does that have to do with anything?’ I looked outside to see it was no longer raining. The sun was trying to peek its way through the clouds.

  ‘Lauren, do you think that is the reason?’ I could sense that Ethan wanted to pull me into his arms and keep me close, but he was too scared of how fragile I was. It was starting to annoy me.

  ‘What are you leaving me out on?’ My gaze turned to Lauren, who still was watching the sky, waiting for something to happen.

  ‘Ethan, I want you to kiss Summer,’ she said.

  My mouth dropped open and I heard Ethan gasp. Why would she ask such a thing? Before I had time to think about it, Ethan leaned so close that I could feel his breath on my neck. He planted a light kiss on my cheek. I could tell this was awkward for him too, because his cheeks were bright red, almost the same colour as Amanda’s hair.

  ‘Ethan, come on. A proper kiss. You can do better,’ Lauren teased. I could see her amusement, as she knew this was a very awkward thing to ask.

  ‘Do you know how awkward this is?’ He sighed and looked pointedly at Lauren.

  ‘Oh, come on, Ethan. I know how badly you want to kiss her, and Summer, you are no different.’ Amanda! Why couldn’t she just stay out of my head? She laughed at my inner comment, and I scowled at her. I looked at Ethan, who had a smile on his face. He took my hand in his, and I felt warmth spiraling through my body.

  I wished then that I hadn’t put him through all this trouble over the last two days. I missed him. So much. I missed how warm he was, how he laughed at every lame joke I made. I missed being close to him. I leaned forward and kissed him. He was surprised at first, but the shock wore off fast, and I soon felt him responding to my kiss. I no longer cared if the whole world was watching. It was just me and Ethan. I felt my body explode into a million pieces, and my heart raced so fast that I felt like it was about to leap out of my chest.

  I heard someone clear their throat, reminding us that they were still here in my room. I pulled away and Ethan cupped my face in his hands. I looked into his stunning gr
een eyes, the same eyes that made my heart melt every time.

  ‘I love you,’ he whispered, soft enough that only I could hear. I was about to say the same when Amanda butted in.

  ‘Ok, you two love birds. As much as I know you would like to clear the air between you two, I think Lauren has made a discovery!’

  I turned to Lauren, who was still gazing at the sky. It was so bright now that the sun itself might have been in danger of getting skin cancer.

  ‘This weather is so strange. It’s not normal.’ I gazed into the clear blue sky, wondering at the sudden change from cold and rainy to sunny.

  ‘Amanda, what does Lauren think?’ I kept my gaze fixed on the blue sky, waiting for her to reply.

  ‘She thinks you are controlling the weather. At the moment it is emotions. When you are upset or angry, you create a thunderstorm, and when you are happy it is sunny blue skies. I wonder what would cause snow?’ I turned to Ethan, who had a huge grin on his face- and not because of what Amanda just told me in my mind.

  ‘You think my emotions are controlling the weather?’ I asked Lauren.

  She looked aghast by the fact that I knew. ‘How did you know? Only Amanda and I knew, because Amanda…is Amanda. There is no way you would reach that kind of conclusion on your own. How did you do it?’

  I looked at Amanda, who was saying ‘Don’t tell,’ but something told me to tell Lauren.

  ‘Amanda told me,’ I said simply, not wanting to explain.

  ‘But you haven’t said a word.’ Lauren had a curious look on her face. I was a mystery to be solved.

  ‘She told me in my head. I asked her, and she answered. I seem to have telepathy, but I can only talk to Amanda, and I cannot hear other people’s thoughts,’ I stated, trying to sound nonchalant.

  ‘When did you discover this? And why am I only hearing of this now? Ethan, did you know?’

  Ethan shook his head, looking a little disappointed. I knew he was upset that I hadn’t told him.

  ‘The first day of school. I did not know I was doing it until Amanda pointed it out, and we talk like that a lot when other people are around.’ I looked over at Amanda, who had a very good poker face on.

  ‘Have you experimented with it yet?’ I knew what Lauren was getting at- more training for me.

  ‘You should tell her,’ Amanda said, still with her poker face on.

  ‘No! I will get in so much trouble if she knew!’ I glanced at Amanda who was no longer facing me ‘Bitch!’ I could see her smile, and I rolled my eyes.

  ‘Something you two would like to share?’ Lauren suggested, crossing her arms over her chest.

  ‘No!’ I said quickly.

  ‘Yes!’ Amanda spoke at the same time, and Lauren’s face was amused.

  ‘Summer would like to tell you something.’ Amanda smiled. I knew what she was doing. She was going to put all the blame on me.

  ‘Ok, maybe we did experiment with how far we could talk.’ I turned my head and cringed. Lauren was clearly about to blow after finding out what we had been keeping from her.

  ‘And how far were you?’

  I shifted in my seat, knowing that once I told her, she was going to explode like a rocket.

  ‘Umm… I was at Amy’s house, and Amanda was at school.’ I sat and waited for Lauren to explode in three…two…one…

  ‘You knew where Summer was?’

  We all cringed at her raised voice. Amanda tried to talk, but Lauren cut her off.

  ‘I had everyone looking for you, Summer, and you were at Amy’s place! A human’s home. And you, Amanda- you had been in contact with her and didn’t tell anyone!’

  We all sat there like little kids as we got a scowling from Lauren.

  She continued, ‘I expected better from all of you, and you, Summer…’

  I knew I was about to get it when I remembered something that I figured might amuse her. ‘Lauren, before you bite my head off, there is something else. The other day, I made my alarm clock turn off without touching it, and I think that has something do with the fact that I was able to move Ethan.’ I waited and could see Lauren’s face turn from furious to curious.

  ‘So you’re telling me you think you have telekinesis as well as telepathy- and are able to control the weather?’ She ran her eyes over me, but it wasn’t quite positive. I felt as though she were assessing me like a bit of gum under her shoe.

  ‘Well, the last part is what you think…and I didn’t come up with any of these conclusions.’ I could tell she didn’t appreciate my sarcasm, which had been coming out a lot since…well, since that night. Sarcasm must be a pure fairy trait.

  ‘We will have to finish this later. I need to cook dinner.’ She left the room in a flash of light, which left the rest of us waiting.

  ‘Umm …I think…I have to go find someone… yeah. See you later.’ Amanda left the room, knowing that Ethan and I both wanted to talk to each other. We sat still, staring at each other, before I found my voice to talk because truth be told, I didn’t know what to say.

  ‘Ethan, I am sorry for everything. I never meant to say what I did. I never should have left. I just, well-’ I never got to finish my speech that I had been thinking of all day, because Ethan interrupted it with a kiss. It was warm and soft, like always. I wrapped my hands around his neck. When he pulled away, his forehead leaning against mine, I could still taste him on my lips.

  ‘Apology accepted, and I am sorry I got mad at you. You were right. I have no clue what it felt like, and I never will, but I will always keep you safe.’

  I never made it to dinner that night. I was so tired that I fell asleep before dinner was even finished. I heard people coming in and out the room, but I had no clue who they were or what they wanted. I heard Amanda came into the room much later. I stirred in my bed when she closed the door, and realized drowsily that someone else was with her

  ‘Do you think she can handle all this?’ Amanda was whispering, but I could still hear her.

  ‘I hope so, but only time will tell.’ Nothing more was said after that, and I fell into a very deep sleep.

  I have no idea how long I slept before someone came bursting into our room. ‘Come on, ladies! Up you get!’

  I moaned. ‘Get lost, will you? I want to sleep.’ I pulled my covers over my head, hoping I could hide.

  ‘Nope, up you get!’ My covers were pulled off me, and I was cold.

  ‘Ethan, please. Not this again,’ Amanda grunted.

  ‘Nope, it’s time for school!’ I lay in bed, ignoring him, but then he opened the blinds and sunlight streamed into the room.

  ‘Ahhh! Ethan! I don’t want to go to school.’ I wanted those blinds shut- and with that, they shut all by themselves, and I smiled to myself.

  ‘Summer,’ he murmured in my ear. He kissed my neck, and that sent a thrill through my body, which got me up.

  ‘Ethan, that is not fair.’ I stretched my arms over my head, cracking my back in the process.

  ‘Fair is my middle name. Now come on, Amanda . Wakey wakey!’ Once Amanda got past all her colorful words for Ethan, she finally got up.

  ‘You girls are going to be my doom, waking you up every morning,’ Ethan said. He left the room, leaving us alone to get ready for school.

  ‘How is your arm?’ Amanda gazed over at me, and I undid the bandages to see a light scar.

  ‘Better, I think.’ But the moment the words left my lips, I felt a stinging pain on my upper thigh. ‘Ouch!’ I yelped. I pulled my boxers a little higher to see a trickle of blood running down my leg.

  A betrayal will be made

  I looked up at Amanda, who looked horrified. ‘Summer, you ok?’

  I gave her a look that said, Do I look ok to you?

  ‘Sure. As happy as a daisy.’ I wiped away the blood from the message. ‘First my arm, now my leg. What’s next, my forehead?’

  Amanda gave me a wary look. ‘Don’t jinx it.’ She was trying to make a joke out of it, but it really didn’t help.

  ‘Well,
I guess I am wearing jeans for the next few days. Again,’ I sighed. I really wanted to wear shorts. When we were dressed and ready, Ethan was waiting outside for us.

  ‘Good. I am glad to see you, otherwise I would have been coming back in to wake you up.’ He gave us a cheeky smile and wandered ahead of us.

  ‘I swear, Amanda, as much as I love him, I am going to kill him one day.’

  I saw Amanda smile and nod her head. ‘If he wakes me up one more time, I am going to threaten him by reading his deepest thoughts.’ Both Amanda and I laughed, and Ethan stopped and turned around.

  ‘What’s so funny?’

  ‘Nothing,’ we said in unison.

  ‘You are talking to each other, aren’t you?’ Ethan was looking between us both, and I just shrugged my shoulders. ‘Care to let me in?’ He raised one eyebrow, indicating that he wanted to know what we found so amusing.

  ‘Nope, its girl stuff.’ Amanda smiled, flashing all her perfect white teeth.

  ‘Girl stuff, you say!’ He took a step closer to me, and I know what he was going to do. ‘Does this change your mind?’ He kissed me, and I kissed him back.

  When I pulled away, I simply said, ‘Nope’.

  When we got to school, everyone one was rushing to see who made it onto teams this year. ‘Hey, Summer!’ Perry was walking up to me with one of his huge grins.

  ‘Hey, Perry. Have you seen the list yet?’ I gave Perry a hug, and I could see from the look on Ethan’s face that he was jealous.

  ‘No, I was just heading over there now when I saw you, and wanted to see if you would come and look, too.’ Perry was smiling at me, and I couldn’t help but smile back. Perry was one of those kids that everyone got along with. He was always smiling, and he always seemed to know just the right things to say when you were sad.

  ‘Sure, let’s go. Ethan, Amanda- I will see you later.’ I gave Ethan a quick kiss on the cheek, and skipped off with Perry to the school bulletin board.

  ‘So how are you doing?’ Perry asked me when we were away from Ethan and Amanda.

  ‘I am doing fine, I guess.’ I looked down at my feet, thinking how Perry was the first person to ask how I was doing without being prompted.