Bite, p.41
Bite, page 41
“That’s because this thing is uncomfortable and I need to scratch,” she yells and Charlie moves just as her hand is about to punch him.
Harry and Evan crack up and I say, “Come on. Let’s get some air and by the time we come back, it’ll be time to remove it.”
“Fine,” she huffs and I left her up and run outside where we go and sit in our tree.
It is going on ten thirty and we’re getting ready to leave for our meeting with Vincent. Gina gets in a better mood the moment the ace bandage is removed. I’m relieved Charlie is right; her leg is good as new and the bruise on her face is barely visible but then again I knew he saw she would heal perfectly.
We head for the garage and I forgot this is the only part of the house Gina hasn’t seen. I smile as I watch her face when she looks around and she says, “This isn’t a garage; this is like a damn auto show!”
Evan laughs as he heads for his Ninja ZX 10R (that’s a motorcycle in case you’re unfamiliar) and says, “Didn’t your garage look like this?”
She also laughs as she replies, “Not even close. Nice bike Evan.”
“Thanks. You ever have been on one?”
She points to Harry who quickly responds, “Not in a million years is she ever getting on one of those things.”
“Oh please, here we go again,” she sighs while rolling her eyes.
I watch them argue over why Gina shouldn’t ride a motorcycle and I hear her thinking how happy she is that she can still have these moments with her father. The rest of us crack up when Harry starts throwing in the “Young lady” with attitude and Gina kicks the Spanish into high gear when she responds back to him. I just shake my head in utter bemusement. Why is it she always ends up arguing with a vampire?
After they debate for a few moments, Evan asks if she wants to ride with him on the bike. Harry growls making his displeasure of the idea apparent and I’ll admit I’m not too thrilled about the idea either but he mentally sends me a message of Sam chill out. The girl is nervous as hell and I’m surprised that you haven’t felt them through your mark. It’ll get her mind off of Carla and relax her nerves. He raises an eyebrow while saying You know you can trust me with her. I’ll make sure she’s safe.
He’s right and I do trust Gina with him. I put on a smile and I say while trying to steady my voice, “You should Gina. Evan is a good driver and you’ll have fun.”
She looks at me in surprise while she asks, “Really? You won’t mind?”
“No. Go ahead. We’ll meet up at the bridge.”
She hugs me and Evan hands her a helmet while explaining to her what she’ll need to do while riding with him. I go over to my car and Harry gets in the passenger seat. David starts up his Hummer while Joseph starts up his Honda DN-01 bike. Instead of his usual ride, Charlie fires up his black Maserati GT Coupe. Once everyone is all set, we pull out of the garage and head for the GW Bridge.
We carefully weave through the streets but once we hit the highway, we push our vehicles to over a hundred and fifty miles per hour (thanks to Evan’s amazing mechanical skills and a little thing called torque). A couple of times the cops try to catch us but when the torque kicks in, we leave them behind. I listen in on Gina and I smile knowing she’s having a good time. Evan was right; this is what she needs to help her unwind. Harry, however, is keeping a low steady growl in his throat while watching her. “I’m still surprised that you let her get on that thing,” he hisses while his gaze never leaves his daughter.
I laugh as I say to him, “She doesn’t need my permission Harry. Sometimes I feel like I act a bit like her father and that’s your job.”
That softens his mood a bit and he laughs in return and says, “Well Gina is a handful and when she turns twenty in a couple of weeks, she’ll be that way forever. You ready for that?”
“Yes I am. Speaking of her birthday, do you have any suggestions for a nice gift?”
“Hmmm, let me think about that. She can be picky when it comes to her gifts.”
Hearing this surprises me with a raised eyebrow I ask, “Really?”
While nodding his head Harry replies, “Gina doesn’t just give a hint. She’ll give you every detail including the serial number if there is one. Trust me you don’t want to screw it up.”
We both laugh and I relax a little as well. We finally reach the bridge and we park our vehicles underneath. Gina is all excited after her bike ride and she quickly runs through the whole experience. She is completely animated and I look at Evan and ask in a mocking tone, “See what you’ve done?”
He laughs. “Sorry Sam. I didn’t think she would like it that much.”
“Oh my god it was amazing,” she exclaims. “I definitely wanna learn how to ride one by myself.”
“It’s easy Gina. You’ll be a natural,” Evan encourages.
Harry and I exchange looks as she asks, “Can you teach me Evan?”
“Sure no problem.”
Harry rubs a hand over his face while firmly responding, “Can you not encourage her? I don’t want my daughter riding those things on a regular basis.”
She turns to Harry and says sternly, “Harry don’t start. I’m almost twenty years old so I can start making my own decisions.”
“Gina you can seriously hurt yourself.”
“Oh please Pop, you’re being ridiculous! I am a big girl and I can take care of myself so butt out.”
She puts her hands on her hips while staring intently at Harry who is looking at her the same way. “How about this,” I interrupt before they start arguing again. It’s comical to watch them glaring at each other but I cautiously step between them as I say, “She won’t ride a motorcycle until she’s a vampire. That way if she falls you’ll know she’ll be able to get right back up without one scratch. Harry will that work for you?”
He mulls it over and with a slight nod he says, “I’m okay with that.”
I look at her and she shrugs while responding, “Fine.”
I walk over to her and give her a hug. I whisper in her ear, “I’ll even buy you a bike of your very own. You cool with that?”
She kisses my chin and says, “As long as it has pink on it, I’m cool with that.”
Gina smiles and we stand around waiting for Carla to arrive. Every minute that brings us closer to midnight I feel Gina get tenser and tenser. I feel myself getting agitated as well. We have mindless chatter just to pass the time but that doesn’t seem to ease any of our nerves. When midnight finally comes we all grow quiet. We wait while scanning the area and I growl. Carla always likes to play games and no one tonight is in the mood.
Suddenly we feel her presence and I stand in front of Gina protectively while facing where Carla emerges from the trees. All of us are in defensive mode since we know with Carla we have to be ready for anything.
She steps closer and smugly says in her heavy Russian accent, “Good evening.” Carla then looks directly at where Gina is standing and asks, “Did that amuse you human? I’m sure you’ve been waiting for one of us to say that for quite some time now.”
“Don’t say anything to her Carla,” I hiss and I feel Gina put her hand on my arm in hopes that would prevent me from reacting further.
Carla laughs while responding, “Charlie warned me about you but I didn’t realize how serious it was. My apologies.”
I feel Gina quiver at the apology and she clutches onto me tighter. I wrap a comforting arm around her as Charlie asks, “Is Vincent expecting us?”
The question makes her scowl a bit but she calmly replies, “Yes. If you are all ready we go now.”
With that she turns and disappears into the night. Gina is about to head back towards the cars when I gently pull her back. She looks at me and asks, “Aren’t we going to go? I’ll ride with you in the car if it will make you feel better.”
I shake my head slowly as I answer, “There’s no road that a car can go on to Vincent’s.”
Puzzled she asks, “Then how are we getting there? You said he was in Jersey. Aren’t we going to use the bridge?”
“Oh we’re going over the bridge. We’re just not taking the cars,” David says with a smirk.
“No cars? Then how?”
Joseph asks, “Have you ever been surfing?” She shakes her head and he says, “Well you’re gonna have a hell of a first time. We’re gonna scale the bridge.”
“What’s that?”
With his crooked grin he replies, “It’s climbing up the rails and then sliding down on the other side. It’s actually a lot of fun. You’ll like it.”
She nearly loses her balance and I support her body as she hollers, “Are you shitting me?”
David lets out a huge laugh as he says in a mocking tone, “You can hang out with a bunch of vampires but you’re afraid to scale one little bridge? Kiddo, you are something else.”
He laughs some more and then quickly climbs up the side of the bridge to begin running across.
I Am So Not Living The Matrix, Right?
(Gina)
I watch as David runs up onto the bridge and goes up on the poles holding the cables along the side. My mouth hangs open as he slides down and then I lose sight of him.
I turn to Sam and shout, “You’ve got to be kidding me!”
“It’s the only way to get to Vincent’s,” he says. “It’ll be real quick and we’ll be on the other side in no time.”
“This is crazy,” I cry out as I rub my temples while wondering what I’m doing here. I suddenly wish I convinced them to let me stay home while they spoke to Vincent but I remember I have to be there too. It’s a rule that Vincent has to meet me in order to grant Sam permission to change me. And I suddenly start to feel silly for my apprehension. Earlier today I went up against two vampires all by myself without even blinking. Surely I can tackle this with no problem right? If I’m going to become a vampire, I’m going to have to show Sam that I am brave and I can handle just about anything. So whether I shit my pants are not, I am going to scale this bridge.
I let out a heavy sigh and quietly say, “Okay let’s get this over with.”
“Sam and I will go first. We should be in front,” Charlie announces and Sam nods. “Who’s going to carry her?”
Joseph steps forward and replies, “I’ll take her. I’m the fastest and I’ll get her across quickly.”
Skeptically Sam says, “I don’t know.”
“Come on Sam I can do this. I promise to be careful.”
He’s still nervous from the marking incident and he’s unsure if he can trust Joseph with me. This tension between them has worked my last nerve. “Sam he is fast and I want to get across that thing as quickly as possible. Joseph is the logical choice.” My eyes are begging him to let Joseph take me and I softly murmur, “Do you trust me?”
Sam is torn but I am relying on the fact he hates to disappoint me work in my favor. I know that’s a selfish thought to have but if I don’t do something we’ll be here all night arguing the pros and cons of why Joseph should take me across. His gaze jumps between Joseph and me until he finally agrees and I smile while I mouth him a thank you. Joseph turns to face me as he explains, “Okay Gina, all you gotta do is just hang onto me real tight. And under no circumstances do you ever let go understand?”
“Okay,” I calmly reply.
Joseph puts me on his back and whispers, “Now hold on tight. Don’t be afraid if you think you’re gonna hurt me.”
I wrap my arms and legs around him and I hold on as tight as I can. “Is this okay?”
He smiles as he replies, “Yes. If you want you can tuck your face into my shoulder so you don’t have to look.”
I look up again and really take in how high those beams are and I swallow hard. “Maybe that’s a good idea,” I say with a light laugh.
Sam comes over and asks, “You both ready?”
“Oh yeah,” Joseph replies enthusiastically and I start to get a sense that he really likes to do these kind of things.
Sam turns to me and I say with uncertainty, “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
He quickly kisses me and says, “See you on the other side.” And he and Charlie both take off running.
I try to steady my breathing as I watch them run up the bridge the same way as David did. Joseph asks, “You ready?”
I nod my head, as I reply, “Not really.”
“Just hang on and it’ll be over before you know it.” He then moves until we reach the foot of bridge and I look up at the large railing. He looks over to me and says, “Okay here we go.”
Good thing I’m holding on tight. Joseph is so quick that I barely feel us moving up. The wind whips through my hair and just as I get use to the sensation, all of a sudden we stop. He doesn’t say anything so I quietly ask, “What happened?”
“Just giving you a quick minute to take a peek. The view is spectacular. Open your eyes Gina,” he replies.
I hesitate at first because I’m scared shitless but then slowly I lift my head off his shoulder and open my eyes to look around and I gasp. Being at the top of the George Washington Bridge is unlike anything I’ve seen. The view is incredible; from the twinkling lights of downtown Manhattan to the mysterious darkness in the trees that border New Jersey it is a sight to see. “Oh my god Joseph this is amazing,” I say breathlessly.
“Glad you like it. Okay hang on because we’re gonna slide now.”
I want to watch this time so I tighten my grip as he slides down the pole like he’s surfing. I actually start giggling as he runs back up the next section and when he gets to the top, Sam and Charlie are there waiting for us. “Do you know where to make the jump,” Charlie asks and Joseph nods his head. Evan and Harry reach us and I look around nervously as I ask, “Where’s David?”
“He’s already in Jersey and probably growing very impatient wondering what’s taking us so long,” Evan replies with a smirk.
Charlie says, “Okay so let’s not keep him waiting any longer. Let’s go.”
He and Sam start to move and before I can ask about this jump they’re talking about, Joseph slides down and I watch as Sam and Charlie leap off just before they reach the bottom and disappear into the trees off to our right. Are we going to do that I think to myself and Joseph crouches a little and at the same point where they did he jumps off the bridge.
In my mind, this moment seems to last forever but it happens in a manner of seconds. The instant we are off the bridge and soaring over the dark water, I panic. My brain is reminding me to keep hanging on but my hands have a mind of their own and I feel my grip loosen from around his neck. Realizing what is happening, Joseph tries to grab my hand but it slips right through and he yells, “Shit! Evan heads up!”
I feel myself slowly beginning to descend and I let out a scream. Suddenly I feel arms grab me when Evan slams into me and when we reach the trees, David helps soften the impact and possibly prevent me from breaking every bone in my body when we crash right into him. I hear someone asking if I’m okay and I look up at Evan and nod my head. Harry is also at my side and I reassure him I’m fine as well. I scan around and I ask, “Sam, where’s Sam?”
I look over to my right and I’m aghast. Sam has Joseph by his shirt and is growling, “How could you be so careless? You asked me to trust you and you nearly let her die! How could you let go of her like that?”
“I didn’t let go of her! I held on until she slacked in her hold on me,” Joseph growls back.
“Don’t you dare blame her! You let her go!”
I start to get scared that Sam is going to seriously hurt Joseph and it will have been for nothing since he is wrong. I hear him release a deep growl and I can’t take any more of this so I yell, “Sam! Stop it wasn’t his fault!” They both look at me as I say, “I did let go. I should have kept my grip on him but I panicked and let go. Joseph tried to grab me but he couldn’t. If you need to blame anyone, blame me.”
He looks at me and then back to Joseph who is glaring at him. “I told you I would never let her fall on purpose. I would never do that to her or to you. But I guess it’s clear now that no matter what you will never trust me with her again and I refuse to be the one you blame every time something happens to her. So I’m done. For her, I will help you both in dealing with Ursela so she doesn’t end up dead but once that’s finished, I’m gone!”
All of us remain quiet as we all feel the effect of his words while I quietly say, “No.” I want to scream but being that we are near Vincent’s place, I don’t think that is a good idea. I glare at Sam as Carla appears and asks, “Are we ready to proceed or do you need to finish your Days of Our Lives moment?”
God how I hate this vampire. I really want to tell her what to do with herself but I bite my tongue as we all regroup and follow her as she walks within the trees. You can hear the cars roaring by above and I worry if we really are safe from anyone’s sight. That’s all we need is a cop or trooper to spot us; with the tension among us, I hope all humans are far away from us.
We descend a little but we keep moving along the path until we finally reach a door that seems to have been made by a few of the surrounding trees. We follow Carla inside and proceed to go down a long corridor that is lit only by torches. I feel Sam grab my hand to pull me closer to him and even though I’m fuming with him, I allow him to touch me. But I send him a mental message that when we got out of here, I have a few choice words for him. He calmly responds with a low growl.
We reach a huge open room and Carla instructs us to wait while she disappears down another corridor. I look around the room and I grin at how modern it appears even though are inside a cave. There are couches against the wall and a huge leather chair in the center. Instead of pictures there are paintings scattered about. There are even a couple of bookshelves holding books that appeared to be over a century old. Despite the reason why we’re here if Vincent is everything they told me, this room definitely makes me a bit more comfortable about him.
