“Awesome!” Tessa said, and already I could see my mom was forgotten as she bounced and grinned at me. And why was she holding her hands behind her back like that?
“Did you drink an energy drink again?” I asked in a joking way. “You know that stuff makes you annoyingly happy.” There was no way her weird behavior was about an overdose of caffeine. Not to mention she wouldn’t want to drink anything but blood now.
Tessa practically shrieked: “I’m engaged!”
She shoved her left hand in my face to reveal a huge diamond rock.
“Oh my God, Charlie, it was so romantic. I was getting a manicure at this shop at 2 am. Did you know they open the shops up for the vampires at night and we’re allowed to shop and all of that?”
My mouth was hanging open and I could only gape at the huge diamond on her hand. “Tessa! I … he … you’re…”
She squealed, seeming to take my stuttering as some sort of excited statement. “So, as I was saying, I was getting the manicure with Nadine, this new vamp friend of mine, and suddenly Blake hands the manicurist something and says to make sure to finish my manicure with this. I almost died when the lady put the ring on my finger. I knew immediately the diamond was at least three carats. Three, Charlie! Then Blake got down on one knee and proposed!”
No, no, no. “Tessa!” I was seriously pissed. It was as if she’d lost her mind, like literally pulverized the thing when she decided to jump into bed with Blake. “You can’t get engaged. You’re twenty-one years old and this guy nearly killed you changing you into a vampire freak-show.”
Tessa’s face hardened. “Why are you being such a bitch, Charlie? Seriously, you’re just jealous! Your guy took forever to even kiss you and you’re jealous that Blake isn’t afraid of commitment.”
I totally wanted to club her over the head and hide her in a suitcase under my bed until we could get the hell out of here, but she could, and probably would, kick my ass.
I had to change tactics, because my bitching crazily at her was not working.
“Okay … this is coming out wrong, Tess.” I leaned in closer and murmured my next few words. “My life is in danger and I can’t really give specifics, but I need to tell you something.”
Her face had softened a little. Taking this as an encouragement I leaned right up close to her ear.
“I’m leaving the Hive, and if you want to keep our family together, like you always proclaimed when you talked of being turned, you’re going to have to come with me.” I sucked in a deep breath. “If I don’t leave soon, I’m dead.”
As I pulled back, her face showed genuine concern. “Charlie what’s going on? Blake knows people. He can help you.”
I gritted my teeth. “No one can help me. You don’t understand everything and...” I pointed my finger to the ceiling and swung it around in a circle. Tessa’s eyes rose and she followed my gaze around the room. I wasn’t sure she fully understood what I was trying to tell her about us being spied on, but she didn’t push me further. She gave a sigh and looked at her new shiny ring.
There were a few tense moments. I wanted to reach out and shake an answer out of her. What was she even thinking about here? Finally she lifted those silver eyes and gave me a sad look.
“I’m going to stay here. Blake will take care of me.”
My heart split in two and tears filled my eyes. I had officially been replaced. She would rather be with Blake instead of going with me.
I gave it one last shot. “Think about it for another minute. Not only do I want us to be together, I can’t leave you here knowing they might use you to get to me,”
Tessa shook her head. “Charlie, I’m not going anywhere and neither are you. We’ll figure this out. I love it here. I feel like I finally belong.”
My chest began to shake with emotion. “I love you,” I managed to say, before turning into a puddle of tears. Somehow I made it out of the door and into the hallway.
“Charlie!” Tessa yelled, but I ran, bursting out of the feeding center front door. Oliver and Kyle fell in behind me as I sprinted past. Once I made it back to my apartment, I slammed my bedroom door hard, threw myself on the bed and shoved my face into a pillow.
I screamed for as long as I could into my pillow, only stopping when my head shook and I had no breath left. Everything was out of control and I hated it. Helplessness was one of the worst emotions. Powerlessness too. Because I knew that it was bad to leave Tessa here, but she controlled her own life and choices, no matter how terrible they were.