Nan was visibly upset and kept casting Mina accusing glances. Mina didn’t need to wonder what those looks meant. Since they had been best friends for years, she knew that Nan blamed Mina for robbing her of her alone time with Peter. What could she say except that Mina didn’t really care? As soon as Dr. Martin ran down the dock to help tie up the boat, Mina was off the boat and up the dock in a split second.
She wanted to get away, to go home. This was not how she pictured the night turning out. But when Mina passed the bonfire, it was impossible to miss the three new latecomers that had arrived. Especially, when one had spiked skunk like hair and they made enough noise to raise the dead. The rest of the members of the Dead Prince Society were there, and the party really seemed to be getting underway.
Music was blasting. Magnus was once again eating his way through the food on the picnic table. Naga had found extension cords, had run them from the house and hooked up their amplifiers to their guitars. Constantine had brought out his bass for an impromptu music jam. The students were screaming and crowding the band; Naga and Constantine were standing on a table shredding and making a lot of noise that to them was music.
Mina stood off in the distance watching with mixed emotions. Nan and Peter ran up the dock to greet them excitedly. Dr. Martin pulled Nan aside and waved his hands angrily, obviously upset at the party crashers. Mina could see Nan throw her hands on her hips and yell back. Veronica came to her daughter’s rescue, and the argument came to a close. Dr. Martin shook his head, in annoyance, and stormed off into the house. Veronica and her daughter rushed over to the tables and watched as Peter joined his band mates in the impromptu concert. Instantly, his persona changed and he was once again Valdemar.
Brody was right up front, jumping and singing along with Nan. Mina felt utterly alone and forgotten. What happened to this night? It was supposed to be fun, and now she felt like an outcast. She hated it here. Anger stirred in her, and Mina grabbed a bunch of grapes off of the nearest table and pulled one off to chuck at a tree. No one noticed except for Magnus, who mumbled something about wasting food. He didn’t seem inclined to join his band mates in the merrymaking. Everyone else was distracted by the concert. Feeling only slightly appeased at the sudden release of energy gained by throwing the food, she grabbed another item and tossed it again. Angrily, she began to throw grape after grape aiming for a tree, imagining it was Savannah White. It felt good to throw food at her imaginary enemy. But soon her target had Nan’s smiling face on it.
Not feeling at all surprised by the direction her mind was taking, Mina reached for something bigger to throw. She gripped the large projectile, took aim, and was about to release it when a hand reached out and stopped her wrist mid-throw, the red apple still clutched in her palm.
Magnus grabbed her wrist and pulled the apple from her hand. Although he was strong, he didn’t hurt her. “Don’t let your jealousy and anger rule your emotions,” he said in a soft voice. “Nothing good will ever come of it.” He raised the apple to his own mouth and took a bite. The soft crunch of apple between his teeth made Mina reflect on what she was doing. It didn’t have the intended effect. Instead of feeling ashamed, she felt more anger.
“You know nothing about what I’m feeling or thinking. No one knows what I’m going through. So don’t go all Dalai Lama on me.” She stormed off toward the house, breathing hard from her resentment.
She felt the tingle of power begin to gather around her when she reached the front porch. Normally, feeling the power of the Story would make her scared. This time she was too angry to care. She turned toward the bonfire. The light from the fire illuminated the happy, smiling faces of the students as they partied, danced, and sang. She could see them all: Brody, Savannah, T.J., Frank, Steve, Pri and the others, but her focus drifted toward Nan and stayed there. How could her friend be so oblivious? She was so enraptured in her new guy that she was ignoring her best friend. At that moment, Mina was filled with resentment toward them all and jealousy toward her friend.
“I wish it would rain.” Mina mumbled under her breath, “then they would all leave and I could have my best friend back.”
Instantly, static raced through her fingers and she felt it through every inch of her body. It made the hair on the back of her arms stand on end. Clouds formed out of nothing, covering the stars and the moon. The breeze shifted on the lake, bringing a cold northern wind. The smell that precedes a thunderstorm perforated the air followed by a crack of thunder.