“Hey, Cals, I’m in here,” Harper called. Steam pooled out of the open kitchen door, blasting heat and the smell of rosemary and butternut squash through to the hallway. It was a warm and comforting scent, hearty soup and freshly baked bread, and I felt the tension in my shoulders drop. I was home.“Hi,” I shouted back, shrugging off my coat and hanging it up next to his on the hook, black faux-leather next to a worn corduroy jacket with a sherpa lining. It felt so wonderfully ordinary, to come home to a hot meal after a day at work.“How was your day?” He yelled, over the sound of running water and something bubbling on the stove. I unlaced my converse and toed them off in the hallway, kicking them to the side of the doormat, and slipped through the house into the kitchen.“It’s just improved drastically,” I grinned, shutting the door behind me, wary and w
I smoothed down the front of my blouse. It was neat and crisp, freshly ironed, but I needed something to do with my hands. I tucked my necklace under my collar, only to pull it out again moments later. It wasn’t like me to feel this nervous, this pressured. Then again, I hadn’t been feeling much like myself lately at all.I was stood on the high street, dithering outside the coffee shop. Waypavers, the wooden sign creaked overhead, swinging blithely to-and-fro in the cold breeze. To meet here had been my suggestion – it was my favourite coffee shop, after all, it had made sense to recommend it – but now, standing by the doorway, peering in, I regretted saying we should meet here.The writhing pit my stomach churned again, its vigour increasing with each passing second. I was early, albeit not by much, and I was beginning to wonder if agreeing to meet Cyrus had been a good idea, after all.Then I heard quiet, confident footsteps behind me. I wanted to turn, to ogle, but I made myself fa
I couldn’t help but feel worried about seeing Harper as we sat down together, tucked into a cosy nook at the far end of the coffee shop. There was a towering lamp beside us, casting strange shadows across Cyrus’s face. He’d carried our drinks over, and I got the feeling that he enjoyed playing the part of the gentleman.Whether he truly was or not was another question entirely, and one that I doubted I’d find the answer to today.“So, Callie,” he said, taking a small, careful sip from his white mug. His teeth chinked against the ceramic, and he winced before putting it back down. Then he turned the full force of his bright-blue gaze on me, and I felt a tremble in the pit of my stomach. He was handsome; it was undeniable, a fact.“Yes?” I squeaked, and berated myself for it immediately.He smiled, and the fluttering in my core only increased. &ldqu
“It doesn’t make any sense,” I said, cracking my knuckles. I needed something to do with my hands.My Paps shrugged, and then gave me a friendly nudge with his elbow. “Think about it, Cals. She could’ve talked.”“So you think they just took her?” I frowned, digging the toe of my boot against the floorboards.We were gathered in one of our favourite meeting spots – the town hall. Most of the time we hired it for training sessions, under the guise of martial arts lessons or dance practice, but it was also a useful meeting place for important discussions. If it was something small, we’d squeeze into one of our houses, but Bethan’s disappearance called for something a little bigger.All of the Seafall District hunters were present, hovering around the edge of the room and waiting for the meeting to officially start. Beau, a lean blac
I wrung my hands together nervously as I waited for Cyrus. I felt silly for being so on edge – so excited – so I forcibly dropped my hands and held them limp at my sides. That felt unnatural, so I leant against the trunk of a nearby tree. But the tree was further from me than I’d expected, so I stumbled, my arms swinging, until the palm of my bare hand made contact and scraped down the frosty, rough bark.There was a snicker from behind me, and I yanked myself upright. I sucked in a lungful of bitterly cold air, and a blush crept up a neck as I turned to look back.Cyrus, cool as ever, was leant against the old stone wall of the crumbling bank. It had been an independent bank for years, but, hard as the locals had tried to keep it, it had eventually succumbed to a pay out from a chain. This particular wall had become infamous within the Seafall community, as groups of protestors would spray this area of stone &ndas
It was easier to focus with a drink in my hand. I watched Cyrus keenly as he took his first sip – whiskey, neat – and he swallowed, though with a grimace at the heat in his throat, as easily as any human. Good – I wouldn’t have been able to look myself in the eye again if I’d started to develop a crush on a vampire.It was quiet in the pub. Only the regulars were in here: old men nursing a beer or cider, and a couple of builders stood by the slot machines. There was a low murmur of sound, the clatter of loose change and the brushing of pages of today’s newspaper. A group of teenagers sat chatting on the far side of the room, picking at their lunches and flicking through their homework.I took a sip of my cider. Cyrus had been surprised by my choice – he’d been poised to order me a white wine – but I’d grown up in the countryside, and I’d never been a huge fan of wine. It taste
I wiped my hands on my red apron. My cut was stinging and itching, which I hoped were signs that it was starting to heal in earnest. Harper had slapped my hand away when it had begun to scab at the edges, and threatened to wind a big bandage around my head to keep my picking fingers away.I usually felt as though my time at the diner was made up of blocks that I marked off as empty in my brain. Sometimes I’d try to pass the hours by thinking about new hunting strategies, but for the most part I let my body glide around on autopilot until I could finally clock out.If Grace was in, as she was tonight, the time would pass much quicker. It also didn’t feel quite so wasted – between the gossip and the giggles, my time behind the counter felt meaningful, in a way that it didn’t when the newer staff, or less friendly servers, were in.Grace tossed her long, blonde plait over her shoulder. She watc
Harper grinned at me as Grace and I filed out from the back room. I smoothed down my apron, wanting something to do with my hands. I smiled back at him nervously, glancing at his soft, brown eyes for only a second before my own eyes started darting around the room, trying to find Cyrus.Being unable to spot him filled me with conflicting emotions. Was it good or bad, better or worse, that I couldn’t see him easily?I decided that, for the time being, at least, I would push him out of my mind. He was just a customer, and Harper, sweet, gentle Harper, was sat at the bar, leaning heavily across the counter and waiting for me to say something to him.“Hi,” I said.Harper frowned, standing immediately and reaching for me. “Are you okay, Cals?”“She’s been like this all day,” Grace chipped in, shaking her head at me.&n