Blood Kisses, Amber Marshall-Nichols [summer reading list txt] 📗

and it hurled towards us, creating an easier job for mum and me. There was nothing easier than facing a component who didn’t think you would fight back. Mum and I looked up at the bear just before it struck, then ran around the back of it’s silhouette just as it’s paws slashed thin air, the air where mum and I should’ve been stood and cut. The bear stopped, confused and snarled then looked frantically around him. As he turned mum and I looked at one another before we lunged at his stomach. As I injected my fangs in to his flesh mum climbed up him to snap his neck. The bear collapsed on to his back releasing a slow, agonised cry which echoed through the woods before it died as he did. Mum grinned at me as she picked herself up from the grass beside his body then joined me at the rear of the animal. I gave her one simple nod, and then we began to indulge in the final catch of our hunt.

Chapter 3

,
I felt massively refreshed after the hunting trip; it seemed the perfect time to get away. But I couldn’t stay away from the problems at home forever. I’d been dreading my return before we’d even arrived in Canada, School would start, Toby would be waiting and the full moon was eight days away. I didn’t want to kill any more humans. I didn’t want to be locked up with the rest of the vampires in a stuffy lodge going out of my mind for being deprived of what I needed. I guess there were a lot of things I didn’t want or like.
As soon as mum and I walked in to our large empty home, three loud rings escaped our telephone. I laughed and raced to answer it; mum followed and swung herself up so to sit on the kitchen counter.
“Hello,” I breathed
“Anya! It’s you! Your here! I have so much to tell you...”
“Here we go,” I braced myself.
“I hate it when you go out of town for these hunting trips! You miss so much! Why didn’t you ring me as soon as you got in?” she demanded.
“Well you beat me to the punch,” I laughed.
“Oh, Oh my god Anya there’s a new guy in town, and he is H-A-W-T! He’s been beat up pretty bad already though, poor kid, I swear the blokes in this town can’t keep their fists in Judie!” I bit my lip. I was hoping to forget about Josh. “My mum was giving him stitches when I went to see her for some cash, so I went on in and saw him like S-W-O-O-N! My god, and Blair - her aunt’s been put in a mental hospital! Like whoosh, off the rails, and she was so nice! She got put in there for trying to sleep in a Morison’s shopping trolley!” she raged on, babbling now. Mum matched my plain expression. This was the comfort of home, my nuts gossiping friend (Lucy Loon) to whom any news was fatal. “Oh,” she paused. “And you missed two major break ups!”
“Really who?” I asked propping the phone between my shoulder and ear before kicking off my sandals.
“Well first, Jack and Emma that was the most drastic! I heard Jack CRIED! I mean seriously brawled his blue eyes out. She’s blaming the whole thing on Keera and Rihanne. Rihanne was apparently seeing Jack on the side and liked Keera that bit too much before that! But I’ve seen him with both of them, I think Keera get’s on his nerves and well Rihanne... is blatantly smitten but he just likes to mess with her head you know? SO anyway Emma broke up with him, which is ridiculous considering how much slack she gave Keera because of their friendship before I mean, GOD!”
“What actually happened then?” I said finally getting my say.
“They had a massive show down at Louisiana Park, Jack made one sarcastic comment and it was over, quite sad really,”
“Well that’s...” I struggled for words, I actually was majorly surprised. They’d been together since they were about ten years old!
“Twelve,” Lucy corrected.
“Did I say that out loud?” I frowned.
“Na, I was just thinking that and figured you’d be thinking the same,”
“Oh, So twelve? That’s four years; this year would be their fifth! That’s...”
“Unexpected?”
“Totally,” I agreed.
“Yeah well the second one, no one saw coming!”
“Go on then, spill the beans,” I gave mum a wave to let her know I was going to my room then headed for the stairs.
“Well it’s Toby and...”
“Toby who?” I wondered aloud as I halted at the foot of the stairs, a lump building in my throat.
“Your Toby,” she laughed down the receiver at me.
“I wasn’t aware he was dating anyone,” I muttered.
“Well he’s not now,” she laughed again. “But yeah, that’s the thing, no one did! It was all secret, four months and they told no one! Toby ended for another girl, no one knows who it is though, but apparently they’ got back together anyway, but rumours, I reckon it’s ended for good,”
“What was her name?” I spat tightening my jaw.
“Her name was Trisha Parker, the two T’s,”
“I don’t know her,”
“I think they go to college together,” Lucy said.
“Oh,”
“So anyway, the new kid Josh kept on poking his nose in claiming that YOU were the girl, I mean YOU, is he off his teapot? The two of you would have travelled that road a long time ago, and how would he...”
“It is me,” I sighed.
“Know, I mean have you even met yet, it’s all so, wait... did you just say it’s you?” she squeaked. I blinked un-necessarily.
“Anya, you okay? You’re not breathing?”
“I don’t need to Lu,”
“Oh right, I forget sometimes. So it’s you?” she asked eager but trying to sound casual.
“It’s a long complicated story, that’s what,”
“Le mange? Let’s say twenty minutes?”
“Sounds good,”
“Okay see you in a few,”
“Will do,” I tried to sound enthused but drastically failed coming out with a whisper. Lucy wasn’t fused.
“An...”
“Yes?”
“Luc de loop!” she sang.
“Annie can kan!” I laughed.
“Cheer up, I’ve missed you,”
“You too,” I said, and then the line went dead.

Twenty five minutes later I found myself sitting alone in Le Mange cafe, a scolding hot chocolate perched between my icy palms, topped with walnuts, whipped cream and sprinkles. Lucy was late, as usual. I had a window seat and could see everything both ends of the street. No lanky yet slender tanned legs were travelling towards me. I dialled her mobile number, allowing it to ring a good thirteen chimes before I axed off the call. I waited another ten minutes by which time the hot drink was Luke warm, then decided to leave.
I pulled myself away from the tiny table and tossed some change down before I shout out the door. I vaguely heard a waitress yell ‘Thanks,”
I started to run down the sidewalk, I had to remind myself to slow down, I was going such a slow pace I felt like I were walking. People still stared in amazement as I raced past. I was heading south, the shortest route to Lucy’s house. Luckily Lucy didn’t live the beach end of Exmouth so there was more of a chance that I would cross her than if she were chasing me.
I could only imagine her now, power walking down the street. She wouldn’t be running that’s for sure, certainly not in stilettos. In the end, I did in fact pass her on the street. I skidded to a stop at the sight of her long black hair. She was sitting on the floor by a grate looking as though she wanted to both laugh and cry. She looked up as though she sensed my presence. It was like she could smell me!
“Anya! Oh my,” Lucy was currently sitting beside a drain, a drain to which her shoe was stuck in. The contents of her bag were spilled on to the pavement and her crystal white dress was speckled with dirt. A lad was attempting to remove the shoe without snapping the heel. I could only imagine Lucy now posed as a damsel in distress. “Someone save my shoe!”
I walked around the two of them to stand behind the boy and face her. His body turned rigid.
“What are we going to do with you?” I teased grinning like a pooping baby.
“My shoe got stuck,”
“I can see that,” I giggled.
“I was late,” she added running a hand through her bush of hair.
“Figures,” I laughed again.
“Anyway this is...” I began to extend a hand as though to offer it but snatched it back at the sound of his voce.
“She knows who I am,” Josh said turning to face me. The familiar green eyes bedazzled me. His mouth was set in a hard line.
“Oh so you DO know each other?” Lucy chimed grinning from one to the other. We both must have shot her the same look as the smile soon washed from her face and was replaced with one that was very intimidated. She looked frightened; maybe I’d released too much vampire. “Part of the story?” she whispered. I nodded. Before she could respond a popping sound rose from the grate and her ankle was free. Lucy practically jumped on Joshua in delight.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” she cried pecking him on the cheek.
“Sure,” he laughed brushing the hair from his eyes.
“We’re getting a hot chocolate in a bit,” she informed him. “Do you want...” she began to ask cautiously. I shot her another look to imply a DO IT AND DIE sentence. “Or...”
“No, no,” said Josh too quickly. “I won’t interrupt your girly afternoon,” he said casually offering Lucy a hand up.
“Oh dear,” she sighed melodramatically, really like a damsel in distress. “Look at my dress,” the agony in her voice was rather hilarious and I had to cough away my laughter. She smoothed down the ivy green dress made of silk- that clung to her body perfectly a good six times before she sighed an “Oh well,”
“It’s not... that bad?” I lied.
“It is!” She groaned. I shouldn’t have said anything. “I’ll have to go home!”
“Oh no missus, I would like to spend some time with you, and I can’t be out late this week,” I trailed off.
“What why?” I just looked at her. “Oh right,”
“Well you’re in town,” said Josh shrugging. “Why don’t you buy something? Girls blow cash all the time right?” he suggested. Lucy liked that idea. She liked it a lot. I saw her little face light up as he spoke the magic words. Lucy grabbed my hand and began to drag me towards Top Shop; she sneaked a look behind her where Josh stood hands in her pockets before calling a giddy “Thanks a bunch,”

“Well that was...”
“An unfashionably version of late?”
“Umm, yes good conception,” I laughed.
“Never mind that,” said Lucy slipping a yellow tank top over her head. “Spill,” she ordered.
“Well...” I put off as she tossed the yellow top in my direction as if to ask ‘hang these up for me’. “It’s...”
“A long story? Hard to explain?”
“Yeah,” I sighed.
“Isn’t everything in your life?”
“Melodramatic?”
“Sorry, I’m growing impatient,”
“For news or a nice shirt?”
“Both,”
“Well I liked the yellow one,” She rolled her eyes.
“How many long stories have I made you sit