And Coach Bauer so pale and tight-lipped, head bowed, sitting by himself in the last row of the church. I watched him during the service.

He never looked up. Was he thinking about Marjory, his wife? Was he thinking that in her hunger she had murdered Bree?

And Breeas mother, her cries echoing off the church walls. aWhy? Why did this happen?

Somebody tell me!a she screamed. She collapsed 144.

beside the casket and had to be helped away.

And as the minister spoke, the sobs in the room drowned out the organ musica .

The rain stopped, but drops still fell from the trees. Destiny crossed the street and, running hard, made her way into the park. Her shoes splashed up waves of water from the puddled ground. Behind her, a car horn honked, but she didnat turn around.

I want to run till Iam exhausted. I want to run till I canat think anymore.

But the cool wet air made her more alert, made her thoughts clearer, sharper. The soft thuds of her steps rang in her ears. But she could also hear the scamper of rabbits and squirrels under the trees. She could hear the trickle of water in Drake Creek, the shallow bed of brown water on the far side of the park. She heard a chipmunkas light footsteps as it burrowed through the wet grass.

Destiny pressed her hands over her ears.

I canat stand this. I have to get my life back.

aHello.a A young man stepped out from behind a tree.

aOh!a Destiny cried out.

He had a warm smile. aIam so sorry. I didnat 145.

mean to startle you.a Destiny squinted at him. Iave seen him before. Where have I seen him?

He wore a long black trench coat open over a tan sweater and tan slacks. His wavy black hair was slicked straight back.

aI love walking here,a he said. aItas so peaceful.a He had a slight foreign accent.

Destiny nodded. aYeah. No one uses this park much.a He came closer. He stared into her eyes without blinking. aDo you live nearby?a Destiny motioned with her head. aA few blocks.a Is he nearsighted? Why the intense stare?

aIam new here,a he said. aI just moved a few weeks ago.a Destiny shoved her hands into the pockets of her rain slicker. aDo you like it here?a A smile spread over his handsome face.

aOh, yes. Very much. And Iam going to like it a lot more in just a few weeks.a Destiny blinked. aA few weeks?a He nodded. He kept his intense gaze on her as he stepped closer.

Heas starting to creep me out, she decided.

146.

Heas really good-looking, but thereas something about him a aIave gotta go,a she said.

But he grabbed her by the shoulders and held her in place. aDonat go, Laura. I donat want you to leave.a His eyes burned into hers.

Destiny gazed into them, unable to look away.

aWaiting is so hard for me,a he said. aI watch the moon every night, and I think about you. I think about us and how happy weall be in a few weeks.a Destiny heard the trickle of the creek and the rustle of the leaves in the trees. But she couldnat hear his words. What was he saying to her?

He pulled her to him and pressed his face against hers. aHaving you so close to me, Laura a I can hardly bear it.a His face felt cold against her cheek. She struggled to hear what he was saying. But it was lost in a steady rush of wind.

aIam going to stay close to you,a he whis- pered, his dry lips brushing her ear. aIall be where I can see you every day. And when the time comes a when the time comes, my love, 147.

you will come to me. You will come to me and drink my blood. Then you will be mine forever.a The trees with their fading leaves tilted and swayed above Destinyas head. She felt so dizzy, so weak.

aIam sorry. I canat resist any longer,a he whispered. He pulled back his head, his black eyes glowing.

Destiny struggled to look away. But she couldnat turn. She couldnat move. His eyes were black tunnels, endless, leading nowhere.

He pulled open her rain slicker. He tugged down the neck of her sweatshirt. His mouth opened to reveal curled, yellowed fangs.

aCanat wait any longer a canat wait.a He lowered his head.

Destiny felt a pinprick of pain at her throat.

She couldnat move, couldnat breathe. Her eyes were as clouded as the sky. But she could see his dark, curly hair beneath her chin a see his head bob up and down at her throat as he drank a drank a drank.

148.

Chapter Twenty-Two.

aYou Didnat Like Breea aWhatas up?a Livvy turned away from the makeup mirror on her dressing table as Destiny entered their room. aWhereave you been?a aDrake Park,a Destiny said. She pulled off the yellow rain slicker and tossed it onto her bed. Her arms and legs ached. She felt so weary.

aI went for a run.a Livvy squinted at her. aIn the rain?a Destiny sat down on the bed and pulled off her wet, muddy sneakers. aI just had to get some fresh air. How are you doing?a Livvy shoved tubes and jars of makeup away. aNot great. I canat stop thinking about Bree. I just canat get my mind off her.a Destiny crossed the room and put her hands on her sisteras shoulders. aItas hard. I think about her too. I guess it will just take time.a Livvyas expression turned cold. aYou never liked her.a 149.

aHuh?a aI know you didnat. You thought she was a bad influence. Because she was so a different.

She always did what she wanted to. She didnat care what people thought of her.a Livvyas eyes locked on Destiny. aYou thought she was slutty. You thought she was cheapa"didnat you! You hated it because I started spending more time with her.a aLivvy, listen. I didnata"a The words caught in Destinyas throat.

aIt was so obvious how much you resented Bree.a aListen to me,a Destiny shouted. aBeing angry at me isnat going to help. I know youare angry that your friend is dead. But taking it out on me isnat going to bring her back. You and I, we have toa"a aWhatas that?a Livvy interrupted. She raised a finger to Destinyas throat. aYouare bleeding.a aWhat?a Destiny leaned into the mirror.

aOh, no.a Her heart started to pound as she stared at the two red droplets of blood on her throat. Livvy handed her a tissue, and she wiped the blood away.

150.

And now Destiny stared at the two red marks, the tiny cuts in her skin. Fresh red cuts.

Livvy jumped to her feet and angrily shook Destiny. aI knew youave been keeping secrets from me. You didnat go for a run. Where have you been? Tell me the truth. What were you doing?a aI a donat know,a Destiny stammered.

aTell me how this happened,a Livvy demanded.

Destiny stared in horror at her reflection. aI canat. I canat explain it, Liv. I did go for a run anda"a aItas not true!a Livvy cried. aYouare doing something. Youare doing something and not telling me!a aLivvy, listen to me. Please!a Livvyas hands were balled into tight fists.

aNo! You listen to me. I believe what you said, that you didnat kill Bree. But you were there, Dee.

You were right there where she was murdered, and you had no reason to be. And now a you come home with bite marks on your throat. And you wonat tell me the truth about it.a aI donat know the truth!a Destiny cried.

aYes, you do! What are you doing? What are you doing? a 151.

Destiny reached to hug her sister, but Livvy pulled away. aYouare hysterical. Youare not thinking clearly!a Destiny cried. aYou have to believe me. Iam not doing anything behind your back, Liv. Iam in the same mess youare in anda"a aYou didnat lose your best friend,a Livvy said through clenched teeth. She slammed her fist on the dressing table, sending tubes and bottles flying. Then she spun away and stomped down the stairs, slamming the front door behind her.

Destiny leaned close to the mirror and stud- ied the fresh marks on her neck. Her hand trembled as she rubbed a finger over them. Her whole body shook.

aLivvy, donat leave me now,a she whispered.

aI need you more than ever.a The doorbell rang.

152.

Chapter Twenty-Three.

A Death in the Family Destiny hurried down to the front door and pulled it open. aRossa"hi!a She realized she had her hand over the fresh red wounds. She lowered it slowly, adjusting the top of her sweatshirt.

Ross stepped into the house. He wore a blue- and-red Red Sox jacket over faded jeans. aHowas it going, Dee?a aNot great. How about you?a aAbout the same. Hold still.a Ross reached out and pulled something from her hair. He showed it to hera"a curled, wet leaf.

aI was running. In the park,a she said, smoothing back her hair. aYou know. To get some fresh air. Time to think.a He nodded. aFletch and I got a basketball game together at the playground this morning just to take our minds off things. We played in the rain. We didnat care.a 153.

She led him into the kitchen. aWhatas up?a He pulled up a kitchen stool. aI was over at Courtneyas. She had to leave for her tennis lesson.a She poured out two glasses of orange juice and handed him one. aI talked to Courtney this morning. You know how scared she gets at Arias movies. Now she says sheas terrified to leave her house at night.a aYeah. I tried to cheer her up.a He took a long drink.

aCourtney has always been such a scaredy- cat. Remember when we were little and a bunch of us went behind her garage and made scary noises and howls, and we convinced her that her garage was haunted? And for weeks, she was too terrified to go in it and get her bike?a aThat was before I moved here,a Ross said.

aHow come you were all so mean to Courtney?a Destiny shrugged. aKids are mean, I guess.

And Courtney was always such a good victim.a The word victim hung in the air between them. Destiny wished she hadnat said it. She sighed. aSchool starts on Monday. Itas our big-deal senior year. No one feels like going.a aDid you see the paper this morning?

154.

Theyare calling the guy who murdered Bree the Vampire Killer. Because her blood was totally drained. The police say itas some kind of sick maniac.a Destiny blinked. Sick maniac. She rubbed a finger over the tiny wound on her throat. Sick maniac.

Did the same sick maniac bite me? Does he plan to kill me too? Why canat I remember?

Why?

aSo they donat think itas a virus anymore?a Destiny asked, struggling to clear her head.

aNo,a Ross replied. aThey dropped the virus story. They think itas some twisted sicko who started with animals and now has moved on to people.a Destiny nodded, trying not to reveal her fear.

aI heard there might be a curfew in town,a Ross continued. aEveryone has to be inside by ten oaclock.a aMaybe theyall catch the guy,a Destiny said softly.

aMaybe itas a real vampire,a Ross said, spin- ning the glass between his hands.

She stared at him. aNow you sound like Ari.a aAri could be right about this. No joke. But 155.

if itas a real vampire, there are people in town ready to deal with him.a Destiny narrowed her eyes at Ross. aYou mean a the hunters?a His eyes widened. aYouave heard of them?a Destiny moved closer to him. aWhat do you know about them?a Ross shrugged. A strange smile crossed his face. aNothing, really. Just rumors.a aRoss, have you ever heard of the Re- storer?a Destiny blurted out.

He finished his orange juice. aRestorer? You mean paint restorer or something?a aNo. The Restorer has something to do with vampires.a She looked at him eagerly.

Pleasea"know something.

Ross shook his head. aNo. I never heard of that.a He studied her. aHow come youare asking about that?a She could feel herself blushing. aItas just something Ari was talking about.a Ross raised his eyes to the hallway. aIs your dad home? I actually came to see him.a aDad?a Destiny couldnat keep the surprise from her voice. aDadas at his office. Heas been working six days a week. But he said head be 156.

home early today. If you want to wait.a aWell aa aWhyad you want to see Dad?a Ross scratched his short hair. aMy dog is sick. I wanted to ask him about it.a aSparky? Whatas wrong with him?a Ross hesitated. aI donat know really. Heas throwing up and stuff.a Destiny studied him. He seemed so uncom- fortable, not like Ross at all. She had a strong feeling he was lying about the dog. But why would he lie?

aThink heall be home soon?a he asked.

Destiny nodded. aYou can help me with a project while you wait.a aProject?a aI convinced Dad the garage needs to be painted. Heas been in such a daze, the whole house is falling apart. Iam trying to snap him out of it. So, he said head paint the garage if I drag everything out and pile it on the side of the house. You can help me.a Ross rolled his eyes. aSounds awesome.a aOh, come on. It wonat take long.a She pulled him out to the garage.

They started with the bikes and gardening 157.

equipment. Then Ross dragged out heavy bags of peat moss and planting soil. They talked about friends and school starting and the summer, and carefully avoided mentioning Bree.

Heas such a great guy, Destiny thought. I like him so much. She pictured him with his arms around her a kissing her.

aYouare so different from your sister,a Ross said. His cheeks turned pink. They were carry- ing out Mikeyas bike and a bright-yellow plastic Mercedes that he pedaled around in when he was three.

aDifferent? How do you mean?a Destiny asked.

Before Ross could answer, a voice called from the garage door. aHey, you two, whatas up?a Rossas eyes went wide. aLivvy, hi.a Livvy wore a blue vest and a tight, cropped pink-and-blue T-shirt and a pair of low-slung jeans. She ignored Destiny. Her eyes were on Ross. aWhy are you cleaning out the garage?

You moving in?a He set down the carton head been carrying.

aDestiny asked me to help.a aI think Dad asked you to help too,a Destiny said to Livvy. She didnat mean to sound so shrill, 158.

but she was unhappy that Livvy had barged in just when she and Ross were starting to really talk.

Livvy walked over to Ross and pulled a clump of dust off his shoulder. She gave him a sexy smile. aWant to take a little break?a Ross turned back to Destiny. aWe got a pretty good start.a Destiny nodded. aYeah, thanks. It was really nice of you to help out.a Livvy pulled him out the door and to the side of the garage. Destiny heard them giggling about something. She decided to take a break too. Brushing off the front of her jeans, she started toward the house.

She pretended she didnat see Livvy and Ross. Livvy had him backed against the garage wall. His arms were around her waist. Her hands were pressed against his cheeks, her head was tilted to one side, and she was kissing him, a long, passionate kiss.

Destiny turned away and ran into the house.

Livvy and Ross remained at the side of the garage for about half an hour. From the kitchen 159.

window Destiny watched Ross leave. Then she grabbed Livvy as she entered the kitchen. aYou and I have to talk.a Livvy glared at her. aCan I get something to drink first?a Livvy grabbed a can of iced tea from the fridge, popped the top, took a long drink, then followed Destiny up the stairs to their room.