I was going to gouge her eyes with my short bitten nails. "He wouldn't dare," I professed barely keeping my cool.

She pursed her sultry cherry lips. "Hmm. Not yet, but he will. They always do." Leaning in close to my ear, she whispered. "I'm on to you freak." Spinning on her stiletto heels, she walked away like she owned the runway, leaving me gaping after her. Steaming. Pulsing. Radiating fury.

"b.i.t.c.h," I muttered under my breath. A crack of thunder split open outside with a violent wall-shaking-sound.

I jumped.

Apparently, I even scared myself. There was a hum simmering under my skin, not at all satisfied that it hadn't been unable to unleash its full wrath on the beast. Pulling it back in was much harder than summoning it had been.

Taking a shaky breath, I couldn't help but wonder if I would ever get used to this weathercasting. Worse yet, I let Rianne get to me. She wanted nothing more than to hurt me. That and probably call me out for being something unnatural. Unease snaked around my belly as I thought about her finding out what I really was.

Utterly terrifying.

The more I pondered over the idea, the more enraged I became. Dark thoughts floated through my head. She was really no match for me. I had the kind of power to destroy her, to silence her verbal a.s.saults. Tendrils of shadowy magic coursed through my blood. It wasn't the heady kind, but more addictive like ecstasy. It enticed me to strike out. Now, while I still had the back of Rianne and her groupie's in sight.

"Brianna."

Hearing my name, I whirled around. The edge of power still glowing in my violet eyes, I could feel them radiating.

Tori stood in front of me, watching me curiously. She looked like one of those private school brats gone wild, dressed in a plaid skirt, black knee highs and a tied white b.u.t.ton up. Seeing the look of confusion on Tori's face, like she didn't recognized me, popped me out of the eerie power trip I'd been strolling down.

"Are you okay?" she asked. "You look ready to commit murder."

Sadly that was almost how I had felt. I nodded. "Rianne." She must have found about my falling out with Gavin. It was the only explanation I could come up with for her lurid suggestions, that or it was just her nature.

The one word was enough for Tori to understand why I was upset. "What a b.i.t.c.h. Someone really needs to put her in her place for once."

Hmm... I had been thinking the same thing, but much more violently.

And that scared me.

Who knew what I would do next.

Sophie caught me at the end of lunch after everyone had left. I had been unusually quiet and by the look on Sophie's beautiful face she knew what was nagging me. Well at least part of it. What she probably didn't know was that I was more worried about my almost actions than I was at Rianne insulting me.

She shifted her books under her arm. "By the way, I heard what Rianne's been saying about you and Gavin. It's not true," Sophie said, her all too perceptive blue eyes studying me. I could only image what my aura revealed.

G.o.d rumors could be ugly and spread faster than the chicken pox. I shrugged trying to downplay what I was really feeling. Mortified. It was just another snag in my grand scheme of problems. "Yeah well she is Satan's sp.a.w.n. If she isn't spewing verbal diarrhea about someone, her life would be useless. Better me than one of my friends."

"That's not alright," she argued. Tiny blue flames sparked into her eyes.

When was life fair? "It's no big deal."

"I don't think Gavin would agree," she threw out there.

"Sophie," I growled. "Don't even think about it." The last thing I needed was for him to go all macho like he had that night in Wilmington. Nothing good would come of it, I was certain. The warning bell rang overhead cutting our talk short. "I've got to get to cla.s.s. Just drop it. For now," I added when she didn't appear convinced that was the best solution.

"For now," she agreed. "But I am telling you, it would better if he heard about it from you than the grapevine."

And that wouldn't be a problem if I could get the guy to acknowledge me. Or show up to a cla.s.s. She had a point though, I didn't want to put anything between us again, and most certainly not Rianne.

She put a soft hand on my arm. "Brianna you need to talk to him. And I don't mean just about the Rianne thing. He hasn't been himself. I'm worried about him. We all are. His aura has been dark, filled with jealousy and hurt. I think you are the only one who can break through to him. I am afraid of what he might do."

Every line in her face showed her concern and that concern cut straight through me. My stomach sunk all the way to my toes, and anxiety buzzed inside.

Nodding, I agreed, "I'll try again."

I needed to talk to him, even if I had to use unusual methods.

At the end of school I was kidnapped by Tori and Austin. Well not exactly kidnapped, but more like taken hostage for a girl's night.

Looping his arm through mine, Austin gave me his million dollar smile. "Babygirl you are in need of some serious cheer. We got just what you need."

Tori mirrored his action on the other side of me, securing me in their clutches and leading me to the parking lot. "Something to get your mind off Gavin."

"Off boys in general," Austin piped in.

I laid my head on his shoulder. He smelled like Georgio Armani. What were best friends for? Mine apparently thought I needed some kind of intervention. They were probably right. I had been mopping around for far too long.

Rolling my eyes, I could only imagine too well what these two conjured up as cheer. Someone shoot me now. "Guys I appreciate"

"Nope," Austin cut me off. "We are simply not taking no."

Oh Lord. They were after all just trying to help. "Fine," I muttered, managing a small grin.

"h.e.l.l yes!" Tori screeched.

I scrunched my nose. "That was my eardrum you just erupted." I guess I could always seek Gavin out tomorrow. How could I say no to Beavis and b.u.t.thead?

Chapter 11.

SHUFFLING INTO TORI'S LITTLE VOLKSWAGON beetle, complete with eyelashes on the headlights, I prayed they weren't taking me to some underground rave. Or worse, a nudie joint. With these two you just didn't know what you were getting yourself into.

I guess that was part of the appeal.

Cranking the radio, the three of us, like silly dorks, sang at the top of our lungs, and banged our heads to the beat of some indie punk rock band. An elderly couple in the car beside us shook their heads in disgust.

We busted out laughing.

I needed this. A night out with my besties. There weren't two other people in the world that could drag me against my will in some outlandish scheme and I actually enjoy myself.

"I've been thinking about dying my hair turquoise," Tori stated, fussing with her long caramel strands. Tori driving with only one hand was dangerous. She needed to keep both hands at ten and two.

I tried to ignore the fact that her front tire just skimmed over the yellow line. "Seriously?" I asked with a tad too much judgment.

"Sure, why not?" she shot back, overcorrecting the little car. It tossed me to the other side of seat.

I frowned at her in the rearview mirror.

Austin turned in his seat towards us. "I say go for it. I am all about freedom of will, be who you are, and all that blah, blah, blah."

I hit him from the backseat. "Knock it off. Don't you dare encourage her. You know that she will do it."

He smirked. "Isn't that the point? Besides, she would look posh in turquoise. It would compliment her complexion."

I groaned in the back, thumping myself on the head. "Great," I muttered. "Next she is going to be covered from head-to-toe in pierces and run off with a drummer from Oz."

"Whatever you say Mother Goose," Austin smirked.

I glared at him. "Funny." How he could even think with all that gel in his hair was beyond my comprehension. There should be some kind of ban for overuse of hair products.

"I live to entertain," he said, grinning over his shoulder.

Five minutes later, my destination revealed itself.

They had hijacked me to the zoo, and I actually embarra.s.sed myself by getting a little misty. My emotions today were on overdrive, and it wasn't even that time of the month.

The zoo was in every childhood memory I had of Tori and Austin. For as long as I could remember, we'd spent multiple days of our summer vacation at the zoo.

Stepping through the iron gates with Tori on one side and Austin on the other was like traveling back in time. It had been so long since the three of us had been here. Too long.

"You guys, this is awesome. Seriously." I couldn't help but think that life before boy troubles had been so much simpler.

"B, you know you can count on us to pull you out of your boyfriend blues," Tori vowed, pushing her light brown waves out of her face. Stopping, the three of us stood in a circle just inside. "Let's make a pact. Today there will be no mentioning of boys. Period. Just us," she spread out her long arms. "And the wildlife."

On cue a vivacious roar ripped over the ma.s.sive grounds.

"Deal," Austin and I echoed grinning.

I eyed Austin in his Michael Kors jeans and Dior shoes. "Are you sure you are dressed appropriate for the zoo?"

"Please." His hand touched the top of his dark head. "Don't you think animals appreciate quality too?" The lens of his round gla.s.ses glinted of the slowing fading sun.

He really was something else a one in a million. And that was putting it nicely.

We leisurely strolled from exhibit to exhibit talking about nonsense, laughing at the animals, but mostly ourselves. I was having the time of my life, and I hardly thought of Gavin. Well just a little.

Venturing into the snake house I got the w.i.l.l.i.e.s, as usual. It had nothing to do with anything unnatural, just my aversion for creepy, scaly, slithering things. They freaked me out.

"G.o.d. This place still gives me the creeps," Tori said.

Amen sister.

There was this huge python that just stared at us through the gla.s.s and I couldn't help but think of Harry Potter. As cliche as it sounded, I wondered... Being a witch myself, could I speak in different tongues?

Hey it was worth a shot.

Staring intently at the colorful python, I tried to look inconspicuous. Minutes past.

Nothing. Dead silence.

"What are you doing?" Austin asked.

Breaking off my concentration, I looked at them. They were both eyeing me with twin smirks. "Nothing," I muttered, casting my gaze to the ground.

"BS," he called me out. "You were wondering the same thing we were. Maybe I could speak pa.r.s.eltongue."

My violet eyes widened. Holy s.h.i.t.

"Admit it."

I glanced to Tori. She nodded her perky head grinning. "Yep."

I grinned back. "I will admit to no such thing."

"Liar," Austin said b.u.mping my shoulder with his.

"I guess you'll never know." It drove them bonkers when I withheld anything, even something as stupid as talking to a python, which I couldn't do.

My mind leaped swiftly from Harry Potter to Gavin and my smile slowly faded.

"I know we said we wouldn't, but you are my best friend B. So I have to ask. Do I need to kick Gavin's glorious a.s.s?" Tori volunteered, reading the crestfallen expression glittering in my eyes.

A short laugh escaped my lips at the image of Tori going up against a witch, her with her designer jeans and manicured nails. She meant well. "I wouldn't go that far," I a.s.sured, leaning against a railing.

Her hands went to her hips. "It's oblivious he hurt you, and in my book, that calls for a good a.s.s whooping."

"So this fight is pretty serious?" Austin asked his face sobering.

"Serious enough for douche to skip school. What?" Tori asked when Austin poked her in the ribs and I scowled in her direction. "He hurt you. Anyone who causes you pain is automatically a douche. It's like girl code. B, you couldn't hurt a fly."

"Tori, I am not a saint. Trust me. This isn't his fault." That belonged mostly on my shoulders.

Austin put his arm around me. "Whatever it is Babygirl, we still love you. That will never change."

I was counting on it. When and if they found out my secret, I was really counting on that devotion.