What had I done? I closed my eyes trying to shut out Jamie's shocked image. He'd looked at me in fear, as if I was some crazed maniac trying to hurt him. I'd scared him with my actions. I'd attacked him; it was as simple as that.

His face had been pale, gaunt looking. Sucked dry, was the phrase that immediately came to my mind. I could still taste him on my lips, on my tongue. Like icing sugar, powdery and sweet. I remembered the pain in my stomach-hunger pains-as I feasted on his mouth. G.o.d, I had fed on him. On his energy. There had been a tingle on my lips as his life force had been drawn out of him and into me.

Tears filled my eyes. I was dangerous. I couldn't control what was happening to me. Trevor had been right. I was going to do things, bad things. And obviously to the people that were closest to me. I had hurt Jamie, my friend. What if I hadn't been able to stop? Would I have killed him? Would I have dumped him in the trash like I'd been?

I clamped my eyes tight as the tears streamed down my cheeks to drip on my pillow. Trevor said I was turning into something not human, and he was right. I'd tried to deny it, but I could feel the changes in my body, and in my thoughts. The black eyes, the floating, the sleepwalking, and now trying to suck Jamie's face off were all symptoms of the change I was going through. It was like experiencing p.u.b.erty all over again, but in extreme style.

I squeezed my thick blanket up closer to my neck, burrowing into the warmth it provided. There had to be something I could do to either stop the changes occurring or control them. I had to track down Trevor. I needed his help. But how the h.e.l.l was I going to do that?

Maybe I could just stick my head out of the window and yell for him. But I had a feeling that I was going to have to wait for him to contact me. I'd p.i.s.sed him off last time, so who knew how long it would take. It could be days or even weeks.

What other changes could take place by then? There was a lot of power swirling around in me; I could feel it nudging at me, taunting me, egging me on to do things I didn't want to. I cringed to think about the damage I could do to myself and to others in that short period of time.

Chapter 11.

For the rest of the week, I went about my business, going to school, hanging at the pool hall, going home, without any incident. I did manage to avoid Jamie though. Well, the truth was, he managed to avoid me. He did everything possible, arriving at school early, running down the halls without making eye contact, even getting a job after school, to not have to be around me.

Chloe had asked what was up with us, but I couldn't tell her the truth. It would sound way too strange, plus she had a secret crush on Jamie and it would kill her if she knew I had my lips to his, it wouldn't matter to her that it wasn't s.e.xual. Instead, I just told her we had an argument and Jamie was being an a.s.s about it. Thankfully, she believed that.

For three days, I didn't sleepwalk, stick to the ceiling, leak tar from my eyes, or suck the life out of anyone. And I had no late night or bathroom visits from Trevor. Life seemed surprisingly normal. I could almost believe that the past week and a half had been a dream. Almost.

During the down time, I did a bunch of research on incubi and cambions. There wasn't a ton of information to be had but what I did find out was that incubi and succubi were pretty much demons-demons that literally sucked the living energy from people using s.e.x. They were also related closely to nightmares. That didn't surprise me in the least with the dreams I'd been having.

I was unable to discover too much about what kind of powers incubi possessed, the information was pretty vague on anything in that area. A couple of things were listed like shape shifting, entering people's homes with invitation (sounded a lot like vampires, maybe they were related on the supernatural family tree) and they fed on s.e.xual energy, possibly causing sickness in their victims.

I didn't read anything about the things I was going through. No mention of floating, or seeing things differently, like people's auras and finding them surprisingly delicious. But maybe that shape shifting ability had something to do with how Trevor had been able to show up at my home and in the bathroom without me seeing him, and how I'd been able to go from my bedroom to downtown without thinking. The b.u.m had said I had appeared out of the shadows. Maybe I did.

I also read about a legend that likened incubi to fallen angels. By the perfect pale appearance of Thane and the rest of the band, that story didn't surprise me in the least. Every single one of them had an alluring quality that transcended simple beauty. They were completely ethereal in their darkness.

One thing I did discover that I thought was pretty cool-Merlin, the sorcerer from the Arthurian legends, was a cambion. His father was said to be an incubus. I remembered a really old movie called Excalibur that my tenth grade English teacher made us watch. It was a cool movie, what I could remember of it anyway. Merlin rocked. So, I guess if this is what I was turning into, I couldn't complain too much. It could've been worse. I could be turning into a zombie. The stench of decaying flesh would be a killer, and I imagine it would've put a big dent into my dating opportunities.

Not that I had many opportunities. They just sort of cropped up now and then, like now for instance.

I was working the till at the Starbucks close to my house-I worked here Friday nights and on the weekends-and Josh Kirby was ordering a banana chocolate blend Vivanno and asking me out all at the same time.

"You want to do what?" I fumbled his change and it rolled over the counter and dropped onto the floor.

He smiled as he bent to pick it up. After he shoved it into his jeans pocket, he repeated his question. "I want to take you out tomorrow night? Do you have plans or something?"

"No, no plans." I shook my head. "But why do you want to take me out? Me? This person?" I emphasized, pointing at my scrawny chest, now covered in a green Starbucks ap.r.o.n.

He laughed, and I found I rather liked the sound. It was deep. It reminded me of the strong warm roasted coffee I was surrounded by. Dark and rich.

"Why are you so surprised?"

I frowned at him. "Ah, h.e.l.lo, because we've gone to school together for the past two years and you haven't ever talked to me. Ever. You actually do a d.a.m.n good job of ignoring me."

"Well, I was stupid."

"And you're not now?" I couldn't stop my lips from curling into a grin.

Smiling, he shook his head. "Nope."

"Hmm, I think the verdict is still out on that one."

The lady behind Josh sniffed. "Can I order please?"

Josh glanced behind him. "Just one more minute, okay?"

The woman shook her head, clearly miffed beyond reason, but she didn't say anything else. Maybe Josh had charmed her. I know he was starting to charm me.

He c.o.c.ked his brow. "So, will you go out with me? Please."

Biting my lip, I looked at him. Really, really looked at him. I noticed he had freckles dotting the bridge of his nose, and his smile was crooked, but s.e.xy as h.e.l.l. And there was a certain spark in his gaze that I'd never seen before. He was looking at me like I was the cat's meow. Maybe this cambion thing was doing something else to me. Making me irresistible to guys. Perfect, untouchable guys like Josh.

"Yeah, why not?" I finally said.

"Awesome." He literally bounced on his feet. "I'll pick you up at say, seven thirty. What's your address?"

I wrote down my address on one of the Starbuck's business cards and slid it across the counter to Josh. Still grinning, he picked it up, glanced at it, and then slid it into his pant's pocket. "I'll see you tomorrow." He winked at me, then taking his Vivanno, he left the store.

I watched him leave, shock gluing my feet to the floor and my gaze to the door. I had a date with Josh Kirby, high school golden boy. What the heck was I going to wear?

"Can I order now?" The angry lady glared at me.

I smiled at her. Nothing could get me down now. "Sure, what would you like?"

"You have a date?" My mom's mouth gaped open, the phone cradled on her shoulder. She'd been just about to order Chinese when I informed her that I was going out.

I nodded, feeling sheepish. The way she said it, it was like she never thought I'd ever have a date. That it was an anomaly. "Don't sound so surprised."

"With who?"

"Josh Kirby."

She arched one brow and set the phone down. "Do I know him?"

"No."

"He goes to your school though, right? He's not an older guy, I hope."

"Yes, Mom, he's a senior at Boise."

I could see the relief on her face and in the way her shoulders sagged. I think she harbored this fear that I would one day run off with a much older man. Sort of like what she did when she met my father, who was seven years older than she was.

"Is he new? I've just never heard you mention him before."

I smiled and shrugged. "He's new to me."

She laughed at that.

Kyle shuffled into the kitchen to open the refrigerator door. "What's funny?"

Mom shook her head. "Nothing."

He looked from her to me, and then put his head back into the fridge. "What's for supper?"

"I'm ordering Chinese. It'll just be me and you tonight, buddy. Salem has a date."

Kyle b.u.mped his head as he pulled it out to gawk at me. "You have a date?"

I sneered at him. "Yes, I have a date. So what?"

"It's just weird, is all. I didn't think you dated."

"I've had boyfriends before."

"I know, I just don't ever remember any of them taking you out on a aedate' before." He shrugged, then went back to inspect the contents of the refrigerator.

"What time are you going out?" Mom asked.

"At six."

She glanced at the clock on the wall. "That's in an hour." She frowned at me. "You're not wearing that are you?"

I glanced down at my plain white t-shirt and dark wash jeans-about the only pair I owned that didn't have holes in them-and nodded. "Yeah. Why?"

Without a word, she grabbed my arm and pulled me down the hall to her bedroom. When I saw where she was going, I started to back peddle.

"Mom, nothing you own is going to look good on me. I hate pink. Unless its neon and has skulls on it." I collapsed on her bed and covered my face in her pillow.

"Not everything I own is pink. I was cool once too, you know."

I heard her as she opened her closet door and started to rummage through the hangers. The snap of plastic hangers being pushed to the side one by one echoed around the room.

Finally, she must've found something decent, because it landed on my back. She must've thrown it at me.

"Try that on."

Reaching around, I pulled the silky blouse off my back and held it up to my eyes. It was a dainty baby-doll camisole with spaghetti straps in a pretty teal color. Frowning, I slid off the bed, stripped off my t-shirt and slid the thing over my head. Pouting, I allowed my mom to direct me to her floor length mirror on the back of her bedroom door to see what it looked like on.

I was pleasantly surprised.

"That color is radiant against your skin, Salem." My mom beamed behind me, as if I'd just taken my first steps all over again.

But she was right. The teal color looked really good on me. It brought out the green in my eyes.

Getting into the spirit of the occasion, she tucked the hair behind my ears and smoothed out my bangs so they hung over only one eye. She smiled at me in the mirror. "You're gorgeous, honey."

I smiled back. Although gorgeous might've been a strong word, I did look pretty d.a.m.n good. Uber fine, would be my choice of words. I even was able to fill out the chemise pretty well considering I was barely pushing a B cup. Everything hung just right emphasizing my attributes, my pale skin, the slim line of my flat waist. I'd even date me.

I smoothed my hands down the silk of the blouse. "Thanks, Mom. It's perfect."

She beamed at me again, and then pressed a kiss to my cheek. "You're welcome."

Josh arrived at exactly six o'clock. Which I found extremely odd for a guy. I'd never met one in my life who'd ever been on time.

I didn't know what to expect when I opened the door, but it definitely wasn't the clutch of white daises he held in his hand.

I looked at them, unsure of exactly what to do. Thankfully, Mom came to the rescue again and saved my a.s.s from looking too dorky.

She took them from my hand. "These are lovely. I'll put them in a vase for you, Salem."

"Okay." I smiled nervously at Josh. "Thank you for the flowers."

"You're welcome." He held out his hand for me. "Shall we go?"

Everything felt so surreal I was unsure of what to do. I'd never had a normal guy come to my home to take me out, or bring me flowers, or be nice and polite to my mom when she introduced herself. It was uber strange. Weirdly enough, I really liked it. It made me feel special. I hadn't felt special since my tenth birthday party where I begged my mom for a Disney Princess party. I'd dressed up as Snow White and had my pictures taken. An 8X10 framed picture still hung on my mom's bedroom wall.

My mom handed me my white jean jacket and my bag before Josh could pull me out of the house. I smiled at her, and then followed him down the walkway to the sleek-looking, black, sports car parked along the curb.

He opened the pa.s.senger door for me, and I slid into the b.u.t.ter soft leather seat. The inside of the car even smelled nice-that spicy mouth-watering scent that clung to Josh.

When he slid into the car and started the engine, I asked, "So, where are we going?"

He just smiled, pushed in a JT CD-yes, G.o.d forbid, Justin Timberlake-and gunned it. I laughed despite myself and settled in for the ride.

Chapter 12.