After paying his bill, Jude got up and headed toward the back of the restaurant. I got up to follow him.
Pete grabbed my arm. He trailed his hand up to my elbow. "Don't be long, angel." He bared his teeth in a huge, hungry grin.
Sometimes I think he might be the monster, Don's voice whispered inside my head. I shook it off. That was completely crazy. Pete was proving to be a jerk, but not a monster. But Daniel had been afraid of something--something that might happen tonight during the full moon--when he didn't want me out with Pete...
I almost laughed in spite of my nerves. What were the odds that two werewolves had the hots for me? Like I was some gigantic monster magnet. Was there a sign on my back that said, bite me, I'm available !? I gave myself another shake and told Pete I'd be back in a minute. His eyes didn't flash when he looked at me. He didn't seem crazed by any wolf. Anything that burned inside of him was purely testosterone-based.
The hall toward the restrooms was dimly lit, and I could hear angry voices at the end of it. Actually, one of the voices sounded irritated and very distinctly like my brother's, but the other was softer, cowering, and definitely female. I quickened my pace to see what was going on and found Jude with Lynn Bishop backed into a corner. He was practically shouting, waving his finger in front of her face.
"If you have a problem with Grace," he said, "then you come to me first before you start spreading your venom around school."
Lynn nodded, speechless for once.
My hands went into fists. "If she has a problem with me, then she should come to me first." Jude turned. His stance softened. "It's okay, Grace. I'm taking care of this. Go back to your date." I put my hands on my hips. "What gives you the right to 'take care' of things for me? I can 'take care' of myself."
"Well, you're doing a terrible job of it yourself."
"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked. I watched Lynn slink away, no doubt wanting to text our conversation to everyone she knew from a safe distance. "You know what? Never mind." I swung my purse over my shoulder and turned to walk away.
"You don't want to know what she said about you?" Jude called after me. "You don't want to know what the entire school is talking about behind your back?"
I turned. "No, I don't. At least not from you--not right now--because I'm pretty sure this has something to do with Daniel. And no matter what I say, you won't believe it because you made up your mind about him a long time ago, didn't you?" I pursed my lips. "You keep pretending everything will be fine if I stay away from him, but it won't be until you deal with all this hate yourself."
"You're siding with him? Maybe the rumors are true."
"And so what if they are? I love Daniel. I tried not to for your sake. But I can't stop loving someone just because you can't forgive him." I lowered my voice. My lips trembled. "You think you're the good one, but Dad says the good son is the one who's in the greatest danger." Jude stumbled like I'd punched him in the gut. My nerve failed, and I ran into the ladies' room before he could say anything back.
IN THE CAR
I stayed in the bathroom until April came to collect me. She seemed more concerned than mad, and I was glad she didn't tell me that I'd ruined her night--I felt guilty enough already. We piled into the Corolla. I insisted on driving, and Jude relented without a light. We headed back to Rose Crest for the dance, even though it was the last place I felt like going. All I wanted now was to curl up in bed and wait for the full moon to be swallowed by the day--and I could be with Daniel again.
No one spoke as we drove, except for Pete, who yammered on and on about being overcharged for his drink refills--not exactly the concerns of someone fighting an inner demon. I tried to forget any thoughts of monsters and wolves and focused on surviving the torturous evening ahead of me. At least we were going to get to the dance at the tail end, and then we could go straight home.
But as I turned down Main Street on our way to the school, I saw a line of police cars in front of Day's Market. Their blue and red lights cast sinister shadows on the green awnings of the shop.
"Those are cops from the city," April said. She stuck her head out the window like an anxious pup. "I wonder what's going on."
I pulled the car over in front of Brighton's, across the street and kitty-corner to Day's. It was as close as we could get. A uniformed officer was stringing a line of police tape across the entrance to the market's parking lot, and a few bystanders had gathered to gawk. Word must not have gotten out yet, or half the town would be here.
"There's Don." I pointed at him.
He wrung his Day's Market apron in his giant hands as he spoke to a dark-haired man in a suit. The man patted Don on the shoulder and then went inside the shop.
"Where's Mr. Day?" April asked.
Where's Daniel? He'd told me he was going to finish up a late-afternoon shift since Mr. Day had promised him time and half if he wouldn't quit before Christmas. But he'd said he wanted to be done by nightfall. He'd be gone by now--but to where, I couldn't guess. Is this what he had been worried about? Is this what he'd wanted to prevent? Did my going out cause this to happen?
I pulled the keys out of the ignition.
Pete grabbed my hand. "Let's just go to the dance. We'll miss the whole thing if we stop."
"Yeah," April said. "Maybe we should just go." Her voice had a high, doglike whine to it. "I told my mom I wouldn't stop anywhere else."
I opened the door and got out. "Don!"
He looked up. His face was distorted by shadows. He crossed the street and as he came closer, I saw that his eyes were puffy and blotched with red. "Miss Grace?" He came up to the car. "You shouldn't be here. It isn't safe."
"What's going on?" I lowered my voice, hoping the others wouldn't hear. Don looked back at the market. "He was here."
"Who was here?" Jude asked, suddenly beside me.
April got out of the car and stood behind him.
"The monster." Don groaned. "The Markham Street Monster. He ... he ..." Don wrung his already crumpled apron.
"What is it, Don?" I put my hand on his arm. "You can tell me. It'll be okay." "He killed her."