Guardian

Author's Note****

Thanks to angelmay for the review! I'm glad you like it and hopefully you'll continue to like the rest.

To anyone else who likes this story, I'm not going to beg, but you're reviews, criticisms, and/or questions are more than welcome. I'd love to know what you think.

Please enjoy.
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He was waiting for me as I pulled into the student lot. Mr. Fischer, the delinquency officer. The guard at the gate must have given the red alert. As I looked into that crab apple face, I thought at least some things are normal.

I pulled into my spot with a slow squeal of breaks and the car chugged and coughed into silence.

“You are not unaware of the attendance policy, Miss Collins,” he said, leaning, in what he probably thought was a menacing position, against his golf cart. “You have almost exceeded your predetermined amount of unexcused absences for the semester and we are only in the second month of the school year.”

I sighed as I unbuckled my seatbelt, my head once again beginning to pound. I think being bitten by a vampire was a good enough excuse for a sick day, but here I was, like a good little student. It at least deserved a gold star.

“You say ‘almost’,” I said, opening the door with a loud screech. “I don’t see the problem.”

His smile revealed dingy, blocky teeth with a large gap in the center. They were way to big for his thin face and papery cheeks. Fischer pushed his thick rimmed glasses a little further up his nose. I stood and felt the remaining blood in my body drain from my face. It took a moment for the little flashing lights at the corners of my eyes to drain away. Fischer was, apparently, unaware that I had almost blacked out right in front of him.

“…your absences may still be in the green, however, your tardiness has shown a persistent trend towards delinquency.”

He pulled a clichéd memo book from his pocket and flipped the cover dramatically. Geez, power trip much? He must have been bullied as a child.

“As of today, you’ve been tardy a record seventeen times in thirty-five days. The school’s attendance policy clearly states that—“

“I know what it says,” I interrupted. “Just give me the detention and let me get to class.”

“Very well, Miss Collins. Take a seat,” he said, dropping the pompous tone and replacing it with irritation. Obviously he was disappointed that he couldn’t jerk off to the rulebook.

I grabbed my bag and sat gratefully in the golf cart. I didn’t care that Fischer was only a foot away, but I was pretty sure if I had tried walking, someone would have found me face down on the pavement.

Everything was beginning to feel heavy, except my head. That felt incredibly light, like it might just float away. I smiled thinly to myself. Wouldn’t that be nice?

“Miss Collins.”

With a blink, I realized the golf cart had stopped and from the way that Fischer was impatiently holding the door, I guessed it had been that way for a while.

I stood and swayed, the sickening feeling of gravity pulling at my insides.

“We don’t have time for the sick act, just please go inside.”

It’s not an act, I wanted to snarl, but I just hiked my bag more securely onto my shoulder and entered.

The institutional smell hit me as soon as I entered and the hallways were unusually silent. It was still between classes. I had another fifteen minutes before I had to take my test. Hopefully, he would be quick about assigning the detentions.

We took a sharp right and entered the office, and I was feeling worse and worse by the second. Every brain cell seemed to be focusing on my midsection and the odd sensation that was beginning to form there. I prayed with everything I had that I wouldn’t throw up on the already stained blue carpet.

“Oh hello, Andrea,” Mrs. Green said with a cheery smile. I don’t think the woman had a mean bone in her entire being. Anybody and everybody walked all over her. She never called me Andy, though. “Not feeling well today?” her face scrunched into a look of sympathy. I must have looked as bad as I felt.

Voices loud, but indistinct, were coming from the office behind her. There was laughter. Everything was so abrasive, so loud to my ears. It was all clamoring in a dizzy whirl for attention. Fischer was back into his self-important mode, explaining the attendance policy to the secretary. Mrs. Green just nodded politely, the smile never leaving her face.

A thin layer of sweat was forming all over my body and my heart was fluttering rapidly near my throat. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to pass out…or just lie down. Why hadn’t I stayed home? Who cares if I failed?

“Andrea?” Mrs. Green questioned as I swayed.

I jumped as the door behind her opened with a loud click and two more presences added themselves to the already suffocating space.

I couldn’t breathe.

“Miss Collins?” Fischer questioned, sounding alarmed. I couldn’t see around the fuzzy white spots that were gathering. But his alarm made me worried. It was that bad? I thought, before my knees gave out and I didn’t care anymore.

…….. ….. …….. ..

“Andy…”

As if someone flipped a switch, I was conscious—and not enjoying it much. I felt sick, there was an odd pinching sensation in my arm, and I had a serious need to pee.

“Andy. Come on, open your eyes,” a soothing voice cajoled. As if I was a naughty child who wouldn’t get out of bed.

I took in a breath, testing my body and finding everything gone haywire. I was shaking, every part of me. Flashes of hot and cold. My nerves sparked and cooled at different locations, running a mad race through my flesh.

“Open your eyes, now.” That voice was harsh with command. Rough and male…and disgustingly familiar.

Without my consent, my eyelids fluttered to obey. My teeth chattered as I opened my mouth to tell him what he could do.

No words would come through the audible clicking though and my shaking grew more violent. Why was he even here?

His look was menacing. Maybe he had understood what I said. “Is she supposed to be doing that?”

“It’s fine, her body’s just reacting to the medicine,” clear and crisp. Daisy? I glanced over to where she was sitting, straight and taught. Her voice had an edge.

“Right,” the soothing one agreed and I followed the sound with my gaze. Dr. Sanchez was sitting at the end of the cot, fingers pressed lightly against my pulse as she looked at her watch.

“Still a little elevated, but that can also be the effect of the I.V.,” she looked at me and smiled, close-lipped. We had seen a lot of each other in my three years at this school. Sanchez was a Were, but not part of the pack. They grudgingly accepted her because of her medical background, and let’s face it—in a school where rowdy young lycans play, they needed someone who could treat the casualties and keep her mouth shut.

“But what I want to know, Andy,” she said, and I knew what was coming. My eyes widened as I pleaded with her to stop. Not in front of my sister. She ignored it, “is where all the blood went. You’re suffering from severe anemia.”

I swallowed, still shaking and I could see in her eyes that she had a suspicion.

“I…” I started, but the silence from them all intimidated me. I glanced over at Matt. Why was he here? Witnessing my pain didn’t give him an excuse to be out of class, unless you considered his father’s extensive donations to the school, it wasn’t a surprise that they let him do whatever he wanted. But I wasn’t going to let him know I’d been a vampire’s supper, like some idiotic human. I’d die of humiliation.

“I need to pee,” I stated flatly, looking deliberately passed Dr. Sanchez’s shoulder.

She chuckled. “Of course. We had to force fluids, so I’m not surprised.”

She helped me up and I half thought my legs would buckle. It felt like my muscles were made of air. “Easy now,” she said, supporting my weight.

I gripped the I.V. pole and we rolled towards the small private bathroom. I took care of my business and stalled as I held my hands under the tap, letting nearly boiling water rush over them. My skin turned red under its stream.

The questions would start again as soon as I left the bathroom. Maybe I could pretend I passed out again and collapse on the floor? I hazarded a glance at the floor and decided against it. I wasn’t that brave. How could I get around this?

I took in a breath a steeled myself.

The door opened silently. Dr. Sanchez and my sister were gone. I blinked, realizing that only Matt was left, sitting hunched and broody on the cot. Whose smart idea was it to leave me with him?

It was hard to stand there feeling like a shell whose insides had been unmercifully scooped out. Looking at the glowering Were, though, I felt it safer to keep my distance.

“What happened?” he suddenly broke the silence. There was a strange note in his voice, like he just starting into a fine rage.

It startled me and I couldn’t come up with anything better to reply with than, “Huh?”

He tilted his chin up off his entwined fists and I felt my heart skip a beat. Maybe he already knew? Maybe he thought I was hiding it for some reason?

Was it dirty to be vampire food?

“She said you have bruises all over,” he said standing. The air around him seemed darker, electrified and heavy.

Oh, shit. He thought I was going to rat out on him? He had to know I was smarter than that. Whatever weak punishment they would come up with would be later received by me a hundred fold.

My shaking was growing worse. I was going to blame it on the neon glowing liquid in the I.V.. Who was scared of the big bad wolf getting closer, one menacing step at a time…me, that’s who.

“Look, you know I won’t say anything,” I finally said, forcing the words through my clenched teeth so that they wouldn’t chatter.

His lip twitched as he walked closer, invading my space. I could feel the heat from his body on my skin. He was intimidating, but I’m sure that was the angle he was going for.

I had to be strong, or he would think I was weak. He would think I would cave into their questions.

I glared up at him, into his lightening eyes. They were glowing that awful haunting amber. My belly squirmed, but I didn’t show it on my face.

“Not a word?” he breathed, leaning down so that his face was inches from mine.

I leaned my head back, hair slipping from my shoulders, leaving my throat naked and vulnerable. I ignored it and held his eyes with mine.

“I said I won’t so I won’t.” I was glad at how my voice sounded, angry not terrified beyond wit’s end.

How much closer could he get? The heat of his breath caressed my face. It smelled like cinnamon gum. I swallowed audibly. It was hard to focus with him so close, and my body’s quivering was growing into a distraction. How much longer would those empty legs hold me up?

Hot hands were on my back, sliding down to my waist. The fingers tightened minimally and my heart started to pound in earnest. They formed new bruises over the old. I wondered if they would be able to see his fingerprints in my skin.

“Don’t feel well, baby?” he asked, breath harsh, forehead pressing against mine. The question dripped with sarcasm. Why was he still so mad? I could feel the rage radiating off of him in waves. Where was Dr. Sanchez? Should she be allowing her patients to be treated like this? I knew that she understood my position in this school, and the reason for it. It was standing in front of me, threatening my worthless existence.

Surrender.

That’s what his eyes were saying as he invaded my personal space. I knew that was the animal in him. The man would have never gotten so close. Even now he was drawing in deep breaths, like the day before. Basking in my fear.

Submit.

Isn’t that what I was doing? I was telling him that I would cover his ass. That he would get away scott free. What the hell was his problem?

That frustration and anger must have leaked into my expression, because I felt his body tense. He was frozen, eyes wide, but looking at nothing. His nostrils flared and a second later I felt claws dig into my skin.

I yelped and his lips quivered into a snarl.

His fingers were twisting in my hair, pulling my neck back into an excruciating angle. It hurt. I screamed.

He was staring at my throat, and small pain-filled sounds were muffled by my lips. I bit them, trying to keep quiet.

He stared for a long time, even as loud banging sounds came from the door. He had locked it? My fingers tightened on his shirt, where they had instinctively grabbed to keep balance.

He was furious and slowly that burning gaze slid from the wounds on my neck, back to my face.

The black was swirling at the edge of my vision, waiting to take me back into its warm embrace. Ready with an escape.

His grip tightened and his eyes closed as he trembled on the edge of action. The small fearful thought entered my brain, terrified that he would change right here, and rip me apart.

His eyes opened once more. God, what had I done to make him hate me so much?

“You’re going to regret this,” he snarled.

I screamed when his teeth sank into my neck.