Dahlia (Blood Crave Series) (3 page)

It was a matter of life or death.

Resting his brown leather jacket over his shoulder, he walked toward the front door of the cabin. As he placed his hand on the doorknob, he looked back at Maddox, gesturing for him to follow with the tilt of his head.

“Come on.”

Greyson opened the door, his nose raised to the skies as he breathed in the fresh, cool air around him. Almost like in response, a bellow answered in return from deep within the forest. He grinned sinfully at the sound, eyes twinkling in amusement as he spoke again.

“We’ve got some hunting to do.”

It was indeed true. Their capability to pursue her for so many years was an innate drive that both Greyson and Maddox possessed. It had nothing to do with free will—something that Merrick knew all too well.

They were, after all, lapsus.

Chapter 2

The first day of senior year had Dahlia both dreading and anticipating it at the same time. She felt the anticipation because the start of school meant that she’d truly be on her own in less than a year. She would finally be able to break away from the confinements that she’d felt all her life, and have no one to rely on but herself. But the dread crept inside her mind because, well, it was her first experience being in an actual high school.

She didn’t know what to expect.

Dahlia wished she were still on summer vacation. Although being stuck on a boat with the Cahill’s did have its drawbacks—yes, they were that rich—it definitely beat seeing the typical, cliché high school drama five days out of the week.

It was something she wanted no part of.

She roughly ran her fingers through her hair and sighed, frowning slightly as she bit the inside of her bottom lip. She’d been having various dreams as of late and not getting much sleep, her current state of fatigue apparent as she suddenly yawned widely. The dreams alternated between being vague one moment then so clear the next, as if reliving a memory. But no matter what, they left her with this weird sense of unease and frankly, she was sick and tired of it.

She also had a creepy feeling of someone else being in the dream with her.

Dahlia gave her head a shake as she glanced over at Sam. She was getting a ride to school in his old, red Mustang. He actually refused a brand new luxury car from Glen and Deb because according to him, he “liked the personality of the old soul.”

Sinking comfortably into the worn-out leather seat, she turned her head to stare out the window, watching the scenery pass by. She was quiet, caught up in her surroundings of mass trees, the red and orange leaves marking autumn. She became lost in the view and of old memories of snow-covered leaves, so she didn’t notice Sam studying her from the driver’s seat, quickly stealing glances her way as he drove.

To Sam, Dahlia Winters was definitely a tough one to crack—an anomaly, really. He knew she must have gone through a lot in foster care, and that it took time. But he felt the six months she had been living with his family should be enough for her to fully open up to them.

At least him.

Sam was never one to call shy so he thought his personality would draw her out. He was dead wrong. Although she finally talked, she was still extremely quiet and had a tendency to spend all her free time on her stupid laptop. He saw the few times when her feisty character came through in their conversations and he wanted to see more of that. It was why he always messed with her.

He wondered what she must have gone through in the past. She never mentioned it nor wanted to discuss it with him or his parents when they brought it up, instantly shutting down.

Hands gripping the steering wheel, Sam peeked back at Dahlia. Head bent, all he saw was a crown of brown hair covering her face. She did that a lot, covered her face, and he had no clue why. She was a good-looking girl and he didn’t understand why she always wanted to hide.

Her complexion was flawless and her round, hazel eyes were very expressive. They would sometimes change to green or blue depending on her mood, which would tend to fall on the foul side. If Sam had to guess, she would be very bad at playing poker.

Although the dynamic in their household had changed since she arrived, Sam always enjoyed seeing her face. Maybe it was because she hid away from people. But when he got the chance to see her fully…well, it wasn’t something he wanted to miss.

Now if only he could get her to smile.

“Sam?”

“Huh?” He looked over at Dahlia as she gave him a perplexed look, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

“I’ve been calling you for ages. I didn’t know you were so focused while driving,” she retorted. “What were you thinking about?”

Sam ignored her curious look and shrugged as he focused his eyes back on the road. A huge grin grew on his face, his dimples sinking even deeper. There was no way in hell he would let Dahlia know that he had been thinking so intently about her.

So all he did was give another shrug in response and answered playfully. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Dahlia continued to stare at him in stoned silence as a small frown formed on her lips. Sometimes she wished she had the power to read minds because she swore Sam was hiding something from her. Or maybe her paranoia was getting the best of her. She made a face back at him, brushing him off. Then, turning her head to stare out the window again, she looked at the huge backdrop of large, foreboding trees, which made up the vast wooded area. It always reminded her of the orphanage she left behind whenever she passed by.

This, of course, inadvertently made her think of memories she didn’t want to, no,
refused
to think about. So her mind wandered off instead to thoughts of the parents that abandoned her.

She felt a pang in her chest and immediately closed her eyes against the view. She wondered then what they must have been like. If she took after them in her looks, or even mannerisms.

If they knew that I was different and that was why they had gotten rid of me
, her mind whispered evilly.

Dahlia shook her head, her mood getting low. She knew she had to learn to leave that all behind. By constantly dwelling on the past, she had failed to form bonds and friendships and it was becoming a hindrance to her.

She smiled suddenly at the thought then rolled her eyes at herself, realizing she was echoing the words of her former social worker.

But it was true.

She glanced over at Sam again, thinking of his earlier suggestion. He was right. A party would lighten up her mood. Screw her stupid dreams that wanted to relive her past. It was definitely time to try being a little more positive.

At the small smile that erupted on Dahlia’s face, Sam stared at her in disbelief as he pulled into a parking spot at the school. Putting the gear in park, he turned off the car and asked suspiciously, “What are you smiling about?”

She grinned even wider as she mirrored what he had said earlier, hoping he’d feed into the paranoia.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

She glanced away from his baffled face to stare out the window, seeing the old high school building with washed-out pink and red bricks intermingled together. Dahlia had been there a few weeks prior for registration. She’d gotten the photo for her ID card taken and class schedule, making sure she hadn’t enrolled in courses such as gym or drama since they definitely weren’t her scene. She couldn’t act to save her life and gym—well, there was no way she was getting into a swimsuit as it showed an excessive amount of skin.

The school had been calm then, only a few students here and there registering for class, but seeing the busyness and chaos of all the students frankly made her sick with dread. The queasy feeling in her stomach got even worse and, with a look of distress, she glanced over at Sam grimly.

He sighed as he took in her worried face. Hand reaching her shoulder, he squeezed her gently in reassurance.

“It’s okay, you know.” Staring straight into her eyes, he managed to calm her with a simple look, instead of freaking her out as he normally did. Her stomach wasn’t doing as high of somersaults anymore. Sam noticed her slight change in mood and winked, shrugging nonchalantly. “It’s just school.”

Not realizing she held her breath, Dahlia let it out slowly, trying to compose herself. He was right, it was only school. What were a bunch of teenagers going to do to her, in any case?

“Alright,” she whispered reassuringly to herself. “You can do this, Dahlia.”

She slowly unclasped her seatbelt and grasped the door handle. Giving it a quick pull, she pushed open the door and stepped out of the car as the cool air greeted her. Closing the passenger door, she looked over at Sam who stood on the other side of the Mustang, peering over at her expectantly.

He smiled widely then swept his arm in the air as he proclaimed, “Welcome to Cedar Oaks High. These are the people you will be spending your time with over the next year.”

Dahlia gave the school another swift glance. From the parking lot, more students arrived in their cars. The distinct difference between the upperclassmen and the lowly first and second years was apparent, who all seemed to be riding bikes or getting dropped off by their mommies and daddies.

The real distinction between them was physical. The upper year boys were tall and muscular, while the girls were no better, dressed in tight clothes that didn’t leave much to the imagination.

Turning around to face Sam, Dahlia blurted out, “These are high school students?” She looked down at her own jeans and long-sleeved purple t-shirt. She noted then that even Sam was dressed more formal than his usual t-shirt and shorts. He sported a pair of crisp blue jeans and a button-down gray shirt that matched his eyes.

His shaggy hair was still a mess.

Chuckling at her comment, Sam walked in the direction of the school doors, giving no choice but for her to follow. “There’s nothing else to do in Cedar Oaks except dress up for school and party. Some of these kids are kind of mature-looking for their age and they definitely use it to their advantage. So beware.”

“And what’s that supposed to mean?” she asked, a suspicious look plastered on her face.

Sam gave a weird look in return, shrugging. “I don’t really know. They just seem to get everything they want.” He then smiled as he continued, wiggling eyebrows up and down.

“It’s a good thing I’m friends with them.”

***

Morning classes were a blur. After Sam dropped her off at her first course, Chemistry, it went downhill from there. Dahlia struggled to pay attention, as the material was something she had already learned, and was relieved when the bell sounded, signaling lunch.

She was famished, her body still adjusting to the hours at school and the longer time she had to go between meals. She usually ate every few hours to keep her energy levels up, many small meals throughout the day. It was something she always did, realizing at a young age that her body shut down whenever she didn’t eat enough. She wasn’t diabetic, but slightly anemic, so she always carried food with her. Considering the no food policy in class, she didn’t want to draw any attention to herself by munching away at her desk.

Relieved that she could finally eat, the feeling promptly changed as she stood before the cafeteria, or more correctly coined cafetorium, as it was a combination of both a cafeteria and auditorium. The school, solely into sports, placed all its money in athletics and nothing else.

That included the school’s blueprint.

Anyway, the
cafetorium
was a hideous sight. There was a huge, empty stage on display with the chaos of students getting food while searching for seats beneath it. Some kids ate before they even paid while others just sat, hungrily inhaling their beef burger or some other grotesque food that was on their tray.

Dahlia stood rooted in spot, her hunger nearly forgotten.

“There you are!” Sam’s voice bellowed from behind as he wrapped an arm around her waist, his fingers playing with the ends of her hair as he gave it a slight tug.

She refused to admit it, but she was pleased to see him standing next to her and even welcomed his playful touch. She glanced up with a long face, observing him from the corner of her eyes. “Do we really have to eat here?”

“No.” He then grasped her by the elbow and proceeded to lead her further into the cafetorium. Finding an empty table, he sat down and looked up at her expectantly as he gestured to the seat across from him.

Sighing, Dahlia reluctantly sat down, dropping her book bag on the floor. She placed her elbows on the table as she cradled her face in her hands and replied, “Why are we here then? I thought you didn’t like the cafe.”

Leaning back in his chair, Sam yawned broadly while speaking at the same time. “I don’t. I just don’t feel like driving or walking anywhere to get food. Come on, it’s the first day of school. We should be eating here—it’s like, almost law.”

Dahlia rolled her eyes as Sam stood up. Motioning for her to follow him, he rubbed his stomach hungrily. “Let’s go get some grub.”

They both managed to survive the food line up then returned to their seats. Dahlia found it odd that no one claimed the seats surrounding them, considering the room was so full, but quickly tossed the idea aside. She picked up a few fries on her tray and dipped it into the ketchup, taking a bite as she relished in its salty taste. She didn’t want to seem like a pig so she always tried to eat slowly, despite her hunger.