The Mayfair Moon (The Darkwoods Trilogy 1)

I heard an engine rev. An older model black Bronco with a huge Grille Guard on the front bumper, drove nosily into the park. It had a roof rack with four KC Lights and its tires were bigger than even the Jeep had. I knew a thing or two about automobile accessories; my step-dad had been a mechanic and a custom auto tech all his life. And my step-brother had followed his lead. Double the unsolicited lessons.

The Bronco came toward us slowly.

“Must be a zombie apocalypse nearby,” said Harry, “with that tank—sweet!”

I admit, it was pretty awesome.

As the Bronco drove closer, its size became more distinct. I would need some serious help getting up inside that thing. It grumbled gently past us and parked just three spaces over from Harry’s car. Two brooding guys in their early twenties, jumped down onto the parking lot, closing the doors behind them. One was tall like Harry and the other had a full sleeve tattoo on his right arm. The tall one reached briefly into his back pocket, maybe to situate his wallet. They spoke to each other for a moment and began walking toward us.

They carried no skateboards, so I knew they weren’t here for recreation.

“Wonder who that is?” said Harry.

“Never saw them before,” Julia said from behind. She moved away from us then. “I gotta use the bathroom,” she said, walking in the direction of the restroom facilities many yards away.

I noticed out of the corner of my eye, the four people hanging around the Jeep were all standing in a group, more alert now than laid back as they were before.

They stared blatantly at us.

But the two approaching were who held my attention. Why were they looking at me like that?

I glanced around and behind me to see if someone was standing nearby that seemed to know them.

No, they were definitely looking at me and maybe Harry, too.

They stopped right in front of us; the tall one popping a piece of candy into his mouth. Maybe that’s what he had been fishing for in his back pocket.

“You and your sister, Alexandra, just moved up on the hill, right?” he said to me, sucking on the candy.

“Y-yeah, that’s right.” I hoped I was hiding just how intimidated I was better than I thought. “How’d you know that?”

He smiled, though I found no comfort in the way he chose to twist it into a faint grin. “We know things,” he said simply.

Harry leaned against his car next to me, trying to act casual, but I knew he was as suspicious as I was. I could feel he had moved closer to me, protectively.

“Do you live around here?” Harry said.

The tattooed one just nodded in response, but it seemed more like a dismissal. He was more interested in me than Harry. Both of them were.

I didn’t like this at all.

And how did they know Alex? This mystery ate away at my thoughts more than anything. I stood stiffly; my arms bent upwards, hands touching level with my chest. I always grazed the backs of my fingers like that when I was nervous.

“I’m William,” said the tall one. He continued to look at me, waiting for me to respond.

“Adria,” I said finally and then I gestured to my left, “and this is Harry.”

“A pleasure, Adria,” said William. There was venom in his close-lipped smile. He extended a hand, but I was hesitant to take it. Slowly my hand went toward his, but before I could commit entirely, he made the move forward and took hold of it anyway. Almost as quickly, yet he did it with such methodical grace, he leaned over and kissed the top of it, just below my wrist. Instinct told me to pull away and when I tried, I could feel how much tighter his grip became. The virulent smile never left his face. His penetrating gaze never left my own. Dark, beautiful eyes. But more malevolent than beautiful so there could never be an attraction. I couldn’t help but stare intensely back at him. I was terrified of him and couldn’t let down my guard.

Finally, I pulled my hand from his, feeling his fingers graze upon my knuckles. But I was careful not to reject him too unambiguously in front of others. I got the distinct feeling that to demean him publicly would carry unpleasant consequences.

Harry had moved from the car and stood more rigidly at my side. Nothing about his face was welcoming.

The tattooed guy cocked his head to one side, looking at Harry now with a sort of humorous curiosity.

“You must be the boyfriend,” he said to Harry.

“No,” Harry responded, “I’m not, but maybe you should find another place to hang out.”

I winced. The last thing I wanted was for Harry to feel obligated to protect me and end up in the hospital as a result. I could tell, just by the apprehensive tone of his posture that he knew as well as I did that these two could easily end his life.

The tall one, William, smirked, but still he never took his eyes off me.

I heard voices and footfalls behind us on the grass as a small group of Harry’s skater friends approached. It didn’t take long for others to realize that something was about to go down. Only a minuscule amount of relief washed through me, having more on our side so readily at our backs. I felt my palms sweating and then realized I had been standing the past many seconds with my fists balled at my sides out of tension.

Harry’s friends stood behind us in the short distance; a just-in-case-distance.

I knew then that I had to be more austere. After all, for some reason I could never imagine, I was the one they were here for.

“Look, what do you want exactly?” I said, stepping up.

Nervousness dominated every muscle and bone, but I managed to hide it.

“No need to be rude,” William answered, folding his hands together behind him. “Just came over to get acquainted. That’s all.”

I knew that was lie, but his impish expression told me he wasn’t exactly trying to trick me into believing it.

I crossed my arms firmly and just looked at him. Already tired of this stupid game, my nervous mood receded and turned into something bolder. Maybe it was all the practice I had over the years with my step-dad, but whatever it was it pushed me right up to William daringly. I didn’t realize just how tall he really was until I was practically standing in the shadow his body cast around me.

William smiled down at me, pleased, and this infuriated me even more.

“Well, I’m not interested in getting acquainted,” I said snappily.

“Why not?” His face went blank.

I blinked. Having a hard time reading him now that his smirk left so suddenly; I chose to pretend I was still the one in control. The truth was, that simple change in him managed to put the fear right back into me. Before, it was easier to treat him like any other self-centered jerk, but something in his dark eyes caused every one of my muscles to tense up again.

I stood my ground. I had to. Though all I wanted to do was get away from him.

I noticed that the tattooed one was staring Harry down now as if he were just waiting for his chance to jump him. Harry stood confidently, but I knew on the inside he was afraid.

William licked the dryness from his lips and breathed in deeply. “You were right, Ashe,” he said to the tattooed one, but never looked over, “she has the same aggressive scent.” He rolled his head around, the veins bulging in his neck as he inhaled the air.

My face crinkled incomprehensively. What was that supposed to mean?

Enough of this.

I went to leave, taking Harry by the elbow, but was stunned to feel a harsh hand around my bicep that I knew wasn’t Harry’s. Turning swiftly, I jerked my arm from William, but he pulled me toward him. Vaguely, I heard the clatter of Harry’s friends advancing behind us and for a split second even saw the four from the Jeep were also rushing forward now. But in that next split second, my reflexes took over and my fist went soaring toward William’s face. The contact against the side of his mouth sent shockwaves through the bones in my hand.

A dozen gasps rose all around me, but then everything went silent. No one moved; least of all me.

Petrified, I swallowed hard and finally backed away half a step. Harry unfroze and moved over in front of me, probably cursing me in his head for taking it to this level because being my guy friend, he would be the one that paid the price. He pushed me back with his arm, putting himself defensively between me and William.

William never moved and the tattooed one, Ashe, remained still as though commanded to back down by William’s subtle body language.

A trickle of red emerged from the corner of William’s lips. He reached up slowly and wiped the blood away with the side of his thumb.

“Interesting,” he said and then licked the blood clean.

To the surprise of all, William and Ashe just turned and walked away. Everyone watched as they got back into the black Bronco and drove out of the skate park the same way they drove in; even the four from the Jeep, who were now standing just feet from me. But their faces held a different intensity, one that I wasn’t interested in figuring out. I had had enough with strange, intimidating people for one night.

Suddenly, I was surrounded by a lot of impressed, excited faces.

All I wanted to do was shrink inside myself.

“Damn, girl,” said some curly-haired guy, “you got a brick in your hand, or what?”

Jealous Cecilia regarded me now with a different attitude than before, but I thought this was a bad thing. I would rather her dislike me and keep her distance than become my newest, annoying latch-on friend.

“That guy was huge,” she said, smiling wide-eyed and admiringly.

Despite my fifteen minutes of fame, I wasn’t enjoying this at all. I had never actually hit anyone before. And the way some were talking, I was colored as some fearless ‘hard chick’, when I was anything but.

When the excitement wore off a few minutes later, Harry and I could be alone again, but at first I was still too bewildered by the whole thing, to say much to him. Especially at how soon William and Ashe left and that the entire situation didn’t turn into a huge brawl. It didn’t make any sense. Nothing about them gave off the impression that they were capable of fear, that anyone around here could intimidate them. How could they let me get away with what I did?

And then suddenly I didn’t feel so confident anymore. I never felt very confident about it to begin with, but that small part which was, exhaled right out with my breath. They were the patient, precarious type and that scared me more than direct hostility.

“Looks like they’re leaving too,” Harry said, watching the Jeep.

All four of them had made it back, and the spiky-haired blond girl was the last to hop inside, shutting the door twice as if it didn’t catch the first time.

I didn’t feel like bringing up my worries where they were concerned.

“If those are the type your sister hangs with,” Harry said about William and Ashe, “I feel sorry for you.”

That stung a little, but also gave me more to think about. They knew Alex by her given name and they wouldn’t have known to call her ‘Alexandra’ unless Alex was the one who told them.

“What do you think they wanted?” said Harry.

I paused, thinking not about the answer to his question, but instead to my own: What did my sister have to do with them?

“I have no idea,” I answered both of us, watching the Jeep drive away.