She stepped off the last step and was about to crawl through the window when she felt her knees go weak. Jared reached out to steady her. Mina’s legs were numb and as she moved away, pin pricks of blood rushing through her lower limbs.
Jared called out to Mina when she’d safely made it over the sill. “You should keep the Grimoire close to you at all times.”
She bobbed her head in answer, never once looking him in the eyes.
“Be careful. I don’t know if you realize it, but you’re already in another fairy tale.”
Mina’s head snapped up to look at him, eyes wide. “What? Is it that obvious?”
Jared shook his head and muttered the word “hopeless” under his breath. He pointed to her jackets. “There is a reason you can’t go out of the house without wearing red hoods and you keep meeting up with Grey Tail.”
Mina let out a puff of air she didn’t know she was holding. “I know, Red Riding Hood.”
“I suspect your clothes will return to normal after you complete this tale. That is, if you live through your final encounter with the wolf.”
Jared was serious. He was trying to warn her, protect her and prepare her. She was nearly ready to ask for forgiveness and for his help once more, when he shot off one final parting comment that made her blood run cold.
“I do think you need to be careful. Your rooftop isn’t the safest place to cry yourself to sleep.”
Mina jumped away in alarm. She slammed the window and pulled the shade closed in frustration. She could hear Jared laughing from the other side of the glass. When her heart calmed down and she got her hands to quit shaking, she opened the window again and he was gone.
Chapter 19
The next day flew by. There were no strange storybook appearances by animals, unexplained happenings, or surprise attacks by wolves. Mina felt she knew why. With the date of the dance set, she could almost feel the power building, preparing for the final chapter. She read what she could of Red Riding Hood, but was too scared to touch the Grimoire. Instead she kept the Grimoire in her backpack at all times. Every time her fingers grazed the notebook, it seemed to hum with excitement, especially the closer it came to the dance. The more it hummed, the more nervous Mina became until she began hiding the book and locking it in a drawer in her room.
Jared barely acknowledged Mina at school but seemed to always be hovering just on the outskirts, watching, waiting. He hardly spoke except when spoken to, and his sudden change in countenance scared off the rest of the students.
Brody soon noticed Jared’s motorcycle following them in his rearview mirror day after day, which lead to an altercation after school. Brody and Mina were on the way to his car, but when they crossed the parking lot he passed his own vehicle and walked over to a familiar black motorcycle. Mina saw the set of his jaw and knew immediately what was going to happen. She too, had seen Jared following them everywhere they went.
“Brody don’t. Let’s just go.”
“Not until I speak to Jared.”
“It’s not worth it.”
“You and your safety are definitely worth it. I’m not leaving until I’ve spoken my mind.”
He didn't have to wait long before Jared turned the corner, stopping in his tracks when he saw them. “That's my bike you’re leaning on.” Jared said carefully. “You scratch it, you buy it.”
“Maybe I should, and then you couldn't stalk Mina anymore.”
“Get real, I'm not stalking her. I'll leave that to you, lover boy.”
“Uh-uh. I've seen you. After school, before school, following her on this bike.”
“Guys, can we please drop this,” Mina tried, but neither boy even looked at her.
“Dude, I haven't been following you anywhere,” Jared said. “Are you sure it was this bike?”
Brody blinked in thought, “I could have sworn it was you. Black bike and helmet?”
“No, I swear to you. Not me. Must be some crazy fan of yours,” Jared answered lightly, but to Mina he looked distinctly worried, and she felt an awful pit begin to form in the hollow of her stomach. Who had been following her?
“And what about at school?” Brody continued. Mina’s cheeks turned red as she realized a crowd had begun to form. “You can't deny that you’re always watching her. I've seen you, and you’re making her uncomfortable.”
Mina held her breath as Jared’s eyes flickered between them, the longest pause in the history of long pauses.
“I was trying to find an opportunity to ask her to the dance. That's all.” He winked at Mina, likely a nod to his clever excuse, but one that Brody would almost certainly take the wrong way.