Chapter 8 Sydney

Chapter 8 Sydney

 

 

I said I’d stay away from Macy to keep her safe, but I was desperate. Standing in front of her diner, I peered inside. It was well past eleven p.m., but I’d seen theOpen 24 Hourssign before I left. Strangely, there were more customers inside in the night than there was this morning.

Big city folk must be night owls. Back in Falls City, the place would be like a ghost town at this time of night. Everyone would be at home, locked in. I stepped inside the diner and searched the room for Macy. A chill ran up my spine the further I advanced inside. The atmosphere felt different from earlier. Or was it the diners who freaked me out rather than the restaurant itself? Most of them just stopped talking to stare at me. It was beyond weird.

Heads turned, and gazes followed me as I walked to the counter. The hairs on the back of my neck seemed to stand on end, especially when I made eye contact with a man occupying one of the back booths. He looked gaunt and pale and wore a black leather get-up. The two women beside him were dressed similarly and had the same pallor. However, they were hauntingly beautiful.

My gaze skated away from them, only to collide with another man’s who watched me through hooded eyes. He looked dark and dangerous. The way he lifted his nose in the air made me frown. It was the same way Violet and Cole had sniffed the air. What was with everyone in New Orleans?

The more I looked around, the more I felt like a mouse who had just foolishly wandered into a den of hungry predators. Everyone watched me as if I was a piece of meat. I almost turned tail, and ran back outside, but then Macy appeared. She pushed the swinging doors back door open with her hip and turned around carrying a tray.

When she saw me, her face lit up. “Sydney! I knew you’d be back.”

I nervously swept the room and gulped. “You did?”

“Sure.” She shrugged. “Some things I just know.”

“Okay.”

She glanced around the room with narrowed eyes, and like magic, all attention shifted away from me. Conversations started again, the people at the counter went back to drinking, and the sound of cutlery clinking filled the room.

Eyebrows snapping together, I looked around again, wondering what had just happened.

“Don’t mind the crowd,” Macy said chirpily. “Most of my nighttime diners are a little…”

I eyed a woman wearing a flowing pink dress, practically prancing around. She seemed awfully happy. “Eccentric?” I finished.

Macy chuckled. “That’s one word for them.”

I nodded.

“Have a seat,” she said. “I’ll be right with you.”

As I sat, I watched the woman in pink twirl and giggle. The man she was with laughed and reached for her, pulling her back into her chair. She was so giddy and reminded me of the fairies I saw in cartoons as a kid. Drawing a breath, I sat taller and glanced at the woman again.

Could it be? Considering that I’d gotten proof that supernatural creatures did indeed walk among us, the prancing woman being a fairy didn’t sound all that crazy. I survey the room with fresh eyes. The man and women in the black leather outfits reminded me of vampires I’d seen portrayed in movies. They might very well be blood-sucking creatures of the night for real.

“Oh, my god,” I whispered. Was I sitting in a room full of vampires, werewolves, and, who knew what else? Was Macy one of them? I stared at her. She looked so normal. Then again, so did Cole and Violet. I was starting to wonder if I should leave when Macy came back.

“Hey, are you okay?”

Ignoring the rapid pounding of my heart, I squeaked, “Fine.”

She frowned. “You look like you could use a drink. A non-alcoholic one, of course. You said you’re nineteen, right?”

I nodded. After the rough few days I’d had, I felt like I’d guzzle down the strongest liquor ever made. “I thought this was a diner.”

“Certain hours bring in a different crowd. After hours, this diner counter,” she waved to encompass the expanse of shiny wood, “turns into a bar.” She winked.

I lifted an eyebrow, staring at a patron drinking something thick and red from a glass. I wondered what kind of cocktail that was. It looked disgusting. “My life has gotten so bizarre,” I muttered.

Macy tilted her head to one side. “What do you mean?”

“Never mind.”

“How about that drink?”

I couldn’t pay for one, and Macy had done so much for me already. “No, thanks. I just came here because…” The pressure of the last few days hit me like a ton of bricks. On top of losing my aunt and finding out I wasn’t quite human and was being hunted, I was also being rejected by someone who was supposed to mean something to me. Thinking about how Cole kicked me out of his office left me ready to crumble emotionally.

I blew out a long breath. “I came here because, well, I just don’t know what to do, and you said I could come back to talk to you. I think I found what I came here looking for, but I’m not sure if it’ll be of any help.” Maybe the Alpha of the Moon Guardian Pack will tell me to get lost like Cole did. If that happened, it wouldn’t be long before I lost my battle to survive in this new world.

“I’m so tired,” I whispered. Exhaustion made it hard for me to form a next coherent thought, much less to plan my next move.

Macy placed her tray on the counter and rested a hand on my arm. Peering at me with concern, she said, “Sydney, you don’t look so good. I think you need to lie down.”

Lifting a shoulder, I said, “I have nowhere to go…”

“I can fix that. Come with me.”

Before all the madness I’d experienced recently, I would have been skeptical about trusting someone I barely knew. But Macy had been an angel in my ongoing nightmare. Sliding off the stool, I followed Macy through the back door. We passed an ajar door, and from what I glimpsed, it was the kitchen. She stopped at another door, opened it, and gestured for me to go in. After only a moment of hesitation, I entered. It looked like a small office with a tiny desk in one corner, an armchair, and a sofa on the opposite side.

Macy walked to the sofa, which unfolded into a bed. The mere sight of it already had my limbs crying out for relief. I wanted to sprawl on the makeshift bed and go into hibernation for about two weeks. So when Macy said, “You can take a nap here. You really look like you need one,” I almost hugged her.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course. I’ll be busy all night. As you know, I lost my chef this morning.”

I smiled wryly, remembering the scene I’d stumbled upon.

“So, I’ll have to pick up the slack around here until I find another chef. I’ve been doubling as the cook and helping Arlene, the other waitress you saw this morning, serving tables.”

My ears perked up. No way was a job presenting itself right here, right now. Maybe this was a sign that things would work out for me in New Orleans. “Sounds like you could use another waitress. You know, I happen to have experience in that area.”

“Is that so? Well, we can discuss that later. Right now, you look just about done. How about you rest while I take care of my customers?”

“Thank you so much, Macy for everything. You’ve been a godsend. I won’t take up your space for too long.” Sighing, I perched on the mattress. “Maybe just a couple of hours, and I’ll vacate your office.”

She said nothing, just smiled, and walked out the door.

***

The couple of hours I told Macy I’d spend snoozing in her office turned into an all-nighter. When my eyes fluttered open, the room was flooded with sunlight from a window. Blinking against the light, I gingerly sat up and looked around. After hours of much-needed sleep, I felt better.

Reaching for my backpack that I’d used as a pillow, I pulled out my cell phone. It was off because I’d been afraid to use it. For all I knew, the hunters wanting to carve me into pieces could use the device to track me.

“I’m not turning this thing on,” I grumbled.

“Why not?”

Gasping, I looked up. Macy stood in the doorway, holding a small shopping bag and smiling. She looked fresh and radiant as if she hadn’t single-handedly manned the dinner all night. Combing my fingers through my hair, I blew out a breath. “I’m not interested in hearing from anyone back home,” I lied as if there was anyone back in Nebraska who cared about me.

“Hmm.” She eyed me in a way that made me feel as if she saw through my lie. But she didn’t call me out. Holding up the bag, she said, “This is for you. I figured you’d want to freshen up. Everything you might need is in here. Well, except for a change of clothes.” She nodded to my backpack. “I hope you’ve got something in there.”

My heart soared at the thought of a shower. “I do. Oh, my gosh. Thank you, Macy. I don’t know what else to say.”

“Say nothing at all. Us girls have to stick together, right?”

“Sure.”

She pointed to an ajar door. “I’ve got a tiny bathroom in there for when I’m here for days on end.”

Getting up, I eagerly fetched the bag she offered. “Hey, Macy, what do you know about werewolf lore?”

Her eyebrows arched.

Heat filled my cheeks. Rubbing the back of my neck, I said, “I know, that’s a weird question, but—”

“It’s not so weird around here, trust me.”

Frowning, I waited for her to go further, but she didn’t. “Okay. Do you happen to know what a fated mate means?” When she just stared at me, I rushed out, “My aunt was a werewolf myth fanatic”—that wasn’t far from the truth, at least— “she said something about that once, and I’m just curious…”

Maybe it was my imagination, but Macy’s expression seemed to crumble, and pain flickered in her eyes. However, when I blinked, she looked fine. “Fated mate, huh? I know a thing or two about that. The myth, I mean.”

“Right.”

“Fated mates are supposedly the other half of a werewolf’s soul. The one person made for him or her. They mate for life, and when they find each other, they instantly know they’ve found their other half.”

That sounded about right. As soon as I’d seen Cole, I just knew I was supposed to be with him. He didn’t share the same sentiment. “In other words, a fated mate is a soul mate,” I said.

“Exactly. It’s romantic to most, but I say it’s a load of crap.”

The vehemence with which Macy spoke made my eyebrows shoot up. “Oh.”

“But then again, werewolves and all that nonsense aren’t real, right?”

Macy studied me keenly. For some reason, I felt as if she was testing me. “Um…right.”

After a beat of silence, she said, “I’ll leave you to it. Maybe we can talk about your waitressing experience after breakfast?”

Nodding enthusiastically, I told her, “Of course.”