Chapter 9

Bayla

It was not a piano that gently woke me from sleep this morning.... No, quite the opposite. It was my mum rushing through the door of my room, shouting "Happy Birthday, my little angel!" and violently pulling me out of my dreams of California.

I had rarely slept so well. Especially not in this torture bed .

Now I was awake, and my head was buzzing.

"Get up, Bay, it's already 9 o'clock and there's more than one cake waiting for you downstairs," Mum chirped cheerfully before she went to the window and sweepingly tore away the curtain.

I rarely experienced so much élan from her...

"Oh God, your window is still open. You do realize it's only 8 degrees outside?"

Indeed, it was very chilly in my room. I had noticed that, especially in the mornings, the temperatures were way down and that you couldn't walk around outside with a T-shirt like in the middle of the day.

I missed California very much. And I was in Blairville. Unfortunately .

When I eventually managed to sit up, Mum came over and sat on the edge of the bed.

"My big girl." She smiled at me before pressing a kiss to my cheek, rising again and hurrying to the door. "Please hurry up and put on some proper clothes."

Then she was gone.

She hadn't even given me time to complain. I didn't particularly enjoy being the center of attention. And certainly not for a whole day.

Groaning, I moved to the other side of the bed, about to get to my closet.

The massive door was still open, as it always was because I was literally too lazy to close my closets again and again. This applied to my entire room as well.

Speaking of which... What was proper in Mum's opinion? Was she going somewhere with me? Not really, as far as I knew, unless there were some plans, she was keeping from me again.

After long consideration, I decided on a pair of black jeans and a simple copper brown top that looked relatively new. At least when I looked at myself in the mirror, I knew that it must have been a very long time since I had worn something so tight.

The top emphasized my rather less existing breasts, as well as my waist, and the neckline was also not exactly covering. Actually, it looked quite sexy in combination with the skintight jeans. But God , it was damn tight.

How Larissa could always stand it in her skintight outfits?

The sign was still hanging on the side and when I took a look at it, I remembered again. Of course... Larissa . She had gifted me that top a year ago.

I sighed.

But why did I complain? I was here in our own four walls and didn't need to hide from anyone, and if we were really leaving, I could still put on a blouse.

I cut the tag off, took one last examining look in the mirror, and then left the room.

Startled, I stopped on the last step of the stairs.

"Mr. Bardot...?" it slipped out of me barely audibly and, above all, in complete surprise.

"Happy 18 th birthday, Bayla," he said kindly, coming up to shake my hand. In the other, he held a small package wrapped in dark blue paper, which he finally pressed into my hand.

"Here, I don't know what you like, but your mother said you are into reading."

"Thanks, you shouldn't have..." I stuttered in embarrassment, accepting the package slightly ashamed.

I turned toward Mum to confront her with scathing looks, but she had disappeared. I looked around further and spotted her next to the stove, where she was lighting candles on a cake. Leaning against the kitchen counter, next to her was Julian, who seemed to be eyeing me.

Everything in me instantly stiffened.

What the hell was he doing here again?

I immediately regretted that I had put on this top and crossed my arms in front of my chest. Then I strode to Mum in the kitchen and showed her with my looks how excited I was.

Julian seemed to noticed and grinned at me gleefully. I looked back without sympathy.

Couldn't he just leave again, please?

"Do you want a coffee, Graham? Or you, Julian?" my mother asked, addressing Mr. Bardot and the annoying neighbor guy.

"No, thanks. We already had breakfast at home," Julian's father replied, while Julian himself was still grinning at me silently.

His gaze made me uncomfortable, not because he wasn't watching me the way guys usually did, but because his gaze was so damn intense.

I put the package on the counter next to the pie.

It had to be blueberry pie because the delicious smell made my mouth water. I loved blueberries more than anything, and normally I would have jumped at the pie right away. But we had guests, and I didn't want to seem as greedy in front of them as I actually was.

What Julian thought, I didn't care so much.

"Where should we start?"

Mr. Bardot looked questioningly at my mother, who pulled a knife out of the silverware box and placed it next to the cake.

"Wait, let me think for a minute..." she began, deciding to cut the cake. "I'd say the garden fence looks the worst, doesn't it?"

"You're the boss," Mr. Bardot quipped before nodding to me and turning to slurp through the living room to the front door. Julian also finally turned away from me and followed him through the door, which closed squeakily behind them both.

"You're the boss?" I snorted, grinning. "May I know what that was all about?"

Mum rolled her eyes with red cheeks.

"Keep your voice down. The walls here have ears."

Questioningly, I looked at the walls as if they really did have ears before realizing how absurd her words sounded.

"No, seriously."

Why had she invited Mr. Bardot and his cocky son?

"Graham and Julian are helping us fix up the house."

"Couldn't we have done it ourselves?" I asked, realizing in the same second that maybe we could really use some help.

"Definitely not. Those two are a lifesaver for me, really, and I hope the house looks livable again soon after that."

Oh great , Julian would probably be hanging around here more often from now on. It was bad enough that we went to the same university. Now, he was also laying siege to the house.

It was possible that I overreacted a bit, and Julian just wanted to be nice. But he was definitely too pushy toward me for that. Even if it was almost only a matter of glances. I wouldn't buy that he was doing this out of a good intention. He didn't seem like the type of guy who helped neighbors because he was friendly. There had to be something in it for him.

"Come here, sweetheart. The wax will drip on your cake if you don't hurry."

"Then why did you put it on?"

Grinning, I looked at her.

Mum indignantly slapped me with the wipe.

"Because it's your birthday. Now, will you stop grumbling?"

She put the cake she had just picked up on the large kitchen counter.

"I'm not grumbling at all."

Her gaze lingered on my top.

"Oh, you're all dressed up today. I've never seen that before."

"It's from Larissa," I waved it off, ignoring her teasing tone.

"From Larissa..." it came back significantly. "No wonder. She really wasn't a good influence on you."

"Mum!"

I gave her an unenthusiastic look.

Larissa was still my best friend, and I wasn't going to give that up so quickly.

Mum just laughed, then took me in her arms and hugged me tightly. I returned the hug, although I didn't really like that. That was because Larissa always hugged me so tightly that I couldn't breathe, and her strong perfume always literally stuck to me. But I loved this girl.

"You don't know how proud I am of you," Mum said, breaking away from me again.

There it was again. That look of promise. As if she wanted to say something else. But she turned away quickly before I could reply.

Maybe it was better that way. I didn't need to know everything. After all, it was her life, and it had nothing to do with me.

It would all get better soon. I sensed that. Soon, Dr. Copeland would be able to help my mum. And we would go back. Home.

"Now eat your cake before it's full of wax!"

I was about to reach for the piece of cake when a ringing filled the first floor. The doorbell.

I looked over at Mum, who was heaving the plates out of the dishwasher.

"I'll get it," I announced. And before Mum could say anything, I turned and ran to the front door.

I was already expecting Julian or Mr. Bardot, but as I sweepingly yanked open the door, I spotted a pretty girl about my age with beautiful, full black hair, equally full lips, and high, rosy cheekbones. She was wearing gray jeans, along with an emerald green top with white and yellow flower print and a hairband that flattered her emerald eyes.

"Hey!" she said with a bright smile that showcased her perfect teeth and reached up to her curiously twinkling eyes.

"Hey...", I replied cautiously as she held something out to me. Cake.

Overwhelmed, I looked at her.

"How fitting, Mady," I heard Julian laughing in the front yard and spotted him a few seconds later by the fence. He was grinning widely. As usual... "It's her birthday, and you're bringing her a cake."

I looked at Julian in punishment, but he was already pounding nails into our mailbox, focused on his hammer.

"It's your birthday?" I looked again at the girl, who had to be Mady . "Happy birthday!"

"Thank you..."

And then I finally managed to take the cake from her.

"I thought I'd say hello now that we're neighbors."

Neighbors?

I peeked over at the pretty small house, which resembled ours but was in better condition by far.

"I'm Mady...and I don't mean to intrude any further."

She smiled nervously and turned to leave.

"Wait..."

Visibly surprised, she turned back to me, and I searched for words. "I'm Bayla."

Mady smiled.

"Wow, she's introducing herself to you, quite an improvement."

We both turned to Julian, and Mady shook her head before turning back to me. "Julian's always like that."

"You know each other personally?"

I looked back and forth between the two of them, and Julian put the hammer aside to wipe his face on his shirt. As he did, I caught a glimpse of his defined abs.

Embarrassed, I looked away, back at Mady, who grinned knowingly at me.

"Unfortunately." She rolled her eyes. "We went to Blairville High, even in the same class." She pointed to Julian. "That right there is the embodiment of loner ."

Julian snorted and raised both brows before nodding at Mady. "And that one is the Sunshine Girl ."

I looked at her questioningly. Mady just smiled, shaking her head. "Everyone has their reputation here." Then she looked at her watch. "Anyway, I have to get going."

I nodded in understanding.

"Of course."

She winked at me, tossed her hair over her shoulder, and literally danced down the porch past Julian, whom she stuck her tongue out at.

Something told me she and Larissa would get along perfectly.

"You have mail, by the way."

I looked over at Julian, who was holding up two letters.

Annoyed by the fact that he couldn't have just left them in the mailbox, I stomped down the porch through the demolished front yard.

But I didn't get far.

Something hard flew into me, and with a terrified scream, I tumbled backward into the nearest bush, where I landed ungently on scratchy branches.

"Ouch..." I groaned in pain, and when I felt something sharp on my belly and wanted to check if I had hurt myself, a bloodcurdling scream escaped me.

On my belly sat a freaking raven !

The animal was frightened as violently as I was and shot up, its claws once again digging nicely into my belly.

"Ah!" It escaped me and I jumped up, out of the bush.

A mistake. Because I crashed right into Julian, who immediately grabbed my arms to keep me from falling down another time.

The warmth of his hands on my elbows didn't make it easy to look away. Instead, my gaze fell on his olive-green eyes.

"Are you okay?" he asked with a strangely concerned undertone, and only now did I realize how close he was to me.

"A raven... attacked me," I gasped and stepped back, looking around in confusion for the creature and spotting three more pitch black birds in the road.

"Did you get hurt?"

I looked back at Julian, following his gaze to my T-shirt, which was tattered at my stomach.

Without hesitation, I pulled it up at the spot and discovered three bright red scratches next to my belly button.

Julian stepped closer, and immediately, I pulled the t-shirt back down.

"It's okay...", I said hastily and sped around, hurrying back to the porch.

The last thing I needed was Julian feeling sorry for me just because some stupid bird had run me over.

"Bayla?" I wheeled around and looked at Julian, who was holding up white paper. "The mail."

Cursing softly, I hurried back, snatched the mail from his hands, and returned to the front door.

Only now did I notice Julian staring at me with that ridiculous grin. I rolled my eyes and pulled the front door shut.

I hadn't run into the neighbors again today.

But the noise in the garden had reminded me of their presence, and I had given up trying to read anything. It had been too loud for that. What on earth were they doing with the garden fence? Were they dancing on it?

I finally used the time to tidy my room and sort my books into the shelf Mum had gifted me today, along with three new releases by Ana Huang. Organized by genre, I sorted my books.

Mr. Bardot had gifted me a history book about Blairville.

Since I didn't like it when people gave me something for my birthday, I wanted to at least flip through the book, even if it was about this boring hick town. Otherwise, I felt rude.

I reached for the next book, my hands hitting crumpled wrapping paper.

Why...

The afternoon in the marketplace came to mind again. This had to be the pretty leather book I had picked up.

Carefully, I unwound the paper and set it aside. The book was incredibly lovely and looked high quality as well.

I opened to the first few blank pages and came across the storage space. It occurred to me that I could put my necklace in there, however I hadn't found it yet. Hopefully, it was still in my suitcase, because I would not forgive myself for losing it.

As I looked at the book, an idea came to me.

I retrieved the mysterious envelope from the French philosophy book and slipped it into the small box.

My eyes lingered on the paper, and it was as if that damn envelope was calling to me. Curiosity was getting the better of me.

Was I supposed to?

Oh, damn it . This was long overdue. And Mum didn't have to know about it... after all.

Just as I was about to reach for the letter, my window flew open with a clang, and a huge gust of wind rushed through my room. I hurried to the window to close it quickly.

This wretched stormy weather in this bloody small town!

When I returned to the shelf where I had put the book, I froze.

The envelope. It had disappeared.

"No..."

Suddenly, my cell phone rang.

I ran to the bed, overwhelmed, grabbed the black smartphone, and just pressed the side button to answer the call directly. It had to be Larissa.

"Hey, Larissa. I was thinking..."

"Is this Ms. Adams I'm talking to?" It wasn't Larissa but the voice of a young woman. Maybe someone from the university?

"Yes..." I replied shyly.

"Please come to Moenia next Friday at 10:00 pm. And don't forget to be on time and..."

"Excuse me, who am I talking to?"

"Diana, it's important that you..."

Shit.

"There must be some misunderstanding, I'm not Diana, I'm..."

Suddenly, the phone was snatched out of my hand.

I spun around and looked at the horrified face of my mother, who gave me a warning look and then spoke to the person on the other side of the line.

"Yes, yes, it's me... No, yes... no. I'll be there. Good... I'll see you."

She hung up and looked at me indecisively.

"Sorry, I thought that was mine." I pointed to the phone in her hand, which was basically mine again. We even had the same case. I had probably grabbed hers when I went upstairs.

"Did she say anything weird to you? Did you say you were my daughter?"

"No, just that you were 10:00..."

I hesitated.

"Who was that?"

"No one special, just Dr. Copeland's assistant."

"What are you doing at 10:00 p.m. with Dr. Copeland, for heaven's sake?", I cautiously said. At this, images immediately popped into my head that I had not intended to evoke.

Confused, I shook my head.

Was it possible that this Dr. Copeland and my mother...?

No. Impossible . Besides, she had told me to stay away from the Copelands. That had been a woman just now, and this appointment had sounded way too professional. Or was I wrong about everything?

"The hospital also gives out appointments for evenings..." Mum laughed sheepishly. "Not everyone is an early riser."

"Evening?", I huffed, and somehow it was getting more and more suspicious. Ten o'clock was almost night...

Mum started spinning the phone in her hands, avoiding my gaze again.

Was this what it was all about all along? Had she built a new life here, and I didn't know about it yet? Was that perhaps why I should stay away from the Copelands?

I was about to ask if there was anything else she wanted to say to me when a loud male voice rang out from downstairs.

"Diana?"

It had to be Mr. Bardot.

"Wait, I can hear you so bad up here, I'm coming down," Mum shouted louder now, smiled at me again and disappeared downstairs in a hurry.

She was such a bad liar. And as always, she left me with endless questions. Questions upon questions and I got no answers to any of them.

I had only been here five days and had gotten to know my mum from a completely different side. A side that scared me because it showed me that Mum had secrets and kept quiet about it.

A mother with a thousand secrets, weird citizens in a hillbilly town where people disappeared and massive wild wolves ran around, an annoying playboy neighbor and a best friend who didn't even check in with me for my birthday.

I would wait until tonight. Maybe she would call me after all. In the end, it wasn't even her fault, and it was this fucked up network out here.