Until now.
Chapter Four
‘There’s no other explanation,’ Ivy insisted.
Olivia had seen Ivy make some serious faces before – death-squints aimed at Garrick Stephens, for example – but nothing quite like her expression now. Ivy looked brittle enough to snap at the wrong word or even the gentlest touch.
Ivy ticked off the points on her fingers. ‘Brendan’s been acting weird, he’s been keeping secrets and now he’s sneaking around meeting some student-who-isn’t-really-a-student. What reasonable explanation could there be?’
Olivia glanced helplessly at Sophia beside her. Their school bus was due to leave at any moment, but the three of them were still huddled in the sheltered spot in the school courtyard where Ivy had dragged them immediately after their last class finished. Sophia looked as disturbed as Olivia felt, but she only shrugged hopelessly.
It was up to Olivia to make an attempt.
‘Well,’ she began, ‘it’s true that what’s going on doesn’t make any sense, but . . . there’s just no way that Brendan would be . . .’ She broke off. ‘I can’t even say it – that’s how ridiculous the whole idea is!’
‘She’s right.’ Sophia moved closer to Ivy, her expression brightening. ‘Boys can be stupid sometimes, but not that stupid. Imagine the death-squint you’d give him!’
‘Exactly,’ Olivia laughed, finally daring to wrap one arm around her sister’s waist. ‘I’m sure there’s a perfectly normal explanation for what’s going on. We’re just having trouble thinking of it right now, that’s all.’
‘Well . . .’ Sighing, Ivy started to lean into Olivia’s embrace. Then she suddenly stiffened.
Olivia followed her sister’s furious gaze and saw – Uh-oh – Maya the new girl walking briskly down the street in front of the school, heading in the direction of Lincoln Vale.
Ivy started forwards.
‘Hang on.’ Sophia’s own eyes narrowed as she pulled Ivy back. ‘Before you go chasing after her . . . do you see what’s up ahead?’ She pointed at a sign a block ahead of Maya, so far away that Olivia could barely make it out. Neither of the two vampires seemed to have any difficulty reading the far-off words, though. ‘That’s where Franklin Grove becomes Lincoln Vale – the point where we are no longer in our hometown.’ Sophia emphasised the last words solemnly, crossing her arms. ‘Do you remember all the misadventures we’ve already had in Lincoln Vale this month?’
Ivy grimaced, stepping away from Olivia. ‘How could I forget? Skate park disasters . . . the mall where you got that skater-girl haircut –’
‘Which turned out surprisingly well,’ Sophia pointed out, fluffing her black-and-blonde hair.
‘It’s true,’ Olivia reassured her. ‘You look really striking.’
But Ivy’s face was grimmer than ever as she glared after Maya. ‘If you guys are too scared to go to Lincoln Vale, it’s fine,’ she said. ‘I’ll just go it alone.’
‘Ivy . . .’ Olivia began.
Her twin jerked around to scowl at her. ‘Look, this isn’t just a potential disaster with my boyfriend. It’s also the most mysterious, well, mystery I’ve been able to investigate in ages! I can’t back down now!’
Olivia gently placed a hand on Ivy’s shoulder. ‘This isn’t “investigating”,’ she said. ‘You’re thinking about stalking a stranger. That’s pretty much “spying”.’
‘Cool,’ Sophia said, then gasped as she realised she wasn’t helping.
Ivy didn’t seem to notice. ‘If I have to spy, I will spy,’ she insisted. ‘I need to get to the bottom of this.’
Olivia sighed. There was no talking to Ivy when she was in this mood, but maybe if Olivia went along she could keep things from escalating too badly. She gave her twin’s shoulder a squeeze. ‘Of course I won’t let you go it alone. We’ll be spies together, investigating the Curious Case of the Not-a-Student!’
‘More like, the Bafflement of the Boyfriend Brendan,’ Ivy grumbled. But her lips twitched into half a smile. ‘So, you guys are in?’
Olivia linked arms with her twin. ‘If you’re determined to do something crazy then we’ll be crazy with you. Just like always!’
But even as the three girls formed a chain of linked arms, Olivia had to admit to herself that it felt more than a little bit weird to march down the street, away from Franklin Grove . . . And away from their school bus, which was now leaving the bus stop.
Sophia groaned. ‘It’s going to take us ages to walk home from Lincoln Vale.’
‘I don’t care if I have to walk for hours.’ Ivy’s stony gaze was fixed on Maya’s distant figure. ‘There’s something garlicky going on here, and I need to find out what it is.’
‘Um . . . Ivy?’ Olivia began tentatively. ‘Have you considered asking Brendan directly? It might be easier –’