Not walking closer, not talking with anyone, just...standing there.
I glanced up, right as he finally walked away. A young guy, yet another person I probably shared class with. Our eyes met as he headed to the next aisle, but his phone was in his hand and he’d probably just been standing there to answer a text.
I was way too paranoid. Leon was right outside in the truck. I didn’t have anything to fear. I grabbed the peanut butter cookies, then headed back toward the freezers for ice cream. So many options, how the hell was I supposed to choose? I opened the freezer door, the glass fogging immediately.
It was only after a minute of standing there with the cold air blasting me, that I realized someone was standing on the other side of the fogged glass door.
I glanced down, my hand tightening on the freezer handle. I could see clean white sneakers beneath the door, standing close, facing me.
I let the door close, taking a quick step back. Jeremiah stood there, hands in the pockets of his letterman jacket, smiling.
“Hey, Rae.” He smiled cheerfully. “Missed you at school on Monday, and at the Halloween party too. Did you bail out early on me?”
I gulped. Surely, Leon would have seen him come in here. Surely. “Oh, uh...yeah...yeah I left early. Didn’t feel good.”
He nodded. “I’d imagine not after that little treat I slipped in your drink. We could’ve had so much fun.” He took a step forward, and I took a quick step back, which made him laugh. Was he serious? He was going to admit to drugging me that easily? “But instead of a night wrecking your drugged-out ass, I ended up in police interviews for six hours, trying to explain everything I know about why dear old Dad killed himself.” He put big air quotes around that last bit. Shit. This was bad. My eyes darted toward the door at the far end of the market, ready to make a run for it.
But the guy I’d seen staring at me from the end of the aisle stepped into my path.
Shit. Shit, shit, shit.
“I suppose I should thank you and that traitorous demon of yours,” Jeremiah said. “For finally getting my father out of the way. Spending every waking moment trying to convince your own dad not to choose you as his human sacrifice will really fuck with your head.” He shrugged. “But in the end, Rae, I have to admit that I’m still pretty pissed off about it. All the fucking condolences and the I’m-so-sorry-for-your-loss bullshit. It gets so old pretending I’m in mourning.”
He thought Leon had killed Kent. He thought I was somehow responsible for his father’s death. I darted forward, trying to dodge around them, but Jeremiah and his buddy blocked me easily.
“Aw, Rae, not trying to run away from me again, are you?” Jeremiah chuckled, circling me. My back was to the freezers, and I still had hope that I could slip around them. Until Jeremiah yelled, “Lock it up, Tommy!”
I threw my basket toward him and bolted for the door. A loud metallic clattering jolted adrenaline through my chest, but I couldn’t stop, I had to make it to the door.
The metal security gate had been rolled down over the entrance. I stopped, panting, my heart beating painfully hard as the checker — whose name tag said Thomas — grinned as he locked the security gate into place.
“I don’t think my father made the reality of the situation clear to you, Raelynn, so let me elaborate.” I whirled around as Jeremiah sauntered up, his other friend close behind. “Abelaum belongs to the Libiri. It always has, and always will. Sure, you’ll find some poor naive souls like Inaya.” He rolled his eyes. “But your classmates” — Thomas grinned at me — “your neighbors, the sweet old couple you walk by on the street, they’re ours.” Jeremiah paused, and chuckled softly. “Or, I should say, they’re mine. They’re all mine, Rae. And so are you.”
“No.” My voice came out as a whisper, weak with terror. Leon had to have seen them lock this place down. He would come. Any second now, he would come.
Glass shattered behind me, followed by a roaring and a sound like stone colliding with metal. Jeremiah didn’t look surprised, but his friends’ faces fell, their eyes widening as they stared at the monster trying to break in behind me.