Unraveling Sarah Cresley by Marisa Maichel (best summer books .txt) 📕

"Thirty five dollars." I quickly paid and went outside. Running into her. "S-Sarah!" She looked equally shocked to see me.

"Is the psychic any good?" she asked.

"Don't bother. She said her knowledge was 'subjective'."

"Then I'd better see somebody else," she said. "Maybe a therapist." Then she looked terrified at her words, looking at me as if she had said something ghastly.

"Sarah, I...I need to talk to you. When's a good time?" I asked. She blinked.

"Now. Now's a good time. No more keeping things from each other. No more bullshit. Just you and me," she declared.

"I like that. Want to hang out in my van?"

Less than thirty seconds later, she was sitting in my passenger seat. I sat in the driver's seat. For a moment, we were silent. Then I broke it.

"I love you."

"I know," she replied.

"Do you love me too?"

"I'm not going to lie to you, Reese. I'm starting to fall in love with you. Last night, I dreamed that I was pregnant with your baby. I think...I think I really am pregnant with Mike's baby." For a moment, I was stunned. Then I growled. Nales. He will die for this!

"Sarah, I...I'm sorry. I don't know if anything I say can make you feel better, all I want is for you to feel better." I clutched her and kissed her roughly. "I love you," I said. "I love you. I've loved you for so long, Sarah, and now I..." She broke away from me, confusing me. My stomach flipped as I looked into her eyes.

She leaned her head against my chest. She scooted closer to me. I growled possessively and smelled her hair. It smelled like lavender.

"Nothing is more important to me than loving you," I said. She looked affronted and frowned at me. Crap. What did I say?

"What about your father?" she asked. "And about loving me...I'm not more important than love between a boy and a girl?" My brain pondered her reasoning, and it only befuddled me further.

"Of course I love my father," I said. "And love is the most important thing in the world."

"You're right," she said, her eyes softening. "I'm sorry; I'm being silly."

"There's nothing silly about asking universal questions," I replied. Did matters of reproduction and marrying a wealthy person matter more than love? I thought not, and I hoped she felt the same way. I would have to ask Ariella later what she thought about what Sarah had said.

"My ex and I used to explore this place," she said. Okay, now she making me jealous. "But you probably don't want to hear about him."

"Damn right I don't." She looked surprised and mildly scared at my callous tone and words. "Forgive me," I said. My instincts were on overdrive. "Would you like me to drive you someplace?"

"Yeah," she said. "My friend dropped me off here. My car's low on gas."

"What friend?" I asked, gripping the steering wheel.

"Ariella." I looked at her in shock.

"Ari-Ariella Spears?"

"Mhmm. She and I have gotten really close since she helped me that night. I'm surprised she hasn't told you. Don't you, like, tell each other everything?"

"Almost," I said, thinking of her relationship with my uncle. I nearly crushed the steering wheel in my anger. "Put your seat belt on." She did as I commanded. I started driving.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Sarah! SARAH!" I cried as I looked over at her. She was unconscious and bleeding heavily from her leg. I unbuckled myself, unbuckled her, and lifted her into my arms. I kicked the door of the van off, sending it flying back. I hopped out, still holding my mate in my arms. Mate? Yes, mate. She was my mate now. I set her gently on the asphalt.

"Dude, are you okay?" someone asked.

"Call for an ambulance!" I snapped at him. I cradled her head. "Sarah, don't leave me, baby, don't leave me...I'm so sorry...please forgive me, this is all my fault...." I barely noticed the EMTs, who pushed me aside and focused on her.

"Are you all right?" asked one of them.

"I'm fine," I said. My cell phone rang. I glanced at it. Father. He must have seen what happened. "Hello?"

"Reese! Thank God! I saw you get into a car crash! Are you hurt?"

"Daddy, I'm fine, Sarah's not." I felt pain in my chest and doubled over.

"Reese, baby, listen to me carefully. Whether you're unhurt or not, I want you to go to the hospital with Sarah."

"That's my intention, Father," I said as they pulled out a gurney and put her on there. I climbed into the ambulance after her.

"Sweetheart, I'll be there soon. Don't do anything stupid or rash. I'm calling Sarah's mother as soon as I'm done talking with you. I need you to be honest about any pain or shock. I'm hanging up now. Call me once you get to the hospital. I love you." He hung up.

The EMTs pushed me aside again and began to work on her.

"Is she allergic to penicillin?" a tall black one asked.

"I don't know," I answered truthfully.

Even though they had the lights and sirens on, it still wasn't fast enough to me. As we went along, the pain in my chest grew worse. Finally, one of the EMTs noticed.

"Are you hurt?" he asked.

"There's a pain in my chest," I answered.

When we got to the hospital, I was placed on a gurney as well and brought inside. Sarah was taken to the Critical Care Unit along with me. They did a scan of my chest and found out that several of my ribs were broken. Soon enough, I heard my father.

"That's my son! I have to see him!" I saw him scurry over to me. "Reese! You said you weren't hurt!"

"Father, I was in shock. Several of my ribs are broken and there's possible internal bleeding." He made a noise that sounded like a squeak.

"My poor baby," he cooed.

My chest and abdomen were wrapped in bandages. When Father saw them, he looked sad.

"What's with that face?" I asked him.

"You were hurt, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I wish I got flashes of the future instead of flashes of the present. It would make both our lives easier."

"Meddling in the future is risky," I reminded him.

"Of course it is, but if it hadn't been for my gift, I would have never known what happened, and that scares me. If I got flashes of the future instead, I could have prevented this. Not allowed you to go out or something. What were doing in that part of town anyway?"

"I went to see a Seer."

"You did not! What did she ask for?"

"Money. That's it." He looked relieved. "Trust me, Father, I'm okay."

"No, you're not okay. It takes a lot of force to break a vampire's bone. And you have several broken ribs! If I hadn't been elsewhere...I should have gone with you...I feel like this is somehow my fault."

"You're being silly," I told him. He was over at my other side in less than a second. He lifted my head up and kissed my forehead.

"Even if I am just being silly, I still should have been there for you."

"How's Sarah?" I asked him. He became silent.

"It's not looking good, Reese." I sat up quickly, causing pain to shoot through me. "Lay down, son. I promise I'll watch over her." With that, he walked away.

~~~~~~~~~

He advanced toward me. He looked like me, except he was more muscular and taller. Sarah stood in front of me.

"Get out of my way, pumpkin," he said. "After this, you and I can live forever in peace. Trust me." He pushed her aside, causing her to land on her ass. He jammed a dagger into my stomach, causing me to double over.

"No!" Sarah cried. I smiled at her.

"He's bluffing, sweetheart," I said.

"Why aren't you dying?!" my doppelganger cried, stabbing me over and over again. "Die, bastard, die!"

"No!" Sarah tried to shove him off of me. He pushed her away, slicing her arm open. She cried out in shock and tears streamed down her face.

"Son of a bitch!" I cried, throwing myself at him. He kicked me in the chest, sending me back. I heard Father's voice.

"Reese, baby, it's just a dream. Please wake up."

I did wake up. Father had his arms around me and was cradling me.

"I had a dream about my doppelganger," I said. His eyes widened.

"Doppel...Reese, that's not good."

"Father, don't be superstitious."

"Son, I...I've also had dreams about my doppelganger. In each dream, I wind up dead. I couldn't live with myself if I left you too early. Who would look after you?"

"Father, we're vampires. We can handle anything."

"You have nine broken ribs!"

"Almost anything. How is Sarah?"

"She's doing better. Her arm's broken, and so is one of her legs. She too has several broken ribs and her baby is doing well."

"Baby? She really is pregnant?" I asked.

"Yes, she's pregnant. I assume it is Nales' baby?"

"Yes, it belongs to Nales." I growled. He would regret the day he hurt Sarah. I would be handing out his punishment.

~~~~~~~~

"Sarah, I love you. Please wake up," I said to her form. Her eyes opened and she looked at me sleepily.

"Wha-what happened?" she asked.

"We were in a car crash. You were badly injured. I'm so sorry, Sarah."

"How is my baby?" she asked. Her eyes widened frightfully.

"He or she is doing fine," I answered.

"How is she, really?"

"How do know it's a she? And it really is okay. No harm done to the fetus. You, however, have several broken bones."

"The only time I've ever broken anything is when I was at cheerleader camp one time and my ankle broke. I had to go home early."

"Well, you broke your left leg and arm, and seven ribs."

"What about you?" I pulled up my shirt.

"I have nine broken ribs. That's it. I'm so sorry, Sarah. This is all my fault."

"Accidents happen. The important thing is we're all alive." I kissed her lips softly. They were dry and thirsty. I filled a cup with water and offered it to her. She thanked me and sipped slowly.

"Sarah, can I ask you something?" I said. She looked at me with a mouth full of water. Her cheeks were slightly puffed, which gave her a chipmunkish look. "How do you know the baby's a she?" She swallowed her water.

"I don't. I'm hoping it's a she. Before all this, I wanted to wait until I was married for a baby. Now I have no choice but to go through with it."

"What about abortion?"

"I support abortion rights, I just can't do it myself. I once knew a girl, and she was the nicest person ever, and she had an abortion. She never regretted it. If my baby's a girl, I want to name her Selena."

"A beautiful name. What if it's a boy?"

"Probably a C name. I've always like C names. Maybe I'll name the baby Celena with a C if it's a she."

"How about Cirino?" I offered. "It means 'like the sun'."

"Oh Reese, that's perfect! Problem is, I can't take care of a baby. I have school and life."

"I'll figure out something, sweetheart, don't you worry," I crowed. Maybe Father or Uncle Soren can take it, I thought.

"Sarah!" Sarah's mother Alicia came barreling through. "What happened, babycakes?" She hugged her daughter gently.

"Mom, I'm fine. I just have some broken bones, that's all."

"That's all!" Her voice lowered. "Sarah, I've had to give up our health insurance. The money your father left us is drying up quickly. I can't afford any hospital bills."

"Since the crash was my fault, I'll take care of the costs," I said. Alicia's eyes widened.

"Reese, you don't have to...you're just a kid!"

"I have amassed a great sum of money from a relative. The cost is no problem." Alicia hugged me tightly.

"Reese," Father spoke up. "The person who hit you wants a word with you." My stomach twisted into a tight knot. I glanced back at Alicia and Sarah, then followed my father. I hadn't given a second thought to the person whom I'd hit. I was