Free Daniel Taylor and the Dark Legacy by Monica Davis

nothing about, and at the same time he wondered what had awakened his sudden interest in her. Earlier, when he was holding Vanessa in his arms after Marla’s attack, he had become aware of something: She was the only person he could allow to get close to him. It was a shame that they had grown apart in recent years. Maybe we can rekindle our friendship , he hoped, catching himself looking her over again from head to toe.“That dress really looks good on you.”
    Her cheeks, already bright with rouge, turned even redder. “Thanks. I got it from my aunt — she has a costume shop.” She spun in a circle for his amusement. Another strand of hair had loosed itself from her hairpins and curled enticingly on her bare shoulder. How he’d like to wrap that silken lock around his finger!
    He was also drawn to her narrow waist. He wanted to wrap his arms around it and press her body to his. Don’t be stupid , he told himself; he had no chance with Nessa. She was only being nice to him because they had known each other forever. What would she want with a loser like him?
    Sighing, he focused on the red liquid in his glass. Vanessa was greeted by a mummy — to Daniel’s relief, a female mummy. He moved a few steps away, feeling like an interloper. Suddenly, he felt uncomfortable among all these people. Maybe he should have just stayed home; he felt totally out of place here.
    The spacious living room had been decorated with dark streamers, and wherever he looked he saw fake pumpkins lit up with electric lights and curls of perfumed smoke drifting upward from sticks of incense. The smell almost nauseated him. The drumbeat signaling one of his headaches was returning, so he called over to Vanessa, “I’m going out to the patio to get a breath of fresh air.”
    She parted from the mummy with a radiant smile and came over to him. “Already? We just got here.”
    “You don’t have to come if you don’t want to. I can see that you’re having a good time.” Daniel tried not to let on how hurt he was by the evident intimacy between Nessa and Mike.
    She smiled at him so sweetly that he felt a little dizzy. “I’ll be right there, I just have to powder my nose.”
    “Already? We just got here,” he teased. They both laughed, and his jealousy was forgotten.
    While Vanessa made her way to the bathroom, Daniel spotted the glass doors leading out to the patio and started to cut through the crowd. He looked around him constantly, expecting to find Marla among his dancing classmates. His head was throbbing unpleasantly, and Daniel was sure that she was somewhere nearby.
    He strode out onto the paved patio and closed the door behind him to trap the noise and stink of incense inside the house, then let himself drop onto a deck chair. His reprieve was brief.
    “Well, look here, if it isn’t Daniel Taylor!” Rebecca gave him a saccharine smile and sat down next to him on the chair. Apparently she had just gone out to the shed to get a few extra chairs.
    The dark-haired girl was dressed as Cleopatra, and the costume suited her — but Daniel had never really liked Becky. She radiated an aura that reminded him of the snake that had tricked Adam and Eve. She’d make a good match for Pharaoh Mike , he thought, presenting his heavily made-up hostess with a cool smile.
    Rebecca leaned toward him to straighten the collar of his ruffled shirt. “I had no idea that you were on the guest list.”
    “I came with Vanessa.” He again felt the urge to get out of there, now more than ever. He found Becky’s blatant overtures very unpleasant.
    “I see, with our little nerd,” she taunted him, moving slightly closer.
    Vanessa had noticed that Danny was uncomfortable at the party. Bringing him here hadn’t been a very good idea. Emerging from the bathroom, she made a beeline for the patio door; she didn’t want to leave him alone for long. Looking through the glass door, she saw him talking with Rebecca, seemingly dazzled by her, and she