Free Dirty Blood by Heather Hildenbrand Page B

on.”
    “I don’t think I’m going to the dance.”
    “What? Why?”
    I realized I’d forgotten to tell her. “George and I
broke up.”
    She leaned down and put her arms around me. “I’m so
sorry, Tay. Are you okay?” She pulled back and looked down at me
sympathetically.
    “Yeah, I’m fine actually. I think it was the right
thing. But he doesn’t agree – or seem to be accepting it.”
    “Okay, that’s it. You have to get something new,” Sam
declared. “If you’re going to be boring and not get a new dress, at
least get a new pair of jeans. You know, the ones that squeeze your
butt like a vise and you have to lay down to zip.” She wiggled an
eyebrow. “It’ll make you feel better.”
    I laughed. “I do not want a pair of jeans that cut
off my air supply. And if I change my mind, I’ll be sure to borrow
them from you.”
    “Fine. But I’m going to change and then we ARE going
to find you something new. It’s a rule. After a breakup, you have
to buy new clothes.”
    “Fine,” I agreed.
    We waited while Sam changed and then we spread out
and wandered through the racks.
    “Tara, this is cute, come see,” called Angela, a
moment later.
    I wandered over for a closer look and froze. It was a
hoodie, with the face of a wolf on the front. Even worse, its face
was split in two, one half on each side of the zipper. I tried to
keep my expression neutral while I mentally cringed. “I think I’ll
pass.” I moved away as quick as I could.
    “What about this one?” Angela called again, this time
holding up another. This one was a myriad of different shades of a
single color: green.
    “Perfect,” I said, taking it out of her hands.
    “It doesn’t have anything on it,” Sam argued.
    “Which means it’ll go with everything,” I argued
back.
    Sam rolled her eyes.
    By the time we reached the food court for burgers, I
realized I was in a good mood and the most relaxed I’d been in
days. I was enjoying normalcy; something I’d seriously taken for
granted up until forty-eight hours ago. Maybe, despite everything
that had happened, nothing needed to change for me, after all.
Maybe nothing like it would ever happen again; which also meant I’d
probably never see Wes again. And just like that, my good mood
evaporated.
    On the way out to the car, I saw that clouds had
rolled in, making the sky a dismal shade of winter gray, and there
was a dampness in the air that made the chill feel heavier. I
pulled my coat tight around me and kept my head down.
    We’d almost made it to the car when I felt it. My
skin prickled and tingled in warning, giving me the feeling of
something crawling on me. I shivered and spun around, fully
expecting to see a wolf lurking somewhere between the parked cars,
but when I turned, there was nothing there. I kept searching,
spinning a full circle, as my eyes looked for any movement, furry
or otherwise. Nothing.
    I thought of my broken plunger handles, still under
the bathroom sink where I’d stashed them last night. I should
probably carry them around with me, just in case.
    “Tara? Are you okay?” Angela asked.
    Out of the corner of my eye I saw her and Sam
watching me with confused expressions, but I ignored them and
continued to scan the lot. “Yeah, I’m fine… just thought I saw
something,” I finally said, giving up and turning back to face
them.
    “Like what?” Angela pressed. The look on her face
told me I was coming off crazy.
    “A bird, I guess,” I said, lamely. I shrugged and
climbed into the backseat.
    “Maybe the breakup is bothering you more than you
thought,” said Sam, as she pulled the car onto the road.
    I didn’t answer. I was focused on the creepy-crawlies
I was still feeling. Thankfully, the feeling faded as we turned
into traffic and I sighed in relief.
    “Or maybe you aren’t as recovered as you thought,
from whatever bug you had,” suggested Angela.
    “I’m just distracted, guys. I’ve got a lot on my
mind.”
    “See, I told you it’s