Stake Out!. Sienna Mercer
voice cut through all the teasing: ‘What are you guys talking about?’
Uh-oh, Olivia thought. She turned and saw her new friend staring at the rest of them as if they were speaking gibberish.
‘That went really fast and really far,’ Holly said, looking over her shoulder. ‘How could he ever throw further than that ?’
‘Oh, that was just . . .’ Olivia said, her words falling away into a long, drawn-out ‘uuhhhh’ sound, ‘ . . . an inside joke!’
Holly smiled uncertainly back at her. ‘Oh, OK. Um, yeah, funny . . . I’ll just go get the Frisbee.’
Guilt tightened Olivia’s chest as Holly walked away, the embroidered flowers on her jeans glinting in the sunlight. Olivia knew all too well what it was like to feel an outsider in Franklin Grove. The last thing she wanted was to make her new friend feel that way.
As she turned back to the others, she saw the vampires in their group – Ivy, Brendan and Sophia – exchanging warning glances. The First Law of the Night said their existence must never be revealed to outsiders. Holly wasn’t like Camilla, who’d lived around vampires for years and no longer noticed or questioned the fact that her classmates could run super-fast. Holly was new to Franklin Grove. She was a true outsider.
And she was smart.
As Holly picked up the Frisbee, Ivy walked quickly over to Olivia. Something sparkled on her hand, catching Olivia’s attention.
‘Oh, wow. Ivy, did Brendan just give you a –’
‘Why did you invite her along?’ Ivy interrupted. ‘I thought we were supposed to be relaxing with the gang today. Now I have to be super-cautious so that Holly doesn’t guess anything. One little bit of teasing and she’s already starting in with the awkward questions.’
Olivia suddenly didn’t feel like complimenting her sister on her gift any more. ‘You know, Ivy, you didn’t have to tease Brendan in front of her . . .’
‘I just wanted to have a bit of fun with my boyfriend!’ Ivy protested. ‘Is that off-limits now, with her around?’
‘Oh, come on!’ Olivia crossed her arms over her pale pink minidress, her guilt turning into irritation. ‘I’m not going to just dump Holly now that you’re back. She was really supportive when you were away. You should try to be nice to her.’
‘I don’t mind being nice,’ Ivy said. ‘But I’ve only just come home. Can’t I take one day to relax and be myself?’
‘You are in the middle of a public park,’ Olivia said, as a jogger ran past them, and a pair of dogs barked madly from the other end of the field. ‘You guys couldn’t show off your super-skills that much here anyway.’
‘But – oh, never mind. Here she comes.’ Ivy went back to her place in the park, her scowl just as black as her Shadowtown T-shirt and combat trousers.
Brendan threw Olivia a questioning glance. She shook her head as if to say all was good, which it was – the twins never truly fell out. Olivia wasn’t sure they were capable!
The group carried on playing, but the atmosphere had definitely changed. When Holly threw the Frisbee to Sophia, Sophia made a hopelessly pathetic attempt to run for it and then gave up, mournfully shaking her head. Even a human could have run faster than that. Olivia saw Ivy grimace at Sophia’s play, but even Ivy knew the rules. When Brendan threw her the Frisbee overhand, she barely even tried to reach for it. And when Camilla yelled that she had to be getting home soon, all the vampires in the group slumped with obvious relief.
‘Oh, do we have to stop?’ Holly said. She was panting with effort, the sleeves of her peasant-style blouse rolled up above her elbows, but she waved the Frisbee enticingly. ‘Come on, we were just getting warmed up!’
‘Sorry,’ said Sophia, collapsing gracefully to the ground. ‘I’m, erm . . . winded.’
‘Yeah.’ Ivy dropped to the ground, groaning. ‘I couldn’t take any more exercise.’
‘Well, OK then.’ Holly sighed and set down the Frisbee.
Thank goodness, Olivia thought, as they all sank back down on to the picnic blanket and the grass around it. Now we can be normal again. And maybe, she thought, as she saw Holly give Ivy a hopeful smile, Ivy and Holly can finally have a real conversation.
Olivia knew Ivy would like Holly if she only gave her a chance. After all, the first time Olivia and Holly had met, Holly had reminded her of her sister! They were both so strong and smart, and both completely determined to launch their writing careers. While Ivy wanted to be an investigative journalist, Holly wanted to become a travel journalist. In fact, Holly had been really keen to interview Ivy about her time in Transylvania. It was almost as though Holly had Ivy on a pedestal!
And now all Ivy can do is ignore her, Olivia thought. Wrapped up in Brendan, Ivy hadn’t even noticed Holly’s smile, much less returned it.
Maybe once a real conversation started, though, they would finally connect.
‘That was just like a scene in that hot new vampire book, Bare Throats at Sunset, wasn’t it?’ Holly said, as she knelt back down on the picnic blanket. ‘You know, when all the friends play a game of touch football, just before one of them –’ she lowered her voice dramatically – ‘succumbs to the vampire’s bite!’
‘Oh my gosh, you’re totally right!’ Camilla exclaimed. She had been lying down, but now she popped up again, her blonde curls springing in all directions. ‘Do you remember that book, Ivy? It’s the one I found through that cult reading group I joined – it picks out books no one else has ever heard of. It would make a fantastic movie!’
‘No way,’ Ivy groaned. ‘I hated that book! Seriously, there’s a reason that one hasn’t hit the bestseller charts. No way would I pay good money for a cinema ticket for any film based on it. I have some taste.’
Olivia winced as she saw Holly’s smile drop into a slight scowl. Holly pointed at the Shadowtown T-shirt Ivy was wearing. ‘Oh yeah? Would you call that show high-quality storytelling?’
Uh-oh, Olivia thought. Everybody knew that Shadowtown was hilariously terrible, with its hundreds of amnesia storylines and secret vampire babies. But Ivy was an utterly devoted fan anyway.
Olivia watched the struggle on her twin’s face. ‘Well, it’s . . . I mean, I just . . . I don’t like following the crowd. Is that OK?’
‘Sure,’ Holly said, smoothly. ‘I’m just curious about what other people like reading. We obviously have very . . . different tastes.’ She tried to smile, but Olivia could see it was an effort.
Poor Holly, she thought. All she was doing was trying to have a conversation about films and books !
‘Yeah, pretty different,’ Ivy agreed. ‘Personally, I think Bare Throats at Sunset is so bad, the author should be arrested!’ She crossed her arms, as though challenging anyone to disagree with her.
Holly shrugged, turning the Frisbee over and over in her hands. ‘I don’t think many people would share your opinion,’ she said quietly. Olivia had to give her marks for standing up for herself. Ivy in angry-mode could be quite intimidating.
‘Oh, yeah? Well, let’s poll the group.’ Ivy swung around to face the others sitting on the blanket. Most of their friends were either looking at the ground or turned away. ‘Come on: book debate!’
It was the first time in Olivia’s life that she’d ever actually hoped for a sudden, freak thunderstorm – regardless of what it would do to her hair, or how badly it would ruin her dress. She tipped her head back to look desperately at the sky. Anything to interrupt this conversation!
What had got into Ivy? Not only was she already fighting with Olivia’s new friend, but they were fighting