Chapter Four - the Stranger

I woke up to the smell of frying bacon. I stumbled to the bathroom down the hall, dressed in only my extra long T-shirt until I remembered, Oh my God, Boys live here too. So I ran back into my room and put my pants back on. I then headed back to the bathroom down the hall and showered, and gave myself a little makeover to make myself look a little better than a girl who had just got the crap knocked out of her. I could have died, I was lucky I thought. I tossed the T-shirt back on, then dashed back in my room to dig out the panties I rescued from the washer. They were still damp, but I put them on anyway. I opened the closet door to find some old stuff shoved in the back, a few old T-shirts that had the names of bands I'd never heard of and a couple of sweaters. I changed my shirt and headed downstairs for breakfast.

As I walk into the kitchen, Shane and Eve were arguing about the right way to make scrambled eggs. Eve said they needed milk. Shane said milk was for weaklings.

"I see Michael didn't pitch you out," Shane said. "No, is there a reason he should have?" I asked Shane. "Something you should know about Michael, he doesn't like to take chances. I wasn't sure if he would let you stay. If he did, then he got a good vibe off you. Don't disrespect that, because if you do.... I won't be happy either," Shane told me.

"He;s your friend right?" I asked. "He saved my life, I'd die for him, but it'd be a dumb thing to thank him for it. So yeah. He's been my friend all of my life, and he's more like a brother. So don't get him into trouble," Shane told me. "I won't, oh by the way, no milk in the eggs," I told Eve. "See told ya," Shane snickered. Eve and Shane finished cooking breakfast as I set the table. We were about to sit down to eat when suddenly the doorbell rang. "Quick, get her out of sight", Shane whispered to Eve. Eve nodded, put her plate on the counter, and hustled me to the pantry. "Inside. I'm going to turn the light on out here, but try to keep that flashlight off if you hear voices. It could show through the cracks," Eve warns.

Voices. Shane's and someone else's. A man's voice, deeper than Shane's. "Standard inventory," the stranger said. "Sir, there's nobody living here but what's on the roaster. Just the three of us," Shane told the stranger. "Which one are you?" The stranger asked. "Shane Collins Sir," answered Shane. "Get your third in here," the stranger said. "Well I would but Michael's not here. He's out until tonight. You want to check back then?" Shane asked. "Never mind. One other thing, here's a picture of a girl that disappeared from her dorm last night. You haven't seen her?" The stranger asked Shane and Eve. They both chorused a "No." "What's in here? You always leave the light on?" The stranger asked. "I was getting some jam when you rang Sir. I probably forgot to turn it off, Sorry," Eve said. "You ring the station if you see that girl. She's got herself in some trouble. We're supposed to help her get straightened out," the strange man said as he was heading out of the door.

Eve watched the man out the window as he drove away. Eve opened the door to the pantry to let me out. "It's ok, he's gone," Eve says as she lets me out of the pantry. "No hell it isn't ok. Thos jerks have her picture. They're looking for her. What'd you do Claire? Knife the mayor or something?" Asked Shane. "Nothing! I don't know why... Maybe it's that they're just worried because I didn't show up last night?" I stated. "Worried?" Shane laughed bitterly. "Yeah, that's it. They're worried about you. Right. I'm going to have to talk this over with Michael. If they're going to turn the town upside down looking for you, either you're too hot to stay in Morganville, or we need to get you under some kind of protection, fast," said Shane. "But maybe the police....?" I asked. "That was the police. Told you they run the town. These guys work for the vamps, they're not vamps themselves, but they're scary enough without the fangs. Look, can you call your parents? Get them to pull you out of school and take you home or something?" Eve asked me.

"But I haven't done anything! How can they be after me if I didn't do anything?" I asked trying not to tear up. "Life ain't fair. You must have pissed off the wrong people, is all I know. What's the girl's name? The one who smacked you around?" Eve asked me. "M...Monica," I answered. Their mouth dropped as they both looked at me. "Oh crap," Eve said horrified. "Monica Morrell?" Eve asked. Shane's face went blank, except for his eyes, there was something pretty scary going on behind them. "Monica," he repeated. "How come nobody told me?" Asked Shane. "We would have.... I swear, I thought she left town. Went off to college somewhere else," Eve said. She shook it off,and shrugged, trying to look like he didn't care. She probably couldn't stand not being the queen bee and had to come begging Daddy to buy her some grades. "Shane," Eve said as she broke Shane free from his trance. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me," snapped Shane. "She probably doesn't even remember you," Eve said. "Oh shit," Eve said. "What?" I asked. Eve pointed at the counter. Shane's, Eve's, and a third plate which was mine were all on the counter. "Three plates. He knew something was up. We told him Michael wasn't around. No wonder he kept poking," Eve pointed out. Shane said nothing, but he picked up his plate and went up to his room. "So Shane and Monica?" I guessed. "Not like you're thinking. He wouldn't touch that skank in a million years. But they were in high school together, and Shane got on her bad side. Just like you did," Eve said. I suddenly lost my appetite for breakfast. "What happened?" I asked Eve. "He stood up to her, and his house burnt. He nearly died. His sister wasn't so lucky. Michael got him out of town, off on his own, before he did something crazy. He's been gone a couple of years. Just came back right before I moved here. Lets east yeah? I'm starving," Eve said. We sat in the living room, chatting about nothing, not talking about the one thing that was most important : What to do.