Chapter 17 Ch. 13

Chapter 17 Ch. 13
Chapter 13
Practice ended later than usual, and Ethan was more than glad to grab his bag and get out of there. His legs ached a little, but it was nothing compared to the ache in his head. He didn't even know why he was still mad, or who exactly he was mad at. Maybe it was himself.
He was halfway across the field when he heard someone calling.
"Ethan!"
He turned to see Noah jogging toward him. His curls were messy, and he looked more serious than usual.
"Hey, have you seen Zara? I thought she'd be here by now. She's not by Coach's car either," Noah said, slowing down as he reached him. 
Ethan blinked. "What? Why would I have seen her? I thought she had cross-country today."
"She did. I actually went to the cross-country field to wait for her, but her coach said she stormed off during practice. I thought maybe she was just with her dad, but she's not there either."
Ethan frowned and turned to look over his shoulder, like Zara would just appear out of nowhere.
Coach Santiago, who had just finished packing up some equipment, walked over to where they stood. His towel was tossed over his shoulder.
"What do you mean she's not by my car?" he asked, his voice louder than necessary.
Noah shifted on his feet. "I wanted to meet her after cross-country. Her coach said she'd left early. I assumed she might be with you, but she’s not by your car, and she’s not answering her phone."
Coach Santiago muttered something and turned to head toward the cross-country side of the field.
Ethan and Noah stood there awkwardly.
Ethan glanced sideways at Noah. "So... what happened to Zara? Is she okay?"
Noah raised his eyebrows. "Oh, so now you're worried?"
"I just thought— I don't know, maybe something happened."
"She stormed off during training, man. I didn’t want to say anything because I figured her dad would lose it, but well, too late for that now."
"Why’d she storm off?" Ethan asked, staring down at his hands. 
"You’re seriously going to ask that?"
Ethan looked up slowly.
Noah gave a small laugh. "You really don’t get it, do you? Maybe the way you acted earlier got to her. Just saying."
"I don’t know what you’re talking about."
"Yeah, whatever," Noah said, pulling his phone out of his pocket. "Guess you’ll figure it out eventually."
Ethan didn’t reply. He walked away towards where he'd left his bike earlier and zoomed off in the direction of home. He hasn't been there since him winning the race because all he really wanted to do was stay away from his dad, but now— he had to go home. 
The second he stepped through the side doors of his father’s side of the house, he regretted it. The lights were dim and smelled like sweat and too much cologne, and he could already hear the giggles before he turned the corner.
There were two women on either side of his father’s bare back, both of them completely naked, like clothes were never invented. One of them had her leg swung over his lower back while rubbing something oily onto his shoulders, the other one leaned in close, whispering into his ear. His father groaned like he was at a spa.
Ethan looked away immediately.
Of course. Typical.
"Ah," his father said without opening his eyes. "Look who the blood dragged in."
Ethan stood there, staring at the floor. "Can we talk?"
His father opened one eye, not even pretending to be surprised. "You hate talking to me. So if you're here, something's wrong. What is it?"
"I just wanted to ask something," Ethan said. He kept his voice calm, though he really just wanted to throw bleach on the whole room.
"Make it quick. I’m busy."
"Have you ever met someone you couldn’t compel?"
That did it.
His father sat up right away, his expression changing, his brows pulling together. He raised a hand and snapped his fingers once. The women both paused, then climbed off him without a word and left through a side door.
"What did you say?"
"It was just a question," Ethan said. "I was curious."
His father narrowed his eyes. "No one just asks that. Not unless there's a reason. Did you meet someone? Did it happen to you?"
"No. I was just wondering."
"Don’t lie to me."
"I'm not."
His father stood up slowly and picked up his robe, tying it around his waist. "Listen to me. If you ever come across someone you can't compel, you kill them. Right away, okay? You must never hesitate."
Ethan crossed his arms. "That's a little extreme."
"No, it isn’t," his father said. He stepped forward, grabbing a glass of whatever he always drank. "Our secret is too delicate. You think humans won’t panic the second they find out about us?"
"But we’re stronger than them. We can literally break them in half. What can they do?"
"A lot more than you think," his father said. He took a long sip from his glass, then set it down and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "They might not be strong, but they’re smart. They have more numbers, they have power, and when they’re scared, they become dangerous. The last time vampires got exposed, we lost hundreds."
Ethan looked away.
He didn’t want to argue, but he hated how his father always talked like humans were just insects to be crushed whenever needed. He hated how easy it was for him to throw out words like kill and eliminate like they were nothing.
"So if there was someone," his father said again, "you understand what you have to do. Right?"
Ethan didn’t answer, instead he reached for the door handle.
"Wait," his father said. "What happened to your hand?"
Ethan looked down at the bandage. He hadn’t even thought about it since he got here.
"Nothing," he said.
"Doesn’t look like nothing. It looks like acid."
"It’s fine. I said it’s nothing."
Without waiting for anything else, he pushed open the door and walked out, shutting it behind him.
His father was wrong. Okay, maybe not completely wrong, but still. Humans might get scared, but not every human would react like that. Some people could be trusted. Maybe.
Couldn’t they?
Look what happened. Zara knows and now the whole school knows, a voice said to him. 
He stepped outside into the main part of the yard, walking past the water fountain and the stupid statues his father insisted on keeping there. Everything about this side of the house made his skin itch. The walls, the floors, the smell. It was loud even when it was quiet.
He pulled his hoodie sleeve over his bandaged hand, walking faster now.
Zara.
The name wouldn’t leave his head.
He thought about the way she looked at him today, the way she asked if he was okay, the way her face had fallen when he snapped at her. And even now, after everything, she still didn’t feel like a threat. She didn’t feel like someone who would tell.
But she had to have said something.
Yvette didn’t just guess.
So why did it feel so off?
He stopped by the front gates and leaned against one of the stone pillars, pulling his phone out of his pocket and unlocking it, then locking it again. He wanted to text Zara for a reason even he did not know, but he realized he didn't even have her number. 
She should've said something if she told someone.
Shouldn’t she?
Maybe she hadn’t told anyone. Maybe someone overheard.
He sighed and kicked a small pebble near his shoe.
He was going to lose his mind if this kept going.
He should’ve just asked her directly instead of acting like a complete idiot in front of the entire class when she first asked if he was okay. 
He should have been ignored Yvette when she had asked, but no. He had to go and break a flask and get acid on himself because Yvette said vampire babies like a deranged lunatic.
He shook his head and pushed himself off the pillar, heading down the sidewalk.
Maybe he needed to sleep. Or punch something. Or both.
"Fucking perfect. Just fucking perfect," he muttered to himself through gritted teeth.