Vampire Shadows

"I think I have an idea about it," Heather said, staring at the letter.

"The king said they were to meet in the library once my grandfather gets the letter, but it seems it didn't get to him," I said thinking it through. The letter is still in the castle it didn't get to him which means they didn't meet at all.

"Kara has a point. Going to the library might just be a waste of time" Max chirped in.

“But we don't have any lead apart from this. If the king wanted to meet in a library, I'm sure he had a reason” heather said, still staring at the paper.

“So, let's check this library out ladies, and Max” Josh said leading the way out of the room.

"do you even know where it's located, Mr. Joshua?" Max asked following Josh's lead.

“Heather does” was Josh's short reply.

“Well don't you think you should leave the leading to her?“ Max murmured.

“I don't think who leads or whatever matters Max, as long as we'll get to our destination” heather chirped in.

“It's an underground library” she added.

We all made our way downstairs quietly. I used the opportunity to take in the beauty of the place. I wish I could take a look at the upper floors but we were here to save the world and not take a tour.

My mind slowly wandered from staring at the beautiful structure to thinking of how to stop others from reading my thoughts. Max said he was going to teach me but we didn't get the opportunity. And with the way things are going, I doubt we will. 

I don't think I can learn it alone though, cuz, how will I be able to detect if my mind is being read?   So Instead of trying that, I decided to try reading Heather and Josh's mind.  Starting with Heather of course.  I wonder what she's always thinking about, she doesn't talk much so that means she must do a lot of talking in her head. Is she really on our side? I know the guys trust her, but there's something I find untrustworthy about her. Maybe I'm just being paranoid. But then, if I can tell what she's thinking, my doubts will be cleared.

So I did the one thing Nathan always tells me to 'concentrate'. This time though I didn't close my eyes  that'll be just weird.

“Come on Kara you can do this” I internally motivated myself before jumping into her head.

But just as I expected it was not approachable like how it was with Max, I'm not able to get in there. Hers is a bit more complicated than Max's cuz now I'm getting a slight head ache and it's like my brain is getting squished.  It took a lot of energy to free myself from her head attack, I raised my head  to check  if she'll show any reaction to what just happened, but no, she  had  straight face. Max and Josh seemed to be busy discussing something from behind  so I'm sure they have no idea too.  I  decided to go with the flow and also pretend I didn't do anything. But I still wanted to know what was going on in her head.

We were walking towards a dark lobby,  there was a set of stairs that I guess will lead us to the underground Library.

“Where the heck are you taking us to Heather!“ Josh said from behind.

"I already told you the library is located underground," Heather said, clearly not interested In  Josh's bickering.

“I know but the place looks a bit creepy. And it's not like I can trust you" Josh said over emphasizing the trust and at the same time, giving me a side eye.

It took some time before it dawned on me,  Josh had been reading my thoughts. Kinda makes me feel embarrassed.

“It's rude Josh, just rude!“ I barked. But he wasn't  affected at all, he still had that attractive smirk on his face. Looking  at him made me wonder how girls must be swooning all over him, he is pretty good looking I can't deny.

"Naughty thoughts you're having there pretty face," Josh said catching up with Heather and me.

   "Rude josh, rude! Can you just stop it" I was not feeling embarrassed anymore.

“Stop it? Why should I stop the only source of entertainment I get?“ He said wrapping his arms around my shoulders.

“I think it's wrong to use someone's personal thoughts for entertainment," Max said, also catching up.

“I don't think Kara has an actual issue with that. Do you, Pretty face?“  Josh asked. I slowly shook my head. The truth is, josh reading my thoughts doesn't bother me much. I

"I still don't think invading someone's privacy is right in any way" max said, keeping a straight face.

"It's not invading if there's approval Maxie,"  Josh said, still smirking.

“Ughhh, can you guys stop this nonsense? We are here" Heather sounded irritated.

The wall in front of  looked like a dead end, but then, I'm already used to seeing secret buildings behind a tall wall, so clearly, the library must be hiding behind this wall and now we will have to figure out how to unlock it. I'm starting to get sick of doing the same brain cracking doors unlocking over and over again.

“You got to be kidding. Another secret door?“ Josh asked saying the exact thing that was on my mind.

“Chill feisty pants,"  Heather smiled, she put her hand on one of the candle holders on the wall. Bending the tip to the left, the wall started opening slowly. Just like in mom's room.

“That was fast” Max commented as we made our way in.

"I know my way around this castle quite well," Heather said with pride.

“No kidding” Josh said.

.

The library is quite small, but enough to house a lot of books. A lot more than the ones in mom's library.

the books were arranged alphabetically.  There were books about vampires, werewolves, humans, and even elves.

I picked up one of the books that had information about the elves, their life what they eat, their powers, etcetera.

It reminds me of Jeremy and his family, our short yet adventurous moments I wonder what they are up to now,  how it must feel for them to finally have their lives back, their freedom. I just hope the war doesn't affect them.

“We aren't here to just stare at books that have nothing to do with our aim Kara!"  Heather grumbled,  I rolled my eyes.

“what's that book about?“ Max asked taking a  few steps toward me.

"Uhmmm it's nothing," I said, quickly returning the book and walking to him instead. Their reaction when I spoke about the elves shows that they didn't believe me and thought I was just blabbering. I don't want them bringing it up once they find out I was checking a book about them.

"Let's keep searching," I said.

.

"This is a waste of time," Josh   said from where he was sitting.

We have been in this place for hours now with no progress. All we find here are books and stuff. And none of the books even have information about the stone.  Is this really a dead end?  There's no way forward right now. The only thing that's left to do is search every room in the castle. And considering the size of this place, our lives might be over

before we even go half way.

“Holy shit, are you alright pretty face?“ Josh asked staring at me weirdly.

I didn't have any idea what he was talking about until I felt it.

Hunger pangs!

I need to feed.

"Let's go get something to eat, you look pale," Max said putting his palms on my cheek.

“Let's go, I am also famished!“ Heather said yawing loudly.

.

The castle's surrounding was really beautiful. We just had our meals and were heading back to the library. Josh didn't like the idea, but heather insisted.  she believes we will find something helpful there.

"Hey, what's up?" Max asked when he noticed I was extremely slow.

“Nothing, just enjoying the view” I replied. The truth is, I didn't want to return to that stuffy library. I'd rather stay out here and enjoy the beautiful view.

“We can stay a little longer if you want” he suggested earning a big appreciative smile from me.

Josh and Heather were far ahead of us so it was just the two of us.

"Why don't we practice a little? Try stopping me from reading your mind now” he added.

“So, how is it done?“ I asked, cuz I had no idea how to start.

“It's simple, you just have to decide to lock them, that way, no one can read it and you'll have a higher chance of escaping from an attacker if you are in danger," he said.

“So how do I do it?“ I asked still not understanding his explanation.

“You have to use your heart Kara. You need to concentrate. Technically, I can't teach you. You'll have to do it on your own”

.

I don't know how long Max and I have been sitting out here, but since the moment he said I had to do it on my own, that's what I have been trying to do,  lock my thoughts from intruders, but I haven't been able to get it precisely. Though I am getting closer. Like now, I have tried to stop Max, though he can still get in, he can't hear the exact things I'm thinking.

“You got it!!“ Max yelled, dragging me out of my thoughts.

“I did?“ I asked not sure of how to react.

“Yesss! I couldn't get in at all this time” he said.

“I  can't believe I did it!!!“ I said in excitement.

"I'm proud of you," he said, giving me a hug. It took a few seconds before he slowly released me, still holding me in place. He was staring at me and it was giving me butterflies.

He kept looking at me his eyes scanning my face. Then, he slowly leaned in, his lip as close as ever.

"Hey!" Josh's voice echoed, snapping us out of whatever spell it is we were under.

"What are you guys doing out here,"  he asked plainly.

Phew, that means he didn't see the weird position we were in.

"Just needed fresh air," Max said, acting totally normal as if he didn't try to kiss me a few seconds ago. Or maybe he didn't. Maybe it wasn't what it looked like and I was just making a big deal out of it.

Maybe. 

“Well, we need help in the library," Josh said.

"Yeah, yeah, we're coming," Max said standing up and heading in Josh's direction. I also stood up and followed.