Chapter 1 It had always been deadly quiet in the town of Foxwood Valley.

Nestled between two larger citiesthat were still four or five hours awayFoxwood was a town of no crime, few scandals and lots of gossip. Everyone knew everyone and outsiders were kept at a distance. I had lived here my whole life and was far from being in the in crowd. Not that i really wanted to be in that crowd. I enjoyed my sweat pants and jeans and sweaters while they wore high-heels, miniskirts and shirts that looked uncomfortably tight. If given the choice, I would stick with my clothing choices. The day had started off the same as any other one. I had gotten ready, made my lunch and kissed my little sister on her chubby little cheek before running out the door, where my dad waited in the pick-up truck to take me to school. Morning, dad, I smiled widely as I slid into the cab. Dad leaned over and kissed the top of my head, Good morning, pumpkin. On the way to my school we sang along tunelessly with the radio, dad playing the drums on the steering wheel and me with my feet up on the dashboard. When he stopped in front of Foxwood High School i quickly kissed him on the cheek and jumped from the truck, making a mad dash to the front door. As usual, I was late. Kelley Houston! I froze in place and squeezed my eyes shut. The vice principal, Mr. Thorpe, was coming up behind me, wheezing heavily. Why are you running through my halls? he asked, sounding out of breathe though I was sure he had just walked from his office to where i stood, not even two hundred steps away. Just trying to make it to classthe bell rang and i shut my eyes and sighed, Before the bell rang. Mr. Thorpe made me stand next to him through the anthem and announcements and then sent me to the main office to retrieve a late slip. I cursed him the whole walk there. The office smelled like a dentists office and set my nerves on edge; i didnt like dentists. Late again, Kelley? the secretary gave me a small smile and printed my late slip. I ripped it from the machine and stalked off to my locker on the second floor. Binder, pencil case, notebook and I was off to my class. Nothing ever changed in the school. We always had the same teacher, sat in the same spots we had since grade nine and the number of students in the class only went down, never up. So when i walked in to class and saw someone sitting in the empty desk beside mine the confusion must have been clear on my face. I walked slowly to my desk and gently lowered my stack of books to the desktop and slid into the chair, all the while trying not stare at the boy next to me.

Hey, he whispered. I turned my head at the sound of his voice, smooth and deep, and found myself staring into his eyes. Hazel eyes with every shade of green flecked into them. I sat, hypnotized, by his steady gaze, heart beating fast in my chest. By the time i finally found my voice, my cheeks were hot with a rosy blush, Hi. Sam Collins, he smiled and extended his hand. I looked to the front to make sure that Mrs. Malls back was turned before reaching across the aisle and shaking his. Kelley Houston. Sams smile was all prefect white teeth and dimples. His blonde hair was artfully strewn across his forehead in a way that said he didnt care what he looked like. But, God! Did he ever look good! For the rest of the class I kept stealing glances at Sam. Even when he looked utterly confused or was deep in concentration he looked amazing. He was skinny, but had muscle that showed through his blue and gold plaid button down shirt. Acid washed jeans and sneaks had never looked better. Cut it out! , I thought, internally kicking myself. I was no better than the miniskirt brigade who were swooning over Sam from the front of the room, eagerly turning in their seats to catch a glance of him. For a few seconds I felt sad that he would probably end up dating one of them before the end of his second month in the school. Thats the way it went: a new hot guy in the school was immediately stalked by the popular girls who fought tooth and nail to get close to him without the others knowing. Then they would date him, dump him and move on to the next guy or go back to the boyfriends they had dumped in order to date the new guy. I shook my head and went back to doing the math equation that Mrs. Mall was writing on the board. A breeze blew in the open window next to Sam, washing me in a coolness that I had to close my eyes to enjoy. I inhaled and my eyes snapped open. The air was scented with a woodsy scent, pine needle, cold rain, wet earth. Looking over at Sam I saw him eyeing my as he shifted nervously in his seat. I opened my mouth to speak. The bell rang and Sam was up and out of his seat before the warning could tumble from my mouth. Hey! Sonora Cortez bounced up in front of Sam and placed a well-manicured hand on his chest, a coy smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. And so it began. I packed my things slowly and headed in to the hall way that was buzzing with the sound of students and the fluorescent lights above my head. Teachers were yelling and feet were stomping as everyone rushed to get to their next class in time.

The next period moved by slowly. With my head down on my desk for most of the class it didnt even notice that Sam was in my class until, five minutes before the bell, I recognized his smell. I looked up and there he was, standing a few feet away from my desk with his hands in his pockets. His eyes found mine and I melted and I fought the sudden urge to get up out of my desk and lean against his chest, inhale his smell, while his strong arms wrapped around me. I shook the vision from my head and smiled up at him. Boring class, he said, breaking the silence. Business is a very dry subject. Sam nodded and sat down on the edge of my desk. Where are you eating? Usually wemy friends and Isit outside under the pavilion to eat, my words spilled from my mouth in one gushing sentence, Would you like to eat with us? If you wouldnt mind, he said softly. Shaking my head quickly I packed up my things and went to stand by the door with Sam trailing behind me. When the bell rang we went to my locker first and then I followed Sam to his. From there we made the trek out to the back of the school where the large wooden pavilion sat surrounded by green shrubs and a pear tree. Kelley! Hannah Dock yelled, waving furiously to get my attention. The thing about Hannah was that she always had peoples attention. She dressed in outrageously bright colours and dyed her hair a different colour every few weeks. No one could ever miss Hannah. I sat next to her and motioned for Sam to find a seat. Hannah, Sam. Sam, Hannah, I said motioning from one to the other before pulling my salad out of my backpack. I had to fight to keep a smile from breaking out across my face when Sam sat next to me. He pulled out a sandwich, chips and a can of Coke. That is the biggest sandwich I have ever seen! Hannah was leaning across me to look at Sams lunch. Teenage boy, he said softly, We eata lot. Slowly, the rest of my friends began to arrive at the picnic table and I made sure to introduce them to Sam. David and Fiona gave him questioning glances, they were the ones who shied away from the new comers to our town thanks to some horror story their grandparents had told them when they were seven. Tim, Natalie and Amanda thoroughly enjoyed having Sam sitting with us and engaged him in a heated conversation about the pros and cons and different car oils. it still made me laugh at how much Natalie and Amanda knew about cars since they certainly didnt look like girls who would know anything at all.

They dressed in designer clothes, their hair was highlighted and their nails were always sporting acrylic tips. But that never stopped them from crawling under a car in auto and getting grease stains on their two hundred dollar shirts. The two other them should have been sisters. By the end of lunch Sam looked comfortable and happy. We walked back to the school as a group but split off when we went inside the doors. Sam and I didnt have any classes together in the afternoon and I had to stop myself from sulking. I may have just met him but a part of me felt like I knew him better than I knew Hannah, who I had been friends with since we were four. The rest of the day went by torturously slow and for a while I was sure that time had stopped completely. I was half asleep by the time the final bell rang. I packed my bag quickly, ran to my locker to drop off a text book that I didnt need and made a run for the front doors. I walked with my head down, eyes staring at every crack. It was only a twenty minute walk to get home and on cool days like this I enjoyed it. The cool wind whipped my hair around my face, turning it into black tendrils. I waved to the people sitting outside of Maggies Diner and said a quick high to the people walking down the sidewalk. Every day I saw the same people on my way home, but today, something changed. Walking down Finch Street I saw a little boy running towards me. I could see his flaming red hair from halfway down the street and he was yelling something, but he was still too far away for me to hear what he was saying. And then I saw what he was running from. A man wearing a black trench coat was jogging after the boy, his bald head shinning even with the lack of sun light. His fingers were curled into talons, gaze trained on the small boy. Help! At the boys shrill scream I snapped into action. Running towards him I grabbed his hand and began to run, pulling him beside me. Just keep running! I yelled, And dont look back. I had no idea where I was running, I just knew that we had to get away from the man behind us; we had to go somewhere public. I tugged the boy after me as I navigated the streets, heading back towards Maggies. When the downtown square came into view I almost cried out with joy. Two more blocks and we would be safe. Going somewhere? I looked beside me and saw the man. His eyes were cerulean blue, his face a pasty white. Red lips pulled back and exposed sharp pointed teeth. It all happened so fast. I stumbled at the sight of the mans teeth, the little boy screamed as I pulled him down to the ground with me. The ground rushed up to meet my face. I squeezed my eyes shut and hissed out in pain when my cheek met the hard pavement and a small cry of pain escaped from my lips as I slid.

It took me a moment to find my bearings and stand up. The boy clung to my hand tightly, one arm wrapped around my arm. I followed his gaze and saw the man stand a few feet away from us, his lips still pulled back from his horrific looking teeth. Slowly, he began to circle us. I do love a good chase, he said, his voice was ragged and scratchy, And what a chase it has been. I pushed the boy behind me as the man slowly circled us. He whimpered and clung tightly to me. There was no way for me to run and get help without leaving the boy behind. I searched desperately for any trace of another person walking nearby, but there was no one. Who are you? I asked, still pushing the boy behind me. A car turned down the street and the man vanished. I sighed hugely and pulled the boy in front of me. His face was pale, his blue eyes wide. Its okay, my voice shook, but I tried to make it sound soothing. Are you alright? He swallowed and nodded slowly. The sound of a car door shutting made my head snap up and I found myself pushing the boy behind me once again. Kelley? At the sound of Sams voice my muscles relaxed. He came up in front of me and the little boy. Kelley, what happened to your face? I told Sam what happened and watched the blood drain slowly from his face as I spoke. By the end he looked like a ghost and his hands were balled into fists at his side. He took a deep breath and unclenched them.