I stopped, unable to read any more. It was too familiar, and not because I’d read it before. It was too familiar, because it was me. Or at least it could’ve described what was happening to me. Restored from death, pale and shaken, gasping with open mouth. It was what happened to me before…I stole the life from someone.

“Ms. Smith, is everything okay?” Mr. Ryan looked sympathetically at me.

“I-I’m sorry.” I let the book fall from my hands and ran from the room. I tried to ignore the whispers of the other students. I had no idea where the girls’ bathroom was, so I kept running. I found a stairwell first and decided that was a good enough place to hide. I flung open the door and ran down to the landing in the middle of the stairs. I sat down and buried my face in my knees. Life wasn’t supposed to be this hard, was it? I’d thought after having cancer, nothing would be difficult. Didn’t the universe owe me something? Or was this my punishment for giving in to what I’d become? For taking human life instead of letting my own drain out of me?

The bell rang, forcing me to wipe my tears and get up before I was trampled by hundreds of students rushing to their next class. I checked my schedule. French? How had I not noticed that before? I’d never taken French. I contemplated going to the guidance office and telling them there was a mistake. But they’d check my records—well, Samantha Smith’s records—and see there wasn’t any mistake. I wasn’t going to figure this out in the three minutes between classes, so I headed in the direction I thought French was in.

I turned the corner and bumped into a girl with a stud in her nose. “Watch it!” she yelled, giving me the evil eye.

“Sorry.” I found my classroom at the same time the late bell rang. Just great. I was going to have to enter the second room of the day with all eyes on me. I was reaching for the doorknob when I felt the first tightness in my lungs.

No! Not again! Not here! I turned and scanned the hallway. It was empty. Through the window in the door, I saw the teacher notice me and walk toward me. I took off, running back down the hall the way I’d come. I had to get away from everyone before I could take another life. It registered what that would mean. I’d die. Again.

Still, I pushed my legs forward, feeling the wobbliness creeping up them. I was losing control of my body. I managed to make it to the stairwell again, slumping forward as I pushed the door open. I fell to the floor. I was trapped. Too weak to pull the door back open or climb up the stairs. This was how it would end. My lungs tightened, making me sputter and cough. I watched my fingernails turn blue as my body went cold. “Ethan.” I wished I could see his face one last time, but at least this was the end. I would rather die than kill again.

The door opened behind me, and a guy nearly tripped over me. “Whoa!” He caught himself before he fell on top of me. I tried to back away, to keep him from touching me, but I couldn’t move.

“Hey, do you need the nurse?”

I couldn’t speak or even shake my head, and I cringed as he stepped closer. I had to warn him to stay back. Not to touch me.

“Come on. I’ll take you to her.” He bent down next to me. “Do you think you can walk if I help you?”

I felt the warmth radiating from his body. His leg was right next to my side, and I could feel it warming my hip. He reached for my hand.

“No,” I choked out.

He must have thought I was answering his question, because he said, “Okay, I think I can carry you.”

Before I could even attempt to protest, his arm wormed its way under my shoulders. My chest didn’t feel so tight anymore, and I tried to resist the urge to touch him as he scooped me into his arms. I stared at the artery in his neck. With every pulse, it called out to me. My fingers had a mind of their own and were working their way, crawling up the guy’s shirt. They found his neck and rested on his artery.

“Wow, you’re freezing cold,” he said.

I begged my brain to fight against my movements, to regain control, but my other hand was tugging at the guy’s shirt.

“Am I hurting you?” He repositioned me in his arms.

My hand found his skin and worked its way to his chest. The guy started to say something, but a pained look came over his face. I closed my eyes as his life flowed into me. He wobbled and fell to his knees, but I held on. I was holding him up now. Slowly I was returning to normal, and he was dying. Desire to live compelled me to hold on. Only one of us would survive. The monster within said it would be me.

After a minute, I felt the heat leave his body. He was dead. I opened my eyes, horrified at the disfigured face inches from mine. He was wrinkled and withered. No one would mistake him for a high-school student. He looked about ninety years old. I’d done it again, and this time it was a kid my own age. I was so disgusted with myself I wanted to vomit. But the hideous creature I’d become forced me to move him before someone found us. Between teachers on hall duty and the cop who patrolled the halls, this place had security all over it. It wouldn’t be long before someone came. Suddenly being the new kid who freaked and ran out of English lit seemed pretty good. I’d never be able to explain what had happened here.

I reached my arms around the guy and lifted him by his armpits. Immediately I could tell I wasn’t strong enough to carry him out of here. Stealing a person’s life didn’t make you superhuman. A monster, yes, but not superhuman. I decided to slide him across the floor. There was an emergency exit behind us. It would set off an alarm, though, and I’d never be able to drag the body away before someone saw us.

I leaned him against the door while I thought about my options. This exit wasn’t going to work, and no way could I drag the guy up the stairs. I went to the stairwell door, leading back to the hallway, and looked out it to see if the coast was clear. It wasn’t.

The school cop was walking down the hall, and he was heading my way.

CHAPTER EIGHT

I LUNGED to the side to get out of view of the window in the door. I had to do something. Now! I rushed to the exit door, a plan already forming in my mind. No one would recognize this guy as a student. I searched his pockets for a wallet, identification of some sort. His school ID was in his back pocket. I took it, shoving it into my jeans. I looked around for something to break the glass on the door. I had to make it look like this guy was breaking into the school.

I remembered seeing a fire extinguisher on the landing. I sprinted up to it and used the little metal bar meant to break the glass in case of an emergency. This definitely was an emergency. I grabbed the fire extinguisher, careful not to cut myself on the glass, and rushed back down the stairs. I peeked out the window. The cop was only a few doors down the hall. I ran at the emergency exit and rammed the end of the fire extinguisher into the glass. It took a few tries, but I managed to break it. And with the help of the handle, I was able to pull some glass shards so they fell on my side of the door. Maybe that would make it look like the window was smashed from the outside. I used my shoulder to open the exit door. The alarm blared in my ear. Definitely loud enough to give an old man a heart attack.

I took off back up the stairs, pausing only long enough to put the fire extinguisher back in the case. I ran the rest of the way up the stairs and waited behind the door. I was sure there would be an announcement the second the cop found the guy.

The alarm stopped, and the PA system crackled on. “Attention all students, faculty, and staff. The school is going into lockdown. Any students in the halls should report to the nearest classroom.”

The announcement repeated, and I walked to the nearest room. Oh crap! Mr. Ryan’s class. I knocked on the door.