Luca

This restaurant was nothing like Wanda's. Candles and flowers topped white cloth-covered tables, and the chairs were ornate silver pieces that shimmered beneath the crystal chandeliers hanging low from the gold-gilded ceiling. Instead of raucous rock music, a pianist softly played popular easy listening songs and show tunes. The humans would have trouble picking out the melody beneath the tinkling clatter of silverware and glass, but even across the room, Luca could hear every note- even the wrong ones.

"Would you like to order a drink, sir?"

He looked up at the server hovering near the table's edge. She'd been by three times already, her patient expression never faltering even as her tone took on hints of irritation.

"No, I'll wait for my friend."

"Very well."

Tugging on the collar of the blue button up he was wearing, he considered taking out his phone and texting Van again. He wasn't sure her tardiness was a result of something delaying her or a result of pure spite. After all, he had ghosted her, and if he knew anything about the saucy future Slayer, it was that she didn't let things like that slide.

Luca smiled as he lifted the water glass in front of him for a quick sip. Van's quick temper and tenaciousness were reasons one and two on his list for why she wouldn't skip out on this meeting. She would come even if it was just to berate him for his behavior.

Those were the qualities that first drew him to her. He ran his finger around the cold, wet rim of the cup as he sorted through his memories of her first day at the Academy. Mr. Long insisted on making her come to the front of the class to introduce her, and Luca could sense her discomfort as she trudged to the teacher's side. Still, she'd held her sharp chin high, unnatural blue eyes glaring at everyone through strands of lurid, purple hair as she bit out her name- Van Anderson.

Mr. Long coughed and corrected her. The moment he spoke her last name, the room tensed and went silent- as if everyone ceased breathing at the same time. Even the Unknowing knew the Helsings were a big deal in town, and all of his admiration fizzled out in horror as he realized she was destined to become his enemy.

"I have not and am not planning on changing my last name to Helsing," Van snapped at the teacher, her bold words lashing through the room and drawing gasps from some of the other students. "My legal last name is Anderson, and I won't answer to anything else."

Just like that, Luca decided he wanted to get to know her. She was a fresh breeze in his world of stale politics and maneuvering for power. She hadn't been spoon fed lies and prejudice from her crib like the other Slayers. If he could get to her first, he could turn her against the Slayers and have an ally. That's what he told himself as he walked up to her in the hallway at the end of that class.

"You're talking to the wrong person if you're here to make friends," she told him before he could open his mouth. She slammed her locker shut and hiked her backpack straps over her shoulders. "I won't be here long, and you don't even look like my type."

He laughed, drawing looks from the surrounding diners. God, he had been such a cliche. Her dismissal only made him want to try harder, even with Livy rubbing Van's disinterest in his face every day.

Now, his lies to himself had become a reality. Van had turned against her father. The silver flash drive lying on the table taunted him, like Poe's telltale heart, it called to him, reminding him of the risk he was going to ask her to take. She would do it- he was certain of that fact, but he wasn't sure he could ask her.

The chair across from him jerked back, its legs protesting as it was dragged across the wooden floors. The girl occupying his every thought dropped into the seat and folded her arms over the table, leveling a crooked grin at him.

She didn't mask the satisfaction in her tone as she asked, "Did I catch you off guard?"

"You did," he said, shocked that it was the truth. And terrified. If she could sneak up on him, anyone could, and that wasn't a slight against her skills. It was just a statement of fact.

"I'm sorry I'm late. I freaked out when you told me to dress fancy, and I had to sneak into Gabby's closet to find something to wear."

"It's fine," he said, relieved by her explanation, and then he really looked at her.

It had never mattered which version of Van he'd been around- purple hair, red hair, green eyes, or blue- he'd always found her beautiful. But the girl in front of him right now was stunning.

It wasn't because of her outfit- though his male teenage brain didn't miss the way the dark green sheath dress clung to her curves, and it wasn't because the red hair she normally let hang in her face was pinned back with sparkling barrettes. She'd even changed her makeup, dusting something shimmery over her cheekbones and leaving the freckles across her nose visible. Gone was the thick, black liner she was never without, replaced by a softer fawn hue that made her green eyes blaze in the restaurant's romantic lighting.

If that was all, he would have only smiled and told her how lovely she looked. Because it was the truth and because he would take her however she came. But for the first time since the day he met her, he saw her. Not the carefully crafted facade, but the girl she must have been before her mother and brother died- the one she tried to hide and protect at all costs.

"Luca?" she pressed, turning her head to the side and blinking. "You good?"

Swallowing once, he tried to speak but nothing came out. After a sip of water, he attempted his response again. "You look amazing."

She bit her lip and dipped her head to hide her blush. The moment of bashfulness didn't last long, and after taking a long sip of her own drink, she replied, "Thanks. You look nice too, but I have to ask, why are we here? I figured we would meet in the graveyard again. This seems so... public."

"Yeah, about that," he began, spinning the flash drive as he considered what he wanted to tell her. What had seemed so obvious to him after talking to Tommy had become muddled after he pulled her out of the water. Shivering in his arms with cuts and bruises covering her body, he noticed just how fragile and human she really was.

Her small hand closed over his, stilling his movements and warming his skin. "You're going to make me nervous."

The spot where they touched drew his gaze like a magnet. All he wanted to do was twist his hand so that his palm touched hers. They would be just like the other couples around them. Holding hands and whispering across the table, both of them more interested in what came after the meal than the savory dishes in front of them. What he wouldn't give to experience a moment like that with her. Just once.

"Luca."

"Sorry," he replied, pulling his hand away from hers. This attachment he had was growing too intense- too dangerous.

Van frowned. "I can go home if this is how tonight will be. Sweatpants are a hell of a lot more comfortable."

"Sorry," he repeated, then winced when the frown turned more severe. "I know this is weird, but I didn't feel comfortable at the cemetery. Someone saw us."

That got her attention and wiped away her irritation. But he would have taken her displeasure over the fear that replaced it.

"W-who? And why are we in a freaking public space?"

"Relax," he said, wishing he could take her hand again. "This restaurant is special. This entire area is. It's kind of a gray area in the Contract."

"That's right. I forgot that you can't leave town without a Brother or Sister present."

"There are multiple packs around the country, but it's the same for all of us. We can't travel further than a twenty-five mile radius from pack lands without an escort, or they consider us in breach of the Contract. Kill on sight orders would be issued."

"So what makes this place special?" She gestured around the restaurant. "Pretty sure this was about thirty miles from town."

"It's because it's technically part of Briarwood. Briarwood and Thornton used to be one town. It was founded by brothers, but after they got into a fight, they decided it would be best to split the land. Just be done with each other. But they argued over where to draw the line because the river ran right through the middle of the property, and they both wanted access to it."

"So why didn't they each just claim a side?"

He shrugged. "I guess they figured they might end the feud one day so they annexed a mile on each side of the river as a no-man's-land of sorts. Like a nature reserve both towns could use."

"So how did a restaurant come to be built here? Who owns it?"

"I don't know what it says on paper, but it belongs to the supernatural community. Turns out the brothers were witches, and about fifty years ago, their descendants reconciled their differences. They built Riviere over the water, with an entrance on each side of the river. Then they put a spell on it, and only those who are invited can find it. If you have ill intent, you can't enter, and that means if you harbor ill intent for anyone in the building."

"So, if my father suddenly received an invitation, he couldn't come in because the people in here are supernaturals? Like you?"

Luca nodded, never failing to be impressed by how quickly she caught on to the ways of their world despite not being born to it. "Exactly. And because it belongs to both towns, I'm within my rights to be here."

"Wow."

She looked around the room as if truly seeing it for the first time. He didn't miss the questions in her eyes when her gaze lingered on the patrons. She wanted to know what they were, and he would answer those questions for her later. They had bigger issues right now.

"Yeah. This is my first time coming here without my parents. It's not exactly practical, but I didn't know where else to go. It was Tommy who saw us at the cemetery. Or someone who works with Tommy."

"But Tommy works for my father."

"Apparently, it's just a cover. He's with a group that opposes the Slayers, and he wants to recruit us."

Van straightened in her seat. It was clear she was excited, but he detected a hint of something else in her expression. Something new- a hesitation that worried him.

"I'm guessing they want something from us first?"

She laughed when he tapped his nose and winked at her. "They do, and I was going to tell you about it. But Van, I don't think it's worth the risk. We can-"

"Will it help us save Brantley and Livy?" she demanded.

"Yes," he answered without hesitation.

"What do we have to do? I'm guessing it's something to do with that flash drive you can't quit messing with."

"Right again. They want a file from your father's home computer." He said it in a rush, worried if she cut him off again that he wouldn't be able to do it. Besides, he owed her the chance to say yes or no.

"Oh." Her chin went in her hand, and she looked away. "That's big."

"Van, believe me when I say you don't have to do this. We can find another way."

"I told you I would help you, and I meant it. I don't go back on my word."

"Thank you."

She beamed at him, and if he'd been standing, he might have needed to sit down. The more time he spent around this girl, the stronger her effect on him became.

"Now, I have some news of my own, and I'm starving. What's good to eat here? Do you think..."

He was already looking at the menu, lifting his head when she stopped speaking. She froze, her skin devoid of color and her mouth gaping as her eyes tracked someone across the room. Torn between checking on her and seeing what caused her anxiety, he pushed his napkin onto the floor, sneaking a peek as he picked it up.

Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he whispered, "Van, what's wrong?"

"I just saw Trixie. We are royally screwed."