Devil's Deal (Infernal Contracts Book 1) Read online

  And where was Josy? Why would she disappear after talking to Michael?

  Nora hoped it was just the flu and nothing serious. Felicia and Emily didn’t behave differently—they still gave her dirty looks as she passed and made rude comments. This was still gentle bullying compared to what Felicia had done before. If Nora acted out, she knew things would go very wrong.

  A few days later Michael asked if they could meet during the fifteen-minute break in the morning. He was waiting near Nora’s locker. “I found something, look.” Michael gave her his phone. It was a photo of Josy and her dad in London.

  “It seems her father had to go on a business trip and he arranged for Josy to come as well. Maybe she got extra homework to make up for the hours she lost at school, but it’s nothing serious.”

  Nora felt relieved. “I’m glad. She deserved a break. How did you find out?”

  “I asked Erik to pretend to like Josy and ask Felicia where she was because he wanted to confess.” Michael snickered.

  “He did that? Why? Does he hate life?” Nora imagined the scene and started laughing.

  “He likes a joke. Don’t worry, Felicia’s anger only made him feel better. I believe she spent ten minutes insulting him and explaining why it was better for him to forget about Josy. Felicia will never know it was fake. I doubt Josy will hear about it. She should be back next week.” Michael squeezed her arm before going back to his friends.

  Josy was fine. That explained why she hadn’t answered her messages either. Texting from abroad was still expensive until the policies changed next summer.

  Nora started making extensive notes in the classes she shared with Josy. Maybe sharing her notes would be a good peace offering. The tests were after the autumn break, only three weeks away, and all the teachers discussed how to best prepare for the tests. They would be much harder this year. She needed good grades in history, art history, and preferably all the languages if she wanted to major in art history at university.

  She managed to read three more books in her lonely lunch hours. Books made her feel better, but she missed her friends. There was this feeling of nausea whenever she thought of Felicia. She was so sweet to her and now her friend treated her like trash. Maybe distance from her and Danny would at least give her the chance to make him fall in love with her.

  Saturday morning, Nora woke up from the vibration of her phone. It was Josy finally returning her call. She put it on speaker.

  “Hi Nora. I’m so, so sorry.” Josy’s cheerful voice resonated through the speaker.

  “Josy, you know I’m not a morning person. It’s not even eight thirty yet.” Nora groaned.

  “I know, but I wanted to talk to you as soon as I came back and apologise for ignoring your calls and not messaging back.”

  “It’s okay. How was London? Did you have fun?”

  “Ah, Felicia told you? Have you made up yet?” Josy sounded cheerful.

  Nora covered her eyes with both hands and groaned.

  “No, not yet. Michael worked his magic to get classified information.”

  “Damn, I hoped she would at least let you know, like I asked her.”

  “Can we talk later, when I’m more awake?”

  “I honestly can’t believe you worked in a bakery the whole summer and you have trouble getting up now.”

  “Well, you’re not paying me above minimum wage.”

  “I could bribe you with coffee.”

  “That does sound good. Can we do ten? I can’t promise I’ll get out of bed right away.”

  “Sure, I’ll make sure we have a seat. Could you bring that book on mythology? I’m dying to read it.”

  “Text me a reminder. I might forget.”

  “See you soon, sleepyhead.” Nora heard Josy laughing in the background.

  Nora turned to her side and swiped to end the call.

  Two hours later, Nora walked through the door of her favourite coffee shop. Josy sat at a table in the corner reading a book. When she saw Nora she jumped up to give her a hug.

  “I ordered you a cappuccino,” Josy said as they sat down.

  “Thank you.” Nora grabbed the book and gave it to Josy. “Before I forget.”

  “Thanks. Its looks amazing. I love the foil on the cover.” Josy’s fingers stroked the cover as she inspected the details.

  “I brought you something from London.” Josy gave her a book from her own bag. It was an English version of Pride and Prejudice.

  “Josy, that’s so sweet.” Nora reached over and gave her friend another hug. “This is beautiful.”

  “I saw it when I was at the largest bookstore in London and immediately thought of you.”

  “I’d love to go there sometime. Did they have to kick you out to close?”

  “No, but my dad threatened to leave me alone there, at ten in the evening. I have to write a ten-page report about the trip. I hope it’ll be enough, so that I won’t have to take catch up classes later.”

  “I’ll help you if you like. You dictate, I type.”

  “I have to write it in English which makes it easier and harder. Still want to help?”

  “Of course! Maybe our combined English is good enough for Mrs Kessel.”

  “She won’t be the only one judging. My dad had to pull a lot of strings to make this trip happen.”

  “You’ll be fine. And even if you have to take extra classes, I’ll come with you.”

  “Thanks.” Josy smiled. “I missed you.”

  “I missed you too.”

  “So tell me, what have you been doing the past month?”

  “Well, I spoke to Ben.” This was the first time she told anyone they knew each other.

  “That’s a first. I mean, I haven’t seen him talk to anyone except teachers. It’s weird.”

  “I know, right? So it’s not just me. I’ve been hiding out in a study area during lunch and Ben asked if he could hide there as well. The only thing he eats are apples, and he just listens to music. I asked him to keep quiet so I could read, but I never thought he’d actually do that.” Nora took a large sip of her coffee, leaving her with a moustache of foam on her upper lip.

  “It’s hard to say who’s weirder, Ben or Danny.”

  “What about Danny?”

  “Felicia’s very protective, but Danny lets her. I know he doesn’t like it, but he won’t say anything to her. He’s too nice, maybe.”

  “I met Ben the night before school, actually.”

  Josy nearly choked on her coffee. “What? Why didn’t you say anything?”

  “He got a hold of my bag as I was cycling and I fell. I got up quickly and pulled my bag from his grip and went home as fast as I could. But he chased me.”

  “Oh no. That’s terrifying. But you’re okay right? That’s why you didn’t say anything?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine. I scraped my knee and had nightmares for the first two weeks, but that’s not Ben’s fault. He chased me to return my wallet. He apologised multiple times and when I explained why I was so scared, he understood.”

  “My life was fine before these two came. Is it bad of me to wish them gone?”

  “No, I understand. I honestly wish Danny would go as well. Felicia is intolerable since he arrived. She talks bad about you all the time. I can’t mention you without a lecture on how you’re a bad friend. She said I’d be better off without you, or that you might steal my boyfriend. I really don’t want to take sides, but I also don’t want to be shamed for the rest of my life.”

  “Don’t worry. We can hang out after school. Or call. Here, I took notes on all the classes about the upcoming tests.”

  “You’re a lifesaver. Thank you.”

  ***

  Danny ignored everything that happened between the four girls, as if it had nothing to do with him. Nora hated it. He was the reason her friend acted like that, and he didn’t even care about fixing the misunderstanding.

  He had answered her mail and asked if they could finish their work through emailing. Nora resist
ed throwing her laptop across the room.

  Danny knew he was wrong, and he was a coward for not saying anything.

  The day of the presentation had come. Nora handed in the report on the teacher’s desk. She grabbed Danny’s book from her backpack. Felicia gave her death stares as she approached their desks. Danny hadn’t noticed her. She dropped the book on his desk and the loud bang drew attention of the class.

  “Thanks for everything.” Nora turned around and sat down at the desk closest to the door in the front row.

  Mrs Peeters raised an eyebrow, but refrained from commenting.

  Chapter 9

  It was the end of October, and Felicia’s Halloween party was coming up. The tests were over for now and grades would come in starting next week. This weekend was the perfect time to unwind after a stressful week. Nora usually looked forward to the Halloween party, but not this year.

  Felicia was the first, and so far the only person she knew, who really celebrated Halloween at their school. Companies jumped on the bandwagon of the American celebration, but private Halloween parties weren’t as big.

  Nora was usually a VIP, but not this year. She didn’t want to go with how things were between her and Felicia. She also didn’t want to hurt the friendship she had with Josy and Emily by asking them to pick sides.

  Michael and Josy had convinced her to go even though she never received an invitation. Nearly everyone was invited, from their year and the two above. They both felt that it wouldn’t be fun if she wasn’t there.

  Nora knew that an appearance could ruin their friendship forever, but she didn’t want to ruin her friendship with the others either. Not being a friend towards them was not an option.

  She sighed. The things she had to do for friendship lately. Michael was the only one who felt like a true friend. Everything related to Felicia felt tainted, ungenuine, irrational. Nora was tired of having to prove herself to her. If Felicia didn’t accept that, then it should be her problem. Innocent until proven guilty.

  At least Josy knew and saw what was going on. It wasn’t just Nora’s imagination. Josy didn’t recognise Felicia when Nora was around. She seemed fine when Nora wasn’t around, which made it even weirder.

  Nora felt hurt that Felicia didn’t even have the guts to say that she didn’t want to be friends anymore. That only showed how much she really cared about her—not even worthy to talk to.

  She rummaged through her wardrobe to see if she still had last year’s costume. It wasn’t much, but she didn’t want to spend ages on trying to get the perfect costume if she would not go. Her Mona Lisa dress had fallen on the floor, but it still looked good.

  It was an easy costume since her hair was already long and hazelnut brown. Maybe too curly to be Mona Lisa, but with a little magic from the hair-dryer, she could make it work.

  Nora and Michael walked up the driveway, seeing Felicia’s house fully decorated with spiderwebs, ghosts and Jack-o’-lanterns. She wanted to make an impression.

  Loud music boomed through the walls and people were everywhere. It was hard to recognise people in their costumes, but there were more people than in her year. A few visible faces were from older kids from school.

  Nora knew it was all to impress that certain someone, except all this wouldn’t impress him. She still didn’t know Danny well, but she knew enough to know he wasn’t materialistic. If he was to fall in love, it would be because of her personality, not her looks or possessions.

  “Come on. With this many people around it’ll be easy to avoid her. Maybe you won’t see her at all. You can always hide under my cape if I see her coming.” Michael waved his cape around. He was dressed up as Dracula, but he was a beautiful vampire, not a scary one. Nora teased him by giving him shimmer foundation for his face so he could be Edward instead of Dracula.

  They walked through the door only to be greeted by a giant statue of Frankenstein’s monster, covered in webs, and lanterns on the ground lit by candles. People in creepy and sexy costumes were everywhere, drinking, chatting, making out.

  “I see a few friends over there. I’m going to say hello and then find you again, okay?” Michael pointed at the zombie in the corner waving at them.

  Nora nodded and headed towards the living room, to find a drink. The first thing she noticed were two pairs of giant wings in the middle of the room. People had gathered around them and obscured her sight.

  She headed towards the drinks table to get a coke. Through the noises of the crowd, she recognised Danny’s voice. His laughter came from the centre of the group. She stood tiptoe to see above the crowd, but still wasn’t tall enough.

  “Yep, that’s them. Danny and the other guy. Felicia is with them as well. They’re dressed up as angels while she’s… eh…” Michael couldn’t find the words. “She’s dressed in red spandex and showing a lot of skin.” He frowned.

  “Oh, well, maybe we should go somewhere else?” Nora didn’t want to look for a confrontation. Things could get explosive. “Can we go to your friends?”

  “Sure, if you don’t mind.” Michael offered her his arm and guided her back to his friends.

  The four boys were heavily invested in talking about a game and stopped talking when they saw Nora.

  “This is the first time we speak, I believe. Hi, I’m Jonathan.” The tallest of the four stuck out his hand. He was dressed as a gladiator, with helmet and spear. She didn’t recognise him the first time .

  Nora shook it. “Hi, I’m Nora.”

  “We know,” another said, and they all started laughing.

  “This is Mark, Wesley and Erik. We often game together and they were just discussing tactics. Because that’s the only thing they think about.” Michael clarified, pointing at a zombie, mummy, and blood-covered lumberjack.

  “Are you any good?” Nora asked.

  “Well, that depends on various factors. Mark plays best when he’s drunk a few beers, Wesley needs a specific type of song, and Erik needs a good beating before he realises he needs to do something if we want to win.” Jonathan had no problem exposing the others’ weaknesses. Mark stomped him on the arm.

  “I guess you’re the shot caller? And what about Michael?”

  Jonathan nodded. “Michael here is a special case. His abilities depend on a person.” Erik started snickering, and a blush appeared on Michael’s face.

  Nora raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, looking at Michael. “Did you forget to tell me something? Did you find a secret girlfriend over the summer?”

  “We’re not a couple. They’re just being silly and provocative. That’s Jonathan’s specialty in-game. He’s the one riling up the competition and trying to throw them off their game. Don’t take the things they say too seriously, okay?” Michael held up his hands as a defence.

  She knew there was definitely someone. She’d have to wait until later to figure out who it was they were talking about.

  “Hey Nora. Glad to see you came.” Josy was behind her, dressed as Alice, including a white rabbit and giant pocket watch.

  “Hi. Michael almost dragged me out of the house when he picked me up. I hope I can keep avoiding Felicia though. I really don’t want to fight with so many people around.” Nora looked nervous. If Josy was here, Emily and Felicia might not be far away either.

  “Don’t worry about her. She’s stuck to Danny’s side, like always. I don’t know if you saw him, but he’s dressed as an angel with black wings. Ben has white wings. It’s kind of funny, since white wings fit Danny’s personality better than black. I guess black would suit Ben.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe they both have a side that we haven’t seen yet. I mean, Danny flirts with many different girls. I don’t think an angel would do that.”

  “Is this your Catholic side speaking?”

  “Maybe.” Nora thought for a second. “I just don’t think angels, real angels, would play with a human’s feelings. I always thought of them as pure beings. They wouldn’t have hidden agendas or manipulate someone into doing so
mething that could hurt their chances of getting into heaven.”

  Josy started laughing. “Come on, Nora. Live a little. They’re two gorgeous guys with wings. Let them be angels for one night. It’s Halloween after all.”

  Nora took a deep breath. “You’re right. I’ve been tense lately. I’d say it’s Felicia’s fault, but she’s only part of it. I wish I knew how to fix it. I don’t want to fight with her over Danny. I don’t want to be his girlfriend. Actually, I don’t want to be anyone’s girlfriend.”

  Erik let out a disappointed moan behind them. Nora turned her head for a second and the guys all waved at her while continuing their talk. The music was too loud to overhear their conversation.

  Josy patted her arm. “I know. I try talking to her all the time, but she won’t listen. It’s like she’s obsessed with Danny. I’ve never seen her like this before. I’m a little worried.”

  “We’ll figure something out.” Nora said the words, but she had trouble believing them.

  “Don’t we always?” Josy smiled.

  “I’m going outside. I need some air. I’ll be back later,” Nora said, and she headed towards the garden.

  Smokers were grouped around a fire pit. Not a place Nora wanted to be right now. She wanted fresh air. Cigarette smoke often nauseated her. Being there was already making her more anxious than necessary.

  The sky was clear and the moon almost full. Nora could easily see the textures of the craters. The night was perfect for a Halloween celebration. If only the situation was different.

  “Too bad it’s not a full moon.” Ben stood next to her when she turned around. His wings and eyes radiated in the moonlight. They towered above his already long figure. He could’ve been a cartoon character, too beautiful to be human.

  “You almost look like a real angel.” Nora blinked and hoped he hadn’t noticed her staring.

  “Well, I’m hurt.” Ben gave her a cup of soda.

  Nora accepted the cup but looked at it suspiciously.

  “Don’t worry. I didn’t spike your drink,” he said laughing.