Alaina left Caleb in his room and left him a note. She hated having to do this but he just wasn't grasping the danger this could cause for him and for her, and for her sister. Regardless of her feelings for him, she had to do whatever it took to protect her sister. Protecting Arianna was her first priority. She would not be selfish and risk her sister's safety for her own happiness. What short lived happiness it would be, and it would be short lived.
She got back home and she knew that Caleb would come back looking for her when he woke up. She had to make it look like they had left, at least for a few days. His flight back to North Dakota was the following day. Even if he delayed his trip, he couldn't stay too long. He would want to get back home and go back to work. And if he did come here after he woke up and seen that they were gone, he wouldn't want to stay anyway. At least that's what she hoped.
"Arianna, I need you to grab some dust covers and help me cover all the furniture, we need to make it look like we have packed up and left."
Arianna came in with a panicked look on her face. "Why what's wrong? What happened?" she asked Alaina.
"It's just in case Caleb comes back. He needs to think that we are gone so he will leave and go back home."
"I don't get it, first you sleep with him and now you are trying to make him think that you are gone. If you didn't want him coming after you then you shouldn't have slept with him!" Arianna exclaimed.
Alaina hung her head. "I messed up, I know, believe me I know. I got caught up in the moment but I regretted it as soon as it happened. If I could go back in time and do things differently, I would, but I can't. He needs to leave and the only way he will is if he thinks we are gone."
"So now what? We pack our stuff and leave here? And then what?" Arianna asked. "The contractor is coming next week to start the renovations."
"Look, we just need to lay low for a few days until he is gone. His flight is tomorrow and I am going to watch and make sure he gets on that plane." she told her sister.
"And if he doesn't, then what? Are you going to knock him out again and take him all the way to Devils Lake? Drop him off at his doorstep?" Arianna was getting angry.
Alaina sighed. "I don't know."
"Well, let's just hope he does get on that plane tomorrow, if he doesn't then you can figure out how to handle it on your own!" she said to Alaina before she turned around and stormed off. Before she left the room, she turned around to her sister, "It's not right doing him this way Laina. It's not right at all. You aren't a cruel person, but what you are doing to him is cruel. You shouldn't get his hopes up to turn around and break his heart. That's not fair." And with that she left the room.
Tears slid down Alaina's cheeks as she watched Arianna walk away. Alaina already felt guilty enough as it was, she didn't need Arianna to make her feel any worse, but she did. Arianna is the gentlest and sweetest person Alaina has ever known. She isn't the type to get angry, that's just not who she was. So to see her sister get so pissed off like that, especially when Arianna's anger is towards her, it was like a stake to Alaina's heart, and she didn't know how to make it right.
Outside, Arianna went to the tool shed to see if there were any dust clothes to cover the furniture with. She was so pissed off at her sister, she couldn't believe that Alaina could be so inconsiderate and so cruel. She knew Alaina cared for Caleb, she could see it in Alaina's eyes when she looked at him. But she shouldn't have led him on and slept with him just to turn around and dump him on his ass. He seemed like a genuinely good person and he didn't deserve to be treated like that. She shook her head as if that would shake the thoughts out of her head. She looked around but didn't see any dust covers, she would just have to go to the store and get some. She welcomed any excuse to put some distance between her and Alaina right now.
She went back into the house and grabbed the car keys, and without a word to Alaina, she got into the car and left. She wandered around the hardware store aimlessly, taking her time, she was in no rush to go home.
"Is there anything I can help you find, ma'am?" a short, plump lady asked Arianna. She looked to be in her late 50's with short, light brown hair riddled with grey. She had the nicest smile that reached all the way to her eyes.
"Actually, me and my sister will be starting renovations on our house next week and we need some dust clothes to cover our furniture." Alaina told her.
"We have some a few isles over, if you will follow me, I can show you where they are."
She followed the lady over to the isle where the drop clothes were. She grabbed what she thought they would need and put them into the shopping cart.
"Thank you so much." Arianna told the lady with a smile.
"You're Welcome. Is there anything else I can help you find?" The lady asked.
"No ma'am, that is all I need. Thank you again."
With a nod the lady walked away to help another customer. She pushed the shopping cart to the front of the store and paid for the dust clothes. As she was putting them in the trunk of the car, something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. She turned to look, but just as she did, it disappeared. It couldn't have been, she thought to herself, could it? She shook her head and closed the trunk. Nah, she thought. She opened the car door, but before she got in, she looked around again, just to make sure. Nothing.
She took her time driving home, the whole way she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being followed. She kept checking the rearview mirror but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. This sudden sense of paranoia unsettled her. She didn't like it. She pushed the gas pedal down and sped up, all of a sudden in a hurry to get home. By the time she pulled into the driveway and into the garage the sense of someone following her had vanished. She pulled the dust clothes out of the trunk and took them in the house, sitting them down on the couch before she went upstairs to pack some clothes in a bag. Alaina had said it would just be for a few days, she better hope she is right.
Alaina picked up the dust clothes off the couch and started covering everything up. She didn't try to talk to Arianna when she came in. She knew her sister would talk to her when she was ready and Alaina didn't want to push her before then. After she had everything covered, she grabbed her bag from her room and put it in the car. She made sure everything was locked up and got a cooler and filled it with the blood from the refrigerator, then waited by the car for Arianna. When she finally came down with her bag, Arianna put it in the trunk and got in the passenger seat and closed the door. She just sat there without saying a word and just stared out the window.
Alaina's heart was breaking at the fact her sister was so angry with her. She wished she knew what to say or what to do to make this situation better, but she didn't, so she just got in the driver's seat and started the car. She drove North up the coast for a few hours and found a small little town that had a cozy looking hotel. She pulled in the parking lot she was about to say something to Arianna but didn't have a chance to because she jumped out of the car as soon as Alaina put it in park.
Alaina jumped out of the car behind her and went to the trunk where Arianna was getting her bag out of the car.
"Ari, please, I'm so sorry. I don't know what else to say." Alaina said.
"Laina, I know you are, but that doesn't make things better. It doesn't make everything right." Arianna said and she grabbed her bag and walked into the hotel without giving Alaina a chance to reply. Alaina followed her inside and Arianna was already at the front desk getting the room.
"We need two rooms with ocean views." Alaina heard Arianna tell the front desk clerk.
"And how many nights will you be staying with us?" The clerk asked.
"Two." Arianna replied.
"Ok, just a moment, I need your ID and credit card or cash please." The clerk said.
Arianna pulled her ID and card out of her wallet and handed it to the clerk. After a few minutes the clerk handed her back her ID and credit card and handed her two room keys.
"You are in room 307 and 308. Do you need help with your bags?" The clerk asked.
"No, thank you." Arianna replied.
"Have a nice day." said the clerk before Arianna turned around. She handed Alaina one of the room keys.
"I need some space from you right now. Here is the key to your room. Let me know when we can go home." Arianna disappeared up the stairs.
Alaina waited a moment before she headed up to her room herself. She was fighting the urge to cry, but as she made her way up the steps, the tears spilled over onto her cheeks anyway. She was terrified that she wouldn't be able to make this right with her sister without making things right with Caleb first, or at least making sure he was gone. She put her bag down on her bed and got a bag of blood out of the cooler. She poured the blood in one of the plastic cups that was on the counter next to the coffee pot, then put the cup in the microwave to warm it up. Once it was warm, she took the cup and walked over to the sliding glass door that led out to a small balcony.
She opened the door and walked out, taking a drink out of the cup while she watched the waves crash along the rocks. She drank the blood while she stood there watching the sun dip down below the horizon. When the cup was empty, she grabbed another bag and refilled the cup, warming it in the microwave again. She needed her strength and she knew it was going to be a long night and long day the next day while she waited and watched to make sure Caleb would get on the plane, so she needed to feed while she had the chance.
Once again, she walked back out onto the balcony while she drank the blood out of her cup. The sun was almost gone and the stars were already shining in the sky. All of a sudden, she could see two dolphins jump up out of the ocean. She smiled. She loved watching the dolphins. They disappeared just as the sun did. She finished her blood and threw away the cup. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and send Arianna a text.
Ari, I know you said that saying sorry isn't going to help, but I can't stop telling you how sorry I am. Please tell me what I can do to make things ok again, because I am lost here. I don't know what to do. I love you with all of my being. I am headed back to Los Angeles to watch for Caleb. I am going to slide my room key under your door so you can get the blood. You need to feed, please.
She hit send and put the phone back in her pocket without waiting for a reply. She didn't expect one. She grabbed the room key and walked out of the door, closing it behind her. She slid the key under Arianna's door and turned around and walked away. She walked down to the car but before she got in, she looked up to Arianna's room, hoping to see her sister before she left, but Arianna had the curtains closed. She got in the car and pulled out of the parking lot.
As she sped down the coast, she thought about Abigail. She was still pretty pissed off and hurt at her. She wondered if Abigail felt the way she did right now having Arianna angry with her and not talking to her. Now she felt even worse. She still loved Abigail with all of her heart and going through this she wanted to reach out to her and make things right with her, now more than ever. Being on the receiving end of the anger and silence, she could understand the pain Abigail must have felt, and probably is still feeling.
But Abigail had someone there to help comfort her and help her through it. Alaina didn't have anyone, and it was her own fault. She forced Caleb out, whether it was the right thing to do or not. As she got closer to their house, she decided to pull over and walk along the beach. Standing there with the waves lapping at her feet, she pulled out her phone once more. She pulled up Abigail's number in her contact list, and hit the call button. It rang a few times and then went to voicemail, Alaina sighed and left a message. She didn't know where Abigail was at, but Alaina hoped that she would call her back soon.
Alaina got back into the car and drove the rest of the way to Los Angeles. She pulled into a parking lot a few blocks down from Caleb's hotel, she walked the rest of the way. She found a spot on the beach that gave her a clear view of the front of the hotel. She sat there for a while when she seen Caleb walk out and head across to the beach. She hid down behind a large piece of driftwood.
He stood there looking out at the ocean. She wanted to go to him, she wanted to wrap her arms around him. She wanted to tell him the hell with it, they would figure something out. But the only way they could be together and keep Arianna safe would be for them to leave and disappear, without Arianna. She wouldn't leave her sister, so she stayed hidden behind the driftwood and just watched him, her heart breaking.