We had actually appeared near a lake, and I caught a picturesque view of a beautiful swan elegantly gliding across the surface of the water, followed by several of its young.
“They’re called cygnets,” Vestibule said.
I turned towards her to find that she had taken a seat on a nearby wooden bench.
“The baby swans,” she explained. “They’re called cygnets.”
“Oh,” I muttered. “That’s interesting.” Then I frowned. “So you read minds now?”
She let out a peal of laughter – a sound that was so pure in relaying her mirth and amusement that I was almost taken aback, as it bespoke of a depth of personality that I hadn’t suspected.
“No,” Vestibule said, still smiling as she shook her head, “but I saw you looking at the swans – everyone does – so it was a safe bet that ‘swan babies’ was running through your head at some point.”
“I was actually thinking ‘offspring,’ if you want the truth.”
She laughed again and then gently patted the space next to her on the bench. Taking the invitation, I walked towards her and sat down.
She didn’t immediately say anything, merely spent a few seconds glancing around the park. As she did, I detected a surprising serenity in her, a calmness and tranquility that caught me somewhat by surprise. I had always considered Vestibule to be vapid and vain, but there was apparently more to her than met the eye. However, I didn’t come here to ponder the depths of her soul. I was here for information, and was about to ask a question when Vestibule spoke.
“So,” she said with a sly look, “couldn’t wait for tonight?”
“Tonight?” I asked, eyebrows raised.
“Yeah – our date.”
I blinked in surprise. “We don’t have a date for tonight.”
“Ha-ha,” she quipped. “You’re funny.”
“I’m serious,” I stated firmly. “We don’t have plans for tonight.”
“Sure we do,” she insisted. “You asked me out again last night, right here in this park.”
“Again?” I repeated in surprise.
“Yeah,” she said with a nod. “Did you get hit on the head or something? After you wimped out on me yesterday, you actually showed up at my house later, saying that you wanted to keep your word.”
I gave her a stern look. “Listen to me, Vestibule. We didn’t go out yesterday. I didn’t do anything last night except go home and go to bed.”
She bit her lip nervously. “Okay, this isn’t funny anymore.”
“It’s not supposed to be,” I said. “There’s a guy – presumably a shapeshifter – going around pretending to be me.”
“What?!” she nearly screeched.
“You’re not the only one he’s fooled,” I assured her. “He’s been careful to avoid certain people who’d know he’s a fake, like my girlfriend Electra, but–”
“Wait…no…” she muttered, shaking her head. “Your girlfriend? But…you broke up…you told me…”
“I’m sorry, but it wasn’t me.”
Now clearly on edge, Vestibule stood up, practically wringing her hands.
“But I…” she began. “We…I mean…the two of us…”
She continued mumbling, but wasn’t particularly coherent. Hoping to make sense of what she was trying to convey, I took a telepathic peek inside her mind and saw much of what had happened: my evil twin taking her out, her showing him this park, him asking her on another date. I also noted several images that made it very clear why she had felt comfortable kissing me and holding my hand.
As I withdrew from her mind, she turned to me with a forlorn look and teary eyes. Emotionally, I sensed that she was coming undone to a certain extent and was on the verge of being completely distraught. The only thing she was holding onto at the moment was a slim hope that perhaps this was a cruel joke on my part.
I merely shook my head, not saying anything.
Vestibule’s mouth opened, and she let out a piercing, undulating scream that carried across the lake like a train whistle, frightening the swans and making numerous people look in our direction. It was a sound of inconsolable distress and unsettling dismay, the resonant tone of a tortured soul wallowing in anguish.
And then she vanished.
Chapter 51
I stayed on the park bench after Vestibule teleported, the sound of her scream still ringing in my ears.
My heart went out to her. Unlike Sarah and Smokey, my double hadn’t just pulled the wool over her eyes – he had completely hoodwinked her.
Needless to say, I felt particularly bad because Vestibule hadn’t been on my short list of people to talk to about my evil twin. Frankly speaking, she and I weren’t close. Thus, I hadn’t pegged her as someone the fake Jim would try to get close to because she really didn’t have much info to impart (assuming, again, that my double was after details about me).
I frowned as my thoughts turned in general to my evil twin. It was one thing for him to home in on people in my inner circle – people who were expected to know me intimately. His actions with Vestibule, however, indicated a certain callousness and disregard for common decency. It wouldn’t be a stretch to call what he’d done cruel.
Once again, I found myself pondering what my lookalike’s endgame was. What was he after? Also, given what had just happened with Vestibule, were there other people I needed to add to my list and have a conversation with? Kane perhaps, or maybe Gossamer? My cousins? Other teens in the Alpha League?
I shook my head in frustration. I couldn’t run down everyone with a tenuous connection to me. My gut told me that would probably be a waste of time. I needed to work smarter, not harder. I needed to–
“Penny for your thoughts,” said a voice that was oddly familiar as someone seemingly appeared out of nowhere and took a seat next to me on the bench.
I glanced at the speaker and then did a double-take.
It was my evil twin.
Chapter 52
He looked like me, of course, except he looked exactly like me:
