6 the short second life of bree tanner布里·坦纳第二次短暂生命-第5部分

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d　or　died；　but　the　expression　on　his　face　made　asking　unnecessary。　I　looked　away；　not　sure　how　to　respond。　I　couldn’t　really　understand　his　loss；　the　pain　it　still　clearly　caused　him　to　feel。　I　hadn’t　left　anything　behind　that　I　still　missed。　Was　that　the　difference？　Was　that　why　he　dwelled　on　memories　that　the　rest　of　us　shunned？　　I　still　didn’t　see　how　Riley　came　into　this。　Riley　and　the　cheeseburger　of　pain。　I　wanted　that　part　of　the　story；　but　now　I　felt　bad　for　pushing　him　to　answer。　
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　Lucky　for　my　curiosity；　Diego　kept　going　after　a　minute。　　“I　kind　of　lost　it。　Stole　a　gun　from　a　friend　and　went　hunting。”　He　chuckled　darkly。　“Wasn’t　as　good　at　it　then。　But　I　got　the　guy　that　got　my　brother　before　they　got　me。　The　rest　of　his　crew　had　me　cornered　in　an　alley。　Then；　suddenly；　Riley　was　there；　between　me　and　them。　I　remember　thinking　he　was　the　whitest　guy　I’d　ever　seen。　He　didn’t　even　look　at　the　others　when　they　shot　him。　Like　the　bullets　were　flies。　You　know　what　he　said　to　me？　He　said；　‘Want　a　new　life；　kid？’”　　“Hah！”　I　laughed。　“That’s　way　better　than　mine。　All　I　got　was；　‘Want　a　burger；　kid？’”　　I　still　remembered　how　Riley’d　looked　that　night；　though　the　image　was　all　blurry　because　my　eyes’d　sucked　back　then。　He　was　the　hottest　boy　I’d　ever　seen；　tall　and　blond　and　perfect；　every　feature。　I　knew　his　eyes　must　be　just　as　beautiful　behind　the　dark　sunglasses　he　never　took　off。　And　his　voice　was　so　gentle；　so　kind。　I　figured　I　knew　what　he　would　want　in　exchange　for　the　meal；　and　I　would　have　given　it　to　him；　too。　Not　because　he　was　so　pretty　to　look　at；　but　because　I　hadn’t　eaten　anything　but　trash　for　two　weeks。　It　turned　out　he　wanted　something　else；　though。　　Diego　laughed　at　the　burger　line。　“You　must　have　been　pretty　hungry。”　　“Damn　straight。”　　“So　why　were　you　so　hungry？”　　“Because　I　was　stupid　and　ran　away　before　I　had　a　driver’s　license。　I　couldn’t　get　a　real　job；　and　I　was　a　bad　thief。”　　“What　were　you　running　from？”　
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　I　hesitated。　The　memories　were　a　little　more　clear　as　I　focused　on　them；　and　I　wasn’t　sure　I　wanted　that。　　“Oh；　c’mon；”　he　coaxed。　“I　told　you　mine。”　　“Yeah；　you　did。　Okay。　I　was　running　from　my　dad。　He　used　to　knock　me　around　a　lot。　Probably　did　the　same　to　my　mom　before　she　took　off。　I　was　pretty　little　thenI　didn’t　know　much。　It　got　worse。　I　figured　if　I　waited　too　long　I’d　end　up　dead。　He　told　me　if　I　ever　ran　away　I’d　starve。　He　was　right　about　that　only　thing　he　was　ever　right　about　as　far　as　I’m　concerned。　I　don’t　think　about　it　much。”　　Diego　nodded　in　agreement。　“Hard　to　remember　that　stuff；　isn’t　it？　Everything’s　so　fuzzy　and　dark。”　　“Like　trying　to　see　with　mud　in　your　eyes。”　　“Good　way　to　put　it；”　he　plimented　me。　He　squinted　at　me　like　he　was　trying　to　see；　and　rubbed　his　eyes。　　We　laughed　together　again。　Weird。　　“I　don’t　think　I’ve　laughed　with　anybody　since　I　met　Riley；”　he　said；　echoing　my　thoughts。　“This　is　nice。　You’re　nice。　Not　like　the　others。　You　ever　try　to　have　a　conversation　with　one　of　them？”　　“Nope；　I　haven’t。”　　“You’re　not　missing　anything。　Which　is　my　point。　Wouldn’t　Riley’s　standard　of　living　be　a　little　higher　if　he　surrounded　himself　with　decent　vampires？　If　we’re　supposed　to　protect　her；　shouldn’t　he　be　looking　for　the　smart　ones？”　　“So　Riley　doesn’t　need　brains；”　I　reasoned。　“He　needs　numbers。”　　Diego　pursed　his　lips；　considering。　“Like　chess。　He’s　not　
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making　knights　and　bishops。”　　“We’re　just　pawns；”　I　realized。　　We　stared　at　each　other　again　for　a　long　minute。　　“I　don’t　want　to　think　that；”　Diego　said。　　“So　what　do　we　do？”　I　asked；　using　the　plural　automatically。　Like　we　were　already　a　team。　　He　thought　about　my　question　for　a　second；　seeming　uneasy；　and　I　regretted　the　“we。”　But　then　he　said；　“What　can　we　do　when　we　don’t　know　what’s　happening？”　　So　he　didn’t　mind　the　team　thing；　which　made　me　feel　really　good　in　a　way　I　didn’t　remember　ever　feeling　before。　“I　guess　we　keep　our　eyes　open；　pay　attention；　try　to　figure　it　out。”　　He　nodded。　“We　need　to　think　about　everything　Riley’s　told　us；　everything　he’s　done。”　He　paused　thoughtfully。　“You　know；　I　tried　to　hash　some　of　this　out　with　Riley　once；　but　he　couldn’t　have　cared　less。　Told　me　to　keep　my　mind　on　more　important　thingslike　thirst。　Which　was　all　I　could　think　about　then；　of　course。　He　sent　me　out　hunting；　and　I　stopped　worrying…。”　　I　watched　him　thinking　about　Riley；　his　eyes　unfocused　as　he　relived　the　memory；　and　I　wondered。　Diego　was　my　first　friend　in　this　life；　but　I　wasn’t　his。　　Suddenly　his　focus　snapped　back　to　me。　“So　what　have　we　learned　from　Riley？”　　I　concentrated；　running　through　the　last　three　months　in　my　head。　“He　really　doesn’t　tell　us　much；　you　know。　Just　the　vampire　basics。”　　“We’ll　have　to　listen　more　carefully。”　　We　sat　in　silence；　pondering　this。　I　mostly　thought　about　
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how　much　I　didn’t　know。　And　why　hadn’t　I　worried　about　everything　I　didn’t　know　before　now？　It　was　like　talking　to　Diego　had　cleared　my　head。　For　the　first　time　in　three　months；　blood　was　not　the　main　thing　in　there。　　The　silence　lasted　for　a　while。　The　black　hole　I’d　felt　funneling　fresh　air　into　the　cave　wasn’t　black　anymore。　It　was　dark　gray　now　and　getting　infinitesimally　lighter　with　each　second。　Diego　noticed　me　eyeing　it　nervously。　　“Don’t　worry；”　he　said。　“Some　dim　light　gets　in　here　on　sunny　days。　It　doesn’t　hurt。”　He　shrugged。　　I　scooted　closer　to　the　hole　in　the　floor；　where　the　water　was　disappearing　as　the　tide　went　out。　　“Seriously；　Bree。　I’ve　been　down　here　before　during　the　day。　I　told　Riley　about　this　cave　　　and　how　it　was　mostly　filled　with　water；　and　he　said　it　was　cool　when　I　needed　to　get　out　of　the　madhouse。　Anyway；　do　I　look　like　I　got　singed？”　　I　hesitated；　thinking　about　how　different　his　relationship　with　Riley　was　than　mine。　His　eyebrows　rose；　waiting　for　an　answer。　“No；”　I　finally　said。　“But…”　　“Look；”　he　said　impatiently。　He　crawled　swiftly　to　the　tunnel　and　stuck　his　arm　in　up　to　the　shoulder。　“Nothing。”　　I　nodded　once。　　“Relax！　Do　you　want　me　to　see　how　high　I　can　go？”　As　he　spoke；　he　stuck　his　head　into　the　hole　and　started　climbing。　　“Don’t；　Diego。”　He　was　already　out　of　sight。　“I’m　relaxed；　I　swear。”　　He　was　laughingit　sounded　like　he　was　already　several　yards　up　the　tunnel。　I　wanted　to　go　after　him；　to　grab　his　foot　and　
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yank　him　back；　but　I　was　frozen　with　stress。　It　would　be　stupid　to　risk　my　life　to　save　some　total　stranger。　But　I　hadn’t　had　anything　close　to　a　friend　in　forever。　Already　it　would　be　hard　to　go　back　to　having　no　one　to　talk　to；　after　only　one　night。　　“No　estoy　quemando；”　he　called　down；　his　tone　teasing。　“Wait…　is　that…？　Ow！”　　“Diego？”　　I　leaped　across　the　cave　and　stuck　my　head　into　the　tunnel。　His　face　was　right　there；　inches　from　mine。　　“Boo！”　　I　flinched　back　from　his　proximityjust　a　reflex；　old　habit。　　“Funny；”　I　said　dryly；　moving　away　as　he　slid　back　into　the　cave。　　“You　need　to　unwind；　girl。　I’ve　looked　into　this；　okay？　Indirect　sunlight　doesn’t　hurt。”　　“So　you’re　saying　that　I　could　just　stand　under　a　nice　shady　tree　and　be　fine？”　　He　hesitated　for　a　minute；　as　if　debating　whether　or　not　to　tell　me　something；　and　then　said　quietly；　“I　did　once。”　　I　stared　at　him；　waiting　for　the　grin。　Because　this　was　a　joke。　　It　didn’t　e。　　“Riley　said…；”　I　started；　and　then　my　voice　trailed　off。　　“Yeah；　I　know　what　Riley　said；”　he　agreed。　“Maybe　Riley　doesn’t　know　as　much　as　he　says　he　does。”　　“But　Shelly　and　Steve。　Doug　and　Adam。　That　kid　with　the　bright　red　hair。　All　of　them。　They’re　gone　because　they　didn’t　get　back　in　time。　Riley　saw　the　ashes。”　　Diego’s　brows　pulled　together　unhappily。　
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　“Everyone　knows　that　oldtimey　vampires　had　to　stay　in　coffins　during　the　day；”　I　went　on。　“To　keep　out　of　the　sun。　That’s　mon　knowledge；　Diego。”　　“You’re　right。　All　the　stories　do　say　that。”　　“And　what　would　Riley　gain　by　locking　us　up　in　a　lightproof　basement　　　one　big　group　coffinall　day；　anyway？　We　just　demolish　the　place；　and　he　has　to　deal　with　all　the　fighting；　and　it’s　constant　turmoil。　You　can’t　tell　me　he　enjoys　it。”　　Something　I’d　said　surprised　him。　He　sat　with　his　mouth　open　for　a　second；　then　closed　it。　　“What？”　　“mon　knowledge；”　he　repeated。　“What　do　vampires　do　in　coffins　all　day？”　　“Er　　　oh　yeah；　they’re　supposed　to　sleep；　right？　But　I　guess　they’re　probably　just　lying　there　bored；　’cause　we　don’t…　Okay；　so　that　part’s　wrong。”　　“Yeah。　In　the　stories　they’re　not　just　asleep；　though。　They’re　totally　unconscious。　They　can’t　wake　up。　A　human　can　walk　right　up　and　stake　them；　no　problem。　And　that’s　another　thingstakes。　You　really　think　someone　could　shove　a　piece　of　wood　through　you？”　　I　shrugged。　“I　haven’t　really　thought　about　it。　I　mean；　not　a　normal　piece　of　wood；　obviously。　Maybe　sharpened　wood　has　some　kind　of…　I　don’t　know。　Magical　properties　or　something。”　　Diego　snorted。　“Please。”　　“Well；　I　don’t　know。　I　wouldn’t　just　hold　still　while　some　human　ran　at　me　with　a　filed　broom　handle；　anyway。”　　Diego　still　with　a　sort　of　disgusted　look　on　his　face；　as　if　
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magic　were　really　such　a　reach　when　you’re　a　vampire　rolled　to　his　knees　and　started　clawing　into　the　limestone　above　his　head。　Tiny　stone　shards　filled　his　hair；　but　he　ignored　them。　　“What　are　you　doing？”　　“Experimenting。”　　He　dug　with　both　hands　until　he　could　stand　upright；　and　then　kept　going。　　“Diego；　you　get　to　the　surface；　you　explode。　Stop　it。”　　“I’m　not　trying　toah；　here　we　go。”　　There　was　a　loud　crack；　and　then　another　crack；　but　no　light。　He　ducked　back　down　to　where　I　could　see　his　face；　with　a　piece　of　tree　root　in　his　hand；　white；　dead；　and　dry　under　the　clumps　of　dirt。　The　edge　where　he’d　broken　it　was　a　sharp；　uneven　point。　He　tossed　it　to　me。　　“Stake　me。”　　I　tossed　it　back。　“Whatever。”　　“Seriously。　You　know　it　can’t　hurt　me。”　He　lobbed　the　wood　to　me；　instead　of　catching　it；　I　batted　it　back。　　He　snagged　it　out　of　the　air　and　groaned。　“You　are　so…　superstitious！”　　“I　am　a　vampire。　If　that　doesn’t　prove　that　superstitious　people　are　right；　I　don’t　know　what　does。”　　“Fine；　I’ll