A Night without Stars Read online

  A NIGHT

  WITHOUT

  STARS

  SABRINA ALBIS

  A NIGHT WITHOUT STARS

  Copyright © 2016 Sabrina Albis.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

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  Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

  Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

  Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

  ISBN: 978-1-5320-0165-9 (sc)

  ISBN: 978-1-5320-0164-2 (e)

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2016910806

  iUniverse rev. date: 08/12/2016

  Contents

  Prologue

  1

  2

  3

  4

  5

  6

  7

  8

  9

  10

  11

  12

  13

  14

  15

  16

  17

  18

  19

  20

  21

  22

  23

  24

  25

  26

  27

  28

  29

  30

  About the Author

  For my dear Aunt Donna, for believing in me

  and encouraging me to follow my dreams

  Prologue

  Walking through the halls of her high school for the last time ever, Autumn Kingston felt nothing but joy. The school that had once brimmed with possibilities and hope seemed desolate to her now, like a vibrant picture drained of color.

  She walked past the principal’s office, past administration, through the front corridor. She passed by the cases of trophies, awards, and plaques that glinted in the sunlight streaming in through the large skylight.

  Once upon a time, she had dreamed her name would be on the list of graduates beside the title of valedictorian. She never thought she would be leaving her home and that these halls would haunt her with such bad memories.

  She could almost see herself now, the dark-haired girl with the big green eyes, walking into this school in September. It was her freshman year, and she could remember the feeling of terror and the knots in her stomach. She was a stranger in a new world, so when she went to her locker and was greeted by a friendly girl, she was overjoyed.

  “Hey there. I’m Nicole Lancaster your locker neighbor,” she said, outstretching her hand.

  “Autumn Kingston,” she took her hand, shaking it.

  “A pleasure to meet you,” she smiled brightly, exposing braces. “It’s nice to see a friendly face around these halls.”

  Autumn smiled back. “I know the feeling. I am so unbelievably nervous.”

  Nicole popped her locker open. “My brother told me that high school was a breeze for him. You just need to find the popular kids and cling to them.”

  “I don’t know about you, but I’m not so good at clinging,” Autumn admitted.

  Perhaps it was an understatement. Autumn was rather stubborn, and she wouldn’t let anyone tell her what was wrong or right. She was her own moral compass. No one dictated how she should dress, how she should look or who she should be friends with.

  “Ah. So you’re a born leader then,” Nicole said, fishing a notebook from her backpack. “That is really cool.”

  Autumn shrugged. “I know I am definitely not a follower.”

  Nicole nodded. “No worries. I would never follow my brother’s advice. He spent his freshman year as a lackey for some jock dude,” she paused. “Can I see your schedule?”

  Autumn nodded, pulling it out from her knapsack. As she did, she felt a body bumping into her. She handed Nicole her schedule and turned to see a guy standing behind her. He was tall, well-built and had light blonde hair and hazel eyes. He smiled at her awkwardly.

  “Sorry about that. This kid bumped into me, and then I bumped into you.”

  Autumn smiled. “I’ll chalk it up to a bad chain reaction. It’s all good.”

  She turned back to Nicole, who was scanning their schedules.

  “We have most of our classes together,” she began but the boy was still standing there.

  He stared at Autumn, looking enthralled. She blinked at him. Were all high school guys this strange?

  “Can I help you with something?”

  “Your name,” the boy said, grinning. “Do you have one?”

  “Funny that. My parents gave me one at birth,” she said lightly. “Autumn.”

  The boy nodded slowly. “Autumn huh? A beautiful name for a beautiful girl.”

  Autumn blushed, though she was trying to remain cool. “And you might be?”

  “Kyle,” he said, reaching out his hand to her.

  “Nice to meet you, Kyle,” Autumn said, shaking his hand.

  He smiled. “So, is there any chance you might want to go out sometime?”

  Nicole looked up from the schedules, a grin upon her face. Autumn’s eyes went wide with disbelief. This guy didn’t waste any time.

  “I’m sorry?”

  “On a date,” Kyle began, but he recoiled after seeing her expression. “Too soon?”

  “Considering we just met, I would say yes.”

  Nicole giggled as another boy came over and smacked Kyle on the back.

  “Dude, we gotta go. Homeroom,” he said, glancing at Autumn and Nicole. “Hello ladies.”

  The girls greeted him as Kyle turned back to Autumn.

  “It was nice meeting you Autumn. I hope to see you around so we can get to know each other better.”

  “See you later,” Autumn said as she waved. When they were no longer in earshot, Nicole jabbed her arm.

  “The first day of school and you get asked out. I am so jealous!” she squealed.

  “Don’t be,” Autumn said. “That guy is from another planet asking me out so soon,” she paused.

  “And he will probably be doing the exact same thing to the next girl he sees.”

  “Hey, Kingston!” A voice entered Autumn’s reverie, pulling her from it. No need to check your reflection in the display cases Aut. You are still ugly.”

  The girl chortled, and Autumn turned, facing her. It was Nicole Lancaster, and she was looking at Autumn with her usual icy stare.

  Autumn grimaced. She had never gotten used to the fact that her best friend hated her now. She did, however, come to accept it.

  Normally, Nicole was flanked by her pretties. The flying monkeys she called friends. The two girls followed her
around, groveling at her feet, thirsting for just a taste of her popularity.

  However, today she stood alone, dressed in a leather mini skirt and a white blouse, her chestnut hair secured in a perfect ponytail.

  She grinned wickedly, her braces gone, showing perfect teeth.

  “What’s wrong Kingston? No comeback?”

  Autumn sighed. “Nicole, I know your brain is the size of a pea but are we really resorting to childish name calling again?” she paused. “Better yet, don’t you have anything better to do than follow me around? Maybe you can go find a guy to sleep with? He can be lucky number fifty.”

  “Spoken like a true virgin,” Nicole snorted, crossing her arms over her chest. “You keeping track?”

  “Someone has to,” Autumn said, hands on her hips. “Since you don’t know how to count.”

  Nicole rolled her eyes and began tinkering with her ponytail.

  “I didn’t come here to engage in a battle of wits with you Kingston,” Nicole said.

  Autumn nodded. “I would make the obvious joke about you being unarmed, but I would rather just get to it.”

  Nicole smirked. “I came to say goodbye. Or maybe good riddance is the better word for it?”

  “Good riddance is more than a word,” Autumn said, unruffled. “But please, try again.”

  “I heard through the grapevine you are moving,” Nicole went on. “We are going to be seniors next year, and you are running away to another school?”

  Autumn glared at her, feeling her temper rise, like hackles. She didn’t run from anything or anyone.

  “You of all people should know that I don’t run from things Nikki,” she snapped. “My friend Rick needs my help.”

  “Rick?” Nicole said, looking confused. “Oh! The dumb guy you told me about?”

  “I never called him dumb. I said he’s a slacker,” Autumn said, bitterly.

  “Splitting hairs are you?” Nicole asked. “Either way, I want you to know you will be sorely missed if only because you are my favorite enemy.”

  Autumn rolled her eyes. “I hope you grow up Nikki. Because when you do, you are going to realize how pathetic you were in high school and how you squandered your time being the bitchy queen bee, when you could’ve been so much more.”

  Nicole looked at her, and for a second, Autumn thought there was sadness behind her cold eyes. However, like magic, it vanished, and she was the ice queen once more.

  “Whatever Kingston. Enjoy your new life,” Nicole muttered and she headed towards the cafeteria.

  As she walked away, Autumn felt a little tug in her heart for her old best friend. For the Nicole who was sweet, caring and compassionate. The monster who had just been in her midst was no one her heart recognized anymore.

  By the end of the day, the rumor mill had finished churning, and everyone and their brother knew of Autumn leaving.

  She was at her locker, grabbing books, when Kyle walked by with Nikki. She had gotten used to the sight of them together, but it had taken her awhile. She had dated him for a year before Nikki had managed to manipulate him and eventually snag him for herself. It was her grade ten year when they had broken up. It was her first heartbreak, and because of Nikki, her first real betrayal. It seemed like cliché movie fodder, but it didn’t make the knife cut any less deep. Autumn thought she would never trust anyone again. Having your best friend steal your boyfriend does that to a girl.

  As Kyle walked by her now, he hardly smiled at her, but she could see a hint of something, perhaps regret, maybe even sadness, in his eyes as he looked at her. She pushed the thoughts of him, the memories and the pain, deep inside and when he was gone, she went back to her locker, closing it.

  “I can’t do this!” Autumn heard a familiar voice from behind her, and she turned around to see her best friend, Kristin Roberts standing there.

  Kristin, who was normally quite sanguine, wore a frown that looked out of place on her round face. Other than that, she looked the same as usual. She was wearing her black cat eye glasses and had her curly brown hair pulled into a bun atop her head. She was dressed in a plain grey T-shirt and jeans that highlighted her slight frame, and she had her arms crossed over her chest, reminding Autumn of a pouting child.

  “I refuse to let you go Aut,” she said, stubbornly.

  Autumn smiled, amused. “Kris, don’t do this. You know I have no other choice. Rick needs me or he won’t graduate.”

  “So tell his parents to hire him a tutor!” Kristin said defiantly. “You told me they are loaded right?”

  Autumn chuckled. “It isn’t that easy. They have tried that but Rick doesn’t focus. They think he would be better off with someone he knows then he wouldn’t be as distracted.”

  “Wouldn’t he be more distracted then?” Kristin offered weakly.

  Autumn knew she couldn’t win. There was no logical explanation she could give her friend now that would actually appease her. Kristin felt abandoned and Autumn knew if the situation was reversed, she would feel exactly the same.

  “Kris, I am going to miss you, but we can still visit. I am only three hours away.” Autumn paused as she saw Kristin’s expression change. She looked like she might cry.

  “I am going to miss you too Aut,” Kristin said, and she lunged at Autumn, wrapping her into a hug.

  Autumn could feel the tears in her eyes threatening to spill over. She knew today wasn’t really goodbye. She would have a good chunk of summer vacation here before she was left. August was when she officially moved.

  Still, she always thought she would be graduating from high school with Kristin.

  This was home to them and while others tried their best to escape, she never wanted to leave.

  Her parents were here, her sister, her family, Kristin, her roots and her memories. She felt like her seeds had been planted here, and she wasn’t ready to move on. However, she wasn’t selfish. She couldn’t say no to her Aunt Katherine and Uncle James. She knew if they requested her help, it was serious. Rick really needed her.

  Even though they weren’t family by blood, Rick was her childhood best friend. She had always called Katherine her aunt and James her uncle. After all, James was practically a brother to her dad, Chris. They had grown up together and from her understanding, her grandparents had pretty much raised James as their own.

  Knowing all these factors and having her father reiterate something she had been thinking sealed the deal for her.

  “You can look at this as a fresh start sweetheart,” her dad had said after asking if she was willing to do her senior year in Whitan. “You won’t ever have to see Nikki or Kyle roaming the halls again. You want your last year to be your best year right?”

  Autumn had to admit it. It was a tempting prospect, but could she really have her best year in another city?

  Kristin pulled away from Autumn, tears visible on her face. She wiped them away with her arm.

  “Alright. That’s enough with the doom and gloom. We still have time together before you go. So let’s make the best of it.”

  Autumn nodded, fighting the urge to cry. “My thoughts exactly.”

  1

  On a train, headed for the town of Whitan, Autumn Kingston somehow managed to fall asleep. She was curled up on the seat, under a blanket she had brought from home. She had been anxious, after her parents had seen her off. There were many tears and hugs and her mom reminding her of things she might forget.

  She went through the list as she watched the buildings and vast fields going by.

  She had to call home as soon as she reached her destination, and she needed to thank Aunt Katherine and Uncle James for their hospitality.

  When she was done with the list, the panic slowly set in. She was going to a strange place without her parents and best friend.

  She would be at a new school with new kids and living in a new house. It hit her ha
rd suddenly, overwhelming her.

  She took a few deep breaths, trying her best to focus on inhaling then exhaling. The simplest thing she could do, because it came naturally.

  Before long, the panic had given way to exhaustion, and she relaxed into her seat. She pulled the blanket over her legs and was lulled to sleep by the sound of the train cruising smoothly along on the tracks.

  Dressed in jeans and a white T-shirt, Autumn was your typical seventeen year old girl. With her long dark waves, full lips and porcelain skin, she was strikingly beautiful.

  When Autumn was young she was a typical tomboy. She wore her hair in a messy ponytail, and dressed in baggy shirts and jeans. She was often found playing road hockey with boys or kicking their butts at video games.

  Back then, she lived only minutes away from her best friend Rick.

  Autumn and Rick were inseparable. Together, they watched movies, played board games and biked around the small town of Whitan. Her favorite childhood memory was of her and Rick riding their bikes to the park and spending the day taking turns pushing each other on the swings.

  Autumn awoke as the train was slowing down. The conductor announced her stop, and she stood up, put her blanket into her large purse and stretched. Then she grabbed her luggage and headed for the exit doors. They slid open and she walked along the platform, trailed by a few other travelers.

  It was a perfect summer day, warm but not sweltering. The breeze danced lazily across her skin as she lugged her suitcase along the platform.

  She looked around. She hadn’t seen Rick in years. She really had no idea what he would look like in person. They chatted online often and sent pictures to each other but a picture was never quite the same as the real thing. She imagined that Rick wouldn’t recognize her either.

  Last he saw her, she was slim, with no figure and her hair was short. Years later, she finally filled out and developed curves. Her dark hair was so long it touched her lower back.

  Autumn looked around the train station more thoroughly as the train’s doors glided shut and it pulled away. She began searching the small crowds of people congregated on the platform and was relieved when she finally spotted Rick.