Glimmer Read Online Free PDF

brought her car into me before.”
    Running a hand over my coarse hair, I suppress a groan of frustration. I hate hearing the pride in Dad’s voice, the way he says Delaney’s name as if he knows her. He only met her once.
    “I always knew that girl was special. Ever since the day she ran in front of my truck to save her cat.  Of course I thought she was crazy at first. Damn near got herself killed. She was such a cute girl with those long red curls. When she told me about her cat I knew that girl had spunk.”
    I reach for the backpack that leans against the wall in my bedroom, my stomach tightening. Jealousy snakes around my heart and squeezes hard.  After my dad met Delaney, I used to want to be a hero just like her. Hearing my dad talk about her in a way he never did about me was brutal. So she saved her cat? I could do that. So, I started trying to find ways to impress my dad with my bravery. Only I’d end up breaking something and getting in trouble.
    That’s when I first had inklings of wanting to be a cop, so I could be someone my dad would be proud of.  I could be a hero like Delaney. Then again, Delaney isn’t a cop. She’s just a chick. I wonder how she does it.
    When we were in fifth grade I saw Delaney acting really weird during our last recess, almost like she was in a trance or something. Then right after school she stopped a girl from being abducted. Everyone thought it was a big coincidence. Only I saw her face. Something wasn’t right. It was like she knew ahead of time what was going to happen. At the time I thought that maybe she was a superhero, but now I know that superheroes aren’t real. Everyone over the age of ten knows that.
    Although try telling that to Delaney’s friend Micah. That dude has a major Superman complex. He’s always walking around school flexing his muscles. I just want to tell him to lay off the steroids. It’s unnatural looking.
    No matter what anyone else thinks, I know that Delaney has supernatural powers. It’s the only thing that makes sense. And when I use this leverage as my way to become a Sarafite , Dad will see that he’s wrong about me — that I’m not worthless.
    Smiling, I fling my backpack over my shoulder and saunter out the front door. I slam it behind me, shutting out my dad’s voice as he drones on.
    We live on the outskirts of town, so I have to drive far to get to school. In my battered pick-up truck I careen through the maze of rural streets. Tall weeds and yellow grass hug the asphalt. Acres of stinky farmland surround me. Mom always hated it out here. She wanted to move into town, but Dad wouldn’t hear of it. Not that I blame him. Who wants to live close to all those do-gooders? Besides, we don’t follow the rules of Zerach like the townspeople he governs. We’re not one of them. We don’t take orders from anyone. 
    Tumbleweed blows past in the wind. A cloud of dirt fills the air. Flicking on the radio, I turn it to my favorite rock station. The pulsing beat fills the cab of the truck. I press harder on the gas and continue on.
    By the time I get to school, the halls are almost cleared out. Only a few straggling students remain. Not wishing to be late again, I race toward room five. My shoes squeak on the linoleum and perspiration gathers on my neck. I fly into the classroom just as the bell peals. As I weave through the classroom to my desk in the back corner, my gaze catches her red hair. Delaney peers up at me, flashing me a timid smile. My heart rate quickens despite my best effort to keep it even. I narrow my eyes and keep my lips pressed together as I plop down on the hard wooden seat. My knees push against the bottom of the desk. Mr. Chauncey clicks on the overhead projector and starts his lecture, and his nasally voice swirls around me. I pull out a notebook and pen, determined to actually focus and take notes.
    I glance up, the pen poised over the binder paper. Before I can write anything, a flash of scarlet distracts me as