I sighed in frustration, tired of explaining myself. “Lucas and Logan were doing that, and my parents took over. Besides you’re helping right now, so back off.” I regretted the words as soon as they left my lips. Being in this situation was making me cranky. “I’m sorry, Derrick; it’s just that I’ve had that lecture from a lot of people. I really do appreciate you wanting to help.”
His reassuring smile gave me comfort. He was my best friend and always would be. The sound of branches snapping through my open window made all three of us look outside. Lucas stood at the edge of the trees. “I’ll call you when I’m ready to be picked up.” I shut the door behind me after stepping out, and pulled my hood up again. It was colder today, but at least the sun was peeking through the clouds.
All this help was wearing on my nerves. I missed being able to drive myself around. But that night when I was attacked woke me up, and I knew all of this extra help was necessary. Derrick honked the horn as he drove away. I waved, and walked over to where Lucas was standing.
“Hey.” That was the only greeting that came to mind.
He nodded with a slight smile before he started to make his way to the waterfall. I followed behind him, wondering why he was so quiet.
We ascended the hill and sat down against our trees. There was a duffel bag lying in the grass next to him. He opened it and pulled out his laptop.
“So what should we look for?” he asked me.
I dumped my bag beside me and sat up straight. “Actually, before we start I want to say something. I think if we are going to find out who is doing this, we have to be honest with each other. Is there anything else you’re not telling me?”
“No, it was just about the dreams, how long I’ve been having them. And that I thought they were premonitions. I was afraid you would think I was crazy if I told you that.”
I grinned. My theory was just as odd, and he didn’t judge me when I voiced it. “I have more to tell you. Don’t be mad that I kept it from you because deep down I think I knew if it became too dangerous you would have left me for my own good.” I took a deep breath before I continued. This story sounded like a movie plot, not something that had happened to me, and as I opened my mouth to recount the tale, a gust of wind swirled around me, making me feel as cold on the outside as I did inside.
Finally, the words came out in a rush, as I explained how I’d been followed twice in the parking lot at work. I told him every detail, so at least now he couldn’t accuse me of holding anything back. Better late than never, right? When I was finished, I paused, looking up at him. The scowl on his face wasn’t really surprising. I pulled the rock I’d hidden out of my bag and handed it to him. “I saw someone outside of my house watching me, and a week later this was thrown through my window.” I stopped talking. Lucas was reading the rock, and I could tell he wasn’t very happy with me. The knuckles on his hands were white.
He looked away so I couldn’t read his expression, but I could tell he was breathing in and out deeply, trying to calm down.
He stood up and started to pace. “Sarah, how could you keep this from me? God, I’m so mad at you right now.” He stopped speaking, his face twisted with anger. He balled his hands into fists as though he wanted to strike something. I had a feeling that if he were at home, he would be pounding on the heavy bag.
In the midst of pacing, he walked over toward the edge of the cliff and stood staring down at the waterfall. I didn’t say anything because honestly he was right. I should have at least told the police about the rock. If I knew someone was trying to hurt me, I would have.
He stood staring off into space for a few moments, then suddenly turned around. His face was still tight, but he had calmed down some, and the lines around his eyes had smoothed. “Don’t keep anything like that from me again. I mean it, Sarah, I need to know.” The look on his face dared me to argue, but I wasn’t stupid; instead, I only nodded. “Did you tell the police about the rock?” Crap, why did he have to ask that?
“Uh…no. But I didn’t know then that someone was trying to hurt me. If I had, I would have told them.”
He turned away from me again, let out a breath, and turned back around to look at me. “Fine, is that it?”
“Yes,” I said quietly, gazing down at my hands that were folded in my lap.
He stood in front of me. The long wet grass curled up around the leather soles of his black boots. “So the picture of Tony didn’t look like anyone you knew or have seen, because we look similar to David and Katie.” With his voice less strained, he sat down against his tree again.
“You think Tony was reincarnated too?” I asked. It made sense; I just hadn’t thought of it myself.
“Who else wouldn’t want us to be together? And how would anyone know about the butcher knife unless they were there, or dreaming about it like we are?”
“But how are we supposed to find him? He does look slightly familiar, but I can’t place his face.”
“Are you sure it’s not Zack? I’m telling you, he rubs me the wrong way. And you said he knew your name before you met him.”
“I really doubt it’s someone that I know.”
He closed his eyes, obviously fighting for control. “Sarah, you can’t know that. It could be anybody.” His voice was low, and it sounded like he was gritting his teeth.
“Okay, okay, it could be anybody, but you’ve seen Zack, he doesn’t look a thing like Tony.”
He opened his eyes and nodded in agreement.
I leaned back against the tree, watching the branches blow in the wind. A plan suddenly formed in my mind. I was sick of having bodyguards everywhere I went. I wanted this over. I wanted to be with Lucas, but I was still upset with him about how he handled things. If he’d been honest with me, and let us figure this out together, I wouldn’t have lied to him. We could have found out what the dreams meant long ago.
I sat up and stared at Lucas. I wanted to tell him my idea, but I was afraid of his reaction. “What if we trap him?”
“What do you mean?”
“One night after work, I’ll go out and wait for my ride, which seems to be running late. You, my dad, and even the police will be waiting for him to take the bait. When he does, they grab him, and we’re done with all of this crap. We can get on with our lives.”
His jaw locked. “I don’t think so. Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“No, I’ll be surrounded, he won’t get to me.”
“No.”
I groaned. “There you go again, running the show. It always has to be your way, doesn’t it? If you had been totally honest about your dreams we wouldn’t have suffered for the last month like we have.”
His face clouded with anguish. “Sarah, I told you that I had to.”
“No, you didn’t. The day you ended it, I wanted to figure it out together, and of course, I have no say in my own life. You wouldn’t listen to me. But what are we doing now?”
He opened his mouth to argue, and then quickly shut it. He glanced around at the trees, absently playing with the keys on his laptop. “You’re right, I’m sorry.”
I didn’t want his apology; I wanted the last month back. I was suddenly so angry with him, I needed some space to calm down. I stood up, and so did he. “No, don’t follow me.” I held my hand up to stop him. “I just need some space from you right now. I don’t want to make it worse for you, so I’ll be back when I calm down.”
I reached down and picked up my laptop, before walking over to a set of pine trees away from the waterfall, not far from where Lucas stood a few minutes ago. He could still see me, but I was far enough away to give me the space I wanted. The smell of pine was strong, but since it was so cold, I wasn’t surprised that it was all I could smell; everything else was frozen.
I sat down against a tree, shifting slightly when a pine needle stuck into my butt, and opened my laptop. There had been something on my mind, but I didn’t want to say it out loud. I pulled off my mittens and typed in the words “Soul mates”
and waited to see what came up. There were thousands of articles on the subject, of course, most speculation, and a few that were interesting. One was the thought that humans originally consisted of two beings with shared bodies and souls, similar to conjoined twins. Zeus feared their strength and separated them, condemning these beings with a life of longing, seeking their severed half. That was cool but weird.
There was another one that sounded similar to what we believed; it said that God created souls equally male and female. Later speculations claimed that they lived a life on earth that angered Karma, so to teach them a lesson, they were ripped apart, and over many lives they sought out one another until their Karmic debt was cleared. Then they would become one again.
These were really interesting, and I was about to read some more when I remembered there was a point to my research.
The next words I typed in were “how to stop a soul from reincarnating.” One article appeared; it said that cremation could stop a soul from coming back. There was also an ancient natives’ ritual that involved using a personal item from the person who last carried the soul. Once you had the item, you were to light it on fire while reading a special chant as it, and the body, burned. Of course, there was no way of knowing if it worked until the next life.
My thoughts kept going back to Tony. If we somehow got rid of him, or whoever he turned out to be in this life, he would just keep coming back to destroy our lives. I didn’t know what I would do with this information, but it was good to have.
I shut my laptop and walked back over to Lucas.
He stood up. “I’m sorry. You were right; I should have listened to you.” I didn’t have anything to say to that. I knew I was right, and I was tired of dwelling on it. If I did, I would just get angry again. I stood facing him, uncertain of what to say, and an awkward silence fell between us. Before I could think of something to ease the tension, his eyes held mine, and he seemed to make a decision.
He stepped toward me, cupped my face with his hands, and leaned in to touch his lips to mine. I gasped and wrapped my arms tightly around him, dropping my laptop onto the ground and yanking him against me. Desperate for his touch, I never wanted to let him go. It was wonderful, the feeling of our lips fused together. It felt like home. I wanted to lose myself in him. I wanted, no needed, this kiss, this glorious kiss, to last a lifetime. But instead, I pulled away.
Pain and confusion swept across his face. “Why? I thought you wanted this,” he asked, panting.
“I do, more than you can imagine.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“I can’t pretend I’m not angry with you for what you did. If you had just listened to me, we wouldn’t have gone through the worst month of our lives. You broke my heart, Lucas, literally. I felt, and still feel, empty inside. It was agony. It will take me awhile to forgive you for that. And I can’t be with you until I do.” My heart ached just thinking about it.
He looked away from me to hide his face. “I will never forgive myself for hurting you. You should call Derrick, it’s getting late.”
“I’m sorry, I hate this.” My eyes stung and my throat burned. I turned away before the tears started. I felt so bad for hurting him, but I needed to forgive before I gave myself to him again. I took a moment and a couple of deep breaths before calling Derrick, telling him that I was ready to be picked up.
After I hung up, I picked up my laptop, placing it into my bag, and then put my mittens back on; my hands were red from the cold.
Lucas walked towards me. His face was blank. “I’ll walk you back.”
We made it a few feet down the path, when something cold and wet touched my nose. I looked up and noticed big flakes floating in the air. It was starting to snow, and it was coming down pretty hard.
“Call the detectives, tell them your plan, and then we’ll meet again. You can tell me what the detective said. How about Wednesday?” He was looking up into the sky, watching the snow fall.
“Or I could call you and tell you what they said. I doubt whoever is doing this has our phones tapped. But if we do meet again I’d rather it be indoors. It’s freezing, and I’m not sitting in the snow.”
“Okay, just let me know what you want to do.”
At the end of the path, Derrick’s car was just pulling in.
I said goodbye to Lucas and climbed into the SUV. I watched him walk away; his hair was turning white as the snow started to pile on the top of his head.
“I hate snow,” Emma whined from the front seat.
“Are you kidding, I love it. Once the snow gets deep, I’ll take you for a ride on my snowmobile,” Derrick said, getting excited over a few snowflakes.
I hated to burst his bubble, but I could tell it wouldn’t last. The snow was melting as it hit the ground.
After Derrick dropped me off at home, I called Detective Franklin and told him my plan. He didn’t like it, but agreed to try. He also said my dad and Lucas would not be involved. He would have policemen waiting to ambush whoever came to attack me. The detectives wanted to wait until they could put a plan in motion, and get back-up. He would let me know when they were ready.
After I hung up, I called Lucas to tell him what Detective Franklin said. He didn’t respond, obviously not happy with the plan, but since it was my decision to make, he didn’t have much say in the matter. The silence stretched out on the phone, and when I could no longer take it, I said, “By the way, I’m sorry for taking the picture of us. But it really did turn out great.”
There was a brief pause before he spoke. “I’m glad you did. I meant to give you a copy, but after the two threats on your life, it slipped my mind.” His voice was strained, and I knew it was because I was going to go ahead with my plan without his consent.
I didn’t think there was anything left to say. “Well, I’ll let you know when I hear back from Detective Franklin. I’ll see you at school.” I hung up feeling uncomfortable and guilty.
Chapter Thirty-One
Ancestor
“Dinner!” I heard my mom yell from the kitchen. The delicious smell drifting up from the kitchen made me hungry. Descending the stairs slowly, I tried to shake the guilty feeling I had while I spoke to Lucas.
The table was empty, my mother puttered in the kitchen, and from the beeps, music, and curses from the couch, I knew without looking where my dad and brother were. Taking my seat, I asked, “What’s for dinner, Mom?” I reached for my water glass and took a sip.
She walked to the table carrying a basket of bread. “Homemade chicken and vegetable soup.” That wasn’t surprising, since my mom had roasted a chicken for dinner last night. Usually about one to two nights later, we’d have homemade chicken and something soup. It always had different ingredients except for one, the chicken carcass. It sounded disgusting, but all the soup creations she came up with always turned out good. Tonight was no different. I lifted my spoon to taste it and was not disappointed; it was delicious.
My dad and Alex finally shut the video game off and joined us at the table.
“You forgot to turn off the TV, Jim,” my mom said disapprovingly. She didn’t allow us to have the TV on while we ate dinner, a fact that my dad hated. He was constantly trying to sneak away having “forgotten” to turn it off.
“Maggie, I want to hear the news,” he whined.
“Fine, I’ll let you ruin our dinner so you can listen to the news.”
My dad cringed at the guilt she had just laid out, making no move to turn it off. We sat in silence while we ate, listening to the drone of the TV in the background. I was afraid to look up. I knew it must be driving my mom crazy.
I took a few more bites and bravely lifted my eyes to see their expressions. My dad was shoveling the soup into his mouth with record speed, never looking up from his bowl. My mom was giving him her cold stare. “Too bad we can’t enjoy some peace during our dinner. God knows we don’t get enough of it,” my mom mumbled, staring at my dad. When he didn’t look up at her, she gave up and started
eating.
“The woman was murdered in her own backyard, in a small subdivision just outside of Langton,” the reporter from the news announced.
We all glanced over at the TV. The kind of crime that was normally reported on our local news was car thefts and fires. The only time we heard about people being killed was from other cities. So to hear about some poor woman’s death in a city only an hour away was definitely news. “Cool!” Alex mumbled with his mouth stuffed full of bread.
“Alex Samson, there is nothing cool about some poor woman being killed!” my mom scolded him.
“I know. It’s just that nothing like that ever happens around here.”
“That’s a good thing. It’s horrible. She was murdered right in her own backyard. It reminds me of my Great-Aunt Kathleen. Remember I told you about her, Jim?” she said, pointing at him with her spoon. He nodded as he slurped his soup.
“Uhh hmpf cu!” That was me gasping and sucking soup into my windpipe. I started coughing and wheezing, trying to breathe. “Uh…did you just say your Great-Aunt Kathleen was murdered?” I wiped the tears that fell after I choked and took another sip of water.
“Yes, my poor grandmother was devastated; she and her sister were so close. She used to call her Katie.”
“What did she look like?” I asked, not believing it could be the same Katie.
“I don’t really know, there weren’t a lot of pictures back then. But my grandmother told me that you looked like her.” Her grandmother died when I was ten, and she was in her late eighties, so I wasn’t sure how reliable her words were, but the name was the same.
I was speechless.
“Kathleen and her fiancé were outside in their backyard when a teenager they went to school with went at them with a butcher knife. Awful, isn’t it?” She took another bite of soup and looked up at me. “My goodness, Sarah, are you okay? You’re as white as a sheet.”
I tried to compose myself. “Yes, Mom, I’m fine, it’s just that I can’t believe that happened in our family.”
Fated Dreams (Book One In The Affinity series) Page 25