by Paige Watson
“This has always been your favorite painting,” she said, smiling at me.
“I know. How come it’s never been sold?”
“People have made several offers on it, but your father never agrees to sell it.” She put her arm around me. “I don’t think he ever will.”
“Why not?”
“Because it reminds him of you,” she answered. “When you were really little, he used to take you out to Penny’s farm to pick blackberries and there was a field right beside the blackberry patch. After the
two of you had filled your baskets with berries, he would take you to the field, and you would both lay down in the wildflowers to nap.”
“I had forgotten about that.”
“Well you were really young; you were probably four or five years old.”
“Do you think dad would let me have it?”
“I have a good feeling he might,” she smiled.
I spent the rest of the afternoon playing solitaire on the computer upstairs while my parents went through some new inventory in the showroom. My father came up to get me when five o’ clock rolled around and it was time to close the store.
“You ready to go?” He leaned against the doorway with his arms folded across his chest. His black hair and beard were littered with streaks of gray. The streaks suited him, and I couldn’t quite remember what his hair looked like without them, if he had ever been without them.
“Yup,” I answered turning off the computer. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“You know the painting of the girl in the field?”
“Yeah, what about it?”
“Well I was wondering if I could have it. It’s my favorite piece in the whole store and I’d just be heartbroken if someone else got it.”
“Well, I was actually saving it to surprise you on your birthday.”
“Really?”
“Really. Eighteen is a milestone birthday after all, but I guess it would be ok if you got it a little early.”
“Oh, thanks daddy!” I ran over to him and threw my arms around his neck. I couldn’t believe they were going to give me my painting, and I knew just where to put it in my room. My parents closed up the auction house a few minutes later, and we started the short drive home.
Excitement fizzled in my stomach as I got ready for my date. I was so anxious to see him. It seemed to be impossible for me to stand still. I danced about my bathroom, humming the lyrics to any song that popped in my head, as I curled my hair and drew my eyeliner way out past the corners of my eyes. I laid my dress on the bed and retrieved a pair of high heels from the closet. I changed into my dress, and ran my fingers through my hair. I looked at the clock; it was only 7:55. Conrad would be here any minute. I had just enough time to brush my teeth and straighten out my necklace before I heard the doorbell ring.
“Evey, Conrad’s here to pick you up,” my mother called out from the living room.
I grabbed a black sweater and my bag before heading to the living room. Conrad was perched on the love seat across from my parents, and he was deep in conversation with my father when I walked in. Sensing my presence, he turned his head to look at me and a smile spread over his face.
“Are you ready to go?”
“Absolutely,” he replied. “What time should I have her home, Mr. Rhodes?”
“Try and have her back by one.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll have her back on time,” Conrad said, extending his hand for my father to shake. “It was nice meeting both of you.”
“Same to you,” my father answered. “Be sure to take good care of her.” This was my first date and I could already tell my father was starting to have separation anxiety. I had expected this to happen though, especially since I was a daddy’s girl.
“She’s in good hands Mr. Rhodes,” Conrad replied with confidence.
“You kids have fun tonight,” my mother added.
I walked over to my parents. “Love you,” I said, hugging my mother and kissing her cheek.
“I love you too sweetie.”
Then I walked over to my dad. “Bye daddy. I love you.”
“Be safe Evey,” he said, pulling me into a hug.
“We will daddy.” I stood on the tips of my toes to kiss his cheek before following Conrad to the front door. I turned in the doorway and waved at my parents. They were both smiling as they watched Conrad and me leave together.
“You look so beautiful,” Conrad said, opening the car door for me. He took my hand and helped me into my seat.
“Thanks,” I blushed. “You look good too.” He was sporting dark jeans and a black button up shirt, which seemed to make his eyes look even bluer, if it was possible.
“I thought we could go to the party for a little while and then head over to the diner and grab a bite to eat. Does that sound good to you?”
“Yeah, that’s fine with me,” I said. “So what do you like to do for fun?” He pulled out of the driveway and headed to Claire’s house on the other side of town.
“I don’t know. I like lots of different stuff.”
“Such as?” I pried.
“Well I like to fence, play sports, and listen to music.”
“You fence?” I asked, surprised at such an answer.
“Yeah, I’ve taken fencing classes for years. What can I say? I’m somewhat old fashioned.”
“So I’ve noticed. Do you do any fencing competitions or stuff like that? I mean, do they have competitions?”
“Yeah they have competitions,” he laughed. “But I’ve never entered any. I’m not big on doing tournaments.”
“How come?”
“Because it’s just play fighting. It doesn’t really appeal to me.”
“Oh, ok,” I nodded. “Well what kinds of music do you like?”
“Why so many questions?”
“I’m just trying to get to know you. Is that a crime?”
“Not at all. Well I really like Bob Dylan, Muddy Waters, The Black Keys and lately I’ve really gotten into Mumford and Sons.”
“Oh me too! I love Mumford and Sons and their lyrics are amazing.” I turned in my seat so I could face him. “So, is there an ex-girlfriend that you left back in Los Angeles?”
A sly grin crossed his face. “Nope, no ex-girlfriend back there. Why would you think there is?”
“Well you’ve only been at Tulson for three days, and all the girls are clamoring over each other just to get to know you. I’m trying to make sure you haven’t left a trail of broken hearts behind you.”
“You don’t have to worry about that, I would never hurt you,” he said, reaching out to take my hand in his.
“You’re kind of strange,” I replied, interlacing our fingers. “But I like it.”
I knew there were a million different questions I should be asking, but something in my gut told me to trust him for now. Everything I had been feeling and seeing would soon come into focus, causing the entire world to make sense. Either way, I was on a date with a hot, nice guy, and Caroline would kill me if I found some way to screw it up. Out the corner of my eyes I could tell his gaze was fixed on me.
“You stare a lot, you know that?”
“You’re the first person that’s ever seemed to mind,” he grinned.
“In that case, I guess I’m just as strange as you are.”
“No, you aren’t strange, you’re special.”
I unlocked our fingers, allowing mine to trail up and down the length of his arm. His body stiffened beneath my touch.
“Am I making you uncomfortable?”
“Not at all. It’s just been a really long time since I’ve been with you like this.”
“You know, I really wish that you would explain that to me,” I said.
“I will…….eventually.” I didn’t have to look at him to know he was wearing the same devilish grin from when we first met.
Claire lived in a large Tudor style house in one of the nicer subdivisions in town. When we pulled
into her neighborhood, we saw her driveway was already filled with cars. Conrad decided it would be best to park on the street, that way his car wouldn’t get blocked in. Every window was illuminated with light and we could hear the music getting louder as we approached the house. Conrad took my hand and led me inside the house. Immediately we were thrust into a swirling mass of people. They were dancing, singing, and all having a good time. Slowly, we made our way through the crowd and arrived at the kitchen to pour ourselves some drinks.
“I’m glad you guys could make it,” Claire said, flipping her long blonde hair over her shoulder. She adjusted the hem of her mini-skirt, obviously hoping that Conrad would take notice.
“Well, thanks for inviting us,” Conrad replied with perfect manners.
“Of course I would invite you.” She addressed both of us, but as far as she was concerned I could be invisible because she was fixated on Conrad.
“I really like your outfit Claire,” I said.
She snapped out of her daze and acknowledged my presence for the first time. “Oh, aren’t you so sweet! I really like your necklace, it’s gorgeous.”
“Thanks,” I grinned. I thought seriously about telling her Conrad had given it to me for a few seconds, but decided against it. I didn’t want to spoil her evening even though she seemed set on spoiling mine.
“Evey, you wouldn’t mind if I borrowed him for a dance or two would you?” Before waiting for an answer she grabbed his hand and pulled him out to the dance floor.
He stopped to look back at me. “It’s ok,” I said. “Go ahead.” Reluctantly, he followed Claire’s lead. While they danced I sat down in a chair, in the corner of the room. The guests at the party all seemed to be people I either didn’t know, or would never talk to, so I decided to keep to myself. I watched Claire put her arms around Conrad’s neck as they danced. Every time she attempted to move in closer to him, he backed away. One dance quickly turned into four, and I was starting to grow tired of being alone on my date, not to mention, I was starting to get jealous too. I tried to get his attention by waving at him, but every time I waved in his direction, Claire would draw his attention back to her. I went to the kitchen and refilled my drink. I was about to sit back in my chair when a hand grabbed my cup. I looked up and met his eyes.
“I’m sorry,” he said, pulling my body close to his.
“About what?”
“About dancing with Claire. I should have been over here with you.” He wrapped his arms around the small of my back. “Will you let me make it up to you?”
“It’s ok, you don’t have to apologize, and she really seems to like you. Besides, it’s obvious that she invited you here tonight because she wanted you to be her date, and Claire is a girl who’s used to getting what she wants.”
“I don’t care what she wants.”
“What do you care about then?”
“What you want.” He put my arms around his neck and erased the space that lingered between us.
“And what do you think it is I want?”
He leaned his face in toward mine, letting his lips barely touch my cheek. “To get out of here,” he smiled, pulling back from my face. I smiled back at him and followed through the crowd, to the door. We slipped outside without so much as a goodbye to Claire, and ran to his car. After we were inside the safety of the car, he drove out of her neighborhood. “I’m sorry, I should have picked a better first date for us. It’s just been so long since I’ve done this.”
“It’s ok, really. You keep saying that but you’re like eighteen years old. How long could it have been?”
“Well the last time I went on a date, was 1926.”
“So you haven’t been on a date in 86 years,” I said sarcastically. “What do you like never die or something?”
“Oh no, I can definitely die. I have many times in fact.”
His confession threw me for a loop. “No, that doesn’t make any sense. How could you have died multiple times?”
“You tell me. You’ve seen me die once in your dreams.”
“That was real?!” I shook my head. “No, it can’t be true. There is no way you could have died before and still be alive right now. It just doesn’t happen.”
“It was real, and I assure you I am completely sane, despite what you might be thinking right now. When did you start having the dreams?”
“I guess I was about six.”
“They always felt real did they not? I mean, to a certain extent most dreams seem real, but these were frighteningly real weren’t they? What child has dreams like that Evey?” He waited for me to answer, but no sound came from my lips. “You know what I’m saying makes sense, deep down you know it’s true.”
He reached out to grab my hand and I jumped at the feel of his rough skin next to mine.
“No, they’re just dreams and there’s no way you could be here if you had ever died.” A million thoughts were rolling around in my mind. The dreams had felt real, every dream I ever had felt like I was actually there, witnessing the atrocities I saw with my own eyes. I looked back at him. How could someone I never met feel so familiar to me? I knew without a doubt he wasn’t lying to me, I could tell from the expression in his eyes. He was telling the truth. And then there was the necklace. Somehow I knew it was just another piece of the puzzle. It was one more thing, that when adjusted correctly, would help tell the entire story. As the car made its way down the highway, a growing silence elapsed between us. There were so many things that I wanted to ask him, but I couldn’t force my mouth to start talking.
“Stop thinking so much. Do you feel like I’m lying to you, or telling you anything that isn’t true?”
I let out a deep breath. “No, I think you’re telling me the truth, but answer me one thing. How can it be you’ve died and are still here, talking to me?”
“I’m alive right now because of you.”
“What do you mean because of me?”
“I was brought back to protect you,” he said in a matter of fact tone.
“Protect me? Protect me from what?”
He pulled into the diner parking lot and turned off the ignition. “Not from what, from whom.”
“Ok, so you were brought back from the dead to protect me. Why you?”
“Because there was a time when I was the person you trusted the most, and because of everything we’ve shared together.”
“I hope you realize how bizarre all this is for me.”
“I do, but I also know you can handle it.”
“There is so much more you’re not telling me, isn’t there?”
“Yeah.” He grabbed his jacket out of the back seat of the car. “Let’s get something to eat before I tell you anymore.”
“Alright,” I said, getting out of the car. We walked into the diner and sat down in two empty seats at the bar.
“Hey,” Kit called to us in a cheerful voice.
“Are we too late to eat?” I asked. It was already thirty minutes after ten, and the diner would be closing at 11:00 tonight. I looked around and saw an older woman sitting at the opposite end of the counter, and a couple perched in a booth near the back corner by the windows.
“Of course not,” she replied, handing each of us a coke. “What do y’all want to eat?”
“I’ll take a burger and fries,” I answered.
“Same for me,” Conrad added.
She jotted down our order and hooked it to the clip that hung on the kitchen side of the window. Then she scurried away to ring up the couple that’d been sitting in the back of the diner. Mickey looked up from the kitchen and grinned at me.
“I’ll have it right out,” he said with a wave.
“Thanks Mickey!”
I turned on my seat to face Conrad, and our knees knocked together as he swiveled to face me.
“Sorry.” He bent forward to rest his hands on each of my knees. “So, what would you like to do after we eat?” he asked.
“I don’t know. What did you have in mind?” I felt a
cold chill come over my body and I shivered.
“You’re cold. Here take my jacket,” he said, holding it out for me.
“Thanks.” He slid the jacket over my shoulders and I stuffed my arms through the holes. The sleeves stuck out past my hands; I pushed them up to my elbows. “Would you be up for watching a movie after we eat?”
“Sure. Where do you want to go?”
“Is your house ok? I haven’t seen where you live yet.”
“Yeah, that’s fine,” he answered with a grin.
A minute later, Kit was setting our food in front of us. I dived right into the piping hot fries, not realizing how hungry I was.
“Mmm. There’s nothing like a good burger and fries,” Conrad said, devouring his food.
“Did they even have them when you were born?” I asked in a sarcastic tone.
“No, they didn’t. Are you trying to imply that I’m old or something?”
“Maybe,” I teased.
“Well, I hate to break it to you, but you’re a hell of a lot older than I am,” he laughed.
“What?!” Coke sprayed out my mouth in surprise. “I am older than you?” I enunciated every word just to make sure I was asking the right question.
“Oh yeah, by thousands of years actually. But don’t worry, I like older women,” he said with a wink. I wiped my face off with a napkin and stared at him, unable to speak. “I’m going to the restroom. I’ll be right back,” he said, getting up from his barstool. I watched as Kit went back in the kitchen to help Mickey start cleaning off the grill. A glance to my right told me the old woman from the end of the counter was walking toward me. Her long gray hair fell in tangles to her shoulder, and her brown coat looked like the moths had gotten the better of it. Bits of dirt clung to the skin visible from under her baggy clothes. She sat down on the stool next to mine and smiled at me.
“Excuse me dear, is your name Eve?” Her raspy voice shook, as she spoke my name.
“Yeah,” I smiled. “But how did you know—” the words fell out of my mouth before I could form them. Her bony hand was clenched around my wrist, and despite her frail appearance, her grip was firm. As she tightened her grasp, my skin started to feel like it was on fire. I looked down and saw steam rising up from where she grabbed me. “Let go! You’re hurting me,” I screamed. I tried to tear my arm away from her, but she squeezed her hand even tighter. “Conrad!” I could smell my flesh burning as she dug her fingernails into my arm. Hot tears flooded my eyes as I tried to break free from her. She raised her other hand and was about to strike my face, when she was knocked away from me. I fell to my knees and saw Conrad standing over the woman holding a chair. I looked down where the woman had grabbed me; blisters were already starting to form on my raw skin.