by K. J. Dahlen
She was afraid of the light. In her heart she knew what it represented. She glanced behind her and saw the doctors fighting to keep her alive. She wanted to go back to her body but the light was pulling her to it.
She was about to go through the light when she heard his voice. She looked at the light and saw Gabriel and Emma standing there.
“It’s not your time, child. You must go back,” Gabriel told her.
“Why?”
Gabriel grinned. “As much as you want to cross over, it’s not your time. You must fight to live.”
“I don’t know if I can. I’m so tired of fighting.” Sable shook her head. “I’ve been fighting to live most of my life.”
“But darling girl, you can’t stop fighting,” Emma told her. “You’ve got Reardon blood in your veins and a Reardon doesn’t give up that easy.” She hesitated before she said, “Trust me on that part. I know from living with Gabriel for over fifty years. I watched as he struggled to build something he could be proud of over his lifetime.”
“But I’m not a Reardon, my name is Quinn,” Sable argued.
Then suddenly there was another being standing next to Emma. It was Sable’s mother, Grace. “Oh, my darling girl, it doesn’t matter what you call yourself. You are a strong young woman, too strong to allow death to take you without at least trying to fight back. I know the past few months have been very hard on you, and I’m sorry I never got the chance to tell you the truth. I’ve been watching you become the woman you are, and I’ve never been more proud of you than I am right now. Micah tried to destroy you and you fought back. Then his sons came after you and you fought back. Now you have to fight back one more time. This time you have to fight to live.”
“Let me ask you a question,” Gabriel asked, “If you were walking down the street and you saw some scumbag beating a woman, what would you do? Would you try and stop him or would you keep walking, maybe turn around and walk the other way?”
“I’d try and stop him, of course.”
Gabriel nodded. “Of course you would, that’s what makes you the type of woman you are. You might be surprised to know some people would simply walk around the woman and allow her to be beaten to her death.”
“So you think I should continue to fight?” Sable asked.
“There are things out there worth fighting for. I’ve seen the best and the worst in people and the best wins out most of the time. People want to succeed and most of them are willing to do what they need to do to get what they want. It’s only a handful that lie and cheat their way through life. Those people who want to do the right thing need people like you to help them choose to that path. They need someone like you to show them it isn’t going to be easy to do the right thing but in the long run their lives will be better.”
Sable thought about what Gabriel was saying. Everything he said made sense.
“Please don’t let the bastard win,” he interrupted her thoughts.
Sable looked at him. “And which bastard would that be?”
“He is known by many names but the most common name is Death,” Gabriel told her. “It doesn’t matter to him if you are good or evil. He comes after all of us, but it isn’t your time yet. You could give up and let him take you but then you would never know what you could have been, what you could have accomplished in your lifetime.”
“You are an old poop, you know that,” Sable said.
Gabriel grinned. “I do know that. It's part of my charm.”
“He can be a handful at times but in the end he’s almost always right,” Emma told her.
“How do I get back?” Sable asked them.
“Close your eyes and concentrate,” Grace told her daughter. She held out her hand and Sable grasped it. Her mother smiled and Sable felt a bond she knew would never be broken. Sable smiled and felt the love radiating from all three of them. They stepped back into the light and Sable thought she heard Emma say, "I love you child."
Sable closed her eyes and thought about what she wanted. She felt herself falling and there were butterflies in her tummy. It almost felt like she was riding an elevator. Suddenly an electric current ripped through her body to jumpstart her heart. She could feel her body arch and the pain she felt was intense. She gasped and wanted to scream all at the same time. Her lungs felt as though they were on fire as she tried to breath and every muscle in her body hurt. She didn’t know if she would survive the crushing pain.
The intensity eased and finally dulled. Sable felt she would live. Taking a deep breath, she tried to open her eyes. She was in a darkened room and she could hear the beeping monitors. She still had the oxygen mask on and she tried to reach up to pull it off. Her arms felt so heavy and she couldn’t move them. She felt so weak she gave into the feeling and closed her eyes to rest.
A little while later she heard her name being called. She was so tired yet the persistent voice kept calling to her. She groaned and tried to open her eyes. The room was still dim and the beeping sound was still there but there was a quietness that was calming. She was amazed to note while she still hurt, the pain was lessening.
She turned her head to the window area and saw the darkness outside. From her window she could see the full moon shining on the other side of the glass. She tried lifting her hand again and while it still felt heavy, she had more strength. The oxygen mask was gone and it was replaced by a canola, a thin plastic hose that fed oxygen into her nasal cavity.
She glanced at the monitors she was hooked up to and noticed the steady beeping. She couldn’t read the numbers but they wouldn’t have meant anything to her anyway. She moved her eyes to the figure sitting beside the bed. Even though his head was bowed, she knew it was Nick. He held her hand in his and his touch comforted her.
She moved her eyes around the room and caught sight of Quentin sitting in the corner. His eyes were closed, and she knew he was sleeping. Bringing her gaze back to Nick, she saw his eyes were open and staring at her.
Sable tightened her finger on his and he raised her hand to his mouth and gently kissed her finger tips. “Are you ok?” he whispered.
Sable tried to smile and nod. “I’m guess I’m going to live,” she whispered.
“Good, for a little while it was touch and go whether you would or not,” Nick told her.
“I know, for a moment or two it was debatable,” she told him. When she saw his look of confusion, she said, “I’ll tell you about it one day, but not right now. Right now I need some sleep.”
“Then go back to sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up,” Nick told her.
Sable closed her eyes and fell asleep with Nick still holding her hand.
Chapter Twelve
Two weeks later Sable visited Brandi’s grave for the first time since she left the hospital. She was still in La Crosse when her friend was buried in Chicago. Sable knelt in the grass and cleaned a couple leaves off the headstone. Her arm was still in a sling from the knife wound Noah had given her. Her bruises were faded and her stitches were gone, but she still hurt everywhere.
Sable looked at the name on the headstone. Tears fell down her checks as she sat there remembering the good times they’d had. Brandi had been more like a sister to Sable than a friend, and she would have given her life to change places with her.
“Oh, Brandi, you didn’t deserve this," she muttered under her breath. “But we got him. You’ll be happy to know we took Noah off the streets.”
“You’re right, she would be happy to know that,” a voice from behind her said.
Sable turned her head and saw Brandi’s mother standing there with a bunch of flowers in her hand. Sable struggled to her feet and stood to one side while Penny Nichols placed the flowers in the vase on one side of the headstone. Penny laid her hand on her daughter’s name for a moment and turned to face Sable.
“How are you doing? I understand you almost lost your life as well,” Penny said.
Sable tipped her head. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here for her funeral.”
&n
bsp; “I’m sure Brandi would have understood the reason why.”
“I’m not sure I do.”
Penny glanced at Sable while she tried to figure something out. When she realized what was wrong, she asked, “Are you blaming yourself for what happened to my daughter?”
Sable couldn’t look at the other woman. Penny reached out and brought her face around to look at Sable.
“My darling girl, please don’t do that. Brandi loved you like a sister and she would be very upset to know you were in such a state. She wouldn’t blame you for what happened. Some crazy murderer took her life.”
“The man that killed her was my cousin."
“I’m aware of that. Brandi’s boss Nick told us what happened. As much as it hurts to lose her, she would have wanted to go this way. I know that’s a strange thing to say, but Brandi loved the work she did as an FBI agent. She wanted to fight the good fight as she often put it, and she took pride in the fact she had friends like you besides her doing the same kind of work.” Penny hesitated to wipe a tear away from her eyes.
“Mrs. Nichol, with your permission I’d like to start a scholarship in Brandi’s name. Something that will honor her and the work she did in the FBI.”
Penny Nichol wiped more tears from her eyes. “That would be a lovely idea. Thank you.”
They both heard a car door open and turned to see Nick Ramer getting out of his car. They watched as he joined them. “Mrs. Nichol, it's nice to see you again.”
“Nick, I assume you didn’t come all the way out here for me so it must be this young lady you want.”
“Yes ma’am. She’s still recovering from a very bad wound, and she really shouldn’t be out and about just yet.” Nick turned to glare at Sable.
“I’m sorry you were worried but I had to come and pay my respects.”
“I’m sure it wouldn’t have made any difference to Brandi if you had waited until you were a little stronger,” Nick said
“Ok, I’ll go back to my apartment. Suddenly I'm very tired anyway.” She took Nick’s arm and began walking toward his car. Sable turned her head and called out to Penny. “I’ll call you in a day or so about the scholarship.”
When they got back to the car, Nick turned to Sable. “We found something in the woods behind Gabriel’s house. It was a skeleton of a young girl. We were waiting until you got back to town before doing anything. I guess its something you have to think about.”
Sable turned her head and gazed out the window. “I’d like to speak to Gabriel’s attorney. I think Serenity should be with the rest of the family. She didn’t deserve what happened to her and she’s been alone all this time.”
“I don’t think anyone would mind that,” Nick said. “What about you?”
Sable looked down at her hands and shrugged. “I don’t know what I want right now. Do you remember when I woke up in that hospital and you told me you thought I wasn’t going to make it?”
Nick waited for her to finish.
“It was the damnest thing. I could see myself floating outside my body, and I saw the light but there were some people that wouldn’t let me go into the light.”
“Who would do that?”
“My mother for one. Then Emma and Gabriel were there waiting for me and they told me it wasn’t my time to go into the light. Gabriel told me there was something more for me to do here. I hope to God there aren’t any more Reardons to worry about.” She hesitated briefly. “I’ve lost more than most in a short amount of time, both family members and a dear friend. I feel so alone in this world right now. So much has happened I don’t understand and I think I need to understand it. For so many years I didn’t know anything about myself and now everything I thought I had is gone.” Sable felt the tears rolling down her face. “I found my family and now they are all gone. I’m going to need some time to understand who and where I come from.”
“I think I understand.”
“Gabriel told me there are things in life to fight for. He said most people just need to know there is someone willing to stand up for them. I want to be that person. I’ve always believed in the laws. I became a cop and an FBI agent because I believed in something but now I want more. I watched while Micah tore his family apart. I watched as the hate inside the man ripped everything I knew into shreds. I didn’t understand the way he thought but I’m going to. If this case has taught me anything, it’s the fact the five of us work very well together. Now one of us is gone and that just doesn’t feel right.”
“I know. It feels strange to me too.”
“As horrible as the past few months have been, I watched as our team grew stronger together. We learned to anticipate not only each other but what the killer’s next move would be. Sure we made some mistakes but we were bound to make some. In the end we got the bad guys, all of them.”
“I think I know where you’re going with this. You want to branch out and become specialized.”
“Something like that,” Sable agreed. “We’ve become more than a good team and I want to expand. We have an opportunity very few people ever get. I’d like to see where and how far we can take it.”
Nick was silent. “I can check with the others and see how they feel about your idea. The question you have to ask yourself is how much more tragedy can you handle? If we do this, you’ll be facing the kind of problems you faced with Micah and the others every day. You could have serial killers coming after you every other week.” Nick waited while she took in the information he had given her. Then he told her. “Serial killers do exist. They walk among us every day and they are hunting for their next target as we sit here. They are very hard to find. The very nature of their being is not being found out by anyone, especially by the police. If we make it our purpose in life to hunt them down and stop them, we could become their next targets.”
“I know all of that and you know what? That doesn’t scare me. Would you like to know why it doesn’t scare me? Because they have something to hide and I don’t. They have to hide part of their life and when you have something to hide, you are going to make mistakes. I want to be there when they do.” Sable paused. “Gabriel loved the law and did his job as an attorney and a judge. He wanted to pass that love along to someone in his family. Micah tore his dream apart. I want to take Gabriel’s dream to a new level. The four of us work well together and together I think we could become a hell of a team.”
“I’ll see what the others think about your proposal, but only if you agree to go home and rest. You need to get well again,” Nick said.
Sable was feeling weak. She was getting that let down feeling almost as if she was coming off an adrenalin high. She knew she had a new purpose in life and she was ready to face it. She knew the road ahead of her would be dangerous at times but the end results would be worth every moment. She would take the idea to protect and serve the public to a whole new level.
“I’ll go home and rest, but first I want you to take me to where you found Serenity,” Sable said. “I just want to see where Micah buried her. I didn’t remember her before and I still don’t remember her but she was once a big part of my life.”
“Sure, I can take you there. The house is badly damaged from the explosion but it could be fixed if you had the energy and the time. Gabriel left everything he owned to you, including the house,” Nick reminded her.
“Would you like to know what I’ve been thinking about?” Sable asked. “I’ve been thinking we could rebuild the house and use it as our new offices. If we are going to branch out in a new direction, maybe we should avail ourselves of a new place of business too.”
“That’s something to think about anyway. There would be so much to get set up first. We have to get permission from the Bureau to set up the new group. But before we do that, we have to have the others come in with us,” Sable said. “I don’t think I could do this without Max and Quentin.”
“I don’t think that would be a problem. Quentin and Max are very anxious to see you. I don’t think it will take too
much talking to get them to join us,” Nick told her.
“Us?” she questioned. “You are on board already?”
Nick looked at her before he said, “I think your idea is a good one. One that needs to be taken one step further. As far as I know, the Bureau doesn’t have a task force like the one you’ve purposed and I think it needs this one.” He glanced out the window. “You were right about something else too. We do work well together. Each of us has a unique specialty and they go very well together. I would like to see this idea work, and I’m willing to see it through to the end.”
“Good, I was hoping you would. I can’t imagine doing this without you,” Sable said. “Let’s go to Gabriel’s house so I can see my sister’s grave then you can take me home. Tomorrow we can talk about what we’re going to do. Maybe while we’re rebuilding the main house into an office building, I can build a small cottage on the grounds. Shawn blew up my other house and I need another place to live.”
“I think Gabriel would have liked that idea,” Nick told her as he reached down to start the car.
Other books by K.J. Dahlen
available at Rogue Phoenix Press
http://www.roguephoenixpress.com
Other books by K.J. Dahlen
available at
Rogue Phoenix Press
The Guardian's Key
The Michael Kane Series
Book I
When Michael Kane finds out the family secret, he isn’t sure about his future. When God cast the fallen angels out of the heavens, He entrusted seven very special Keys to mortals. The Keys open the seven Gates of Hell. Michael’s family holds the first Key, and the powers have been passed from father to son since time began.
Fifty years ago Michael’s grandfather and uncle were kidnapped by demons hoping to get the Key. Now the time is right to transfer the knowledge and the magic to the next generation. Isaac, Michael’s grandfather, doesn’t want to give all he knows to his son, Daniel. He gives the power to Michael instead.