Dreamer (The Seeker Series Book 2)

by Amy Reece

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  “It is the stars,

  The stars above us, govern our conditions.”

  –Shakespeare –King Lear (4.3.34)

  Jack

  I felt my phone buzz as I was applying Bondo to the rear quarter panel of a Honda Civic. I hoped it was Ally and that she was feeling better after her bout with food poisoning; I hated that she had felt so bad. It was cute she hadn’t wanted me to see her throw up, but it didn’t bother me. I loved that girl with every fiber of my being, whether she was puking or not. She was, however, more than a bit stubborn and had insisted on going to school today. I had worried about her all day, the worry getting worse as the day went on. In my distraction, I didn’t even look at the caller ID. “Hey, babe. I was just thinking about you. Are you feeling any better?”

  “Jack, it’s Tara. Is Ally with you?”

  “No. I thought you were picking her up today.” My gut cramped in apprehension, adding to the worry I had been feeling all day.

  “Yeah, I was supposed to, but she’s not here. I’m at the school and nobody on the cheerleading squad knows where she is. Jack, she’s not answering her phone. It goes straight to voicemail.” Tara sounded winded and worried.

  “What? How can they not know where she is?” I demanded, throwing my towel on a nearby table.

  “A couple of the girls said they saw her leave about an hour ago, but she didn’t tell anyone where she was going. Apparently she was sitting out the practice on the bleachers and left without saying anything.” She spoke fast, almost yelling.

  “Well, where the fuck is she, Tara?” I yelled, running my hands through my hair in frustration. Now I was scared. The last time Ally disappeared without telling anyone, she ended up in the hospital with a concussion and stitches in her head. And today she was still weak from being so sick. God, where could she be?

  “I don’t know, Jack. I’m really worried.”

  “Shit!” I began pacing. “I’ll meet you at the school. Wait for me. Call Adele and Jen while you’re waiting and see if they know anything. If they don’t, have Jen call Brian, okay?”

  “Yeah, okay,” her voice sounded small, like maybe she was crying.

  “Tara, we’ll find her.” I hung up, running toward the office. “Manny! I gotta go, man!” I filled my uncle in about what was going on and left, breaking every speed limit on the way back to the school. God, please don’t let anything have happened to Ally, I begged. I broke another law by dialing Mat’s number while I drove. I had already tried to call Ally, but only got her voicemail.

  “Mat, I need you, man,” I spoke quickly in Spanish, my brain switching without conscious thought. “Ally’s missing. Meet me at the school, okay? I think it might be a good idea to have a paramedic. I have a bad feeling about this.”

  He didn’t ask questions or argue; he said he’d meet me in a few minutes.

  Tara was waiting in front of the school, pacing as she talked on her phone. She hung up as I got out of my car and threw herself at me. “Nobody’s seen her, Jack! Where the hell could she be? I’m so scared,” I pulled her into my arms as she cried.

  “We’re going to find her. Tell me what I’ve missed.” I set her away from me so I could look in her eyes.

  “Grams and her mom don’t know where she is and she didn’t call them. Her mom is going to call Brian. She told me to wait here until she calls me back.” Her phone rang again. “Hello? Oh, Mr. Keller. Yeah, he is. Here.” She handed her phone to me.

  “Brian?” I asked. “Have you heard anything from her?”

  “Jack, I got a message from her about an hour ago saying Mark Graves, the son of one of Ashley’s neighbors, called and wanted to talk to us this afternoon. I was in a meeting and no one could get hold of me, so she walked over to his house and wanted me to meet her there. I’m on my way there now. I’m sure she’s fine and simply not answering her phone while she talks to him, but you can meet me there if it makes you feel better. I know you’re worried, but try to calm down. You can yell at her in a few minutes.” He gave me the address.

  Mat pulled into the parking lot and Tara ran to meet him. I jogged over to them and began catching him up.

  “Guys! English, please,” Tara interrupted.

  “Sorry,” I apologized. “I was filling him in.” I switched to English and finished telling him what was going on. In spite of Brian’s assurances, I still had that sinking feeling in my stomach I couldn’t dismiss. “Tara, call Rémy. We may need him.” She looked hard at me for a moment before nodding. Mat didn’t know anything about Ally and Rémy’s psychic abilities, but now was definitely not the time to worry about secrets. I would gladly announce it to the world if it meant finding Ally safe and sound. “Tell him where to meet us.”

  We rode together in my car, pulling in behind Brian’s Subaru. He came out of the house followed by an elderly woman. “She never showed up,” he said quietly. “I have units on the way.”

  Oh, my God. It was happening again. Ally was apparently a danger magnet who managed to get herself in the worst situations. How could such a small person get in so much trouble? If anything happened to her, I didn’t know what I’d do; she was my life. I started pacing, cursing a blue-streak under my breath.

  Adele and Jen pulled in the Graves’ driveway. Brian pulled a sobbing Jen into his arms while Adele listened to him rehash the details. Rémy arrived as he was finishing.

  “What’s he doing here?” Mat asked. He had never liked Rémy, a hatred stemming from when Tara had dated him.

  “Cool it, Mat. He might be able to help find her. They have a connection.” I didn’t have time to go into it with him right now. I pulled Rémy aside. “Can you find her? I know you guys have been working on reading each other without touching.”

  “Jack, I will try, but we’ve never had much luck at any kind of distance,” he said, frowning.

  “Try. We have to find her. I have a really bad feeling, Rémy.”

  “As do I.” He walked away a short distance and sat down, closing his eyes. I watched for a few minutes until he opened his eyes and shook his head.

  “Goddammit! Where could she be?” I yelled at Tara and Mat. They both shook their heads. Tara was crying now. I couldn’t lose Ally. I just got her back. I felt so helpless and desperate. What could I do? I was willing to do anything to get her back. I turned around when I heard the old lady arguing with a guy who had come out of the house.

  “Tell them, Mark! I don’t care if you’re embarrassed. That little girl’s life may be in danger.”

  The man nodded and began to talk. “I’m sorry. I should have called a long time ago. I was ashamed and I didn’t think it was important.”

  “Mr. Graves, you need to tell us what you know. Now,” Brian said firmly. “Did you see anything the day Ashley Hayes disappeared?”

  “I was home that afternoon,” he admitted quietly. “I skipped baseball practice and came home. I was in my tree house.” He pointed to a dilapidated tree house in the side yard that overlooked the street. “I had found a stack of girlie magazines the day before, next to a dumpster, and I hid them in my tree house. I snuck home that day to look at them.”

  “Did you see Ashley that afternoon?” Brian asked.

  Mark nodded. “I saw her walking home. She was really pretty and I had a crush on her. I liked watching her,” he admitted.

  “Did she go home?”

  “No. Mr. Moore was home and he called out to her. That’s what caught my attention. She went into his house,” he pointed across the street to the house on the corner. “I didn’t think anything of it because she babysat for them.”

  “Did you see anything else?”

  “No. After she went into his house, I went back to my magazines. I ended up falling asleep until my parents got home.” He looked ashamed.

  “Did you hear anything else? Any cars or anything?” He shook his head. “What about when you woke up? Did you notice if Mr. Moore’s car was still in the driveway?” Brian push
ed.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t pay attention.”

  “Jack!” It was Rémy, jogging over to us. “I finally got through to her.”

  “What? On her phone?” Jen asked, confused, since there was no phone in his hand.

  “Rémy’s a Seer.” I had no time or patience for secrets right now. “He and Ally have a strong connection.” Adele and Jen nodded, shocked. Mat and Brian looked confused.

  “Jennifer, what the hell is he talking about?” Brian asked.

  “Not now!” she insisted. “Please, believe what he says. I’ll tell you everything later.” Brian nodded reluctantly and we all looked to Rémy.

  “She’s nearby, but she’s very vague and confused. I think she may be unconscious. She’s in pain,” he ended softly.

  I started across the street to where Mark Graves had pointed, determined to get to her. That must be where she was, for whatever reason. Mat grabbed me, holding me back.

  “Jack, no,” he shook his head. “Let the police handle this.” I shook his hands away, but realized he was right, no matter how badly I wanted to go to her.

  “Okay,” Brian said briskly. “I think we need to assume Mr. Moore was the last person to see Ashley alive and may very well be the killer. I think it’s also very likely Ally, for some reason, may be at his house. I’m calling S.W.A.T.” He started dialing his phone.

  The S.W.A.T. team arrived within fifteen minutes and the waiting began. I felt like I was going to come out of my skin, not knowing what was happening to Ally. We had only Rémy’s assurances she was alive; none of the attempts to contact David Moore by telephone had been successful. The S.W.A.T. team deployed around the house, preparing to breach if they could not contact Moore. I was frantic, pacing back and forth, worrying about what would happen to Ally in the chaos of police bursting through the front door of a killer’s house. I felt like I was going to go crazy if something didn’t happen soon.

  “Rémy, what’s going on, man? Please, you’ve got to tell me something!” I grabbed him and began to shake him.

  “She’s alive, Jack! Calm down! You’re not helping her by losing control like this!” He grabbed my shoulders, trying to push me away.

  “Sorry.” I removed my hands and ran them through my hair, wanting to pull it out. “What can you hear from her?”

  He shook his head. “Nothing. She’s not communicating with me. I’m sorry, Jack. I don’t know why. I can feel her, but nothing else. I’ll keep trying, I swear.”

  “Aagh!” I yelled, along with a string of curses.

  “Jack.” It was Tara, coming over to comfort me. “She’s going to be okay. You have to believe that. She’s strong and she loves you so much. She will find a way to survive. I know she will.” She ended on a sob and I pulled her in for a hug. I met Mat’s eyes over her shoulder and he came to take her from me.

  “We’ve got movement!” One of the S.W.A.T. members yelled. We all crowded around Brian, who had binoculars trained on the front of the house. “Someone’s coming out! Hold your fire!”

  The front door opened and there was Ally, running down the path, her hands held together in front of her body, a piece of duct tape across her mouth. Brian grabbed me before I could run for her, holding me back. Behind her, in the doorway, David Moore appeared with a shotgun in his hands.

  We both watched, horrified, as Moore raised the gun and toward Ally. “Ally!” I screamed and used all my strength to break away from Brian. No force on earth could keep me from going to her.

  She watched me run toward her, saw I was looking behind her, and whipped her head around as the gun went off. Time slowed down as she turned her head back toward me. A blue pulse exploded from her and knocked Moore and me to the ground. I looked up in time to see Ally fall to the concrete path.

  ***

  Ally

  I regained consciousness slowly, as if emerging from a thick fog, only to find myself lying on the floor in a completely white room. Hmmm. That was odd, because I clearly remembered being in Mr. Moore’s spare bedroom right before the blackness enveloped me. So, where the heck was I and what the heck happened to me? And why did my head hurt so badly?

  “He hit you on the back of the head with a lamp.” A young, blonde woman walked toward me. I definitely recognized her.

  “Ashley?”

  “Yes.” She nodded. “Hi, Ally. It’s good to finally meet you. Sorry it’s under these circumstances.”

  “Yeah, me too. I’m not, uh, dead, am I?” I slowly stood up as I waited for her answer.

  “No.” She laughed. “That crazy old bastard didn’t hit you hard enough to kill you. You’re only knocked out. You’re actually going to wake up for real in a few minutes, so we need to make this fast.”

  “O-kay,” I drew out the syllables. “What do we need to make fast?”

  “Well, how you’re going to get out of here, for starters. David Moore is very unstable and you are in grave danger, Ally,” Ashley took both of my hands in her own. I could feel them as if she were a real, living person.

  “How can I feel you? Aren’t you a ghost?”

  She chuckled. “Ghost is actually a made-up thing. You can’t believe everything you read, Ally.”

  “Well, what are you?” I asked peevishly.

  “I don’t really know what to call it. I guess I’m a spirit of some sort. I found you when you started reading my book and I’ve been able to communicate with you through your dreams. I have waited a long time to see Moore caught. You’re the only one I’ve ever been able to communicate with since I died. I can see the others, my mom and Scott, but they can’t see me or sense me. You’re becoming very powerful, Ally. I don’t really understand it.”

  “Yeah, me neither. Hey, I knew it wasn’t Scott. What happened all those years ago, Ashley? Can you tell me?” I needed to know, needed to see the full picture of what had happened.

  “Sure,” she sighed. “But I’ll make it quick, because we need to get you out of here. So, that Tuesday, January 17, 1984, I kissed Scott goodbye after school and walked home, like I did every day he had practice. Right as I turned the corner at the Moores’ house I noticed Mr. Moore’s Jeep in the driveway, which was really unusual for that time of day. As I walked by their house, he called to me from the front porch and asked me to come in to set up a babysitting job. I thought it was a little bit weird, but I went in anyway. You know those little niggling feelings you sometimes get?” I nodded. “Well, don’t ever dismiss them. They are really important and might save your life someday. That one I had could have saved mine. He knocked me unconscious, just like he did to you.”

  “God, Ashley, I’m so sorry. Why did he do it?” I felt bad for making her go through it all. “Listen, you don’t have to tell me anymore,” I offered, even though I really wanted to know the rest.

  “No, it’s fine.” She motioned for me to sit next to her on a bench I hadn’t noticed before. I could have sworn there was nothing in this room a second before. “This next part is really hard to talk about, Ally. Would you mind reading it from my mind? I’ve watched you do it with that lady, Cassie, and your friend, Rémy.”

  “Uh, sure, no problem. Will it work? Because you’re, you know…”

  “Dead?” she said, stating the obvious. “I think it still works. Let’s give it a try.” She reached out and took my hand, sweeping me into her mind and memories.

  She was lying on a big bed, apparently in the Moores’ bedroom, her hands and mouth duct-taped. David Moore was beside her, stroking her face, arms, and body. “Oh, Ashley,” he crooned. “We belong together. Why can’t you see that? I was going to leave my wife for you, but last night she told me she heard from that bitch across the street you’re pregnant.” He stood and paced before returning to her. “Slut!” He slapped her hard across the face. Ashley started crying hysterically, choking behind the duct tape. “I thought you were so beautiful and pure! Then I found out you’ve been screwing that boy! You are mine!” He slapped her and hit her until she fell unconscious
again. When she woke again, she was bouncing around in the back of Moore’s Jeep. She felt it stop and then rough hands were pulling her out to stand. She could see herself, battered and bruised, in the reflection of David’s sunglasses. She looked around and saw he had brought her to a rocky hiking area that looked to be in the foothills of the mountains. There was no sign of another human being anywhere. Her hands and mouth were still taped, but her legs were free. He forced her to walk in front of him and she saw the trailhead sign for the Osha Trail as they passed. After walking for what felt like at least thirty minutes, he forced her off the trail and deep into the brush. They walked for at least fifteen more minutes before she felt a sharp pain in her head.

  She took her hand away. “That’s it. He hit me with a large rock. The first blow knocked me out, then he continued to bash my head in until I was dead. He buried me in a shallow grave, but it was so far away from the trail nobody found me until recently.”

  “Oh, Ashley. I’m so sorry.” I put my arms around her and hugged her, finding it strange that she felt solid, like a real, live person. “He was obsessed with you? That’s awful. I’m so sorry for what happened to you and your baby.”

  She nodded against my hair and said, “Thanks. He didn’t rape me. I know you’ve been worried about that, Ally. I think since I was pregnant, he felt like I had been ruined. I guess that’s why he went crazy and killed me. It’s what set him off. He stole so much from me, from my family, and from Scott. He never got to meet his little girl.”