by A. D. McLain
Nicole leaned against the railing, the wind blowing her hair and making her nightgown flap against her legs. The gibbous moon lent a magical glow to the night and it shone on her upturned face. She fingered her necklace, comforted by its warmth and thinking about everything which had happened lately.
Her thoughts kept returning to David. He’d become an important part of her life, and she cared about him deeply. She’d tried hard not to, but she had the nagging suspicion she could be falling for him. She couldn’t imagine her life without him in it.
She sighed and propped her elbows up on the railing, resting her head on her hands. She shouldn’t have let things go this far. She was only going to get hurt when things didn’t work out. Things couldn’t work out. Something would happen, and all her dreams would crumble. It had happened too many times in the past for her not to believe it would happen again. The only one she let herself depend on was herself, and to some extent, Meg.
Of course, Meg could always leave at any time. She often talked about wanting to travel, she was a free spirit who had been held back for too long. Someday, she’d break free and leave this town, and Nicole would truly be alone.
She pushed away from the railing and went inside. She walked in and out of each room three times before she accepted the fact that she needed to get out of the apartment for a while. Given all that had transpired in the past week, taking a walk alone at night was not exactly the wisest choice she’d ever made, but she didn’t care. She needed to get out. Her future was uncertain, a jumbled mess with no relief in sight. She wasn’t in control of her own life, and maybe she never had been.
She could hear David’s warning voice, along with Meg’s, but chose to ignore them. Staying in the apartment was making her crazy, she needed to get outside and clear her mind, try and figure out just exactly where her life was headed.
She walked without conscious knowledge of her surroundings. She stared ahead, unseeing, forcing her feet to take one step after the other.
A cricket chirruped and for the first time since leaving the apartment, she glanced around. She was stunned to find she was walking on grass, rather than cement, and there were trees surrounding her instead of buildings. Nearby, she heard the sound of running water. Somehow, she ended up in the woods near the river. The moon shone down over her surroundings, casting shadows but still providing enough light to see reasonably well. She noticed a tree root, raised slightly above the ground. She looked, really looked around and confirmed her suspicions. She knew this spot, and she knew that tree root. It was the same one which tripped her the last time she’d entered these woods, when she’d been running for her life. This was where she’d first seen the black wolf.
A strange sensation swept over her, as if energy was vibrating all around her and even through her. The air all around her seemed electrically charged. She noticed light from the corner of her eye and looked down at the pendant between her fingers. If she didn’t know better, she would have said it was glowing. She blinked, dismissing what she’d seen. After all, it was probably just a trick of the light. But the glow grew brighter, encompassing the necklace and entering her fingertips. Soon, her entire hand was glowing as well. The necklace dropped from her fingers, but she hardly noticed. Her eyes were focused on the light traveling up her arm and beyond, until her entire body seemed to be glowing. She remained motionless as the light grew so bright, it became hard to see anything else.
Abruptly, panic overwhelmed her. She began running blindly, groping for something familiar, something solid. She stumbled through the woods, running into several branches and bushes before she fell to the ground. She curled up in a ball, afraid to move anymore, and concentrating on the grass beneath her. It was the only proof she had that anything around her still existed
Her breathing slowed and she refocused her other senses. She could still hear. Animals were moving in the night. Water was running, very close to where she lay. She could feel the wind on her face, blowing through her hair.
The panic subsided, and she noticed the strange light was dimming. It gradually lessened until she could see the trees and bushes around her again. She pushed herself up from the ground shakily and leaned over the water, looking at her reflection. She appeared the same as she always had, but something did seem different. There was an almost ethereal glimmer in her eyes. She began walking quickly through the woods, hurrying back towards the apartment. As she walked, she noticed that all her senses had been amplified and her skin seemed more sensitive than normal. Everything looked more… real than it ever had before. It was both energizing and frightening at the same time.
She hurried into her apartment, grateful when the feeling finally dulled a little. It didn’t disappear completely, but it certainly wasn’t as strong as it had been in the woods.
She got ready for bed and let the wolf in through the balcony doors. By the time she fell asleep, she’d almost managed to convince herself she wasn’t crazy.
Nicole reminded herself for the third time to pay attention to the professor. It was a useless endeavor. Even though she’d finally managed to put the events of the previous evening out of her mind, there were still thoughts of David to distract her. She thought about him walking with her, watching movies, yelling on the roller coaster and laughing at how small everyone else looked from up on the Ferris wheel. She remembered how it felt to talk to someone about the things on her mind and know he really cared. His forehead pressed against hers, his lips on her fingers, his arm around her, all those memories played repeatedly in her mind. His face and touch were burned into her memory, and she could see him as clearly as if he was standing before her now. She heard his low, gentle voice murmuring in her ears and she could smell the soft aroma of his shampoo and aftershave.
Damn, she was doing it again. Why did she have it so bad suddenly? She’d thought about David a lot lately, but not this obsessively. Maybe it was stress. Maybe it was because he’d finally told her a little bit about his past.
Great, now she was distracted trying to figure out why she was distracted. There was no way she was going to know what their next assignment was if she didn’t knuckle under. With that in mind, she managed to pay a bit of attention to the last five minutes of the lecture, at least enough attention to get the assignment copied down from the board. It had to count for something, didn’t it? Considering the state her mind was in, she considered herself lucky to have managed that much.
Things went much the same way all day. Everything reminded her of David, and she was constantly losing herself in thought. Even Meg commented on her distraction at lunch.
Nicole pleaded fatigue and escaped to the library, even though she doubted she’d get much work done. She was right. It took three attempts to finish one math problem, and it wasn’t even a hard one. She decided she should probably just do some reading. She could usually lose herself in a book, but even that was a futile effort. She finally gave up after reading two chapters of her book without the least idea what she’d read.
Maybe she should just accept she wasn’t going to get anything done today. This might just be a blown-off day. Deciding that was all she could really do at this point, she threw her books in her backpack and stood to go.
Only then did she see her obsession, in the flesh. David walked slowly across the library towards her. His eyes held hers with such intensity, she suspected she might shatter, but she was helpless to look away. Taking her hands in his, he placed a light kiss on her fingers. Her legs grew weaker and her heart beat swiftly, her breaths getting shorter. Warmth filled her body, but this time, she didn’t fight it. She embraced it. “If you keep doing stuff like that, I’ll fail the semester for sure.” Her voice betrayed her, coming out slightly husky, and she leaned against the table to stay upright.
He smiled. “Am I interrupting your study?”
“Yes.” She smiled back.
“Then I’ll leave.”
“You intrude on my thoughts whether you’re here or not.” She spoke hone
stly, unable or unwilling to filter her words. She couldn’t quite figure out which it was.
His breath caught. “Ah, quite a dilemma. I seem to have the same problem. What shall we do?”
“If I knew that answer, I wouldn’t be daydreaming during lectures.”
He was shocked by her honesty and a momentary surge of courage filled his chest. He continued without hesitating. “Would you have dinner with me tonight?”
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he wondered if he should have spoken. He wanted to do something special for her birthday today. She didn’t know it was her real birthday, she’d been too young when her parents died and she got put into the other home, but he needed to do something all the same. What if it was too much, too soon? It was only dinner, though.
Nicole seemed momentarily at a loss for words and he cursed his recklessness. What if—
“Yes.”
The single word had his heart skipping a beat. He smiled broadly. “Great. Is seven good?”
“Yeah, that’s fine.” She could hardly believe it – she had a date! David had asked her out!
She lifted her backpack, but David quickly took it from her. “I’ll carry that.”
“If you insist.” He put his arm around her, and she leaned into him, wrapping her own arm around his back. She might regret it later, but for now she just couldn’t help herself. She loved being with him, and he made her feel good. “Where are we going tonight?”
“You’ll find out tonight.”
“But I need to have some idea of how to dress.”
“Nothing too fancy. You can wear what you have on, if you want, or you can dress up some.”
She smiled, thinking of the one dress she hadn’t had the chance to wear yet. “Okay then, I think I know what I’ll wear.”
“What?”
“You’ll find out tonight.” She lifted her chin defiantly. She could keep secrets, too.
David laughed. He almost felt giddy. The walked the rest of the way to her home in companionable silence. As they stopped on the steps, he handed her backpack to her and kissed her hand. When his eyes looked up at her from over her fingers, a shiver ran through her. She could feel his warm breath on her hand as he said, “Seven,” before standing to go. Glancing over her shoulder several times, she walked up the last couple of steps and entered the building. She could hardly wait for seven to arrive.
16
Nicole smoothed down the material of her dress for what seemed like the hundredth time. It was a short black dress which tied around at the back, pulling the material tight across her breasts and showing off her trim waistline. It had short, gathered sleeves which didn’t quite cover the straps of the lacy black and red bra she wore, and came to the top of her knees when she stood. It was considerably higher now when she was sitting, and she found herself watching to see if David would show any signs of having noticed. Her hair was loose and flowing down her back.
David sat quietly beside her, driving them to some unknown destination. He hadn’t even give her a hint as to where he was taking her. She didn’t mind though, because she was still savoring the appreciative looks he’d given her when she first opened the apartment door.
The road curved through another patch of dense forest. At the edge of the trees she noticed a large stone wall and then a tall metal gate. David drove up to the gate and reached for a remote control which was attached to the sun shield above his head. At the press of a button, the gate opened, revealing a magnificent scene beyond. At the end of a long driveway rested a huge house. No, house wasn’t quite the right word for it. Mansion even seemed inadequate. Nicole was looking at what appeared to be a veritable castle. It appeared to be at least three stories high with turrets at each of the four corners. The outside was white brick with arches visible on every floor. The house even boasted an indented parapet. Yes, castle was the right word for it.
The car came to a stop near the front door. Nicole waited as David opened her door and helped her out, her eyes never leaving the building. She took a step toward the structure, awed to be witness to such a sight.
“Well, what do you think?” David’s voice spoke near her ear.
“It’s beautiful!” she breathed.
David smiled broadly at her reaction. “I’m glad you like it. Come.” He ushered her inside with his hand against her back.
She wouldn’t have though it possible, but the inside was even more magnificent than the outside. There was wall to wall carpet, rich tapestries, and a mural on the domed ceiling of the front room. “Welcome home.”
David watched her as she walked around with her head tilted up, staring at the mural. She turned around in a circle in order to see it all. Reluctantly, it seemed, her eyes left the mural and studied the rest of her surroundings. A hesitant hand reached out to one of the tapestries on the wall, barely touching it with her fingertips. “You live here?”
He nodded.
“Now, I wish I had come sooner.”
“Would you like to see the rest of the place?”
She laughed. “I’d love that, but I do have a paper due next week.”
“I’ll give you the nickel tour.” Nicole took his proffered arm and followed him throughout the house. David watched her expressions the entire time. He even tried to tap into her thoughts and senses, but he couldn’t pick up anything. Either he was rustier than he thought, or she had some powerful barriers.
He didn’t think the first alternative was the case. He’d been noticing that he’d picked up on a number of stray thoughts from people, ever since he’d first tried using telepathy again. He was hearing things without even trying, in fact, since his old filter wasn’t in place. Which meant it must be a barrier. Why would Nicole need barriers that strong, though? Few people were so guarded that not even a few thoughts strayed to the surface, but he wasn’t hearing a thing. It seemed particularly strange, given she seemed reasonably comfortable around him. He sighed. It just meant he’d have to continue watching her actions to get a handle on how she was feeling. No cheating for him.
He shifted his concentration and tried to figure out how she was dealing with everything. She seemed awestruck by the grandeur of the house, but it didn’t seem as if she remembered anything about the place. It had always been a long shot. After all, she was young when she’d lived here, but he’d hoped it might spark something. If she remembered something from her past, it might make it easier to tell her the truth. No matter. Maybe just being here, whether she remembered it or not, would make her feel more at ease. She had loved the place as a child, and if it made her more relaxed to be here, with him, then it was worth it.
Besides, he wanted to spend the time with her – not only because it made it easy to protect her, but because he enjoyed being around her. He looked forward to seeing her and talking with her every day and he was beginning to let himself believe she felt the same way. She certainly seemed to, but was this wrong when he was so much older than she was?
Then again, Richard had been a lot older than Caroline. She hadn’t been much older than Nicole when they first met, and they’d been blissfully happy together. Maybe he and Nicole could have something.
“And here’s the dining room.” David held open the door for Nicole and waited for her to enter ahead of him.
She was surprised by what she discovered beyond the door. She’d half expected to see one of those long tables, the type a person had to shout across to be heard and where you needed to stand up to pass the salt.
What met her eye was a small table, set for two, with a small bouquet of flowers sitting between two plates of pasta and chicken. The entire room had been filled with candles, casting a romantic glow on the scene. David pulled out a chair for her, his hand brushing her arm when he pushed the chair closer to the table and seated himself beside her.
They kept the conversation light while they ate. Once they’d finished, Nicole dabbed her lips with a napkin and asked the question which had been on her mind all night. “S
o, tell me, how did you end up living in a place like this? Did you rob a bank, or just inherited it?”
He lifted one eyebrow. “Those are my only two options?”
“Unless the security consultant business pays a whole lot better than I thought.”
“Not really.” How much should he tell her? He wasn’t certain.
She glared at him. “Ambiguous as always, I see.”
David raised his glass in a mock toast and downed the rest of its contents. “More juice?” he asked, standing.
“Please.” He filled their glasses and took a deep breath. “I guess you could say I inherited it.”
“From who?”
He sat back and stared at her over his glass. “From the best friend I ever had.”
“I’m so sorry.” She placed her hand over the top of his.
“It’s okay. He died a long time ago. He was like a father to me and when he died, I started taking care of the place. I don’t even stay here most of the time. I have another place about an hour away. I’ve been staying here lately, because it’s closer to town.”
“Why do you need to be closer to town?”
He raised the same eyebrow but didn’t voice the real reason – that he needed to be near her. Instead he said, “I have some things to take care of in town.”
“But isn’t it expensive keeping up two places, especially with one being this big?”
“Yeah, but I couldn’t get rid of the place. Richard loved it.”
“Richard?” The name sounded familiar. Nicole glanced around the room, experiencing another wave of déjà vu. She’d pushed it aside all evening, but she was certain she’d been in this house before. Abruptly, she could hear the sounds of laughter. For a second, the room looked different, daylight streaming in through the window. She could smell cookies baking in the oven.
“How much longer ’til they’re done?” she heard a child’s voice demanding.