Chapter 21
2470 Words
She was curious, that was something she could not deny, who her mysterious neighbor was. She was even tempted to knock and say hello, but she came to the conclusion that at this time, and it was already four in the morning, it would be rude. And at least weird and maybe a bit inappropriate. That was why Jay tiptoed through the dark staircase and opened the door blindfolded. She was proud of herself as she managed to put the key in the locker already after the fourth attempt, and not a single curse came out of her mouth.
When she closed the door behind her, she leaned heavily against it and breathed a sigh of relief. Although the time spent with Holt and his friends gave her a lot of joy, she did not manage to free herself from the tension tormenting her. Not completely. She liked New York, but she did not feel at home here yet. And there were those strange visions and a feeling of fear that did not want to leave her. And though she did not know the victims, she felt a kind of bond with them. It was a bit scary, and because she could not figured it out, she also felt frustrated.
She did not think she would be able even to take a nap, so she went straight to the bathroom, throwing the clothes on the way, to take a cool, refreshing shower. For those precious several minutes, when streams of ice-cold water ruthlessly whipped her body, Jay thought about nothing. And when half an hour later she was leaving her flat wearing a warm tracksuit, she was ready to face the problems of the new day.
Equipped with her MP3 player and headphones she could spend the whole day on training. But she remembered about discipline and started with a long and solid warm up. Then she could start jogging. And because the weather improved considerably, she ran twice as long as usual. She already had her favorite routes, but today she could discover some new paths.
Later she spent two more hours at the gym, ignoring the fact that there were already few regulars. She usually managed to end her training before the gym was open, but not today. Still the music helped her to cut from the outside world.
On her way back she went to the bakery to buy herself some fresh rolls and treat herself with home-made pastry. Then she visited a deli to do the rest of the necessary shopping. She did not forget about Mrs. Freeman. Even if her neighbor was back, she could still run errands for her landlady.
When she got back she left the bag for the old lady by her flat door and went upstairs. She took a hot shower and then made herself some breakfast. She ate it reading some news on the Internet, but still there was nothing new about the murders. She was getting impatient. ‘What is he waiting for?’ She thought frustrated. ‘Why doesn’t he just attack me?’
Jay actually had no choice but to wait. She brewed herself a jar of fresh coffee and brought all the books and notes she needed for the next test to the kitchen. She could use her spare time to study. Nate Ferguson for sure was a very demanding lecturer, but since Jay really liked criminology and forensics, she had no problems to revise. ‘This guy intrigues me.’ She admitted to herself. She did not feel any energy from him, but his watchful, piercing gaze was a bit disturbing.
She had to stop thinking about her teacher as her phone beeped. She checked it immediately. She got a message from Christian.
“How R U Sis?”
It would not have bothered her if it had not been for the fact that their last conversation had ended with Christian practically blowing her off. ‘Maybe he needs to talk to someone?’ She thought with concern. Jay knew her brothers well enough to know that if she will not start the topic they would remain silent. She dialed his number immediately.
- Hi gorgeous! – He greeted her.
- Hi handsome! – She replied. – What’s up?
- I just wanted to know how you doing. – He assured her.
- I’m fine. Thanks for asking. – She decided to act slowly. – I revise for a test. And I spent the last night in an Irish pub.
- That’s cool. Wait! What?! – He suddenly realized what she said. – A pub!?
- Yeah. – She chuckled. – I was with friends. Besides, I already drank beer, remember? It was Carter who gave me one when I was thirteen.
- He did it so you wouldn’t tell Maria and Sean that we had alcohol on the party by the lake. – He pointed out.
- Yeah, but they still got to know. – She noticed. – You were both pretty messed up.
- Don’t remind me! – He said embarrassed. – It never happened, is that clear?!
- I’ll keep it for myself. – She promised. – For now.
- b***h! – He hissed.
- Thank you! – She chuckled. – And now, tell me how are you doing? – She demanded.
- I’m okay. – He said, but she could hear he was lying.
- Christian. – She said softly. – I know what happened. Mel told me everything.
- Then you know that I had to do it. – He said with power.
- No you didn’t. – She said. – I am the treat. You and Mel should be together.
- I guess it’s too late for that. – He said sadly.
- It’s never too late. – She argued. – You need to fix it. You hear me?!
- But how? – He asked resigned.
- That’s something you should figure out on your own. – Jay noticed.
- Maybe it’s better the way it is? – Christian suddenly withdrew.
- Listen! – She tried to reason with him.
- Just leave it Jay! – He cut in. – I’m glad that you’re okay. – He changed the subject.
- Yeah. – She did not want to push on him. – Maybe I’ll come over to see you on weekend? – She suggested.
- That would be great. – He rejoiced. – I miss you.
- I miss you too. – She said quietly.
- I’ll call you soon. – He promised.
- Hope so! Love you. – She added and hung up.
Her good mood suddenly vanished. ‘f**k it!’ She swore in her mind. She felt her brother’s grief as her own. She could not accept the fact that he was no longer with Melanie. ‘It’s not fair! They were made for each other!’ She thought. ‘Just as me and Bryan!’ She felt hot tears running down her cheeks and she wiped them off quickly. ‘That’s something different!’ She tried to convince herself. ‘I may kill him!’
She left all her notes in the kitchen and went to the bedroom. It was early evening, but since she did not sleep last night she was quite tired. She lied down on the bed and covered herself with a warm blanket. She thought that she would not be able to sleep, but soon her eyelids became heavy. She fell asleep as soon as she closed her eyes.
***
She dreamed.
In her dream she was a nine-year-old girl, who on the night of her birthday was performing a ritual. She did not remember that night. Her mother and Isabela made sure Jay would not remember it. But in her dreams that night was coming back to her. And since she knew the truth, she could see and understand more.
This time she was watching it from aside. Just as if she got out of her body and stood few meters from the centre. Watching. The magic circle, runes, the full moon. She saw herself entering the circle, telling the spell in a melodious language. She could hear her own scream when the beasts, she was to e*****e, tried to break free. She could feel the pain. She could hear someone calling her name.
She turned around and saw him.
But it was not an eleven-year-old boy. He was about fourteen now. She could remember that, because she had a crush on him then. And she suffered a lot because he did not pay the slightest attention to her. It was hot summer and Jay often stayed long at Weakfields’ house just to see him. Once his mother told him to walk her home. She pretended not to care, but inside she jumped with joy. But when she found out he was meeting some girl that night, her girlish infatuation died.
She was in great despair. She stopped seeing her friend for some time. And when she went to see Melanie again, the tragedy happened. Her mother was murdered. She was shocked. Numbed. She remembered that the Weakfields were there for them. She could remember Bryan’s eyes when he looked at her with concern and sadness. But she did not want his compassion. She wanted to be alone.
And she found her place. She spent a lot of time in the forest, by the lake. She hoped that maybe Isabo would come to her. She waited patiently and one day it happened. She needed to cross the border between life and death to talk to her mother. She almost did it, but then he appeared and pulled her out of the water. He accused her of suicide attempt. Oh, she hated him for that and she was showing her aversion for almost three years.
Finally she forgave him. It was hard to be mad at him. He was a good brother and friend. It seemed that everything was in right place again. How blind she was! She did not notice that he had feelings for her. But he hid them well and kept himself at bay. He was avoiding her in such a way that she would not notice it.
Then came the moment when he stopped fighting himself.
And he kissed her for the first time.
Maybe she had not realized it then, but it was the most precious moment in her life. Even if she had not really expected it and she was definitely not prepared for it. The truth was she was lost the moment she looked into his beautiful deep amber eyes. It was like a wonderful dream and she did not want to wake up, despite the fact she fought with her feelings for quite a long time.
But when she finally surrendered, her happiness was destroyed by the cruel reality. She was a deadly threat to her beloved and she had to leave. Forever.
Now she could be with him only in her dreams. No matter how much it hurt later, she could not resign from it. She evoked beautiful memories and created new, unforgettable ones. So it was this time.
It was warm sunny May afternoon. She remembered that day clearly. It was his seventeenth birthday. They were playing paint ball in the forest and Bryan was in the opposite team. She was waiting patiently, hidden in the shadow of a tree, for him to appear. She could hear his footsteps. The c***k of sticks and rustle of leaves. He finally appeared and stopped at the edge of the lake.
Then she stepped out of the shadow and aimed at him. He raised his hands and turned slowly with a smirk on his handsome face.
- You’ve got me! – He said.
- Oh no! You won’t get out of it so easily. – She chuckled. – This is war and we’re not taking prisoners. – She stated and pulled the trigger.
- Ouch! That hurts! – He grabbed his heart. – But I guess you’ve run out of bullets. – This time he aimed at her.
- Well, sometimes you have to improvise. – She shrugged and ran towards him.
He was so surprised that she threw him into the water easily and held his head under the water. When she finally let him emerge she looked him deep in the eye and wished him happy birthday. He grabbed her hips and pulled her closer.
- Insidious viper! – He hissed.
He slid his hands under her soaked tee and touched her bare skin. Then she drowned him again, laughing. But this time she entangled her fingers into his wet hair and clung to him with whole her body. She wrapped her legs around his legs. He was looking at her a bit surprised and bewildered. She bowed her head and searched for his lips.
The kiss was delicate at first. Light and innocent. But she wanted more. So did he. She nibbled his lower lip.
- Did you miss me? – She asked in a whisper.
- Every single day, hour, minute and second! – He replied.
- How much?
- Desperately!
- Show me! – She demanded.
He gripped her tighter and kissed her lips greedily. He pushed harder and bit her lip demanding access. She was much pleased to let him in. He slid his tongue between her lips and deepened the kiss. They did not fight for dominance. They wanted to take and give as much as possible.
Finally, they had to catch a breath. With one hand he grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled sharply, tilting her head back. She hissed with pain, but it was damn f*****g good feeling. He licked the line of her jaw, up to her earlobe. She moaned with pleasure. Then he moved lower, looking for her galloping pulse. He stopped there. It was the same place he bit her. She inhaled with a hiss.
Soon his warm lips began to burn her skin.
- You bear my mark. – He whispered. – You belong to me! – He added with power.
***
Jay woke up suddenly. It was almost five in the morning. She jumped out of the bed and went to the bathroom. There she looked into the mirror and examined her neck carefully. She found nothing there. Her skin was smooth and untouched. But it was very hot as well.
‘Damn!’ She thought confused.
- Writer
