The Weaver

by Heather Kindt

  A sob worked its way up, and she fought to push it back down before it escaped her lips.

  William opened his eyes and sat up to hold her to him. “Hey, I’m here . . . it’s alright, let it out.”

  “You stayed with me.”

  He’d removed his tie and shoes, sleeping in his tuxedo shirt and pants. Somehow she wore a t-shirt and her flannel pajama bottoms.

  “You scared me.” William sat up. He brushed his hand down her cheek and back through her hair. “I couldn’t leave you.”

  “What happened? I know that Jason is . . . dead.” It was difficult to speak the word, as if it made the terrible truth even more real. “Do you know how it happened?”

  William sighed, probably trying to avoid a replay of last night. “I overheard other students saying that he drowned in the pond. He went for a walk around six, hoping to be back in an hour to get ready. When he didn’t come back, I thought he was at a friend’s room.” He lowered his eyes, the guilt etched clearly across his face. “I thought he was going to walk around campus. The students said that his date received a note at her door around seven to meet him by the pond. She brought a flashlight and a friend, and discovered his body floating in a hole in the ice by the reeds.”

  “We need to go there, to find Jonas before he hurts anyone else.” The words flew out of Laney’s mouth without a thought. This was a time for action, not thinking.

  “The police aren’t letting anyone near the path.” William spoke with a warning tone that let her know he wasn’t letting her near the pond either.

  “Then we go at night, off the path to avoid any trouble.” The entire plan worked itself through her head: the meeting with Jonas and negotiating an ending that kept William safe but made Jonas happy. Her secret hope that Jonas would be satisfied with William staying in this world.

  “Finding the Gate Keeper was our plan. Talking to Brian should be our next step. I’m sure he will help us find a way to get rid of Jonas.”

  “But what if someone else gets killed? I don’t think I could live with myself. I’m not that brave.” She put her head in her hands, feeling the strain from the night before crashing down on her like an immense weight.

  “You’re willing to run out and confront Jonas and you say you lack bravery? You’re the bravest woman I know, but we need to stop and think this through. Jonas seems to enjoy the game as much as he enjoys the hunt. You will have a warning before his next attack. We need to use that time to talk to Brian.”

  “I hope you’re right.” She rested her head on his shoulder. Her body surrendered to sleep against the warmth of his body.

  The neon numbers read three-twenty-six when Laney awoke, this time to the sound of the door. This sleep must have been deeper, sounder, than before because she woke up in the same position. Missy tiptoed across the floor to her desk. Laney’s eyes caught hers, so she rushed over and knelt beside her bed, pushing her roommate’s hair out of her face.

  “Are you alright?” Missy whispered. Her concern affected every muscle in her face. She reached for Laney’s hand.

  “I’ve been better.” Laney tried to avoid movement. She could still hear William’s even breathing behind her.

  “When I saw William here last night, I thought things went really well at the dance. I didn’t find out about Jason until this morning at breakfast. Brian and I went for a walk by the ocean after we dropped you off.”

  Laney’s body stiffened at the sound of Brian’s name, and

  William moved behind her, sitting up. “Hello, Missy.”

  “William, I’m so sorry about Jason.” Her brow furrowed and she raised her finger to her lip. “Did you see any warning signs of depression? I think he was doing well in school. Obviously, he didn’t have any trouble socially.” Missy’s misguided ramblings almost made Laney smile. Although she would normally suspect her of fishing for juicy gossip, this time she knew she cared.

  “He didn’t commit suicide. He was murdered.” William’s grave tone let Missy know to close the door on the suicide topic.

  “Murdered? But the police have closed the case, saying it was an obvious suicide.” She raised her eyebrows.

  “The police don’t know everything. They’re following the clues left by the murderer: the suicide note by the pond, the lack of evidence of a struggle, and the motivation.”

  “What motivation?” Laney spoke up.

  Jason had everything and he was clearly a happy person. She couldn’t imagine Jonas coming up with any kind of motivation.

  Missy spoke before William. “They say that Jason felt pressure from his mother to become a doctor.”

  “Well, that proves the note was fake.” Laney sat up. “Jason is the one who wanted to be a doctor, more than anything.”

  Jonas knew that she’d be well aware of who was responsible for Jason’s death. All the suicide façade was for the benefit of the police; Jonas didn’t want the local authorities searching the forest for him. There was only one person he wanted to see.

  “Do you think the murderer is still out there?” Missy stood up and walked towards the window. She moved the curtain aside and gazed out at the mini-quad.

  Missy was safe as long as she stayed on campus.

  “Yes.” William joined Missy at the window. “It’s imperative that you stay away from the woods. I also think it is a good idea if you spend a lot of time with Brian. The murderer won’t attack unless you’re alone.” William also knew that Jonas probably wouldn’t go anywhere near the Gate Keeper for fear of being thrown back in the book, but that fact might be a little difficult to explain to Missy. “I’m going to my room to change out of this suit and get some sleep.” William leaned over and kissed Laney’s forehead. “I’ll be back soon.”

  As the door closed behind him, Laney knew William wasn’t leaving to go get more rest. Friendship and honor meant too much to him to let a murderer sit in the forest and plot his next move.

  William would confront Jonas tonight.

  Chapter 20

  Laney had to stop William before he left his dorm room. Her mind was made up long before she grabbed her coat from the closet, but the buzzing of her cellphone stopped her before she made it out the door. William would reassure her if she told him she knew where he was going, but she had to try to keep him away from Jonas.

  “Could you get that?” Laney drew her arms into the sleeves of her coat. She didn’t have time to find out who it was and stop William from making a big mistake.

  Missy picked up the phone, trying to calm the frantic voice on the other end. Laney’s stomach twisted in knots. Her father’s voice boomed as soon as Missy started talking. Laney’s heart pulled in two directions knowing that her father was a mess. She took the phone, trying to calculate how much time it would take to let him know everything was all right without planting doubt in his mind.

  She took a deep breath, trying to remove the panic from her voice. “Hi, Dad.” Laney sat down on her bed, relaxing her nerves. Her father could always tell when she was lying because her voice gave her away.

  “Delaney! Are you okay? Amy Harrison just called and said she is driving down there. She said that . . . ” He couldn’t seem to speak the words out loud. He let out a long breath. “She said that Jason’s dead. Amy said he drowned. Your mother and I are sitting here at a loss for words. Why didn’t you call?”

  “I’m sorry. It was a rough night and I just woke up.” Laney moved the phone to her other ear. “The police said Jason committed suicide.” It felt trite, almost sacrilegious, to talk about Jason’s death in such a common way, but she knew it was the only way to calm her father down.

  “We’re talking about Jason here. How do they know that for sure?” Her father was always prone to overreactions, especially when it came to his princess. “God, Laney, what if there’s a murderer out there?”

  Laney shook her head then leaned her elbows on her knees.

  “I called Grady. He’ll be there tomorrow morning to pick you up. There’s no way I
’m going to wait around until Friday to get you. Your mother and I will come down to Salem for Thanksgiving.”

  “Dad! No! I have finals to take. I’ll be fine.” Her voice wavered, not knowing if her own words held any truth. She also knew she was not going to leave William alone with Jonas.

  “End of discussion. Your mother and I are going to close the shop for a few days and spend Thanksgiving at Grady’s house. You’ll spend time with your grandfather before we arrive.” His last words came out as a plea. “I want you safe.”

  There was no more point in arguing, so Laney decided to ask for a concession on his part. “I’ll leave if I can bring a friend.” She regretted the words as they left her mouth. It was always better to do what she wanted and ask for forgiveness later.

  “I’m sure Grady would love to have her.”

  Laney worked on mustering up courage because she knew where this conversation headed. “His name is William.”

  The receiver went silent, except for her father’s increased breathing. She thought she heard several things slam — maybe a door?

  “No daughter of mine . . .” He coughed. “No daughter of mine will be sleeping around with some guy under her grandfather’s roof; or my roof for that matter.”

  The words hurt thinking that he’d jump to that conclusion. “You don’t understand. It’s not like that. If you’re worried about my safety, I’ll be a hundred percent safer with William around.” She felt each word pierce his heart like she’d shot a whole quiver of arrows at him.

  “Safer than with your family?” A sadness filled his voice. He’d always been Laney’s protector, her provider.

  “No, Dad, I didn’t mean it that way. It’s just that he’s special, and I think you’re really going to like him.” Laney didn’t know what else to say.

  Her father didn’t understand; her mother didn’t understand. The only one who knew what she was going through was Grady.

  “Well, we’ll see. You’ll be in separate rooms. I’ll make Grady promise me that.” His voice was stern again.

  “I wouldn’t want it any other way.” Laney lied through her teeth.

  When they hung up, the conversation was left with Grady picking her up at ten o’clock the next morning. That left her a little time to find Jonas and negotiate the deal of the century — or the past three centuries. She picked up her backpack, knowing she needed her story for the negotiations.

  “Where are you going?” Missy glanced up from her latest romance novel.

  “To see William.”

  “Why don’t you call him? He said he needed rest.”

  Laney sighed. How could Missy fail to show compassion for a girl who just lost her best friend?

  “Aren’t you afraid you’re acting a little too clingy?”

  Laney rolled her eyes and pulled her hat down over her ears.

  Missy laid her book on her pillow, sat up, and stared at her. “What’s going on, Laney?”

  “Nothing. My dad’s being overprotective.”

  “I’m not talking about that.” She crossed the room and leaned against the door to the hallway. “Why do you have to go see William to tell him about your Thanksgiving plans?”

  Laney had to think fast if she wanted to reach William before he left his room.

  “I’m worried that William will go and look for Jason’s murderer. From what I know of him, he seems to be someone who likes to take things into his own hands. I don’t know what I would do if something happened to him.” Laney threw her mittens over her eyes, peeking to see if Missy bought her act.

  “Do you really think he’d do that?” Missy’s eyes were wide and her mouth hung open. “Let me call Brian and maybe we can all go look for him.”

  “No!” Laney jumped forward. She brought her voice back down to a reasonable tone. “Let me try first.” The last thing she wanted was Brian involved. He’d probably try to stop them.

  “If you’re not back in an hour, I’m calling him.” Missy warned.

  “I’ll call you if I can’t get back.” Laney slipped her phone into her backpack. At least she could call her from the woods and prevent the search party commencing.

  Laney rushed over to William’s dorm room first. Knocking on the door, she prayed to find it unlocked. She prayed even harder to find Jason there, erasing the terrible nightmare. She twisted the doorknob and peeked inside. A small light shone above William’s bed, but Jason’s side was dark with the shade drawn. The room was lifeless, yet an oppressive presence beckoned her from the darkness. She slipped inside and sat on Jason’s bed, her eyes adjusting. His bed was made with a tuxedo laid out on the end. She ran her fingers down the fabric, thinking about how handsome he’d have looked, his dark hair matching the suit.

  Despite his faults, Jason had loved life. Several medical journals lay open on his desk, ready to be studied. He could have saved so many lives, but his own was cut short. The hope and promise of this man had been taken away just because he had known a Weaver.

  Laney laid her head on his pillow, taking in the scent of his cheap cologne. The smell was Jason. It would make her think of him for the rest of her life. This time there were no tears, only a small hint of the numbness from the parking lot. This was Laney’s memorial service for her childhood friend. She lay there, paralyzed by guilt, for what must have been hours.

  The door flew open and William rushed into the room. Laney snapped out of her trance. He removed his phone from his back pocket, tossing a small piece of paper on his desk.

  “William.” Laney tried not to startle him too much. She didn’t move from the bed, keeping her head on the pillow.

  He set the phone on the desk and walked over, eyeing her before sitting on the bed, pulling her close. “Are you alright?”

  “Yes, I worried about you. I wanted to come after you, but being in your room made me think about Jason.” She didn’t want to hurt William with her words, but she knew it was senseless to be jealous of the deceased.

  “My thoughts have been with him, too. It was difficult coming back to the room. His mother drove down from New Hampshire this morning and is coming to pick up his things tomorrow. She left a message for me earlier today.” He ran his fingers through her hair. “There will be a memorial service for him in the chapel on Wednesday.”

  “We can’t go.” Her eyes welled up. “My father called and said my grandfather is picking me up in the morning. I need to stay there for at least a week. I told him you were coming with me.”

  “Then we’ll miss the service.” His voice was grave. “I have no other choice but to stay with you.”

  She reached up and touched his face, knowing if he didn’t come it would turn Grady’s house into a prison.

  Laney crossed to William’s side of the room, trying to remove Jason’s scent from her mind. She relaxed knowing that William wasn’t out in the woods confronting Jonas, so she sat down on his bed. “So, who were you trying to call when you first came in?”

  “Brian.” He came closer. William scooped up the paper from the desk and stuffed it into his pocket. He fluffed his pillow and leaned against the wall, stretching out his legs on the bed.

  “Do you think he’ll talk to you?” She tried to think of a way to get William to tell her about the paper in his pocket.

  “I’m not sure. For some reason, he avoids contact with me. I’m very surprised he offered to drive us to the dance this weekend. I had a lot of time to think about this in your dorm room last night. Have you ever touched Brian?”

  “I don’t know.” Unless someone’s touch sent electricity through your body, it was usually meaningless and forgettable.

  “Try to think.” He leaned toward her. “Has Brian ever shaken your hand? When did you first meet him?”

  Laney wasn’t sure where William was going with his questions, but a distant memory worked its way back to the forefront of her mind. When she met Brian at the bonfire, he didn’t hold out his hand to shake hers. A few times their bodies should have touched, but he quick
ly moved away. She never thought much about it before, not having it brought to her attention.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever touched Brian. When I first met him at the bonfire, he wouldn’t shake my hand.”

  “Neither have I. When we got out of the car on Saturday night, I reached over the seat and offered my hand to thank him for the ride. I wanted to get a better look at his ring. Brian shifted his body around and held up his hand, never offering it to me. It seemed rude at the time, but now I think I understand.”

  “Understand what?” Laney inched closer to him on the bed.

  “How Brian works as a Gate Keeper. Maybe he’s not only the Gate Keeper, but the gate itself. When you, or I, or Jonas touch the Gate Keeper, we go into the world of the book. If something like that happened in front of Missy or any other human, the consequences could be disastrous.”

  “Then how does he touch Missy?” She remembered the kiss at the bonfire and all the contact they had at the dance.

  “Only Watchers, Enders, and I think Weavers can go through the gate. I’m not positive about Weavers, but if he’s avoiding contact with you, it makes me wonder.”

  The thought of entering the world she’d created never occurred to Laney. Mentally, she was there on a daily basis, but physically — it was almost too much to think about. To be Anne, surrounded by the history she loved, was a dream. She knew the war would end with the colonies victorious. Then, William and Laney could settle down and live the life she only dreamed about.

  William’s train of thought was on a different track. “If we could get Brian and Jonas close enough, we could send Jonas back through the gate.”

  “Do you think Brian would agree to it?” She remembered her conversation about neutrality with Richard.

  “No, his job involves not taking sides. He stays close by for those who willingly want to go back. He won’t agree to anything that forces Jonas to reenter the world of the book unless someone is in immediate danger.”