I sat up, wrapping my arms around my knees. “Why didn’t she tell me?”
“I don’t know. You’ll have to ask her.”
I felt at a loss for words. After everything that happened, I didn’t know where we stood. I picked at some imaginary lint on my T-shirt, trying to avoid his eyes.
“Sarah, are you still upset with me?” he asked softly.
A tear rolled down my cheek. “No.” I was fighting back more, so the word came out in a whisper. I cleared my throat and began again. “I’m mad at myself. How could I not remember? I was the one who dreamed about Tony. I feel so stupid and horrible for what almost happened to you, and what actually happened to Logan.” I rested my head on my knees, afraid to look into his eyes.
He sighed heavily. “Logan is fine; he has a broken leg and two cracked ribs, that’s all. He’s actually enjoying all the attention he’s getting. Word got around, and now our house has been crawling with girls taking care of him.”
I laughed through my tears. I could see Logan playing up his injuries for his own benefit.
Lucas stood up and walked toward me. He touched his hand to my chin and lifted my face. Smiling at me, he took my hand and pulled me up. We were standing inches apart; his hot breath caressed my skin. “Please, tell me that you still love me,” he said. The longing in his eyes was obvious.
I smiled and wiped my tears away. “I love you, more than I ever have. I’m just sorry I didn—” I was cut off as his lips hungrily crushed mine. All the pain, guilt, and anger I felt washed away. I was in his arms, we were safe, and I was home. As long as we were together, nothing could ever hurt us again.
A few hours later, Lucas and I were snuggled in my bed. My daisies sat in a vase on my dresser where I could see them. The smell of fresh paint still lingered in the room. My parents painted my wall yesterday while I was curled up on the couch.
“I love you, Sarah,” he whispered as he gently caressed my cheek with the tips of his fingers. We were both lying on our sides facing each other.
“I love you too,” I said, enjoying the feel of his soft touch against my skin.
My father walked past the door for the fourth time.
“How long do you think he’ll do that?” Lucas asked, his voice anxious. I knew my father didn’t approve of us lying together on my bed, but because of the situation, he chose to ignore it, in his own way.
“Until my mom tells him to stop,” I said softly. I was very comfortable and thankful he was here. I felt at peace.
“Should we get up? I don’t think he’s happy with this.”
“No, he won’t say anything. I’ve been a little jumpy lately, and you keep me calm.” I reached over, resting my hand on his waist; I needed to touch him, to feel his warmth.
“Jim, get down here and stop bugging Sarah and Lucas,” my mother yelled from downstairs.
“I’m coming.” I heard my dad say. It sounded like his voice was coming from his bedroom doorway, which was about ten feet from mine. Lucas and I started laughing, covering our mouths, so my dad didn’t hear.
“I have a question for you.” I moved my hand from his waist, poking his nose with my fingertip, after I heard my dad go down the stairs.
“Shoot.”
“Last Monday, Andy asked me if I wanted him to take me out, so he could cheer me up. But he was weird about it when I said no. He held my arm and said he really wanted to.”
Lucas laughed.
“What?”
“Andy.” He shook his head. “I asked him to keep an eye on you, since I couldn’t. When he asked how he was supposed to do that, I told him to find a way. Apparently it didn’t work.”
I laughed with him. “Oh good, I was worried he liked me, or something.”
“Not that I’m aware of,” he said, resuming the gentle caress on my cheek.
“Do you know when Ryan’s funeral is?” I asked, suddenly remembering the photo.
“No, why?” His eyebrows creased in confusion at my abrupt change of topic.
“I can’t tell you right now. I want to check something first.”
I started to stand up, but he pulled me back onto the bed. “No, don’t leave me.”
I laughed but shoved his hand away. Finally, he let me go, and I stood up to get my phone off of the dresser. I dialed Detective Franklin’s number.
After I hung up, Lucas stared at me with a look of extreme confusion.
“What the hell was that about?” He reached up and curled a strand of my hair around his finger, pulling me down until I sat on the edge of the bed.
“Okay, so we got rid of Ryan-slash-Tony, right?”
“Right,” he said slowly.
“Say we live happily ever after. We grow old together, and then we die.”
He grinned. “Sounds good to me.”
“Let’s say I believe that we’re soul mates, which I’m not sure, but there is evidence that says we are.” He nodded, and I went on. “We’re born again, we find each other, and again we get together. What about Tony?”
“Well, if that happens, what are we supposed to do? It’s kind of out of our control.”
“Maybe it’s not,” I said, grinning as I stood up.
“Sarah, are you crazy? There’s nothing we can do about it.” He sat up with his legs hanging over the side of the bed.
“When I was researching our dreams, or past lives on the Internet, I looked up how to stop a soul from returning. I didn’t expect to find anything, but there were a few articles. Of course, there is no way to know if it’s true, they’re just theories. Some people believe that if you are cremated, you won’t be reincarnated again. And I also found an article about a ritual ancient natives performed to keep souls from returning. They said if you take a personal item of the diseased and burn it at the same time the person is being cremated, while saying a particular chant, the soul won’t return. The only problem is that you have to do it within fifty feet of the body while it’s being burned.”
“Are you seriously thinking of doing this?”
“Yes.”
He stared out the window, thinking. “Is he being cremated?” he asked. I nodded. After my conversation with Detective Franklin I knew everything there was to know about Ryan’s arrangements after his death. “Well, we don’t know the chant, and how are we supposed to get fifty feet away?”
“I do know the chant, it was on the Internet. And they are cremating him at seven o’clock tonight, after hours. So the parking lot will be empty. That’s about fifty feet,” I said, smiling.
He gazed into my eyes and finally said, “Let’s do it.” He stood up. “Wait! We don’t have a personal item. Or are you going to break into his house like you did min?” he asked with a smirk on his face.
I stuck my tongue out at him and opened my closet door. Reaching up, I took the photo off the top shelf. I handed him a sandwich baggie with the photo inside. “I took it from his pocket. That’s what you saw me steal from him.”
“He was carrying a picture of you and Emma?” His eyes hardened, and his fingers tightened on the picture. Obviously he wasn’t happy that Ryan had carried a photo of me around with him.
“Yes.”
He shook it off and blew out a breath. “Okay, let’s get ready. What do we need?”
We spent the next couple of hours gathering all the things we needed to take with us, and preparing for the ritual. We drove to the funeral home and sat inside the car until six forty-five. As we waited, it started to snow. “Awesome, it’s finally snowing,” he said, looking out his window. There were a few flakes coming down, but they were so small you could barely see them.
“I wouldn’t get too excited, you can’t even see it.”
“It might pick up later. I can’t wait to get my snowmobile out. Christmas holidays are coming up in a couple of weeks. Last year I didn’t get a chance to use my sled until after the holidays. What a waste of a vacation,” he grumbled.
“Derrick said the same thing. What’s so exciting about dri
ving a snowmobile?” I asked, reaching to turn the radio down.
“Have you ever been on one?”
“No.”
“Just wait, it’s so much fun. Tell Derrick to bring his over to my place; we can go through the trails in our back woods. You and Emma will love it.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” I glanced at the door of the funeral home. I didn’t want to be seen out here. Most of the windows were dark, but there was a glow from somewhere inside. I saw no movement anywhere.
“What happens if someone sees us?” Lucas asked. Could he read my mind?
“We have the car parked blocking where we’re going to do it. No one will see us.” I glanced at the clock. “Let’s go.” I grabbed my bag that held the items we needed.
Outside, we sat on the cold, hard pavement. I took out the stainless steel mixing bowl I had brought and set the picture inside. “Are you ready? You light it and I’ll read the chant.” I peered at my watch, waiting for seven on the dot, and when the hour hand finally moved into place, I nodded to him.
As he lit the picture on fire, I watched it burn for a second, and then read the few paragraphs loudly. The photo burned until only ashes were left.
I looked up at the sky and watched a shimmering light rise above the funeral home. It hovered for a few seconds, and then vanished. I rubbed my eyes, not believing what I had just seen.
Lucas was staring in the same direction with an amazed look on his face. “Did you see that?”
“Yes, but I’m sure I’m seeing things.”
“You and me both.”
We shoved all of the items back in my bag and climbed quickly into the car.
On the drive home, the snow picked up and was really coming down hard. Lucas was excited, happy about the first real snowfall of the year.
When we arrived at my house, he gave me a kiss and said good night.
Since the last thing I remembered was going to bed, I knew I was dreaming when I suddenly found myself standing in a field of poppies. I could see a mountain in the distance, and when I slowly spun around, a forest lay just beyond the field. It was quiet, just the sound of the breeze blowing the flowers and the occasional chirp as a flock of birds that flew overhead. “What’s going on?” I heard a voice behind me and knew who it was without turning. Lucas stepped up beside me and took my hand.
“I don’t know,” I said, just as we saw two bodies emerge from the trees. They were quite a distance away, but I could tell it was a guy about six feet tall, with brown hair. He was holding hands with a much shorter girl; her hair was long and dark. As they approached us, I knew who it was. David and Katie, and they looked happy. Gone was the look of anguish I saw in the death dreams. They stood in front of us, in this beautiful field filled with orange-red flowers. Just beyond them I could see the clouds, some white, some faded into blue and pink. They smiled at us. “Thank you,” David said in Lucas’ voice.
“Because of you, we can be happy now,” Katie replied. As I opened my mouth to speak, they nodded their heads and turned away. Before they made it back to the cover of the trees, they disappeared.
I woke up with a feeling of relief that washed over me for the first time since I started having the dreams. For some reason, I knew it was over; it worked.
Although they were often scary and confusing, I fell in love with Lucas in my dreams. Was it fate that brought us together, were we truly meant to be? I had no idea, but I was thankful whatever the reason. There would be no more visions of our death, and in the next life, no Tony.
I was lying in my bed staring up at my dirt splotch. In the dark, it was easier to see the shapes. Tonight it was Lucas’ hazel eyes. The sound of my cell phone ringing startled me. I glanced at the clock and noticed that it was midnight. “Hello?” I answered softly.
“It’s over, isn’t it?” Lucas asked with a sleepy voice.
“I think so. Did you have the same dream?”
“Yes.”
“I love you.”
“I will always love you, Sarah.” With that, we hung up, and I went back to a dreamless sleep.
Epilogue
With no interference from reincarnated murderers, Lucas and I were actually quite happy. When he turned eighteen in March, we celebrated with all of our friends with a rematch of paintball. Emma is still the reigning champion.
I quit my job at the multiplex. I couldn’t work there without thinking Ryan was lurking outside watching me. On my last day, I worked with Zack. We were up front selling tickets.
“Zack, I’m sorry about getting you involved in all the drama,” I said between customers.
“It’s okay, Sarah. I wasn’t hurt, and besides it’s not like it’s your fault.”
I had been apologizing a lot lately.
I suddenly remembered the first time I met him. I swiveled in my chair. “Zack, Marcy told me that you asked questions about me before we met, and it seemed like you recognized my name. What was that about?”
When his last customer walked away, he turned to me, his face a bit red. “My cousin Noah is your brother Alex’s best friend. My family goes to Noah’s place a lot and Noah’s always bugging Alex about his hot sister Sarah. They told me that a bunch of kids in their grade always asked Alex to come over to your house, so they could see you. He hates it, so my cousin likes to tease him about it. When Susan said your name, I recognized it and asked her questions to see if you were the same girl my cousin talked about.” He smiled shyly and turned to his new customer.
Oh, that was hilarious. Lucas had thought he was my stalker and all along he knew my name from Alex. After my customer walked away, I started laughing.
“What’s so funny?” he asked, smiling.
“Nothing. Kids really bug Alex to come over so they can stare at me?”
“Yes, and it really annoys him. He never told you that?”
“No, but he wouldn’t.”
I stood up as Brody came in to relieve me. “Bye, Zack, bye, Brody. I’ll see you later.”
They waved as I walked out the door. I couldn’t tell Zack what Lucas thought. I didn’t want to hurt his feelings.
I would be sure to tell Lucas he was wrong about him though. I’d be seeing him at work tomorrow. It was my first day as a waitress at Sabour’s, and I couldn’t wait. Now we could spend even more time together.
We were both attending NYU in the fall; we even had an apartment lined up. My father was a little nervous about our living arrangements, but he’d get over it.
The dreams never returned. The only ones I had now were my own.
In late April, Lucas took me out for my birthday. He told me to dress up for the occasion, so I was waiting for him in a new outfit that I bought with my tip money. It was a wine-colored silk dress that fell to my knees. Since it was strapless, I wore a black silk wrap to keep the chill away. I heard Lucas’ car pull into the driveway. “Bye, Mom and Dad, he’s here. I’ll see you later,” I yelled at them from the door as I ran out to meet him.
He looked handsome in a charcoal-colored suit. “Hey, I was planning to come in for a minute,” he said, kissing me and handing me a bouquet of wildflowers.
“That’s okay, I was so excited to see you, I couldn’t wait any longer.”
He smiled while opening the passenger door for me. I sat inside and held the flowers on my lap. Once he was in the driver’s seat, he turned to me. “Happy Birthday.”
“Thank you. Where are we going?”
He grinned playfully. “You’ll see.”
We drove in the direction of his house. But before we got there, he pulled into the driveway leading to the waterfall from the road.
I tensed, squeezing my hands into fists. “What are we doing here?” I asked, my voice laced with fear.
“Sarah, relax, this is our place. I won’t let him take it from us.” His voice was full of determination. He parked the car and climbed out, walking over to my door and opening it.
I hesitated. Even though it was a warm day, I felt a chill i
n the air. I looked out into the trees, and all I could see was Ryan’s face as he laughed viciously from my dreams. “I can’t,” was all I said, refusing to get out of the car. I was frozen with fear; it crept up inside me and held on with icy claws.
Luke knelt down onto his knees in front of me, unconcerned with grass stains on his good dress pants. “Whose place is this?” he asked, taking my hands and holding them in his. His hands were warm against mine; fear had made them cold.
“Ours,” I mumbled quietly.
“And what did you say the second time I brought you here?”
I sighed and rolled my eyes. “That I loved it here, and that it felt like we were in our own little world.”
He nodded. “Are you going to let him take that from us? This is part of where we fell in love. I’m not willing to let it go. But I won’t come here alone.” He stood up and held out his hand. “Are we going to take back our special place?” He smiled encouragingly.
He was right, of course. I knew Ryan was dead, but it was hard to let him go when I sometimes dreamed of that night on the cliff.
Lucas leaned over and took my hand again. “You can do this.” He bent down and kissed me softly. That was all I needed to give me courage.
I let him pull me out of the car, and I followed him through the path that led to the waterfall.
Once we arrived, I saw a folding table and chairs set up in the clearing. There were plates set out with a picnic basket in the middle of the table.
He gestured for me to sit, and I obeyed. From our spot, there was a beautiful view of the falls, a perfect setting for a romantic dinner. I soon forgot what had happened here months before.
He pulled out our food from the basket and placed it on our dishes. Stuffed pork and seasoned rice—it looked so good I couldn’t wait to try it. To drink, there was sparkling cider in wine glasses. He thought of everything. No wonder I loved him.
It was delicious, and I ate it all. For dessert, we had chocolate-covered strawberries.
“I wanted my dad to make baked Alaska again, but he said it would probably melt out here.”
Fated Dreams (Book One In The Affinity series) Page 32
