Dark Reality 7-Book Boxed Set

by Jennifer and Christopher Martucci

  Chapter 20

  Gabriel awakened several times during the night. His sleep was fitful, filled with the same dream that repeated continually, looping like a film reel until finally interrupted by the sound of his own protests.

  In his sleep, he would see her clearly. She sat atop a picnic table, bathed in a golden glow. The natural highlights in her hair shimmered, haloing her like a gilded crown. Her eyes blazed green as emeralds fired by sunlight. She was breathtaking. Before her lay rolling hills colored in shades of red, yellow and orange. He knew the place, had been there with her in the fall less than half a year earlier. But in his dreams, it was not he that was with Melissa. She was with another. She sat with her knees nearly touching him, the tall and thin boy with dark hair.

  Gabriel called to her to get her attention and let her know he was there but she did not hear him. He moved closer, stood right beside her and called to her once again. Still, she did not respond. He reached out and tried to touch her only his hand passed through as powerless and weightless as a shadow. He called out to the boy with the dark hair, called him by name. Eric heard him and turned his head. As he looked to Gabriel, his face was not Eric’s. Instead, he had feline features. Widely spaced eyes the color of honey stared at him challengingly and his thin mouth twisted into a cruel smile. He reached his hands out and grabbed Melissa by the throat and began to squeeze. Melissa did not fight. Gabriel swung at him but his blows were ineffective, nonexistent.

  Each time he woke he was screaming, drenched in perspiration and left with the same sinking feeling. He was certain Eugene had not been the person he saw with Melissa in her bedroom the night before. He did not believe Eric intended to choke her. But the thought of Eric’s arms around her, and hers around him, gave him an unparalleled feeling of dread, of misery. He did not blame her for moving on. He could not fault her for seeking comfort from someone else. He had been gone for a long time. After what they had been through together, after the traumatic events leading up to his departure, he understood her need for protection, for warmth. What he did not understand was her decision to be with Eric. Eric and his friends were who he had fought, who he had protected her from. For Melissa to have Eric as her boyfriend, she would have had to forgive him of his long list of transgressions against her. Gabriel knew Melissa to be a sympathetic and compassionate person, but marveled at the notion that even she could possess the capacity to overlook the things Eric had done to her.

  The sun had not yet risen when Gabriel finally gave up on sleep and resigned to shower and dress for the day. A few hours later, Yoshi woke and knocked on his motel room door. After a quick breakfast, complements of the motel and a trip to the mall, they drove back to Harbingers Falls and parked in the lot behind Harbingers High School and waited.

  From the driver’s side of the Cherokee, Gabriel watched as former classmates came and went. No one recognized him as they passed, despite his rather unoriginal disguise. Dark sunglasses and a baseball cap pulled low over his forehead served as his concealment.

  Seeing students he used to socialize with in his early days at Harbingers High School caused an unexpected pang of sadness. Their faces and the hustle and bustle of racing to class brought to mind the first time he saw Melissa, how she stood out among them. The pang quickly transitioned to a squeezing feeling in his chest that traveled the length of his neck and constricted his throat.

  His reaction was suspended as he saw Yoshi’s small frame moving against the tide of students that swelled toward the rear entrance just as the bell rang signaling the end of lunch. He bobbed like a buoy in breakers, his face expressive, his gestures animated. When finally freed from the chaos of the crowd, Yoshi looked over his shoulder in exasperation then climbed in to Gabriel’s waiting SUV.

  “She’s not in there,” Yoshi declared. “I spoke to a few people and no one had seen her. Two of the kids I talked to had classes with her this morning but she never showed.”

  “Why wouldn’t she be in school today?” Gabriel said more to himself that Yoshi. “If something happened to her,” he did not finish his sentence and instead slammed his fist against the steering wheel.

  “I hate to say this, but I also asked about that Eric Sala kid and he isn’t in school today either.”

  Though the realization that both Melissa and Eric’s absences coincided with one another, he felt the slightest modicum of relief that she was likely skipping school with her boyfriend and was probably fine. Gabriel felt the sinking feeling return and silently chastised himself for being so ill-equipped to deal with her moving on.

  “Sorry man,” Yoshi began but was immediately distracted. “Whoa, who’s that?” he asked but Gabriel didn’t bother turning. He was descending into a dark, depressive depth he’d never been before.

  “She’s the most gorgeous girl I’ve ever seen,” Yoshi admired. “I’ve seen the beautiful women of America, you know, the actresses and models, but she is, wow, she’s gorgeous.”

  Gabriel was only half listening to his friend as a flash of black streaked past him. He would have missed it if he hadn’t looked up at the moment he did. Lengths of raven hair trailed a female figure, a familiar figure, just two cars away. He lowered his window and heard a string of profanities issued and instantly knew who it was.

  Alexandra Geogopolous huddled against her red 2010 Ford Mustang and swore as she fumbled for her keys. Gabriel couldn’t help but laugh. Alexandra was unaccustomed to the responsibility of key location, and car possession in general because, despite having the car for some time, Alexandra continually lost her privilege to drive it as a result of her foul mouth and resistance to the imposition of her parent’s rules, or at least that’s what Melissa had told him when he’d asked about her frequent presence in Daniella’s front seat.

  On impulse, he got out of the car with Yoshi in tow and approached her. Yoshi’s mouth stood open, his eyes wide as he walked toward her.

  “Close your mouth, Yoshi. You’re embarrassing yourself,” Gabriel warned.

  She looked up and recognized him. With a broad smile, she embraced him then promptly stepped back.

  “Gabriel!” she said excitedly. “What the fuck, you’re back? Where’s Melissa?”

  “She’s not with me. She must be with her boyfriend,” Gabriel said as diplomatically as he could.

  “Boyfriend? What boyfriend?”

  “Come on, Alex, you don’t have to pretend. I know about him and I’m not thrilled, but I get it.”

  “Hold on, Gabriel. You may think you know something, but you are way off,” she said testily.

  “It’s okay, Alex, you don’t have to lie for my benefit.”

  “First of all, I am not a liar, and second of all, how dare you even say that about Melissa when all she’s done for the last five months is whine and moan about you, waiting for you to come back.”

  “I saw them! I saw her with him, with my own two eyes. And so did he,” Gabriel said and gestured to Yoshi who stood beside him.

  “Look, I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about or what you think you saw, but she definitely does not have a boyfriend.”

  “Alex, stop it. I know okay, I know about Eric Sala, that she’s dating him.”

  Alexandra wrinkled her nose in disgust.

  “Are you out of your fucking mind!” she exploded. “You must be if you think she’d date that asshole! You must have taken up smoking crack while you were gone if something that fucking stupid sounds right to you!”

  “We saw them together at her house, on her bed. They were hugging,” Gabriel spat. “Tell her Yoshi.”

  Gabriel turned to Yoshi expecting him to deliver a full report to Alexandra. But instead of a detailed account of what he saw at Melissa’s, he simply stood, as if frozen, with his lips slightly parted, unblinking, staring at Alexandra.

  “Yoshi!” Gabriel barked.

  Yoshi remained silent as if entranced by Alexandra’s presence. Th
e only discernible change in his demeanor was his coloring. His cheeks flushed to a shade of scarlet Gabriel had only seen him wear when training intensely.

  “Tell her what we saw,” Gabriel attempted again.

  Finally, his friend responded with pressured speech that was almost unintelligible.

  “We saw them at her house,” he said firing the words in rapid succession before tuning a deeper shade of garnet.

  “What?” Alexandra asked incredulously. “There’s no way. I don’t know what you think you saw, but I would know if she was hanging out with Eric.”

  “Where is she today then?” Gabriel questioned.

  “I don’t know. I was getting a little worried she was sick or something because I’ve been calling her cell phone since last night and she hasn’t returned any of my calls.”

  “That’s because she’s with Eric,” Gabriel enunciated each word to punctuate his point. “Eric isn’t in school today either. You do the math.”

  “There is no fucking way. Something’s wrong here.”

  “Well, we are going to find her. I don’t care who she’s dating,” Gabriel lied. “I just need to make sure she’s safe.”

  “Safe from what?”

  “From Kevin, Chris, and John.”

  “Let me get the rest of my stuff from my car and I’ll come with you.”

  “No. Just stay here. I don’t want you cutting school and getting your car taken away again.”

  “Cut the shit, Gabriel! I’m coming with you.”

  “Alex, no!”

  Alexandra pushed passed Gabriel and Yoshi and then turned back to them.

  “If something’s wrong with my friend and you think I’m staying here, you’re definitely on crack,” she asserted then tapped her foot impatiently.

  Gabriel unlocked the Cherokee with a push of a button on his keychain. The car beeped twice and the headlights flashed.

  Alexandra called out “Shotgun!” then proceeded to climb into the front seat. Yoshi stood with his hands out, palms facing upward with a look of bewilderment on his face. Shocked by the turn of events, he reluctantly assumed his seat in the rear of the vehicle.

  Gabriel climbed into the driver’s seat, turned the key in the ignition and they left the grounds of Harbingers High School in search of Melissa.