Fated Dreams (Book One In The Affinity series) (29 page)

Pain and
confusion swept across his face. “Why? I thought you wanted this,” he asked,
panting.

“I do, more
than you can imagine.”

“Then what’s
the problem?”

“I can’t
pretend I’m not angry with you for what you did. If you had just listened to
me, we wouldn’t have gone through the worst month of our lives. You broke my
heart, Lucas, literally. I felt, and still feel, empty inside. It was agony. It
will take me awhile to forgive you for that. And I can’t be with you until I do.”
My heart ached just thinking about it.

He looked away
from me to hide his face. “I will never forgive myself for hurting you. You
should call Derrick, it’s getting late.”

“I’m sorry, I
hate this.” My eyes stung and my throat burned. I turned away before the tears
started. I felt so bad for hurting him, but I needed to forgive before I gave
myself to him again. I took a moment and a couple of deep breaths before
calling Derrick, telling him that I was ready to be picked up.

After I hung
up, I picked up my laptop, placing it into my bag, and then put my mittens back
on; my hands were red from the cold.

Lucas walked
towards me. His face was blank. “I’ll walk you back.”

We made it a
few feet down the path, when something cold and wet touched my nose. I looked
up and noticed big flakes floating in the air. It was starting to snow, and it
was coming down pretty hard.

“Call the
detectives, tell them your plan, and then we’ll meet again. You can tell me
what the detective said. How about Wednesday?” He was looking up into the sky,
watching the snow fall.

“Or I could
call you and tell you what they said. I doubt whoever is doing this has our
phones tapped. But if we do meet again I’d rather it be indoors. It’s freezing,
and I’m not sitting in the snow.”

“Okay, just let
me know what you want to do.”

At the end of
the path, Derrick’s car was just pulling in.

I said goodbye
to Lucas and climbed into the SUV. I watched him walk away; his hair was
turning white as the snow started to pile on the top of his head.

“I hate snow,”
Emma whined from the front seat.

“Are you
kidding, I love it. Once the snow gets deep, I’ll take you for a ride on my
snowmobile,” Derrick said, getting excited over a few snowflakes.

I hated to
burst his bubble, but I could tell it wouldn’t last. The snow was melting as it
hit the ground.

After Derrick dropped me off at home, I
called Detective Franklin and told him my plan. He didn’t like it, but agreed
to try. He also said my dad and Lucas would not be involved. He would have
policemen waiting to ambush whoever came to attack me. The detectives wanted to
wait until they could put a plan in motion, and get back-up. He would let me
know when they were ready.

After I hung
up, I called Lucas to tell him what Detective Franklin said. He didn’t respond,
obviously not happy with the plan, but since it was my decision to make, he
didn’t have much say in the matter. The silence stretched out on the phone, and
when I could no longer take it, I said, “By the way, I’m sorry for taking the
picture of us. But it really did turn out great.”

There was a
brief pause before he spoke. “I’m glad you did. I meant to give you a copy, but
after the two threats on your life, it slipped my mind.” His voice was
strained, and I knew it was because I was going to go ahead with my plan
without his consent.

I didn’t think
there was anything left to say. “Well, I’ll let you know when I hear back from
Detective Franklin. I’ll see you at school.” I hung up feeling uncomfortable
and guilty.

“Dinner!” I heard my mom yell from the
kitchen. The delicious smell drifting up from the kitchen made me hungry.
Descending the stairs slowly, I tried to shake the guilty feeling I had while I
spoke to Lucas.

The table was
empty, my mother puttered in the kitchen, and from the beeps, music, and curses
from the couch, I knew without looking where my dad and brother were. Taking my
seat, I asked, “What’s for dinner, Mom?” I reached for my water glass and took
a sip.

She walked to
the table carrying a basket of bread. “Homemade chicken and vegetable soup.”
That wasn’t surprising, since my mom had roasted a chicken for dinner last
night. Usually about one to two nights later, we’d have homemade chicken and
something soup. It always had different ingredients except for one, the chicken
carcass. It sounded disgusting, but all the soup creations she came up with
always turned out good. Tonight was no different. I lifted my spoon to taste it
and was not disappointed; it was delicious.

My dad and Alex
finally shut the video game off and joined us at the table.

“You forgot to
turn off the TV, Jim,” my mom said disapprovingly. She didn’t allow us to have
the TV on while we ate dinner, a fact that my dad hated. He was constantly
trying to sneak away having “forgotten” to turn it off.

“Maggie, I want
to hear the news,” he whined.

“Fine, I’ll let
you ruin our dinner so you can listen to the news.”

My dad cringed
at the guilt she had just laid out, making no move to turn it off. We sat in
silence while we ate, listening to the drone of the TV in the background. I was
afraid to look up. I knew it must be driving my mom crazy.

I took a few
more bites and bravely lifted my eyes to see their expressions. My dad was
shoveling the soup into his mouth with record speed, never looking up from his
bowl. My mom was giving him her cold stare. “Too bad we can’t enjoy some peace
during our dinner. God knows we don’t get enough of it,” my mom mumbled,
staring at my dad. When he didn’t look up at her, she gave up and started
eating.

“The woman was
murdered in her own backyard, in a small subdivision just outside of Langton,”
the reporter from the news announced.

We all glanced
over at the TV. The kind of crime that was normally reported on our local news
was car thefts and fires. The only time we heard about people being killed was
from other cities. So to hear about some poor woman’s death in a city only an
hour away was definitely news. “Cool!” Alex mumbled with his mouth stuffed full
of bread.

“Alex Samson,
there is nothing cool about some poor woman being killed!” my mom scolded him.

“I know. It’s
just that nothing like that ever happens around here.”

“That’s a good
thing. It’s horrible. She was murdered right in her own backyard. It reminds me
of my Great-Aunt Kathleen. Remember I told you about her, Jim?” she said,
pointing at him with her spoon. He nodded as he slurped his soup.

“Uhh hmpf cu!”
That was me gasping and sucking soup into my windpipe. I started coughing and
wheezing, trying to breathe. “Uh…did you just say your Great-Aunt Kathleen was
murdered?” I wiped the tears that fell after I choked and took another sip of
water.

“Yes, my poor
grandmother was devastated; she and her sister were so close. She used to call
her Katie.”

“What did she
look like?” I asked, not believing it could be the same Katie.

“I don’t really
know, there weren’t a lot of pictures back then. But my grandmother told me
that you looked like her.” Her grandmother died when I was ten, and she was in
her late eighties, so I wasn’t sure how reliable her words were, but the name
was the same.

I was
speechless.

“Kathleen and
her fiancé were outside in their backyard when a teenager they went to school
with went at them with a butcher knife. Awful, isn’t it?” She took another bite
of soup and looked up at me. “My goodness, Sarah, are you okay? You’re as white
as a sheet.”

I tried to
compose myself. “Yes, Mom, I’m fine, it’s just that I can’t believe that
happened in our family.”

She nodded her
head. “I know, you never think it will happen to someone you know. My
grandmother never really got over it.” She continued speaking, but I had tuned
her out.

I couldn’t
believe it was her.

My mind was
full of fog. She was still talking, but her words blurred into one another.
“What was her last name, Mom?” I interrupted her, my voice raising a few
octaves.

She stopped
speaking and glanced at me with a confused look on her face. “Simms. That was
my grandmother’s maiden name.”

I shoved back
in my chair suddenly. The loud scrape startled my parents. “I just remembered I
left a sweater at Lucas’. I’m going to run over and get it, I won’t be long.”

“It’s just a
sweater. Have him bring it to school tomorrow. You’re not supposed to travel
alone, remember?” my dad said with a firm tone. He had no intention of letting
me go.

“Dad, I won’t
be long. I’ll call you when I get there and when I leave. Please.” I pleaded
with my eyes, the way I used to when I was a kid; he always said he couldn’t
resist me.

Obviously, I
had outgrown my persuasion, because his expression did not change. “You’re not
going, and that’s the end of it.”

“Fine, can you
drive me then, I need to see him.”

His face
softened. “Fine, let’s go.”

I beat him to
the door. “I’ll meet you in the car, hurry up.” I slammed the door. Before I
reached his car, I realized that in my haste, I had forgotten my coat, and the
snow had turned to rain. Thankfully, I was wearing a warm sweater. I climbed
into my dad’s SUV and honked the horn. A few seconds later the front door
opened, and he rushed over. He wasn’t wearing a jacket either.

As we drove to
Lucas’, the rain started to come down harder. It was dark, and with the fat
raindrops crashing down on the windshield, my dad could barely see. He grumbled
constantly about me making him go out in this weather. I ignored him, concentrating
instead on what I needed to tell Lucas.

Once in Lucas’
driveway I rushed out, leaving my dad to wait in the car, promising I wouldn’t
be long.

After a hard
knock on the door, it swung open. “Sarah! You look like a drowned rat. Come
in,” his father said, pulling me inside. I stumbled over the step, but he
caught me. “Hi, Mr. Tate, is Lucas here?” I asked, my teeth chattering.

“Yes, he is.
Lucas!” he turned to the kitchen and yelled. “He’s probably downstairs taking a
round out on the heavy bag. That’s all he’s done since you two broke up.” It
wasn’t long before I heard heavy footsteps coming from the kitchen.

“Sarah! What
are you doing here?” Lucas asked, walking toward me. His face was flushed and
glistening with sweat. His father was right about his working out.

Nick was
escorting me to the living room where Karen was watching TV.

“Sarah you’re
soaked. Where’s you’re coat?” Karen asked me.

“I forgot it.
I’m sorry I’m dripping on your floor.” My shivering slowed slightly as I stood
next to the fireplace.

“Luke, take her
to your room and get her some dry clothes,” she instructed. As I walked passed
her, I could have sworn she was smiling.

In his room,
Lucas dug through his dresser, pulling out a pair of his plaid cotton pants and
a Hamilton High Basketball sweatshirt. “They won’t fit, but at least they’re
dry. I’ll be right back; I’ll get a towel for your hair.” He walked out of the
room with a confused glance my way.

While he was
gone I quickly changed into the dry clothes. I was just pulling the sweatshirt
over my head when he opened the door.

He stared at me
as I slid the shirt down over my stomach. I blushed at his intense gaze.
“Here,” he said, tossing me the towel. He cleared his throat. “After this
afternoon, I’m surprised to see you. I thought you were mad at me.”

The kiss we
shared earlier popped into my head. I quickly pushed the image away. “Katie
Simms was my great-great-aunt.”

His eyes
widened. “What?” he whispered, after about half a minute of silence.

“Yep, you heard
me. We were listening to the news during dinner, and they reported that someone
was murdered in their backyard. It reminded my mom of her grandmother’s sister
that was murdered in her backyard.”

“Wow. Do you
think I’m related to David since we look so much alike?” he asked, shoving his
hands into the pocket of his jeans.

“Yep, that’s
what I was thinking. And on the way over here, I thought it would come in handy
if we could track down Tony’s relatives. If we could get a good look at them,
maybe someone might look familiar. All this might finally be over.” I patted my
head with the towel. When my hair was no longer dripping, I hung the towel on
the hook on the back of his door.

“Let’s go ask
my parents then,” Lucas said, grabbing my arm and pulling me out the door.

Back in the
living room, we sat down on one of the couches, trying to look natural. Of
course, I felt stupid in Lucas’ oversized clothes. His parents were watching a
movie. They both looked up at us. “Is there something you want?” Karen asked.

“No, we just
thought we would come out and watch the movie with you before Sarah has to
leave,” Lucas said, trying to sound casual. I was sure they didn’t buy it, but
they turned their heads back to the TV. I tried to focus on the movie, but it
was hard. I just wanted to blurt out and ask if they had any relatives that
were murdered. But if we did that, they would ask questions, and the answers
were just too weird. Luck was with us because in the movie someone was stabbed
in the shower. Original, I know, but it worked for us. I elbowed Lucas in the
ribs, so he would ask the question. I couldn’t stay here much longer with my
dad outside.

He groaned.
“Sarah was just telling me what she saw on the news today. A lady was stabbed
in her backyard in Langton.”

His mom glanced
at us. “Really, that is awful, when did that happen?”

“They found her
today,” I said, hoping it would remind them, like it did with my mom, but they
turned back to the TV.

“My mom said it
reminded her of a murder in my family a long time ago. Was anyone in your family
ever killed?”

They seemed to
think the question was strange; they just looked at me and shook their heads.
Probably wondering why we were being so morbid, with all this talk of murder.
We gave it a few more minutes before we slowly stood up.

We were about
to turn the corner into the hall leading to Lucas’ room when we heard his dad
say, “Well, there was one murder in my family. I had forgotten about it, it was
so long ago. My grandmother’s brother was killed in his girlfriend’s backyard,
by someone he knew. That’s weird, I hadn’t thought of that since I was a kid,
when my dad told me.”

We went back to
stand beside them, Lucas leaning against the couch.

“You never told
me this,” his mom said.

“I just
remembered,” his dad said as he pushed pause on the DVD remote.

“What was his
name?” Lucas asked.

His father was
quiet for a few minutes, thinking. “David Wilson, that’s it,” he said, pointing
to Lucas and shaking his head. “I can’t believe I remembered that.”

Lucas grabbed
my hand; his felt a little shaky. His mother glanced at our hands and smiled. I
didn’t want her to get the wrong idea, so I pulled mine back and walked to his
room, with him following behind me.

“Wow. I can’t
believe we’re related to them,” he said, reeling, once we were safe behind closed
doors.

“Well, it does
make sense; why else would we look alike? We need to get together again so we
can research Tony’s family on the Internet. Can I come over tomorrow? My house
isn’t good; you may not be welcome there.”

Pain flashed
briefly across his face but was gone the next second. “Yeah that’s fine. Just
tell your mom you’re going home with Emma. I’ll take you home later.”

I stood
awkwardly in front of him, unsure of what else to say. “Well, I should go, my
dad’s waiting. I’ll see you at school.” I picked up my wet clothes. “I’ll bring
these back to you tomorrow.” I tugged at his sweatshirt and then gave him an
awkward wave as I left his room. He seemed disappointed that I was leaving.
This was going to be hard.

My dad was
sleeping when I approached his car, until I opened the door. His eyes popped
open, and he glared at me.

“I’m sorry, I
couldn’t find the sweater,” I lied. He just shook his head and pulled out of
the driveway. As we turned back onto the road, I could have sworn I saw someone
staring out at me from the bushes. But as I turned back, they were gone. I must
have imagined it. If we didn’t figure out what was happening soon, I would
slowly go crazy.

I woke up the next morning feeling
comfortable and cozy wrapped in Lucas’ sweatshirt. I decided to keep the
clothes so I could wear them when I missed him. He might want them back, but I
really didn’t care. After I had my shower and got dressed for school, I went
down to eat breakfast.