The Appeal of Evil (The Road to Salvation) (3 page)

Katie opened her mouth to protest, but Josh had already taken off. Other students moved out of his way as he stomped down the hall, determination on his face. He was half way to the locker when Wes noticed him. With a scowl, he pushed himself away from the door and headed down the hall. Inwardly, Katie sighed. Josh followed him for a moment, probably to make sure he didn’t hide around the corner and wait. Eventually, he turned back to her and jerked his head to the right, indicating it was now safe for her to approach. Katie nodded once before heading toward her locker.

“Persistent, isn’t he?” Josh placed his back against the lockers and kept his eyes on the hall before him.

He was so close, Katie’s hand brushed against his arm as she grabbed her backpack and homework out of the locker. She hardly noticed. Her mind focused on Wes and attempted to figure out what he was doing.

“He never used to be,” Katie said quietly.

Josh turned his gaze on her. “What do you mean?”

She placed her backpack strap on her shoulder and closed the locker door, a little more forcefully than she intended. Several of the nearby students jerked their heads upward and stared at her intently, waiting to see what she’d do next. After a few seconds, when nothing happened, they turned back to what they were doing.

“I mean, I’ve known Wes for a long time. Since kindergarten, and he’s never gone out of his way to hunt me down before.”

Josh pushed himself away from the locker, and they headed down the hall. “So what exactly happened in gym today? Were you two having a lover’s quarrel?”

“Absolutely not!” Again, she was louder than she wanted to be and turned several students’ heads. She cleared her throat and lowered her voice. “He has this weird thing, I don’t really know how to explain it, of keeping me on the hook.” She sighed and cocked her head to the right to look at him. “Does that make sense?”

“Not really.”

She pursed her lips. She didn’t want to go into too much detail about her and Wes’s relationship, but it looked like she didn’t have a choice. How would Josh react? He had been kind enough to step in and defend her; the least she could do was let him know what he was defending. She took another breath and averted her gaze to the floor.

“See, I’ve had a crush on Wes since I was six. But he’s never returned those feelings.” The last set of words rushed out of her mouth, as if she was afraid he’d leave before she got the chance to say them. “Every time I try to get over him, he does something that sucks me back in, makes me think he might actually care for me.” She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, trying to gauge his reaction. “But since this summer, I decided I wasn’t going to let him do that to me anymore. I was done with him. For good. What you saw in the gym was him trying to pull me back in and me fighting against it.”

Josh nodded. “Makes sense.” He stopped in front of his locker and turned the combo.

Makes sense? Was that all he was going to say? He wasn’t going to comment on how he felt about it? Was he having regrets? Second thoughts? What was going on in his brain? 

He finished getting his stuff out of his locker and closed it. He turned and smiled.

“You ready?”

Her worries were forgotten. Who cared what he thought? He was still interested, he was still going to take her home, and that was all that mattered.

***

Katie fumbled with her backpack strap, trying to procrastinate getting out of the car, but not trying to look like that’s what she was doing. This was the first time she’d been in a car with a boy, and she didn’t know the protocol. Still, she couldn’t sit there forever. With each passing second, she grew more and more uncomfortable and her fake fumbling turned into real fumbling.

“Well, thanks for the ride.”

Josh placed his elbow on the middle console and leaned to the side. He was inches from her. Oh, God! Was he going to try to kiss her? Katie’s stomach knotted. She wasn’t ready for that. It was too soon. She hardly knew him. She hadn’t brushed her teeth all day. Yet, there was something intriguing about his lips. They looked soft and inviting. What would they feel like against hers?

Josh chuckled. “Not a problem. I’m glad I can be of service. Hand me your cell phone.” 

It wasn’t what Katie expected him to say, and it took her a moment to find her voice.  “My phone? Why?”

“So I can give you my number and you can call me if Wes bothers you again.”

“Oh. Okay.” She opened her bag and dug through her books. It took a while, but she found her phone and handed it to Josh.

“Here’s mine. Put your number in there.”

Katie did as he asked, then handed the phone back. As she did, his fingers brushed against her hand, sending chills up her arm, causing her breath to catch.

“You want me to pick you up tomorrow?” His voice was low, sensual.

Katie’s heart skipped a beat. “Yeah. That would be great.” She cleared her throat and shrugged her shoulder. Did she really sound that desperate? “I mean, if you want.” Was that enough to sound nonchalant?

Josh chuckled again. “I’ll be here at seven-thirty.”

“Okay.” Katie breathed.

She stared into his eyes for a few seconds, then fumbled for the door handle. Getting out, she tripped over the curb, but caught herself before falling on her face. She turned back to the car and peered into the window.

“Thanks again for the ride. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Josh smiled his wonderful smile. “See you tomorrow.”

Katie took a step back and watched him drive down the street before turning to go into the house. She wanted to skip and kick her heels in the air, but she was afraid if she did, she would drift away into the clouds.

KATIE HALF-EXPECTED
Wes to show up at her house later that night. He seemed so desperate to talk to her after the gym incident, but as usual, he didn’t. Katie didn’t know if that relieved or saddened her. She was proud of herself for sticking to her word and not letting Wes draw her back in, but part of her also felt guilty. Whether she liked it or not, Wes knew a lot about her. When he wanted to be around, he was a great listener. He’d been there on many occasions when she needed a shoulder to cry on or advice. It would have been nice to be able to talk to him about Josh. He probably would have some great ideas on how to handle the situation, and as a boy, he could tell her what to expect or maybe what Josh was thinking. Wes could be a jerk, but he was also one of Katie’s best friends. Being in his presence made her feel safe. She couldn’t explain why, but when Wes was close, it made her believe nothing could hurt her. Except him. But, she reminded herself, for every moment he’d been there for her, there were twice as many when he let her down.

Still, she couldn’t stop her gaze from drifting away from the TV and out the front window toward his house. She frowned. All the lights were out; the windows were dark. He wasn’t home. As usual. But where did he go? Katie knew it was only him and his dad that lived in the house. She didn’t have details about what happened to his mom, only that it was something really bad. Wes had told her that; then his eyes filled with tears, and he turned away before Katie saw them fall. She’d never met his dad. Once, she saw him through the open front door while she stood on the porch, but that was it. What did he do? Wes said he worked at night and slept during the day, so no one was allowed in his house, ever. That didn’t really bother Katie. She and the other kids in the neighborhood made up their own stories about Wes’s dad, and most of them involved murder and children disappearing. Katie never wanted to meet the man.

Katie often wondered if his dad was part of the reason Wes wasn’t allowed to see her.  She figured that somehow he found out about Wes and Katie and forbid his son from seeing her again. That’s what she used to tell herself anyway. It made her feel like less of a loser to think someone else held Wes back. That’s probably where he was now. His dad probably found out about what happened at school and took Wes to work with him to keep him out of trouble. She sighed. What did it matter? If it was Wes or his dad, there was no way they could ever have a normal relationship, so why worry about it? She turned back to the TV. But between her and Josh, anything was possible.

As if on cue, her phone rang. She picked it up off the couch. Josh’s name and number were highlighted on the screen. Stifling a squeal, she hurried upstairs to her room so her mom couldn’t overhear the conversation.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Katie. You all right? You sound out of breath.”

Katie flopped onto her bed, her face turned red. “Yeah, I’m fine. I didn’t realize I’d left my phone upstairs, so I ran to get it.” She hoped he believed the lie.

“Oh, gotcha. Yeah, I hate it when I leave my phone in the other room. So, how are things going? You have a good night?”

“Sure. It was pretty typical. Nothing exciting to report.”

“So no visits from Wes?”

Was that the only thing he cared about? Would he lose interest in her if Wes wasn’t bothering her anymore? Should she lie and tell him he showed up?

“Nope. It’s been quiet.” The words came out of her mouth before she had the chance to decide if that was what she really wanted to say.

“Good. Glad to hear it. You have any plans this weekend?”

Katie’s heart fluttered and she bit her bottom lip to keep from squealing. “No. I think it’s wide open.” Of course it was wide open. Volleyball hadn’t started yet and she hadn’t heard from Deb that she wanted to do something.

“Cool. We should catch a movie.”

She did a fist pump in the air and kicked her feet in rapid succession against her bed.  “That sounds great.”

“Nice. Well, I won’t keep you. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Okay. Have a good night.”

“You too, Katie.”

She clicked end on her phone and flung herself onto her back. In excitement and joy, she flopped around for a while, a happy dance while lying down. She was elated and a little disbelieving she actually had a date with Josh. If she had known that would happen, she would have quit pining after Wes a long time ago.

***

Katie had a hard time sleeping. She dreamt she was in a large room surrounded by darkness. She didn’t know where she was, but the floor was concrete and sounds echoed eerily from a distance. Her mind told her it was a warehouse, but why would she be in a warehouse? She wasn’t alone. Things were in the shadows. What kind of things, she didn’t know. They scurried across the floor, their feet making scraping sounds, and they hissed. Occasionally, pinpoints of white lights shone through the blackness, looking almost like eyes. Every time Katie tried to focus on those lights, they’d blur and vanish.

Fear surged through her body. She crouched on the floor, glancing around, wondering if an attack would come. The overwhelming desire to run made her legs twitch, but she couldn’t move. Her muscles wouldn’t obey her commands. The darkness closed in. The creatures came with it, getting closer and closer to her. She pulled herself into a ball, hoping to fold in on herself. She wanted to scream, but no sound came out of her mouth. Soon, the darkness was on her, and with it, an unnatural chill. Goosebumps formed on her flesh, and she shivered. Something breathed on the back of her neck.

Katie jerked awake and sucked in a sharp breath. The fear from the dream lingered. The darkness still surrounded her. It took her a moment to realize she was in her room. A streak of silver light from the moon penetrated through her curtains, giving her a dull source of light to cling to. She stared at it for a long time, her hand on her forehead, as the remnants of the dream lingered in her mind. Where had that come from? It seemed so real, so vivid, but nightmares always did. She threw off the covers and headed to the bathroom.

After taking care of business and getting a drink of water, she crawled back into bed. Still, sleep didn’t come easily, and visions of the nightmare remained in her brain. She rolled onto her right side and tucked her arm under her head. Just as she was about to close her eyes, she sensed something behind her. Before she could turn, a hand clamped over her mouth, stifling a scream. Katie struggled and flailed against the attacker, but the grip was too strong. It pulled her backward, right into a body. The warmth radiated through her t-shirt, an arm wrapped around her chest. Warm breath tickled her ear and neck. There was something familiar about the grasp. She stopped struggling and turned to look over her shoulder.

The fear that had consumed her body and caused her heart to pound against her rib cage subsided, replaced with anger. She grabbed the hand over her mouth and pulled it roughly away.

“Wes,” she hissed. “What are you doing here?” She struggled against his grip, but he wouldn’t let go. “How did you get into my room?”

“I’m sorry,” he whispered in her ear. 

Katie quit trying to get away from him. Even in his soft tone, she heard the sadness, sensed his desperation. What was going on?

“I didn’t mean to scare you, but I’ve been trying to talk to you all day.” His voice quaked. Was he crying?

Katie had to hold onto her resolve, her anger. Who did this guy think he was sneaking into her bedroom at 3:00 in the morning?

“Yeah, well, there is such a thing as a phone.”

“Would you have answered it if you knew it was me?”

She didn’t respond. He had her there. She wouldn’t have picked up. Still, this was beyond creepy, even for him.

“What do you want?” She gritted her teeth and grabbed a handful of sheet. If he loosened his grip even a little, she was going to pull away from him.

He lowered his head so he nuzzled her neck. His lips were on her skin, but he wasn’t kissing her. All the anger drained from her body, and her hand relaxed its grip on the sheets. The gesture should have sent warning bells off in her head, made her wonder what he was doing, made her feel like her body was in danger. Instead, all she felt was safe, comforted. She closed her eyes and relished the feel of his breath on her neck, the warmth of his chest against her back, the strength of his arm around her.

“I want you to know that I’m sorry for everything. For not being there, for making you think I don’t care.” His voice caught. Pools of moisture formed on her skin. She was convinced he was crying. “And I want you to stay away from Josh.”