The Watcher (22 page)

“I’m finally all moved in,” I said, just to make conversation to keep him with me a little longer. I opened the door and let him peek inside. “I’ll give you a better look when my boxes are unpacked,” I said with a smile.

“It’s very...cozy,” he replied, returning my smile and pulling me close. “I can’t wait to see it when it’s finished, especially if you give me a naked tour.” I chuckled quietly and asked if I could call him tomorrow when I was finished setting it up. I lowered my head, waiting for him to say we should take some time and not rush into anything.

“Lily, you never have to ask if you can call me. Call me any time you want. Would you like me to come over when you’re settled?” he said as he took one of my hands in his and brought it to his lips.

“I’d love that,” I whispered as I looked up into his eyes. The darkness from earlier wasn’t there, but I could see a hint of mischievousness mixed in with adoration. Did I feel like this was moving too fast? Shouldn’t I feel like that? Who was I to know what encompassed moving at a decent speed. You could know someone better in a few days than you could know someone else in a few years...like Ryan.

He lowered my hand and brought me into his arms, holding me tightly against him. I held onto him and thought about everything that had happened between us so far. It occurred to me he hadn’t mentioned Rosy. Should I even say anything about that? After all he’d shared, was it fair to bring up some a small topic?

“I will tell you more about Rosy and our past tomorrow night, if you’d like. I promise you that she was before I had even met you. So please stop worrying about that. There’s also more to my story that you need to hear, so long as you’re ready to know everything. I don’t want you to pull away or be frightened of me.” Damn, he keeps invading my thoughts.

I sighed and pulled away slightly, “I need to get used to you hearing my thoughts, huh? Yes, I want to hear about Rosy. I still don’t like the fact that I found out about her the way I did or that you kept it from me. I know we’ve only known each other a short time, but that seems like it was an important tidbit. I want to know you, Gabriel. All of you...even the not so shiny parts.”

“I’ll show you my not so shiny parts if you show me yours,” he grinned almost boyishly.

“Oh jeez,” I snorted. “You’re a brat!” Giggling, I pulled him closer and talked into his shoulder. “Tomorrow night, let’s just have a normal stay at home date. No heavy talk, no talk of our pasts. Let’s rent a movie, order in, and relax. I think we could both use that.”

“Sounds like heaven,” he replied with a sigh. He kissed me on the forehead and made sure I went in and locked the door. Once inside I flipped on the light and leaned my back against the door. I took a deep breath and tried to let the stresses of the past week go. That’s when I noticed something on my dining room table. It looked to be a figurine of some sort. I wondered if Ryan had stopped by at some point and was still trying to butter me up. I walked over to the table to get a closer look and a scream caught in my throat. It was a porcelain angel and its black wings had been broken off and shattered. Next to it was a note written in a fancy script of some sort. When I read it, the tears began streaming down my face and my hands began to shake.

“Be careful, kitten. Curiosity killed the cat.”

*****

Lily

The note fell from my hand and I collapsed to the floor, bringing my knees to my chest. My cats were wandering around me so I knew no one was here with me. I stared at the wall, trying to figure out what the note meant. What was I being curious about? How did they know Gabriel’s pet name for me? Obviously it was someone who knew his secret and knew about me. Fuck, was it Rosy?

Was Rosy trying to warn me away from Gabriel because she still loved him? Maybe she was a fallen angel too and was afraid Gabriel was going to give her secret away. No, that was too farfetched. Maybe she was just a jilted lover who wanted him back and thought that scare tactics would work. It had to be her. Who else knew about him?

I carefully picked the note back up, trying not to get my fingerprints all over it. I placed it back in its place by the figurine and snapped a picture of it and sent it to Gabriel with the caption “Came home to a present.” Almost immediately he called me.

“Lily, are you ok? Is someone still in your place? Tell me it’s raining outside if someone is still there?”

“No one is here Gabriel. My cats would have alerted me,” my voice was shaking and I could feel my legs begin to wobble. I walked over to my couch and sat down, leaning my head back on a pillow.

“What is this Gabriel? Is this a joke? Is this one of your exes? Should I call the police?”

“I’m on my way back, don’t touch anything and don’t leave. Lock your doors and wait for me to get there before you call the police. I want to take a closer look at the handwriting.”

“OK,” I said in a small voice. I hung up and tossed my phone to the end of the couch and waited for Gabriel to come back. He hadn’t gone that far and was back at my door in minutes, pounding on it let him in. I got off the couch, opened the door, and went to my kitchen to pour a drink. He rushed over to me, slamming the door behind him and wrapped his arms around me. His warmth started to melt the ice that seemed to have settled over my skin. I didn’t know if I was more scared or more furious.

“Someone is trying to sabotage us before we even start,” I said. “Is it Rosy?” I asked point blank. I was beyond playing coy at this point. The anger made me feel safer than the fear so I rolled with it. He ran his fingers through my hair and held me tighter,

“No one is going to come between us. I’ve only just gotten you, I’m not letting you go. Let me take a closer look at it and see if I recognize the writing.” He let me go and walked over to the table, careful not to touch anything. As he neared the note, he let out and audible, “Fuck!” and furiously ran his fingers through his hair. I was frozen to my spot in the kitchen as I watched him begin to pace back and forth.

“Gabriel, you’re scaring me. Who’s the note from?”

“Fuck!” he said louder. He stopped pacing and crossed his arms across his chest. He looked up at me and said, “I’ll take care of this, Lily. It’s not who you think it is. Let me handle it ok?”

“What do you mean it’s not who I think it is? Tell me what it means!” I cried. He was back to being this enigmatic man that I didn’t like. I thought we had crossed a bridge back in the forest and in the diner. He had been so open and honest, why was this side of him back?

“I can’t just yet. It’ll only make matters worse. I can’t tell you anything right now. The only thing I can do is stay away from you for a little while until this blows over.”

“Are you fucking kidding me Gabriel? Are we back here again? Didn’t today change anything? Can’t you see you can trust me with anything? You can tell me, I promise I can handle it, and we can deal with it together.”

“No, I’m sorry Lily, that’s not how this works. I have to go. Please don’t call the police. I’ll take care of it. You’re safe, so please don’t worry about that. I’ll call you in a week or so after I’ve handled things and we can have that stay in movie date.” He had grabbed the figurine and note as he was talking and shoved everything into his pockets. He came over and kissed my forehead then went to kiss my lips, but I pulled away.

“Get out,” I said quietly. He stared at me, stunned. Then his eyes hardened and he became a stranger to me once more. “Don’t bother calling me at all. I’m done.” He gave me a curt nod, just like Ryan used to do when I was angry and emotional, and walked out the door.

I tried not to cry, honestly I did, but I was weak. I’d been through too much in the last few weeks to even try to be strong. I went into the kitchen, poured myself two fingers of Jameson, and sank to the floor. I sipped on the whiskey, feeling it burn my throat, and cried into my glass. All sorts of clichéd country songs came to mind about crying into my whiskey, but I couldn’t even muster a smile. This was the final straw. As much as he had revealed about himself, I still knew next to nothing.

His scars and who he truly was didn’t change the fact that he’d lied to me or the fact that he was hiding things from me. That statue was in MY house and I deserved a god damned answer. I threw back the rest of the whiskey and stood up. Marching to my bathroom sink, I resolved to find out the truth whether Gabriel was going to tell me or not.

I rinsed my face, brushed my teeth, and got ready for bed. Checking my phone, my heart sank as I realized there were no texts or missed calls. Just once I wanted a man to fight for me. Was that too much to ask? I climbed into my new bed, glad I had splurged on the super soft sheets, and turned off the lights. Poe and Ted snuggled in with me and I let out a contented sigh. Perhaps I was simply meant to be single. I could be a crazy cat lady. I’d pretty much already been one for the last 10 years. Listening to the purrs I was soon fast asleep, the exhaustion hitting me hard. I dreamt of Gabriel again, in his true form.

My Immortal
by Evanescence was softly playing as I watched a young Gabriel cowering in the corner of a cage. He had to have been 13 or 14, but he was so small. I could see he was dirty and his ribs were showing as if he was rarely fed. I looked around and noticed the room was very dark and not much cleaner than his cage. I could hear what sounded like a circus announcer not too far away. There was a loud roar and then a round of applause. I tip toed past the cage, careful not to make any noise. I peeked out the slightly open door and saw a small audience sitting in a semicircle around some sort of makeshift stage.

The music wasn’t for the benefit of the show, it was simply part of the dream. I looked back at Gabriel, realizing I was once again in one of his dreams. This must have been the part of his past that he’d been reluctant to share with me earlier. My heart broke as he made eye contact with me. I could see the shame and fear in his eyes.

“Dammit Lily, how did you get here?” His voice was that of his 42 year old self and it sent shivers down my spine. He stood up and I cringed as I could see welts all over his body as though he had recently been whipped. His wings, those inky black beautiful wings I had seen in my last dream, spread out fiercely behind him. I could feel his anger at me coming off in waves and there was a blood red tint around the edges of his wings signaling that anger.

I couldn’t find my voice so I shrugged and slowly shook my head. I had no idea how I kept entering his dreams uninvited. Our connection must go deeper than either of us had realized. I walked over to the cage, trying not to be frightened by his wings and stuck my hand through the bars. He grasped my hand in his and pulled me closer.

“I love you,” he whispered. The applause came again and startled us both and causing us to jump apart. Loud and heavy footsteps started down the hall towards us and Gabriel began to shake.

“He’s coming Lily, I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you. I promise I’ll find you if he gets to you before me. I’ll do whatever it takes, kitten. NOW RUN!” he screamed. A force hit me and I was knocked backwards through what looked like a dark tunnel, away from Gabriel. I screamed “NOOOO!” and sat up with a start. I looked around not recognizing my surroundings and brought my fist to my mouth, stifling another scream.  It took me a minute to realize I was in my new place. I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself.

My phone vibrated with a new text message and it was from Gabriel. It only had one word in it: RUN. I tried calling him right away. It went right to voicemail. I heard my doorknob being jiggled and I jumped out of bed. I grabbed my phone and purse and a sweater, locked the cats in the bathroom with their food and litter boxes, and jumped out the open window. I had no idea what was happening or where I was even going to go, but I was definitely taking Gabriel’s command seriously. Right as I made my way to my car, a giant hand clamped over my mouth while an even bigger arm wrapped around my waist.

“We meet again, my fat slut,” came a familiar voice, causing my stomach to clench in fear. I recognized that voice from the night I first talked to Gabriel. Oh god, he’s come to finish what he started. I began to shake as that disgusting voice filled my head.

“Oh no love, I’ve simply used this body as a vessel. I’m not going to harm you, so long as you do exactly as I tell you. Easy enough, right love?” I nodded my consent as he turned me around to face him. His eyes were the exact same shade as Gabriel’s, but, where love filled Gabriel’s, hate and death filled his.

“That boy has something that belongs to me, and you’re going to help me get it back,” said Gabriel’s father, Azael was his name. He then proceeded to bind my hands, gag me, and blindfold me with a flick of his wrist. I started to struggle, trying to pull my hands free and scream at the same time, when I heard his voice inside my head.

“It will do you no good to fight it my dear. You’ll only hurt yourself.” Chills ran down my spine and I struggled to think about something to calm myself. I pictured Gabriel, dressed in his gray suit, holding a glass of wine and smiling that secret smile he saved just for me. Taking a few deep breaths, I was able to stop the urge to scream and held still.

Azael pulled me around to the passenger side of the car and shoved me roughly into the seat. Moments later we were speeding down the road. Half of me prayed that Gabriel would find me, but the other half of me knew this was a trap and prayed that he wouldn’t. His life meant so much more than mine. He had been through so much and deserved his happily ever after. I silently cursed his father and whoever had let him out of heaven. I tried paying attention to all the turns we were making, like I had seen in all the crime shows, but I was terrible with directions on a normal trip, let alone a blindfolded one.

We came to an abrupt stop and I slammed up against the seatbelt, bruising my collarbone. I sucked in a sharp breath, trying not to make any noise. Hearing the door open, I braced myself for Azael’s cruel touch. He yanked me from the car and all but dragged me across a cement lot and into a musty smelling building. The smell of rotting trash attacked my nose and I tried desperately not to gag. He pushed me onto the ground and I lost my balance, hitting my head on what must have been a wall. I could feel the skin break and the blood start to trickle down into my ear. Slowly I righted myself and sat down with my back against the wall. Thankfully my hands were bound in front of me so it made it easier to keep my bearings.

I felt him remove my cell phone from my pocket and saw a flash through my blindfold. The bastard had taken my picture! He was definitely going to bait Gabriel into trying to save me. I heard the text message send and heard his quiet laughter.

“One thing all men in love have in common? They are predictably stupid. He will come to save you and I will finally have a chance to take what rightly belongs to me.”  I started to protest and Azael was in front of me in a flash, the back of his hand connecting with my cheek, slamming my head back into the wall. The blood that was trickling was now flowing freely and my face started to throb. I whimpered quietly, raising my knees to my chest, trying to make myself as small as possible.

“Don’t bother, stupid girl. I’ve no interest in your pathetic attempt at changing my mind. Once Gabriel’s soul belongs to me, I will be the most powerful angel in heaven and will be able to claim whatever I want, including the throne. So now, we wait.”

I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, it could have been five minutes, it could have been five hours. I was in and out of consciousness, feeling the loss of blood. I heard a creaky door open and smelled a familiar cologne. My head snapped up and I tried to stand up, protesting through the gag tied around my face. My blindfold came off, followed by the gag, and I started screaming at Gabriel to run. No one paid me any attention. Gabriel and his father were staring each other down and I could see the anger coming off of Gabriel in hot, thick ripples in the air. Azael had opened his wings and they were the same inky black that I had seen on Gabriel in my dream. They fluttered softly in excitement, as Azael began to pace.

“Hello, dear son.”

*****

Gabriel

“I’m not your son, you disgusting piece of shit. Let her go before I tear you limb from limb.”

“Oh Gabriel, I’m not interested in her. It’s you I need. It turns out tearing your wings off and keeping them for my own was only half of what I needed. Although, it did feel mighty good to feel someone struggle, to feed off their fear again. Perhaps I’ll play with her a little more, and this time you can watch.”

“Over my dead body!” I shouted as I charged towards my father. I shouted at Lily to stay back as I ran full speed, preparing to tackle Azael. Then my father did something completely unexpected, he actually pulled out a gun. I had had this weird notion in my head that he would do something otherworldly to try to kill me, not something so…so…so human.