Another Dawn (58 page)

      
Luke wanted to hold her. He wanted to wrap his arms around her. "Thank you for telling me."
 
His throat burned from the smoke and they both coughed. "I love you, Sofie, no matter what. None of this is your fault."

      
"I tried to stop them."
 
Her voice dripped acid. "I was up all night, trying to reach congressmen, judges, lawyers, the governor."
 
She coughed again. "I even called the White House."

      
"You did?" He rested his head against her chest, feeling her chin on top of his head. They couldn't hold each other while they died, but they were together. Still, he wished there were some way to free her from this nightmare. She didn't deserve this.

      
Neither of them did.

      
More sections of rock and steel tumbled from the ceiling. Luke tried to see through the smoke, spotting Graham near the entrance. The creep stood there staring.

      
Sofie lifted her head to look down at Luke's face. "Kiss me."

      
He met her lips, pouring all his love into it. If only he could set her free...

      
As the flames grew hotter, a commotion erupted near the entrance. Luke and Sofie both turned to watch Zeke and Ab rush in and struggle with Graham.

      
More of the ceiling came down, then a low buzz commenced in the chair. A familiar sensation. "My God."

      
Though he felt no pain, he recognized the unholy zing of the electric chair.

      
Another section of ceiling fell. "Cave-in," Zeke yelled. "We gotta save 'em."

      
"Can't, Zeke," Ab called over the falling debris. "God forgive us."

      
Luke saw Ab forcing Graham through the entrance. "You're gonna hang, Smith."

      
Zeke looked back over his shoulder and looked up. "I'm comin' for you, Padre," he called just as a huge section of ceiling and rock fell, blocking the entrance forever. Luke prayed Zeke had escaped before it was too late.

      
Then the flames grew and the impossible electrical current intensified. Luke lifted his face to his wife and met her lips again.

      
One last time.

Chapter 23

Denver, Colorado–Present Day.

      
Sofie Danzano pulled her Volkswagen into a parking place across the street from the brownstone with the bright orange awning. Her heart hammered into her ribs and her palms grew sweaty against the steering wheel.

      
With trembling fingers, she reached for the magazine article again. The caption under the photograph gave the street address. This was definitely the right place.

      
But was it
the
place?

      
She combed her fingers through her hair and used the rear view mirror to freshen her lipstick. She'd waited all her life for this day. Maybe she was nuts, but she had to know once and for all.

      
Climbing from the car, she slung the straps of her leather backpack over her shoulder and slammed the door. She stood there for several moments, still holding the magazine in her hand.

      
Memories of the dreams that had plagued her since puberty flooded her mind. Dreams she wasn't sure were dreams at all, where she'd stood on this street and had visited that building. She'd been raised in Pueblo, not Denver, but this place haunted her for a reason. She'd been here before. She knew it in her heart and soul.

      
Reincarnation? Maybe. All she knew was the street lawyer in the magazine article was Luke Nolan.

      
Her Luke. Her husband in another place. Another time.

      
"Welcome to the
Twilight Zone."
 
She almost never read magazines–what medical student had the time?–but being stranded for two hours in DIA while the airline found her luggage, she'd had nothing better to do.

      
Fate had led her to this particular issue of this particular magazine. She didn't doubt that for a minute.

      
She was scheduled to begin her residency here in Denver next month, but she had a few free weeks to investigate this mystery. Turning the page, she looked at the man's photo again. He had long, wavy hair pulled into a ponytail. Though the hair bore no resemblance to the man in her dreams, the face was his.

      
And the name.

      
He was an attorney–a street lawyer. The article told of his altruism and endless hours of community service. Yes, this sounded like something her Luke would have done, given the chance.

      
Filled with determination, she stuffed the magazine into her backpack and removed her sunglasses, dropping them into her pocket. She wanted to see his expression when he saw her for the first time. Again.

      
This was nuts. She was nuts. But she had to know. She'd never been able to have a serious relationship, because she felt connected–married?–to Luke Nolan. A man she'd never actually met.

      
Or had she?

      
The door squeaked and a bell jingled as she stepped inside. For a moment, she was mentally transported back to 1891, when she'd last visited this place. But it looked different now. A glass case filled with shoe paraphernalia and a modern cash register occupied one side of the front room. The dressing room where she'd been kidnapped by that maniac had a door on it instead of a curtain.

      
But it was still the same place.

      
The bricks were gone from the back wall, too. Did that mean–

      
"Ah, it's a beautiful morning."
 
An elderly gentleman walked into the room, smiling. "May I help you?"

      
"Yes, I hope so."
 
She swallowed hard. Was this Luke's grandfather, alive and healthy? She put out her hand. "My name is Sofie Dan–"

      
"Sofie?" The man's eyes widened. "Sofie? Tell me, how do you spell it?"

      
Smiling, she answered. Once upon a time, Luke had asked her that same question.

      
"Amazing."
 
His smile was wide and welcoming. "My wife and I, we believe in miracles."

      
A shiver skittered down her spine. "Miracles?"

      
"Yes, miracles."
 
His expression became intense as he stared at her. "I'm Albert Nolan."

      
"I...I guessed. I'm pleased to meet you, Mr. Nolan."
 
Sofie opened her backpack and showed him the article. "I'm looking for–"

      
"My grandson, of course."
 
He winked. "His office is through the door in the back room and up the stairs."

      
It's almost as if he expected me
. Sofie stared at Mr. Nolan for several moments. "Do you...know why I'm here?"

      
"Go talk to Luke, darlin'."
 
He chuckled quietly. "Sure took your time about getting here. Wait 'til I tell his grandmother. She'll be delighted."

      
Stunned, Sofie tucked the magazine under her arm and went into the back of the store. She opened the door that led to a tall, narrow staircase and climbed to the second floor.

      
An open window at the top of the stairs provided a gentle breeze, and she paused for a moment to cool off and gather her wits. She half-expected to awaken and learn she'd fallen into the SciFy Channel.

      
She proceeded down the narrow hallway. The door at the end stood open, and the breeze from behind her flowed past her and into the room ahead.

      
He had his back to her. The dark, wavy ponytail made her doubt again that this could be the same short-haired man she'd fallen in love with and married in 1891.

      
She almost changed her mind as she stood frozen there in the doorway. A glass display case caught her eye and she took a few steps over to glance into it. Procrastinating.
 

      
But her heart almost stopped as she focused on the case's contents. There in the case were the Bible and crucifix she remembered. Before she could look at the other objects, she heard the chair squeak behind her.

      
As she turned to face him, her head swam and her heart made an illegal U-turn in her chest. His eyes widened and he removed his small, wire-rimmed glasses as he rose slowly from his chair. "Sofie," he whispered, dropping the glasses onto his desk. "Sofie."

      
Her eyes stung with tears as he walked around the desk and stood in front of her. This was her Luke. All her doubts fled as she gazed into his beautiful gray eyes. This man had been her husband. She knew it in her heart and in her soul.

      
"Luke?" Her voice cracked and tears streamed down her face. So much for mascara. "You...remember me? Know me?"

      
"My God, I can't believe it's really you."
 
He drew a deep breath, then released it shakily. "I'm so glad you're here."

      
She nodded and turned to look in the case again. "I recognize the Bible and crucifix."
 
When she looked at him again, he smiled. He stood so close she could feel him, smell him, almost touch him.

      
The urge to throw herself into his arms was almost overwhelming, but she held herself back. No need to scare him away now that she'd finally found him.

      
"I...I don't understand any of this," she said quietly, facing him again. The special energy that always flowed between them was still present, as it had been in the past and in her dreams. "Was it another lifetime?"

      
He shook his head. "I don't know exactly."
 
Tilting his head to one side, he smiled again. "All I know is when Grandpa and I tore the bricks out downstairs, we found these things with three letters."
 
He shook his head and chuckled. "They're in my handwriting, and there was a note in his."

      
"I remember," she said, transfixed.

      
He held her gaze with his. "And I remember the night before."

      
"Our wedding night."
 
Heat flooded Sofie's face and she averted her gaze.

      
Silence stretched between them, then Luke opened the glass case and removed a small, silver object. "Do you remember this?"

 
      
He handed the item to her, and Sofie turned it over in her hand. "Yes."
 
She smiled and held the tarnished silver closer. "My I.D. bracelet. No wonder your grandfather asked me how to spell my name."