Everlasting (8 page)

I fumbled to the kitchen and flipped on the light. The thunder exploded. Each time a flash of light struck, I vaulted, the deafening crack splitting my eardrums. Still unable to comprehend what had just happened, I peered out the kitchen window, my eyes wild, searching for the cloaked being.

It was hard to see through the downpour, but I think whatever it was had gone, so I crumbled into a kitchen chair, my heart beating wildly, blood thrashing in my ears. Either I needed to see a head doctor or this place was getting weirder by the day. I didn’t know how much more I could sustain.

“
I
s that Tate’s dog
?” Mandy’s eyes sparked wide when her and Matt came walking in a couple hours later. The storm had let up, but water still dripped from the gutters.

“Yep, sure is.” I rubbed Symphony’s ears. “Found her out by the cemetery. She was coming out of the gate when I ran by. Can you believe it? I’ve no idea how she got out of the pound or what she was doing out there.”

My hands still quivered from the monster chase earlier, and I shoved them in my jacket pockets.

Mandy came close and gave Symphony a pat on the head. “Hum…how’d you get out there?” Symphony’s tongue lavished her face. “Yuck, you got me there.” She ran her hand down her cheek. “Wish she could tell us. I suppose she can stay here until you find Tate.”

“I hoped you didn’t care.”

Matt tossed me an absorbing smile. “Looks like you’re back to searching for Tate, again.”

“Guess so.” I wriggled and sat down, the chair giving a creak. “So, how’d shopping go?”

Mandy opened a can of soda, rolling her eyes. “I hate shopping with him. It’s like shopping with a baby. He whined, wanting everything he saw, except for wedding stuff.” She poured the bubbly liquid into a glass—ice crackling, fizzing carbonation waking my ears.

Matt gave her a shove. “Told ya I hated shopping.”

I yawned, rubbed my arms. “Whelp, I’m frazzled. Think I’m gonna head up to bed. Do you have an old blanket or something I could use for Symphony’s bed?”

“Yep, have one right here.” Mandy reached into the linen closet and pulled out a blue floral one.

“Thanks…guess I’ll search for Tate tomorrow, again, so she won’t have to live with us too long.”

Mandy waved it off with her hand. “No worries. She’s cool.”

I trudged up to my room, Symphony by my side, and placed the blanket on the floor to the left of my bed, fluffing it to make it comfortable. “Come here, Symph.”

She came over, her head drooped low—looking melancholy.

She smelled my hand and gave it a couple licks. “It’s okay. You can stay here with me, we’re friends. I wish you could talk. Then you could tell me what happened to Tate.”

She whined when she heard his name and her tail wagged. After giving two large yawns, she got on the blanket and turned around a couple of times before lying down, nuzzling her nose into the softness.

Before I got into bed, I opened up my drawer and brought out the CD. I held it to my chest, running my finger along the side, imagining that Tate’s fingers might have done the same once.

I put it back in the drawer and tucked it under my clothes again. I’d show it to Mandy in the morning.

I pulled out my journal. It had been forever since my last entry.

June Twelfth,

My vacation is turning into some sort of a conundrum. I did find Symphony, at least, but we got chased by a bizarre, cloaked creature that seems to be after Mandy, Matt, and I for some reason. I heard strange music coming from Mandy’s parents’ old room, coupled with that, a weird, yet sensual feeling. And to top it all off, I found a CD in the old dresser with Tate’s name on it. I have no idea what all this means and don’t know if I ever will. Now, to only find Tate.

Sophia Bandell

That night I dreamed of Tate. I was walking along the beach, and the first thing I smelled was the scent of his shaving cream, faint at first, then getting stronger. He came riding up on a personal watercraft. But just as his eyes hooked me, he turned, speeding away, leaving only the sound of the waves splashing in his wake. I held my arms out to him, calling, begging him to come to me. When he turned his head back over his shoulder to look at me, it was one of the cloaked men—evil and dark, wailing a sinister, malevolent laugh.

I shot up, startled, the waves still crashing against the shoreline outside. Cold had my hands and feet feeling like polar ice caps. Shivering, my throat scratchy, I got up to shut the windows. The wind blew, stirring up cool, damp air. Before I got back into bed, I glanced down at Symphony sleeping on hers. I sighed, tucking my knees to my chest and pinching the blankets up under my chin. At least one of us was able to release Tate and sleep.

M
y eyes flitted
open to a dim gloominess, and I wasn’t even sure it was morning. The storm from yesterday clung to the sky, leaving it overcast and gray. I shook, still cold from last night. A glance at my phone told me it was eleven. The dream I had last night drained me of all energy, leaving me worn and unrested. Symphony stretched on her blanket, head resting on her paws, giving me a wag when I got up.

“Did you sleep well?” I bent down and tousled her ears. She yawned, then got up and shook, ridding her body of sleep. “We
are
going to find Tate today.”

But, first, I needed to show Mandy the CD. I pulled open the drawer and grabbed up a handful of underwear.

A gasp seized in my throat. It wasn’t there. I scrounged, frantic, digging deep, tossing my underwear out over the edge, littering the floor. The CD wasn’t anywhere. My chest heaved. I dug faster, slinging my other drawers wide. Maybe I had put it in one of those.
What happened? No one but me knew it
was in here.
Ransacked by my own doing, my room looked like a battlefield as I scattered the clothes I took off last night and looked in the nightstand table by my bed.

My mind flew to Mandy. Did she have something to do with this? Asking her would have to wait. I couldn’t bring up something I couldn’t show her.

When I went downstairs, I found her and Matt standing by the sink, wrapped in each other’s arms. They were both giggling and giving each other small kisses. I turned around, my face warming, traipsing back to the living room before they saw me.

But Mandy spoke, swatting at Matt’s groping hand. “Morning, Soph. Bout time you got up. Where’re you going?”

I glanced at the counter across the room, seeing the full soda glass still sitting there from last night. Mandy hadn’t taken one sip. “Oh, uh…uh-hum…I didn’t want to disturb you.” I turned back around to look at them.

“That’s okay. I needed a way to get this leech off me.” Annoyance crowded her face as she pushed Matt away.

Matt grabbed at her ribs, tickling. “Don’t let her fool ya. She loves it.”

She squinted her eyes. “Yeah, right. You’re a two-year-old. I think I’m changing my mind about having kids.”

Mandy settled into a kitchen chair and unscrewed the lid off of the grape jelly, spreading some on her toast. “So, you going to look for Tate today?”

“Ya think?” Matt poked her again.

“I wasn’t asking you.”

“Yeah…probably won’t have much luck. I’m hoping Symphony will make it easier.” I gave Symphony a bite of my toast. She inhaled it in one gulp. Mandy’s sat untouched on her plate.

“Matt and I’ll go with you. It’s chilly today, so we won’t do much swimming, but we can help you look.”

“Okay. Maybe with all of us searching, he’ll turn up.”

T
he cool air
and drizzle sprinkled my face when we stepped outside, wilting my hair. I had slipped a jacket over my T-shirt to keep the chill and dampness away. A few swimmers and surfers still played the beach—the few that were unable to put their fun away. Symphony walked beside us, her nose to the ground.

We meandered over to our usual hangout, each finding a chair. It had been forever since I’d been here, and I smiled inside. Even though the day was cool, this place was beginning to feel like home.

Mandy sat down and looked up at the sky. “I bet these clouds burn off soon. Then, it’ll probably get hot.”

Five seconds later, Brian Tarris came loafing over.

“Oh, great, not him again.” I winced, wishing it would have been Tate heading in my direction instead of him. “Symphony’s getting restless. I need to start searching for Tate. Besides that, I don’t want to talk to Brian.”

Matt gave a chuckle. “Who needs Tate when you got this guy?” He laughed again and gestured with his thumb toward Brian.

I jerked a glance to the side and got up from the chair, taking off toward the water, Symphony by my side.

Brian followed behind, his finger pushing his glasses. “Sophia, wait.” He picked up speed, getting closer, his white sneakers kicking up sand in his wake. “I haven’t seen you in days. I want to talk to you.”

I put my hand up to stop him. “No, Brian, I want to be alone today. There’s a lot on my mind, and I want to do some thinking.”

“I’ll let you think. Won’t even talk. I just want to be with you.”

“Please…not today. Maybe some other time.”

His head dropped. “Alright, but let’s get together later. I miss you.”

“We’ll see.” I hid my face behind my hair. “I’ll look you up if I feel I want to see you.”

“You promise?” He licked his lips, his question hopeful but infused with a tinge of doubt.

“Promise.”

“Where’d you get that dog?”

“She belongs to a friend of mine. I’m babysitting for a few days.”

“Oh, okay…guess I’ll see you later then.” He lowered his head again, kicking at the sand.

“Bye.”

Symphony and I continued walking along the shoreline. I folded my arms over my chest, keeping the cool breeze from invading my warmness. The fog violated the air, heavy and thick, the fine mist making the visibility poor.

Up ahead in the distance, someone advanced toward us, ambling, and every once in a while bending over, as if picking something up. The closer the person got, it became easier to make out the silhouette—tall, masculine.

Symphony’s ears shot straight. She sniffed the air, then bolted at full speed, barking—in hysterics. My heart stopped. I tripped, going down on my knees in the sand.

I got up in a hurry and dusted off, my gaze glued to my feet, pretending I didn’t just do that. The adrenaline pumped through me, and I trembled. It amazed me how one glimpse of Tate messed up my entire equilibrium. I walked toward him, the salty smell of the ocean grabbing my nose.

An excited whine erupted from deep within Symphony’s throat. She jumped on him, licking him everywhere, couldn’t get enough.

“Hi, Symph.” His sensual voice riveted through me. He dropped to his knees, hugging her. “How’s my girl…? I’ve missed you.”

Symphony pummeled him, and they rolled around in the sand. I watched, a smile varnishing my face. The sand coated both of them, and an envious pang for Symphony lodged just under my breast bone.

Tate looked up at me with the most alluring, cobalt-blue eyes I’d ever seen. “Sophia, I can’t believe it’s you.” His eyes locked on mine, sinking me. I should have known they would match the rest of his good looks.

The muscles above my mouth twitched. My gut twirled and jumped. Words stammered and hitched before finally breaking free. “I can’t believe it’s you…either.”

“Where’d you find her?” He got up, dusting the sand from his arms and knees. “I’ve been worried.”

Nothing came out when I opened my mouth to speak. I wanted to tell him that I had been worried about him, too, sickeningly so, but the words eluded me. Finally, I sputtered out, “I found her out by the old cemetery, yesterday.” I swallowed hard and rubbed the back of my neck, trying to calm my shaky voice. “But she was taken to the pound over a week ago. They were going to euthanize her, but somehow she escaped. I didn’t understand how you became separated from her. I tried to find you, but never could.”

He hung his head. “Uh…yeah…about that…I feel horrible.” He bit his lip and threw his hands to his hips, looking off to the left. “The day I lost her, I’d…I’d gotten sick. Had to leave the beach immediately. It wasn’t pretty. She’d gotten away from me earlier, and I couldn’t find her, but I was too sick to keep looking.”

He whipped out a pen and pulled a wadded piece of paper from his pocket, jotting something down. “Here, take this. It’s my number in case anything like this ever happens again.” His expression was wistful as he handed me the wrinkled paper.

I took a step back. Maybe we
were
only going to be friends if the only reason he wanted to give me his number was to help him find his dog. I folded it up and stuck it in my jacket pocket. “It was no problem, really. Symphony’s a good dog.” My lips jumped when I smiled, giving away my uneasiness.

We stood there and looked around, an awkward silence playing between us. Then, he stepped closer and took my hand in his. A bolt of staggering electricity zipped through my chest. “Her hand fits perfectly in mine.” He whispered this, as if confirming it with someone. His gaze locked on it, analyzing, then with a shake of his head, he spoke louder. “Sophia, I’m sorry. I…I lied to you.”

I looked at him—bewilderment crinkling my face—and tried to understand. “Lied?” My voice broke. “I don’t get it.”

“I wasn’t sick that day. Well, in a way I was, I guess. The truth is, I was gut-sick. That guy…he was sitting by you the whole day...and…and he never left your side. I’d check throughout the day, but he was still there. I couldn’t help it. I was insanely jealous.” He looked down, his tone deepening as he flexed his fingers that were still laced through mine.

“What?” His words astounded me. I swiped my brow with my free hand. “You were jealous…over me?”

He released my hand and paced back and forth, the nervousness seeping through as he wrung his hands. “I know it’s stupid, but I couldn’t help myself. I love the way you laugh and…I like you, Sophia…a lot, and it hurt me to see you with someone else.”

He lifted his hair off his forehead, pushing it up. His eyes locked on mine again, captivating me. I couldn’t look away. My self-consciousness took over—heckling me. The way I looked right now—with my hair a matted mess from the mist, and no makeup on—must look ridiculous. I drew away, making myself smaller.

I laughed my nervous laugh and kicked the sand with my shoe. “Who, him? You mean…Brian?” My words wobbled, but I giggled, unable to believe that Brian talking to me could make anyone jealous. “He’s just some nerdy guy that I couldn’t get rid of that day. He drove me nuts, but I didn’t have the heart to tell him to get lost, even though I wanted to. Now, he won’t leave me alone.” I hesitated. “But I…I feel the same way. I saw you with those girls and had the…same feeling.” My face flushed; I couldn’t believe I was telling him this.