Immortal Memory (Book One) (25 page)

Pain bled through the depths of his
voice, and Tristan seemed weak against the evil within him. A chill
flushed through her body when he pulled her into his gentle arms. A
small part of her softened for him and the pain he experienced. A
whirlwind of memories came alive within her when he drew her lips
to his.

Tristan kissed her with a warm, flowing
tenderness. Simra drew away from him and kept her eyes turned away
from the demon. She tried to hide the pain burning through her
soul. There were still too many evil qualities about him that
shoved her away.

Simra couldn’t control her lips from
parting in surprise when his eyes glowed with much vehemence. “What
is it?”

Tristan stood in abruptness with his
hands clenched by his sides. “There’s trouble in Texas. I sense it.
Someone’s up to no good. I’ll return.”

The demon gave her no time to reply and
rushed into the waves of the ocean. He disappeared from sight. Her
heart dropped at the disturbing thought of who made him angry.
Zach, Mandy, Jeff, and Ms. Hanley must be worried to death about
her.

They could be trying anything to find
her. Simra’s heart dropped when she remembered telling Jeff about
the abandoned house. The detective might be there now. Tristan’s
body was hidden somewhere inside of it.

Simra did a frantic search through the
hidden trails for any kind of boat to go out to sea. Zach might
find her if she summoned him far enough away from the island. The
trails led to a forest of trees. She spotted a huge garden planted
in the center. The garden must be where Tristan planted the drugs
to sell.

Simra saw a large wooden shack near the
garden and trudged toward it. There were nothing but boxes and jars
of white powder. Jeff would have had a huge drug bust on his hands
if they found this place in time. She found no boat or anything to
go out to sea. However, she kept running through the trees to the
other side of the island.

In her dreams, she recalled wandering
to the other side of the island. She had found Tristan approaching
her from the sea. Although she left him behind on the land, it
puzzled her when she saw him walking toward her from the ocean in
the vision. They had swam toward the sunrise together.

She awoke with beads of perspiration
across her brow every time. Perhaps the man from the ocean was
Zach. Maybe the sunrise indicated the end of dark times with
Tristan and the beginning of a new day.

To her surprise, she found a tiny boat
beached at the shore awaiting her departure. Simra ran as fast as
her legs took her through the thick white sand. She made it to the
boat out of breath. Simra pushed the small boat into the water and
hopped inside when she got it into the ocean.

The waves were calm and made it easy
for her to raft through them. She rode the smooth tides into the
sea. Her heavy eyes gazed up into the orange rising sun in the
horizon.

Simra made it far enough away from the
island. She cried out Zach’s name in hopes he would hear her
somehow. “Zach, help me! Please find me!”

A large tide roared up in the distance
and came closer toward Simra. Her rapid breathing stopped, and she
started turning the boat around to return to the island. The
monstrous wave gained on her. There was no time to make it back to
land. Seeing the tall tide caused her to close her eyes, and she
expected the worst. Drowning in the middle of nowhere seemed the
worst way to die.

Her hands clutched the sides of the
raft until she heard Zach’s voice behind her. “Simra, it’s all
right. I’m here. From where did you come?”

Simra took deep gasps for air and
turned to see the angel in the boat behind her. “Zach, I’m so glad
you’re here! Tristan took me to that small island in the distance.”
She pointed toward it and explained about the spell.

Zach remained motionless in the boat,
and his eyes wavered. “I’ll take you near the island again so the
curse can be removed. I have a plan in case Tristan brings you
back, and I believe he will. I’ll tell you how to remove the spell.
Hurry. Your grandmother’s in much danger.”

Simra felt the blood freezing her veins
and recalled Tristan’s anger. Her heart dropped when a sickening
thought crossed her mind of what Tristan would do to her
grandmother. They needed to get back to Texas before it was too
late!

Chapter 30

"But You, O Lord, be not
far off, O my Strength, come quickly to help me." -Psalm
22:19

Mandy searched everywhere for Simra.
She fought back a sob from the thought of never seeing her cousin
again. Sim never returned to the lake house like she said would.
Mandy tried calling her cousin, but she didn’t answer. She drove to
Sim’s home, work, and contacted her cousin’s friends. No one heard
anything from Sim.

It was almost like she vanished from
the face of the earth without a trace. The demon must have captured
her again. Hopefully, Jeff would find her at the abandoned house
and bring her back to safety. Then again, what if Tristan took her
somewhere else this time?

Shivers crept down Mandy’s spine. Sim
might be dead. Desperation consumed Mandy to find her. She would
not sleep until she found her cousin!

Mandy rushed into the Alzheimer’s home
to drop off their grandma. Lucinda was going crazy! Mandy met Jeff
upon arriving at the facility. Lucinda’s behavior worsened since
Sim disappeared. Lucinda flew off the handle whenever Sim got
captured by Tristan.

The nurses were unaware of the
problems. Mandy and Jeff agreed to meet up at the facility after
searching awhile. Quint remained under closer observation in prison
after Jeff completed the paperwork.

The detective walked inside the home.
Much concern filled Jeff's chocolate brown eyes behind his glasses.
“Anything?”

Mandy shook her head in despair but
admired Jeff's concern. She didn't fall for him until recently.
Mandy reached for the detective and held him with a tight grasp.
She resisted the urge of tears misting in her eyes.

“Let's go to Grandma's room.” Mandy
explained how Lucinda behaved each time Sim was in
danger.

Jeff followed her toward Lucinda’s room
and spoke in a hushed tone. “Ms. Lucinda has a connection to Sim
and Tristan. Everything Sim’s told us has happened. I wish we could
see Zach. I bet he knows where Tristan has her.”

Mandy nodded. “I agree. You checked the
abandoned house?”

Jeff turned toward Mandy and scratched
his chin in deep thought. “Yeah. I smelled the corpse, but the
house was empty. That’s where they were last time. Sim never called
me to come and meet her there.”

Lucinda paced the floor with her hands
trembling, and Mandy took her hands. “Grandma, what is it? You
worried about Sim?”

Lucinda’s eyes widened in dismay, and
anger reeled in their depths. Her grandma mumbled until her words
became somewhat clear. “Hhh. Hsss. Hsss. His house!”

Mandy turned to Jeff and couldn't
control her lips from parting with surprise. The surge of tears
fell from Mandy’s eyes. “Impossible! What about it, Grandma?” Mandy
grasped her grandma’s shoulders with gentle hands.

Lucinda framed her granddaughter’s face
in her fragile hands, and the old woman’s eyes grew wider.
“Take….me.”

Mandy placed her hands on Lucinda’s,
and tears streamed from her own eyes. “It’s dangerous, Grandma. I’m
sorry, but we can’t. You might get killed.”

Although Lucinda seemed petite and
delicate, she jerked Mandy closer from her towering height. She
cried into her granddaughter’s ear. “Take….me!”

Jeff interrupted the two ladies. “I
believe it’s a good idea to take her, Mandy. We’ll keep Ms. Lucinda
safe. Prayer and faith can protect us. She could lead us to the
body. Tristan's distracted with Sim right now. We should find
it.”

“Are you insane, Jeff? Tristan’s crazy!
I don’t want our grandma anywhere near that place. That hideous
monster almost killed us in car wrecks and cursed our grandma.
Something could happen.”

Jeff grasped Mandy’s shoulders and gave
her an intense look. “I promise I’ll protect Ms. Lucinda. Besides,
we have the angel and God on our side. Pray about it, and have
faith. Remember how the Lord saved our lives in the wrecks? He’ll
protect us as long as we believe. We need your grandma there. The
demon’s body is somewhere in that house. Ms. Lucinda may find the
exact location of the corpse. I know she has Alzheimer's, but she's
aware of a lot about Tristan.”

He paused and added, “Sim can’t find
the body because of Tristan’s constant interference. He’s too
possessive of her. After we find the body, we can find Sim. Sim can
destroy him. Then, Sim can return to her normal life.”

“I don’t like that idea, and Sim’s
going to be furious. But... I agree about Grandma leading us to the
body. Sim couldn’t find it anywhere inside the house. I bet Grandma
knows where the thing’s hidden. Keep her safe, Jeff.
Promise?”

Jeff framed Mandy’s face in his hands
and brushed a soft kiss across her lips. “I promise, Honey. You and
your family mean everything to me. I’ll do everything in my power
to protect all of you from danger. I’ll save you-especially from a
rampant demon like Tristan. In fact, I’ve made up my mind on
staying in Longview.”

He paused and added, “I’m not returning
to live in Dallas ever again. I want to be with you. Let me protect
you, Sim, and Ms. Lucinda. We’ll settle down after Tristan’s
destroyed. I came back to Longview to sort out my feelings and
decided I belong here with you.”

Mandy returned his tender kiss, and
tears stung her eyes. “You’re staying? Oh Jeff, I’m so happy! I
want to spend the rest of my life with you too.” She turned toward
her grandma again and framed the woman’s face. “We’ll take you to
Tristan’s house, Grandma, but please be careful.”

Lucinda grasped her granddaughter’s
hand and rushed out the door with Mandy and Jeff. The detective led
them to his car once they stepped outside.

Mandy helped Lucinda into the backseat
and snuggled against her. “Grandma, I love you so much. We’ll break
this curse and destroy Tristan. I promise.”

Jeff drove in the direction of the
house. Lucinda’s hands trembled, and her words jangled together.
Mandy’s heart bled for Lucinda. Her grandma’s emotions must be
raging with agonizing pain.

Mandy’s stomach twisted in knots just
thinking about how the demon wanted Sim all to himself. She
squeezed Lucinda in her arms, and a deep yearning devoured Mandy’s
heart. She'd die to protect her loved ones from that horrid
monster.

Jeff turned to grab her attention.
“Mandy, we’re here. You all right?”

Mandy almost didn’t hear the detective.
“Just scared."

"Let’s pray before going in there.” He
took Mandy’s hand and placed the other on Lucinda’s knee. “God,
please surround us with Your protection. Watch over us as we enter
this house, and let Your will be done. Amen.”

Lucinda grabbed Mandy’s hand and
hurried out of the backseat. The woman continued mumbling. Mandy
squeezed her grandma’s fragile hand. Tremors slithered down Mandy's
spine as she studied the two-story plantation home.

Shadows embraced the house; it seemed
the place had a dark secret hidden within that haunted Lucinda.
Mandy couldn’t imagine how Sim stayed with the demon so long in
such a place. A deep regret gnawed at Mandy’s insides for not
finding her cousin sooner. Sim ran to the courthouse with such
terror in her eyes. Mandy couldn't imagine what her cousin and
Lucinda endured and swallowed back a heavy sob of
despair.

The detective paused at the front door.
Jeff’s hand rested on his pistol in the holster.
“Ready?”

Lucinda hissed and kicked the door
open. Mandy’s grandma allowed nothing or no one to get in her way.
The woman slid through the entrance with her hands compressed at
her sides.

Mandy followed her grandma inside with
Jeff. Lucinda’s intent gaze remained on the wide staircase. The
woman wrenched her hand from Mandy’s and walked ahead of
them.

Silence filled the house, and Mandy
only heard her own painful heartbeats. The rooms overwhelmed Mandy
with gloom and hopelessness. The demon must have brought her cousin
to a more evil place than this the second time. Tristan created
nothing but chaos for Sim.

It weakened Mandy’s body to think of
losing her. How did Sim endure it so long? The silent, empty house
carved a hollow hole in the pit of Mandy’s stomach and almost
sickened her.

Mandy blocked Lucinda from going
upstairs. “Grandma, no. We can’t go upstairs. Why don’t you let
Jeff go up? You and I will wait here.”

Lucinda hissed in defiance and jerked
free from her granddaughter’s grip. The woman began walking up the
stairs anyway. Her grandma barely made it up each step. Mandy
placed her hands at Lucinda’s tiny waist. She helped Lucinda take
every step without falling. Her grandma risked her own life to save
Sim.

Jeff steadied Lucinda and
helped her up the stairs. “Dynamites
do
come in small packages, don’t
they? Ms. Lucinda, allow me to carry you up there. It’ll be much
easier for you.”