Keeper of the Peace (Graveyard Guardians #2) (16 page)

None of them had a clue that the waterfalls
were there. It was one of those moments in life where you felt like
you were the only people in the whole world who knew the meaning of
life. The whole gang had just stared in awe, and he knew right then
the trip upstream had been worth it.

For the next couple of hours they stayed by
the waterfalls.

He and Hannah sat side by side on one of the
large rocks while the others frolicked in the water. “How is it
possible that we never knew this place was here?” Hannah had asked
him.

David shrugged. “I don’t know, but I’m sure
they aren’t a secret. I don’t think we’re that far from the
highway, and a lot of people explore the creek.”

She shook her head. “Still, this is just
…”

Her voice had trailed off as she gazed out
upon their friends enjoying the chilly water. “I know,” he
whispered in agreement.

As the sun threatened to set, the little
group decided to keep going forward instead of back down the
treacherous path they had come. After only ten minutes of walking,
they found themselves on a paved road that led up to a factory at
the top of the hill.

“Holy crap,” Kevin Morris frowned. “I know
where we are, the highway is like two minutes away.”

Indeed, their friend was right, in no time
they were trekking down the side of the highway back to The
Springs. They had certainly taken the long way that day, but the
adventure had paid off in the end.

David shook off the memory and brought
himself back to the present. Nothing warranted the visit back in
time, but it was one of those special times he would always
remember because it was what he considered a perfect day.

Since no one was around he took off his
blazer and draped it over his arms as he headed up to the bridge.
Once he was up there, he had a better view of the water, which
looked even darker from above. Even though the water was dark, it
was peaceful and calming. He could hear the water falling back into
the creek beneath him as he removed his shoes and sat down in the
center of the bridge, letting his feet hang down over the side.

He had to tread delicately on this situation
with Hannah, she had just come around to talking with him … among
other things, and he didn’t want to ruin that. If she did murder
this guy, there had to be a reason. He knew her and without a
doubt, she would never commit a murder just for the sake of
killing. She was a good person, he felt that all the way down to
his bones.

On the other hand, he had trusted criminals
before and look where that had gotten him.

No, she wouldn’t have done this for no
reason. It had to have been self-defense, that’s all there is to
it. But, how in the world was he going to talk to her about it.

As if on cue, Hannah’s car pulled into the
parking lot. He watched as she parked and stepped out of the car.
She glanced at David’s car for a moment and then her gaze lifted up
to where he sat on the bridge. Their eyes locked and he knew she
had come here for the same reason he had, to think about
things.

She wore a small, tight fitting tank top
with blue jeans and her red hair shone brightly in the midday sun
that filtered through the branches of the trees. As she made her
way up to the bridge, he stared down at her and wondered how he had
ever left her in the first place.

“Hey,” she greeted him as she removed her
running shoes and sat down beside him.

“Hey.”

For a few more moments neither of them said
anything. They both sat in silence, listening to the water and the
light breeze rustling through the leaves. Hannah was finally the
one to break the silence. “Do you remember that time we walked up
to the waterfalls.”

David let out a small laugh. “Yeah, I was
just thinking about that when I first got here.”

She sighed. “You know what I loved most
about that day?”

“What?” He turned to face her, but she
continued to stare out at the water.

“That day … it was perfect. It was like we
had conquered the world and nothing could stop us from doing the
things we wanted to do. We were kings and queens.” Her voice was
soft, but strong. “We had no idea what life was going to deal us in
the future and we didn’t care either.”

Struck dumb by her thoughts, he couldn’t
reply right away. It was true, the day was timeless and perfect,
but what it had to do with their future at the time, he didn’t
know. “I cared,” he whispered.

She nodded. “I know you did. You wanted
something for yourself before any of us did. But, that day, I bet
you didn’t think about your parents even once.”

Without taking his eyes off of her he
reached over and felt for her hand and entwined his fingers with
hers. “I never thought about them when I was with you.”

She laughed a little bit. “Whatever. Anyway,
what I’m trying to say is that, now, in this time and the age we
are, time doesn’t just stop like it did then.”

He understood now. “Yeah, reality is beating
down our doors no matter how hard we try to ignore it.”

“I wish we could go back to that day and
just start over.” Her voice wavered as she said the last word.

“Are you all right?” He squeezed her hand,
silently letting her know that she could talk to him.

She shook her head. “No, David, I’m not all
right.”

“What is it?”

“A multitude of things.” Her hand pulled
away from his and she reached up, tucking a stray hair over her
ear.

“Do you want to talk about it?” It bothered
him that she wouldn’t look at him. “Hannah?” he asked again when
she didn’t respond.

“I want to tell you everything, I really do,
but I can’t right now.”

“Is it that bad … that you can’t talk about
it? Or is it that you just can’t talk about it with me?”

She finally turned her head and locked gazes
with him. “It’s not you. I just can’t.”

“Hannah, I’m not going to pretend to
understand why you don’t want to tell me. What I am going to tell
you is that whatever it is … don’t let it fester. Things can only
get worse if you keep them inside.”

She let out what sounded like something
between a laugh and a sob. “When did you become so profound, David
Foster?”

“I’m not. I just don’t like to see you like
this.”

Her fingers entwined with his again. “Give
me time.”

After a short pause, Hannah tilted her head
and rested it on his shoulder. “I’ve missed you,” she murmured.

It was a simple statement, but there was so
much behind it. Only the day before, she had wanted nothing to do
with him and now here they were, sitting in their spot from the old
days, and she was telling him she missed him. He hadn’t expected
her to come around so quickly. “I missed you too,” he told her.

“Have you been to see your mother?” Hannah
asked him.

The change of subject took him by surprise.
His parents weren’t a subject he liked to think about, much less
talk about. “No. I haven’t seen her for years. The last time I went
up to San Francisco to see her, she was living with my aunt and
they were both so high they probably don’t even remember that I was
there.”

Hannah seemed saddened by his words. “Has
she gotten worse since your dad died?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “There was a time I
didn’t think it could get much worse, but it did. She’s a junkie,
just like when I was a kid, and she will probably be like that
until she overdoses like dad did.”

“I heard about that,” she whispered. “I’m
sorry.”

He smiled, but it was a thin, emotionless
smile, “Don’t be sorry. He lived life the way he wanted to live it.
That’s just how it ends for people like that.”

“He was still your dad.”

“Only by blood.”

She didn’t argue with him because she had
met his parents. He would never forget the day he had brought
Hannah to his house. She had insisted on meeting his mom and dad.
They had been together for a long time and she had never officially
met them.

That day, with his hand on the door knob he
stared into her eyes and said, “Please don’t judge me from anything
you see in here. This … is not me.”

“You know better than that,” she’d told
him.

“Just promise.”

She had let out an exasperated sigh. “I
promise! Now let’s get it over with, all right?”

Taking her in to meet the people who were
his parents, but didn’t give a crap about him, just seemed
wrong.

They had entered the trailer and the sunny
spring day outside suddenly turned stormy and gray. The interior of
David’s home was dark, the paneled walls, the heavily curtained
windows, the ugly green carpeting … everything about the place was
without light.

Cigarette smoke filled the living room. He
saw Hannah fighting back the urge to choke and led her forward.
“Dad?” he addressed the thin man with long graying hair who sat in
a recliner watching the small television in the corner.

“What is it now, boy?” his father asked
without looking at him.

“I want you to meet someone.”

Only then, after realizing that someone else
besides David was in the room, did he set his eyes upon them. “You
know I don’t like you bringin’ people in here.”

“Dad, this is my girlfriend, Hannah
Estmond.”

“Estmond?” His father squinted his eyes and
gazed at Hannah through the smoke.

“Yes, sir. It’s so nice to finally meet
you.” Hannah stretched out her hand in offering of a handshake.

His father only stared down at her hand and
then took a long drag of his cigarette, then blew the smoke in
Hannah’s direction. “I know the Estmonds. Your one of those
goody-goodies who will never know what it’s like to want for
anything. Why would you be running around with a nobody like my boy
here?”

Hannah stood up and straightened her spine.
“You’re son,
David
, is not a nobody. He happens to be my
everything
. I don’t understand how you can sit here and
treat him like this.”

He knew better. His father would never
change and yelling at him about it wouldn’t do anything but piss
him off even more and then he would have to deal with the violence
that followed. “Hannah, let’s go.”

“What’s going on out here?” A female voice
echoed from the back of the trailer.

David rolled his eyes and tightened his grip
on Hannah’s hand. “Mom, it’s just me. I brought my girlfriend to
meet you.”

A petite woman with long dark brown hair
appeared from the dark depths of the hallway. Her hair wasn’t
brushed and tangles were prominent around her pale, sunken face.
She wore loose shorts and a tank top, but both were covered by a
worn, pink, terrycloth robe. “Girlfriend?”

“Yes mom. My girlfriend, Hannah.” He turned
to Hannah. “This is my mom, Sharon Foster.”

Sharon seemed confused but extended her hand
out to Hannah. “It’s nice to meet you. Sorry about the condition of
the house.”

Hannah shook her hand. “I don’t care about
any of that,” she assured David’s mother.

“The hell she doesn’t,” David’s father
roared from behind them. “Of course she cares how it looks. That’s
all she’s here to do, judge us and how we live.”

Hannah released Sharon’s hand and turned to
face David’s father again, fire lit within her eyes. “I already
told you I don’t care about any of that.”

“Then why are you here. Why are you with
this good for nothing boy when your pretty little ass could
probably be dating the star quarter-back or some other rich
preppy.”

“Dad!” David pulled on Hannah’s hand, “Let’s
go, Hannah.”

She yanked her hand away from his and
marched toward his father. She bent down right in front of him and
looked him in the eye. “If there is one thing I want you to
remember from this visit, it’s that I love your son. I don’t care
about money, I don’t care about where you live, I don’t even care
about the fact that you are a big asshole. You can hate me all you
want, call me names, I don’t give a flying fuck. But this man… that
is your son and I’m not stupid. I know he is the only reason you
even have food in your refrigerator, so you need to show him some
respect.”

“Listen here, missy …”

“No,
you
listen. Your wife did not
give birth to him to for him to be your slave. He is a person, a
living breathing person …”

“Hannah, that’s enough.” David desperately
grabbed at her hand in attempt to get her to stop. As much as he
loved what she was saying, the wrath of his father was going to be
worse than ever after this.

She seemed to realize what was happening,
that she had unwillingly lost it and stood up straight. “Oh my God,
I’m sorry.”

“Let’s go.”

“You get that little bitch out of this house
right now.” David’s father stood and pointed at the door.

He pulled Hannah toward the exit, which was
only a few feet away but seemed like the length of a football field
at the moment. David threw a quick glance at his mother as they
made for the door. She said nothing, but still appeared distant and
confused. He knew she was going to be the one who took the backlash
from all this, but all he wanted was to get Hannah out of the house
and far away from them.

Coming back to the present, David shook off
the terrible memory and used his left hand to tilt Hannah’s face
toward him. “I know it makes me a bad person, but I purged my
parents from my life even before my dad died. Leaving to go to L.A.
was part of that. I couldn’t stay here as long as they were
here.”

“I know,” she whispered.

He placed a kiss on her soft lips. She
kissed him back, and then gently pulled away. “I do understand.
I’ve told you that. It doesn’t take away the hurt or bring back
lost time, but I do get why you had to go.”

“I shouldn’t have gone.”

She closed her eyes for a second as if
gathering her thoughts, and then opened them again. She stared into
his eyes so he could see the honesty within them. “You had to. If
you had stayed, and not gone on to live your dreams, you would have
ended up resenting me in the end. You’re back now … and we have
that, so let’s start over.”