Finding Julian (15 page)

“C’mon Jules, loosen up a bit,” he
proclaimed. “You’re in the nicest part of this state and you aren’t enjoying
it. Let’s go have lunch and hang out at the beach.”

Much to my surprise, I smirked at his
gesture. “I wouldn’t want to take up any more of your time.”

“My day’s finished, and who said it’s a
bad thing if you take up my time.” He looked at me for half a second, smiling.

I relaxed back in the seat and went with
the flow. Maybe Gavin was right. I did need to loosen up and clear my mind for
a while. I’d probably have clarity after today.

He drove out to Scarborough Beach and we
lingered alongside the sea wall, admiring the place. Afterwards, he bought us
snacks from a food cart nearby, and then we walked down to the seashore, shoes
in hand.

“You never did tell me, Julian…” he
looked at me with eyes squinting in the sunlight. It almost made me laugh.

I composed myself and searched my head,
trying to remember what he’d asked me before. Finally, I gave up. “Tell you
what?”

“What’s in Manhattan that you absolutely
have to get back to?”

Gavin pulled on my elbow to stop me from
walking and we both plopped down on the sand, cooling down on Del’s frozen
lemonades.

“Well?” he eagerly awaited my response.

“I just…like it there,” I said.

“Humph…” he turned and stared out at the
ocean, a cruise ship in the distance.

I was perplexed by his short response.
“What does that mean?”

Resting the empty cup next to his shoes,
Gavin twirled and stared at me with a questioning look on his face. “That just
means I don’t believe you, Julian. You didn’t sound very convincing.”

I lowered my eyes and continued slurping
on the frozen lemonade, ignoring his words.

  
“Tell me what you like about it?” he went on. “Tell me what makes it worth
returning to?”

I stared at him from sideways as I
answered, “I grew up there. It’s my home. My mother’s there, and my—” Whoa,
apartment’s gone. So was my boyfriend and best friend. There was no job either.
Now that I was seriously thinking about it, what exactly was in Manhattan
waiting for me to come back to, aside from my mother?

Nothing.

Realizing the truth, I rubbed the back
of my neck and curled my toes in the grainy sand. I felt silly now, trying to
speak boldly about a place I was tremendously lonely living in. I hadn’t really
rooted myself there as much as I’d believed.

Gavin didn’t allow silence to linger
between us. He quickly got to his feet and pulled me up as well. “Let’s go
catch a ferry to Block Island.”

Before I could refuse—say I had to catch
a bus to go to Providence—he was tugging me off the beach and towards his Jeep.

Block Island turned out to be an
interesting tour. I’d relaxed completely in the company of Gavin. By the time
we were on a ferry back from the island, I’d started seeing him as a friend. I
even spoke freely about how I enjoyed working on the magazine project with Aunt
Bev, and how lovely Narragansett truly was.

“So, what else do you like doing? Or
what did you do for fun before coming here? It’s summer, so there must be
something,” he questioned. Gavin was so interested in knowing things about me.
His intentions seemed truly genuine.

“Well,” I leaned over the railing next
to him, watching the water dance as the ferry moved through it. “I was working
after finishing business school, so I didn’t get to do much, but in high school
I…” I trailed, uncertain about sharing something like that with Gavin.

“What happened in high school?” he urged
me on.

It was okay, I guessed. I could open up
a bit. “I was on the swim team, so I spent most of my free time improving my
skills.”

“Oh really? That’s great,” he sounded
excited. “We should compete sometime then, see who’s faster—”

“I don’t do it anymore.”

My words wiped the smile off his face.

“How come?” he asked.

“No reason. I’m just done with swimming.
It wasn’t something I really did for me.”

“I see. Well, if you ever change your
mind.”

“I doubt I will,” I muttered under my
breath. Gavin didn’t hear me.

By the time we got back to Galilee and
started for the estate, the awkwardness had fizzled. We spoke the entire drive
back, throwing in a few jokes here and there.

Pulling up at the iron gates, I got out
of the car and leaned down at the window. “It was a nice afternoon out, Gavin.
Thanks. I really liked it.”

“Anytime,” he beamed. “Besides, I knew
you would enjoy this place. It’s simply a matter of who you’re with.”

Dismissing his sarcastic remark, I said,
“See you.” Then I moved around his Jeep and walked up to the gates, punching in
the security codes.

Gavin called out to me just as the gates
opened. “I hope you do stay for the dinner, Julian.”

Rotating, I asked, “Why?”

The sides of his mouth arched into a sly
grin. Without answering, Gavin winked at me then drove off, leaving me to
wonder what his intentions were.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Later that night
,
Aunt Bev asked me to join her for dinner. Seven was at the table when I entered
the kitchen. He didn’t look at me as I sat down across from him.

“I really wish whatever is going on
between you two would end already,” Aunt Bev implored. “It’s making me feel
awkward too.”

Seven peered up at her, then he looked
at me and asked, “Why were you driving around with Gavin yesterday? He has a
thing for Kenzie. Do you know how that looks?”

“How’d you know that?”

He glanced at Aunt Bev. She kept her
eyes on her plate and I deciphered what her intentions were in sharing that
with Seven. She was trying to make him jealous.
Sneaky lady
.

“Anyway,” I continued. “We were just
hanging out. It’s not a big deal.”

“Well then,” Aunt Bev chipped in. “Let’s
finish our meals, shall we?”

With exhaustion imprinted on his face, Seven
gazed at me. “Sorry…I’m not even upset with you about keeping my dad’s affair a
secret either. It’s just…there’s a lot going on in my life right now.”

Aunt Bev and I stared at each other
worriedly. Seven stood and excused himself from the table. “I’m sorry, Aunt
Bev. I’m not very hungry.”

“Oh,” she gasped as he moved from the
table and headed for the front door.

“I’m going for a walk down on the
beach,” he said over his shoulder before leaving.

This time, I didn’t go with him. I had a
feeling he wanted to be alone.

After dinner, I decided to watch a movie
while Aunt Bev got ready for her date with David. He arrived just as she came
down the spiral staircase, looking casual in a floor length, mint green summer
dress. Her long, brown hair was let down her back.

“Look at you,” I beamed at her beauty.

“Gorgeous as always,” David praised her.

She tipped her sandals and gave him a
peck on the cheek. Before leaving, Aunt Bev turned and said, “If Seven doesn’t
come back early enough lock up before you go to bed, all right?”

I nodded and waved them off. “I know,
Aunt Bev. Have fun.”

They left and I went back to the movie.
It wasn’t so enjoyable though—especially watching it alone. Eventually, I
turned off the television, locked the front door, and then headed to my room.

I took a cold shower before going to
bed. When I came back to the room, I turned off the air conditioning and opened
the sliding doors to let in the cool air from the ocean, slipping under the
covers in nothing but my underwear right after.

Later in the night, I woke up to weird
sounds coming from outside my room. I rolled over and looked at the clock on
the table next to my bed. It was a little past midnight.

Getting up, I walked over and closed the
sliding doors to the balcony. The noises continued. It sounded like someone was
shuffling about in the living room. It couldn’t have been Aunt Bev, because she
and David were attending some live musical show in Foxwoods and would probably
stay overnight at the resort.

I hauled on a long t-shirt and tip-toed
to my room door, opening it slowly. Stepping into the passage, I took my time
sneaking towards the living room.

As I got to the arched doorway, I picked
up a fire poker from the corner, scanning the dark living room to locate where
the sound was coming from. Years of living in the city had taught me that a
girl must always be prepared, no matter where she was.

Gripping my fingers tightly around the
metal, I straightened as I heard the shuffling again. Startled, my eyes peered
open. I looked around to the right side of the room and saw that it was the
curtain blowing up and pulling on one of Aunt Bev’s artwork.

A sea of relief washed over me. I let
out a giggle, feeling silly for being so scared. Then I walked over and closed
the window. When I turned to head back to my room, a dark figure sprang out of
the shadows and grabbed me, pushing me backwards against the wall.

“Ah!” I screamed.

He covered my mouth with one hand,
muffling my screams, and restrained me with the other. He was impeccably
strong.

I squirmed as he pressed his body
against mine. He tilted his head and lowered his nose to my neck as if inhaling
my scent. That only intensified my struggle to break free. If I didn’t, this
monster was possibly going to rape me.

Just as his legs spread apart and he
pushed harder, I managed to quickly lift a leg and knee him hard in the groin.
His grip loosened and he bent over and grabbed himself in agony. Then I clasped
my fists together and hammered him in the back. He dropped to the floor. I
hurdled over his body and ran into the kitchen, pressing on the security alarm
by the telephone.

The entire estate lit up as a loud sound
echoed all around. I pulled out a knife and stood behind the island, shaking,
yet preparing for another attack. He quickly got off the floor and bustled out
the front door.

Still trembling in fear, I kept the
knife in my hand and waited for the police to show up. I jumped as Mackenzie
ran into the guesthouse, a frightened Marlene behind her.

Mackenzie scurried over to me. “What’s
going on, Julian?” she asked, slowly taking the knife out of my hand. “What
happened?”

When I didn’t answer, she settled the
knife down on top of the counter and touched my hand lightly. I flinched and
threw my arms around her, hugging her tightly like a terrified child.

She patted my back and whispered, “It’s
okay. You’re all right.”

A little after, the police showed up.
And as they took our statements, Seven came back to the guesthouse. He was
oblivious to what was going on. I was curious about where he’d been all night
and why he wasn’t here to help me.

The police seized him at the door and
questioned him. He quickly explained who he was, hurrying over to my side as
soon as they let him through.

“Julian, what happened?” he asked, sitting
down beside me on the sectional sofa.

I narrowed my eyes as I looked up at
him. “Where were you?” My words stung.

“Yeah, Seven. Where were you?” Mackenzie
piped in.

He glanced back and forth between us. “I
went for a walk down the beach, then I went to see a friend.” He touched my
arms. “What happened, Jules?”

I eased away from him and peered down at
the rug beneath my bare feet. “There was someone here. He tried to…” my voice
cracked up and I couldn’t finish.

Seven covered my hands and asked through
gritted teeth, “Did you see who it was? Did you make anything out?”

Right now I was so mad at him. On the
night he left me alone, I was attacked. Then a horrible thought crept into my
mind. What if it was Seven?

After the police left, Marlene closed
the door and came over to me. “Okay, show’s over,” she said in the most
inconsiderate tone ever. “They’re going to keep a watch on the place for the
night so you can just go to bed now.”

Mackenzie unfolded her arms. “Mom,
seriously?” she scolded her in my defense. Mackenzie’s attitude towards me
seemed to have changed for the better. It took a terrifying event for that to
happen.

“She was just attacked. Do you think
this is some act?” she continued.

“Of course not,” Marlene touched her
chest, faking sympathy. “Believe me, I know how horrifying it is to have your
comfort and security taken away from you.” She eyed me with disinterest.

Rising to his feet, Seven walked over to
the front door. He opened it then growled, “Get out.”

Marlene’s mouth opened wide. She was
utterly appalled. Letting out a loud scoff, she marched out. Seven slammed it
behind her.

The air was dreadfully quiet afterwards
so I decided to go to my room and lie down. Getting up from the sofa, I headed
towards the passage.

Just as Seven was about to say something
to me, Mackenzie spoke first. “Do you want me to stay with you tonight,
Julian?”

I stared back at her in disbelief.
Nodding, I breathed out my reply, “Thank you.”

Mackenzie sauntered over to me and
placed her hand at my back, walking with me to my room. Seven stayed behind.

Slipping into bed, Mackenzie brought the
covers over my frightened body and tucked me in. She was the most compassionate
she’d ever been towards me. It moved my heart. I wanted her to stay like this
tomorrow, and the days to come.

“Are you going to be okay? Do you need
anything?” she asked for the umpteenth time.

I shuddered as I answered, “I’m okay.”

Mackenzie went over to the loveseat by
the sliding doors and placed the painting in the corner of the room so she
could lie down. She kept a watchful eye on me.

I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to
block out the night’s events. His heavy breathing on my neck and him pressing
against my body kept coming back to me, no matter how I fought it.

“Julian,” Mackenzie’s soft voice calmed
me.

Opening my eyes, I stared into hers.
“Hmm?”

“I never hated you,” she exhaled. “I was
jealous of you.”

I eased my head up off the pillow a bit,
amazed. “Jealous. Why?”

Taking a deep sigh, Mackenzie closed her
eyes and drifted asleep without answering. Maybe I already knew the answer. It
was strange that she’d been jealous of me when it was quite the opposite. I’d
been envious of her, living here with our father and getting to know him. Then
again, looking at her beautiful yet sorrowful face now while she slept, it
seemed Mackenzie wasn’t happy at all.