Forgotten (29 page)

“I’ve been told that before. What
history?”

He sighed deeply. “It’s not my story to
tell.”

“Tell me anyway.”

“
No, I
won’t, but if you ever hear it, you’ll understand his unnatural
obsession with keeping you safe. That and of course….” He shrugged
his shoulders in that overly dramatic Ethan way. “The other
thing.”

The other thing?
Who was being
taxing now? “What are you talking about?”

His hands
continued clinging onto the steering wheel; his knuckles were
whitening. “Saul feels some sort of connection with you. In his
words, you unsettle him.”

I rolled my
eyes. Great! Not only did I boast the capabilities to
ruffle
Saul Reardon but I could now add
unsettling
to the list. The
day was only improving. “I suppose there’s no point in asking
why.”

“
Oh, I’m
pretty certain I know why. But Saul? Well, let’s just say as
incredibly smart as he is, he just hasn’t figured it all
out…
yet
.”

I gave Ethan a strange look, one that he
deserved. If he was about to mumble in riddles then his timing was
off. “Ethan, just tell me.”

“Claudia, just work it out. I’m attempting
to stay loyal to Saul.”

Somewhere in my cluttered head, little
pieces were jig-sawing together. “Is he normally this
obsessed?”

“Not at all.”

“So, why me?”

A flagrant roll of his eyes. “I think you
know the answer to that.”

The final jigsaw piece locked itself into
place.

The other thing.

I
hadn
’t imagined it after all. I smiled, a
slow euphoria replacing the previous leaden sensation in my head.
“That certainly explains a lot.”

“Thought it might.”

I half-laughed and half-choked as the full
implication hit me.

“
I’ve been
struggling to figure out if I should tell you. To try to explain
his odd behavior.”

I placed a hand on Ethan’s knee. “I’m glad
you did.”

“
No worries,
except as of now I most likely don’t have a best friend. But, I
keep reassuring myself that you could possibly be good …
for him
.”

He looked
across at me and smiled that roguish smile of his. “Even though it
will crush my heart into a zillion pieces, tell me that I’m not
wrong in assuming that
Saul’s ‘unsettled’
feelings are just a tiny bit reciprocated. Otherwise,
I’m
on a slow boat out
of here to build walls with the Chinese.”

I laughed and shook my head. “You’re not
wrong.”

His smile grew wider. “I’m glad. Slow boats
aren’t my thing. I’m built for speed.” He reached for the keys in
the ignition. “Speaking of which, I assume that I’m now allowed to
drive us home.”

“You assume correctly.”

“
Because, my
sweet lady, this one and a half mile track up to Saul’s house is by
far my favorite.”

Before
starting the car, Ethan paused. “There’s one more thing, since I’m
in this all revealing mode, and my loyalty is just about shot. Saul
has this ridiculous idea that his ‘unsettledness’ will affect his
judgment and therefore, will put you in harm’s way. He actually
believed that everything that happened to you today was his
fault.”

I recalled Saul’s unnatural aloofness when
the police were present. “There’s no way Saul could’ve predicted
what happened today.”

“
I told him
that already, but when you disappeared it only made him more
convinced of his supposed incompetence.
If
you returned, he was taking
himself off the case.”

It’s amazing
how quickly euphoria could evaporate. Just one simple statement and
it’s as if it had never existed. “He can’t do that.”

“Told him.”

“I have to talk to him… as soon as
possible.”

“My thoughts exactly. And please sort it out
because I’m really over all this soppy heart-to-heart shit. It’s
severely impacting on my image.” Ethan revved the car into action
and sped onto the weather-beaten track. A swath of dust flared
behind him.

“Settle back for the ride, Angel.”

And with
that, Ethan
bulleted up the
hill.

December 27, 2010

5:45
pm

WE FOUND
SAUL’S
empty Jeep
parked beneath his house.

I raced up
the steps to the front door only to discover it locked. Slightly
mystified, but impatient, I scanned the wide decks on either side
for signs of life. There were none.

Ethan soon
joined me and was equally perplexed. He searched his keys, of which
there were many. I noticed each key bore a name, all individually
scripted and all, with the odd exception, female. On the flip side
were - or what appeared to be - phone numbers.

Ethan
spotted me staring at them and grinned boyishly. “Let’s just call
it -
my
little black book of keys.
”

Why I was
amazed, I didn
’t know. Just as he was
about to secure a key in place, the door opened and there stood
Shirley Svenson with a large bag in hand.

“The day improves,” mumbled a less than
enthused Ethan.

He read
my
not now
expression and then propped himself against the railing
crossing his arms. I wasted no time on formalities or on Shirley’s
disdainful huffing and puffing at Ethan. “Have you seen
Saul?”

She turned
to me. “Why of course not, dear. Mr. Reardon hasn’t been home all
day. In fact, I’ve just left him a short note explaining that I’m
going out tonight with my cousin.”

“That sounds nice, Shirley. But it’s just
that we’ve noticed Saul’s car here. Are you sure? It’s really
important.”

“
He could’ve
gone for a run. Mr. Reardon loves his runs.”

I looked across the densely populated
property. “Do you know where?”

“
No
, dear, that’s none of my
business.” She announced it with an obvious air of
pride.

I thanked her, feeling weighed down by a
fresh dispiritedness. Shirley said goodnight, gave Ethan one last
obnoxious glare and hurried off down the steps.

“
I’ve a good
idea where he might be,” Ethan said. He grabbed my hand, escorted
me down the stairs and to the right-hand side of the house. He then
gazed in the direction of the western sun. “See that hill?” He
pointed upwards. I shielded my eyes from the weakening rays and
looked. “It’s one of his favorite places, something about all that
oneness with nature crap.”

I searched for a way through the heavy scrub
and eventually spotted a narrow, dirt track. “Is that the way
up?”

“Takes you straight to the top. It’s a bit
of a hike, quite steep in parts but when you reach it, it levels
out to a clearing. To your right is a rocky outcrop.” He looked
back to me. “I only hope he’s there.”

So did I.

“Just go knock some sense into him, will
you?”

I gave Ethan
a brief hug, and when I pulled back, there was a placid look in his
eyes. “You never told me what you thought about my car.”

“Your car?” I laughed. “It’s well…
great.”

“But?”

I was bewildered as to where this was going.
“But nothing; it’s a terrific car.”

He sighed. “You’d better get moving.”

I turned to begin my trek and then stopped.
“Ethan,” I said, spinning back, “if all you had was a rusty, old
pushy, I’d still think you pretty cool.”

Ethan appeared startled, a sad startled if
that was possible. He dropped his shaking head; a large grin
stretched across his face. “Go and make sure you tell that crazy
friend of mine what a lucky bastard he is.” And with that, he
turned and strode off.

Ethan was right about the hill. The swell of
it was quite sharp. Already shattered by my previous spurt, it took
some perseverance to complete the climb. I was tired, mentally and
physically but I was also determined. The memory of Saul’s distant
eyes and the sound of his harsh words urged me forward.

As I reached
the top, I crossed to the center of the clearing. What I saw was
nothing short of magic. Various shades of hilly green rose and fell
for what seemed like forever. Propped against the stark oranges and
reds of the fast setting sun and the glistening turquoise of the
snaking river, it formed one very striking combination. White
cockatoos laughed and bustled from the tall gum trees, heralding
the end of day. Others, mainly small grey ducks and brilliantly
colored lorikeets, took flight, swarming the sky.

No wonder this was Saul’s
favorite place.

I woke from my temporary paralysis and
searched to the right. Still unable to see Saul, I ventured further
until I spotted the rocky outcrop. That’s when I saw him standing
on the precipice of a huge boulder, fingers crooked in the front
pocket of his jeans, eyes locked to the view. I felt relief first
and then a slow, mushrooming angst took over.

How was he
going to react to me being there? Would he be angry at the mere
sight of me? This was after all,
his
special place.

I stole a
few more breaths of the pure, gentle atmosphere and drove on,
regardless. As I loomed nearer, my natural instincts divided. One
told me to get out of there; the other advised me to keep going. I
went with the
other
and soon climbed onto the large, flat rocky
plane. Edging up next to Saul, I faced the glorious panorama. Saul
remained stationary.

After what
seemed like eons, his hand reached for mine. I decided the magic of
the mountains was working.

I searched for his eyes, those impossible
ones that had fascinated me since the first time I had seen them.
They were kinder now, displaying that basic gentleness I was more
accustomed to. “I have to talk to you,” I whispered, afraid to
break the spell in this soothing part of the world.

“I know,” was all he said. He used the flat
of his hand to stroke my cheek. I drew in a harsh breath. My heart
was near shutdown. Our eyes bonded and he grinned. He then brought
his other hand flat against my other cheek. He slowly lifted my
head and before my heart could struggle for one more beat, he
locked his lips over mine.

It was so
light, yet so hot, hot enough to send every one of my hungry cells
into anarchy. He pulled away, his eyes still fixed on
me.

“S… Saul….” I could barely string syllables.
“I….”

Saul laid a
finger on my partly opened lips. “Shh,” he said. He placed his palm
flush against my heart. It was pulsating wildly. I couldn’t imagine
what he thought, but his grin only broadened. He bent to my ear and
whispered, “That’s all I needed to hear.”

And with
that, he gripped my waist with both hands, lifted me onto my
straining toes and kissed me again. There was nothing gentle this
time, nothing light. His kiss was hungry, stirring my own dormant
appetite. I could smell it amongst his hypnotic scent, hear it
amongst his animalistic groans, feel it amongst his tongue plunging
with long, swift strokes, deliciously deepening with every
breath.

Strong,
wanton sensations scorched me and
amplified, like an out-of-control fever
.
My hands flew,
clenched his hair with considerable force, drew his face closer to
mine. He wrenched my body until it fused with his, his mouth now
sweeping the sides of my neck, lower still to the top of my
breasts. And for a while, I was lost, lost in an amazing, untamed
moment, not caring if I ever came out of it alive.

Eventually,
much to my frustration, he pulled away, leaving me panting for air
and wet from the aching throb between my thighs. He rested his
forehead onto mine, breathing heavily. “Shit, Claudia.” His voice
was faint, ragged. “I swear you’re going to drive me
crazy.”

I didn’t care. If this is what crazy was, I
was all in for some more. “I hope that’s a good crazy.”

He chuckled,
curled a few wisps of my wayward hair behind my ear. “So what now?”
he said with a crooked grin and those damn seductive
dimples.

“Oh, I can think of many things.” My voice
was low, but every bit as wicked as my disordered urges. I grabbed
his face and reached for those yummy lips of his.

Saul kissed back, but it was unsatisfyingly
short. “You said you had to talk to me. What about?”

Talk? Did he say talk?
There
was
something. Something very important.
But….

“
Later.” I
inhaled and pulled him to me again. I heard him moan as his arms
powered my body, as his lips set hot, frantic flames
alight wherever they touched. His hand smoothed
down my back, lower still until they reached the bare skin of my
leg. My body convulsed at his touch, at his hand sinuously sliding
part way beneath my skirt. He clutched my thigh, lifted it and
enfolded my leg around his body. I groaned unashamedly, and once
again, I became adrift in a world of impulsive delight.

So lost was
I in him that I didn’t recognize what happened next.

Thankfully, Saul did.

A sound
cracked behind us, and then air whizzed past my ear. Saul instantly
propel
led me onto the rocky surface.
Another sound cracked before he joined me. This time, I was alert
enough to identify the distinctive sound.