Haeven (38 page)

"Aww, I've missed you, too, baby!"

He covered me with kisses while my mom and
dad waited for their turn to welcome me home. It felt like I had
been gone forever rather than just the two short days that had
actually passed. I hugged both my parents and then my dad offered
to grab my things for me. Together, Ares, my mother, father and I
all went inside where we talked about our respective weekends.

"Did you meet any of Evan's friends?" my
mother asked at one point.

"Yes!" I immediately answered but as soon as
I said it I wasn't quite so sure that I had. "Well, hmm, I..." I
cocked my head at my mother and turned and looked at my father.
They both looked as confused as I felt. "Maybe I'm just tired. It
will all come back to me once I've had a chance to rest," I tried
to sound reassuring but their confused expressions changed to
concern. I fretfully looked away and tried to hide my
apprehension.

"Are you alright sweetie?"

"I'm fine. I just need to," I stood up a
little too quickly and the blood seemed to rush to my head,
"to...rest..." my knees suddenly gave out and I tumbled to the
floor.

"Emily!" my mother gasped and screamed.

My father dropped down beside me and propped
me up, "Emily?"

"Oh, Daddy!" I abruptly threw my arms around
him.

"What is it, honey?

I longed to tell him but I honestly didn't
know, there was nothing there, nothing whatsoever that I could tell
him.

"Evan," I whispered.

"What about Evan?" my father helped me back
to my seat.

I shook my head, "I don't know...I just...I
feel like..."

My father started to question me further but
my mother interrupted him, "Maybe we should call the doctor."

"What? No! I'm fine, really, Mum. I'm fine!
It's just been a long day. I think...I think I'll go take a bath
and get ready for bed."

Before either of them could object I called
to Ares and hurried upstairs. I ran the tap and while I was waiting
for the tub to fill I called Evan's cell phone. Over and over again
I dialed and each time it went straight to voicemail. I didn't know
why I was so worried about him but in my heart I felt like
something was terribly wrong.

I sat on the edge of the bath and as I
thought through our weekend I couldn't help but imagine that there
was something...something unusual about everything I thought I
remembered. I tried Evan's number one last time and this time left
a voicemail urging him to call me back as soon as he got my
message.

All through my bath I kept glancing at my
phone sure that it would ring at any moment but it never did. I
went through the motions of my bedtime routine and after taking
Ares out called Evan one last time. Again it went straight to
voicemail and I quickly hung up.

"Oh, Evan," I thought to myself, "please,
please call!" I set the ringer as loud as it would go and tucked my
phone under my pillow then curled up beneath the covers.

After a fitful hour or two of sleep I woke up
with a start. I was filled with a strange determination and felt
convinced that I had to go back to the hotel. There was something
there, something important that I had somehow forgotten and I
absolutely had to have it. I got dressed and tiptoed from my
room.

Ares was curious but didn't bother to get up
as I eased my door open and crept down the hallway. I went
downstairs and found the keys to the car hanging on the rack in the
kitchen then I hurried towards the front door. Much to my surprise
Ares was there, sitting down and facing away from me. He glanced
back and his tail swept the floor and I knew he expected me to take
him outside.

"No," I said. "Go lay down," and I pointed
down the hallway towards the living room.

He stood up but didn't move from where he was
standing. I tried to shove him out of the way and open the door but
he growled at me and the harder I pushed the louder he got.

"Ssh, ssh!" I frantically tried to calm him.
"No, Ares! No!" but he wouldn't let up. "Fine!" I grumbled. "I'll
take you outside.

He quickly quieted and let me open the door.
He leapt away as soon as it was wide enough and went straight for
the car.

"Good Grief! What has gotten into you? You
don't really think you're coming with me, do you?" I asked even
though I knew he couldn't understand me. "Or maybe you do!" I
thought as I neared the car and saw him pawing at the handle on the
passenger door.

I had no intention of bringing him with me
but every time I tried to get him to go back inside the house he
bolted away. I gave up and hopped in the car thinking that I would
just leave him there and my mother or father could let him in in
the morning but then he started barking. I panicked, afraid that he
would wake my parents and angrily got out and went to the
passenger's door. I flung it open and he bounded into the
passenger's seat where he happily settled himself.

"I don't know what has gotten into you but
you, my friend, are a bad dog!"

Ares leaned over and lapped my cheek.

"A very bad dog," I laughed but my fears
quickly curbed my mirth. I started the car and got us on our
way.

I was actually glad Ares was so persistent
and that he had come with me. Despite all my anxiety I was
exhausted and the monotony of the drive nearly put me to sleep more
than once. If I started to look as though I were getting too lax
Ares would either give a little yip or paw my arm reminding me to
stay alert. By the time we drove into the parking lot at the hotel
I had a nice welt on my right forearm from every time Ares made a
swipe at me.

I hadn't thought at all about my intentions
during the drive and wasn't sure what to do once we were there. I
considered going into the lobby and asking the night-person if
anyone had found something in one of the rooms. That didn't seem
like it would produce much fruit, though, since I didn't know which
room I had stayed in and I didn't even know what it was that I had
forgotten.

I turned the engine off and sat in the
driver's seat contemplating what I should do but Ares had
apparently been still for too long and obviously wanted to get out.
In my haste to get to the hotel I hadn't bothered to bring his
leash but it was late and there certainly wasn't anyone in the
immediate vicinity so I decided to let him out to stretch and take
care of his needs.

Much to my dismay he shot from the car as
soon as I opened the door and ran towards the back of the building.
I chased after him and as I rounded the corner I thought I heard
somebody cooing to him near the back entrance to the hotel.

"Whoa there big fella! You got me," the voice
was filled with humor.

I looked in the direction of the back doorway
and was astonished to see Ares there standing on his hind legs with
his paws on some strange man's shoulders.

"Ah, so it is true and the culprit does
always return to the scene of the crime!" the man called to me.

"Excuse me?"

He gently tugged Ares from his shoulders and
together they approached me where I was standing in the dim light
of a street lamp. For a fleeting moment I thought I recognized him
and forgot that I should be afraid.

"Who are you? Do I know you?" I looked from
the man to Ares and back again wondering if he was a friend of
Evan's.

"Not intimately but I would be happy to
change that if you like," he smiled suggestively.

"That's quite alright!" I said angrily.
"Ares, come!" I pointed at my heel and pivoted away.

"Wait!" his voice was apologetic and when I
glanced back the stranger reached into his pocket and fished
something out then raised it up so it would catch the light, "Look
familiar?"

Instantly I knew that it was the object I had
so urgently come back to find. An image flashed in my mind of the
man and a nightclub and a conversation we seemed to have had
there.

"That's right," he nodded. "You do
remember...something, anyway. I'm Colin, a friend of Daemon's and I
am here to take you to him."

"Daemon! How do I know that
name?"
 I wondered then looking at the necklace. "Where did
you get that?" I demanded.

"Hmm," the man studied me. "It's late and the
sun will be up soon. I think you had better come with me. It will
be much easier for Daemon to tell you than for me."

I shook my head, "No. Stay where you are!
Ares, come!" I called again but he wouldn't budge.

"I guess the easy way isn't going to work is
it? Fair enough," Colin took a step towards me but Ares suddenly
came to life and his friendly demeanor fell to the wayside. "OK,
OK!" Colin threw his hands up. "Just tell her to come with me,
would you?" the stranger said to Ares.

Ares walked around behind me and nudged me
towards the man. I stumbled a step or two towards him.

"What are you doing?" I looked back at Ares.
"How did you get him to do that?" I turned back to the man.

"If you would just come with me..." Colin
sounded exasperated and as if to second his suggestion Ares nudged
me again.

Between the two of them I was overcome and
against all my inner misgivings Ares and I followed Colin to his
car. He let Ares into the back where he stretched out across the
entire seat and put his head down. I eased myself into the
passenger's seat and a moment later Colin took the wheel.

After about an hour of silent driving Colin
pulled to the side of the road and stopped the car. He opened the
glove box and after a moment of searching found what he was looking
for.

"Uh. Well, there's no easy way to ask so I'll
just do it."

Nervously and full of confusion I looked over
at him.

"I need to...you'll need to, here," Colin
wrapped a blindfold around my head. "I promise, it's just a few
short minutes and once we're there you can do whatever you like
with it."

It was terribly unsettling and I could feel
myself trembling but I couldn't see a thing. The car started
rolling again then several minutes and an interminable number of
turns later it came to a stop.

"I really do apologize," Colin said. "You can
take it off now."

I couldn't see much of anything but what I
could see didn't look very promising. We seemed to be in a wooded
lot of some sort and after helping me and Ares from the car Colin
told us to wait there and that he would be right back. He took the
wheel again and drove off. When he returned he led us towards a
dilapidated building tucked into the corner of the lot.

Once inside he told me to watch my step and
guided me to the far end of the building where a crumbling
staircase was standing that lead down to what I imagined would be
the building's basement. He helped me navigate the first few steps
and when we got to the bottom Colin had us duck under the
stairwell. He pried open a doorway that to my eyes was completely
indiscernible and motioned me through. After closing the door
behind us we were swallowed up by the darkness for a few seconds
then suddenly a doorway into a brightly lit elevator slid open.

"Going down," Colin chuckled and pushed the
lowest button on the controls.

Ares sat on his haunches and patiently waited
until the elevator stopped. By then my trepidation was at its
height and I couldn't bring myself to follow Colin and Ares after
they stepped out of the elevator.

"We need to hurry. Daemon is waiting for
you," Colin insisted. "There isn't much time before we all need to
rest."

There was only one way to turn once I was out
of the elevator and when I looked in that direction I was taken
aback by all that I could see. It looked warm and inviting, like
the inside of someone's well-kept home. The only things missing
were walls and windows.

Colin smiled as I took it all in, "It is
someone's home...actually a lot of 
someones."

We started walking again and after a few
yards I noticed someone moving towards us. He came slowly at first
but then suddenly and without warning he was directly in front of
me.

"Emily," he crushed me to his chest. "I can't
believe it's you!" he pulled back and carefully studied
me.  

He was breathtaking and I felt myself smiling
and blushing against his intense scrutiny.

"When Colin told me he bumped into someone in
a club I never imagined it would be you!" Then Daemon looked
confused, "You don't remember me, do you?" his voice full of
disappointment.

I shook my head, "No. I'm sorry."

I wanted to tell him why and to explain to
him that we may very well have met before but since then
something...

He took my chin and it felt like he was
examining my innermost thoughts somehow. "Artur," he mumbled, "I'm
sure of it," he looked at Colin.

Colin shrugged and nodded, "I don’t know who
Artur is but someone’s done something."

"Do you have it?"

Colin handed Daemon the charm and after
Daemon did a quick inspection he sent him away. "Well, I guess we
had better start at the beginning. Here," he handed the necklace
back to me. "Let's sit somewhere and talk. Damn, I wish there was
more time!"

Daemon led me towards the back wall and
around one or two of the support beams to where a living area was
neatly arranged. He asked the two people who were using the
makeshift room if they would excuse us and once they were gone
Daemon had me take a seat on one of the ottomans. He drew a second
up close and sat across from me while Ares made himself at home and
stretched out on a shaggy carpet artfully placed in front of a
tremendous shelf of books.

I was still holding the charm, nervously
running my fingers back and forth over its smooth surface.

Daemon took my hands in his momentarily
stopping them. He smiled, "I don't know how you know Artur or why
he's done this to you but you saved my life and I would do anything
to repay you so I think we had better try and find out."