Misfits, Inc. (5 page)

“I wish I could have warned you,” he replied then
seemed to relax to her presence.

He again returned to messaging his temples with
added vigor.  She watched him only a moment and feared he’d tear the skin from
his head at the rate he was going.

“Headache?”

He managed a tiny smile.  “My usual month long
migraine.  Drugs don’t have any effect on me.”

Hailey studied him a moment longer and considered
her next move carefully.  She couldn’t allow the man to suffer more than he
already had at the hands of his superiors, much like herself, but she also
didn’t want to give the wrong impression.  He was, after all, a stranger to
her.

“I can take care of that for you,” she gently
informed him then added a tense smile.  “My track record is unbroken.”

Skyler gave her a slightly dumbfounded stare then
finally shrugged with a look of defeat.  He obviously had his doubts to her
ability.  He walked out from behind the desk and reluctantly approached her. 
His cautiousness was baffling to her.  Was he afraid to let her touch him?  He
was a mystery to her.  Most men she understood, whether good or bad.  Skyler
posed a big question mark.  As Hailey placed her hands to his face, Skyler
immediately tensed.  She rubbed his temples a few times then pulled back and
met his gaze.  Skyler appeared surprised while staring at her.  He
apprehensively touched his temples.

“I don’t believe it,” he finally gasped without
taking his eyes from her.  “How did you do that?”

She grinned in response.  “It’s a gift.”

I
t was a little after
midnight.  The secluded beach was partially lit from exterior hotel lights
around the empty pool and the moon glistening off the ocean.  It was another
warm night with a slight breeze coming off the water.  Hailey and Skyler sat on
a large, round wicker lounge bed not far from the surf.  Sounds from the
lounge, now turned into a party hot spot, could faintly be heard.  Hailey could
only guess the sort of night Mel was already having.  She just hoped her friend
would be alert enough in the morning to cater to their boss lady.  After the
scene Hailey had made in the corridor, she was certain Lucinda was going to
wake in an exceptionally foul mood, and Mel would be the first person with
which she came into contact.  Skyler hugged his knees to his chest with his
cheek on his knees and studied Hailey in silence while she told him about her
evening from hell.  Once she finished, he straightened his legs on the leather
padding over the lounge bed before him and stared at the moon above the ocean. 

“Brody and Rafe have been to the resort six times
in fourteen months,” he announced casually.  “In all those times, I’ve never
even heard Rafe speak.”

“Consider yourself lucky,” she muttered.

Hailey attempted to make herself comfortable on the
lounge bed but found herself tugging on either the cleavage of her dress or the
slit up her thigh.  If Skyler had been stealing peeks, she hadn’t caught him. 
Her feelings toward Skyler were unlike any other she’d felt before.  She wasn’t
uncomfortable around him, yet his odd personality dictated she should have
been.  She felt as if they were old childhood friends reunited.  He again
hugged his knees to his chest and gave her an innocent look.

“What do you intend to do about Brody?”

“Nothing.  Lucinda can fire me,” she remarked
firmly.

Hailey considered her own remarks and frowned
having heard them spoken aloud.  She took a deep breath and glanced at Skyler. 
She marveled at the innocent way he stared at her, almost with a childlike
fascination.  He seemed to cling to every word she said, but she was convinced
his attention had nothing to do with sexual desire.  That in itself was almost
creepy.  She shifted slightly then offered a tiny smile.

“I’ve told you all about my boss pimping me out to
her investors,” Hailey announced.  “Why don’t you tell me what’s bothering
you?”

He avoided looking at her and became unusually
uncomfortable.  “My life is a utopia of disaster.  When I’m honest with people,
they tend to think I’m a freak.”

She felt compelled to stare at him.  Something was
clearly wrong with him.  She could almost feel it.  For some reason, it was suddenly
important that he open up to her.

“You’ll just have to trust me.”

He continued to stare out toward the ocean a moment
longer, but it was obvious his mind was racing for a response.  He shifted
several times before finally looking at her.  His look was oddly serious and
almost concerning to her.

“I’m psychic and connected to the spiritual world,”
he boldly announced, spilling his entire odd existence as quickly as it would
come out of his mouth.  “I’ve seen people in my dreams before they came to the
hotel.  I know things about them.”  He hesitated and again shifted, once more
slowing his words.  “It tends to alarm people, so I’ve learned not to discuss
it.”

She stared at him in silence as if attempting to
read his eyes.  He looked away and refused to meet her gaze.  She knew there
was something more he wasn’t telling her, but she wasn’t sure what it was.  It
then hit her.

“You had a dream about me, didn’t you?” she
suddenly asked and straightened.  “Tell me about it.”

“I’d rather not,” he replied a little too quickly
and refused to look at her.

“That’s hardly fair.”

He was silent a long moment before taking a deep
breath.  He finally looked at her.  “You were in danger.  I tried to save you,
but there were all these bats surrounding me.  That’s when the quake woke me.”

“An earthquake on the island?”

“Yeah, things were scattered all over my room,” he
replied then frowned.  “Cass denied there was a quake, but she enjoys playing
with my head.”  He seemed reluctant to continue.  “There’s, uh, something else. 
I, uh, see ghosts.  They appear as little spots of light randomly around the
hotel.”  His look was serious.  “They’ve all collected around you.”

She stared back at him with surprise but attempted
to conceal it.  “I have ghosts hanging around me?”

He nodded.  “Yeah, sixteen to be precise.”

Hailey hesitantly looked around her.  She wasn’t
actually expecting to see them, but she found the thought fascinating all the
same.

“I’ve never seen them drawn to anyone before,” he
informed her then fell silent while staring.  “You think I’m crazy.”

“Of course not,” she replied without hesitation. 
“I believe in ghosts.”

Skyler appeared stunned by her admission whether or
not she said it just to make him feel better.  Relief swept over him and he
seemed to relax for the first time.

“I knew there was something special about you the
moment I saw you with your little ghost colony.”

†

I
t was nearing one o’clock in the morning, and the dance party
was still going strong in the lounge.  There was no end in sight as the over
twenty-one crowd drank and danced to the loud, pulsating club music.  Despite
the small dance floor, the partygoers crowded it, forcing them to dance even
closer than they did in most fancy clubs in the big cities.  Mel danced with
her three new friends from the beach.  All four wore club wear, which consisted
of short, tight dresses barely able to contain jiggling breasts attempting to
make their escape from low necklines.  Penny was moderately drunk and brushed
against several men throughout the endless club music.  She was flirting with
just about every man on the dance floor, bumping and grinding with them as if
they stood a chance with her.  A few of the men she pressed against seemed
enthusiastic with their chances of taking the ‘ripe for the pickin’ woman back
to his room.  There were going to be some disappointed men.

Amy had her own admirer working his charm on her. 
She danced with a fairly handsome man in his mid to late twenties.  Daniel had
some fancy moves and easily won her attention.  They seemed inseparable for the
last hour.  He’d pull her in close for a few seconds of seductive dancing and
then pull away, as if teasing her with his sexual competence.  Amy enjoyed the
attention of the handsome man.  With Amy and Penny almost certainly securing
their overnight company, Mel and Desi danced with each other.  Neither seemed
to need the attention of the flirtatious men.  They were having fun on their
own.

As if on cue, that all changed in an instant. 
Vance mysteriously appeared alongside them and joined both women in their
dance.  His smile captivated both, indicated by their stares and helpless
grins.  As he danced close and seductive with them, they were suddenly
competing for his attention with dueling dance moves.  There seemed to be
enough of Vance to go around for both women, although they probably wouldn’t
cherish the suggestion.

I
t was nearly two o’clock in the morning.  Hailey and Skyler
walked through the ankle deep surf in their bare feet at a leisurely pace.  The
gentle waves washed across their feet and gently tugged on their ankles as it
pulled back out again.  Hailey had to admit, the night was peaceful and serene. 
She could easily get used to beach life.  To her surprise, she’d been in
Skyler’s company nearly six hours, and she wasn’t even tired of him.  He shared
his life stories with her, and she shared hers with him.  It was possibly the
most she’d ever shared with anyone about her life.

“My uncle died when I was six,” Hailey gently
remarked.  “I never knew my parents.  I barely even knew my uncle.”

“Sometimes I wish I never knew my parents,” he
informed her.  “They thought I was a freak like everyone else.  I didn’t
exactly have a great childhood.”  Skyler hesitated and appeared reluctant to
continue.  He drew a deep breath and avoided looking at her.  “When I was
seventeen, I took a bottle of anti-anxiety pills and washed them down with a
fifth of vodka.”

She suddenly stopped him in the surf and looked at
him with surprise.  “Skyler!”

He managed a soft laugh even though it wasn’t the
least bit funny.  Apparently, it was to him.

“It put me into a coma.  They said I was clinically
dead,” he announced then stared at nothing.  “It was then that I had a vision
of a beautiful angel in a brilliant white light.  She said I had a purpose, and
that my destiny had been predetermined.  She told me that I was chosen; that I
would receive a gift and to use it wisely.”  He smiled proudly while off in
some fantasy world then cast a glance at Hailey.  “And when I came out of the
coma--”  His smile vanished.  “Nothing changed.”

Hailey stared at him with surprise.  She was sort
of expecting to hear some epiphany he’d had while clinically dead.  Skyler’s
life had been one bad beat after another, and she felt sorry for what he’d gone
through.  He apparently noticed her sympathetic look and attempted to cover. 

“It wasn’t all for nothing,” he quickly added. 
“Despite nothing having changed, I was left with the feeling that I’m here for
a reason.  I believe there was an angel, and she spoke the truth.  I know one
day, it’ll all have been worth it.”

Hailey couldn’t help but feel bad for Skyler. 
Although he was optimistic, his life leaned toward tragedy.  He was that poor,
awkward shelter puppy left unwanted and unloved alone in his cage.  She
desperately wanted to take him in and give him a good home, one he deserved,
but she was barely scraping by herself.  If Lucinda fired her, she’d be worse
off than Skyler.  Both thoughts would be enough to keep her from sleeping
tonight, which wasn’t a terrible loss, since she couldn’t stop the endless
parade of nightmares that recently seemed to plague her.

†

I
t was a little after three o’clock in the morning, and the
lounge party had mostly dissipated once the bar closed.  Penny finally selected
a worthy young man as her overnight entertainment while Desi and Mel battled
over Vance’s attention into the early hours.  Unfortunately, he seemed to
disappear before they could declare a winner, leaving both disappointed.  Amy
and Daniel drunkenly walked barefoot along the surf in the romantic moonlight,
having the entire beach to themselves.  The night seemed perfect for the pair
as they talked and laughed, enjoying one another’s company.  Daniel pulled her
against him and stole a firm, quick kiss.  Amy returned the kiss then playfully
pulled away.  She seemed almost innocent now that they were alone together.

“It’s late,” Amy finally said with a look of regret
in her eyes.  “I should be getting back to my room.”

“You could always come back to my room,” he
announced while pulling her into his arms and again kissed her.

She pulled away and attempted to keep their
interaction casual.  “I told you, I’m not ready for that,” Amy announced. 
“We’ve just met.”

He grinned slyly and again pulled her into his arms
with increased determination.  “So you’ll get to know me.”  Daniel kissed her
more aggressively.

Something about his aggressive kiss caused alarm in
the young woman, and she harshly pushed him away.

“Stop it!”

The look he gave her was more than disappointment;
it was hostility.  “I knew I should have gone after your friend,” he snapped. 
“You wasted my entire evening.”

Amy stared at him with a look of disbelief as he
stormed back to the hotel.

“Prick,” she scoffed.

The only comfort to the situation was that the
dance party was winding down and there would be little hope of the bastard
finding worthy company anymore tonight.  She stood near the surf for several
minutes with the annoyance clearly on her face.  Amy wasn’t a prude; but she
also wasn’t a one-night-stand.  Another afternoon together or even brunch would
have been enough to seal the deal, but there were too many young men who
required instant gratification.  Anything more than a few hours spent on any
woman was considered a waste of their time.  Amy finally staggered along the
sand toward the hotel.  Her fun evening ended in disappointment.  That and the
late hour showed on her weary face.  As she looked toward the hotel, she saw
someone standing within the shadows of the cabana bar near the pool area.  Amy
paused and squinted.  She couldn’t make out who it was, but it looked like a
man.

“Who’s there?” she asked with concern in her voice.

Being drunk and alone on a dimly lit beach wasn’t
exactly smart, though being alone hadn’t been part of the plan.  The dark
figure hiding in the shadows of the cabana took a few steps toward her.  His
approach didn’t put her at ease.  Amy held back her gasp and took several steps
back toward the gently crashing waves.  There was a snarl near the large rock
only a few feet away from her.  Amy quickly turned toward the rock and the
frightening sound coming from it.  Her eyes widened and her shrill scream
followed.

†

S
kyler slept restlessly beneath the covers in his simple bedroom
in the staff wing of the hotel.  He suddenly gasped and flew up in bed while
clutching his head.  He still wore his work dress shirt and pants, despite
having gone to bed.  His white shirt was nearly wrinkled beyond repair.  Skyler
breathed heavily while staring blankly across the dimly lit room.  His dream
had clearly shaken him.  He allowed his fingers to run through his mussed hair
then groaned softly as he collapsed to the bed.  He stared at the ceiling and
attempted to control his heavy breathing.

“You’re not a freak,” he whispered softly to the
ceiling.  “You have a purpose.  Your destiny has been predetermined.”  His eyes
rolled shut as his arm draped across his eyes.  “Who are you kidding?  You’re a
fucking freak, Skyler.”