The Last Customer (22 page)

           
“Why did he lock us down here?” Cherri asked. She was shaking. Her damp clothing caused friction.

           
“He’s trying to protect us. He wants us down here to keep us away from those…demons. If we’re down here, then maybe he thinks that he can defeat the demons up there, without us. He’ll let us out when he’s finished. Whatever the reason is, he’s looking out for us. He doesn’t want any harm to come to us.”

           
“I’m still scared.
What if it beats Gardner?
What if it finds us down here?”

           
“I’m scared too, but all we can do is
wait
,” Winny said. “I hope Garth is all right. I’m worried about him.”

           
Winny watched Cherri lower her head. She sniffled and then mumbled, “I’m so sorry. I feel like this is my fault. We robbed your store. Your brother left because of me, and now you don’t know where he is…or if he’s all right.”

           
Winny should have been mad, but he wasn’t. Garth left of his own free will. He should have stayed. Sure, there was a logical reason for him to leave, but he hadn’t digested their situation. He was being selfish. He should have stayed and helped them.
Leaving
only put him in danger, and caused others to worry. Garth was stubborn.

Even though Winny was upset with his brother, he hoped that he was safe—and that he’d found help. If Winny knew Garth, he was headed to the police station, and that worried Winny too. If more police showed up, more people would get hurt, probably killed.

           
Curiously, Winny turned to his surroundings. Lined along the basement floor were stacks of assorted flowerpots. They were flush tight against the cold cement wall and neatly aligned in stacks of three and four. The back wall rounded-out beneath the staircase and set as a background for the numerous bags of soils and fertilizers. They were for Donna’s greenery.

Everyone in town knew that Donna was a florist. Winny often saw her downtown and at the farmer’s market. She sold neat and beautiful flowers. Her flowers were designed in interesting and creative arrangements. Even Winny—who could have cared less about flowers—found Donna’s displays intriguing. He openly acknowledged her talent.

Continuing his look around the basement, he found the laundry machine and dryer near the last plastic bag of soil. The large white appliances were spread out toward the back wall.

Looking up, Winny saw another light bulb screwed into a fixture, on the ceiling. There was a two foot piece of white string dangling from a row of metal bearings beneath it. He went to it. Cherri followed him.

           
“Where are you going?” she asked.

           
“The laundry machine, we can sit on it.”

           
“Sounds like fun,” she joked.

           
Winny quickly felt ashamed. She probably thought he was making an inappropriate joke. He disregarded his paranoia. She had played it off, cool. He found himself wondering if Cherri harbored any feelings for him. He doubted that someone as beautiful as Cherri could host attraction for him. Still, he cared about how she perceived him. An image of her full lips suddenly danced in his head. He wanted to kiss her.

           
“Why are you so quiet?” she asked.

           
Luckily, it was too dark for her to see him clearly. He was blushing. He’d been ignoring her, for a long moment, while he thought about her lips. When her hand glided down around his shoulder, he found himself comforted, excited even. He pulled the string. The light bulb flickered and sprung to life. This bulb was no brighter than the other.

           
“What do you want to do?” he asked.

3

Cherri hoped that Winny wasn’t coming-on to her. Not that she would have minded him hitting on her. She liked him too. This just wasn’t the time or place. They were stuck in the basement. It was dark and—strange for a time like this—they shared a subtle attraction. She knew that he’d acknowledged their attraction and now, they were alone with no one to judge them. For the first time tonight, they had a moment to settle. She thought it would be impossible to relax, but they could at least rest. Just the fact that their bodies were able to stop moving, stop exerting energy, was comforting. They could collect their thoughts and catch their breath.

           
Cherri was worn out, but she was amped at the same time. The charge of adrenaline held her alertness. She felt gross, sweaty and fatigued. Her stomach growled. There was nothing in her belly, and yet she wasn’t hungry. The last thing on her mind was food. The thought of eating made her feel sick. The only relief was Winny. His presence was comforting.

           
“I don’t know.” Cherri answered. She sat down. “My legs are achy. So is my back.”

           
“Yeah, mine too. You mind if I sit down next to you?”

           
She hoped that he wasn’t getting fresh with her. Her first thought was to tell him
no
. But he was one of the
good guys
. Still, he was a boy and boys always had
thoughts
, even at a time like this. Maybe she was being foolish. He’d helped her survive. All he wanted was to sit with her and talk. They’d shared this horrible night and created a bond. Her defensive nature was getting the best of her. In retrospect, her defensiveness was the result of her relationship with Timmy, the way he’d treated her. He had been insecure, always needing reassurance. Still, she didn’t hate him and looking at Winny, she couldn’t buy into the idea that she could attract one of the
good guys
, and Winny was good.

He sat down next to her. She felt the warmth of his body. He wasn’t touching her, but his body temperature radiated upon her. It felt good. She wanted to snuggle up next to him and hold him tight. That would feel good. But then—even in the situation they were in—he would feel entitled to be with her, romantically, and she was far from in-the-mood for that.

“Why are you so quiet?” he asked.

Snapping out of her daze, she looked at him, caught his face, and realized how close he was. He must have seen the frightened look in her eyes. She tried to hide it. He suddenly slid back a few inches.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get in your space.”

“No, I’m sorry. Please, sit closer. I’m cold,” she said.

She slid nearer to him. She wrapped her arms around his shoulder and leaned in to his chest. Her heart fluttered. She felt warm again. She focused on the comfort that he gave her.

“So, before tonight, where did you think that you’d be right now? You know, before life threw us this curve ball.”

Cherri sat up. She looked down at the cold cement floor. She could feel the dust beneath her. It felt chalky. “We were on our way to Detroit. Timmy has a brother there. He was going to give him a job…I guess you’d call it a job. They were going to steal cars and sell them. You know. A chop-shop.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why would someone like
you
end up with someone like him? I hope I’m not upsetting you.”

She didn’t know if she minded. That was the truth. But she wasn’t angry either. She thought it might be comforting to talk with Winny. He didn’t seem like the type of person that would judge her. “I guess because he was the only guy who cared about me. He never judged me. He accepted me for who I am. That and he saved me from the life I was living. But, in hindsight, that life might not have been so bad. We just seemed to make sense at the time. We were both damaged.”

She could tell that Winny was curious about the details of what she’d just said. He was looking at the floor and fidgeting. His thumbs twirled in circles.

“I’m sorry,” he responded humbly.

She believed him. He was sorry and she appreciated that he didn’t pity her.

“I should be apologizing. We robbed your store, held a gun to you…I know I didn’t do it directly, but I was there…I guess…I just hope that you’re okay.”

She felt horrible. She’d robbed him and it mattered how he felt.

“Does it feel weird that he’s…you know…
gone?

“I don’t know. I mean I was with him for a long time. It seems like forever. I cared about him. But to be honest, I don’t think that I ever really loved him. I’m sad that he’s…gone, but…oh, I’m a horrible person…”

“No you’re not. Tell me what you were going to say. Come on, we’re talking here.”

She wanted to tell him, but what would he think of her?

“I feel relieved that I’m not with him anymore. But I’m not glad that he’s dead. I’m not that cruel, I swear.” She began to cry, pulling her bloody shirt collar up to her face and wiped away her tears.

Winny leaned back. He grabbed a small blue rag off the top of the laundry machine. It was ten inches by ten inches. He held it to his nose, smelling it, making sure it was clean. He offered it to her,
a
understanding smile on his face.

She nodded, took it from him, and wiped her face. When she was done, she handed it back to him. She didn’t resist when he pulled her close and held her. His arms felt good. She felt tingly, when he squeezed lightly. She wanted to kiss him.

“I don’t think less of you. No one could have predicted what happened tonight. Forgive me for saying this, but maybe tonight happened for a reason. Actually, I’m sure that there’s a reason for all of this, and I’m sure that Father Gardner would say the same. I don’t want to glorify what happened, but it did and now we are where we are. Does that make any sense?” Winny asked. His brown eyes glinted in the low brightness.

“I get it, but I still feel horrible. Like some part of all this is directly my fault,” Cherri responded.

“If you think that this is your fault…then you’re going to be stuck in your bad thoughts. They’ll spiral out of control. Just let it go. That was then. I know it hasn’t been very long at all. But put in perspective—a lot has happened since the robbery. We’re past it. If you don’t let it go, you won’t be able to move forward with your life. I know that we’re just sitting here talking, but I can feel that you have a life ahead of you. Maybe
we
have a future.”

“I can’t even think about how this is all going to end up. I mean those cops are probably dead. We still need to find your brother. God only knows what Gardner’s doing upstairs,” Cherri finished.

The wood flooring creaked. Gardner must be in the kitchen. Cherri looked up. She stared at the ceiling. When her head lowered, she saw Winny. Again, his face was close to hers. There was a long intense look about him.

She tilted her face close to his. She barely licked her lips.

His mouth parted.

She closed her eyes.

Everything was silent. Time froze.

She wanted this.

She couldn’t.

Part 5: The Gathering

Chapter 20

1

Gardner stood in the kitchen, near the sink, leaning against the countertop. His forearms flexed, holding him steady. He didn’t know what to do. His mind was racing.

What was his next move?

He needed to be patient. He looked out the back window. His eyes were drawn to the dead woman lying in his backyard. Guilt struck him. She was just lying there, displayed and out of place. She had been discarded. As evil as she was, she was a person. For a moment, he thought she looked like a sick decoy. Who knew, maybe she was. Maybe Sammael would be drawn to her corpse. He hoped that the evil which possessed the girl was gone and descended back to the hell—her home.

And then he saw
her
.

Donna.

She jogged up the small gravel driveway. Lurching forward, she limped, forcing herself up the rocky path. She looked tired, weak and exhausted. Gardner wanted to run to her, take her hand and help her.

Maybe she was Sammael’s bait? Did Sammael want Gardner to go to her?

Gardner didn’t care.

He needed to be with his wife.

Pushing
off of
the kitchen sink, Gardner ran to the back screen door—not even thinking about Winny and Cherri. He left them downstairs. He would run outside and get Donna. Then, they could come back and regroup. Donna should have been far away by now. She wouldn’t be this distressed unless the demon had gotten to her and Gardner was sure, now, that the demon had. His wife had obviously been through hell since he’d left her.

The night air was cold and the moonlight grew in luminescence. He could see her form, haloed by the chalky light. She acknowledged him and began to run faster, her damp hair flailing behind her. She needed to hold him and he needed to hold her. They would comfort each other. That was their companionship.

The gravel beneath Gardner’s boots caused him to slip. He almost fell, but quickly regained his footing. Donna’s breath was pumping hard and whining. Forcing herself to breath, the air around her swirled. And then they were holding each other. She smelled of sweat and there was a metallic odor rising between them. He couldn’t quite place the smell. Legs giving out, she leaned forward onto him, for support. Lifting her up, he kissed her forehead, pulling her in.

“What happened?” He looked her over. “Let’s get you to the house.”

She didn’t
speak,
she simply nodded, agreeing at the notion that they make their way back to the house. She was tired. Her face had sunk-in and her skin looked ragged. She looked like she’d aged ten years.

She wrapped her arm around his shoulders and they stumbled up the driveway, toward the house. When they reached the backyard and Gardner watched as a growing sense of horror gravely lit Donna’s features. Her mouth fell open. Her eyes glossed over.

She’d seen the dead girl in the backyard.