The Monster Within (12 page)

“Fine.” She stood up and walked out.

Gloria came out of the kitchen. “Did she leave without paying her bill again?”

Damn it! “I’m sorry.”

“Samantha, I can’t have customers skipping out on their checks. We’ll all be out of jobs then.”

“I know. I’ll take the money out of my tips.”

Gloria shook her head, looking disappointed, and walked over to the couple by the door.

The rest of the night was better. No more drama. Just a lot of drink refills, cleaning tables, and trying to get back on Gloria’s good side. By the end of the night, she finally broke down and smiled at me.

“Go home. Get some sleep. Tomorrow’s a new day.” She sounded like a generic greeting card.

“I’m really sorry about earlier. It won’t happen again.” And if it did, I’d pay Nora’s bill before Gloria noticed.

Ethan held my hand on the drive home, but he didn’t turn up our driveway. He drove past it.

“Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise. You look like you could use a change of pace.”

Actually, it was the change of pace in this new life that was throwing me. I needed the old Sam back. The one who didn’t have a monster lurking inside her.

Ethan pulled onto a small, gravel area off the side of the road. He got out and met me at my door. “Come on.” Reaching for my hand, he led me to a wooden fence. On the other side of it was a huge drop-off. We were on top of a mountain, looking out across the river.

“It’s beautiful.”

“I thought you’d like it.” Ethan gently turned my face toward his and brushed his lips across mine. It was a sweet kiss, but there was something behind it. Desire.

I pulled back. “We’re out in the open.”

“It’s dark.”

“Until a car drives by.”

Ethan sighed. “Sorry. It was a stupid idea. I just thought that, after the other night…”

“We could go home.” I really wasn’t ready to, and not because of what Ethan was suggesting. I didn’t want to leave this view yet. “Or we can stay here for a while first.”

“You like it?”

“Yeah. It reminds me of when I was six, and I used to go visit my aunt in Maryland. There weren’t any mountains like this, but her house was on the water, and her backyard sloped down toward a dock. When I stood in her sun room and looked out over the water, I felt like I was flying. Like I was a bird and nothing could touch me.”

“Then we’ll stay, and you’ll fly.” He took my hand, kissing my fingertips.

Yes, Ethan was a typical guy who thought about sex, but he never let his own urges stand in the way of whatever I wanted. I leaned my head against his chest as I stared out over the water.

We stayed for two hours. I hadn’t intended to be there that long, but between the view and being with Ethan, I was in heaven. I kept going back and forth between breathing in the fresh mountain air and breathing in Ethan. The boy was an amazing kisser.

Finally, we went home. Ethan moved one of the bigger rocks to the side. He hadn’t had time to disassemble the strange rock circle yet, but it was pretty annoying having to step over the same rock every time we went in and out of the cottage. “I’ll get the others in the morning,” he said.

I got ready to shower while Ethan ate one of the sandwiches he’d brought home from the diner. Making out made him hungry. I turned the water all the way to hot and was pleasantly surprised that it was actually warm. Still not hot, but definitely not lukewarm either.

I got undressed and looked down at the necklace. Ethan was right. It was silly of me to shower and sleep with it on. But still, I didn’t want to take it off. While the warm water washed down the drain without me, I debated. I decided I’d take it off to shower but put it back on afterward. Baby steps.

I undid the clasp and left it on the sink. I stepped into the shower and basked in the fact that I wasn’t freezing cold. Maybe the pipes were getting used to being used again, or maybe the hot water heater was finding its second wind. Either way, I enjoyed my shower for the first time since I’d come back to life.

I heard movement in the bathroom, and I tensed up. Was Ethan in here? Was he planning on surprising me in the shower? I suddenly felt cold. I shut the water off and reached my arm out from behind the curtain, groping for my towel. I grabbed it and wrapped myself up before I pulled the curtain back.

The door was still closed. Maybe I’d imagined it. Or maybe I’d heard Ethan in the kitchen. I stepped out of the shower, and a cool breeze hit my right side. I turned to see the window open. I hadn’t opened it. I’d never opened it, not once since we moved in. It didn’t have a lock on it, so it opened all the way up.

My eyes flew to the sink. My necklace was gone.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“E
THAN!”
I burst out of the bathroom.

He jumped up. “What? Are you okay?”

“No. My necklace is gone. I left it on the sink. Then I heard something. I thought it was you, but I guess it wasn’t. The window is wide open, and I didn’t open it. And now my necklace is missing.”

“Slow down.” He wrapped me in a hug. “The window’s open?”

“Yes, and I didn’t open it. I think someone came into the bathroom while I was in the shower. I heard a noise.”

“Why didn’t you see what it was when you heard it?”

How did I answer that? I’d thought it was Ethan, and I freaked out and grabbed my towel to cover up. I couldn’t tell him that. “I don’t know. I panicked, I guess. I grabbed my towel and got out, but it was too late. Whoever it was had already gone and taken my necklace with them.”

“Stay here.” Ethan went into the bathroom and looked around. “I don’t see anyone out there.”

“I doubt they would’ve stuck around after they stole from me.”

“I don’t get it.” He shut the window and came back into the kitchen. “Why would someone crawl through the bathroom window to steal a necklace? It’s not even like it was an expensive necklace.”

I had to tell him about the note. It might give us some clue about who broke into our bathroom.

“Ethan, there’s something I need to tell you, but you have to promise to stay calm.”

His jaw clenched, and his nostrils flared. The longer I waited, the worse he was going to get.

“I found a note in my locker today. I went to get my lunch, and there was a note on it.”

“From who?” he asked through gritted teeth.

“I don’t know.”

“What did it say?”

I closed my eyes, unable to look at him as I said it. “‘The necklace suits you. Wear it always.’ That was it.”

He didn’t say a word, so I slowly opened my eyes.

“Ethan?”

“Why didn’t you tell me? You saw me right after that, right?”

“Yeah, but—”

“You should’ve told me.”

“Why are you getting so worked up over this?”

“Why? Because it obviously wasn’t a mistake. Someone gave you that necklace.”

“I know.”

“So, do you expect me to be happy that some guy is leaving gifts and secret notes in my girlfriend’s locker?”

“Of course not, but it doesn’t matter anyway. The necklace is gone. Whoever gave it to me probably saw you and me together and figured it out. So they broke in and took the necklace back.”

“Good. I’m glad that thing is gone.”

“Ethan, don’t be like that.” I reached for his arm, but he jerked it away.

“I’m going for a walk.”

“It’s pitch black outside.”

“I don’t care.”

“Someone broke into our house, and you’re going to leave me here alone?” I didn’t want to play the helpless girl card because I’ve never considered myself helpless against anything other than cancer—and now this thing that was happening to me, making me feed off others—but I didn’t know what else to say to keep him here.

He stared at me, and, for a moment, he didn’t look like my Ethan.

“I’m sorry.” Tears welled up in my eyes. Not because I’d kept this from him or because he was upset with me for it. But because I had an even bigger secret, one I knew he wouldn’t forgive me for keeping.

He exhaled loudly and pulled me into his chest. “Don’t cry.” He rubbed the back of my head. “It’s just that I lost you once. I don’t want to do it again. Especially to some other guy. I couldn’t handle that. Not after everything…”

I still didn’t know how he’d brought me back. I tilted my head and stared into his beautiful blue eyes. “What did you go through to bring me back? You never told me.”

“You don’t need to know.” He let go of me and walked into the living room as if the conversation was over.

“I didn’t think you needed to know about the note in my locker, but that’s not how you feel.” Maybe it was a low blow, but I needed him to see this from my point of view.

He sat down on the couch. “It’s nowhere near the same.”

“You’re right. It’s not. I kept something that didn’t even concern you a secret. You’re keeping something that has everything to do with me secret.” I knew he was going to get mad, so I sat down on his lap, keeping him in his seat. I took his face in my hands and kissed him. I held the kiss long enough for him to think about what I’d said. Think, but not react. When I let go, I leaned forward, resting my forehead against his. “I need to know, Ethan. I need to know what you did to give me a second chance.”

“Why does it matter? Isn’t being here with me enough?”

“You know it is. I love you, but I need to understand what happened. People don’t get do-overs in life. So, why did I?”

“Because I love you.” He pulled me toward him, kissing me hard.

I didn’t know if it was losing my necklace or fighting with Ethan, but I was charged up. I kissed him back, running my fingers through the hair on the back of his head. His lips worked their way down my neck, sending shivers down my spine. I forgot about our fight. I forgot about my necklace. I forgot about the people I’d killed. It was just Ethan and me.

The next thing I knew, we were in the bedroom, and, this time, I didn’t stop him. I didn’t run away.

* * *

I woke up at 2:38, shivering and gasping for air. Ethan was sound asleep, looking peaceful. I had to get away from him before it was too late, but the feeling hit me hard. The feeling of death. I fell to the floor in a heap. The sound probably could’ve woken a corpse, but Ethan slept through it. I crawled out of the bedroom and to the front door. The carpeting burned my knees as I dragged my legs across it. I wasn’t sure I could even make it to the car this time, and part of me didn’t care. I only had to get far enough away from Ethan so that he wouldn’t get hurt. If I died…well, I was already supposed to be dead.

I used the doorknob to pull myself up. I had to unlatch the deadbolt. I held on to the doorknob and reached my other hand up, swatting at the chain. I managed to loop my finger through it. I tugged, which was more like letting my arm fall back down, and the bolt slid out. I turned the lock on the doorknob and twisted it open. Every movement felt like it took all my strength, but I got the door open.

I tumbled down the front steps and landed half on one of the big rocks. A jagged edge dug into my back, and I winced. My vision blurred. At first, I’d thought I knocked myself out, but then I realized I was having another vision. I braced myself for images of Trevor. He was my last victim, so it would be his face I saw. His future I glimpsed. Only it wasn’t his future anymore.

Everything went black, and then it was like a curtain lifting. It was the old man again—the one I couldn’t identify. I struggled for breath, partly out of surprise and partly because my body was shutting down. This time the man wasn’t as old. He sat on a bench, feeding the birds. The woman from the previous vision wasn’t with him. He was alone. Just him and the birds.

When he ran out of birdseed, he leaned his head back and stared up at the sun. He sighed, and a single tear dripped down his cheek.

“Not a day has gone by that I haven’t thought about you. You should be here with me now.”

His shoulders shook and more tears lined his face. “What’s that old saying? Time heals all wounds? Something like that. Well, whoever said it was a liar. Some wounds never heal. Losing you never stopped hurting. I’ll mourn you until the day I die, and I’ll love you even longer.” He leaned forward and buried his face in his hands. My heart broke for him—whoever he was.

Everything went dark again. I heard noises around me, and I turned my head from side to side, but my vision hadn’t returned yet.
Oh, please don’t let it be Ethan
. If he found me, if I touched him…

Slowly shapes came into focus. Trees, grass, rocks. Lots of rocks.

I realized I was moving more easily. I was breathing more easily. What had happened? Did I kill someone without knowing it?
Not Ethan! Please, not Ethan!

I sat up and looked around. The only things around me were the rocks, all perfectly lined up in a circle again. Someone or something had fixed the rocks, put them back in their pattern while I lay on the ground.

My head felt woozy, like I was hung over, but I hadn’t had anything to drink. I slowly got to my feet, still scanning the yard, looking for whoever had done this. Maybe it was the same person who had stolen my necklace. I thought back to the guy who was peeking in the window. The one who’d broken into the house. He knew my name. He knew I could kill with my bare hands. It had to be him.

Suddenly the realization that I was outside alone in the dark with a stranger lurking around set in. I ran back into the cottage and locked both locks behind me. I went around the house checking all the windows, too. He wasn’t getting inside again.

I pulled the curtain back into place after checking the lock on the window above the kitchen sink. I was breathing hard. I turned on the faucet and splashed cold water on my face. No way would I be able to go back to sleep after all this, so I grabbed a paper towel and dabbed my face, trying to think of how I’d pass the time until morning without waking Ethan. I reached for a second paper towel when I saw the note on the counter. A yellow Post-it note. I froze.

My eyes zeroed in on the handwriting. Every letter was perfectly straight.

Where’s your necklace?

Those three words sent terror coursing through my body. Whoever had given me the necklace had been in my house tonight. He—or she, now I wasn’t so sure—had come into the cottage while I was out in the yard having a vision and trying not to die.