First, a big thank you to all of you who have written me with your feedback for this series. Second a thank you for LadyCibille who continues to edit these stories, your help is so very appreciated. Lastly, my apologies for the length of time between chapters. I will strive to do better in getting the last two out. Cheers, S.T.
Chapter 16: Symphonic
I rose early the next morning while all the girls still slept. I felt clear headed and alert, and for the first time in a long time I felt I had a clear path ahead of me. Tonight I was to take Jill out on a date, and after I would tell her the truth, all of it. I was both terrified, and relieved.
I had admitted my love for her in front of my best friends last night, and that acknowledgement within myself made me feel stronger and more purposeful then I had felt in a long time.
I gathered up my things, left a note for the girls, and headed out to my truck. Boulder was covered in a thin blanket of white, and the brilliant blue sky and morning sun made it gleam and sparkle. I doubted it would last past noon, but for those of us that had risen early on this late fall day what a treat it was to see.
I went by the shop for a few hours that morning determined to tidy up a few accounts, and give instructions. It was probably not the best use of my time, but it helped to ground me, and make me feel like I still had a connection to my normal life. Aaron was as efficient as ever though, and I found I had little to do but offer a few words of advice on difficult clients, and sign off on some purchase orders and deliveries.
By noon I was out and about, and after a few more clothes purchases I headed home to my apartment. All the furniture had been delivered, and I spent most of the afternoon putting it away, and organizing my new place. I have to admit all those antiques looked awesome, though I kind of felt like my place now looked more like my grandmothers then mine. It would need some tweaking.
I spent the late afternoon showering and getting ready for my big evening. To say I was nervous would have been the understatement of the century. I had called Jill earlier in the day and left her a voice mail saying I was looking forward to our evening, and asking what time she wanted me to come over. I still hadn't heard back from her.
By seven I had already checked my hair five times in the bathroom mirror, changed my shirt twice, and generally let myself be way more neurotic then I normally am. Finally I decided to just head over, and hope she was ready for me.
I walked out of my condo, locking the door and setting my new alarm system. Part of me cringed at this new restriction on my life and freedom, but ultimately I knew it was necessary.
The lights in Jill's apartment were off, and even her porch light was out. I thought this was odd, but I walked over and knocked on the door anyway. I waited several seconds before knocking again, but there was still no answer. 'Maybe she had forgotten our date?' I thought, but that seemed unlikely. I had even called her cell, and reminded her earlier.
I pulled out my cell phone and dialed her cell as I stood in the dark outside her door. As I stood there I heard a faint ringing coming from behind her door in conjunction with the ring on my phone, and I felt a chill creep up my spine. Jill always had her phone with her.
I let it ring until the voicemail picked up before hanging up, and then I froze. As I had stood listening to the ring on my phone my eyes had wandered, and I had found myself staring at the ground beside the door. Often when things are not right, but are mundane, it takes a few moments to register in our brains what is out of place
In this case, what had registered with me were shards of broken glass in the flowerbed beside Jill's door. I looked up to the window, and it was intact. I let my eyes track higher and I saw the porch light. Both the glass globe and the light bulb inside had been shattered.
I felt panic begin to rise in me like a tide, and on instinct I reached out and turned the handle on the door. It turned, and the door opened silently into the dark interior. I pulled my curtain all the way closed in my mind, and sent a pulse of fear and danger down my connection to the girls.
Instantly I felt a thread of connection to Suzan, Ellen and Tuyen spring to alertness in my mind. I felt their fear, but I also felt their protective determination as well. I walked in feeling for the light switch on the left, and snapped it on, jumping at the sudden light.
Beside the front door, the small table that sat there had fallen over, and a pile of junk mail and Jill's keys were spilled across the floor. How many times had I followed her into her apartment and watched her dump her things on that tall round table. My sense of apprehension began to border on panic now.
"Jill!? Are you here?" I shouted as I moved through the house. I looked in the kitchen, then moved back to her bedroom. Everything else in the apartment seemed to be in place. The bed was neatly made; the dishes stacked in the sink, only the table spoke of anything strange.
I began to slow down in my frantic pace through the house, and make a more slow and measured search. I found the note on the coffee table in the living room. It was short and to the point, and without any ambiguity.
It is never only between us my young fool. A good general uses his pawns wisely. If you want her back, you will have to come get her. In the meantime, I will be enjoying her company and all she has to offer. Such a beautiful girl. When you arrive, as I am sure you will, then we will settle things on my terms. I will have a guide to bring you here waiting behind your store tomorrow night at midnight. I have taken pains to find us a nice quiet place to chat, so do not waste your time looking for us. If you do not come, well that would be unfortunate for her.
D.
I read the note several times and with each reading my anger grew. I think that most of us never learn what levels of rage we are capable of. The events of normal life may cause us pain or anger, but not like the life threatening events I had been through in the last month.
Now, the anger I had felt against my enemies, the anger against the men in the alley with Wendy and Meg, even the anger I felt at the rapist I had saved her from paled in comparison to what rose in me now.
Sanity really is a fragile thing; it exists only because we will ourselves to conform to the rules of our society in order to be a part of it. This consensus reality it what allows order out of the madness of human emotion. At that moment I was not sane, I was barely human. If I could have rent Dolkoff with my teeth, pulling him limb from limb and tearing at his flesh I would have done so at that moment.
Luckily for me though I am not an animal, I am a man, and even more importantly I am a man who has friends who care about me. It was the girls who pulled me back down to earth. I felt a flood of emotional support wash through me even more powerful then what I had felt in the alley. It filled and grounded me at the same time.
I felt the rage come under control, and turn into a deep simmering anger that I could hold to keep me warm until I met with Dolkoff. When we did meet I would teach him about whose terms we were on.
As my head cleared, I realized my phone was ringing in my pocket. I pulled it out, seeing Tuyen's cell number and flipped it open.
"Hello Tuyen." My voice sounded mechanical, even to myself.
"Mike what the hell is going on? Are you okay? What's happening?" Tuyen sounded almost hysterical. It was the first time I had ever heard her sound so out of control.
