Dark Visions (9 page)
Kaitlyn stood up, feeling excitement churn inside her. "Then I'll do it! If I can think of something good."
"You can start with cleaning up a little," Anna said, laughing. "Right now he'll only notice you for the dirt on your nose."
Kaitlyn not only washed but changed her clothes and pulled her hair back with a gold barrette-but she didn't see that it made any difference in Rob's attitude at dinner. Dinner was novel mostly because Gabriel put in an appearance.
"He eats," Kaitlyn whispered to Anna under cover of passing the brown rice. "I was beginning to wonder."
After dinner, Gabriel vanished again. Lewis and Rob went into the common room, which they now called the study, although Kaitlyn didn't think there was much chance of anyone studying in it. Not with U2 on the CD player competing with a horror movie on the TV. It didn't seem to bother Anna, who curled up in the alcove with a book, but Kaitlyn wanted to get away.
She needed to be by herself because of Rob-and because school was tomorrow, her new school, her new chance. Her feelings were all mixed up, flying
around in confusion and bumping into each other and ricocheting off even faster.
But most important, she needed to draw.
Not the ESP kind of drawing. Just regular drawing, which always helped smooth out her thoughts. She hadn't really drawn for two days.
That reminded her of something. The drawing she'd done in the lab-she'd just left it there, behind the folding screen. She should go pick it up sometime; she certainly didn't want anyone else to see it.
"I'll be back in a little while," she said to the others in the study, and then she stopped to be grateful a moment because everybody said good-bye as she left. That had always been one of her dreams, to say to a roomful of people, "I'm going" and have them all say good-bye.
The drawing wasn't in the lab. As she let herself out the back door, she hoped someone had thrown it away.
She took only her sketchbook and a couple of sticks of charcoal-it was too dark outside to really see colors. But there was enough moonlight to see trees, and the air was deliciously fresh and cold.
This is more like winter, she thought. Everything was silver and shadows. In back of the house a narrow dirt road sloped down to a stand of redwood trees. Kaitlyn followed it.
At the foot of the hill was a little, almost dry streambed, with a low concrete bridge crossing it. The road looked as if it were never used. Kaitlyn stood in the middle of the redwoods, breathing in the night and the tree smell.
What a wonderful place. The trees cut off the lights
of the house, and not even U2 could penetrate this far. She felt quite alone.
She sat on a concrete curb with her sketch pad on her knees.
Although the moonlight was beautiful, the coolest kind of light imaginable, there wasn't really enough of it to draw properly. Oh, well, Kaitlyn thought, Joyce wants me to learn how to draw blind. With loose, fluid motions, she sketched in the shapes of some redwoods across the streambed. It was interesting to get only the shape and no detail.
What a peaceful place. She added a bush.
She was feeling much better already. She added a dark, sinuous line for the stream.
A night like this made you believe in magic. She started to add a few rocks-and then she heard a sound.
A thump. Like, Kaitlyn thought, freezing, someone falling out of a tree.
Or jumping.
Strange, how she knew right away it was human. Not an animal sound, and certainly nothing natural.
Someone was out here with her.
She looked around, moving only her head, keeping her body still. She had good eyes, artist's eyes, and when she'd walked down here she'd noticed the shape of the trees and bushes. She ought to be able to spot anything different.
But she couldn't. She couldn't see anything new, and she couldn't hear anything, either. Whoever was out there wasn't speaking.
That made it not funny. Not a joke. When somebody hides at night and doesn't let you know who they are-when you can feel eyes on you, but you don't know whose-that wasn't funny. Kaitlyn's hands felt cold and her throat felt very tight.
Just get up. Leave. Now, she thought.
She managed two steps up the hill and saw movement among the trees. It was a person, moving out from the cover of the redwoods.
Kaitlyn's body prepared to fight or flee-but not until she saw who it was. She had to see the face before she could be released from paralysis.
The person came closer, feet crunching on dead leaves. Moonlight shone on his face, on slanting eyes and softly curling brown hair. It was the man who'd grabbed her in the airport.
He was wearing regular clothes now, not the red robe he'd worn before. And he was coming straight at her, very quickly.
CHAPTER 7F
ight, Kait decided. Or rather, her body decided it for her, seeming to feel instinctively that she'd never make it up that hill.
ight, Kait decided. Or rather, her body decided it for her, seeming to feel instinctively that she'd never make it up that hill.
Her sketchbook was spiral-bound with heavy wire, and one end was slightly uncoiled-it had been poking her for weeks. Now she dropped the charcoal sticks and brought the book up, poised for attack.
Aim for the eyes, she thought.
She knew she should be screaming, but her throat was too constricted.
All this passed through her mind in the few seconds it took the stranger to reach her. Kaitlyn hadn't been in a fight since elementary school, but now her body seemed to know what to do. The stranger grabbed for her arm-Kaitlyn jerked it away.
Now, she thought, and lashed out with the sketchbook. And it worked-the heavy wire caught him in the cheek, tearing a long bloody scratch.
Fierce triumph surged up in Kait. But the next
instant the stranger had her wrist and was twisting it, trying to make her let go of the sketch pad. It hurt, and the pain freed her voice.
"Let go of me," she gasped. "Let go!"
He twisted harder. Blood was running down his cheek, black in the moonlight. Kaitlyn tried to kick, but he turned his body and her kicks glanced off harmlessly. He had both her arms now. He was pushing her down onto the sloping ground of the hill. He was winning.
Scream, her mind told her.
Kaitlyn sucked in a deep breath and screamed. But it was cut off almost before it started, by the stranger's hand.
"Shut up!" he said, in a furious whisper.
Kaitlyn stared up at him over his smothering hand, knowing her eyes were wide with fear. He was so strong, and so much heavier than she was-she couldn't move at all.
"You're so reckless-you never think, "the stranger hissed. The moon was behind him, so his face was in shadow-but she could feel his anger.
He's going to kill me. And I'll never even know why, a small, clear part of her mind said. The rest of her was engulfed in sheer black terror as his hand stayed over her mouth. It was getting very hard to breathe.. ..
Something reared up behind the stranger.
Kaitlyn's dazed mind couldn't tell at first what it was. Just a shape silhouetted against the moonlit sky.
Then she saw it was a human shape, with something shining in its hand.
There was a movement quicker than Kait's eyes could follow, and the stranger on top of her was jerked backward slightly. The moonlight reflected off a knife blade.
"Let go of her," a clipped, harsh voice said, "or I'll cut your throat."
Gabriel? Kaitlyn thought in disbelief. But it was true, and now her panicked senses could interpret the scene in front of her. Gabriel was holding the stranger at knifepoint.
The stranger's hands lifted away from Kaitlyn. She drew in a gasping, wheezing breath.
"Now get up," Gabriel said. "Nice and easy. I'm in a bad mood tonight."
The stranger rose in one slow, coordinated motion, like a dancer. The knife stayed at his throat the whole time.
As soon as his weight was removed, Kaitlyn got her feet under her and took two scrambling steps up the hill. Adrenaline was still flooding over her in painful, useless waves. Her hands were shaking.
I should help Gabriel, she thought. No matter how tough he is, he's a kid, and that stranger's a man. A strong man.
"Want me to go back to the house and tell them?" she gasped, trying to make herself sound hard and competent.
"Why?" Gabriel said briefly. He made some movement and the stranger went spinning, landing on his back on the ground.
"Now get out," he said, looking down at the supine figure. "And don't come back unless you're tired of living. If I see you around again, I'll forget I just did two years for murder."
A shock went through Kait. But she didn't have time to think-Gabriel was speaking again.
"I said, get out. Run. Show me a four-minute mile."
The stranger got up, not nearly as smoothly and gracefully as before. From what Kait could see of his expression, he was both furious and frightened.
"You're both so stupid-" he began.
"Run," Gabriel suggested, holding the knife as if ready to throw it.
The stranger turned and went, half running, half angrily stalking.
When the crunch of his footsteps had died, Kaitlyn looked at Gabriel, who was folding up the knife and putting it in his back pocket all in one practiced gesture.
Murder, she thought. He was in jail for murder.
What she said, rather unsteadily, was, "Thank you."
He glanced up at her briefly, and she could swear he was amused, as if he knew the difference between her thoughts and her words. "Who was he? An old boyfriend?" he asked.
"Don't be ridiculous," Kait snapped, and then wished she hadn't. One ought to be more polite to a murderer, especially when one was alone with him in the dark. "I don't know who he is," she added. "But he was at the airport when I came yesterday. He must have followed Joyce and me home."
Gabriel looked at her skeptically, then shrugged. "I don't think he'll come back." He started toward the house without turning to see if Kait was following.
Kaitlyn picked up her sketchbook and went after him.
"What happened?" Rob said, vaulting to his feet. He and Lewis and Anna were in the study-as was Joyce. Kaitlyn had looked for her on the first floor, then come up here.
Rob was staring from Kaitlyn, who was just realizing that she had bits of dead leaves and grass in her hair, to Gabriel, who was behind her. "What happened?" he repeated, in a more controlled but more frightening voice.
"What does it look like?" Gabriel taunted, at his very nastiest.
Rob started toward him, golden eyes blazing.
'Wo, "Kaitlyn said. "Rob, don't. He didn't hurt me; he saved me."
She felt a surge of dizzy excitement-Rob was angry for her, protective. But she couldn't let him fight Gabriel.
"He saved you?" Rob said, with open scorn. He was on one side of the doorway, staring at Gabriel as if trying to bore holes in him. Gabriel was on the other side, almost lounging against the wall and looking devastatingly handsome. Kait was caught in between them.
She appealed to Joyce, who was rising from the study couch.
"It was that guy, the guy from the airport," she said. "He was out back." She explained what had happened, watching the alarm grow on Joyce's face.
"Jeez, we'd better call the police," Lewis said when she was done. He sounded more impressed than scared.
"He's right," Anna said, her dark eyes sober.
"Oh, sure, call them," Gabriel sneered. "I only just got paroled. They love to see people like me with switchblades."
Joyce grimaced. She squeezed her eyes shut and did some stretching exercises with her shoulders.
Kaitlyn's heart sank. Gabriel would be in trouble- he might even get sent back to jail. His part of the experiment would be ruined, and he might never learn to control his powers. All because he'd helped her.
Rob was suddenly looking quite cheerful. "Well, we've got to report it."
"Fine. Just give me ten minutes' start," Gabriel said through his teeth.
"Stop it, both of you," Kaitlyn said. Then she sighed. Being in love wasn't easy. She didn't want to make Rob unhappy, but she had no choice.
"I have an idea," she said hesitantly. "We could call the police, but not tell them Gabriel was involved. I'll just say I got away from the guy out there. Then nobody would get in trouble, but the police could do whatever they need to."
Rob's smile faded. Gabriel was still glaring. But Joyce opened her aquamarine eyes and beamed.
"Trust you, Kait," she said. "Now, where's a phone?"
Gabriel didn't stay to hear the call.
He went into his room and shut the door behind him. And then, tired but too restless to even sit down, he began to pace.
Images kept floating through his mind. Kaitlyn lying in the moonlight-with some maniac on top of her.
What if he hadn't come along just then?
The maniac had been right about one thing-she was reckless. She shouldn't be allowed out alone at night.
She didn't have the right instincts for danger, she wasn't tough enough to protect herself....
So ... what? his mind asked. So you're going to protect her?
Gabriel flashed one of his best disturbing smiles at nothing. Hardly.
He was going to keep away from her, was what he was going to do. She was a nuisance-and she was stuck on Kessler. Gabriel could see that, even if Kessler was too stupid.
Keep away from her. Yes. And he'd bet-he smiled again-that after what she'd seen tonight, she'd keep away from him.
Two hours later Kait was lying in bed, trying to calm down enough to go to sleep.
There had been a lot of fuss with the police, who'd gone down into the backyard but had found nothing.
They'd promised to have a cruiser patrol the area, and Joyce had told the kids to check the door locks and keep a dose lookout for strangers from now on.
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