Seduction of Souls (21 page)

The last six weeks had been a roller coaster of emotion
that changed in the blink of an eye.  One minute she was angry, the next sad.  Truthfully, she wasn’t sure who she felt worse for.  Lillyanna had lost precious time with her father.  Ryker had screwed up big time in an effort to do the ‘right thing’, as he put it.  And all the while she felt the emptiness of the house without Ryker in it.  She missed him.  The circumstances still angered her, but she had to be honest with herself, she still had loving feelings for him.  Why?  What was it about him that she was drawn to?  He certainly didn’t return her feelings.  Deciding to avoid him was probably the wisest decision she could make under the present court order.  Jonathan had been very stern in his warning to stick to the letter of the law or her custody rights could come into question.  The judge had every right to hand over custody to Ryker if she disobeyed the visitation order.  Being non-compliant or feigning ignorance was no excuse, and the judge had all the power right now.  She couldn’t take the chance.  No one was taking her baby away from her…ever.  Once again she reminded herself that life wasn’t fair.  It was little consolation. 

When Darcy Whitcombe called and asked if she could visit Lillyanna she’d had to call Jonathan and ask permission like a little kid asking for a piece of candy before dinner.  She hated that she had lost control of her own decisions out of fear.  At least the answer had been positive.  Yes, she was allowed to let grandma visit as much as she wanted.  Happy with the good news
, she called Darcy back immediately and invited her for lunch the next day.  Exhausted now, she lay down on her bed and napped while Lilly did the same in her crib.

Lunch consisted of grilled Reuben sandwiches, French onion soup and cookies for dessert, simple but filling.  When the doorbell rang she jogged eagerly to the front door.  For all her problems recently, she liked Mrs. Whitcombe and anticipated enjoying her company.

“Hi.  Come on in!  I’m so glad you could make it today.”
  Without waiting, she embraced Mrs. Whitcombe quickly, squeezing a little more tightly than she intended.

“Thanks for having me.  I wasn’t sure what kind of response I would get
, given the situation and all.”

“Ryker screwed up big time
, but his heart was in the right place.  He was just trying to do right by his daughter.  I understand that now, but unfortunately it’s out of our hands now and in the court’s.  If I don’t comply with the court order and stick to the schedule I could have the baby taken away from me for child endangerment.”

“If I thought it would do any good
, I’d box his ears myself.”

“Did it ever occur to you that maybe he did it to get out of the living situation we were in?  It wouldn’t be the first time he ran from his feelings.  I think that although he loves Lillyanna he wasn’t quite ready to live with either of us.  I’m pretty sure he feels much more comfortable with the distance this has created
, even if he won’t admit it to anyone.  I’ve seen it before.”

“I’m sure he was scared, I’ll give you that, but I don’t think he knew it would turn out like this.  He was beside himself when we left the house.  Don’t tell him I told you this, I’ll deny it until my death, but he sobbed all the way back to my house.  He was devastated.  I truly believe he didn’t
want to leave you or Lilly, but I guess that’s none of my business.  Things will work out for the best, whatever that turns out to be.”

“I hope so.  Well enough of that talk.  Would you like to see your grand
-daughter?”

“Absolutely!  Lead the way!”

The afternoon flew by for
RayeAnn.  Before she knew it, Mrs. Whitcombe was headed for the front door and ready to go.  As she had hoped, the afternoon had been delightful.  She really enjoyed the older woman’s company.  They seemed to have a lot of the same interests.  Her stories of all her travels were captivating.  Lillyanna had talked her grandmother’s ear off, of course all in her baby babbling.  One thing about her daughter, she wasn’t shy.  RayeAnn had gotten some really great pictures of the two of them together and hoped to make a photo album for Mrs. Whitcombe as a gift.  Every grandmother had to have a brag book.

Now that it was back to just the two of them
, the house seemed hollow and empty.  Her footsteps echoed as she went to check on the baby.  Bored now that Lilly was down for the night, she tried to settle into her work, but her concentration was fragmented.  She was bored, but she didn’t want to do anything.  It made no sense.  With a sigh, she decided to take a run on the treadmill and try and exercise herself into exhaustion.  Maybe tonight she could actually get some restful sleep.  Something she hadn’t had since Ryker left six weeks earlier.

CHAPTER 22

After an hour of running on the treadmill, a hot bath, and a glass of warm milk, she was finally relaxed enough to attempt sleep.  She plugged the earphones from her portable music into her ears and listened to a relaxation CD of a thunder storm.  Before she knew it she was out like a light.  And then the dreams began.

Aunt Juliet sat on the front porch of her old Victorian house, rocking gently in the chair.  A warm, soft breeze ruffled the hairs that had escaped the tight bun on the crown of her head.  RayeAnn sat in the chair next to her and absorbed the smells and sounds of summer.  For a long time neither spoke, each absorbed in her own thoughts.  Both women relaxed, their heads resting against the backs of the chairs and their hands dangling loosely from the arms of the chairs.  So peaceful.

Slowly the weather around them began to change.  The wind picked up, making a
moaning noise now as it whistled through the leaves of the trees.  In the distance she saw dark clouds on the horizon.  Storm clouds.  Angry and violent storm clouds doubling in size by the second.  Bad weather was ahead and coming straight for them.  She turned to address her Aunt Juliet, startled to see a handsome stranger sitting in the chair instead.  He leered at her, all his perfectly white, straight teeth showing but it was by no means a smile.  There was no humor to it.  His eyes flashed between black as the storm clouds and glowed red.  Evil permeated his body, struggling to get set free.  Licking his lips, he looked at the clouds with anticipation.  Then the rains came.  Torrential rains with hurricane force winds were so strong she couldn’t pry herself from the back of the chair.  They had her pinned.  The noise was deafening.  Lillyanna!  She had to get to her.  Protect her.

She tried to beg the man, now standing with his arms spread in welcome of the storm, but either he was ignoring her or couldn’t hear her pleas for help.  When he did finally look at her
, his eyes glowed red, growing larger with each second that passed.  And she knew in an instant who it was.  Gideon Merriwether in all his evil glory.  Yes, he was enjoying this.  He actually broke into laughter when he became aware that RayeAnn knew exactly who he was.

“You thought I was gone?  Tsk, tsk.  Don’t believe everything you see, my dear.  True, I took a little vacation until the pesky scent of sage left the house but now I’m back.  You don’t seem very happy to see me.  Didn’t you miss me?”
he said all of this, though his lips never moved, as if he had just planted the words into her brain.  Telepathic communication had never been something she could do, not that she had really tried.  Right now it was the least of her worries.

“I need to get to my daughter!  Let me up this minute!”

“You’ll never get to her.  I won’t allow it.  She’s mine now.  You’ll never see her again.”

“NO!
  PLEASE, DON’T HURT MY BABY!”

“Boo, hoo, hoo.  Go ahead, beg.  It won’t do you any good
, but I like it when you try.  When will you see that this is all for the best?  I’ll raise her to be strong, ruthless and powerful.  The only thing you can give her is l-o-v-e.  Where will that get her?  Nowhere.  Face it, evil is more powerful than good, miss goody two shoes.”

“You’re wrong!  God help me
, I know you’re wrong.”  At that request she was suddenly freed from the crippling winds as she rose out of her chair and pushed with all her might past Gideon.  Running at full speed, she could hear Lilly crying on the other side of the closed nursery room door. Her baby was crying.  She had to get to her.  She tried the turn the doorknob with all her might. It was locked.  What next?  She pounded against the wood as if she could punch a hole in it and crawl through. 

When she felt a hand on her arm she jumped and turned, ready to do battle with whoever touched her.  Ryker!  Without a word
, he quickly slipped a key into the lock and turned it, freeing the tumblers of the lock.  The door swung open, and they were both in the room, Ryker grabbed Lilly in his strong arms. She was safe, protected.  She collapsed onto the floor in relief.  It was over.  Thank God, it was over.

When her eyes popped open she found herself in a heap on the floor, her legs hopelessly tangled in her sheets.  Her breathing was labored and tears had moistened her cheeks.  She stayed where she was, trying to remember what had happened in her dream.  Horrified, she realized there was every possibility that it hadn’t been a dream after all.  Gideon Meriwether was back, and he was angry, very, very angry.  Now what?  Her body began to tremble violently as she reached for the phone to call Bryn and Tim.  She didn’t care what time it was, she needed them there with her, now.  After she hung up with them she hesitated, knowing instinctively that she needed Ryker.  Lillyanna needed him, too.  To hell with the courts.

She snatched the phone out of the charger again and speed dialed his cell phone number.  When she heard his voice she burst into tears.

“Ryker, we need you.” She sobbed, “Now.  Lilly and I need you.  Can you come over?”

“I’m on my way.”  Her sobs of relief drowned out the pounding of
running feet on the floor as Bryn and Tim burst into the nursery.  Bryn was still clad in her overlarge t-shirt she liked to sleep in.  Tim had on only shoes and sweat shorts.  Both of them panted, out of breath as they burst through the door.

“Ray, what the hell happened?”
  Bryn kneeled on the floor in front of her.  For the first time RayeAnn looked around the room with dismay.  The only thing still in place was Lilly’s crib and, thank goodness, Lilly herself.  Sound asleep, she continued to make a sucking sound with her fist in her mouth.  Safe and sound.

“Gideon Meriwether is back.  He was here.  He threatened Lilly.”  They all looked up in alarm when they heard the squeal of tires on the road outside the house, then gravel flying in all directions.  In just a moment Ryker
raced through the door, clad only in his boxer shorts, his chest heaving wildly as he took in the scene.

“What the hell happened?  Are you all right?”  In the blink of an eye he had
RayeAnn in his arms as he pulled her onto his lap while they sat on the floor.  He rubbed her back and murmured soothing words to her while he tried to look around the room.  It was a disaster area.  A loud gust of breath left his lungs when he saw that Lilly was sound asleep and well.

H
e glanced at Tim, who volunteered an explanation.

“Gideon Meriwether is back.  And he’s pissed.”  The color drained from
Ryker’s face and he shuddered one long breath.

“Fuck.  I thought it was just a dream.”  At that revelation he had everyone’s undivided attention.

CHAPTER 2
3

Together they all headed into the kitchen to discuss their options and find out what Ryker was referring to.  Sitting at the island, Bryn and Tim facing RayeAnn and Ryker, he began his explanation.

“Last night I had a visit from Gideon Meriwether.  It wasn’t the first one, either.  I had one the night before I moved into the house a couple of months ago.  When I came to stay with Lilly and Rat.”

“And you didn’t see fit to share any of this information with anyone.  You’re just a champ at communication
.”  RayeAnn crossed her arms angrily over her chest and glared at Ryker.

“Wait just a minute and let me tell the
whole
story, please, before passing judgment on me, which we all know you like to do.”

“Both of you stop it.  This isn’t getting us anywhere
,” Bryn yelled while Tim nodded in agreement.

“At the time I didn’t know it was Gideon.  I just thought it was some evil entity because of the glowing red eyes.  The dude in my first dream was young and handsome
, and all it did was let me watch what was going on, something like watching a television program.  I was trapped outside and peering into the windows of this house.  The three of you were like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting, all happy and loving and shit like that.  Then all of the sudden he made eye contact with me and his eyes started glowing red.  I tried to get into the house to you and Lilly, but I couldn’t.  Even the windows wouldn’t break.  I pounded on the door and yelled at the top of my lungs, but you never even looked my way. I woke up with Tim shaking me.”

“I remember that night.  You were a wild man.  Screaming and yelling something awful.
”

“That’s right.  Now that I heard about the glowing red eyes from Rat’s dream tonight
, I know who it was.”