The Secret Trinity Unearth (4 page)

I tried to hide the disappointment in my eyes. I had heard that story before. Except for my name, it was nothing new to me. I had never really asked for details about my adoption before because I love my parents and my secrets already kept me up nights.

I tried not to obsess about the mysterious tale of an abandoned baby on top of everything else that was screwed up in my life. Honestly, it hurt to think of my birth parents handing me off to a stranger. Deep down I always wondered if it was because they knew I was different, and they did not want to deal with my
unique
gifts.

The thought sent a pang to my heart, but I had to remain composed. Something was still nagging at me. I was not sure what it was lingering in the back of my mind. Everything felt connected together, but at the same time it made absolutely no sense. I thought carefully about how to word my next question. I smiled and reached out to squeeze my Dad’s hand.

“I think I was meant to be in this family too.” I hesitated, but I had to ask, “Just one more thing. What did he look like?”

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The late hour was obviously catching up with him.

“Um…it’s a little hazy. It was almost twenty years ago, Ari.” My tongue felt swollen, filling my whole mouth. I was trying way too hard to keep my voice steady.

“I’m just curious. Can you remember any details?” He squeezed his eyes shut even tighter trying to pull memory from the corner of his mind, and then they flew open.

“It’s a blur really. I was so distracted by the baby in my arms that I didn’t pay close attention to him.”

He sighed, “Let’s not discuss this anymore. His loss was my gain. Don’t ever forget that. You should go back to bed. That is where I expect to find you in the morning, so please don’t make me nail your window shut, okay?” I nodded absentmindedly and my Dad got up and went back to his room.

I lay in bed unable to sleep. This strange night was creeping its way up my neck refusing to let go of my head. I got up and walked to the window. Bracing myself, I opened the curtains. I expected to see the man with the black hair staring back at me, but there was nothing in my sights except wet grass, glistening from the moon. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, letting the moonlight wash over me.

The taste of murky river water filled my mouth and I snapped my eyes open. It was him, the guy I dream about almost every night. It was the same blurry person from my drowning memory.

After tonight, I still didn’t have a clear picture, only more mystery. Obviously lots of people have black hair, but I realize now why I ran into the woods without a second thought. I felt in my bones that it was him.

The prowling, statuesque stance he took in the woods was so intense. He had instantly kicked my survival instincts into high red alert. Who was he, and what did he want? Had he been watching me for six years?

Now I had this overwhelming feeling of dread wash over me when the most important question popped into my mind. Without delay all the hairs on the back my neck prickled. Was this stalker trying to help me, or hurt me? Despite the warm night my whole body shivered like ice.

Chapter 6: Moving

The rest of the week had gone by since my inexplicable encounter in the woods. My Dad and I agreed to keep the incident between us for fear that my mother would wrap me in bubble packaging and hold me hostage in the house until I turned forty. Today my parents were driving me to the university where Kayla, Morgan and I would start our first semester of college. I was nervous and excited at the same time.

On the one hand, I would be living in a new city with twenty times more people than our meager population back home. On the other hand, a man with black hair, who I now believed to be stalking me, might or might not be trying to kill me for reasons completely unknown. Why would anyone want to harm me? Had he been watching me for over six years? These thoughts had been tormenting me all week and sent an unnerving chill through my body. At least I had my friends moving with me. We would be living in the same dorm room and exploring the city together. There was safety in numbers. It gave me comfort.

We arrived downtown where there were cars parked on every possible curb surrounding the six stories of our painted brick dorm building. After twenty minutes of circling the block, we finally parked at a meter and began hauling up our stuff over to the dorm building, up to the top floor.

Following the orientation meeting, parents, students, and resident advisors congested the narrow hallways. The girls and I managed to cram our boxes in every possible crevice of our small dorm quarters. We unpacked for hours working through most of the day.

Before our families departure we went out to an Indian restaurant near the Capital Square for a farewell dinner. The downtown square had a wonderful city feel with a vibrant atmosphere. Small, one of a kind boutiques and restaurants lined the streets with people spilling out onto the sidewalks.

The capitol building looked like a smaller version of the White House; a tremendous dome topped with a gold statute. I couldn’t wait to familiarize myself with the boutiques and maybe stumble upon some new vintage jewelry pieces.

An hour of tearful goodbyes followed the delicious Indian meal of curried chicken. Thankfully I managed to pry Mom’s arms off of me, because as much as I would miss her, the hugging made me cringe. I was still healing from the bruises Doug gave me, and I did not want her to notice me wince in pain when she squeezed me. Our families parted ways to drive the three hours back to our hometown, and the girls and I walked back to our dorm.

Because we had a tri-room, compared to dorm room standards we were living in a mansion. I was grateful to have as much space as we did and was happy to begin settling into our new lives. It would be like living with the sisters I never had.

Our tri-room opened to a small living space which had just enough room for a beige loveseat, a lime green bean bag chair, and a small television Kayla brought from her bedroom back home. We put a braided area rug on the cold brown tile between the television and loveseat. There was not much to be done about the walls. They were an ugly tan cinderblock, so we taped up a couple of posters and declared the room decorated.

The first door contained an extremely small bathroom with a stand-up shower. The other door on the left led to bunk beds. To the right of the living room was the third and final door, which had a single bed and a small desk. We agreed that Morgan should take the single room since she does not share the same night owl behavior that Kayla and I shared. Truth be told, I was relieved to be sharing a room with Kayla.

I had not told them the whole story about my night in the woods. I could not bring myself to say it out loud. I was freaked out enough, and I didn’t want to scare them too, so I left out the part about a weirdo lurking in the woods and said that I was able to knee Doug in the groin and run back to my room. That is how I fantasized it happening anyway. I never wanted to see that sleaze again.

Kayla and I settled in the loveseat and Morgan plopped into the bean bag chair. We popped in a movie we have seen a dozen times and started to chat about our upcoming classes. Morgan had always been a nature lover so she had already decided to declare her major in Earth Sciences. With eighteen credits and two science labs, that sounded like my worst nightmare.

Kayla was an undeclared major, and she sounded more interested in finding an intramural soccer team to join than discussing classes. Still, she was taking more math credits than necessary. Math had always come easy to her, so I was not surprised.

Also not surprising, as soon as I had been accepted to the university, I declared Fine Arts with an emphasis in dance as my major. Along with my dance classes, I was taking Music Appreciation, Biology and English 101. Unlike Kayla I avoided math like the plague and chose to procrastinate in that subject for a semester or two. It was thrilling to think of learning at college level dance classes, and for the first time in my life, I was pumped about school.

I cracked open a diet cola retrieved from the small cube fridge crammed in next to the loveseat and decided now was as good a time as any to tell the girls about my new pledge, a decision prompted by the night of loser Doug.

“So…I have decided since the whole mess with Doug that I am going to swear off of men this semester and concentrate on school.”

It came out less confident than I had hoped. Kayla and Morgan quickly looked at each other and simultaneously clenched their lips shut. They were trying to suppress their laughter, but the dimples sprang to life on Morgan’s cheeks and they both lost it. Typical. They never took me seriously, especially when it came to men. I took a sip of my soda and continued, ignoring their laughter.

“I am serious you guys. I want to change. I don’t want to get hurt anymore and I’m tired of being a doormat for these slime balls to wipe their feet on!” I didn’t know if they had heard me over their bellowing until Kayla pressed her lips together and narrowed her eyes on me.

“We have heard this before Ari. You cannot seem to help yourself. You are too nice, and too trusting with guys. They never get to see the strong-willed Ari who speaks her mind without caring what everyone thinks. That’s the Ari we know. For some reason you tuck her away, and it comes back to hurt you, literally!”

With that last word, Kayla yanked down the right sleeve on my t-shirt to expose the bruising over the peak of my shoulder. The bruises had started to heal and were now a light yellow-green, but the shape was the unmistakable form of thick fingers. I had another set on my left shoulder to match.

I had been hiding them from my parents all week, and I tried not to look at them. I had been hiding them from myself too. I shut my eyes to stave off the sting of tears starting to rise.

“I know Kayla. I know. That is why I want to make a vow, no more men!” I heard the quiver in my voice. At any moment I could lose control, but I sniffed it back, sucking in a deep breath.

“I need to take a break from guys.” I pointed to my shoulder as Kayla was still holding onto my t-shirt.

“I am never going to let this happen again.” I concluded with a huff. Kayla looked at Morgan, and then me.

“Okay good. I want that for you too. The three of us will make a pact to swear off men this semester. It will make it easier if we a stick together.” She said it with a thoughtful smile, which was a twist from Kayla’s usually blunt personality, so I knew she meant it.

Beside me on the bean bag chair Morgan spoke up, “That will be easy for me since I don’t waste my time or energy on them to begin with. I will be too busy with school anyway. You have yourself a deal.”

Morgan stuck her arm out with her palm shaped like a blade facing the floor. Kayla followed suit and placed her palm on the top of Morgan’s. They looked at me expectantly.

I can do this I thought. Gently I placed my hand on top of Kayla’s to complete the triad. We bowed them down and released like a break in a football huddle.

We cut the movie short, deciding to go to bed. Our first day of school started bright and early the next day. We all attempted to squeeze in the bathroom to get ready for bed, which was comical. The only way it worked was if I brushed my teeth while standing in the shower. With our goodnights said, Morgan headed off to her private quarters and Kayla climbed up the ladder to the top bunk of our shared room.

I lay awake in the dark on the bottom bunk. I stared mindlessly at the glowing star stickers that I had placed above my head to remind me of home. No more men…I could be strong. No more men…I could do this. I chanted this in my head over and over, far from sleep. I had a sinking feeling that another restless night of dreaming about the black haired stranger was ahead.

Chapter 7: First Impressions

I sprang upright almost hitting my head on the bunk bed frame, momentarily forgetting where I was. I scanned the room remembering it was my first day of school. Then I glanced at the clock and cursed under my breath. I had hit the snooze button on my alarm clock once too often, and it still felt like I had not slept at all.

When I jumped out of bed to get ready, I realized I was alone. Kayla and Morgan had classes scheduled earlier, leaving the bathroom free. However, with only ten minutes to put myself together, there was no time to shower, and I cursed myself again.

I would have liked to look a bit more polished on my first day, but I had been running late my whole life, so I was used to a fast morning routine. I dotted on some under eye concealer to cover the dark circles from my restless night. Luckily, I had always been blessed with a clear complexion so I did not need much else for make-up. I swept on some blush, lightly skimmed a coat of black mascara on my lashes, brushed my teeth and ran a comb through my hair.

I threw on a dark jean skirt and pulled on a red fitted t-shirt over my tank top to cover up my bruises. I did not need people staring, thinking I was a freak on my first day of school. I completed the look with a pair of small studded, red quartz earrings which I found in an antique shop with my Mom. My flip-flops clapped loudly on the tile floor as I ran out the door with my backpack in tow.

It was a ten minute walk to reach the building where my first class, Music Appreciation, was held. I had to pick up the pace. I was shy with new people, and I would die of embarrassment if I was the last one there. The thought of all those eyes on me, staring, gave my stomach a flip. I pulled my hair up into a messy ball on top of my head with an elastic band taken from my wrist as I power walked, navigating the street sidewalks.

Earlier in the summer I had visited with my parents so I could walk the routes to my classes. The campus had school buildings scattered all over the downtown area. I wanted a chance to memorize the lay of the land.

With my poor sense of direction, without that trip I would already be lost, missing my first-ever college class. I felt much more comfortable in this big city when I knew where I was going. Arriving at the building, I flew through the front doors taking the steps two at a time up to the third floor. I stood in front of the door marked 313 and hesitantly turned the large brass knob.