sound and shook her head. “Why don’t you ladies step inside?
You can call me Ms. Wickman, by the way. We’ll have a talk and figure out what to do about your missing friend.”
Dream stepped over the threshold and into the house. Alicia and Karen followed her inside, and the heavy oak door swung shut behind them.
Ms. Wickman turned the lock.
“There,” she said, obvious satisfaction in her voice. Her hazel eyes sparkled with ill-concealed excitement. “Now no one gets in or out.” She chuckled, a sound that unnerved them all. “We’re all safe from the big, bad killer.”
Dream was appalled by the inappropriate nature of a humorous remark at a time like that, but then Ms. Wickman swept past them and beckoned them to follow her. So they did, moving down a short hallway off the foyer, then stepping through a doorway into a large and impressively appointed living room.
“Here, dearies, have a seat on the comfy sofas.”
The women seated themselves, settling into squeaky leather.
Alicia said, “We appreciate the hospitality, but what we could really use is a phone.”
An expression that was nearly a smirk tugged at a corner of the woman’s mouth. “Yes, I suppose that’s so. There isn’t one in this room, unfortunately. Relax and get comfortable.” She smiled again. “You should know that this isn’t my home. I am merely an employee of the man of the house. He will be in to see you shortly.”
She was gone before they could question her further.
Alicia released a shuddery breath. “Oh my God, she is so fucking strange.”
Karen looked startled. “Don’t let her hear you say that.”
Alicia laughed. “Yeah, what’s she gonna do? You think she’s coming back with a chain saw? Get real. She’s just an antisocial wacko living up here in the woods with her recluse boss.”
Karen said, “Think about what you just said. That last sentence.”
Alicia frowned.
Dream cleared her throat. “You both need to calm down. You’re jumping at shadows.”
Karen’s head jerked toward Dream. “Yeah, and for some pretty good reasons, or have you already forgotten? What’s wrong with you, anyway? You’re acting weird.”
Dream sighed. “I am not. I’m just tired.”
It was only a partial lie.
She was acting weird, and she knew it.
Hell, she felt weird.
Strange.
Well, this was her last night on earth.
How else should she feel?
But the suicidal thoughts vanished as she became aware of a new presence entering the room. She felt a strange tingle as she turned to get a glimpse of the best-looking man she’d laid eyes on in a long time. He was maybe six feet tall, solidly built, and blessed with square-jawed movie-star looks. He caught her eye immediately and smiled in a way that made her knees shake.
Alicia whispered, “Oh, my!”
His compelling gaze never left Dream.
She went to him, extending a hand. “My name is Dream.”
He clasped her hand.
His touch sent a shiver of sensual delight through her.
He smiled. “Welcome to my home, Dream.”
Dream blushed.
She felt weak.
Helpless.
Lost in his glittering eyes.
Chad followed Cindy through a narrow tunnel that steadily curved and sloped ever downward. The going was slow. You didn’t want to work up too much of a head of steam, or you’d go tumbling ass over teakettle down the tunnel. Staying upright was a job and a fucking half, but Chad found it helpful to let the fingertips of his right hand glide over the tunnel wall. The technique worked well enough, for the most part, but he was unsurprised to find himself stumbling as they rounded yet another bend. He righted himself with a wild pinwheeling of the arms, drew in a steadying breath, and slipped his right foot back into the primitive sandal it had just vacated. “Hey, uh, Cindy?”
She glanced over her shoulder at him. “Yeah?” He resumed walking, even jogged for a moment to catch up to her, the sandals slapping against the hardpacked dirt. “Look, I can dig all this stuff about how you do what you have to do down here. Law of the jungle, survival of the fittest, and so forth. But since we’re sort of comrades-in-arms now, having been through a kind of trial by fire together, I thought I’d appeal to your better angels and ask you to give back what’s rightfully mine.”
“What are you saying?”
“I want my fucking Reeboks.”
“It’s good to want things, Chad.”
Chad groaned. “Jesus Christ, woman, you’re taking me down into the bowels of, well… hell… or something. I should get to make the journey in a modicum of comfort. Or is that too much to ask?”
“I think you already know the answer to that one.”
Chad sagged. “Congratulations, you are now officially the ball-busting champion of the world. I know you must be proud.”
Cindy’s expression softened, the smirk becoming an almost affectionate smile. She walked up to him, cupped his face in her palms, and kissed him full on the mouth. Chad’s eyes widened as she continued to kiss him for several seconds.
She broke off the kiss and said, “What were you saying?”
Chad frowned, and nervously cleared his throat. “Um … that was unexpected. Unexpected and startling …” He almost smiled. “… but nice.”
Chad watched a single tear spill from one of her eyes and trace a path over the contours of one of her lovely cheeks. A familiar ache sparked to life in his heart, the leading edge of a mass of pain he tried to keep tucked away in one of the darkest corners of his soul. That corner housed the love he felt for Dream that could never become the romantic love she so desired. Oh, he loved Dream so much. His one regret in the world, the one he would change if he could, was his inability to be what she wanted him to be.
A man worthy of her bottomless wellspring of love.
Cindy wasn’t Dream. They were different in countless ways. But here was that same source of angst again. He stared at her and felt a terrible empathy. The thin film of dirt that covered her body was heartbreaking. He looked at her unwashed hair and thought how coarse it must feel to the touch. He ached for the woman she’d been prior to coming here, a woman he’d just gotten a bittersweet glimpse of, a mom and a lover and a nurse. A good person. His own eyes glistened with moisture.
No one deserved this fate.
He took her into his arms and she stepped willingly into the embrace, wrapping her arms about his back as she cried softly against his ear. The embrace was brief, but he sensed it was a welcome gesture. When they parted, Chad sensed something fundamental had changed between them. He thought maybe he’d touched something long dormant within her.
“Thank you,” she said softly. “Sometimes it all hits home.” She managed a small smile. “Sometimes I get desperate to wake up from this nightmare and I just lose it.”
“You don’t ever need to be embarrassed to be human in front of me, Cindy”
Please let me have a chance to say that to Dream before I die, he thought. That and so many other things.
She kissed him again. A light peck on the cheek. “Thank you. Now …” She heaved a big sigh. “This has been … nice … but we should get going again.”
Chad nodded. “Right.”
