mine.”
I began to laugh but the urge died instantly when my eyes found Dank. He stood in front of Kendra whose back was against the wall while she smiled up at him. He leaned down and whispered in her ear. It took all my strength and self-preservation to tear my eyes away from the intimacy between them. My breaths became shallow from the pain in my chest. Leif must have sensed the change in me because he pulled me closer against his side and caressed my bare arm. The farther we walked away from Dank the easier it became to breathe.
The night gulf breeze was unusually warm considering it was late fall. A large stage with bright lights surrounding it was set up on the Boardwalk facing the beach. There were thousands of people covering the sandy shore. Bonfires could be seen farther down away from the crowd. A couple of high school students were already getting handcuffed for underage drinking. They wouldn’t be the first or the last tonight. I held tightly to Leif’s hand as we had to zigzag through the crowd, following in Miranda’s wake. She had arranged for her father’s company to buy some of the special seating supplied under a large tent for a much higher ticket price. I would have been happy to join the mass numbers on the sand but Miranda wouldn’t have it. We stopped at the entrance.
“Miranda Wouters and three guests,” she said with a haughty air that only seemed to come out when she was throwing her father’s power around. She didn’t do it often, unless she wanted something, such as getting us out of speeding tickets. Harold Wouters owned Wouters Realty. Wouters Realty handled all the high-end commercial property in the county. In other words, they owned the town.
“Right this way, Miss. Wouters,” the young woman said as she turned and led us up front to a row of seating that gave us a perfect view of the stage.
Great, I wouldn’t just have to hear the voice I so desperately missed but I was going to have a perfect view of him too. I glanced over at Leif who raised his eyebrows as if impressed with our seats and gave me one of his eager grins. Faking a headache wasn’t going to work. Miranda would flip out and Leif really seemed to be excited about this seating arrangement.
“We are set up! That’s what I’m talking about.” Wyatt stood, grinning and looking around toward the elaborate refreshment table set up at the end of the tent.
“You boys can eat to your hearts’ desire. Go on and stop drooling,” Miranda said with a pleased smile on her face.
Wyatt kissed her loudly on the lips and glanced back at Leif. “Come on, man, let’s go attack this fancy grub.” Leif turned to me as if asking for permission. I nodded. He reminded me of a loyal puppy dog. He bent down and gave me a quick peck on the lips before following Wyatt.
“Stop frowning like I’ve brought you to a smoke-filled bar. Come on, girl, and enjoy yourself.” I forced a smile, which only caused Miranda’s frown to deepen. “What happened with you, Pagan? You use to have difficulty not looking at Dank and getting a silly look of adoration on your face. Now, you see him and you look like you’re about to throw up. Did he hurt your feelings or something? Is that why you don’t want to be here?”
Did he hurt me? She could never know just how badly he’d hurt me. I shook my head and tried even harder to make my smile seem more realistic.
“Of course not. I just realized he was a jerk. Something about him is cold and I don’t like being near him.” I gazed out at the waves crashing along the shore. If she searched too deeply into my eyes, I was afraid she would see the agony.
“Hmmm, okay then. I guess you’re right about the cold thing. Something about him seems hard and so unreal.”
She had no idea how unreal he was.
The breeze had started to cool off and the seating under the tent filled to capacity. I wanted to be anywhere other than right here with a perfect view of the stage Dank would soon perform on. The lights dimmed and the crowd went wild. Leif put his arm around my back and I leaned into him, hoping his nearness would help me make it through this. With a drum roll and the sound of an electric guitar the lights flashed brightly as fireworks went off overhead. A group of three guys had taken the stage. One sat behind the drums with long blond dreadlocks and the other two stood on each side of the stage with guitars in their hands. The music filled the night air and screams went out from the beach. The shoreline was so covered in people you could no longer see the sand. A loud bang and a cloud of smoke caused me to jump. The cheering and chanting only got louder. Dank walked out of the smoke now seeping over the stage. I watched as his dark hair danced in the breeze and he reached the microphone waiting in the center of the stage. He took it in his hands and then turned directly toward the tent. Directly toward me.
My hands trembled in my lap. His gaze never left mine. The words were meant for me. I couldn’t manage to breathe past the pain constricting my throat. Why was he doing this? Hadn’t he hurt me enough? The tears stinging my eyes would fall free, rolling down my cheeks announcing to my friends how much Dank’s words affected me. They couldn’t know. No one could. I stood up and walked away. I couldn’t sit there and listen anymore. In some sort of desperate trance I pushed past screaming fans and sweaty bodies. I could breathe if I could just get away; put some distance between me and his words. Once I stepped out of the tent, I turned and ran toward the darkness. Away from the fear. I wasn’t scared of him but I was scared of his words. He was leaving. My stomach clenched at the thought and I ran harder until the sandy beach was dark and empty. The sound of the music played in the distance and I glanced back over my shoulder to see if Leif or Miranda had managed to follow me. No one was coming. I was truly alone. Gasping for breath I dropped to my knees and let out the sob I’d been fighting to hold in since he began singing. Hot tears trailed down my face. My chest hurt so badly, and deep breaths were impossible.
The night air dropped several degrees. It wasn’t my pain stifling my breathing, it was the coldness that came with her. I turned around slowly, knowing she was there watching me. I could feel her presence. She was icy fear. Yet the aching black hole Dank had left in my chest made the danger she possessed pale in comparison. I stood up and faced her, realizing my fear had been replaced with hate. She no longer scared me. She made me angry. Something about her appearance caused Dank distress and it made me want to hurt her for the part she was playing in my pain. I glared at her as the blond hair floated, unhindered by the gulf breeze.
“What is it you want from me?” I yelled through my tears. I took a step toward her, clenching my hands into fists. I didn’t want her to think she could make me cower. I didn’t want her to think she could frighten me anymore. Her tinkling giggle filled the darkness around us.
“It is appointed,” she said in a voice I had grown to abhor.
“What is appointed? Huh? Do you even know? Get a freaking life and leave me the Hell alone!” I stepped closer to her, wanting to take a swing at her but knowing it wouldn’t do any good.
Her tinkling laughter turned into a deep sinister laugh. “It was appointed and he broke the rules.” Her laughter died and she glared back at me. “You! He broke the rules for you! Why you? What is it about you? A simple human
