Her hand moved right into one of the sharp knives on the counter, and she cut her pinky just enough to cause her to bleed.
Chapter Seventeen
The more Derek stared at her, practically looking into her, the more his pain and the heaviness he had been feeling began to gradually fade as Ashley poured into him like an endless fountain. It was a liberating experience.
It was only a matter of time before the truth behind it all came crashing down upon him as if someone had screamed it out loud into a microphone set on its highest volume. Love at first sight. That’s what it was. He loved her, and he wanted her more than he had wanted Denise, more than he wanted anyone in his life. But if Denise was capable of slowly destroying him, then Ashley could kill him in an instant. No, he decided. This love was different. The quality of the force penetrating him went beyond a simple human experience, and his reaction to it was the opposite of destruction.
He watched her as she flinched her hand away from the knife, breaking their solid eye contact by looking at the blood trickling from her finger and dripping on the floor. Ashley let out a surprised croak before fainting against the other girls behind her.
“Ashley?” Derek said, stepping closer to her as the girls softened her fall. He kneeled down next to her and dropped the gun, not caring about anything except her well-being.
Chapter Eighteen
“Derek,” Denise said. “What the hell is going on?”
Derek would not take his eyes off of Ashley. He appeared to want to touch her, and yet he was fearful to do it.
“She’s all right.” Jess startled herself by resting her hand on Derek’s shoulder. “Ashley’s not dead.”
“She just fainted,” Megan put in. “The sight of blood does that to her.”
“I thought you were going to shoot us!” Laura was angry because all the girls in the room were starting to show him compassion. What was the matter with everyone?
Jess was making faces at Laura, trying to get her to calm down. This was the opportunity she was looking for, and the last thing she needed was for Laura to botch it up.
“I almost killed myself because of you!” Laura broke down and started crying, when she saw Derek snatch a small towel and carefully wrap Ashley’s bleeding finger as if he was touching one of the most delicate objects.
“I love her,” he said.
“I’m going to unlock the door,” Jess said, patting his shoulder when he nodded agreement. He couldn’t harm a fly, she realized, as she headed out. “I have a business to run, Derek. Put the gun away.”
Derek quickly grabbed the gun and slipped it under his belt on his back and behind his shirt. Then he caressed Ashley’s cheeks, moving the blond stray hairs away from her face.
Chapter Nineteen
“She’s waking up,” Megan said when Jess came back from unlocking the door. Laura stopped crying and was starting to pout, feeling like she was being ignored. She wanted attention, damnit, she thought to herself. She practically risked her life and no one seemed to care.
“Good,” Jess said, and then waved to Denise. “Did you want to place an order, or have you lost your appetite?” Jess suddenly didn’t like Denise very much. She must have hurt Derek pretty bad to make him crazy like that, and something told Jess that Denise was deliberate about the damage she had done to the poor guy. There was a streak of cruelty underneath that Victoria’s Secret kind of body. Yes, Jess had played games with guys before, but never to hurt them.
“I think I’ll go back to work, thank you,” Denise said proudly, frowning and glancing at Derek. “Some other day.”
Jess watched Denise go for a brief moment, and somehow she knew Denise would never come back. Jess would do anything to keep her customers, but this was one time she wasn’t going to lose any sleep over it. Good riddance.
Chapter Twenty
For the first time in years, Derek’s mind was clear. He could see now how he had driven himself mad, and he realized how foolish he had been. He thought about this as Ashley opened her eyes and sat up slowly, keeping her smiling gaze on him. There was something else that had been prodding him into confusion. The voice that kept tormenting him was much more than just his thoughts, but it didn’t matter now. Ashley had somehow cleansed him of it, and the joy he felt drove him to grin at Ashley. She leaned closer until her lips were inches from his. What would she do if he kissed her?
Ashley answered his unspoken question and kissed him as everyone gasped in surprise, until the door made a beeping sound and a young blond man walked in. His feet made crunching noises as he stepped on Denise’s broken mirror. Everyone turned and watched as he approached the counter. His eyes were watery like he had been crying, and the expression on his face was as troubled as Derek had been. The young man gave a loud shriek, pulling something out of his front pocket, and pointed something at them.
It was a gun.
“Any last words before I put a bullet in everybody’s head?” the boy said.
###
Sneak peak at
BOOK 2:
Future
Bonds
Chapter One
The crickets were having a symphony on both sides of the road, but the songs they were singing sounded more like a warning than a welcoming to Jimmy. He was feeling troubled and confused as he embraced the cool air that came with dusk. He was thinking how the world had somehow gone haywire. Everywhere he turned, there was news of something bad happening to someone. It was enough to scare the daylights out of him. What scared him the most and what consumed his mind was the bad dreams his mother was having lately, and the worst part was that she refused to tell him anything about it.
“We're almost there!” His long-time friend Larry yelled, pumping the peddles of his bike up Avon Mountain.
"What is so important about going to Avon Mountain?" Jimmy asked. He was right behind him. He must have looked like a fool with his security officer uniform, but he had to make sure he made it to work on time in the morning. Would anyone think anything odd about two guys riding bikes with all the camping gear strapped to them, most of it in their backpacks?
Larry didn't answer him right away, not until they reached the spot Larry was looking for. They ditched their bikes between some trees and heavy brush so that no one would notice, not even on close inspection.
“I don't know. I can't sleep anymore, and when I do sleep I have these weird dreams that something is calling me, almost reaching out for me to go. Don't look at me like that. I'm not going crazy. But, I do think I will be able to get some sleep out here.”
"Sounds like you’re being a bit obsessive to me," Jimmy said, remembering his mother's bad dreams again, wishing that she would open up and talk to him about it. "Just because you have bad dreams, doesn't mean you should take them seriously."
Larry trudged through the bushes, not listening anymore. There was something far more important on his mind. Jimmy was able to keep up with him easy enough. He was confused with the fact that Larry said he had never been on the mountain before, and yet the way he trekked through the woods was as though he had done it many times before.
"This is it," Larry said, dropping his backpack in a clearing in the middle of the woods.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Jimmy said, but Larry was still not listening. He was on a mission and all his attention was on setting up camp.
"Ahh," Larry sighed, smiling, "It's going to be so sweet when I finally fall asleep." He quickly undid his backpack, pulling out a thin sleeping bag, along with a flashlight, lighter, and some kindling wood.
"I'll be more than happy to let you sleep out here for days if you want," Jimmy said sternly, "but there is no way I am going to let you start a fire."
"Don't worry, I don't care about the campfire. I plan on being fast asleep anyway."
Chapter Two
Laura was furious. She risked her life, managed to knock herself out, and no one cared enough to show her any appreciation for the effort of at least trying t
o save everyone's life. The anger was enough to make her feel like giving up, but she knew it was just her frustration she had when things didn't work out the way she wanted them to. Laura gradually let the anger within her subside. So, she was just getting over it, and then another emotion started to rise to the surface when she glanced over to Ashley and Derek.
Laura moaned quietly as she watched the two of them holding hands, their eyes glued to one another as if the connection was more important than life itself. Ashley had her dirty blonde hair tied into a ponytail just like her sister. She was wearing gray sweatpants and a simple white t-shirt. She could look beautiful wearing a throw rug if she wanted to, and she knew it. She was batting her eyelashes at Derek as if her emotions were going for a roller coaster ride and he was sending her unspoken messages that set her cheeks on fire.
Derek had on a pair of jeans and a plain dark blue t-shirt. His hair was cut short, but thick with slight waves in the front. There was no denying how handsome he was. He looked as if he was in great shape by the well-defined muscles showing through his shirt. His body language was unmistakable. He appeared tense as if he was holding himself back from taking Ashley into his arms. How corny can they be?
Laura shook her head vigorously, trying hard not to get caught up in the steamy drama going on behind the scenes between them, and forced herself to look away. It was too much for her to deal with right now. There was a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach and it only became worse the longer she watched passion between them.
She had to find someone, Laura thought, grinding her teeth. If she didn't find someone soon, she would go crazy. She couldn't understand why some girls had all the luck, and then some girls always ended up with the short end of the stick. Somehow, Laura was going to change that. She wasn't sure how, but she was determined to make it happen. She would find the right person and then hold on for dear life. How hard could that be?
Chapter Three
“It seems a bit slow for this time of the day,” Jess said. She was making another batch of coffee, and then spread out several filters on the table in preparation.
“Yea, I know,” Megan said while wiping down the counter. “Even the traffic outside seems dead compared to what we normally see.”
Laura sighed and moved to the back room again where Ashley and Derek were still looking at each other and whispering.
“What's the matter, Ashley?” Derek asked her.
“How did you know something was wrong?”
“I don't know exactly,” Derek said. “I can feel something coming from you and it doesn’t feel like it’s anything good. Kind of scary, actually, when you think about it. Is it your stomach?”
“Yea,” Ashley nodded while rubbing her stomach. “The pain is coming back. It's getting worse by the minute.”
Derek sighed, moving closer to Ashley and holding her in case she passed out and decided to fall to the floor.
Oh brother, Laura grumbled to herself, Ashley has never acted so fragile in her life. She was clearly making herself out to be some kind of porcelain doll. She was obviously milking every moment she could possibly get out of Derek. What would she do in a situation like that? Would she do the same thing? In her current mood, she would probably grab him by the shirt and rush to a private and secluded spot.
Laura could not pull herself away from listening in on their conversation until the entrance beeper went off and her heart almost lurched out of her chest.
A young man entered the store and all of Laura's thoughts came temporarily to a halt as if she was in suspended animation. She wasn't sure why, but it seemed like something important was going to happen. She kept herself near the doorway so that she could see who it was and yet far enough to make her escape out the back if she had to. She was done with heroics.
The light in the room appeared to darken and the air became heavy and thick as a faint odor of decay she had never experienced before reached into her nostrils. The young man was hiding behind a hooded sweatshirt and his hands were in his front pockets. There was also something in the way he peered through his hood that made Laura feel like a storm was brewing in there somewhere. She was mesmerized.
The young man yanked his hand out of his pocket. “Any last words before I put a bullet in everybody's head?”
The young man pointed his gun at Jess, his hand trembling so furiously that Laura thought he would drop it. His whole body appeared to shiver under his clothes.
Laura felt the turmoil coming from him as if it was a living and breathing thing and a renewed sense of fear took hold of her. The light in the store flickered and she thought she heard the sound of a heartbeat vibrate through the room as if from somewhere distant.
Jess groaned, turning away from the gunman to roll her eyes at Laura, and there was a brief expression of annoyance that flashed on her face, but she quickly replaced it with what looked like stern determination with her lips thin and tight.
Laura swallowed the lump in her throat as Jess broke into a sinister grin, and then turned back to her second threat of the day. What was Jess up to? Has she lost her mind?
Laura glanced behind her and saw Derek and Ashley leaning against each other. Derek was comforting her and they both appeared oblivious to anything that was going on around them. She grumbled in disgust. Shouldn't Derek be the knight in shining armor? After all, he was the one who had threatened them first with a gun. If anyone was at an advantage to play hero, it would have to be Derek. Wouldn’t it?
He was not doing anything to help. Talk about being useless.
Laura was seething and stumped around the back as she had done before. This time she would not run, but make her way steadfastly to the gunman's side and get right in his face.
"Would you like that toasted or plain?" She heard Jess say as Laura made her way up the hallway toward the gunman.
"What?" The gunman sounded shocked.
"Toasted or plain?" Jess repeated her question as if it was just an ordinary day at The Bagel Chalet.
Laura could see the boy now, and he appeared completely disoriented, until he began to panic and shrieked. "What are you doing? Didn't you hear what I said? I am going to blow your brains out!"
“Way to go, Jess,” Laura said. “Make him into a crazy man, why don’t cha. He doesn’t seem confused enough already.” And she managed to get right in his face in three quick steps.
"We heard you!" Laura bellowed inches from his face, her voice loud enough to shatter glass, and bumping into his gun arm, knocking it right out of his hand. The gun fell harmlessly to the floor by the beverage machine. "You said you are going to blow our brains out! But, you didn't hear what Jess said! Now, do you want that toasted or plain?"
Laura stood toe to toe with the boy as their eyes locked with one another. She felt drawn into the whirlwind of emotions coming from him and the world around her darkened. In that moment, she thought she saw sheer terror within him and that drew her in even deeper. What was he so frightened of? Then it was as if someone had flipped a switch and she saw him as a frightened boy who didn’t know where to turn. That bolstered her courage enough to keep her from taking off for cover.
The young man must have sensed her courage and it seemed as if he was going to say something in protest, but he quickly recovered and lunged for his gun. Laura had somehow anticipated his move and lurched to stop him. She knew that the moment had come. It was too late to hope that Derek was moving in to help her, and in the next few seconds, she would either live or die.
###
About The Author
Joseph L. Garrido was born in Argentina, South America, but lived most of his life in Connecticut. He wrote his first short story in 1972, and began his first love story in 1982 on an old typewriter he found on the curbside. He has been writing off and on ever since.
He is planning on publishing more short stories and eventually a collection called “Imagine Being There.” The author is also working on the third book in the Bagel Chalet series. For mor
e information, check out: JosephGarrido.com. Or you can email me at
[email protected].
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