Cheating Heart, A Lost Souls Novel: A Lost Souls Novel (14 page)

Once she reached the underpass that would lead her back to the motel
parking lot, Vienna took one last look over her shoulder at the marina and smiled.  In her heart, she knew things would be okay.  Her life would be okay.  She didn’t need James, Brandon, or Kyle, to understand who she was to be okay.  Vienna took a few steps into the tunnel when a dark mass stepped out in front of her, blocking her view of the parking lot.  Stopping, Vienna’s heart began to race.  She took a few slow steps backward.  She wasn’t sure if it was a person standing in front of her or the ghost from the garage.  Either way, she was scared to death and wasn’t sure which was worse.  Gathering her courage, she turned to run out of the underpass and back to the marina.  She’d head for the restaurant where the bar was still open.  She’d be safe there.  But then the dark shape stopped her.  It encompassed her with ice cold chills as it zoomed right past her.  It was now blocking the exit to the marina. 

“What do you want?” Vienna asked her voice shaky.  The darkness grew closer
, the air became impossibly colder.  She wanted to run, but now had her back pressed against the cold cement wall of the underpass.  “Who are you?”

The dark form didn’t move.  Vienna’s eyes shifted to the left and then the right.  She was thinking of making a run for it
when a hand gripped her shoulder.  Icy tingles sunk straight through her skin.  Vienna tried to scream, but no sound came out.  Another icy hand pushed against her other shoulder.  She couldn’t move, frozen in place, her back pinned against the wall.  Suddenly she could see eyes form within the dark wispy form of the ghost.  They were black and shiny.  Its forehead pressed against hers.  Sharp pain seared through her head. It felt as if her head was about to explode as the ghost melted its soul into her body.  

***

Jack followed Vienna from the marina to the underpass.  He watched in horror as the ghost cornered her.  In a flash, he left to find James.  He knew Vienna’s chart like the back of his hand and he knew if he didn’t repair the relationship that was supposed to happen between James and Vienna, then he wasn’t doing his job as a spirit guide.  Even though he couldn’t bear the thought of the two of them together, he knew he was doing a disservice to both of them if he didn’t fix things.  The best way he knew how to repair the damage he’d done by accidentally interfering, was to get James to save Vienna.  If he were to help Vienna, she’d think of him as a hero.  And in return, he’d understand her psychic powers.

Appearing at the bar
off of Coast highway, Jack tapped James on the shoulder.  He was relieved to see that James was drinking soda and not beer.  He needed him to be able to ride.  And if he were inebriated, he’d have a hard time getting him over to help Vienna in a timely manner. 

“What
the hell do you want?” James asked, eyeing Jack.

“It’s Vienna,
” Jack explained. “She needs you.”

James
jumped off of the barstool and shoved Jack.  “You have some fricken nerve!”  Taken by surprise, Jack stumbled a bit, but caught himself before losing his balance. 

“It’s urgent!” Jack said.  “She needs your help!”

“What are you?” James asked.  “Some kind of stalker?”

“No,” Jack said, seriously.
“I’m her spirit guide.”   He ducked just as James took a swing at him.  “I thought Vienna explained that to you.  Weren’t you listening?”                 

“
Is this the guy?” Steve asked, walking up behind Jack.

“Yeah,” James said.  “This is the guy stalking Vienna.”

“Hey,” Steve said, looking Jack up and down. 

“Hello,” Jack said, glancing over his shoulder at him. 

“That’s right,” Steve said.  “I remember you from Las Vegas… Kim has mentioned you a couple of times…”  Just then Steve’s phone buzzed.  He slid it from his pocket and answered.  “Hello?”

“I swear,” Jack said
to James, putting his hands up in surrender.  “I’m here to ask for your help.  I don’t want to fight you.”

James took another swing at Jack, missing him.  People started
to gather around. 

“You should of thought of that be
fore you followed her here,” James growled.  He swung again, this time aiming for Jack’s gut.  With lightning speed, Jack moved out of the way.  The people watching
oohed
and
awed
at his lightning quick reflexes.  The way he moved was superhuman. 

“What the hell?” James barked.  He’d never seen someone move so fast. 
Every time Jack moved, he didn’t see it.  All there was was a strange white glowing blur and he’d be standing in a different place.  Confused, James shook his head.  He’d only had one beer and then after that he sucked down a couple of sodas.  There was no reason why he couldn’t get a good punch in.  He wasn’t drunk.

“James!” Steve said, trying to get in between Jack and James.  “Vienna’s missing!”

“What?” James asked. 

“Kim just called.  She’s worried.  Vienna
was upset and left the motel room.  She says she checked the parking lot and the car is still there.  She’s been gone for awhile now.”

“I was trying to tell you,
” Jack said over Steve’s shoulder.  “You need to get to the motel!  Vienna’s in trouble!”

“Shut up
you freak!”  James lunged at Jack, and Steve did his best to block him.  “What’d you do to her?  If you harmed Vienna, I’ll kill you.”

“This isn’t the time!” Steve said, trying desperately to hold his friend back. 

“Why would I harm her?” Jack asked.  “I’d do anything to protect her.”

Two bouncers suddenly appeared and hauled James from the bar.  They took him outside and told him to sober up or else.  Jack disappeared.  He left to go check on Vienna.

“I only had one beer,” James told them.  “I swear!” 

“Then go for a walk,” one of the bouncers said.  “And cool off.”  

“Unless you’d rather we have you arrested,” the other said.

“He’s fine,” Steve told them and patted James’ shoulder.  “He’s having some problems with his girl.  I’ll take care of him.”

The first bouncer, nodded.  “You do that.”

***

Jack appeared within the underpass.  Vienna was sitting on the ground, her back against the wall, slumped over.  In astral form, he crouched down beside her.  He could sense the dark haze of negativity surrounding her.  He knew it would go unseen by most humans.  And if they did see it or feel it, they’d not understand it. 

“I’m he
re, Vienna,” Jack said.  He gently touched the side of her cheek with an astral finger sending his strong loving energy into her.  “I’m here with you.”

Unable to wait any longer for James, out of worry for
Vienna’s safety, Jack leaned forward placing his forehead to hers.  He knew she didn’t like him in her thoughts or invading her space, but he felt this time she wouldn’t complain.  She’d probably welcome his intrusion.  Or at least, he hoped she would.  Closing his astral eyes, he soaked up as much energy from the environment as he could, and melted his soul into hers.

***

Vienna was walking down a hazy dirt path.  In front of her was a man.  She squinted, trying to see him better.  The fog surrounding them was so thick; it made it hard to see.  He was a tall man with dark hair, and was wearing a long-sleeved white shirt tucked into tan colored pants.  Looking over her shoulder, Vienna could see the dark woods behind them.  In front of them were grass, hills, and a long path they’d been following.  It seemed as if she’d been walking forever, but hadn’t gotten very far.  Every time she looked behind her, the woods were still there, the same distance away as the last time she’d looked.  She wondered where the man was headed.  Was he leading her somewhere?  Was this place a memory of his?  She didn’t know.  Or was she dreaming?  It was so hard to decipher.  She held up her hands and glanced at them.  No blood.  They were still clean, unlike her last nightmare.  She was thankful for that. 

Picking up the pace, so she wouldn’t lose track of the man, Vienna looked down
at her feet and realized she was wearing her moccasins.  And her sweat pants.  She examined her arms.  She was bundled up in her blue polar fleece.  She remembered.  She remembered what had happened before she arrived here.  Or what was happening.  She’d been in the underpass when the ghost had blocked her.  And then she woke up here.  This isn’t real, is it?  Vienna reached into her pocket and felt her cell phone.  It was vibrating.  She pulled it out and looked at the screen.  She was receiving a call, but when she tapped on the screen, nothing happened.  Frowning, she again wondered how she got here.  She pushed the on/off button.  Still, nothing happened.  The phone stopped buzzing and the screen went completely blank.  It was dead.  She then looked at the hazy form of the man she’d been following and wondered what would happen if she stopped walking.  Heck, she wasn’t sure why she was following him to begin with.

Sliding her
phone back into her pocket, Vienna stopped walking.  Immediately the dark figure ahead of her stopped, too.  She looked from side to side and then glanced again at the dark woods behind her.  She wondered what would happen if she made a run for it.  Could she escape?  Where was she anyway?  Was there anywhere to escape to?  Maybe she just needed to wake up. 

Vienna took a few slow steps forward to see if the man continued to lead her to wherever it was they were headed.  He didn’t move.  She continued to walk toward him.  His form became darker and clearer the closer
she got.  Suddenly, never once looking back at her, he began walking again.  Once he was moving forward at a steady pace, Vienna took in a deep breath and prayed that she was doing the right thing.  She gathered her courage and with every ounce of strength she could muster, she bolted in the opposite direction.  She ran toward the woods as fast as she could.  Her heart was pounding so rapidly that it drummed in her ears.  Her breathing was rapid and unstable.  It was as if the thick fog was making it hard for her to breathe.  She wondered if the man had noticed her fleeing.  Was he coming after her?  Or was he still walking down the path with his back to her.  She wanted so badly to look over her shoulder, but was too afraid.  What if turning around slowed her down?  What if he was chasing her?  He could be right behind her.  At any moment, she expected to feel his terrifying grip on her shoulder. 

Dashing into the woods, Vienna was grateful that her experience was different than when following the man
down the path and getting nowhere. For once, she was getting somewhere.  Where?  She wasn’t sure.  But it was better than spending an eternity following a man on a path, yet going nowhere. She slowed down her pace out of necessity.  The ground was uneven and the foliage was dense.  The drop in temperature was quite significant.  A deep icy chill ran straight through her body and seeped into her bones.  Vienna kept moving as quick as she could.  Her heart was still racing and her breathing erratic.  The woods were dark, the mature trees creating a canopy above, blocked out sunlight.  Very little light filtered through the branches.  And there was still a foggy haze, but it was lower now, hugging the ground.

The path she’d been following disappeared.  Vienna stumbled, her toes catching on something.  She grabbed hold of a tree trunk to keep from falling.  She stared at the ground and could only see a thick fog covering
it.  She told herself that it was probably just a tree root she’d tripped on.  Ignoring her fear, she looked behind her to see if the man had followed her into the woods.  No one was there.  As far as she could tell, she was alone.  The woods were not like any she’d ever been in before.  It was so dark, creepy and held an odd sinister feeling.  Vienna looked back in the direction she’d come from.  She wondered if she should leave.  She didn’t like the darkness.  It was too frightening.  She wanted to go back into the light, even though it had been foggy.  She felt more secure there. 

Standing still for a moment, listening, Vienna began to worry.  Her heart was returning to a normal pace and her breathing had also s
lowed down.  She hadn’t noticed until just now that there was no sound.  No sounds of animals, insects, not even the wind.  Nothing.  The only sounds to be heard were from her.  She took a couple of light steps forward and could hear the light crunching of leaves and twigs beneath her feet, but even still, they were muffled and soft.  Maybe the dense fog was causing this to happen.  She wasn’t sure.  It was such an odd experience.  It reminded her of when she was a child.   Her parents had a cabin in the mountains.  Sometimes when they visited, it would snow overnight.  She remembered how excited she’d get and would dash outside into the fresh morning snow to play.  The world would be transformed into a gorgeous winter wonderland.  But, what triggered this memory was the silence.  Whenever it snowed, it was as if the world became silent.  It was as if the snow muffled the world. 

“It’s too quiet,”
Vienna whispered and then continued walking in the direction from which she came.  Then she stopped.  She looked forward and then back over her shoulder in confusion.  There was no sign of an opening anywhere in the woods that would lead her back to the grassy hills.  Did she get turned around?  She wasn’t sure.  She decided to continue walking in the direction she thought she’d entered the woods until something happened or someone found her, preferably, not the creepy man.  And if this was a dream, she hoped to wake up soon.  She held her hands up and stared at the palms.  Still no blood.  And no sign of the ocean.  But then again, the ocean was her dream.  The blood that appeared, wasn’t.  But still, she felt that was a good sign.  No waves and no blood.