Cheating Heart, A Lost Souls Novel: A Lost Souls Novel (17 page)

Sitting there on the hard cement floor of the underpass, James looked at Vienna.  And then back at where Jack should’ve been, but wasn’t.  “This can’t really be happening,” he muttered.  His mind drifted back to the bar and Jack’s lightening quick reflexes when he
’d tried to deck him one. 

Out of desperation
, he decided to try Jack’s suggestion.  He gently maneuvered Vienna so that her back was leaning against the wall, just as she had been when he found her.  He kneeled in front of her and pressed his forehead to hers.  Nothing happened.  He thought about what Jack did.  As much as he didn’t want to think about Jack, the creepy guy disappeared right before his eyes. Perhaps he did know how to help Vienna.  Maybe the story Vienna and Kim told him was true.  Maybe Jack
was
Vienna’s spirit guide.  Even though he didn’t believe in spirit guides, he’d like to believe it was true.  James closed his eyes, and tried to focus on Vienna.  He wanted to help her.  He wanted to touch her soul.  He leaned forward and waited.  Still, nothing happened.

“Great,” he muttered
, unable to believe he even thought he could touch Vienna’s soul. “Just great!”  Deciding he’d better forget this nonsense and get Vienna to a hospital, he picked up his smart phone to dial 911.  The phone gave him a zap, causing him to drop it.  “Damn!”  His phone was still zinging with an electrical charge.  James put his arm around Vienna and slid another beneath her legs.  He has just about to pick her up and carry her back to the motel when everything went black.

Chapter 10

James looked around, mystified.  Trees surrounded him.  It was dark, but not dark as if it was nighttime.  It was dark from the thickness of the foliage.  James looked up.  He couldn’t see anything but limbs, branches and leaves.  He held his hands out in front of him.  He flexed them.  They felt real.  Where was he?  Was he dreaming?  He stomped on the ground.  That felt real, too.  Not knowing what else to do, he began walking.  He tried to remember what had happened before he got here.  His memory seemed a bit foggy.  Maybe he was dreaming.  Then he remembered Vienna and the underpass.  She’d wandered off and he’d found her.  He went to call for an ambulance and his phone wasn’t working.  He went to pick her up and then he was here.  Right?  Was there more?  He thought there was, but couldn’t remember.  Then he remembered Jack.  A rush of jealousy pulsed through him. 

“Vienna!”  James called out, not really knowing what he was doing or why.  “Vienna, are you here?”  He began to walk unsure of where he was going.  He dodged a few trees and ducked beneath some low branches.  He thought he saw a spark of light in the distance and followed. 

***

Jack tried to guide James to Vienna without being noticeable.  He left a trail of energy hoping James would be intuitive enough to follow.  He knew he was breaking the guidelines
by slightly altering both James’ and Vienna’s charts by bringing James into this in between plane of existence.  This was not something that was written into James’ chart, but it was imperative he linked the two of them up.  Their relationship was charted to happen.   

Jack reappeared, next to Vienna, who was in the clutches of the ghost. 

***

Vienna
’s mind reeled.  Flashes of ghostly memories encompassed her soul.  She could no longer feel the man’s cold grip on her wrist; she could no longer see the dark woods or hear the water of the creek.  She could only see images from the man’s life.  A beautiful woman with long dark flowing hair…her heart swelled with love and gratitude.  She saw a small white farm house at the edge of the woods…she could see the woman tending to the garden…again, she felt extreme happiness…a ring, a plain golden band on her slender finger…   

Love,
Roberto had been in love.  It was as if Vienna had become him to feel what he felt.  Suddenly she appeared in a house.  She walked through the kitchen and stepped into the small living room and saw them in a loving embrace.  She stood there for a moment watching them.  But they didn’t see her.  She felt Roberto’s heartbreak as he watched his true love in the arms of another man.  And this was not just any man.  She was in the arms of Roberto’s brother, Alex.  Inexplicable rage pulsed through his veins.  His anger was so intense, so powerful, he couldn’t control himself.  His heart felt like it was breaking, shattering into a million pieces.  He’d never felt pain so strong, so intense…

Feeling his heartbreak, Vienna
screamed out in agony. 

H
er mind flashed to her own broken heart and to her own painful memories.  She telepathically shared her pain with Roberto.  It was something they had in common.  Somehow, without even trying, she reminisced about her ex-boyfriend, Brandon, and how he’d left her to be with another woman. How heartbroken and depressed she’d been.  Her mind brought up how she felt about seeing him with that gorgeous redhead at the club on Valentine’s Day.  It was an odd experience sharing her hurt with a stranger.  It wasn’t something she consciously chose to do.  It just sort of happened.  Generally she didn’t like anyone to know these things about her.  She felt her feelings were personal and she usually kept them hidden.  She didn’t know why or how this was happening, but it was.  Could it be that her life experiences and pain could be used to help others?  Was that the purpose behind her
own
hurtful experiences?  Maybe her life lessons weren’t only for her, but to share with others as well.

***

“Vienna!” James called out, after having heard her scream.  He ran in the direction of her voice.  “Vienna, where are you?  Vienna!”  He dodged tree trunks, plowed through shrubs and continued forward.  Branches snapped back, whipping him as he trudged ahead, but he barely felt them.  “Vienna!” he called again, stopping to listen for her voice.  He hoped he was still headed in the right direction.  Then he heard running water.  Up ahead, through the unnaturally thick fog, he could see tall grass-like plants.  A glittering sparkle of white light glimmered over them. It was the same white light that Jack shot out of his hands to deaden his smart phone.  James took this as a sign from Jack, even though he wasn’t sure how he felt about the guy, and headed toward the light. 

***

Jack did his best to help without interfering.  Even though Vienna wasn’t aware of his presence, he was standing beside her, comforting her and guiding her.  It hurt him more than he’d ever believe to not give her the comfort she needed in knowing he was physically there.  Clarisse had been more than persuasive with her argument against his actions.  He was worried about the decision the council would make regarding his placement as head spirit guide. 

Without words, Jack tried to ease Vienna’s pain.  He encircled her with his adoring energy and touched her heart with his love.  He prayed that she’d remember his advice he’d given her not long ago.

***

More memories that didn’t belong to Vienna flashed before her eyes.  At the moment, she was not only seeing Roberto’s memories, but still feeling them as if they were her own.  The pain she was feeling was unreal, but not unusual.  Unfortunately she was all too familiar with this type of pain.  Since she’d experienced heartbreak within her own lifetime she could sympathize.  But at the same time, his feelings were so intense, that they were making her feel sick.  She tried really hard to keep from spewing her guts out.  Her stomach tightened and clenched making her feel miserable.  Her mind flashed to the homeless man that was able to push her out of his head.  It had been as if a huge wall plunked down in front of her.  She willed herself to think up an invisible wall to block out the pain Roberto was causing.  She remembered Jack’s helpful advice he’d given her in the past.  It was advice that she’d refused to listen to at the time. 
You don’t have to relive someone’s pain to sympathize,
he’d told her.  Immediately, the pain lessened, but it still hurt.  She could feel Roberto’s misery, but not quite as intense. The nausea began to lift.  She was now just an observer in the second person as more visions foraged through her mind.

She was standing in the thick tall grass
at the water’s edge.  She could feel mud beneath her feet as she watched Roberto sneak up on his brother, Alex.  Alex was standing in the creek, shoeless and bottoms of his pant legs rolled up, water lapping against his ankles; fishing.  Roberto had been harboring this pain for days.  And he was going to confront his brother.  He wanted him to know that he was aware of the affair.  The more he watched his brother, the deeper the anger filled his body.  He couldn’t erase the images of betrayal from his mind.  His head was spinning, his pulse racing. He couldn’t control his outrage. 

Things were happening so quickly.  The memories were distorted and flashing before her eyes that she was having a hard time following them. 
There was shouting…shoving…and then an image of a rock popped into Vienna’s mind.  Then it disappeared in a flash.  The next thing she knew, she was standing on the sidelines, watching from a different angle as Roberto pushed his brother.  She watched as Alex slipped on the slick creek bottom and went down with a crash.  Her breath caught in her throat as she heard the sickening crack of his skull as it slammed against a rock. 

A
smooth large stone appeared in her hands.  Vienna looked down at it in horror.  It was the rock Alex hit his head on.  It was wet and covered in sticky blood.  It was cold and heavy and it weighted down her hands.  The nausea returned in full force.  Horrified, she tossed the bloody rock into the water.  Why was Roberto making her hold the rock?  Was it to have a stronger impact on what had taken place?  Was it to make sure she knew what had happened?  Did Roberto hit him with the rock or did Alex land on it. Regardless, she understood.  Alex was dead at the hands of his brother. 

Again,
Vienna could feel every emotion the man was feeling.  Her emotional barrier came crumbling down as she watched Roberto kneel down and lift his brother’s body from the water.  He cried out in grief as he cradled Alex’s head close to his chest.  He felt the stickiness of blood on the palms of his hands.  His brother’s blood.  The same blood that ran through his own veins.  He’d killed his brother.  Alex was gone.  Vienna cried.  She’d never felt grief as strong as this.  Roberto’s chest hurt with unbelievable pain… he gasped, he couldn’t breathe… a sharp pain shot down his arm… he wanted to die… he didn’t deserve to live… he needed to pay for what he’d done… he collapsed into the water.  His body lay motionless next to his brother.

“No!” Vienna screamed
, instantly transporting her and the ghost of Roberto back to where they’d been standing in the grass, before she’d relived flashes of his memories.  He still held her wrist with a strong cold hand.  He stared into her eyes.  But Vienna was no longer frightened of him.  She was terribly sad.  For Roberto’s dark eyes held pain, a terrible heart wrenching pain.  She wanted to help him.

“People make mistakes,” she told him.  “You need to forgive yourself so you can go home.  I know your brother has.  He loves you.
”

R
oberto didn’t say anything.  He didn’t have to.  Through his eyes, Vienna could see the sorrow that was held deep within his soul. 

“The only judgment that has been cast is your own,” she explained.  “You
have to believe me.  You’ve been forgiven.  But you must learn to love yourself and let go.  Then you’ll be able to move on.”

R
oberto let go of her wrist.  He dissolved into a dark haze before her eyes, and then vanished.  Vienna could still feel his sorrow hanging heavily in the air.  She hoped her words of forgiveness and love would sink in and help him to eventually crossover.  She wanted to help ease his pain and release him from his eternal misery, but wasn’t sure how to do it.  How would she ever get through to him?  How could she make him believe?  Again, she wondered where Jack was when she needed him.  He should’ve been here with her, helping to guide her through this.  She felt hurt and betrayed that he hadn’t shown up.   

“Vienna!” James yelled.  He pushed through th
e grass that was thinning out the closer he got to the water.  His feet sank deeper into the slushy mud. 

“James?  James!
” Surprised, her eyes grew large at the sight of him.  When he got close enough, he reached out and grabbed hold of her, pulling her into a tight embrace.  She nuzzled her face into his shoulder and cried.  When she opened her eyes, she found herself back in the underpass, curled up protectively in James’ arms.  He had them wrapped tightly around her, giving her a sense of security.  She felt safe and happy in his embrace.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she said, looking deep into his sultry brown eyes.  She felt she could gaze into them forever.  “I think so.”

“What just happened?” he said, gently running a finger
down her cheek.  He looked around.  “I must’ve been dreaming.  It was so weird.  I don’t really remember how…”

“No,” Vienna said, softly
, cutting off his train of thought.  “You weren’t dreaming.  I remember everything.”

“I, um,” he cleared his throat.
“I don’t understand.  Jack was here…”

“Jack?” she asked, her heart beating faster.  Maybe he hadn’t aban
doned her in her moment of need after all.  “He was here?”

“Yeah, um, he told me I needed to help you.  One moment he was here and then the next he disappeared
after zapping my phone.  It was all really weird.  I don’t know if I understand it.”  He chuckled nervously at his ridiculous words.  He couldn’t believe what he was saying. “I sound like an idiot.”

“Welcome to my world,
” she said looking away, suddenly feeling self conscious about having shared with him a glimpse of her supernatural life.  “It doesn’t always make sense.  You just kinda have to go with the flow.”

James gently placed his fingers beneath her chin and tilted her face
making her look at him.  She gazed again into his dreamy eyes.  And then his full perfect lips tenderly brushed against hers in the most affectionate of kisses.  Butterflies immediately stirred in response.  Vienna kissed him back, harder, and more passionately.

“There you are!” Kim screamed, rushing into the underpass.
  Steve was right behind her.  “I couldn’t get a hold of you.  I kept trying to call!  I was so worried!”

“My phone stopped working,” James said.  “Sorry.
  We were just gonna head back to the motel.”

“Thank God you’re okay!”  Kim ran up to
them, eyes wide. 

“I’m fine,”
Vienna reassured and then smiled at James.

“Looks like it,” Steve teased, staring at her and James.
“Glad to see you two made up.”    Suddenly Vienna could feel her cheeks heating up as she realized they were still sitting on the ground and she sitting on James’ lap, cuddled up in his arms.  She could only imagine what it looked like they were doing.