Dark Visions (3 page)

"That was Sarah?"

"Yes, and she is in trouble. Something is
coming, but I couldn't tell what. She needs help. As soon as I told
her, she bolted. I wish I could help her, but I fear, within
twenty-four hours Sarah will either be dead or a victim to her own
precognition she's trying to stop."

Chapter 4

Sarah couldn't believe what was
happening.

She lay on her bed, not sure what move to
make.

Yesterday she met Esmerelda at the Psychic
Fair and all she got was a warning and something about being able
to hear the Other Side. Her parents had argued most of the night
about it.

The pressure of the danger that's supposedly
coming started to mount. Maybe it had to do with her notebook. If
the police ever got their hands on it, she would have some
explaining to do. The kind of explaining that got you locked up
with a nice white jacket. Maybe that was it?

Automatic Writer?

Someone or something from the Other Side was
using her as a tool.

She needed to get her notebook back. She
wanted to re-read all the entries, and then destroy it.

She couldn't turn to her parents. It would
only fuel their current arguments. She felt guilty enough for that.
They wouldn't listen anyway. They always treated her like a child.
Even at eighteen, they still treated her like she was fourteen.
Half of that was her fault; she hadn't moved out yet and there was
no indication that she would anytime soon.

She had no friends to speak of. She knew
people from school, but no real friends she could trust. She had no
boyfriend. Who would want one anyway? With all the trouble
relationships seemed to be, it was the last thing she wanted to add
to her mixed up situation.

She decided she would have to see Esmerelda
again. She could explain what Automatic Writing was.

She got up and sat on the edge of her
bed.

Was Dolan in trouble? Could she help?

Should she help?

Sarah picked up her bedroom phone. After
dialing information she was routed to the Psychic Fair's number. On
the third ring, a woman picked it up.

Sarah could feel her hand shaking from the
vibration the phone made against her ear. She was taken aback by
this because she had been in situations in the last six months that
should have scared her more.

This one felt more personal though.

Now she had to try to save herself.

She asked for Esmerelda and was told that
she was in a session and couldn't be disturbed. Sarah left her
name, telephone number and hung up.

She grabbed her address book and opened it
to an entry she'd made months ago about Mary Bennett. There had
been an attempted kidnapping and at the right moment, Sarah stepped
in and stopped it. After Mary was confirmed to be okay Sarah had
tried to slink away undetected but she'd been grabbed by Mary who
had written her phone number down and told Sarah to call if she
needed anything. Anything at all.

Sarah dialed the number. A male, probably a
servant, answered and told Sarah to hold while he went to find
Mary.

A moment later a female voice came on the
line. "Hello, who's this?"

Sarah recognized Mary's voice. She'd never
forget it. Mary had been her first save.

"It's Sarah," she whispered.

"Sarah? I don't know any Sarah's...Oh wait.
Are you the girl with no eyebrows? The one who was by the trash bin
that night?"

"Yes."

"Hold on. I want to talk to you, but not
here. Let me put the phone down so I can go to my room. You'll
wait?"

"Yes, I'll wait."

Sarah heard the phone drop and feet
shuffling. Moments later she heard the familiar click of a phone
lifting and then Mary yelling that she got it. The other line was
put down.

"Why haven't you called sooner? I've got so
many questions."

"I like to stay anonymous. I don't make it a
practice to get to know the people I help."

"Are you saying that I'm not the only one
you've helped? Is this something you do regularly?" Mary sounded
surprised.

"Not regularly. Only when...I'm supposed
to." Sarah stood and walked to her bedroom window. Her parents were
still out so she didn't have to worry about them overhearing
anything. "Listen, I didn't call to talk about that. I wanted to
ask for your help."

"Help? Whatever it is I'll give it my
best."

"I need you to do two simple tasks for me.
What I need you to do involves my father and a woman named
Esmerelda.

Chapter 5

Esmerelda spent most of her day trying to
figure out what was bothering her more. Could she be
that
concerned about Sarah, a girl she just met? Or was it what Dolan
had said last night?

Her booth was small. From where she was
standing, she reached around and grabbed the closed sign. She was
done for the day. No more clients, no more brooding. She placed it
in its holder on the table.

"Closing early?"

The voice startled her. She looked up and
saw Dolan's assistant. She should have sniffed him coming. He was
always doused in Fahrenheit cologne.

"Yes. I'm not feeling well. I wouldn't be at
my best for the clientele."

"But it's only the lunch hour. Do you feel
Dolan will approve of his top psychic taking off early?"

"I don't care what Dolan approves of. I
should've retired years ago. I do this because I want to. I don't
work for you or Dolan."

"Alright, alright, you needn't get so
defensive. I was merely concerned about your well being."

Yeah right
, she thought. She wondered
why she always felt the need to explain herself to Alex. Why did
she even talk to him? Not many of the employees got along with him.
Some of the lunch room talk was curiosity as to why Dolan kept him
on.

"I'm leaving Alex. I'll be back
tomorrow."

"Where are you going?"

"It's none of your business. But if you must
know, I'm going to my trailer for a siesta."

Esmerelda stood and edged her way around the
booth's table. The closer she got to Alex the worse the cologne
was. Intoxicating, like it seared the oxygen out of the air.

Within two steps she expected Alex to say
something, but he didn't. She walked away in silence.

It was a slow day at the fair anyway. She'd
had a few people to read for this morning and as she walked through
the pavilion she could see it was half empty.

When she reached the back exit door she
stopped dead in her tracks.

"Where're you going, Esmerelda?"

"To my trailer, Dolan."

He moved in front of the back door, his arms
crossed.

"I want to talk to you about that girl you
did a reading for yesterday."

"Again? We discussed her last night. I know
nothing more."

"Ah, but I think you do. Come with me."

She had no intention of going anywhere with
him. Something was not right.

She moved for the door when Dolan reached
out and gripped her arm above the elbow. He led her away from the
back door.

"Hey. What are you doing? Let go of me."

"We need to talk."

It was so unlike Dolan to act this way, so
uncharacteristic. Maybe her precognition of danger had come true
and Sarah's parents were here demanding answers.

Minutes later they were under a steel
staircase that led to the offices above. The closest booth or fair
attendee was at least thirty feet away.

"Alex and I were having a conversation
yesterday when we bumped into Sarah. You already know what I saw in
her notebook. Alex is also curious about it. I remember you said
that Sarah could be dead or a victim of one of her own
precognitions. But that works with
save yourself
. So what's
going on? Should I be worried? I mean, just before she leaves the
pavilion she whispers that I need to save myself. Is this about me
or Sarah?"

"I told you yesterday, I didn't even get a
chance to do a full reading." This was so unlike Dolan. "What is
this all about? Why drag me over here to ask the same questions
from last night? Besides, what do you have to worry about?"

"Something's got me freaked out."

She saw something in Dolan's eyes that
didn't seem right. The fair was still quite empty; no one was close
enough to hear them. Esmerelda stepped back.

"Alex was standing by your booth when he
overheard you say the girl was in danger. Alex listened a little
more. You know it isn't the practice of the Dolan Ryan's Psychic
Fair to do negative readings. I not only want to know what you were
talking about, I need to know if it relates to me."

"I'm sorry Dolan; I refuse to talk about it.
As far as I'm concerned, it has nothing to do with you."

She could see his surprise. He took a step
back and looked around.

"Whatever Alex heard wasn't meant for his
ears or yours. The reading was for Sarah and Sarah alone. I can't
tell you about the danger because I don't know what it is."

"Esmerelda, how long have we been at this
together, doing readings, helping people find love, marriage,
peace? You of all people know me. As the years have been getting
tougher and tougher, all I want is to make a little more money and
then get away from all this. I'm done, Esmerelda. I want obscurity.
Esmerelda, tell me what's going on? Was the '
save yourself
'
comment for her and not me?"

"I have nothing to say about this. Besides,
I didn't get to see inside her notebook."

Esmerelda turned to leave but Dolan's
stopped her.

"What's happening to you Dolan? I have never
seen you like this."

"I need to know why you won't talk to me.
Are these girl's problem's related to me? Tell me, Esmerelda."

She didn't say a word.

"Esmerelda."

She saw his jaw clench together when he said
her name. She felt his anger, his desperation.

She stepped back and walked away in a half
jog. Their impromptu meeting was over. The truth was she really
didn't know what form the danger would take. One thing she knew was
that it did have something to do with the psychic fair and she
wanted no part of that.

On her way out the back door she saw Alex
again. He was sitting on the table in her booth, watching her.

Chapter 6

Sarah took a seat near the exit doors in the
rear of the bus. It was empty but for a few teenagers. The doors
rattled shut and the bus lumbered forward.

After she talked to Mary, Sarah felt she'd
made a mistake. Trusting people had always been a big deal for her
and now she realized she probably said too much to Mary.

They mutually felt a connection on the phone
that made Sarah feel odd, seeing as they'd only talked once before.
Sarah wasn't used to having people she had to rely on.

Mary said the reason she wanted to help was
because of Sarah. Not only had Sarah saved her from being
kidnapped, she also intrigued her. Mary said her life had become
boring, where Sarah's life sounded exciting. She wanted to get
involved the next time Sarah went to stop a kidnapping. Sarah had
quickly refused and got off the phone but not before securing
Mary's commitment to help in exactly the way Sarah needed her
help.

The familiar ding of a bus rider signaling
their intent to exit the bus at the next stop made her jump. It
woke her from her reverie just in time. She was a block away from
the pavilion where the Psychic Fair was being held.

The bus stopped in front of the fair and
Sarah got off. She headed to the front entrance. When she got there
she was confronted by a registration table with two women sitting
behind it.

She looked at the fee that was posted on the
table and knew she didn't have enough. She thought about asking if
a notebook had been returned to lost and found, but thought better
of it. Talk to Esmerelda first.

"I was wondering if you could get a message
to Esmerelda for me."

One of the women, with a smile that showed
all her teeth and some of her gums, looked up at her. "What would
you like me to pass along?"

"Could you tell her that Sarah Roberts is
out front and that I would like to talk to her? Tell her that it
concerns the reading she did for me yesterday."

"I could, but I don't think she'll be able
to drop what she's doing to come out front. She's one of the most
popular psychics we have here. She's probably got a line at her
booth right now. But I'll make sure she gets the message."

"Thank you," Sarah said and grabbed a pen
and paper from the table. She wrote down her home phone number. If
they couldn't get to see each other, at least Esmerelda could call
her.

She set the paper down on the table along
with the pen. Both women still sat there, chatting to each other.
Neither one had gotten up to deliver her note.

She decided to find another way in.

Sarah stepped outside. She headed along the
edge of the building and turned the corner. The back lot consisted
of a fenced in yard with a security shack. The yard was filled with
about a dozen trailers and rigs. It looked to Sarah that the
psychics lived in the trailers while on the road, moving from
pavilion to pavilion.

The sun shone bright, bouncing off the
pavement in a wave of heat. She backhanded sweat from her brow and
started for the fence.

As she passed an emergency exit door, she
pulled on it. It was locked from the inside.

There appeared to be no way into the
building unless she could get through the fenced in area.

The security shack was manned. The guard had
his head down. He appeared to be reading something.

Sarah walked up to the fence. She looked at
the guard shack. The guard's head was still down.

She started to climb. It took her less than
ten seconds to reach the top. Straddling the bar, she adjusted her
weight and began her descent down the other side. At the last three
feet, she hopped off and looked at the guard shack again. The
security guard hadn't seen a thing. She tightened her bandanna.
With the fence by her side, she started to walk toward the
trailers.