1
Terror unlike she had ever known before seized her insides with ferocious relish and locked her limbs in place, as a brutal battle of wills waged inside of her head, a battle for her mind and consequently her soul. Hot perspiration seeped through the young maiden's thin cotton nightgown, drenching the duvet and pillow on which she was tossed about like a ragdoll by an unseen force. She was barely able to draw a breath, for powerful was the oppressing entity clamping down on her windpipe, as it attempted to batter her into submission and thereby gain control of all her faculties. She was no stranger to these types of ordeals, however, and would rather throw down with the boss man downstairs himself before she succumbed to the insidious monstrosity hell-bent on possessing her. As if discerning that very train of thought, said monstrosity tightened its icy claws round her throat and squeezed.
"You little bitch," it sneered and broke off in an unpleasant cackle that bordered on hysterical. "You are nothing."
Refusing to dignify the entity's obscenities with a response, she simply willed herself to calm, which proved arduous and then some, especially since the oxygen in her brain was rapidly dwindling. Summoning the vestiges of whatever remaining willpower she had left, she concentrated on the sword of the spirit and called out to her Father in heaven to intervene on her behalf. She was rewarded moments later with an unhuman-like squeal from the demonic spirit as her throat was released from its vitriol-filled vise-grip. Suddenly overcome with a strong dose of fatigue, the battle-wary maiden issued her version of a war cry of victory in the form of a drawn-out yawn and slipped into unconsciousness.
When she had awoken the next day the happenings of the previous night were all but forgotten. Kicking the rumpled sheets aside, the young woman clambered out of bed and made a beeline for the adjoining bathroom.
"Lucera."
Hand stretched towards the circular door handle, Lucera halted mid-step, a tingling sensation rushing up her spine, causing her nerve endings to stand out on end. That voice. Why did it sound so familiar to her, or was it possible that she was now suffering from hallucinations?? Taking a deep, steadying breath, she shrugged off the eerie encounter and staggered towards the face basin, where she freshened up, after which drawing herself a bath and began to mentally prepare herself for the day's gruelling tasks.
Fifteen minutes later a professionally decked-out Lucera sauntered into the dining area and was immediately greeted with the mouth-watering aroma of scrambled eggs and toast, but overriding those fragrances was the more pungent and addictive smell of coffee, which called to the young woman's soul like the sensual song of a siren.
"Sissy."
Turning her head towards the sound of her brother's gruff voice, Lucera smiled, a warm feeling brimming her heart.
"Good morning, Kai."
"You look nice. Trying to impress somebody at the office, a high-ranking officer maybe?"
Her tinkling laughter reverberated throughout the spacious room, as she glided towards the coffee maker.
"I can maybe throw my weight around as superintendent to find out who this mystery person might be," he teased, stashing his used silverware in the dish washer.
"I have not been searching, and I do not have an interest in dating anyone."
That was a bold-faced lie and she knew it. One of the things Lucera incessantly prayed for apart from the return of her vision was to find her husband, that one guy with whom she might share all her burdens both physical and spiritual and to whom she might prove an asset of a wife, although, there was one person who had consistently been there for her ever since her college days at the University of the Southern Caribbean. When they met, He was a Political Science major, while she had specialized in English Literature, but they both decided to do their minor in Biblical Theology and had bonded over their shared zest for Christian concepts and notions against organized religion as it related to the new age.
Kai made a deep, rumbling sound at the back of his throat as if to say, "Yeah, right", and ruffled her wavy tresses affectionately before making his departure.
"Have a good day, Lucy," he called over his shoulder and exited.
"Where are Mom and Dad?" she yelled after him.
"They left on one of their missionary trips early this morning," Kai shouted a ways off. "Anyway, headed to work. Don't forget to lock…"
The rest of what was said was lost as her brother left the veranda and started down the three flights of spiralling steps leading up to the house.
Lucera situated herself on a stool near to the coffee maker and placed her belongings on the nearby counter, her mind contemplating the blessings she was bestowed despite her tragic life story. Helping herself to a steaming cup of coffee, she allowed herself to think about whether her birth mother was still alive somewhere in the world, possibly in Venezuela, prostituting herself out to the next average Jo looking to get laid.
She had no idea who her mom was, far less her dad. All she knew was that her mom had migrated to Trinidad with an influx of immigrants supposedly in search of a better life some twenty-one years prior when Venezuela had hit an existential economic crisis. Her now adopted parents had given shelter and food to some of the Venezuelan folk, including her then heavily pregnant mother, and had used the opportunity to share the gospel. At the time, Kai would have been five years old and the only child of the Montgomerys.
Because of complications ascertained during pregnancy and delivery, Mrs. Montgomery was unable to have any more children, and so Kai was essentially an only child. Lucera's birth mother had lamented her lack of preparedness for child-rearing and had pleaded with the Montgomerys to temporarily look after her for a few years while she tried to get her life together. When Lucera was born, her mom wasted no time in disappearing off the grid, especially once everyone learned that she was legally blind.
Apparently the highly irresponsible biological Mommy binged on any manner of pill and potion during her pregnancy and it had wrought irrevocable damage on the nerve tissues of Lucera's eyes. Even so, the Montgomerys had connections in the US where they lived prior and had flown baby Lucy out to the top-ranking ophthalmologists in Boston. She had no idea what the surgeons had done, but she was able to reclaim a bit of sight for the first several years of her life before it was inevitably lost for good.
A vibration from her hip propelled the maiden from her musings and she eased a hand into a side pocket to retrieve her ringing mobile. Sliding a manicured finger across the screen, she placed the phone against her ear as TalkBack announced the caller ID and got to her feet.
"Hi, Lucy," a smooth, sultry voice greeted from the other end. Goosebumps erupted across her arms like a mini epidemic every time she heard his eccentric albeit attractive accent. She closed her eyes as if savouring the moment and clutched the phone tightly.
"Morning, Gabe."
She wondered if Gabe would ever reciprocate her feelings. She was unsure of when exactly her feelings for her best friend had evolved into this thing, this strong burning passion and… and love—she wanted him with such intensity that she feared she would combust from the poignant onslaught.
"I'm here, love."
If only he knew what calling her love did to her body—how it dissolved her insides.
"I'll be down in a jiff," she said in a husky, come-hither tone and kicked herself mentally for the way she sounded.
"Take your time. Wouldn't want you tumbling down all those steps."
She chuckled and disconnected the call, gathering her cane—it was an eighteenth birthday present to her from him—and pocket book, which she decided to dump her phone into. Glancing towards the dining table, she sashayed over and snatched up the plate of toast and eggs her brother left her and awkwardly made her way towards the foray. Before she could deliberate her best strategy for making it all the way down to ground level in one piece, Gabe was at her side, offering to take the plate and her purse.
She flashed him a coquettish grin and extended her cane.
"Just give me a sec to lock up."
"No need. Your Housekeeper's car is parked out front," Gabe informed, his appreciative gaze making a slow perusal over her stylish getup.
"Well, I'll just pull the door shut," she said and took a couple steps forward. "There."
"You're matching today," Gabe complimented." Purple suit, purple bag. Even the plate is purple. Purple heels to. Fancy."
Her smile widened and they began the trek down the first flight of steps.
��Cane doesn't match, though. It's white."
"White goes with anything, just like black."
"Does it?" Arching a brow, they both chuckled.
"Well, your pearl necklace is also white—"
Gabe was suddenly a hairsbreadth away from her, his warm palm grazing that sensitive spot on her neck.
"Luce." His voice sounded strangled, pained even.
Lucera gasped as hot anger that was not her own burst from her chest with vehemence. She opened her mouth to say… she didn't know what, but she could feel Gabe's eyes drilling a hole into her neck.
Ever since she was old enough to decipher emotions, Lucera discovered an affinity for sensing, and to a lesser extent emulating, other people's emotional state, but only if they were potent enough. Her parents and Gabe were the only ones she had entrusted with this information, and they did not seem perturbed at all by her supernatural gift. Perhaps because they were strong believers of the Christian faith. Perhaps because they held secrets of their own.
"Who hurt you?" Gabe gritted out between clenched teeth.
Lucera gnawed on her bottom lip and trembled as Gabe began tracing circles around the discoloured area.
She of course could not recall in full the previous night's happenings and so drew a blank, the confusion evident on her face.
"Gabe, I—I am not sure what you're talking about. What do you see?"
"Your neck has blue-black marks. It looks as if someone throttled you."
Lucera balked, a brief memory of being attacked by an invisible force flashing through her thoughts. Panic seized her without warning, and she stumbled. Gabe drew her into his arms, his minty cologne a welcome aphrodisiac helping to clear up some of the haze.
"Hey, I've got you, baby," he comforted, running a hand through her dark tresses. "Luce, I won't let anything happen to you. I know you're confused, but I promise you all will be made clear soon. I know this sounds like some cryptic bullshit."
"I felt your anger," she whimpered into his chest.
Drawing back, she tried to make eye contact with him, even though she could not actually see him. She felt like it was the human thing to do—instinctual.
Gabe withdrew his hand from her neck, and the loss of contact almost crippled her.
"I know," he said simply. "I'm sorry."
She could sense he wanted to say more, but he was holding back for reasons unknown to her.
"We should go if we want to beat the 7:00 a.m. traffic. I'll also need to get you something to eat along the way." A hint of sheepishness crept into his voice as he continued. "I sort of dropped your plate in all the histrionics. Food for the pigeons I guess?"
Lucera chortled.
"I'll text Ms. Joseph about the clean up since she's already here and indoors."
No more words were exchanged as they rounded to the final flight of step and made their way towards Gabe's SUV in companionable silence.