Midnight Angel [Jenlisa FF]

~'~'~ Chapter 4 ~'~'~

A loud crack of lightning startled Lisa out of a deep sleep later that night. She sat up in a daze, trying to figure out what had woken her. When the room lit up because of another flash of lightning, she realized that a storm must have rolled in while she was sleeping. Considering that it was three in the morning, all she wanted to do was go back to sleep. Concern over whether she'd remember to close the windows in her car had her wearily climbing out of bed. Rain was definitely not good for the leather interior of her car. Lisa stumbled over to the window, rubbing her eyes in the process.

Peering out through the glass, Lisa saw that it hadn't yet started to rain. She could hear rumbles of thunder and see flashes of lightning, leaving little doubt that the rain would soon come. After staring at the sky, a moment longer, she shifted her gaze to the driveway and to her car only to find it wasn't there. It took a minute for her to realize that she'd parked it in the garage. She'd completely forgotten that the construction workers had finally finished working on it and that she was finally able to park her car there for the first time that day.

Lisa laughed at her forgetfulness then looked back up to the sky when a bright flash of light lit up everything. The storm was getting closer, and it looked like it was going to be wicked. That didn't bother her particularly. Storms could be fascinating, except when trying to sleep. Lisa wished the moon, though, wasn't hidden behind the heavy, gray storm clouds so that she could see land below. Lisa could only imagine what the ocean waves looked like when affected by bad weather. It was too dark, though, to see them.

When lightning again lit up the sky, this time in a series of bright flashes, Lisa's eyes were gazing down toward the beach. The entire area lit up almost as if it were day. And that was when she saw it; a solitary figure near the water's edge. The glimpse was so quick, though, she couldn't be sure she really saw it. No, Lisa was positive she'd seen somebody there. So, she waited till the next flash. When it came a long minute later, there was nothing, just an empty expanse of sand and water.

Perplexed, Lisa wandered back to her bed and lay down. Ther was the second time she'd seen what she thought was a woman out on the beach by her house. Was she imaging things or was there somebody really out there? Maybe, she supposed, it was someone who lived nearby. As far as Lisa knew, there were only two houses close to her. To the south was another Victorian house similar to her, and then to the north, up on the cliffs, was the large mansion that she passed on her way into town, and which she now knew Mr. Kim lived in. It had to be somebody who lived in one of those houses. But as far as she knew, Mr. Kim lived alone. So, it had to be the other Victorian house. She'd have to wander down there someday soon and introduce herself, and hopefully find out who the woman was who liked to walk the beach at night.

Though she'd convinced herself of the identity of the enigmatic female, Lisa still wanted to know who she was. After all, they were now neighbours. It made sense to get to know the people around her, especially if she often took walks near her house. Tomorrow, she had to go into town, maybe then she'd ask around and see if anybody knew who lived in the Victorian. Or she could go to the local library and check the public records.

Shaking her head, Lisa wondered why this was bothering her so much. People walked on the beach all the time. What was so special about this one? Why was she so curious about the strange woman? Lisa had no idea, but she just couldn't get her out of her mind. She supposed it was because of the fact that the only times she had seen her were in the dead of night, always alone, and seemingly there one minute, then gone the next. Yes, that had to it, she told herself. It was just the circumstances. Still, she'd feel better about it once she knew who she was.

~'~'~

The following morning, Lisa rose early and was soon on her way into town. She had a few errands to run to get things for the house, and since it was still on her mind, she planned to ask around. Laughing at her own obsessiveness, Lisa flipped on her turn signal and made a right onto the main street of town.