Crissa's Mate

Chapter Sixty

As explained to Crissa, David accepted the job on the crab fishing boat and departed for Alaskan waters at 4:00 AM from the Vancouver Marina. The next several days Crissa reluctantly accepted it as time away from her love, with some six more days and nights to endure before his return. She also found it a healthy respite for her, to regroup her energies and complete some much neglected work assigned to her freshman courses at the university. The fact that earlier Julie and the professor had made their unexpected presence known, but then summarily both disappeared, only further focused her efforts. For she managed to get away from the turmoil and convince herself it was a good time to get back on track as a student. To treat herself to some much-needed stress reduction.

The situation was not to be stress-free for long, however, when Brad called her on the fourth day of David's absence with disturbing news.

"Yeah, Crissa, the message I have for you from Julie is not pleasant. Nor is what's going on up here. It's even more serious as I was told by several students at the university . . . that the professor has returned to his classes."

"What?"

"They said he had come back to his ground-breaking work . . . on the unusual genome of wolves."

"What's this all about, Brad? I don't understand. Where is Julie?"

"That's just it. I spoke with her . . . here, Crissa.  She called from her parent's house and was frantic."

"Why?"

"Said she was in her room. Locked in!   Being held there by her parents."

"What? Jesus!"

"She claims they still believe Dekker can fix her. Get her out of her . . . mutated state. With his lab work."

"Seriously?"

"He wants her back in his lab, Crissa. And all this just before her next . . . incident  under the enfluence of moon."

"My God!  I thought Julie was still down here, Brad. Somewhere . . . maybe just off campus."

"Well I guess she took your advice to come back here . . . that's what she told me on her house phone."

"Brad, it was a good plan. But only as long as the professor is still down here, in Vancouver."

"Well he isn't anymore, Crissa. Nor is Julie. Her parents are holding her in their house until the professor can take her back. He's obviously going to use  his kidnap and imprisonment tactics again."

"Brad, there's laws against that! Y ou have to get the police involved now! Before it's too late!"

"It may already  be, Crissa. Julie doesn't answer the house phone anymore. No one does."

"God . . . What are you going to do?"

"Just try to find her. She told me before Dekker's  makeshift lab was in the backroom of one of the university classrooms. He keeps it locked. Over in the Biology building."

"Brad . . . this is so serious. It may involve sexual assault, as well. From what she told me."

"I know, Crissa. It's really sick what he was doing to her before."

"And now?  What else will he do?"

"Her parents totally cooperated with him when we all came back from Germany. And now it seems, since she's returned . . . they're at it again! So desperate!  They just want her back as she was. You can understand their thinking . . ."