Arriana's Return

Arriana's Return - Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Arianna sat up and began looking around realizing she was back in her own bed. She groaned and looked at her clock. 6:45 AM.

Was that a dream? If it was, why do I feel like absolute shit? Wow. That was crazy.

She got up and walked to her window. It was still dark out, the only thing she saw was the tree and the abandoned street. Sighing heavily, she turned and headed towards her bathroom, she would have to survive the day with only a few short hours of sleep. As the hot water ran over her body in the shower, she kept thinking about the dream.

What key is he talking about? Do I have it? And what about this locket? I don't have a locket. Of course, it could have just been a dream. Yes, that's it. It was nothing more than a meaningless dream.

The creepy guy had given her a good scare that night, so he could have just been stuck in her mind when she fell asleep. It was just a dream caused by a traumatic scare and nothing more. Or so she thought.

She finished getting ready for school, jumped into her jeep and headed towards school but her phone started to ring. Answering she heard Zoe's voice.

"Hey Arianna."

"What's up Zoe?" Arianna knew she needed something. She never called that early in the morning.

"Well, you see, I um, forgot to turn off the interior light in my car last night and..." her voice trailed off.

"Uh, huh. Let me guess, it won't start now?" Arianna sighed.

"Right."

Arianna already knew the story; this wasn't the first time her ditzy friend had done this. "And neither of your parents are home because they both had to be in the office early."

"Right again. You didn't leave for school yet did you?" Zoe asked apologetically.

"No, I'll be there in a few minutes." Arianna lied.

At the red light that was a few blocks from her and Zoe's street, she looked to her left and saw the creepy guy standing there. She glared at him until the light turned green and the cars behind her started to honk. She stepped on the gas and sped the rest of the way to Zoe's. The ride to school had started out quiet.

"Arianna what's wrong?" Zoe finally asked.

"Huh? Oh nothing. Bad dream you know," Arianna said half heartedly

"Uh huh, I see. What kind of bad dream?" Zoe asked.

"Just one of those crazy dreams you know. I don't really remember it." Arianna replied, hoping Zoe would drop the subject, which she did not do.

"If you don't remember it, how do you know it was bad?"

"I'm not sure. I just do." Arianna replied.

"Well, tell me." Zoe urged.

"I honestly don't remember it Zoe or I would tell you."

"Okay Arianna." Zoe gave Arianna her usual 'yeah right' look when she knew Arianna lied.

She knew Zoe didn't believe her. Zoe always knew when she was lying. The rest of the car ride was silent except for the radio. She noticed Deacon standing against the side of the school as she pulled into the student parking lot and decided to try to talk to him. She walked over to where he was and sat down next to him. They looked at each other and smiled saying nothing, just sat there. The bell for class rang but they stayed put for just a few minutes longer. He finally stood up and reached out his perfectly smooth hand to her. Arianna just sighed and took it, chills running down her spine. Her face flushed, and her throat went dry. There was nothing she wanted more at the moment than for him to lean down and put his soft lips to hers. He didn't of course. He gave her a quick smile before turning and striding gracefully into the school, leaving her standing there, legs shaking and lips quivering. She felt as though her heart was going to explode out of her throat, it was damn rotten the way he made her feel. She was normally not a shy girl but when it came to Deacon she was a mess.

Marianna, Scott and Danni sat at the kitchen table, knowing something had to be said. The problem was that nobody wanted to say it. They sat there, stirring their coffee, looking at each other.

"You guys just need to tell her." John interrupted their thoughts. "She is going to eventually find out and from the sounds of it, it will be sooner rather than later. Do you want her to find out from a stranger rather than the only family she has ever known?"

Scott didn't bother looking up from his coffee mug; he continued watching his creamer swirl in the murky beige the once black brew created. "We know John. Sit and talk with us. You are just as much a part of Arianna's life as the rest of us. You're the only brother she has ever known."

"Mom, are you sure it's time? Are you positive it was the man with the mark on his face? This is the same man as before?" Danni couldn't hide the paranoia in her voice; she didn't try hiding it, "What if that man was lying? We don't know anything about any of this."

"When she came home that night from school she said that a man had told her it was time to go home. He wasn't talking about this home. We don't know what to think or do." Marianna told Danni.

"Does anyone know where this home is?" John asked them.

Danni looked at her husband then at her parents. All three of them shook their heads.

"No. We have no idea where she came from. When she was left here, all she had was a basket, the blanket and her locket. The pictures inside must be her biological parents." Scott said.

"What kind of parents just dumps a baby on a doorstep and never looks back?" John said, disgusted at the thought that a mother and father could do that.

"John it's complicated. We don't know the whole story but apparently where ever they are from something bad happened and her parents feared for her life, so they had her brought here. We don't know where they're from, who they were or why they chose us. From what the guy told us her parents were actually murdered that night, so it's a good thing she was brought here." Marianna explained.

"Why didn't either of you call the authorities? Or turn her over to social services? They could have protected her better." John was baffled at the carelessness of Arianna's parents.

"The man would not tell us. He only said that it was impossible for our government to help; that they could do nothing to help their home. He always referred to where they were from as home, never by its name." Scott said.

"Do you still have the locket?" John asked them.

"Yeah, it's upstairs in my jewelry box." Marianna replied quietly.

"Can I see it?"

"Absolutely. Do you think you'll be able to recognize where it's from?"

Marianna couldn't believe she had forgotten that John was a historian. If anyone would be able to distinguish something of importance on the locket, he could. She excused herself from the table and went to the bedroom to retrieve the locket. She had not looked at it in so long. She carefully opened it and stared at the young couple inside. They would be in their forties now. She turned and was about to go downstairs when something outside caught her attention. She pulled the curtains apart at the window and saw a man standing out there. The street light at the end of the driveway lit up his face just enough for Marianna to see a long, jagged scar. It was him.

"No! It's not time yet! It's not time! You can't take her away from us!" Marianna was screaming at the man.

Scott, Danni and John appeared in the bedroom and looked at the shaking woman. She was on her knees in front of the window crying. They ran over and looked out as the man was turning and walking away. It was with heavy hearts that they knew the day was approaching even more quickly than they had thought. They had to tell Arianna the truth. The family went back downstairs and took their seats around the small table. Marianna handed the locket over to John. As he turned it over in his hands, the rest of the group watched with extreme interest. He licked his lips every now and then, looking slightly confused as he studied it. John finally looked up at them smiling.