Taste of Vengeance ✔

Chapter 17

Now the prequel is finished, I will continue this one! The other story doesn't have much influence on this one, except for the fact that I mentioned somewhere that Juice and Abigail were in a relationship since the beginning of season 4. I'm going back and change that, for they became a couple when Juice patched in. So their bond is a little stronger than it already was. 

To fresh your  memory since last update was six months ago, right now Abigail has attended Juice's funeral and Juice is with her in the shape of a dog. :) 

. . .

Abigail felt ice cold. She had no idea how long she was sitting here, in front of his grave. Her joints were aching, but she welcomed the pain. It was a different pain than the tearing carnivorous emptiness in her chest. Duller. But present. 

A wet fur tickled her cheek and when she lifted her head, a warm tongue glided across her cheek. She shivered. Nevertheless, a shaky smile crossed her face. 

How pathetic was it, that it was a dog that was comforting her? 

Her father, her best friend... Apparently no one knew what to say to her and they simply didn't understand that she didn't want to hear any words. She just wanted someone to hold her, to share his or her warmth. 

This dog understood, even when only his instincts were to blame. 

With difficulty she scrambled on her feet and looked around. The graveyard was abandoned. 

"Where is your owner?" she asked softly. 

The animal rubbed his head across her knee. 

"Don't you have an owner?"

The puppy looked up to her with intelligent eyes. The look in them was warm, sympathetic... it hit her hard. 

Juice had always wanted a dog. He would have loved this beauty. 

Once more she looked around. The animal wasn't a bag of bones, nor did it look neglected. It probably wasn't a stray dog. But who would let his dog wander freely around across a graveyard? 

She buried her fingers in the black fur, stroking it. 

"Thank you for your solace," she whispered, pressing her lips against the wet head. Then she turned away from the animal and started to head towards the parking lot. She wasn't sure if she was still expected somewhere – nor did she care. All she wanted to do now was crawling up on the couch under a blanket and watch The Fast and The Furious, imagining Juice was sitting next to her, his arms around her. Like they had done so many times. 

The moment she opened the car door, she realized the puppy had followed her. It kept sitting on the ground, looking up to her and yelping softly. 

"You wanna go with me?" she asked, dazed. 

Her eyes widened. Was it nodding at her?

You're going crazy, Abby. This is fucking insane.

But why should she care? The love of her life was dead and everyone she knew had turned their backs on her. Why shouldn't she find comfort in an animal? At least they wouldn't stab her in the back. 

"You can come with me," she said, more to herself than to the dog. She opened the other door, knowing none of this made sense. As if that animal would really–

But it did; enthusiastically it hopped around the car and jumped on the passenger seat. With shiny eyes, the pup looked up to her. Brown eyes, eyes who reminded her of...

Could it really be? 

Did reincarnation really exist? Was it a coincidence, that she had found the animal in front of his grave? 

"Juice?" she whispered. 

It was insane... and yet, her hand glided across his head. Those brown eyes... and the way they were looking at her... Tears filled her eyes at the thought that he might have found a way to return to her. A little bit of warmth seeped into the hole in her heart. 

Suddenly, someone cleared his throat. Disturbed, Abigail looked over her shoulder. It was the man who had led the interment, the trainee. 

"Is he bothering you, ma'me? Timmy always feels drawn to sad people."

"Is it – is it your dog?" she asked defeated. 

The man nodded. "Come here, boy."

The pup grunted, pressing its head against Abigail's upper arm. Without giving it a second thought, she wrapped a protective arm around the animal. Was it treated badly by its owner? Was that the reason it reacted so fiercely? Hesitantly, she glanced at the man's pale face. His eyes were of a bright blue, they seemed to pulsate like energy sources. Abigail felt her skin tingle. 

Suddenly, the dog turned around and jumped out of the car. With his head hanging down, it strolled towards his owner, who crouched down in front of the animal, took its head between his hands and whispered something she couldn't hear. 

Bewildered, Abigail watched the strange scene. 

As the man got up again, he nodded to her. Again, there was an ominous feeling in her stomach when their eyes met. A shiver rolled down her spine; she didn't want to leave the dog with this creep. Especially not when the animal started to walk away, looking sadly over its shoulder one more time. 

All of a sudden there was a sharp sting in her temples, where after her world turned black. Grunting, she pressed her head harder against the headrest. Once the pain faded, both the undertaker and the puppy were gone. 

To her right, she heard a movement. Hopeful, she cocked her head aside. Scarlett sat down at the passenger seat. "Are you okay, baby?" she asked. "You want me to drive?"

"Juice..." she whispered. "I – I saw Juice."

Sympathetically, Scarlett squeezed her knee. "I get it, love. I know how much you miss him. Leaving this suffocating town will do you good, believe me. You will see that you'll feel much better when you're in your new home. Come, let me drive."

Feeling numb, they changed places. Quietly, Abigail stared out of the window. 

She was really losing her mind. 

But if it meant she could be close to a version of Juice, she didn't even care.