Sweat ran into his eyes, still, he watched hers as they rode the wave of passion until they were both satisfied. Exhausted and spent, Avi kissed his love tenderly then laid his head gently on her shoulder and kissed her neck. She shuttered and sighed. Her body spasmed around him. It tickled and excited him, but he was too tired to laugh, too exhausted to move his body another inch, too in love to be at anything but at peace. For a second he got a little scared when she didn't move below him, then she sighed, her chest expanding beneath him and lifting his body. She ran her fingers through the sweat-drenched hair above his ears and kissed his forehead. He smiled a warm smile against the skin of her neck and relaxed. She didn't shift him as he lay there his head on her shoulder his sweaty body covering hers, still wrapped tight within her. She just let him lie. He smiled a sleepy, happier than ever smile and closed his sweet green eyes to rest for just a moment.
Kevin didn't see either Avi or Rayne emerge from Avi's room before he went to bed. He didn't hear them as they moved around in the kitchen, didn't smell the food their appetites demanded or hear the quiet love they made before they drifted into a sweet slumber, locked in each other's arms in the early morning hours.
He saw Avi briefly the following afternoon when he came out of the safety of his bedroom to fetch breakfast then returned to his queen and their sanctuary. There was nothing they had to do, no events scheduled, no tour rehearsals, no one Avi wanted to go and visit, just rest or whatever Avi and Rayne were up to behind that closed door. Somehow, he was certain that he didn't want to know what that was, but would find out the general info later anyway.
They spent the next couple of days just being all cute and cuddly together anytime they were at the house, side by side when in public, laughing and joking, and making love every chance they got. Kevin lost track of the number of small purple marks he spotted on Rayne's neck and shoulders the evening they all sat in the hot tub and talked half the night away and got buzzed on good wine before Avi drug her off to bed with a charismatic loving, lust filled smile. Avi still hadn't figured out what to do with his mouth. Kevin rolled his eyes and laughed inwardly.
***
Joseph's recovery was well on the way. Still, Emma wondered if he would ever be the same little boy he was when she discovered she couldn't live without him in her life. She lay next to him while he slept and longed for those days, the days in the sunshine, running through the manicured fields around their upstate home. He was her best friend, the brightest star in her sky, the sun and the moon. He was a perfect compliment to her. But something changed the summer his voice went from high to low, something became fundamentally different between him and their father. One minute all was well, the next he was gone, off to some damn boarding school somewhere far away from her. That was when things changed for her too. While Joseph got less and less of her father's attention She got more than she ever wanted. When Joseph returned he didn't feel like Joseph anymore.
***
Downtime was over before they knew it and it was time for Avi to go back out on tour. That was the crux of a musician's life, the con to every pro for Avi. He was constantly leaving the ones he loved behind and running off to chase his dream. But was it even his dream anymore? He honestly didn't know.
Rayne had places to go and work to do too, so she could not go with him, besides when the subject was broached, Kevin seemed greatly resistant to the idea of having to share a room with the both of them given their proclivity to cling to one another and the crazy things they did together when left alone for even just five minutes.
They all struggled with saying goodbye or even I'll see you later as they parted ways. There was fear and worry over the attack that still seemed unreal to them. It had been weeks and there was no sign of the boy. But! The police never caught him. There was evidence that he was clearly connected to a violent rape and attempted murder.
Reports said that he attacked a young girl on a train, violently raped and violated her, strangled her and left her for dead in the luggage car.
The girl had left home against her parents' wishes. She wound up far from home on a train where she met a boy, she was too traumatized to describe, who had charmed and seduced her. At first, she was complicit in their collusion, then things went horribly sideways; he raped her.
They had read the articles analyzed and studied them carefully. That same train, the one they found the brutalized girl on, stopped in the same city that the band had played the night of Rayne's attack. The victim said her attacker had a broken arm. That was enough to startle the entire band and scare both Avi and Rayne beyond senseless. The fact that they found the same cast dust on the girl's clothes and Rayne's and the girl's dried blood in Rayne's wound was more than enough scientific evidence to prove that their attacker was one and the same. How close had she come to sharing the same fate? This fact and the fact that there were other crimes he could be tied to, plus the criminal had crossed state lines brought in the FBI, but he eluded them and the local authorities.
They were scared, naturally. He was still out there, somewhere with a fucked-up face, he was a rapist and a murderer for all intents and purposes.
Avi was terrified to let her go alone and made her promise to check in as often as she could, even just a text, a random tweet anything to let him know she was alive and okay.
He did everything he could to stop the tears from falling as they went their separate ways but ultimately he failed miserably.
His mind refused to let her go. He lost focus. He knew that they would be together again and likely very soon. Still, it hurt to watch her go get on that plane.
His phone was ringing before he even lost sight of her back.
"Love you!"
"Love you too," His voice uncharacteristically cracked in the middle of his statement. "Please be careful and come back to me." He tried to smile, his face felt broken, and his heart heavy in his chest. That boy was still out there. He couldn't breathe even though he wanted to, he felt his throat constrict and his eyes widened. He had no control over what would happen next. If he didn't breathe he would pass out and then start breathing because he didn't have to think about it to make it happen when he wasn't conscious. He couldn't move but he needed to sit down. There were people all around him. Each and every one became a blur then came sharply into focus as they all surrounded him and loomed in his personal space. Their eyes were too big, their noses even more disproportionate. He felt like he had his head in a giant fishbowl. It was too much, way too much.
A sweet, soft warm sound emanated from his phone, the phone he miraculously still held to his ear. He was forced to focus on the sound if he wanted to hear it and he desperately did. There were no real words just intonation soft and sweet, a melody to match the rhythm his heart was supposed to beat to. He focused on only the sound until his breathing became something he should pay attention to, so he did. He breathed deep and even. Then he listened and made his heart beat to the rhythm of the melody. He found himself matching and harmonizing the tones as wave after wave of peace love and tranquility washed over him. The people faded out of focus and the fishbowl over his head disappeared. Finally, he heard the whisper.
"It turns out fine. It always does. I love you." he smiled and locked the melody away in his musical heart. She was like magic.
"I love you too my Sweet. Sweet. Love. Until I see you again."
"Until Then. Rest well, don't have too much fun. Without me."
"I won't."
He didn't. Touring became harder than it ever was, he withdrew from his friends, his second family. He just pulled away. He stopped going out with them. On the occasion that he did, he refused to be caught on camera. The music and the sound of her voice on the other end of the line, her constant messaging and the warmth and security of having his bro by his side became his only respite. It was the longest two weeks of his life.
Then she showed up in his hotel room one night after a show. She was sleeping, curled in his bed all cute and sweet. He made sure to wake her before trying to crawl in bed with her. He should have known. Esther had pulled some major strings to get him his own room. The band gladly shuffled their sleeping arrangements around to give him that bit of joy. Esther only gave him one room key when she gave him his room assignment. Plus, the smile on her face was priceless. All those clues and he missed every one of them.
After a long discussion, it was decided that for the remainder of the tour, Rayne would let him know when she would be staying with him, even if it was just one night. That way, he would have something to hold on to that would get him through the days they had to spend apart. It honestly helped. They spent several long nights together just living. It was the highlight of life for them both.
***
She wasn't a bit surprised when she walked into their hotel room and found a vase of variegated yellow and red roses tied with a matching burgundy ribbon. A smile warmed her eyes and lit her face as she pulled the cute little card from the stick that held it just above her favorite roses.
"Meet me in the park at midnight"
Her stomach turned as the butterflies of anticipation took flight. It had been a few weeks since she'd seen him last. She couldn't wait to see his shining eyes again. There was nothing better in her world than Avi's smile. Quite simply, nothing compared to the way his smile lit his eyes. It brought all his features to life in a stunning and strikingly vulnerable way. He was innocently manly in all that he did, simply boyish, charming and cute, fun to laugh with. Yet, he spoke with a command of wisdom well beyond the years he'd dwelt under the sun. Somehow, he retained that sweet innocence that most people were robbed of by the time they reached his age. Almost all women fawned over that trait in a man. It baffled and alarmed her and brought her to her knees in love all in the same moment. Seeing those roses and reading that card was one of those moments. She forgot about everything that made sense to her all the personal security knowledge she had amassed as she prepared to meet the love of her life in the park at midnight. She forgot she had something to fear.
***
Avi was excited and chatty, more than normal. His green eyes were vibrant and alive. He smiled happily as he passed Scott, whistling as he walked by. He landed in Esther's temporary office.
"Heya Sister!" His smile was as radiant as she'd ever seen.
"Avi?" Her eyes said that she had forgotten what day it was for him. His told her that he understood.
"I will be heading straight back to the hotel after the show tonight." He waited for it to sink in past the pre-show buzz and complicated preparations.
"Tonight?" She was shocked, she had honestly forgotten.
"Rayne." He summed it up for her in one word.
"I'm sorry," she palmed her forehead. "I forgot. I'll get a car for you." She said a little distractedly. When he didn't budge she said, "I'll get it for you. I'll get it. Okay. I'll do it now."
***
Satisfied with himself, Alexander Joseph Cassessi, currently known as Jason Schmidt, began to set the remainder of his plan into motion. He wasn't certain if it would work, but it had to. It HAD to. He spent months planning. Months, trapped in his someone else's mind planning, preparing himself for the mental shock he was certain it would be. He braced and bolstered himself and he waited; waited for just the right moment to break free of his prison.
Then, he broke free pushing Joseph out of the way as he went, putting an end to the foul game that Joseph and his asshole father played. Closing the circle and freeing Emma from their father's talons despite her beleaguered request for him to stop. She was just a broken Angel what the fuck did she know? He cleansed her and returned her to heaven the evening he sent her and Joseph's father to hell. It was time. Time to cleanse The Angels and return to heaven himself.
***
God, Avi's smile would be his undoing if he wasn't careful. Luckily, he had no doubt about what chances he had and all that he stood to lose chasing after Avi's tail. It would be too much, but to be loved like that, so honestly and completely loved by a man with brilliant green eyes and an even brighter heart and soul, to be caught in a love still so innocent and sweet? That could be worth it. Scott watched Avi as he moved gracefully from one end of the small room to the next his entire countenance alight with the positive energy true love gave a soul. He was saying something but Scott was so distracted by the way the light reflected off Avi's chestnut brown hair, completely lost in the melodic rich tones his voice was spilling into the room whispering of love and passion and flesh on flesh that he totally missed the words that were being said.
Avi hadn't been a bundle of energy in quite some time, but suddenly he was animated, agitated and very much alive.
"Are you even listening to me, Scott? Scott. Scotty? SCOTT!" Deep green eyes somehow grew deeper. "SCOTT RICHARD HOYING!!! What the fuck man?" Fingers snapped expertly in front of Scott's face.
"WHAT?!" Scott snapped back, suddenly annoyed with the frustratingly beautiful Bassman. "What do you want?" Surprised, Avi stepped back. He wasn't stupid. He knew. He had always known and never really cared. It was what it was. But, IT was delicate.
"Please focus. Please?" He whispered softly to ease the tension. Green eyes pleaded with radiant blue for peace and calm. Naturally, Scott could withhold nothing from him.
"I'm so sorry. You were saying."
"What was the last thing you heard?" The question was innocent but loaded all the same. Scott offered Avi a weakly apologetic smile before he replied with the fourth word that Avi had said to him.
***
She was distracted, as she usually was when it came down to getting to see Avi. She showered, shaved all the important parts and slipped into the new dress she had purchased just for this occasion. She dabbled a bit of the perfume he had given her behind her ears and on her wrists as she grabbed her heavy winter coat, hat, gloves, and scarf. Then she looked out the window and decided to change. He wouldn't care what she was wearing. She dawned her winter gear and headed out the door to meet her love. It was a quarter past eleven.
***
The show was near perfect. Avi spirits were high his energy higher. It resonated deep within Mitch's heart. He watched one of his dearest friends as love surrounded and captured his heart and soul. There was no questioning, no wondering at the cause. Mitch knew everyone knew. But why then did a sinking feeling come over him just as they retook the stage for an encore. He couldn't shake it. It wouldn't go away. The feeling intensified when he looked over at Avi. Their eyes met in deep concern. Each nearly forgot what they were doing as fear and anxiety grabbed at them both. When the last song was sung they faked their smiles, waved goodbye, and rushed off the stage. Avi's phone was in his free hand before he was beyond the view of the audience and dialing Rayne's number.
He didn't say thank you as he gave his mic back. He let it go without making sure that the intern had a hold of it and it nearly tumbled to the floor. He couldn't be bothered with offering an apology. Mitch wasn't any better as he zoomed by trying to catch Avi and his wild eyes.
He was breathing heavy by the time he located her. His eyes were wide with fear.
"I need to go right now!"
"Wha-- "
"It's Rayne. Something is wrong. I don't know. It goes straight to voicemail. She won't answer. Something isn't right!"
"Maybe she is sleeping?"
"She's not sleeping Goddammit! Something is very wrong. Even when she is sleeping her phone is on. It never goes straight to voicemail. NEVER!"
"All right. All right Avi, calm down." Esther put her hands up in an attempt to comfort Avi.
"Don't calm down Avi me! I need a fucking car. NOW!" He was moving before she could stop him.
"Who has a vehicle here? I need to get to my room. Please help me. Something is very wrong with Rayne. Please?"
"I'll take you. Let's go. Don't worry about your stuff. I'll come back and get it for you."
"I'll grab it," Mitch said as he rushed into the small office. "Just go."
"I'm sure you're ov--"
"NO! Get out of my way Esther."
***
The snow that had been falling when she left her hotel room blanketed the ground with a soft coat of glistening white before it stopped kissing the Earth. It was a moonless night, but the light from the stars and nearby street lamps illuminated her path. The air was crisp and clean in the small town her boyfriend played that night. She couldn't wait to see him. His energy would be spiked from being on stage, he would be full of love and life and positively aglow. She doubted he would kiss her in public, but she could never guess what he was about. Her excitement blinded her.
Normally vigilant, she relaxed her guard blinded by an openly excited heart. She wasn't listening for sounds that shouldn't be there, wasn't looking for footprints in the snow that would indicate that she wasn't alone. She wasn't restless or wary. She was careless and unaware. And, horribly unprepared.
When he moved he moved faster than he had ever moved in his life. He charged her and hit her hard knocking her small frame to the ground. He didn't follow her down. Instead, he leaned over her prone and shocked form and punched her as hard as he could. Her world went dark in the blink of an eye. She didn't even have time to register the pain from hitting the ground or to see the stars explode before her eyes before she was swallowed by oblivion.
She woke in a dank dark room that smelled of mold and rot. In the distance, she could hear water dripping into a shallow pool. She tried to turn her head as she fought to find her focus, but every time she moved pain burned through her mind. What happened? She went to the park. Went there to meet Avi. He bought her flowers and left them in their room for her. He told her. Told her to meet him in the park after midnight. They were just like the first flowers he ever bought her. AVI! Panic set in. Where was Avi? Was he okay? He bought her flowers. No, he didn't. Whoever hit her, her jaw was on fire, her head hurt, she was dizzy, he bought her the flowers. She left them and the card in the room. Where was Avi? Was he okay? She wanted to shake her head to clear it. She tried, that only made things worse. It hurt.
Pain. The pain, the anger it filled her mind. She was furious. Furious that someone had caused her pain. Angry. Angry that he was able to lie to her, trick her. It was a he. She could smell his cheap cologne. He was there. She knew that smell! He lied. He was not her Avi. He said he was. He lied. He was a fake. She forced herself to push aside that anger. She never thought that all that meditation mumbo jumbo would work. She turned the pain and the anger in and let it fuel her. It cleared her mind.
She was unbound. Small movements and calmed and patient mind ensured that she became in tune with her body and her surroundings. She closed her eyes and just listened, and felt.
Whomever he was. He made a fatal mistake. He left her unbound. He was near, too near. She momentarily lost her focus when he began to speak.
"Finally. Finally, I have you, Angel." He walked in a circle around her. "I've waited a long time for you." Her stomach turned sour and threatened to empty itself.
"A very long time. I knew. I knew the moment I first saw you that you would be the one to set me free. The moment you looked at me and smiled I knew you were special, so very special, my sweet, sweet, Angel." She could hear him moving, but could not see him. He was behind her again and chills ran down her spine. Fear, good and honest, rose in her belly and the hairs on the back of her neck stood. She prepared for the attack that didn't come.
***
Avi's state of distress and panic raised more than a few eyebrows as he became aggressive and curt. His desire to get to the hotel room that Rayne should be waiting for him in drove him. He moved with purpose and determination. By the time he hit the hotel doors he was at a dead run. He bypassed the elevator and went straight for the stairs. He sprinted up them and went directly to his room. It was empty. Avi's heart hit the floor as the weight of the world fell on his shoulders. He felt the crushing weight of guilt and fear hit him full force, numbly he dialed her number half expecting to hear it ring in the room.
But the room wasn't torn up. It was neat and pristine. She had definitely been there. He could still smell her perfume. Her bag sat on the table opposite the bed. Baloo sat in the corner next to his guitar. A beautiful dress was laid out on the bed and on the table, was a vase full of red and yellow variegated roses just like the first flowers he gave her only, he didn't leave those for her and he seriously doubted that she left them for him. On the table sat the little card that had been in the stem sticking out of the top of the bouquet. He hadn't left them for him. They were delivered to her.
With shaking hands and a heart that couldn't sink any lower, he approached the table the little card and the flowers were sitting on. He reached for it but found he couldn't bring himself to touch it.
'Meet me in the park at midnight.' Fear brought him to his knees. He hadn't sent her that note. That was not her handwriting. It was unsigned. Why would she want him to meet her in the park so damn late? Why did she not answer her phone? He called it again. Straight to voicemail. Fuck! His mind spun. No! He didn't send the flowers, she loved to surprise him but never quite like that. It was wrong, all wrong. Straight to voicemail. Had his worst fears come true? Did that boy have her?
His phone rang. He answered it.
"Hello?"
"She there?"
"NO. There are flowers. I didn't send them. And a card. Fuck! She not here. She's not fucking here!"
"Do you think?"
"Oh god! Yes, I do."
"Don't touch that card! I'm calling the police! Stay there!"
"I can't the card said to go to the park. She went to the park thinking it was from me. I have to go. I can't stay here. She went." He was already running for the door his phone in hand. He could hear Mitch yelling at him.
"Don't you touch that fucking card. Don't you dare go to that park! What if he wants you both? AVRIEL! The police are on their way. The FIB is coming." It was too late. Avi was already out the door.
***
"Do you know? Do you know how precious and rare you are? A beautiful rose, my Angel. You are such a delicate flower. So radiant and beautiful. Yet your wings, they are black now. I saw them when you went into the hotel. I saw them the other day and I knew he had put his seed in you. He's defiled you, dirtied you. They used to be as pure as the snow that fell tonight. So innocent and sweet."
She couldn't make herself understand a word he was saying. None of it made any sense. She didn't have wings. Avi never hurt her. When did he first see her? As if reading her mind, he answered.
"It was in another town, another time, another place. You were sitting at a table looking into the eyes of a dark man, not this one. He was holding your hand forcing you to stay with him. You turned and looked at me begging for help. I wanted to help you, but the man that held you would not let you go and I was weak back then. So I had to leave you and hope for the best." She heard his feet shuffle. "He took you and made you his for a while, then he went away and left you, a beautiful Angel with Blackened and broken wings. I had to find you and mend your wings so you could fly away home, but I didn't know where you went." She could hear him tapping his fingers across his lips. "Your wings have healed, but you have been tainted by the other Angel. His wings are as dark as the night. He is a dark angel. When I have cleansed you and washed his seed out of you, I will take you, then I will take him, my Dark Angel. I will restore you both to your seats in heaven." He stopped behind her again.
"Don't fight it. It hurts less if you don't fight. You will bleed. You have to." He grabbed a handful of her hair and yanked her head back.
"Be good, Angel and it won't hurt at all." Confidence flowed through him when she offered no resistance. He smiled and reached for her body. He was met with a sharp jab in his side from her elbow. It winded him. He almost let go of her hair.
"Do not fight, Angel. SHHH! Shush. Shhh now. I won't hurt you, much." He wrapped his arm around her waist. Once again, he was rewarded with another heavy elbow. He got a hold of her and pulled her back into her chest. He was momentarily distracted when he heard the sirens wail. She felt a glimmer of hope. She used his distraction to her advantage and fought against him her elbows struck him in the ribs a few more times before he gained control of her arms. Then she stomped down on his toes and threw her head back into his chin. He was momentarily dazed.
He let her go. She spun around to strike him but he blocked her swing, balled his first and landed a glancing blow on her cheek. She tried to put some distance between them so she could land a solid hit on him but he just kept coming after her. They grappled and fought.
Just like all of the others, she scratched and bit, and pulled his hair, she even spat in his face.
***
He heard the sirens but didn't see the police as he rushed out of the lobby and straight into one of them. The officer grabbed his shoulders to steady him. He tried to throw the officer aside so he could go to her. The officer held him firm.
"You can't go out there. You need to stay here. Please, sir. Stop fighting me." His voice was calm and reassuring. "Please. Avi. Please. Listen to me." His hands were steady, unyielding on his shoulders. "I know. I know. I'm scared for her too. We will find her. I promise you. We will find her." The officer spoke with conviction. Part of Avi wanted to believe him. Most of him simply couldn't. His legs lost all their strength and his heart seized in his chest. He fought for every breath that gravity stopped forcing into his lungs as it pulled the tears away from his eyes. He reached towards the place that she had gone seeking to the connection to her he couldn't feel anymore trying to hold onto it but it was gone. The officer wrapped his arms around him and took on his weight. Avi lost all control of himself as his heart broke down and his body gave out. All that was holding him from the ground and complete oblivion was that officer's strength.
***
He was stronger than she remembered, but she remembered him. Fear brought strength to her body, but it could only last so long. Anger gave her more control and enabled her to withstand the pain much longer than she should have been able to. She fought with all her might, harder than she had ever had to fight. More than her life was on the line. He wanted more than she cared to give. She would rather die than let him take it while she could still fight. He was unskilled at fighting in close quarters, but he had every advantage on his side. Her world still swam as she moved through it. Her body felt heavy and sluggish. It refused to respond as quickly as her mind did. Her arms didn't move into place to block his punches, her feet wouldn't take their places under her. When he swung at her, he bruised her, hit her, knocked her off balance, and threw her to the floor. They both bled and screamed and cried.
"Why? Why won't you let me cleanse you? Stop fighting this. Stop. I don't want this. Why are you making me hurt you?" Blood was drying on his bruised and swollen lip.
She was strong, stronger than all the rest. He wasn't sure he could control her. One lucky blow landed on his nose. Fear anger and pain welled up in him.
"I hate you. You fucking whore!" He tasted his own blood before he charged her. He refused to spend another day bedridden with his face broken. There was no one left to take care of him. He overwhelmed her in a second, grabbing her by her throat and violently pushing her into the wall with all his strength. His arm was out of his cast, his fingers able to tighten around her throat. His arm was healed, but the bones were still weak. While Rayne still had the strength in her she fought. She hit his arm with all her might, she heard the satisfying crack of bone just before the boy bellowed.
As he jerked his arm back, he threw her nearly all the way across the room. As she fought to get air back into her lungs and struggled for balance her shins racked against the heavy metal frame of an old bed. She fell over it. She twisted as she fell and landed on her back.
He was on her in a second. His legs pinned her arms to her sides as he settled his weight on her chest. With murder in his eyes, he reached for her throat. As trapped as she was, she could only thrash, buck her hips and try to force him off her in that way. He didn't budge. He was centered perfectly over her with his hips balancing him over the lower half of her rib cage. In the dim light, she saw his rage burning deep within his eyes. He reached for her throat and found he had no strength in his hand. Rage rolled through him and blasted all thought, all his intentions clear from his mind. He became an animal acting solely on an instinct that was savage and primal. He latched onto her throat with his other hand. She watched all humanity drain from his face as his hand tightened and her airway started to close. She pulled in one last solid breath before his hand cut off her air supply.
She'd never felt a pain so sharp and focused as she did when his fingers dug into the side of her neck. She focused all her energy, channeling it into making that last breath last as long as it could. Hands that had grabbed his legs pinching muscle and tearing skin let go, legs that fought and hips that bucked in an effort to move him off of her ceased. Without the breath she wasn't getting, she stopped moving, her chest stopping trying to rise and fall, her heart slowed and stopped.
Rayne's vision faded from black to white as her brain was starved of the oxygen it needed to live. She could hear. She could see but she couldn't rid her mouth of the acrid taste it held. Her legs worked. So did her arms. She was in control of her body again but, where was she? The whitewashed scene before her didn't make any sense. The high arches to her left and right seemed to go on into eternity getting infinitely smaller and smaller as they faded into a pinpoint of blinding light far in the distance, thousands of miles. She looked back and saw only a wall of white.
Nothing hurt. It should have. She looked down at herself, she was still wearing the clothes she had put on the go and meet Avi in the park. Only it hadn't been him. It was someone else. The boy! He wanted to hurt her. He did! Her hands flashed to her throat. It didn't hurt. Then she pulled her hands away took a deep breath and watched as broken nails mended themselves, dried blood simply faded away and scratches and bruises vanished.
She became distracted by the echo of a small child's tiny feet pattering in the distance and the sound of his laughter bouncing all around her. She followed the sound as the whitewashed scene became the neighborhood she used to live in. She walked the path to her front door. It opened as she cautiously approached it. A tiny little boy ran past the open doorway on into what had been her kitchen. She followed the sweet sound of his laughter through her old home. There was more light than could have been humanly possibly flowing through the windows and a constant haze of white mist she couldn't see past that was just outside of her reach. She moved through the house following that echo.
"Come on Mommy." The mist echoed to her. "Come find me." The small voice, crystalline and clear called.
"I'm over here. Mommy. Come play with us." The small child drifted through the mist. Blindly she followed him out into her backyard. She watched him run, his little legs carrying him over the whitewashed grass and into the waiting arms of a figure still shrouded in mist.
"Daddy. She found us."
"Haha! So she did." A soft voice so sweet and warm, more familiar to her than the sun, drifted to her ears and melted her heart. The mist moved back shifting and shimmering to reveal the little blond-haired boy up in the arms of a tall handsome dark-haired man, their faces turned to each other and their noses softly touching in an Eskimo kiss.
"She is beautiful Daddy."
"I know!" He said softly as he set the boy down but didn't let go of his tiny hand. He looked up from the boy's radiant face and turned to Rayne. Her husband's rich brown hazel eyes smiled with their warm love as he reached out his free hand for her to take.
"We've been waiting for you."
***
Kevin took Avi from the police officer and cradled him in his arms. Avi only whimpered as his endless tears fell hot on Kevin's chest.
"I'll take him to my room."
"What is your room number?"
"237." Kevin said turning his back to the commotion outside and taking his brother away to safety. Avi would never be the same.
The others looked on in horror as the scene unfolded before them. The FBI and the local police were everywhere. Someone was saying, "how could you have lost him?" In reprimand to a junior agent and officer. Others, some in suits some in uniforms all with badges moved about the lobby.
A single solitary tear ran cooly down Mitch's face the moment he sensed the absence of the presence he'd known ever since he met Rayne.
Kirstin saw Avi go down and nearly screamed. She grabbed Scott's arm pulled him to her and stifled her cry in his shoulder. What did the officer say to Avi to make him collapse like that? Her heart could no longer be contained within her chest as it swelled then shattered. Was Rayne?
"Rayne?" She whispered at the precise moment Scott did. Kevin had gone forward to take Avi from the officer's arms.
Esther went to talk to them. No one noticed that Mitch had followed Kevin. They didn't see him stop and wipe away his tear.