Mystic Awakenings- Ch3

Monday afternoon, the girls received permission to ride their bikes to the Lighthouse Park. The rain had stopped. The afternoon sun peeked from behind the storm clouds sporadically throughout the rest of the day. They spent those hours brainstorming and enjoying the awesome sight of the waves crashing and splashing along the rocky coastline. The refreshing sea breeze seemed to cleanse their inner turmoil.

 

The girls were coming to their conclusions about the dream journeys. "For starters, you need to pin down Sasha on the powers/ ability’s thing and find out just what they are, so that you can use them to help her." Mica beginning on a logical note. "Yeah, I also need to find out why I am the only one who can defeat Gilliam. Why can’t she do it herself? I mean . . . she said her and her mother Zira, were Wiccan witches, so why can’t they just cast a spell on him and turn him into a toad or something?’ asked Sarah sarcastically. Mica burst out laughing.

 

"Oh . . . you’re killing me, stop it!" Sarah cracked a smile watching her friend roll around in the wet grass. She couldn’t hold out any longer and began laughing as hard as her friend was. The two continued to laugh harder and harder. With tears of laughter streaming down their cheeks, the girls wiped away the stress of recent days. "Ah. It feels good to laugh, Mica. Thank you." Sarah said wiping her cheeks and eyes. "You’re welcome! We both needed that!" Said Mica. "I know we did" replied Sarah, "I know we did."Appearing more relaxed, the girls looked at the fading sunlight upon the water, realizing it was time to head for home.

 

As the girls got on their bikes and headed toward home, the streets were still slick from the rain. Sarah thought to herself during her ride, just how much Mica really meant to her."She’s always been there to make me laugh when I needed it most." This time was no exception. She smiled again as she watched her friend being silly and making faces at passing cars. "That head full of fiery red hair and big, brown eyes, she’s a firecracker," Sarah thought to herself, shaking her head and smiling.

 

The split in the slick, slanted road approached and they yelled their goodbye’s. When Mica turned off of Raven’s Path Road, Sarah spotted her High school crush, Jake. Jake was the typical, tall, dark and hot. He was riding around on his metallic, blue BMX bike, when he called out for Sarah to stop. Her heart skipped a beat. "Wow! Jake is coming over to talk to me!" She couldn’t stop grinning, as Jake swantered up close to her and gazed down upon her twinkling eyes and said, " Hey Sarah, Whatcha doing up here?" Sarah was rendered almost speechless. "Uh . . . I live close to here. What are you doing around here?" she said nervously. Jake then flashed his famous, sultry smile and said, "Follow me and find out!" Sarah’s heart and mind was racing. "What should I do?" her virtues screamed for her to turn and go home, but teenage crushes are hard to resist. She reluctantly, yet willfully followed Jake back up Ravens Path Road, all the way back to the Lighthouse.

 

The two parked their bikes on the wet grass. Jake grabbed the rusted door handle and started up the set of stairs. "Wait! What are you doing?" Sarah was stalling for time to clear her head. She wanted to go with him into the Lighthouse, but she wasn’t sure if she was quite ready for what may happen if she did. "C’mon Sarah . . . or are you scared?"said Jake, tilting his head to the side. His eyes were dancing and that smile made Sarah’s knees grow weak. "No, I’m not scared. I just don’t want to get in trouble," she was trying to think logically, but her desire to be around him was overwhelming her. "I didn’t force you to follow me here. You did that of Your own free will," Jake was still smiling and toying with her as he started to climb the paint deprived a spiral staircase.

 

Sarah could not dispute the truth. "He’s right," she thought as she followed him up the spiral staircase until they reached a pair of double metal doors. The doors creaked as Jake slowly opened them. Sarah’s eyes grew wide at the spectacular view the Beacon Room had to offer. Jake took Sarah’s hand and walked her around the room. "Wow! This is amazing! It’s beautiful!" Sarah said in awe. "Not as amazing as you, Sarah," Jake responded, pulling Sarah close to him. Jake leaned in to kiss her. Sarah was confused and excited. She had never kissed a boy before. Moreover, she never thought that first kiss would come from Jake. "Wait!"

 

Sarah put her hands on Jake’s chest, trying to push him away politely. "I should go. Please don’t be angry, but my mom is waiting dinner . . . " as Sarah tried pulling away and turning for the door, Jake grabbed her arms tightly and abruptly, pulling her back toward himself. Through her now disheveled hair, she noticed a tattoo on his right forearm. The tattoo was that of a symbol she had seen before . . . in one of her dream journeys.

 

Sarah looked up at Jake’s face, shaking and scared. His face seemed disfigured and distorted. His eyes were red and glaring. Growling threw his pointed, yellowed teeth, he said, " You’re not going anywhere, Sarah!" She screamed as he tried to kiss her again. Pushing, shoving and pulling, Sarah tried to fight him off. But he was strong and determined.

 

Finally, she saw her opportunity and took it. Sarah kicked this evil "thing" in its shin, as hard as she could. That bought her time to run toward the door and down a few stairs before she heard his growl and heavy footsteps behind her. She ran as fast as she as her feet would take her, down the spiral stairs from Hell. This "thing" was unrelenting in its quest. It reached and grabbed for her as it raced down the stairs after her. This thing wanted Sarah, but she wasn’t giving in. This further angered the "evil thing" as it found itself fumbling with Jake’s bike, while Sarah raced away.

 

She reached the corner near her house before looking back. The street behind her was clear, no Jake thingy. However, as she turned her head forward, there, in the middle of the sidewalk was Gary Beck. Almost falling off her bike, Sarah stopped a few yards from him. She put her head down as she lowered her kick stand. She looked up to find no one there. She looked all around her and found the street was empty. The hair on the back of her neck stood up as a cold chill ran down her spine. Then, a quick breeze blew across her back.

 

A little freaked out, Sarah took off on her bike, looking over her shoulder the entire ride.

Sarah entered her house not fully comprehending what had just occurred. Again, she found herself questioning her sanity. "Did that really happen?" Squinting her eyes and shaking her head in disbelief. She walked upstairs and into her bathroom. She turned on the cold water. She watched as the water ran the drain. She flashed back to that thing that chased her down the Lighthouse stairs. "I never thought Jake would be like that. And what’s up with that tattoo?" she asked herself, cupping the cool water in her hands to splash her face. "Whew," she said, grabbing the burgundy hand towel to dry her face.

 

She lowered the towel and returned it to the chrome holder. She glanced in the mirror. She saw what looked like Gary Beck standing in her shower! She gasped, then spun around to find no one there. She abruptly left the bathroom and slammed her bedroom door. She frantically searched every inch of her room, hoping not to find anyone there. She was exhausted from her search. She lay on her bed, drawing her knees to her chest and fell asleep.

 

Sarah woke panicked from a knock at her door. It was her mother. "Sweetheart? Are you okay?" Stacey asked. "Yes Mom," Sarah replied. "Dinner is almost ready. I wanted to give you a minute to wake up before coming down." "Okay Mom. I’ll be down in a minute," she called out, running her hands threw her hair, collecting her thoughts. She sat for a second staring at her carpet. She grunted, then made her way to the kitchen for dinner.

 

Sadie popped into the kitchen and bickered with Sarah about it being her turn to set the dinner table and Sarah’s turn to do the dishes. Sadie won, only having to set the table, again. Sarah taunted Sadie, telling her she was too short to reach the kitchen sink anyway. After a short display of frustration, Sadie, with her bouncy, blonde hair and cat green eyes stomped back into the living room to watch the rest of her cartoon before dinner. Sarah grabbed a glass of peach juice and continued to reflect on her recent ordeal.

 

While washing the dinner dishes, Sarah was approached by her mother. "Sarah honey, I can’t help but notice the drastic change in your behavior lately. You don’t seem like yourself. Is there something you’d like to talk about?" Pausing a moment from the dishes, Sarah tried to think of something logical to say. "Um, no Mom. There’s nothing wrong. I just haven’t been sleeping too well lately, you know, midterms and all . . . " Sarah was really sweating this conversation. She couldn’t let onto her mother was really going on.

 

"Midterms aren’t for another two weeks, Sarah. Are you sure this doesn’t have something to do with coming in fifth place at the track meet?"Stacey was fishing for a particular answer. "Did you have to bring that up, Mom? Gosh, I was trying to forget about that! And no, I just haven’t been sleeping, that’s all!" Sarah became irritated with her mother.

 

Stacey was stunned by her daughter’s response. She found her window of opportunity and asked coyly, "You wouldn’t be losing sleep because of some really weird dreams, now, would you?"

Sarah was feeling like an exposed nerve being prepped for a root canal. She spun around and snapped, "Who told you? Was it Mica? I swear, if she said anything . . . " Interrupted by Stacey waving her hands in front of her, "No Sarah, Mica didn’t say a word. But I’m glad you are talking to someone about this!" Stacey laughing at the drama over a simple, but pointed question. She hit a nerve, and the nerve she is gunning for.

 

She stood listening attentively to her daughter’s explicit details and was impressed at her level of retention. She tested her theories of reincarnation with Sarah. She also shared her thoughts on battling evil and her opinions of Sasha. Dropping a few crumbs, Stacey revealed that she too had similar dream journeys from time to time. Though she was not a warrior, she often heard of such a warrior, but believed it to be just a legend. "Do you still get these dreams, Mom?" Sarah asked. "Yes, Sweetheart. I had one only a few days ago." Replied Stacey. "Why didn’t you mention this before now?" Sarah questioned her mother’s motives. "Just like yourself, I thought no one would believe me, so why bother?" Stacey replied. "A good point," Sarah mumbled.

 

Separately, the two of them felt an odd sense of relief. Both of them knowing of the other, no longer felt out of place in their realities. Sarah took her revelations to her room and right to her cell phone. She had to tell Mica about her Mom. Mica was shocked to hear Mrs. Duke had the same dreams as Sarah and even joked about that being a true "mother-daughter bond." Just then, Sarah heard a click, like someone hanging up the phone. Sarah knew her Mom, Dad and Sadie took a walk after the big talk. That meant no one was home at her house. "Mica, who’s home at your house?" she asked suspiciously. "Everybody. So you heard it too?" Mica looking for assurance that she wasn’t just hearing things.

 

"Yeah. Whom do you think was listening to us?"questioned Sarah. "I dunno. Mike’s in the backyard. My Mom is still doing dishes, "she replied. "Where’s your Dad?" Sarah already had a suspect in mind. "I dunno. I think he’s still watching tv in the living room." Mica answered. "I don’t," snapped Sarah. "Why?" asked Mica reluctantly. "I think he was listening to our conversation, Mica," Sarah making her accusations clear. "What? You’re really starting to freak me out here, Sarah. What would he do that for? He’s the one always saying we spend too much time talking about boys and stuff!" Mica started to feel like she was under attack.

 

"Mica, he creeps me out. I’ve had hallucinations of him popping up in the weirdest places. I feel like I am losing my mind, because I know he can’t possibly be where I’ve been seeing him!" Sarah knew that she was taking a chance at accusing Gary, but she had a gut feeling that she was right on the money. "Jeez Sarah, you’re really losing it!" Mica snapped back. "You know he’s sneakier than we are and I don’t trust him!"said Sarah, digging her heels in further and seething with disdain. "I admit, he does act really sneaky and kinda weird sometimes, but he’s my Dad, Sarah, and I don’t want to think that he would actually do something like that!"said Mica defensively. She was becoming more irritated with Sarah as the conversation went on.

 

"Okay, I am sorry. But he is the only one who could have been listening to us. So why would he?" Sarah asked, knowing there was a chance of Mica getting pissed and hanging up on her, but she took the chance anyway. Just then, Mica realized Sarah made a good point. "Okay, but what would we be talking about that would be of interest to him?" asking the logical question. "I don’t know," Sarah replied somberly, already regretting what she had started.

 

After hitting a lull in the conversation, the two friends decided they had enough for the night. They said they’d see each other in the morning and said "good night." After getting off the phone, Mica’s curiosity peeked. She tip toed into the living room, where her father usually sat, watching the six o’clock news. The tv was off. Her father was no where around. Her mother swore he was there just moments ago.

 

Meanwhile, Sarah’s instincts were urging her to go outside. She wasn’t sure what she was looking for or why, but something didn’t feel right. She walked, then she began to run. She was mysteriously being led straight to the Lighthouse park. Suddenly, she felt a sharp pang in her gut, telling her the family was in danger. She searched frantically and found no trace of them, anywhere. She ran the full length of the park and found nothing. She became startled by a dark, menacing figure standing in the sandbox. It appeared to be a male figure. It came out of nowhere, for it was not there a moment ago. Again, she questioned these awkward moments and their validity.

 

She felt herself gravitating toward the dark male figure. She cautiously stopped within a few feet of him. He spun around and she locked eyes with Gary Beck! The two stood there, sizing up one another with overwhelming intensity. Sarah felt a slight shove in her chest as she flashed back for a moment to her first dream journey. There was no denying those cold, black eyes. "Gilliam!" she gasped. The familiar chill ran down her spine. She knew for sure. Gary Beck was indeed, Gilliam the Horrid.

 

"Sarah," he said quite sinisterly with his cold eyes dancing with delight. "Mr. Beck," she replied. The dark banter began. "Looking for something?" he said as he began to walk around her with his hands clasped behind his back. "Where is my family? You know where they are!" she demanded. "What did you do with them?" she continued. "Easy child," he slyly replied. "What could I possibly want with your family?" He continued to toy and encircle her, which made her noticeably uneasy. "I don’t trust you!" she snarled. "Nor I, you, Sarah." His calm, and sinister demeanor further enraged her.

 

"Where are they-Beck!" She was losing her patience with her opponent. "Your family," he paused. "Well, they’re around. No need to fret . . . yet" he remarked deviously. Gary then spun around and disappeared. Sarah was left standing in his whirlwind, confused but determined to find her family. Then, as she turned to continue her search, Gary Beck appeared behind her. Looking quite threatening he said, "You will not speak of this to anyone! Especially Mica!"

 

He grabbed Sarah’s arm and pointed his finger in her face and said, "If you should divulge this information to anyone . . . your family will pay dearly. Their blood will be on your hands . . . No one" he commanded. Sarah took a step back, letting his threats sink in. She turned and ran, as fast as she could. She did not stop until she reached the lighthouse. As she grabbed the rusted door handle, gasping for breath, she turned and looked back. Once again, there was no trace of Gary Beck. "Why am I not surprised?" she asked herself rhetorically. With sweat pouring from her forehead, she made her way up the spiral stairs. "The last time, I was running down these stairs to get away from an evil guy. Now, I’m running up them to get away from another evil guy!" Sarah seen a pattern developing here.

 

She stood at the doors of the Beacon Room. She thought back to the last time she entered that room. Her opinion of Jake has changed dramatically. Her heart raced as she opened the double doors. Inside, she saw her family, gazing at a truly amazing sunset, completely safe. She sighed with relief, still trying to regain her breath. Her family turned around and asked what was wrong. She thought quickly and said, "I was worried, it’s getting late." "We weren’t gone that long, Honey," replied Thomas. "Are you sure nothing’s wrong?" he asked her again, hoping for a straight answer. "No Dad. I guess I overreacted," she answered. "But that is one beautiful sunset!" she stated as they all turned back toward the windows and agreed unanimously.

 

They began walking threw the park, heading for home. Sarah stared at the sandbox as she walked passed. A small whirlwind kicked up some leaves, causing her to flinch. Thankfully, no one noticed. She remained lost in her thoughts throughout the walk home. Sarah walked into her bedroom and sat on her bed. She now knows that, "Mr. Beck is Gilliam. He is the enemy. It all makes sense now. I must put an end to his reign of terror, once and for all . . . "

 

Sarah knew she must reluctantly remain silent about her precarious situation. "If I even thought about trying to explain this to Mica, she’d think I’d flipped my wig!" she thought, rubbing her hands across her eyes. "What am I going to do about this?’ With her head in her hands, she began to explore her options. Sarah suddenly snapped her head up, with the thought that her mother did not seem to notice the situation at the Lighthouse this evening. She wondered if her mother had any abilities of her own. She must have another talk with her to find out.