Shade's Fall
Page 30

“How’s school?” Diamond asked sympathetically.
“Good. How’s Knox liking his new job?”
“I don’t think he can tell yet. He loves breaking up the fights, but he’s not so fond of getting dragged out of bed at three a.m.”
As Lily listened to Diamond, her eyes were momentarily caught by Shade’s until she managed to tear her gaze away, landing on a small family a couple of tables away.
The little girl had dark brown hair and was sitting with her mother and father as the waitress set their plates in front of them. It was the epitome of the perfect family gathering on a Sunday afternoon.
“We miss having you at the factory. No one likes to fill the big orders,” Evie complained.
Lily hadn’t minded filling those orders; she had considered them challenging while others considered them a pain.
“I miss it, too,” Lily confessed, truthfully. The job had kept her busy.
Her eyes drifted back to the table with the small family. The little girl was lifting her drink to her mouth when the person sitting behind her jarred her, forcing her to spill some of the juice from her glass onto her dress. The look of terror that came across her face had Lily freezing and her heartbeat soaring when the mother’s lips tightened. Picking up a napkin, she wiped the girl’s dress with rough movements. The entire time the mother kept up her brisk movements, the little girl’s eyes watered and she kept apologizing to her mother.
“Lily?” Evie’s voice had her eyes leaving the table momentarily.
“Diamond. Please call Knox.” Lily’s hoarse voice had everyone sitting at the table going silent as they looked at her. Lily’s hand went to the rubber band on her wrist, snapping it furiously as a dull headache began to pound at her temples.
Diamond took out her phone, calling Knox and asking him to come to the diner while Beth’s voice asking her what was wrong was drowned out by the loud pumping of her heart.
The little girl’s lips trembled when her mother’s hand disappeared under the table. Her obvious pain had Lily moving to the end of her seat, about to rise when the girl’s father spoke sharply to the mother, and he reached out to soothe the little girl. That simple movement brought a flash of pain that had Lily gripping her head, screaming in agony. She bent over in excruciating pain, her head in her hands. The pain felt like it was crushing her skull.
“Lily!” Beth’s voice yelled her name, but there was no going back; Lily had placed a barrier between them. She couldn’t reach for Beth this time like she had always done before.
Lily blindly rose from the table, trying to escape the pain, when a hand around her waist tried to hold her, but Lily fought free. She needed somewhere to hide and there was no place available. She screamed at the agony that was storming through her mind.
Lily fell to the floor, writhing in torment. She vaguely heard several people calling her name; however, her mind had blocked out everything except the door in her mind that was trying to open. She was too weak to keep it closed; the secrets it held wanted out. She saw herself standing in front of the door, trying to bar it from opening.
“Help me! Help me!” Lily screamed in terror.
She felt her head lifted and placed in someone’s lap. She tried to roll away from the agony, yet she couldn’t get away from it. It was everywhere around her—within her—suffocating.
“Help me!” Lily’s screams were tortured, but she didn’t know how to stop them. She was too scared of the door opening. She couldn’t let it open.
“What do you need me to do?” the voice, neither male nor female, asked in her mind.
“Help me shut the door!” Lily screamed.
“What’s behind the door?”
“Everything. Help me. She can’t get out.” Lily sobbed as the door opened a small amount.
“I’m helping you, Lily.” Lily saw another pair of hands helping her to press the door closed again.
When it was completely closed, she told whoever had helped her, “I have to lock it.”
Lily locked the imaginary door while the hands held it closed. After she locked it, she slid down the door, curling into a ball as she rocked back and forth.
“It’s okay, Lily. The door is locked again,” the voice assured her.
“I can’t remember what’s behind that door,” Lily sobbed, rocking back and forth, trying to comfort herself now that all those memories were locked away forever.
“Not today, Lily, but soon,” the voice said sadly.
“Not ever,” Lily replied, curling into a tighter ball.
“Soon, and I’ll help. Sleep, Lily. Go to sleep.”
Lily felt herself relax as soothing warmth spread through her body.
* * *
Lily woke, turning her head on the soft pillow and rolling to her side before she opened her eyes reluctantly. She closed them then reopened them again, not sure what she was staring at. Surveying the room, she saw the black furniture was modern. The dark carpeting looked thick and expensive in a huge bedroom she had never been in before. To one side there were two large, black leather chairs with a coffee table sitting in front of them, and a flat screen television was mounted on a pedestal on the wall that could be turned toward the chairs or the bed. A small refrigerator sat on top of a dark cabinet and a huge armoire made of dark wood stood against the wall.
Her head turned and she saw a mirrored wall facing the bed. Her pale face and slender body, dressed in conservative pajamas, looked back at her from the huge, California-king, pedestal bed. The wall behind the bed was also mirrored. Lily swallowed hard.
She turned and saw a large dresser with nothing on top and a chair by the bed. The room was immaculately clean. She couldn’t see any personal belongings; there was nothing to give her a clue as to whose room she was inside.
A door stood open where Lily could see a bathroom with the light on. Seeing the bathroom made the fullness in her bladder more pressing. Pulling back the soft-as-silk comforter, she raised herself up before sliding her feet out of the bed.
Getting to her feet, she felt a wave of dizziness, but she slowly managed to walk to the bathroom, coming to a stop when she saw the luxurious suite. It had a double sink with dark colors swirling throughout.
Closing the door, she used the restroom. Hesitantly, she washed her face with a washcloth that had been set out.
She looked over at the huge shower, which took up easily half of the bathroom. It was tiled in black and gray and had three steps leading down into the glass enclosure. She saw it had faucets surrounding it with the rain-type one from the top. It also had a tiled bench on one side. It was a fantasy shower. Lily wouldn’t be surprised if it had surround sound.
Dropping the dirty washcloth into a basket, she left the bathroom, going back into the bedroom while wondering where she was.
She was halfway to the bed when the door opened.
Lily didn’t know whether to be relieved or frightened at his familiar face.
“Where am I?” Lily asked, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.
“My room,” Shade replied, coming in and shutting the door, carrying a tray.
Walking across the room, he set the tray on the coffee table. “Come and eat.”
Lily got up from the bed, going to the chair and looking down at the tray of food.
“How—did—why am I here?” She looked at Shade, not understanding why she was in his room.