INSTALLMENT 35
Falmont Enterprises:
Darkness greets Elizabeth as she steps off the elevator toward her office.
She looks around and can’t recall how she ended up back at Falmont Enterprises.
The last memory she recalls is looking over her division’s quarterly report
before feeling the onslaught of sleep. Perhaps this is a dream, she thinks to herself,
and stops in front of her office debating over her next course of action.
Before she can decide, she hears a noise behind her and turns around
slowly. She notices a dark figure walking toward her and she tries to discern
who the figure is. Unsure if she should scream or run, she remains frozen
as the figure approaches her with a threatening vibe.
Without thinking, she grips the door of her office and slides her way in
before slamming the door. Locking the door, she looks around her office
and realizes she doesn’t have an alternate way out. Chastising herself for
acting like a stupid horror movie character, she runs toward her desk to
use the phone.
As she reaches for the phone, the door is unlocked from the inside. She
slams the phone down before running toward the door to lock it. Before
she can reach the door, it slowly creaks open and she stops in her tracks.
Entering the office is the dark figure. She can tell it is a man that looks
familiar to her.
Standing frozen in her tracks, the man approaches her with his hand out
and starts to caress her face. Tears steam down her face as she tries to
will her legs to move away from the stranger. Feeling powerless, she
stands there praying he’ll go away and leave her alone.
“Why are you here? What do you want from me?” Elizabeth asks.
“To make you pay for your sins.” The man responds.
“What are you talking about? What sins are you talking about? Who are
you?”
Elizabeth notices the change in the man’s demeanor as he puts both his
hands around her throat. Feeling the hands tighten around her throat, she
starts to grasp for air and tries to pull his hands away. However, the loss
of oxygen saps her strength and she is unable to remove his hands from her
throat.
Just as she begins to fall into darkness, she feels another hand on her
shoulder shaking her. Thinking the man has a third arm, she doesn’t
question who is shaking her. All of a sudden, she hears a familiar voice
calling her name and goes toward the voice.
“Elizabeth, wake up! You’re having a bad dream.” Jonathan states as he
continues to shake his sister out of her slumber.
Elizabeth wakes up suddenly grasping for air and pushing her brother’s
hand away from her shoulder. Looking around, she notices her quarterly
reports on her lap and realizes she’s had another nightmare. Trying to
compose herself, she gets up from the bed and paces around the room
unaware her brother is staring at her.
“Elizabeth, what is going on with you? This is the second time this week
that I’ve come across you having a nightmare. What is going on with you?”
Elizabeth turns toward Jonathan unsure how to answer his
question.
Foxy’s:
Nina gives the waitress her order before leaning back in her seat. Looking
at her watch, she notices her lunch date is running late and hopes nothing
is wrong. Before another thought pops into her head, Wally enters the
diner scanning the room before approaching her table.
“Sorry I’m late. I had a tutoring session that took longer then I expected.
Hopefully, the student passes his final. It’ll make my tutoring worthwhile if
they do. How are things going for you?” Wally asks as he sits down
across from her.
“They’re going well. My internship has been a great experience and I can’t
wait for fall semester to begin. I know this makes me sound like a nerd but
I miss going to class.” Nina replies.
“At least you’re consistent. I’m glad my tutoring job will be over soon.
To tell you the truth, I don’t want to be a teacher when I grow up.”
Nina laughs at that statement, “So what do you want to be when you
grow up?”
“To be honest, I wouldn’t mind being a writer. Not a journalist but a
writer. I love writing short stories so I’m taking a short story class this fall.
It’ll help me take my mind off my latest crush.”
“Anyone I know?” Nina asks.
Wally shakes his head deciding to keep her identity secret from Nina.
“Does she know how you feel about her?” Nina notes Wally’s reaction,
“Why not just tell her?”
“She’s dating someone else right now. I can’t seem to get her out of
my thoughts no matter how many times I tell myself she’s not available.
What would you do if you were in my position?”
Nina’s face pales, “I would just ride out the feelings. You know she’s
not available so hopefully your heart will catch up with your head.”
“You make it sound so easy. Unless you’ve been in the same boat as
me, you can’t really know how I feel.” Wally muses. He then takes note
of Nina’s expression. “Wait a minute; I think you’re in the same boat as
me. Don’t try to deny it because your expression indicates I’m right.”
“Yes. I’m riding out the feelings. I admit some days are harder then
others but I have no choice.” Nina replies, “Listen to us, we are both very
intelligent people who deserve to date available people.”
“You’re right Nina. It’s a shame that we didn’t click on that date several
months ago. If we had, we wouldn’t be in this boat right now.” Wally
retorts. Both of them laugh at the memory of Katie trying to fix them up.
“At least we can laugh about it. Bless your sister’s heart but she isn’t a
matchmaker. Even after I told her how we broke up in laughter after trying to
kiss, she still would mention you to me. Thankfully, she let her dream of
being sister-in-laws go.”
“Yeah, my sister does have a way of dreaming big. I guess that’s what I
love most about my sister. I love her ability to dream, even if it’s out there.
“Wally, I propose we make a pact.”
“I’m listening.”
“I propose we both go out and meet new people. There are a ton of
people on campus that are available. We should meet them when fall
semester starts. How does that sound to you? Will you accept this pact?”
“Sure, what do I have to lose? I’ve been ditched twice this summer at
this very location. I’ve survived it and I'm still willing to accept your pact.”
Wally replies.
“Then it’s settled. I can’t wait to tell Katie, she’s going to
flip out in excitement.”
“Yeah, then she’ll want all six of us to go out on dates together. I guess
we’ll be triple dating before the year is up.”
Both Wally and Nina start to laugh then stop when the waitress
brings Nina’s order out. Wally gives the waitress his order before the two
resume their laughter. Nina hopes Wally is right about them triple dating
but has a feeling that could change at anytime.
O’leary’s:
Chase settles down at the bar ready to relax after a long day at work.
He looks at his watch and realizes how late it is. Before he could decide
rather to go home or to order a drink, he notices the bartender placing a
martini in front of him. Looking around, he doesn’t see anyone he knows
and waves the bartender down.
“Is there anything else I can do for you, Sir?” The bartender asks.
“I didn’t order this drink, are you sure you have the right person?” Chase
asks, still trying to guess who bought him a drink.
“Yes, the woman on the other end of the bar asked for me to bring this
drink over to you.” The bartender replies pointing his finger toward the
seductively dressed woman at the other end of the bar.
Chase takes a drink from his glass and waves the martini at the woman’s
direction before turning away. Before he knows it, the woman gets out of
her chair and sits down next to him.
Chase turns around, “Thank you for the drink. It wasn’t necessary but
again thank you.”
“It wasn’t any trouble at all. I noticed you coming through the door and
figured you needed something to unwind. I assume you just got off of
work, am I right?”
“Yes, I’ve been pulling some overtime. I didn’t realize how late it was
until my wife called me.” Chase replies.
“So why are you here then?”
“My wife told me not to hurry home because she was exhausted from
work and was turning in. So I decided to stop in for a quick bite to eat
before heading home. However, the drink definitely hits the spot. By the
way, I don’t believe I caught your name.”
“The name is Bianca Lewiston. It's nice to meet you.” Bianca answers as she
extends her hand out.
“Chase Richardson.” He shakes her hand. “Bianca Lewiston, that name
sounds familiar to me.”
“I used to run my own real estate company called Golden Chance up until
recently. Perhaps you've heard of it.” Bianca suggests.
“My daughter Gillian actually used to work there. I knew your name
sounded familiar to me. You were her boss.”
“So you’re Gillian’s father. I have to admit you aren’t what I pictured her
father to look like.” Bianca replies slowly sliding her gaze down his body.
Chase laughs, “I’ll take that as a compliment. Anyway, I hate to cut this short
because I need to get home. Again, thank you for the drink.” Chase states finishing
the last of his drink.
“Anytime.” Bianca responds reaching out to gently caress his thigh, her eyes
warm with invitation. Chase abruptly stands up.
Chase walks away from the bar feeling very conflicted and guilty over what
happened between himself and Bianca. Getting out his cell phone, he starts
to dial his house to let Lillian know he’s on his way home.
Falmont Home:
“Perhaps you didn’t hear my question. What is going on Elizabeth?”
Jonathan asks trying to gauge the state of mind his sister is in.
“I just had a bad dream, nothing to worry about.” Elizabeth answers.
“Come on, you and I both know that you’ve been having these dreams
for the last few weeks. What has you on edge? Is it that Nico guy?”
Jonathan wonders.
Elizabeth jerks in fear when he brings up his name. She then sits
down on her bed and tries to lie down again. Jonathan sighs and
goes to sit down next to her on the bed.
“I’m right, aren’t I? Ever since this Nico character came into town, you’ve
been on edge. Even mother has been wondering what is going on. If she
notices then you know you’re in trouble. You can tell your big brother what’s
wrong.” Jonathan suggests and gives her a hug.
“There are some things I have to work out for myself. I guess I need to
stop by Dr. Alfaro’s office for another session. It’s a little late to do
that tonight.” Elizabeth replies looking at the clock on her nightstand.
“You didn’t tell me you were seeing a therapist. How long have you been
going?”
“Not that long, I started going when the nightmares started. After going
to one or two sessions, the nightmares went away until this past week." She
fluffs her pillow and smiles, "Now, let’s drop the subject and talk about something
more positive. For instance, how are you and Thomas doing.”
“Nice try with changing the subject. I’ll humor you this one time but you’re on
notice that this conversation is far from over. I guess we’re both doing fine.
I’ve been busy at the gallery and you know how busy he’s been at work.”
“I take it that you guys haven’t crossed over to the next phase in your
relationship?” Elizabeth asks.
“Elizabeth, we’re just friends, nothing more. He isn’t ready for anything
beyond friendship at this point. Although, ever since his past followed him
to Hope Falls, he seems more relaxed if you can believe it. Other then that,
nothing has changed between us.”
“I figure since Thomas isn’t interested in me, my big brother is the logical
next choice. I just want you to know if you and Thomas ever get to that
point, you have my blessing.” Elizabeth explains.
“I’ll remember that if we ever get to that point. However, right now, you
need to get some sleep. Just remember one thing, Elizabeth.”
“What’s that?”
“Unless you deal with what’s bothering you, these dreams aren’t going to
disappear.” Jonathan hugs his sister once more before getting up from the
bed.
As he walks toward Elizabeth’s bedroom door, she calls out to him.
“Since when did you get so serious?”
Jonathan turns around, “When my sister’s in turmoil and isn’t confiding in
me, I get worried. The same thing applies if Henry and Christina were in
your shoes. Now try to get some sleep, I’ll see you in the morning.”
Jonathan shuts her bedroom door and she is left alone in her room,
praying she can fall into a dreamless sleep.
