“Would you have gone to the police first or tried to warn your friends in a situation like this?”
“I see your point,” David accepted Bill’s view.
Alezzander and Nyx appeared on the porch.
“Bring them in,” Alezzander suggested in his deep voice. “Let their nerves settle.”
We walked into the den where Eryx was quietly speaking on the phone. Galen stood cross-armed, watching his brother against the fireplace. Eryx ended his call as he saw us approach.
“Dearest, fetch them something soothing,” Alezzander addressed Nyx.
“What can I offer you to drink?” Nyx asked Bill and Andy.
“Nothing for me, ma’am… thank you,” Bill replied.
Andy was having trouble controlling her weeping. She couldn’t respond to Nyx’s offer.
“I’ll bring you a special tea… to soothe your nerves, my dear. Is that fine?” Nyx spoke softly to Andy.
Andy nodded, “Yes, thank you.”
Galen handed Andy a box of tissues. “I think she needs something stronger; vodka, perhaps?”
I didn’t think joking was appropriate at the moment, but it made Andy giggle a little.
“David, aid me in the kitchen, please.” Nyx walked through the den doors.
“Join me.” David pulled me away from Andy.
“I’ll be right back,” I excused myself from Andy and Bill.
We walked into the kitchen. Nyx was placing a teapot on the burner.
“Can I help?” I asked.
“I need to show you something,” David said. “Mother, do make enough for two cups. They both need this.”
“What are you giving them?” I was curious.
“Your friends are in shock. Bill hides it well to keep Andy from becoming frantic again. I can sense their adrenaline levels are still high.” Nyx pulled a spoon from a drawer. “Once the water boils, David will add a small amount of tranquilizer to each.”
“How will you do that?” I looked at David in amazement.
“Watch,” He said holding his thumb and index finger over the spoon Nyx had in her hand.
David rubbed his fingers together letting a gold shimmery dust fall on the spoon.
“Don’t over do it.” Nyx warned. “That’s enough for both. Fetch me another spoon, would you, dear?” She said looking at me.
I pulled another spoon and handed it to her. Nyx divided the small amount of gold shimmer between both spoons.
The teapot started hissing.
“The water now, David,” she instructed.
“Of course,” David replied.
“They’re going to see the gold dust in the water and probably taste it too,” I pointed out.
“Not at all,” Nyx smiled. “This
is
the tea. It is sweet and the water will turn a golden yellow… like chamomile. It’s quite good. They will enjoy it and it will help their anxiety.”
“You’ve enjoyed it as well, my love,” David revealed.
“When?”
“When you had that lover’s quarrel and you slapped him, which, in my opinion was a well deserved slap, now that I think about it,” Nyx teased.
“I don’t remember.” I creased my brow.
“After you came to. I offered you tea. Do you remember now?” Nyx stirred the gold dust into the hot water. The scent was pleasant. I suddenly remember it tasted like a very sweet pomegranate.
“I distinctly recognize the aroma.” I shuddered as I remembered that terrible day.
“It’s the reason you were able to maintain your calm.” David took the teacups from Nyx’s hands and placed them on a tray.
“You doped me up?” I was appalled.
“My dear, we do not dope anyone. We heal them,” Nyx said in a disgruntled tone.
“Right. Sorry,” I retreated.
Nyx took the tray from the counter and walked out of the kitchen. I had obviously offended her.
“Is she mad?” I asked David.
“She’s fine. You women have tender points we men do not and never will understand.”
David took my hand and led me to the den. Bill and Andy were drinking the tea. Bill was relaying the incident in his own words to the family. Andy seemed calmer. I was glad to see that.
“I took the liberty of calling the police,” Eryx told us. “They say you must file a report with your parents at the police station, because you are both minors and you left the scene of the incident.”
“He’s after David and Isis. Shouldn’t they file a report also?” Bill questioned Eryx.
“Yes, David and Isis are to accompany you, since they are Gabriel’s main targets.”
My mother was going to have a cosmic fit. She was a feisty lady with an attitude when it concerned her only daughter. I felt sorry for the police officers that would have to deal with her.
“Can I have some of that tea?” I asked Andy. I suddenly felt very nervous.
“No!” The entire Chios clan said in unison.
“Ehem,” Nyx cleared her throat. “I’ll prepare you one if you’d like, dear.”
I glanced at Andy and Bill who had confused expressions on their faces.
“Uh… no… that’s ok. I don’t want to trouble you. I’m fine.”
“It’s okay. You can have a sip of mine,” Andy offered.
“No. You need it more than I do,” I countered. “I’m okay… really.”
After Bill and Andy had finished their tea, Nyx and Alezzander accompanied us to the police station. We—Bill, Andy, David, Nyx, Alezzander, and I—crunched into Gemini’s Land Rover. I noticed Bill and Andy were both yawning frequently.
“Are you guys tired?” I asked.
“No, why?” Bill responded.
“You both are yawning,” I pointed out.
David squeezed my hand and gave me a stare. “It’s the body’s way of releasing tension after a traumatic episode.”
It was probably a lie because Andy’s brow lifted far up questioning his theory.
“Oh,” I said, and left the subject for dead.
We rode quietly down Highway 100, through Los Fresnos and to the precinct.
“My dad is going to freak.” Bill held his head between his hands. “And your mom is going to have you home schooled,” he told me.
“She’s going to want to go looking for Gabriel at his house,” Andy said as we opened the heavy glass door to the small station.
“The lioness on the prowl. Ugh!” I grunted. “Gabriel’s parents will probably end up filing a restraining order against her instead of the other way around.”
Alezzander spoke to a woman clerk at the window. Shortly after, a police officer escorted us in through another door and to his desk.
“I’m Officer Ramirez. What can I do ya for, sir?” He spoke to Alezzander.
Alezzander explained the situation. Our parents were called to the police station on the spot. Officer Ramirez would not relay any information as to why we were there, for fear of causing panic in our parents.
Once our parents arrived and introduced themselves properly to Alezzander and Nyx, Bill and Andy started giving their account of the incident as the officer took notes.
Our parents were up in arms to say the least. They were shocked and mortified at the thought of Gabriel running around with that gun. The officer had to keep telling them to hold it down, because the conversation would become unintelligible over so many people wanting to speak at once.
“What are you doing about this, Tomas? I need to know my daughter is going to sleep safely tonight. I’ll find him myself if I have to.” Claire leaned into Officer Ramirez’s face.
“Told ya.” I elbowed David. “She’s going to get locked up before Gabriel does.”
“I heard that,” Claire snapped at me. “This is a serious matter, Isis.” Claire didn’t bother to turn away from the police officer.
“So what the hell are you doing about it?” Claire asked Officer Ramirez again.
“Calm down, Claire.” Another official entered the room. “I can hear you through the damn doors.”
“I’ll shut up when I see that kid behind bars, John.” My mother and I knew this official. It was Krystle’s dad.
The officer rolled his eyes and walked toward Alezzander and Nyx.
“Hello folks. I’m Constable Mendiola. I’ll be assisting Officer Ramirez in the case.” He held out his hand to the couple then tipped his hat at Dr. Jameson and his wife and Mr. and Mrs. Nesbit—Bill’s parents.
“What do we got, Ramirez?” the constable asked.
“Threat with a handgun, possibly stolen,” Ramirez quickly summarized.
“I’ll draw up a search warrant. Do we know where the kid lives?” Constable Mendiola set his hat on the desk.
“Yeah,” Bill answered the official, “we know where he lives.”
“You know the kid?” the constable asked Bill in a surprised tone.
“Yeah. He’s Isis’ ex-boyfriend, Gabriel Betancourt.”
“Hmm…” Constable Mendiola muttered. “Jealous ex-boyfriend, huh?” He eyed David and me holding hands.
“Pretty much sounds like it,” Ramirez agreed.
The crowd of parents assembled in the parking lot, discussing the matter while waiting for four police units that were called in and assigned to each of us as surveillance for the night.
My mother had a lot to do with the night patrol being set in place. She argued with Ramirez and Mendiola until they were blue in the face. They had to call in detectives from the neighboring city of Brownsville, since there were only three police officers in the town of Los Fresnos on call and two off duty. The wait was about half an hour long. We were escorted to our homes by the patrol units. It was pretty silly to have a police officer escort the Chios family, being as they needed protection from no one.
I could hardly sleep that night. My mom kept peeking out my bedroom window and tried to convince me to go to work with her in the morning. She didn’t want to let me out of her sight.
“I don’t want to spend the day listening to judgments or old ladies with coffee breath asking me about this. No way, Mom. I’m staying here. Besides, I’ll be fine with that detective outside watching the house.”
“Then I’m not going in to work,” she stated with a frown. “I’m not leaving you alone and that is final.”
“I can spend the day at David’s or Andy’s place. I won’t be alone there.”
I didn’t want my mother’s paranoia to rub off on me. I was already scared. I felt my only safe harbor was David, but I couldn’t tell Claire that. She wouldn’t understand, and I couldn’t tell her the reason behind my feelings. They were like real life super heroes to me.
“You are taking all of this too lightly, little girl.” She started tapping my head with her finger. “Do you understand that someone with a gun is out to do God knows what to you?”
The tapping was annoying to me. I hated when she did that. I pushed her hand away.
“Jesus, Mother… Stop it! I’m not an idiot. I know perfectly well the severity of the situation. Don’t you think I feel as helpless as you do? I’m just trying to keep myself together. I suggest you do the same.”
“And how can I when I know he’s out there somewhere? Isis, if something ever happened to you…” She pursed her lips and turned her head from side to side. “I don’t know what I would do, honey.”
“Let’s just go to sleep, okay? We’re fine for now,” I tried to convince her.
“No,” she shook her head. “What if that detective falls asleep?”
“Then can you please let
me
sleep?” Not that I was going to fall asleep with all this pressure on me, but if it would get her to stop the ongoing hysteria, then it was worth lying.
She turned off the lamp on the night table and sat on the windowpane staring down at the street. I shut my eyes so that the conversation would not start over again.
Occasionally, I would hear her tiptoe around the room pacing. At some point, while pretending to be asleep and thinking about how I was to blame for this whole ordeal, I fell asleep.
Chapter 14
It must’ve been around seven in the morning when I heard heavy knocking on the front door. Claire was asleep next to me. I jumped over her and down the stairs to get the door.
Through the peephole, I could see Krystle’s dad in his uniform and cowboy hat. I opened the door right away.
“Morning.” Constable Mendiola tipped his hat. “Your mother home?”
“Yes, sir. Come in… just a minute, let me get her.”
I closed the door behind him and ran up the stairs. Claire jumped when she felt me tapping her on the arm.
“What’s wrong?” she asked wide-eyed.
“Krystle’s dad is down stairs. He wants to speak with you.”
“Be right down,” she said stumbling to the bathroom.
Downstairs, I offered the constable some coffee, while Claire made her way down to join us. The constable took a seat at the kitchen table waiting for the coffee to brew.
“Were you able to find Gabriel’s house easily?” I asked trying to get ahead on the information he had come to give my mother.
“Just fine,” he said.
“Was he home?” I probed, as I grabbed two cups from the cupboard.
“Let’s wait till your mother joins us, whataya say?”
“Sure,” I sounded disappointed.
The constable and I made small talk while we waited.
We turned our heads to the stairs as we heard Claire’s footsteps coming down.
“Morning, John. Sorry for the wait. I didn’t sleep a wink last night,” Claire said, making her way to the coffee pot.
“Can’t say I’m surprised. If I was in your shoes, I’d be lookin’ out for my kid too.”
“So what happened yesterday evening after we left the station?” Claire sipped her black coffee.
“We were able to search the house… question the parents; kid was gone though. They say he took some of his stuff and drove off without a word. We found traces of some drugs in his room, but no weapons. Kid must o’ made a run for it, is my guess.”
“You guess?” Claire said sarcastically.
“Would ya let me finish?” He pressed his lips together.
“Sorry,” Claire apologized. “Go on.”
“Seems the parents have been having a whole lot o’ trouble with the boy. He was suspended for the semester from school. Lost his scholarship.”
“That’s not typical of him,” I interrupted.
“Neither is pulling a gun on your friends, but drugs make you do stupid things.” Claire raised her brows.
“Thing is…” Mendiola continued, “we got a call about an abandoned car ’round four this morning—off one of the farm roads right outside o’ town. Ran a check on the vehicle plates and turned out the owner was the boy’s father. Boy’s clothes were in the car, the door wide open, but no sign of the kid.”
“So he’s out there with a gun looking for
my
daughter?!” Claire said in a high-pitched voice, spilling some coffee as she waved her hands in the air.
“We tracked him through the sugar cane fields with K-9’s but came up with nothing. The tracks just disappeared.”
“How could they have disappeared?” I asked. “He must’ve covered them.”
“Now we can’t be sure of that.” The constable sat back and wiped his mustache with a napkin. “The family filed a missing person’s report early this morning when they were notified that the car was abandoned.”
“So now what happens? I mean, he couldn’t have disappeared into thin air. He must be somewhere. Look harder,” Claire demanded.
“We have turned every stone and pebble in this town and the surrounding areas. He’s gone, I reckon. I can almost guarantee it.” Mendiola said.
“I’m not buying it.” Claire crossed her arms. “No way he’s just disappeared.”
“Anything coulda happened to him at those hours of the night. The engine was still warm, when we got there. He couldn’t have gone far.” The constable stood from his chair. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go relieve the detectives of their duties.”
“That’s it?” Claire placed her hands on her hips. “You’re leaving her out like a tasty meal, John. You can’t tell that officer to leave.”
“Police units will be patrolling your house every fifteen minutes for the next twenty-four hours. If this kid doesn’t turn up by then, then he’s officially missing and the cops are off your case.”
“But John!” Claire protested.
Constable Mendiola held his hand up. “I know, Claire, but I have to go by the book. Ya understand?”
Claire sighed in discontent. “I can’t believe you can’t do this personal favor for me, Mendiola. You know it’s just the two of us and no man in the house.”
“Now hold off just a second; don’t try to pity talk me into it. I haven’t told Krystle about the incident for that same reason.” He turned his back to us and started walking toward the door. “If it makes you feel any better, I’ll be taking over patrols in the area after tomorrow. Isis bein’ my main concern.”
“Well, thank you, Constable,” Claire smiled like she had gotten away with something.
“Don’t thank me. I’m doin’ it as a favor to m’self. I wouldn’t hear the end of it from you if I didn’t do this.”
The constable put his hat on and opened the door. “Take care now.” He waved and closed the door behind him.
Claire refused to go into work. I wasn’t allowed to peek through the windows or set foot outside the house. The more paranoid Claire became, the jumpier she made me feel.
“Would you stop being so paranoid?” I said to my mom peeking out the blinds just as a police car drove by.
“For the last time, get away from the window, Isis. What if he’s waiting to get a glimpse of you from across the street?”
“You make him sound like he’s a professional killer. You’re being ridiculous, Mom. I’m going upstairs,” I said, already half way up the stairs.
“No peeking out the windows!” she yelled out after me.
I called David to let him know the news about Gabriel, but an officer had already beaten me to it.
“I don’t want you leaving your house today.” He sounded authoritative over the loudspeaker on my phone. “My brothers have been out sweeping the area where Gabriel’s abandoned vehicle was discovered. They didn’t find any sign of him. They’ve also been circling the town from above all night. I told them to keep surveillance on Bill’s, Andy’s and your residences.”
“Thanks for that. I’m sorry I didn’t call last night. My mother wouldn’t give me any privacy.” I lay on my bed holding the phone a few inches from my mouth.
“I didn’t have that problem, but I thought it inopportune to call you under the circumstances.”
“I knew you’d say some sensible thing,” I smiled. “Anyhow, I don’t know when I’ll be able to see you. I’m on lockdown for a few days. I don’t know if my mom will allow you to come here though. I’ll have to check with her before.”
“I think that she will not approve, being that I am the reason for this dilemma. She would feel that you are at greater risk being with me at this time.”
“You’re not the reason; I am. But you might be right about her feeling more stressed with you and me together. Her paranoia is suffocating me.”
“She’s your mother. Let her suffocate you all she wants during this situation. Her instinct is to shield you. It helps her in feeling more at ease and in control.”
I made a face at the phone. Why was he always so prudent about things?
“Sure,” I said watching Claire observing me from my bedroom door. “So what are you doing for the rest of the day?” I continued the conversation.
Claire walked across the room to the window and sat on the windowsill.
“Thinking of you,” David replied.
Claire giggled as she heard him over the loudspeaker.
“Yeah, me too.” I smiled.
Seeing as my mother wasn’t going to leave me alone, I had to end the phone call with David. My corny moments with him were private and special for me.
“I like that boy.” Claire looked out the window in thought. “He reminds me of…”
“Of who?”
“It’s silly,” she smiled and shook her head, “but the way he carries himself and speaks, he reminds me of your biological father—so eloquent and debonair. I guess we have very good taste in men.” She winked.
“The best,” I laughed.
Over the next few days I wasn’t allowed to leave my house. We got word from Officer Ramirez that Gabriel was officially missing. His family set up flyers all over town and the neighboring areas. I felt like something horrible had happened to him. Although he had threatened Andy and Bill, my worry for him didn’t die. I silently prayed for his safe return to his family.
On Friday, Claire finally returned to work. I had the house to myself but was advised to call her if I even thought about opening the front door.
I was bored and was in desperate need of some company. My spring break had been ruined and I couldn’t see Krystle, Patrick, or Sheila because their parents held concerned for their safety. They didn’t want them hanging out with me for the time being.
I thought about calling David, but that would only make me miss him more. He didn’t want to visit me until my mother was over the scare we had.
This was like Romeo and Juliet must’ve felt having to be apart. My chest was heavy and pained from the emotion. I loved him. And not just a normal kind of human love, but a love that hurt and made me joyous and weak and strong all at the same time… and to think that he would be only mine someday, and I would be his. But before we could be together, I wondered if we would have to suffer like Romeo and Juliet—minus the dying, of course. I wasn’t the suicidal type.
That afternoon my mom called to tell me that she had spoken to Constable Mendiola and found out that Gabriel was still missing. I secretly tried calling his cell phone, but it went directly to voicemail. I felt so bad for his family and for him. I wondered what could have happened to him. Would the police turn up with his body in a plastic bag somewhere? The thought made me shudder. Maybe I should have helped him when I knew he was under the influence instead of shoving him away. I was surely the reason this had happened to him. I should have been more of a friend than an ex-girlfriend.
Clearly the guy was screaming out for help in every attempt he made to reach out to me. I should have contacted his parents when this was all happening. I should have told my mother. I should have tried to talk to him in a civilized manner instead of brushing him off.
Everything that was happening was my fault—I could see that now. I was to blame for the trauma Gabriel caused Andy and Bill and for the jealousy that burned in Gabriel that caused him to point a gun at my friends. I was to blame for his disappearance. He would have never run away if he hadn’t been looking for me.
I was also responsible for everything that was going on with David and his family. They were putting their lives on the line for me.
I really needed some divine intervention.
It was a long and dull weekend. Sunday night my mother finally allowed me to have David over for dinner, which I cooked. I was very proud of my lasagna and salad. David seemed to enjoy it as well. My mother cautioned David about ten times about driving to and from school and being careful. She suggested that I be dropped off at her office after school, but I didn’t approve.
“I’ll be fine, mom. Gabriel is still missing remember? If it makes you feel any better, I’ll go home with David while you get out of work, but I’m not going to sit in your office.”
“David’s family doesn’t have the obligation of babysitting you for me. I don’t feel comfortable giving Nyx that type of responsibility, knowing full well she’s already concerned about her own son. I don’t want to double that pressure.” Claire cleared her plate from the table.
“It wouldn’t be a burden, Mrs. Martin. On the contrary, I think it would serve to relieve you and my mother a bit. She’s done nothing but ask about Isis and you since the incident,” David tried to convince her otherwise. “I think it’s a grand idea.”
“Hmm…” Claire’s mouth creased to one side. “Do you think I could speak to your mother on the phone?”
“Of course,” David said. He pulled the phone from his pant pocket and dialed.
David and I listened to the one-sided conversation as we finished our dinner, Nyx convinced my mom that it would be better to have me stay at their house for a couple of hours after school, rather than being alone at our house. I had to hand it to Nyx; she really knew how to pitch a sale.
Claire excused herself and went upstairs while David and I cleaned up the kitchen. As soon as I heard my mother’s bedroom door close, I flung myself into David’s arms.
“I missed you,” I said taking in the sandalwood scent on his shirt.
His lips tenderly brushed against my forehead. “I agonized over you.”
I smiled.
“I thought of you constantly,” he said holding my chin up to look at him.
“Me too.”
“I wrote something for you, but I would prefer you read it before you go to bed tonight.”
He handed me a paper, twice folded.