“It’s not a coincidence my family was one of the founding residents here in Pismo. We knew you’d eventually end up here. It was just a matter of time.”
“But why did you have to ask the families in England about other prospects if you knew I’d end up here?” I asked, hoping that maybe he did get it wrong and the real Waker was still out there.
“We knew you would be here in Pismo eventually but we didn’t know when. You could have been the wrong Violet, except I knew otherwise,” he said with an air of confidence. “I still had to make sure that no one had any other leads.”
I let out a long breath. “So everything’s just set in stone? I’m not sure I like not being in control of who I am and what my purpose is. Is there really no free will?”
“Of course there’s free will. You can choose not to believe me. You can choose not to do anything with the information I give you.”
“And what if that’s what I do? What if I don’t believe you?”
“Then that’s your choice, but the world you’re fighting so hard to hold onto, the world you knew before I came into your life, won’t exist anymore. No matter what your choice is, nothing will ever be the same again. So it’s up to you.” His voice was light but his face was cold, hard and deadly serious. He tried to hide how important it was to him that I make the right decision, but I could see it in his eyes that he hoped I wouldn’t walk away from all of this.
“I just don’t know what to do or what to believe anymore. None of this seems possible; you shouldn’t have been able to save me but you did and now all this talk about Soothsayers… How am I supposed to know what’s real anymore?” I gaped at him, completely lost.
“How?” I whispered.
“No one expects you to just jump right in. As much as I’m here to protect you, I’m also here to help you through all of this,” he said and put his hand on my knee. A jolt of emotion ran through me, the same emotion I felt when he kissed me. Well, kissed me in my fantasy.
I took a deep breath and pulled his hand off.
“I’m sorry, I was just trying to comfort you. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” he said and shifted on the couch to move away from me.
“It’s not that, it’s just…” I broke off, not knowing how to finish the sentence. What was I supposed to say, it’s just that, I keep having these intense visions every time you touch me. I laughed a short, humorless laugh and shook my head. No, I couldn’t say that.
“What?” Robert asked, half smiling.
“It’s nothing. You don’t make me uncomfortable.” I tried to reassure him. I didn’t feel uncomfortable with him. I actually felt very comfortable and at ease with him. “It’s just been a long day. I think maybe I’ll head to bed.” I smiled, trying to hide the knowledge that I wasn’t going to get any sleep with him in the other room.
“I think that’s a good idea.”
We stared at each other for a few seconds, the question of him staying here tonight lingering between us.
“You can stay, for now,” I said, rising from the couch. “But this isn’t going to be a permanent situation.” I didn’t want to give in, but he wasn’t going to give up and I was done arguing with him for one night.
Even though I didn’t know any of the Maxwells all that well, I felt the most comfortable with Robert. I knew that if anything happened to me he would be able to save me. Which made me wonder what Brett and Annabel were able to do if he was willing to let them protect me instead of himself. I suppressed the thought; I had enough to worry about without adding more questions to the overflowing pile at hand.
“Thank you, Violet. I promise I won’t be in your way,” Robert promised.
“I’ll get you some blankets and a pillow,” I said and moved around the couch, heading to the linen closet.
Even though I still didn’t have very many answers, I felt oddly comforted that I wasn’t alone in this anymore. If there was one thing I could believe out of everything Robert had told me today, I believed he really was here to help me.
I walked back to the living room where I found Robert rearranging the throw pillows on the couch.
“Here you go.” I handed him a couple blankets and a real pillow.
“Thank you,” he said, smiling with sincerity.
“The bathroom is down the hall, first door on the right. Extra towels are under the sink.”
“I appreciate it. Good night, Violet.”
“Night.”
As I passed the front door, habit forced me to make sure it was locked. Unease settled in my chest at the realization that a locked door probably couldn’t stop whomever was coming after me. With that thought fresh in my mind, I picked up the baseball bat and carried it off to bed.
Chapter 8
My alarm exploded into a frenzy of angry buzzing announcing my seven-thirty wakeup call. I groaned and rolled over, turning the alarm off. Sitting up I stretched my arms over my head and my stomach growled at the scent of bacon and cinnamon wafting through the room.
I threw myself back down on the bed. How did I get myself into this mess? I barely knew Robert and already he was staying in my house, making breakfast and telling me stories about psychics and prophecies.
My life had really taken a sharp left turn to crazy town. Reluctantly, I mustered the strength to get up and hop in the shower. I needed to be in Santa Barbara by eleven for The Caltome Vineyard shoot and if I was going to stop by the studio first I couldn’t delay any longer. While I waited for the water to heat up, I went back to my closet to pick out something comfortable for the long day ahead.
The owner of the winery where I’d be shooting was a friend of a friend of Harriet’s. After seeing some of my work, the owner hired me to take some editorial pictures he could use on his website and brochure. I was thrilled at the prospect of my work being the face of this new winery and wanted to make sure my photos were everything they wanted and more.
Hopping in the shower and drowning my worries, I let the hot water relax my already tight shoulders. As I lathered my hair with shampoo, I made a mental list of things I needed to pick up from the studio for today’s shoot. If everything went well today, I might get another job with them or even get recommended to do commercial work for someone else. This shoot could really open up a lot of doors and I didn’t want anything to go wrong.
I probably took a little longer than I should have in the shower so I rushed to dry my hair then threw on a pair of jeans and a casual white button up. Not being able to put it off any longer, I left the safe haven of my bedroom to face Robert.
As I turned the corner into the main room, the smell of cinnamon and salty bacon assaulted my senses. The dining table was piled high with pancakes, giant slices of French toast, scrambled eggs, a pile of bacon, hash browns and a bowl of fresh fruit. Everything smelled and looked wonderful. My stomach grumbled again, excited at the prospect of a real breakfast for once.
“Good morning, Violet,” Robert said, looking up at me from the table where he’d been reading the newspaper.
“You made all this?” I asked in disbelief. I took my seat at the head of the table where a plate had been set for me, along with a fresh cup of coffee and carafe of orange juice.
“It really wasn’t any trouble, and I wanted to show you how nice it can be having me around.” His eyes washed over me and a quiet smile played on his lips. “I wasn’t sure what you liked, so I made sure there was a little of everything.” He returned his gaze to the paper in front of him.
I ate my breakfast in silence, sampling all the savory treats on the table. I tried to remember the last time I’d had a real honest to goodness breakfast like this and realized it must have been when my parents were still alive. The memory of my mom bustling around the kitchen brought a smile to my face and a lump in my throat that made it hard to swallow a mouthful of scrambled eggs. I looked over at Robert several times as I washed the meal down with coffee, wondering if I should try to make conversation, but he never looked up and he seemed perfectly at ease to just sit and read the paper.