CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SIX

 

 Tom showered, shaved, put on his nicest shirt and corduroy jeans.  After checking the time, he ran down the steps and out on to the street.  The book was still in his shoulder bag.  If he did not hurry, he would be late for their first date.

Angela lived only a few blocks away from his apartment.  He thought again about how strange it was that they had never met before last night.  A strong gust of wind pressed the book into his side, as if pushed by someone, as if bringing to his attention its part in helping them meet.

He arrived at her building early, but he did not want to appear overly eager.  Besides, she might still be getting ready.  As he waited, Tom leaned against the building and watched the cars as they passed.

“Hey mister, want to buy some flowers?”

At first, he saw no one, only hearing the hesitant voice of a woman.  He looked down to see a poorly dressed elderly woman.

“Only five dollars,” she said.

Some flowers for Angela would certainly make a good impression.

Tom felt the book press into his side again as if being jostled by someone pushing by him.  When he turned to look, he saw no one.

In a fit of rage, he imagined punching the old woman hard in the face, breaking her nose, blood pouring down.  Even though the image was only in his mind, he winced at the brutality closing his eyes in disgust.

The woman showed him roses, carnations, and daisies.  All were wilted with most of the stems bent or broken.

“Yeah, this will make a great impression.”

He laughed to himself but felt sorry for the woman who most likely picked the flowers from a trashcan.  He gave her a ten-dollar bill and told her to keep the change.

She smiled.

He entered the short hallway leading into Angela’s place and then stopped at a glass-paneled door.  It was locked.  A security camera attached to the ceiling faced directly at the entranceway.  He looked for Angela’s name on a row of a dozen buttons on the wall to the right of the door then pressed her button.

“Who is it?” Angela’s sweet soft voice answered.

“It’s Tom.  Are you ready?”

"There’s no elevator.  You’ll have to take the stairs.  I’m on the third floor, apartment 3B.  I’ll unlock the door when you get here.”

She buzzed the electronic door lock.  Tom entered the dimly lit hallway.  He was about to walk up when he thought he saw something in the shadows underneath the stairway.  The silhouette of a man darted into the darkness.  Taking the chance that it might be someone dangerous Tom walked towards the darkness.

“Who’s there?”

He walked deeper into the darkness looking for the source of the shadow.  At first the shadow did not move.  Then it slowly blended into the background with the other shadows until he could no longer see it.  When the headlights from a passing car lit the corner all the shadows below the staircase vanished except for what he thought was the shadow of a man.  When he approached the silhouette, it became smaller until it too seemed to disappear into the corner.

“Now the damn book has me seeing things.”

He told himself it was only the shadow of a passing car, but he was starting to worry.  His experience with the dragon last night, the image of hitting the cashier at the donut shop, images of beating the poor old flower lady, dark figures lurking in the shadows; Tom felt violent disturbing changes in his thoughts and feelings.

He ran up the staircase to the third floor.  The flowers were now completely bent with petals falling everywhere.  In a fit of rage, which was way out of proportion and not the way he usually behaved, he flung the flowers hard against the wall.  They made a splat leaving a wet green stain.  Afraid of his overpowering rage, he stopped for a moment to calm himself.

Her apartment was to the left.  After taking several deep breaths to quiet himself, he knocked.  The door slowly opened, and he caught a glimpse of Angela running into her bathroom wrapped in only a towel.  She covered her breasts with her arm.  The towel rode up exposing half her bottom.

“I’ll be out in a minute.  Can I bring you something to drink while you’re waiting?”

“No thanks, I’m fine.”

When Angela finally came out Tom lightly embraced her at first then hugged her firmly, pulling her close.  She lightly brushed her lips against his.

“You’re so beautiful.  Is that the bruise from last night?"

"Does it look bad?"

"It's not too bad.  I only hope I won't get arrested for beating my girlfriend."

Angela pretended to slap him.

"I'm joking.  No one will see it unless you point it out to them in a bright light."

"Did you mean what you said about my being your girlfriend?"

"Of course."

When they looked into each other’s eyes time seemed to slow into a dreamlike pool of wordless awareness. 

“Well, are we going out?” She whispered quietly, seductively.

“What?”

“Are we going out now or would you like to sit for a while?” She asked putting her hand on his shoulder.

She led Tom to her sofa.

"First we should talk about what happened last night.  We must get things right about this.  It was terrible yet in a way it brings us closer in a very short time," Tom said.

"As you told me, I didn't call the police.  I owe my life to you.  My hero," she said with a warm smile hugging him close with her head on his shoulder.

Tom petted her hair.  It was still a little damp from her shower.  He breathed in the lavender scent of her shampoo.

"Do you trust me?  That I'm not a murderer just because I went too far and killed a man to rescue you?"

"Of course, I trust you."

"Can I trust you not to go to the police?"

"I don't want to get involved with long police procedures.  Besides, I wasn’t hurt much.  But you know what’s strange?  In the news on TV this morning there was no mention of a murder last night," she told him.

"I don't know why they wouldn't report it.  Maybe they haven’t found the body yet."

Walking out of her apartment and down the stairs Tom saw something approaching them from behind.  Angela turned to look when she saw him turn.

He distracted her by taking her hand.

“Where are we going?”

“McQuade’s Tavern, it’s quiet.  A lot of college students hang out there.  They have surprisingly good food for a fair price.  We can get to know each other a little better.  After dinner we can catch a movie if anything good is playing.”

Once at the tavern Tom opened the door for Angela.  A tall man, his eyes half closed from too much alcohol pushed passed them before she could enter.  Angered by the man’s rudeness Tom headed towards him in a rage.  In a way, it felt good to him.  The chance to hurt the man was exciting.

Angela stopped him.

“Let’s not let him ruin our time together,” she said gently squeezing his hand.

It took a moment for him to calm down.  The strange thing about the incident was how he overreacted.  It would have never bothered him so much before.

Tom led the way to a booth in the back of the tavern where they would not be disturbed.  He took a seat.  Angela sat next to him on the same side of the table.  She slid over and took his hand.  Their bodies made soft contact.  The warm comfort of her touch put him at ease.

“What would you like to drink?”  He asked.

“I don’t really drink much.  Most of the drinks burn my throat and taste bad.”

“How about trying a sweet wine?  It has a mild taste.  It may not be that good to a wine expert, but I like it.”

After a few glasses of wine and some food, their conversation became easy and open.  However, Tom was still visibly upset.

“Is something troubling you?  Why don’t you tell me what it is?  It might make you feel better to share it with me.  If not, just tell me it’s none of my business.  Was it what happened last night?”

“I’m not sure.”

“You don’t have to tell me all the details but maybe it will help us feel closer knowing we can trust each other.”

After another glass of wine, Tom decided to give her a general idea of his problem.

“I’m upset with this book I’m reading.  It has something to do with free will.  It claims there are powerful forces released when turning away from traditional spirituality.  It’s all nonsense, yet it bothers me.”

“It’s only a book.  So, stop reading it.  You’ll forget about it,” Angela said.

“It’s not just a book.”

He went on to tell her some of the details.

After another hour they were half finished with the second bottle of wine when he decided to let Angela in on a little more of his secret.

“Well, how can I explain it?  My thoughts, feelings; even my actions are somehow different.  Sometimes I feel something is following me urging me to do things I would never dream of doing before.”

They were silent for a moment before Angela spoke.

“When I used to go to church at Saint Michael’s I really loved Father Alphonsus.  He was kind and helpful when he heard my confessions.  Go have a talk with him.  Maybe he can help ease your mind.”

Tom felt Angela was the woman he was searching for his entire life.  He knew he was being overly romantic, maybe because of the wine but it was like being reunited with his long-lost soul mate.

Angela looked through her purse shuffling papers, looking for something.

“Here it is.  I have Father Alphonsus’ card.  He gave it to me when I was having some problems with an old boyfriend.  Take it.  Give him a call.  Tell him I sent you.  You have nothing to lose.”

Tom took the card to humor her.  He never intended to call this Father Alphonsus.

“It’ll be Halloween soon,” Angela said, trying to keep up the conversation.

“Do you like Halloween?  Do you get dressed up?” Tom asked.

“No.  I was curious to see if you liked it.”

“I think it’s for kids. We pretend at scary events where you can laugh afterwards is silly.  There’s nothing to laugh about with real life horrors like  wars and murders.  People are killing and torturing each other all over the world.”

“I didn’t mean to make you angry. I was only curious.  What about the other holidays coming up, Thanksgiving and Christmas?” Angela asked.

“My mom and dad passed away.  I’ve lost touch with the rest of the family, so I stayed home.  Sometimes I go to any restaurant that’s open then go home and watch TV.”

“We have a lot in common.  When my parents were divorced, I stayed with my aunt until I was old enough to be on my own.  We never got along.  Now I never hear from any of them.  I sometimes spend the holidays with a friend or stay home like you,” she said.

“We can spend the holidays together,” Tom said.

“I’d love that.  We can make them special.”

They talked about many things and the time went by quickly.  Before long, it was too late to see a movie.  Tom suggested she come by his apartment for coffee and more conversation.

When they stood up to leave Angela stumbled.  She grabbed on to Tom’s jacket to prevent an embarrassing fall.  Unaccustomed to drinking alcohol she could barely walk without leaning on him.  Tom intended to bring her safely back home after some coffee and time for the effects of the alcohol to wear off.

Once they were outside Tom thought he saw the strange dark shapes again.

Angela held on tight to Tom’s jacket.  She focused on not falling and did not notice how upset Tom was becoming.

He told himself it was only his imagination.  That it was the aftereffects of the wine combined with the nervousness of a first date.  What he wanted most now was to be free from the commitment he made to the book.

Tom turned his attention to helping Angela walk.  He almost had to carry her to his apartment.  She dragged and tripped over her own feet.  Once inside he sighed with relief.  They were now safe from the shadows of the night.

He sat her down on the sofa of his living room.  She seemed so helpless, so foolish to trust a man she hardly knew.  A wave of pure lust came over him.  All romantic caring feelings he had for her were gone.  This was so different from his usual personality.

“Angela, while the coffee is brewing would you like to try a bit of liquor?  It’s sweet orange in taste.  I'll mix it with some ice.  It’s very refreshing.  It may help wake you up,” he lied.

He poured the drink, fantasizing about being naked with Angela on the couch.  It was a normal healthy daydream, which soon turned into something unspeakably evil.  Little by little, they drank one glass after another until the fantasy turned into a hellish nightmare.

The lust raging through his body became uncontrollable.  Plans on how to dispose of her body after he raped her forced themselves into his mind.

Tom pressed his hands hard against his temples until the thoughts stopped.

When Angela passed out on the couch, he lost all control.

He rolled her on to the floor face down, loosened her belt and pulled her skirt down.  She wore a paper-thin red panty, which he pulled down with a quick tug.

He pulled up her blouse undid the back of her bra and turned her over onto her back.  Her breasts and soft nipples easily slipped out when he pulled down her bra.  Angela quietly moaned.

It was all happening too fast.  Tom imagined he was only watching himself in a porno movie not actually doing it.

“I love you, Tom.”

She did not in the least way resist.  But he could not go on with it.  He could not take advantage of the woman he loved.  He wanted her to be sober and willing not drunk and helpless.

“I love you too.  I’ll make you a little more comfortable.”

He gently put her perfect breasts back into her bra and fastened the back.  Her blouse, panties and skirt came back in place; Tom sat her on the couch and began massaging her feet.

“That feels so good…Tom…”  She sighed.

“I only want to make you happy,” he said.

“Tom, did I fall off the couch?”

“You fell alright.  I straightened your clothes.  Now we’ll have some coffee before I take you home.”

“You’re so good to me.”

“Not at all and I mean that.  I’m not good at all.”

 

When they finally made it back to her apartment Angela could not get her key into the door lock.  Tom opened the door.  He picked her up and carried her to her bed.

Angela loved the feel of Tom's muscular body as he lowered her onto the bed.  She wondered how he could be so strong yet so gentle.

"Why didn't you take advantage of me when we were in your apartment?"

"I'm not sure," Tom whispered as he sat on the edge of her bed.

It was all happening so quickly.  In only a few days, Angela was in love with him.  This frightened her.  She asked Tom again.

"You could have easily turned this into a..." Angela was not sure what to say next.

The bedroom was quiet for what was for her an uncomfortably long time.  She held back her tears.  She wondered if maybe she was not his type that he did not want to become too involved with her.

"I want to have a serious relationship with you, not some one-night stand," Tom said.

"Give me a kiss goodnight before you go," Angela whispered as she put her arms around him.