By Carmen Wright
Chapter One
Elana plunked down the messy plates, wrinkling up her nose at the soy sauce, soggy broccoli and rice smeared along the edge of her hand.
Jimmy, the young guy who ran the dishwasher, stood enraptured. The spray nozzle he used to rinse off the dishes pumped a steady stream of water straight up in the air like a fountain.
“Hello? Jimmy?” Elana repeated. “The wand. Can you pass it to me, please?”
When he still didn’t move, Elana cautiously reached out and grabbed onto the spray wand. It took a few tugs back and forth before Jimmy actually released it from his white knuckled grip.
After wrestling the snaking wand into submission, Elana started to rinse the rice gunk from her hand. As she did, she could feel Jimmy leaning closer to her, pressing his arm against her side. She cringed. She knew he wouldn’t dare try to grab her, but if she didn’t hurry, he’d soon tip them both over with his ‘accidental’ leaning.
Shaking the water frantically from her hand, Elana used the spray nozzle to push him away. “Um, thanks Jimmy.”
Jimmy opened his mouth, but couldn’t speak. This seemed a good opportunity to make a break for it, so Elana slipped past him and headed for the swing doors leading back out to the restaurant. The second she started to push on the door, Jimmy snapped out of it.
“You’re, uh, welcome, Elana,” he choked out.
She paused, her damp fingers poised. If there was one thing Elana understood, it was that you never knew when someone would come in handy. Even a dishwasher like Jimmy. So, with a toss of her wavy red hair, Elana turned and smiled at Jimmy. His face gleamed. Point scored. He’d continue to give her anything she wanted.
Elana gave her hips an exaggerated swing and pushed through the door. By the time it swished closed behind her, she was ready for the next guy, with her brows furrowed and her raspberry pink lip-glossed lips pouting.
“Burke,” she said, leaning over the edge of the counter, lazily swinging one foot in the air behind her. “Can I have my salads for Table 14 right away? And can you put the dressing on the side? I forgot to ring that in.”
Burke looked up. “Sure, Elana,” he said with a grin and in one fluid motion, he reached up, switched her ticket ahead of two others and finished off by giving the salad he was preparing a toss of parmesan cheese.
“I owe you,” she promised.
“I’ll collect,” Burke shot back. Elana wandered further along the service counter to grab a pot of coffee. “One of these days…”
“Sure you will,” the other cook said while fussing over a few pieces of chicken cooking on the grill. He called over to Elana, jabbing his chest, spatula waving. “I get to collect first, right Elana?”
“What was that?” Elana said, pretending to miss what was said.
Burke leaned forward across the counter. “Just that one day, you’re gonna have to pay up, and that day’s coming real soon.”
“How exciting,” Elana said slyly, but as soon as she turned her head, she rolled her eyes. As if.
Returning to her section, she topped off the coffee at Table 12. The man at Table 15, who watched her with his dark eyes far too intensely as far as she was concerned, finally ordered a drink.
Elana collected a bill from Table 13 and wandered over to a nearby terminal to key in the drink order from Table 15. She glared down on her customers. The two skinny rich girls discussing their latest diet at Table 14. The disgusting old guy smacking his lips while he ate at Table 16.
She was better than all this, she just knew it. She just needed to figure out how.
**
Rain soaked the pavement and ran along the road in tiny rivers. Darkness had settled quickly, as it always did during the winter months and even though the streetlights reflected off the wet surfaces, it didn’t help anyone to see any better.
Elana cowered under her thin blue jacket as she hurried up the hill. Icy water seeped in under the soles of her feet making her platform sandals slippery and twice she slid sideways off the heels.
As the chill crept through her body, Elana couldn’t help wondering what would happen if she didn’t make it up the hill from the bus stop to her house. If she collapsed on the side of the street from the cold, or from a twisted ankle, no one at home would be waiting, wondering about her. Except maybe her mom’s latest boyfriend. He’d miss her. Or rather, he’d miss leering at her. Her mom, on the other hand, would probably celebrate. No more Elana to compete with for attention.
Elana tilted her face upward, closed her eyes and felt the rain running off her cheeks, down her neck, and under the collar of her shirt. She spun on the spot, the wind hitting her from all angles.
Take me, icy rain, bitter wind, take me from this place, to a better place, where I am loved, she thought, as she spun faster and faster. But when she stopped spinning, the rain still fell and the wind still blew. And she still had another ten blocks to go to get home. All up hill.
Elana teetered on her sandals. Ahead, the street was empty. No rescuer there. Yet, she did have a strange feeling she was no longer alone. Unfortunately, it wasn’t an exciting, happy sort of feeling. She slowly turned to look over her shoulder. A car sat part way through the intersection behind her, it’s engine humming. Her stomach felt sick. This couldn’t be good.
When the car inched forward and turned towards her, Elana hurried up the sidewalk. She only made it up to the first driveway, where the house stood in darkness, before the car pulled up alongside her. Tires crunched in the gravel as it slowed.
Best pretend it’s got nothing to do with me, she told herself, as she kept on moving. It’s only 7:30. Maybe the guy is only pulling over to park after a day at work. Or maybe it’s not a guy at all. It could be a mom bringing her kids back from another rainy Vancouver soccer practice. Not likely, but maybe.
The passenger side power window hummed down. Elana gritted her teeth. So much for that idea. No soccer mom would ever pull over to talk with her.
“Hey, Elana, can I give you a lift?”
She closed her eyes. If the driver knew her, maybe it would be okay after all. Maybe. Taking a deep breath, Elana leaned over to better see the driver. She could make him out in the dim from the dashboard.
“Hey, Burke,” she said, giving him a false smile. “You know, if you wanted to give me a ride home, I wish you would’ve brought it up at work. It’s a bit late now. I’m almost home.” She wiggled her fingers goodbye and tried to look calm as she continued up the sidewalk.
Burke kept driving his car alongside her as she walked. “Elana, it’s pouring out. You’re going to get soaked.”
“I already am soaked.”
“This is crazy,” he said. “Just get in the car. Let me take you home.”
Elana brushed him off with a wave of her hand. Burke seemed like such a nice guy, but talk about persistent. True, he did say earlier she’d have to pay up at some point. Did he really follow her home to see it through?
Suddenly, Burke slammed the car into park, threw open his car door and jumped out into the rain. Elana’s stomach leapt into her throat. She dropped her bag loaded with work clothes and bolted. As she struggled along in her heels, Burke caught up and grabbed her by the arm.
She tried to pull out of his grasp, dragging him a few feet along the sidewalk, but he managed to keep his grip. Burke was a tall guy, and built like a hockey player. She’d never be able to fend him off physically.
“Let go of me! What are you doing, stalking me?”
Burke didn’t let go. In fact, he pulled her even closer to better strengthen his hold. “Stalking you? Now that’s a laugh. How could I miss you? You were spinning around by the side of the road like a lunatic!”
Elana clenched her jaw and pushed her chin up. Rain ran down her face. “So what. That doesn’t mean anything.”
“Oh, you usually dance around the streets on stormy nights?”
“If I’d known you were lurking around, I’d have waited for another occasion.” She glared at him, still twisting her arm to try to loosen his intense grip.
Up close like this, Burke sure didn’t look like his normal laid-back self. His typically tousled blond hair had been tamed into a neat style, which was getting ruined in the rain. And was that really a tie he was wearing under his jacket?
“Okay. Whatever.” Burke brushed the rain from his forehead with the back of his free hand. “Look, I’ve got an interview I need get to, but I can’t leave you out here. It’s not safe on a night like this.”
“The only thing that isn’t safe for me, is you!” Elana tried stomping on Burke’s foot with her sandal.
Burke grabbed her other shoulder and gave her a shake. “Do you know how crazy this is?”
Someone murmured over her shoulder, his voice creeping along the back of her neck. “How very true.”
Elana gasped and spun around. Through her water-laden eyelashes, she could barely make out a man, looming in the shadows of a tall hedge near the side of the road. His long dark hair whipped around his face in the wind. “Considering her reaction though, Burke, perhaps Elana would rather leave with me.”
Elana pressed back against Burke’s chest. She could feel his muscles tense, just as hers had.
“I don’t think so,” Burke said.
“We should let Elana decide what she wants.” The man lifted his hand out from the darkness as though he were about to escort her to a dance. A huge ring he wore pulsed and glowed. “Elana, you made a wish just a few moments ago. Do you remember it?”
Burke started to back them away. “Forget it, Elana. Let’s get in the car.”
Elana knew she should listen to Burke, but something about the man’s voice and accent seemed familiar. And how could he know what her thoughts were?
“You wished you could go somewhere, away from this place,” the man said, taking a step forward into the dull glow of the streetlight. Elana’s breath caught in her throat. There, with the same intense expression on his face, the same dark eyes, stood the man from Table 15.
He lunged forward, reaching for Elana. She screamed and shot out her own hand to hold him off, but that didn’t help at all. He grabbed tight to her fingers. The glow from his ring became a bright beam of blue light.
Burke tightened his grip around Elana’s waist. “What the -?”
The man simply smiled, and flipped his palm up. The blue beam from the ring burst into a flash of light and Elana felt herself get sucked into the explosion.
… end chapter one
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