Chapter Seven
Happily for Melissa, by the time she drove back home that night, it was too late for her friends to still be up. Much to her relief, every light, in their cabins, was off. She was too tired, and too emotionally drained, to even consider a discussion with Kate and Julia. Melissa undressed herself in a hurry, and then tumbled into bed, in the hope that a descent into Morpheus’ arms would come quickly.
However, this hope was woefully unanswered. The ugliness that haunted her mind proved to be a formidable adversary, a foe much beyond her. Helena’s revelations had stunned her, but her vast surprise was not her biggest concern. In truth, Melissa was terrified. She came perilously close to getting involved with a human who had agreed to cut his lifespan in half. Falling for him could have disastrous consequences on her. She would die a young woman. More than that, Melissa was utterly disgusted with him. No matter his emotional state, Joe should not have sold his soul to a demon, regardless of the rewards. He shouldn’t have allowed his grief to cloud his judgment like that. In her mind, he should have endured the pain of his wife’s loss; tried to find love again later on; and lived an honest life. Joe’s action just proved one of the worst qualities of the human race: greed. Succumbing to it signified weakness, and Melissa did not care to search for a weak man like him.
Sunday morning found her still lying in bed, wide awake. Part of her desired to continue lying there, believing that, sooner or later, sleep would redeem her. Still, as Kate and Julia’s voices tore the silence, a bigger part of her wanted to get this heavy burden off her chest. Therefore, Melissa got up, and put some clothes on, eager to see her friends again.
“There she is!” Julia exclaimed, pointing up at her, as she headed towards the table in the yard. “Where were you last night?”
“Going through something…” Kate paused, as a sly smile burst upon her lips. “Hard, I guess. I mean, look at her. Does she look like she had much sleep?”
“I didn’t get any sleep,” Melissa pointed out, casting a fierce glare down at Kate. “Not because I had sex. I’m not in the mood for your sleazy comments.”
“Girl, what’s wrong?” Kate asked, leaning forward, her smile falling from her lips, as Melissa seated herself across from her. “How did your big date go?”
“Not so well,” Melissa responded, her voice riddled with sadness, as Julia poured coffee into a red mug. “He’s still in love with his wife. He blew me off, but, just when I was about to leave, he kissed me.”
“Ok, you lost me there,” Julia confessed, handing the mug over to her. “You guys kissed. I don’t know about you, but that’s good in my book.”
“First of all, he didn’t deny it,” Melissa went on, unable to banish the anger that deepened her voice. “Second of all, I went to Acheron River. I…” She sucked in a deep breath. “I ran into Helena. Apparently, dear old Joe got greedy, after his wife died. Our witch told me that he had cut some kind of deal with a demon, just to succeed as a lawyer.”
“Oh, God…” Julia sighed, tipping her head down, closing her eyes, as she shook her head in disapproval, whereas Kate merely dragged her gaze away from her. “I knew it. I knew there was something wrong with this guy. I mean, how many 29-year olds get to be on the cover of ‘Forbes’?”
“Kate, did you know about this?” Suspicion crept into Melissa’s voice, as she raised the mug to her lips.
“Yeah,” Kate gave a sad nod, returning her attention to her. “Helena and I talk almost every day. She paid me a visit on Friday night. We saw that blackness together, but she wouldn’t say anything to you, until she gathered some intelligence about him. I helped her out with that. God bless the internet.”
“I cannot believe this guy.” Melissa spoke through gritted teeth, as her face hardened. “What kind of man gives up his own soul for power?”
“My parents gave me up for power, in case you don’t remember,” Kate remarked, leaning her elbows on the table. “I believe Jimi Hendrix, the best guitarist in the world, put it more eloquently, back in the day: ‘When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.’”
“Pardon me if I’m wrong, but…” Julia faltered, as her mouth twitched in an ironic smile. “Didn’t people use to say that Hendrix had sold his soul to the devil, just to get famous?”
“People will always make up crazy theories about stuff they can’t understand,” Kate grumbled, furrowing her brow, as she glared at her friend. “Back in the sixties, they couldn’t get how he could have pioneered the use of the electric guitar the way he did. Music is all about practice and experimentation. You can have all the musical talent in the world. Without practice, it’s just useless. Jimi played the guitar for hours on end. That’s how he got to play so much faster and better than everyone else.”
“Such a waste,” Melissa sighed, leaning her back against her chair. “The guy’s doomed, and he’s got no one to blame but himself.”
“Remedy…” Kate murmured, raising her eyebrow.
“Remedy?” Melissa squinted at her.
“Never mind,” Kate waved her hand in front of her face. “Too bad Monica’s on call tonight. You guys are coming to my gig, right?”
“Of course,” Julia chirped, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “I haven’t seen you perform in weeks.”
“Thanks, but ‘no, thanks,’” Melissa said, lowering her gaze from Kate. “I don’t feel like going out.”
“I’m not going to leave you to sulk here,” Kate retorted with a little force in her voice, leaning towards Melissa. “You need to take your mind off things. Have some fun for a change.”
“The witch is right,” Julia claimed, nodding at the same time. “Come on, Mel. Don’t tell me you haven’t missed that sexy little voice.”
“I have,” Melissa admitted, as her lips curved into a hesitant smile. “It’s just…”
“I’m not hearing this,” Kate interrupted, her voice stiff. “You’re coming. End of story.”
Melissa chose silence over coming up with a rebuttal. She wasn’t interested in finding any more excuses. She had to put the entire incident with Joe behind her. Of course, spending the night in New York was not to wipe it out of her memory, but it was a good first step. Kate’s concert was a fantastic motive to leave Paxton; yet, it was not the only reason for her to visit the big city. The three of them would then go to her friend’s apartment, and that meant drinks, laughs and quality time together. Melissa’s brothers would be too far away to interrupt them. She would not pass on an opportunity like that, in spite of her mood.
“Help me forget, guys. Help me laugh. I’ve never needed it more than I do now.”