The Remembering

Chapters 14 thru 22

Chapter Fourteen
New Orleans 2010

Danyka packed her bag into her beloved 1972 Ford Bronco. She was going home. She had been working offshore for the last month and was looking forward to the time off. She could not wait to go home.

"Hey, Brock. You wanna go grab a beer before shoving off?"

Danyka looked over and saw Jack, who worked in her crew, standing with a bunch of other men from the same crew. He called her Brock, which was short for her last name, Lodbrock. She shook her head. "No, thanks. I really wanna start heading back. Maybe before our next shift if we got the time. Alright?"

Jack smiled. "Sounds good. See ya."

Danyka smiled and waved them off as she got into her truck and drove off. She would be home in a day with any luck. She thought about Boston with a smile. She couldn't wait. It was summer and she had nearly a whole month of off time. She still didn't know where she came from, but it didn't seem to matter anymore. Tanner and Abigail were her family. Cora was her sister and Liam was like a brother. She had Aunt Alice and her husband Uncle Vince, the twins, Declan and Delaney. What more could she ask for?

The fateful weekend turned into a wonderful life for Danyka. Tanner and Abigail accepted her as one of their own. She went to school with Liam and Cora, grew up with them. Sometimes she would get the feeling like something was missing. But she would usually just shrug it off and just be happy with what she had. The nightmares had subsided and were almost nonexistent since that time with Logan and his friends. Until recently. The nightmares had reappeared almost every night since her 21st birthday. She didn't know what that was supposed to mean. She hadn't hovered or made her eyes go white since that time with the Andersons. She wasn't even sure she could do that anymore.

It didn't matter though. She was Danyka Lodbrock. She graduated high school at 16 and went straight into trade school as a welder. She finished trade school when she was eighteen and got work on a rig almost right away. She apprenticed as an underwater welder for six months and soon became the youngest underwater welder. She was good at her job. She still did a little artwork welding, but this is what she loved to do. It was most likely because of the adrenaline rush. It was dangerous work. Between sharks, electric shock and hypothermia or drowning, it gave the job an edge. An edge that she seemed to always need.

Danyka shook her head. It was great she was going home. She missed everyone. She wondered if Cora would be home for the summer yet. Cora was going to medical school in New York. She was going to make her mark. Liam followed in his father's footsteps and became a cop. He just made detective last year. She was so proud of him.

She drove through the night and as the sun began to rise, she pulled over for just a moment to appreciate it. She let her hair down out of the bun she had it in and let it cascade down her back. She kept it long even with her work. She was 5'9'' with a tall curvy frame. She was told once that she had a body that would make Amazonian women jealous. Men constantly wanted to get with her. She just wasn't interested in any of them. Ever since that time with Logan and his friends, she just couldn't seem to take that step into a physical relationship with a guy. She was okay being friends with them. She worked in a male dominated field. She had to be okay to work around them. She shook her head. She didn't know when she would be ready. She knew Cora has had sex. She told her all about it this past spring break. She wondered if she and that guy were still together. Cora seemed happy.
Danyka worried at the star and blue crystal necklace that she wore around her neck. She felt like she was always waiting for something to happen. She didn't know what, but by the feeling she kept getting in her stomach lately, she had a feeling she wasn't going to have to wait much longer.