In the Dark of Night: Book One of the Dark Series

Chapter Thirty-eight

Tommy watched as Nikolas opened the door for Dawn. He saw her smile at him and lightly caress his arm. He heard Nikolas laugh as he carefully closed her door. He looked away as Nikolas leaned over to kiss her and looked again as the engine roared and they drove away. Someday, Tommy thought.

Someday, he'd have a girl with eyes only for him. And maybe someday, he'd have a nice car to drive her around in. They'd hold hands, laugh at private jokes and share sweet kisses. Someday. But not today. Today, he had to do something about getting his mother back. Once she was back safe and sound, then his someday could begin.

Tommy headed for the sidewalk. His mind on finding the guys with the guns. After he had the guns, he would formulate a plan to go back into hell and make it burn.

As he rounded the corner, he was surprised to see his cousin and a guy rushing toward him.

"Tommy!" Lizzie said, smiling at him. The boy from the other night stood silently beside her, watching him.

"Hi, Lizzie," Tommy said with a smile. After their talk, he felt a closeness to her that he'd only ever felt with his mother.

"Tommy, this is Lucky," she said.

"Hi," Tommy said, feeling wary.

"Hey, man, what's up," Lucky replied.

Tommy shrugged and Lizzie continued, "I had the afternoon off, and I thought we could hang out."

"Oh...um...I was on my way somewhere..." Tommy began.

"We could walk with you. Besides, I wanted to talk to you about something, and it would be better if we weren't in the house," she said.

Tommy didn't plan on having company, but he sighed and said, "Okay."

They walked in a silence for a few minutes until Lucky said, "Listen, man, I'm sorry about the other night. I thought you were a burglar."

"It's okay," Tommy said quietly.

A few more minutes of silence passed. Out of the corner of his eye, Tommy saw Lucky nudge Lizzie. Then, she spoke.

"We want to help you get your mom back."

"No," Tommy said.

"Why not?" Lucky asked.

"It's too dangerous. I won't be able to do what I need to if I'm watching out for you two," he answered.

"You won't have to watch out for us. I know how to take care of myself and Elizabeth's pretty resourceful, too," Lucky replied.

While the two young men went back and forth, Lizzie noticed their surroundings. They were heading for the seamy side of town and Tommy was purposefully leading them there.

"Where are we going?" Lizzie asked.

Tommy stopped and took a good long look at them. They said they wanted to help but did either of them really understand what that meant. Were they ready? Could he really trust them, he wondered.

~*~

"I don't think this is a good idea."

Dawn looked at Nikolas and saw that he was deep in thought. She wondered if he realized that he spoke aloud. She placed her hand on his as it rested on the gear shift.

"What's not a good idea?" she asked softly.

"Lunch with your family," he answered. He had been going over it in his mind since she mentioned it in the catacombs. He wanted to go to make her happy, but his instinct told him that it wasn't right. Not yet.