The Shadows - Chapter 1 (revamped)

She pulled into the garage and sat in her car for a few minutes just trying to unwind from the day. Rain hitting the side of her house sounded like popcorn. Thunder and lightning filled the sky. She went inside, dropped her keys and purse on the kitchen counter and headed for the bathroom. She needed a nice hot shower to wash away the remnants of the day.

         Standing naked in front of the mirror, she stared at her reflection. The scars of her life stood out against the light tan color of her skin. Her scars stay covered most of the time, but her most hidden scars are on the inside. Scars from being teased while she was growing up, from learning about bad decisions the hard way, from the abuse of her previous life are all over her heart, soul and mind. She blocked out most of her childhood and the rest just seemed like a bad dream. These are the scars turned her into a heartless bitch. 

           She stood under the falling water of the shower, lost in her own little world, for what seemed like forever. Once in her favorite pajamas, she crawled under the covers and turned on the TV. She flipped through the channels to find something that would put her to sleep.

A short time later, she woke with a strange feeling. She sat up in bed and listened to the noises of the storm outside. The soft patter of rain drops fell against the roof and windows. After snuggling back down into her blankets, she heard a voice say something. At first she could not make out what it was saying, just a soft murmur in her ear. She tried to focus on what the voice was saying as it got louder.

“You are not alone. I will always be here,” said the voice.

         “I am going crazy,” she thought as she shook her head.          

Then all was silent and she fell asleep again. During her slumber she dreamed of being lost in a crowd of people. No one knew her name, where she was from, or anything about her. Everyone was afraid of her for some reason. They would not look her in the eye or smile at her. The people in the crowd shied away when she tried to talk to them. She walked through the crowd to a small cottage on a beach. There was an old woman on the porch. The old woman waved for the girl to come to her. She walked over to the cottage and looked down at the woman. The woman motioned for Delilah to sit down in an old wicker rocking chair. Delilah sat and waited for the old woman to say something.

         “You have had a rough life, my child. One that has taught you many things,” she said.

         “What are you talking about,” Delilah asked.

         “You have been mistreated by many. You must follow where the darkness leads.”

         “Follow the darkness?”

         “Be wary, young one. There is someone looking for you,” said the old woman.

         Delilah opened her mouth to say something but there was only a loud beep, beep, beep. It was her alarm clock but she could not remember turning it on. She was off work for the next three days so she knew that it wasn’t time to get up. As she reached over and shut it off, she noticed that was 3:05 in the morning. The moon was shining through her window; pale silver light peeked through the tiny gaps in her blind. She rolled over and tried to go back to sleep.

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         It was a cool evening as Delilah walked down the sidewalk from the parking garage to the club. Her black leather dress was short enough to show her ass if she bent over. It laced up the sides. The front had a peek-a-boo hole in the chest. Her black leather boots had 4-inch heels. She let her long brown hair hang down to her waist in waves. She had lined her gray eyes with black eyeliner and added some silver eye shadow for sparkle. Red lip stick stained her lips.

         She could feel that she was being watched the moment she walked into the club, but she was ready. The dim light and the smoky atmosphere did not hide the uneasy feeling she got as she walked to the bar. The music from the band was loud and she had to shout to give her drink order to the bartender, a Bloody Mary.

         “Hey, gorgeous,” said a guy with more metal in his face than a kid with braces.

         “Uh, hi,” said Delilah.

         “Name is Maximus, but you can call me Max,” he said as he bowed. “What do they call you?”

“My name is none of your business, and please don’t call me, ever, “said Delilah as she turned and walked away.

“Ow, that was harsh.”

“Not as harsh as what is going to happen next if you don’t leave me alone.”

Delilah kept walking to a small table in the corner of the club and sat down with her drink.  She watched the door as she sipped her Bloody Mary, waiting for Dane to show up. The loud music and flashing lights were not helping her focus on what she needed to say to Dane. She had rehearsed the conversation many times that day but was still unsure how her best friend was going to react to what she had to say.

“Well, hello gorgeous. Did you order a drink for me,” asked Dane as he slipped in next to her at the table.

“Um, no. I did not order you a drink but when you order yours you can get me another,” said Delilah as she pushed her empty glass to the middle of the table.

“Wow, that’s what I get for being at your beck and call lately?”

“Sorry, Dane. I have had a rough couple of days. Get me a drink and I will tell you all about it.”

Dane walked to the bar and ordered a whiskey and Coke and another Bloody Mary for Delilah. As he stood waiting for the bartender to finish mixing the Bloody Mary, he looked over at his friend. She was sitting at the table picking at her napkin, looking like the world had come crashing down on her. He turned his head back to the bartender before Delilah noticed him staring.

“Why doesn’t she see me the way I see her? I know I could make her happy if she would just let me try,” Dane thought to himself.

As he walked back over to the table with the drinks, a young woman with long bleached blond hair and very large breasts grabbed his ass. He turned and gave her his best “How are you?” smile. He winked at her and turned back toward Delilah, who had not missed the ass-grab or the smile and wink.

“Are you serious? You meet me here for drinks and then start hitting on all the fake blonds in the bar,” Delilah scoffed.

“Hey, she grabbed my ass and last I checked I was still on the market. Unless…you want to claim ownership of this fine ass,” Dane said as he handed Delilah her Bloody Mary.

“So, I had the dream again last night. I am beginning to think it is a sign for something,” said Delilah.

“Oh yeah, and what would it be a sign for? Are you going to turn into an evil witch or something?”

“Come on, Dane. Be serious. Follow the darkness. What do you think that is supposed to mean?”