It was a late autumn night and she was hurrying through a darkened forest. If the head priestess found out that she had sneaked out of the temple for this rendevous, she would certainly be thrown out of the order. But it was worth the risk.
When she had seen him pass by the temple with his regiment, returning from the battle, she knew she had to meet him. It had been so many months since she had seen him last and she had spent all that time waiting for this day.
She heard a twig snap and was startled. But her fears vanished when she saw him emerge from behind a clump of bushes. She ran forward to greet him with a passionate embrace, happy that this moment had finally arrived.
Eileen tried to keep her eyes closed and hold on to the dream she was having, but it was no use. The morning sunlight was already shining brightly through her window and whether she wanted to be or not, she was awake now.
Groggily, she stretched and pulled herself out of bed. She was having the best dream, but she couldn't remember what it was about exactly. For a moment, Lawrence's face crept into her mind, but she quickly dismissed the thought. The dream hadn't been about Lawrence, had it?
As she crossed the room to get dressed, she looked at the clock. She had overslept again.
Eileen was too late to make it to her first class, but she decided to head over to the campus anyway to make sure she arrived on time for her second class of the day. She had some time to spare, so she dropped by the student union.
"Hey, Eileen. Where have you been hiding? I haven't seen you around lately?" her friend Joseph asked.
"I've been busy," she replied vaguely with a teasing smile.
"Too busy to talk to me?" another guy asked with a pout as her male friends started to gather around.
Eileen laughed. "Yes, I've really been that busy."
"Hey, the Kappas are having a big party this weekend. You'll make time for that right."
"I'll try," Eileen promised.
When Eileen saw Lucy walk in, she said goodbye to her admirers and crossed the room to say hello to her friend.
"I see you're not lacking for company," Lucy teased.
Eileen just smiled and shrugged and waved at one of the guys who was leaving. "What else is new?"
"I'm on my own this week," Lucy sighed. "I gave Jordan some time off to help his sister move. It's odd, all this time he's been working for me and I just realized I don't really know anything about him other than the great work he does. I'm so glad I found him."
"It was Craig's idea to hire someone, wasn't it?"
"Yeah," Lucy said slowly, wondering why Eileen would mention that.
"How are things Craig?" Eileen asked.
"Fine. He's still touring for his music, but we talk on the phone a lot."
"I was just wondering. You haven't said much about him. Lately it's been all about Jordan."
"So?" Lucy asked, defensively. "Why wouldn't I talk about someone who I see on a daily basis? He's just been very helpful."
"Alright," Eileen said, letting the subject drop.
"Anyway, I'm glad someone was there when your dad decided to come over to yell at me on Saturday."
"What?" Eileen asked, surprised.
"He was mad that I decided to drop the lawsuit against the hospital. But I don't want any money. I just want to see whoever is responsible pay for what they've done."
"Are there any new leads?" Eileen asked. When Lucy shook her head, Eileen had a suggestion. "Maybe there's something I can do to help."
Lucy laughed. "Are you going to become a detective now?"
"No, I've just been reading about how psychics can help solve crimes. I was thinking that we should try a seance. If we can contact your father's spirit maybe he can tell us how he died."
Lucy paled, feeling very uncomfortable with the idea. "No," she shook her head. "I don't want to do anything like that."
"Thank you for meeting with me today," Arthur greeted Reese. "I'm sorry that our case was dropped."
"It's alright," Reese replied. "That happens all the time."
"Have there been any new leads in the investigation?"
"Not really. The police have some fingerprints taken at the scene of the crime. There's one set that's unaccounted for, but without any suspects to match them to, they aren't very helpful."
"I suppose not." Arthur agreed. "There was something else I wanted to ask you. Is there any possibility of going ahead with the lawsuit without Lucy?"
Reese thought it over a moment. "I suppose it's possible, but given the situation, I don't think it's likely that we could win."
Arthur shook Reese's hand as she walked to the door. "Well, thank you anyway, Ms. Boroughs."
As Reese walked through the lobby, she heard someone call her name. She turned around to see Blaine walking towards her.
"Hi," he greeted her with a smile. "I'm glad I caught you before you left."
"It's nice to see you again," she responded politely.
"I wanted to tell you I had a nice time the other night."
"So did I. It was fun."
"Great," Blaine smiled nervously. "Maybe we could do it again sometime."
"Oh," Reese said hesitantly. She was worried this would happen. "I appreciate the offer, but I don't think that will be possible. I'm sorry."
"Oh, ok," Blaine replied, trying not to seem disappointed. "I guess I'll just see you around then . . .at the office."
"Sure. Goodbye," Reese said before she turned and left.
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