Born to Fight

Chapter 8

Celeste

When we arrived back at the house, I let Loki inside from where he had been in the backyard, hanging out with Freeze, before slowly making my way up to my bedroom. I got out of the now wet clothes that I had worn to the funeral, and pulled on a pair of black yoga pants and a dark green cashmere sweater, then I pulled on a pair of woolen socks before climbing onto my bed.

I had been in my room for a while laying on my bed with Loki, slowly running over everything in my head, but my thoughts kept coming back to the man I had seen near the tree. There was something about him that I couldn’t quite put my finger on, and it was really starting to bother me. My thoughts on what had happened at the funeral were bordering on obsessive, even I could see that. And obsessing on the man I had seen near the tree like I was, I knew it was only a matter of time before I gave myself a headache and drove myself crazy.

I was still laying on my bed when Jamie knocked on the door at some point. I looked out the window and saw that it was just starting to get dark. It was still raining quite heavily outside, and I could hear the thunder in the distance. The weatherman was right. We were going to get a storm. Loki lifted his head and looked towards the door at the sound of Jamie entering the room. When Loki saw Jamie, he gently wagged his tail.

“How are you holding up?” he asked, looking at me in concern.

“I’m okay,” I replied, shrugging like it was no big deal that I had just buried my mother. I didn't want him worrying about me any more then he already was. Knowing that he was worried about me only made me feel like a burden.

Jamie came over to me and sat on the edge of the bed. “Celeste, if there is something wrong, you know you can talk to me, right?” he asked. 

Deciding that I clearly wasn't fooling him and he clearly knew something was bothering me, I decided to come clean.

“I saw a man today, at the funeral. I can’t stop thinking about him. He just seemed so out of place there. You know, the way he was acting, like some kind of voyeur, it was weird, like suspicious or something? I don’t know, maybe I am just being stupid, or going crazy,” I replied, shrugging in defeat. Honestly, my mind was so jumbled that I didn't even know if the words that I was saying were even making sense to him at this point. Saying the words out loud, had me realizing just how foolish they sounded. Maybe I was losing my mind. Or maybe I just needed sleep.

“No, don’t dismiss it or second guess yourself. Talk to me. This man, where was he standing?” Jamie asked.

“He was over near the big tree, behind where we were standing for the service,” I replied.

“Okay, well what did he look like?” Jamie asked.

“Tall, black hair, he was wearing black cargo pants and a black turtleneck, but since he was so far away   from us, I didn't actually get a good look at his face,” I told him, hearing the edge creep into my voice. Not being able to make out his features was bugging me. The guy could have been anybody. I could pass him in the street and not even realize it. 

Jamie was quiet for a moment, and when I looked at him, he had a strange expression on his face that I had never seen before.

“What is it?” I asked, starting to feel worried.

“I need to talk to Josh,” he replied.

“No, Jamie, don’t do this, please don't shut me out. If you know something, you need to tell me, please don't shut me out,” I said, sitting up and looking at him.

“Celeste, please trust me,” he replied. “I will be back in a moment, then we will talk,” he told me before standing up and making his way towards the door.

He walked out the door without so much as a backward glance, leaving me feeling alone and confused. A moment after he had left my room, I got up off my bed and quietly made my way towards the door. I put my ear to the door listening for any telltale movements outside, alerting me to someone's presence. Hearing none, I quietly opened the door looking down the hallway. Loki was standing by my side watching me curiously. Seeing no one in the hallway, I made my way over to the stairs. Peering over the railing and seeing no movement on or around the stairs, I started silently making my way down the stairs. I was about halfway down the stairs when I heard voices coming from in the kitchen. Even though I knew it was wrong, I sat on the stairs, Loki by my side, and listened to Josh and Jamie's conversation.