Chapter 4

ICHABOD

He had been sleeping peacefully quietly and peacefully in his bed when he immediately felt this sudden rush and fear in his spine. Quickly he woke up. He couldn’t explain the way his mind was rising and falling but he knew that she was in danger. Again...as always! No matter how much the other part of him wanted to ignore this danger signal, his beastly side would never let him rest without doing anything. 

He groaned. It was so damn difficult being two people at the same time but he couldn’t help it. It didn’t take him much time to figure out where and what was happening. Just to relax and pay attention was all that his other side required. His ears caught the cry for help and his brain calculated the distance. All that was left was for his super-fast legs to carry him there in a flash!

She was on the road quite alright and where she was in her car, it was just a matter of time before the trailer crushed her down. Quickly, he got into the truck, he tossed the driver to the other side as if he weighed nothing, then he pulled the stuck brakes with his might. 

When they were finally out and he got down from the truck, watching both the mother and child afar off, from the darkness, it took all his human strength from rushing towards her. The connection was too much. His beastly side could catch the delicious scent of her blood from where he stood-he could rush towards her now and bite her to regain his human strength, it was too easy. He had travelled through centuries and continents for this moment and he had it but his other nature, his human side...or at least what was left of his human nature was only looking at the poor innocent girl in her hand...who would take care of her?

His head was boiling as his beast side and human side fought each other-within him but far away, he picked the sound of a siren and taking one last look at the mother and child, he left in a flash, like he had come.

                                 ** 

“If you had listened to everything I told you that night, all this wouldn’t have happened. You are so stubborn and you need to start thinking not only about you but your daughter and....”

Vivian kept on and on where Harmony set in the living room of her mansion, starring into the cup of tea that the cook had brought her. She was quiet and absentminded. She was exhausted. Being so close to death had filled her with an emptiness that she hadn’t felt in a while.

The TV proudly displayed the picture of her and Tracy while the news man recounted the story of what had happened the previous night but as always, with a bit of exaggeration. That was the problem of being a celebrity, no part of your life would be hidden. 

“Are you sure you can stay here alone?” 

“I can stay here Vivian. Don’t worry about me.” Harmony replied.

Her friend shrugged and then frowned. “You said you saw another man at the scene?”

Harmony nodded. She was tired of thinking about it. “I could have sworn he saved our lives but it baffles me why he didn’t bother to say hi or to even say anything.”

“Maybe he was afraid that the police might think he had anything to do with the near-accident,” Vivian replied. “You said he got into a moving vehicle, how is that possible? You sure he wasn’t a ghost?”

Harmony sighed and stood up. “I have seen lots of things Vivi but I am not sure about this one.” She said, walking towards the door.

                                **

Minutes later, she was in the shower as the cold water washed down her naked body. The previous night kept flashing in her mind. The figure....that figure, she had seen it before but that was many years ago or perhaps it was just her imagination but how could she have dreamt so many times about a man and how could such a man now materialize in a real life? Was it even possible?  

The dreams she had had about him were the same. Everything in the dream was the same and it was on that story that she had become a famous actress. She had titled the movie “Doppelganger” and ever since the release of the movie which had been based on the series of the dreams she had had about this strange man, it had stopped.

 Right from when she was young, she knew there was this man who had always appeared only in her dreams but that was just in the dream ...the reason why she was a super star was because most of the movies she had produced had been a reflection of what she had experienced in her dreams. She had never really believed in the so called ‘guardian angel’ theory or ‘dream man’ theory or that there was something called, being two people in one body-that is a good side and an evil side. Everything that mattered to her was just Tracy and nothing else. But maybe she should think about the possibility of all this being unreal. 

Michael was the father of her child and they were not really together anymore. He was a football coach and he was barely around. They were not really divorced but they were not really together either. He actually never wanted Tracy but she made it clear to him that she was keeping Tracy. The last time she had seen him was about four months ago, other times was on the TV.

She turned off the tap and stepped out of the shower while tying her white towel around her. Since that night, she hadn’t gotten any sleep. Instead, she had spent the night, looking at Tracy while she slept peacefully without any worry in her mind.

“Babe, I will back later, need to get some things at the mall.” Vivian shouted from the living room.

“Okay.” She replied, cleaning her body with her towel before rubbing on some Body-cream and finally jumping into her bed.

She knew she was supposed to at least wear something, but she lay with just the towel on her. She was that tired.

Holding the remote control in her hand, she skimmed through the channels on the flat screen. She did this repeatedly until her eyes became heavy and she fell asleep, with just the towel on.

“You are so beautiful...” He said to her and she laughed. They were both in the dark together but they were on the bed and covered in a blanket. She was wrapped in his arms as he kissed every part of her body. Her body responded with every touch. She could smell his masculinity and it was turning her on. She wanted him really badly.

“You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” He whispered into her ears, nibbling on her ear lobe and she shivered with pleasure. His voice sounded like music to her ears, she was having the best time of her life. She turned her head and he leaned in. She could feel his breath on her neck. She has never felt so safe and happy. He kept playing around, breathing into her ears and she kept laughing...she arched against him while he slipped a hand around her to brace her weight...

“no, no, no...”

She could hear him say to himself.

“What is it?” She asked, unsure of what was happening. Instead, he turned her around forcefully, his wild scent now filling her nose and she shut her eyes, still not sure of what was happening.  He wouldn’t hurt her...she thought. But then he reared back and she opened her eyes just in time to say his shimmering red eyes.....

She screamed and woke up!