Manhunt (11 page)

She started dating Sebastian almost a year after Michael left, and although he had asked her several times, she refused to move in with him. She’d also turned down at least two proposals that she could recall. She remembered happy times with him. No matter how late he had worked, he would drive her all over town when he got off as she delivered wedding cakes and get-well-soon cookie baskets for her customers. He never complained once. They liked to watch football on Sunday afternoons. They’d root for the Steelers, yell at the referees and eat chicken wings and day-old cupcakes she would bring home from work. They got along great. In fact, the only fights she could ever remember having with him after high school were about her inability to commit.

At least, those were the only fights they had had when he’d been sober. The problem was that the days where he was sober became increasingly few and far between. She remembered several arguments she had with a drunken Sebastian, usually about Michael. He was always the ghost in the room. Sebastian assumed Michael was the reason she refused to marry him. Nikki was beginning to think he was right. He would get angry, screaming and breaking things. He would force her to sleep with him to prove her affections. Michael said she would call him crying, but then would turn around and make excuses for Sebastian. He felt helpless and responsible, but Nikki didn’t blame him. It seemed she held onto the good things about Sebastian and forgave way too many bad.

She remembered Sebastian backhanding her across the face in a drunken rage. That had been the straw that broke the camel’s back. The force of the blow had cut the inside of her cheek on her teeth so badly she needed stitches. Her hand flew to her cheek instinctively just thinking about it. Christian came to her rescue and threatened to kill Sebastian if he ever touched Nikki again. He took her to the hospital, and Dr. Brennan held her hand when she filed for the restraining order. She swore she’d never let him hurt her again. She loved Michael’s mom, but wasn’t about to put up with what that poor woman had. Nikki knew in her heart she was stronger than that.

She learned a lot about Michael during that time, too. He’d admitted, once again, that he never stopped loving her. He didn’t want to talk about how his parents died, but he told her after they did, he’d withdrawn inside himself. No matter what anyone did to try and snap him out of it, it didn’t work. He’d felt like a burden and a plague, and he lashed out at whomever was nearest, which was usually Nikki. Finally, he’d realized he needed to get his act together and try and step out of their shadows and make something of himself. He said he wanted to be worthy of her love. That’s when he left her to go to college and become a doctor. She couldn’t say she agreed with his decision, but she respected it.

She learned he had a wicked sense of humor, the tattoo on his bicep was the date his parents died in roman numerals, and he loved animals almost as much as she did. He’d pulled off to the side of the road once just to help a mama duck and her babies cross without getting run over. She wished she could have taken a picture of him bent over, trying to tap the last chick on the bottom repeatedly as he coaxed it off the blacktop and in the direction of the pond on the other side.

She found herself completely forgetting the situation they were in, the things he had done. She was too busy enjoying singing along to The Beatles, remembering little snippets of her past life, sharing chili-cheese fries with Michael and drinking root beer as he hustled another day’s wages. After he’d played anyone willing to offer up a wager, he and Nikki would play for fun. She hadn’t beat him yet, but she was determined to someday.

Michael had been pocketing some of the money he made, not counting it towards their daily budget. Nikki finally figured out why when Michael pulled up to a giant sign which read, “Welcome to the Happiest Place on Earth.”

Chapter 11

“Oh, my God! You brought me to Disney World?!” Nikki bounced up and down in her seat like an eight-year-old girl at Christmas, and Michael laughed at her exuberance.

“Do you remember the last time we tried to run away and go to Disney World?” he asked.

Nikki only had to think for a minute before the memory came back to her.

“I do! We really thought we could just walk there. We packed some clothes in our backpacks, and I had my Mickey Mouse doll under my arm. You had climbed up on the counter to get us some fruit roll-ups as a snack to eat on the way when your mom walked in and caught us. She felt bad that she couldn’t take us there for real, I think. Instead, she made us Mickey-shaped cookies and strawberry smoothies and watched Disney movies with us.” Nikki’s smile dimmed a little. “I wish she could be here with us now.”

Michael smiled sadly, and Nikki instantly regretted her words. Michael pulled Nikki into his arms and kissed the top of her head. He whispered into her hair “She is” and he sounded like he believed it. Nikki brushed her fingertips over his tattoo and he shivered. She slowly ran her fingers down his arm and took him by the hand. The giddy smile returned full force as she tugged him towards the Monorail.

“Well then, come on! It’s time to have some fun!” Michael chuckled and jogged a step or two to catch up with her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as they quickly walked to the station. “Do you think I’ll get to meet Donald Duck?”

Michael bought their tickets. Nikki ran through the turnstiles, barely able to contain her excitement. She gasped when she rounded the bend in the tunnel that opened on to Main Street USA. Mary Poppins stood on the sidewalk, signing autographs and posing for pictures. “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah” played in the background. The air smelled of cotton candy and popcorn. It was perfect.

Nikki looked around at the throngs of people and suddenly got scared. She pulled Michael by the sleeve so his ear was by her mouth and whispered, “What if somebody recognizes us?”

He put his lips to her ear and whispered back, “Relax, Sunshine. What better place for a needle to hide than in a haystack?” He kissed the shell of her ear and laughed when he made her giggle. He took her by the hand and off they went.

The most amazing aroma wafted from the Main Street Bakery. They stopped and got a couple of coffees and a cinnamon roll the size of a grapefruit. Even sharing it between them, they were both stuffed by the time they were done.

Afterwards, they headed for Adventureland. A costumed pirate captain was hanging outside the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, teaching children how to swing a sword. He winked and bowed suggestively at Nikki as they got in line, and Nikki giggled flirtatiously. Michael put his arm around Nikki’s waist and pulled her tight to his side, scowling at the captain. Nikki laughed, shaking her head at his irrational jealousy.

Nikki wanted to ride the roller coasters, but Michael asked her to avoid anything requiring an over-the-shoulder harness. He didn’t want to take any chances when it came to her ribs, no matter how much better she said she felt. So they went on Splash Mountain instead, where they could have the thrill of a roller coaster without hurting her. They sat in the front row of the log flume and were absolutely drenched when they got off.

Michael shook his head like a wet dog to rid itself of water, spraying Nikki’s already soaked face with droplets. Nikki squealed happily and pushed him away. He fell off balance and instinctively reached out for her, pulling her flush against him as he fell back against the railing.

The moment suddenly became heated. Nikki wanted so badly for him to kiss her, but he didn’t. She wanted him to so, so badly, and she couldn’t help but think it might help her memory. Who was she kidding? It was a lame excuse to fulfill her own desires and she knew it. Nikki decided to take a chance, leaning into him until her lips touched his. Michael flinched, startled but otherwise unmoving. She kissed him once, chastely, and then again, pleased when he responded the second time. Nikki lost track of how long they stood there, just kissing, until she pulled back and looked lovingly at Michael.

“Hi,” he whispered, kissing her once more.

“Hi,” she whispered back before something large and fuzzy tapped her on the shoulder. Nikki turned around to see none other than Donald Duck standing there with his arms wide open, one hand pointing at his bill as if to say “My turn!” Nikki turned red with embarrassment but accepted his hug and gave him a kiss on his rubber cheek. A handler in a yellow shirt snapped a few photos and then scanned a card and gave it to Michael so they could view and purchase the photos online.

They had dinner with Winnie the Pooh, watched the
Monsters, Inc.
comedy show, and battled each other repeatedly on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. Nikki might not be able to beat him at pool, but she kicked his butt at Astro Blasters. After watching the parade and fireworks in each other’s arms, they were heading back to the monorail holding hands when they stumbled across Cinderella.

“Oh, excuse me! I’m looking for Prince Charming. Have you seen him?” Cinderella turned to Michael, then back to Nikki. “I see you’ve already found your Prince Charming, though. You are a very lucky princess.”

Nikki slipped her hand into the crook of Michael’s elbow and smiled. “Yes, I am.”

Michael bent down and kissed her. Another employee in a yellow shirt snapped a few pictures and everyone around them cooed. They posed with Cinderella for one last photograph in front of the castle before saying goodbye.

The Monorail was crowded. Michael stood behind Nikki as they both held onto the pole, his arms forming a human cage around her to keep anyone else from bumping into her. She could feel his breath on the back of her neck and the way his body brushed lightly against hers as the Monorail swayed. Her every nerve ending was on fire, screaming for him to kiss her neck, press himself tighter against her. She stifled a moan and closed her eyes in a vain attempt to ward off those urges. She could have sworn she heard him moan in return, and when she leaned back against him she could feel the evidence of his arousal before he jerked a step away from her.

She held his hand as they drove to the nearest mom-and-pop motel, more for the anonymity than for budgetary reasons. Luckily, they were able to find a nice one not far from the parks. Nikki enjoyed the comfortable silence during the short drive. She used the opportunity to think about what the day meant to her, what all those undeniable feelings meant to her.

She loved him.

She just didn’t know what to do about it.

Michael seemed deep in thought too. He broke the silence first, clearing his throat before speaking.

“Nicole, I’m ready to tell you about how my parents died, if you still want to know.”

Nikki didn’t say anything, just nodded her head and squeezed his hand in encouragement. It wasn’t until after they’d checked into their room and she got settled, sitting Indian-style on the bed, leaning against the headboard patiently, that Michael started to speak, pacing back and forth in front of the bed as he did.

“You remember my father now, don’t you?”

Nikki nodded, cringing a bit. The memories she had recovered of him were not pleasant.

“My father was an abuser,” Michael continued, “and an alcoholic. He was a truck driver, did transcontinental runs, so luckily he wasn’t home a lot, but when he was, he made our lives hell. I lost track of how many times I snuck out of my room when I was little. I would use the back door to the trailer, the one that didn’t have a landing attached to it, and would jump the couple feet to the ground and then run to your trailer. To you. When we were young, we’d share a bed and you would hold me while I cried. When we got older, I would sleep on the couch, or on the floor in your bedroom. You’d sneak to my place too, sometimes, whenever your mom wouldn’t come home at night and you heard a sound that spooked you, but I did it a lot more than you did.

“Anyway, one night when we were 15, he’d come home and had beaten my mom pretty bad for the place being a mess, which was my fault, not hers. I’d had Christian and Jeremy over to play video games and we’d trashed the living room. He started feeling guilty about it and decided to make it up to her by forcing her to go out to dinner with him. She didn’t want to go; he’d been drinking and her face was all bruised. I tried to argue with him to leave her alone, but he just grabbed my head and slammed it into the wall so hard, it left a hole. I was too scared to fight with him after that, and ran to your place.

“Your mom wasn’t there. We didn’t know where she was. We were too busy making out on the couch to care. You were the only thing that ever made me feel better, made me forget how much my life sucked. You still are. We fell asleep. Around two-thirty in the morning, your dad charged through the door and caught us asleep, but me with my hand under your shirt.” Michael shrugged, a little embarrassed.

“My dad had crashed his pickup truck into your mom’s car. She was at a stoplight on the off ramp from the highway, a couple blocks from the trailer park and he plowed into her going over 70 miles per hour. They all died instantly. The cops knew your dad from the courthouse, so they called him first.”