After Sundown: Illumination Read online

  Rebecca was thrilled to see the garden room, containing beautiful potted plants, flowers, vegetables and fruits as well as a gardening station to plant new pots. The room was designed as an atrium, with three of the walls in the room made of glass and structured as bay windows.

  A memory popped into her mind.

  She was kneeling in a beautiful and vibrant garden, cleaning out the weeds and fertilizing the plants. A feeling of happiness and contentment filled her at that memory and she knew she would probably enjoy the garden room most of all.

  The atrium branched off into a library with three walls covered in bookshelves containing every kind of book imaginable. Rebecca suddenly recalled that she loved to read and knew she would also take pleasure in this room because of that.

  In addition there was the electronics room. This room contained video games and computers with games, as well as arcade-style machines with older games Rebecca was surprised to suddenly remember from childhood. There was also a stereo system with a dancing game that lit up the floorboards so one could learn the steps.

  Rebecca almost forgot the type of facility she was in until Dr. Everett showed her one last room. She peered inside and saw nothing but a white padded lining covering the walls. That was it. No furniture, no windows, no anything. Just a padded cell. A chill ran through her and she knew she never wanted to be stuck in that place.

  “That’s our time-out room. If patients have an episode and can’t seem to get a hold of themselves we ask them to take a time-out, to think about things and pull themselves together. We don’t need to use it much in this wing of the hospital but it has been necessary on occasion.”

  “Ohhhh-kay. I don’t think I like it here.” Rebecca backed away from the room, slowly shaking her head back and forth.

  “I’m not trying to frighten you, Rebecca,” Dr. Everett said, following her out. “This room is not used for punishment. It’s only here to help patients calm down.”

  “Maybe so. But that room gives me the creeps.”

  “I understand,” the doctor said with a somber nod. “But let’s continue the tour. I haven’t even shown you the outside gardens.”

  Rebecca perked up a bit.

  “We’re going to the gardens now?”

  Dr. Everett smiled.

  “Yes. Come, I’ll take you there.”

  He motioned down another hallway and Rebecca headed in that direction. Anticipation filled her. She loved gardens and gardening. She pictured a spectacular garden in her mind, filled with contrasting colors and textures, alive and fragrant with the season’s blooms. She looked forward to the day she would walk in that garden once more. And Rebecca had no doubt that she would, because it was real. She knew that deep inside. Now she just had to figure out where to find that special Eden.

  Dr. Everett escorted her through two sets of double doors separated by a long hallway with guards stationed at each end. With a nod of his head they let her and Dr. Everett pass, but they watched her intently, with wary expressions, and Rebecca knew with a sinking heart that she would not be able to pass through so easily on her own. No matter how nice or cheerful this place was, she was still a virtual prisoner within these walls.

  For now.

  Knowing that she would have to stay here until she recovered, she was determined to gain her memory back as soon as possible. Then she would leave this place and have her freedom back. It was only a matter of time.

  Her mood brightened somewhat as they walked through the last set of double doors and she felt the warm spring sun caress her face. Rebecca wasn’t sure how she knew it was spring but decided to just accept these pieces of knowledge as they arose. She was slowly regaining her memory.

  That was a good thing.

  The garden was small but colorful. It needed work, a good cleaning up. And there was plenty of room to enlarge it. Plus there was a little bench and fountain to the side, begging for her to come and sit for a while. Rebecca knew immediately that she wanted to spend as much time here as possible. Gardening energized her, yet brought her peace and comfort at the same time. It always had. And considering how unstable and unsure her life was at the moment, she needed as much of that tranquility as possible.

  “I’d like to spend much of my day out here,” she requested. “I recall a love of gardening. I believe I’ve done it most of my life, and it brings me peace.”

  “Of course,” he agreed. “How about if we make you our on-site gardener during your stay here? As you can probably tell, we haven’t had anyone take a real interest in our gardens for a while. Your help and contribution to our gardens would be welcome and appreciated. I’ll arrange for you to get as much gardening in as possible between your other activities.”

  “Other activities?” she asked.

  “Yes, you’ll be seeing me once a day, and you’ll also be expected to participate in some of the group activities, though not all of them. Just the ones that might help jar your memory somewhat.”

  “I see,” Rebecca said halfheartedly. She couldn’t stir up much enthusiasm for her other activities but if they helped her get out of this place faster she would do what she needed to do.

  “I think you’ll enjoy the group activities, Rebecca. And they’ll give you the opportunity to meet some of the other residents. People are always interesting, don’t you think?”

  Rebecca smiled.

  “People are people, Dr. Everett, it’s their hearts, minds and spirits I’m interested in.”

  The words slipped out automatically, without thought. Rebecca knew somehow that she had said this same phrase many times before.

  The doctor smiled and nodded his head.

  “Very good, Rebecca. I’m glad to hear you say that.”

  They walked silently the rest of the way back to her room.

  Stopping outside, Dr. Everett motioned for her to go in.

  “I have some other residents to see, and I’m sure you want to take some time on your own. Please feel free to make use of the facility, Rebecca. I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon for our first session, but if you need me before then let a staff member know and they’ll beep me. They’ve been instructed to contact me immediately if you want to talk.”

  Rebecca hesitated before walking through the door into her room. She didn’t want to be stuck in this place, unable to leave of her own free will, but knew she didn’t have another option at the moment. Taking a deep breath, she crossed over the threshold into her room but swung around in a panic before her door shut.

  “Are you sure you’re not going to lock me in here?”

  Dr. Everett gave her a reassuring smile and shook his head.

  “Of course not. You’re free to wander the unit as much as you like. The only place you’ll need prior permission to go to is the outside gardens, and I’ll arrange for that immediately. You can start working outside tomorrow. Also, when we meet, if you make a list of gardening tools you’ll need I’ll be happy to have someone provide those items for you.”

  Thoughts of the garden soothed her somewhat.

  “Thank you,” she said, shaking his hand. “I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

  “Yes, tomorrow, Rebecca. Oh, I almost forgot. There’s a schedule in your room of meal times and activities each day. Take a look at it when you get a chance. Dinner will be at 6 o’clock tonight if you’re hungry. If you want something now that tray of food should hold you over until then.”

  “Okay, thanks.”

  With one last smile Dr. Everett turned and headed down the hall to another room. She heard him greet a patient warmly before shutting the door behind him, muffling the rest of their conversation. Rebecca stood in the doorway for a moment, suddenly at a loss. Turning around, she scanned her room. She noticed a small digital clock on her dresser for the first time. Seeing the time, she realized it was still early in the day. What should she do now?

  Rebecca’s stomach growled.

  She was hungry, and the thought of going back out in the unit and meeting the other reside
nts was too much for her at the moment. She needed some time alone to absorb everything. The sandwich, potato chips, apple and bottled water Dr. Everett had left her with would be just enough for now. She didn’t realize just how famished she was until she looked down at the tray a bit later and realized she had eaten everything.

  Her stomach full, lethargy stole over Rebecca. The bed suddenly looked very inviting. As she lay down and stared up at the sunlit window, her mind wandered. Once her memory returned she would figure things out and leave this place. She was sure it would happen soon. In the meantime, she would make the best of her situation.

  Just like she always did.

  Chapter Two

  Jason stared out into the moonlit night. The quiet and peace of darkness settled over him like a warm, familiar blanket. The evening was his, like a lover, always there, waiting to embrace him. When the sun went down he came alive―literally. The moment the sun’s rays could no longer touch him his stone form changed to flesh and blood.

  Since days forever come and gone he had been gargoyle, living his sunlight hours in stone each day, sometimes asleep, dead to the rest of the world, and other times aware of all going around him. He could hide from its bright rays, but never could he walk outside among the sun’s dazzling brightness without becoming a creature of stone. The moon was his friend, healer and strength. When it was at its peak, full and round, so was his power at its strongest.

  Tonight was such a night. The moon was large and luminous, taking up much of the evening sky and spreading its bright beams across the landscape. Jason easily changed into his human form and stretched his arms skyward, releasing the tension from a day of inactivity, unaware that to the casual onlooker he appeared as powerfully built as any Greek god. Even Zeus might be jealous of his tall, muscular body and classic good looks. An easy six foot five inches with midnight black hair reaching just past his broad shoulders, he had a face that left women breathless when they saw it. Strong hawklike nose, square jaw and firm yet sensual lips made up the masculine beauty of his face.

  Jason’s eyes were his most arresting feature. Some tried to call them gray but they weren’t. They were a bright, shining silver that revealed his true gargoyle heritage, while his dark hair and olive-toned skin showed his his clan affiliation. He was part of the Shimara clan, powerful, spiritual and magical. Gargoyles whose dedication to truth and fairness was well-known. They were lawmakers, feared and respected by all but the Nimchava clan, who created evil and chose chaos as their goal.

  The Shimara were known not only for their magic but because they were able to travel between dimensions at will. Their magic was that strong. Even if they wanted to search out the Fae in their own magical world they could do so easily.

  “Excuse me.”

  Jason was yanked out of his thoughts by a soft female voice. He turned to find a young woman staring up at him with awe and adoration in her eyes.

  “Aren’t you one of those cover models here for the romance readers’ convention?” she asked hopefully.

  Jason shook his head slowly.

  “No.”

  The woman’s eyes filled with desperation.

  “Are you sure? You really look like that model, Adonis. You know, the one who’s been on the cover of so many books this year?”

  Before he could repeat his answer the female took a book out of her bag and held it up to him.

  “See. You look just like him.” She moved closer, slowly slid her gaze around her as if to check if anyone were near and lowered her voice. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone you’re here. I mean, who would expect Adonis to be just walking around a public park in the middle of the night? If you’ll just sign my cover, I’d be so grateful. I think you’re the best.”

  The woman motioned to the book in her hand once again.

  Jason shook his head, not bothering to look down at the picture on the cover. He would never understand females. Especially human females. They were just big bundles of emotions.

  “Listen, lady. I appreciate your, uh, enthusiasm over this Adonis guy but I’m not him. I don’t know anything about a romance readers’ convention and I definitely don’t appear on book covers.”

  Ignoring the woman’s crestfallen expression, Jason turned and walked away.

  “B-but, but, you don’t understand. I’ve been waiting f-forever to meet you. All I wanted was your autograph. Pl-please, don’t leave.”

  Jason stiffened and stopped in his tracks. The woman’s shaky voice and stuttering told him she was about to cry. He couldn’t stand to see a female cry. Just the sight of tears, a physical sign of such strong emotions, severely affected him. He didn’t deal well with emotions. He dealt in facts, fairness, justice and, often, retribution. Turning around, he strode brusquely back to where she stood and quickly scribbled his signature on the cover of her book. Trying not to notice the huge smile that now lit the woman’s face, he swung around and left without a word, ignoring the soft “thank you” she called out to him.

  Disgusted by his weakness, Jason could only shake his head and blame it on his mother’s people. The Shimara were spiritual beings who listened intently to their emotions and instinctual feelings. But that was only part of him. Although physically he took after his mother’s clan, he often felt more connected to his father’s people, the Jutaka. His father’s clan were bounty hunters and law enforcers, dedicated to meting out justice and punishment as needed. They were known for the ability to coldly calculate each situation, never straying from the laws and judicial system imposed on all their kind by the Shimara. Emotions were not part of their makeup.

  That’s what made it so difficult for him to understand how his mother and father had become mates. They were so different, yet their commitment to each other had been obvious to all who saw them together. They had been life mates, fiercely dedicated to one another and their only son. Unfortunately that love and dedication hadn’t prevented his father’s violent and gruesome murder a little less than six months ago, or his mother’s recent disappearance.

  Shaking off the memories, Jason found his car parked off the side street where he had left it that morning. Normally he returned home before sunrise but the evening before he had been following a lead that had taken all night to flush out. It had been a dead end but by the time he realized it the sun had been about to rise. Finding a park was always the next best option, because humans thought nothing of finding a stone gargoyle there.

  He had spent the day observing children playing around him. They often crept onto his lap as curiosity got the better of them. They were hesitant at first but after a while they would run their small fingers over the features of his face. The sensation of those children so close to him pulled at something inside Jason he desperately tried to ignore. He would never have children, or a mate. It wasn’t meant to be. He needed to accept that.

  Lowering the top of his silver convertible Corvette, he got on Highway 51 heading south into downtown Phoenix, turned up the volume on his radio, blasting the new Staind CD he had just bought, and let the night wind rush over him. It was April in Arizona and the nights were still cool. The intense energy of the hard rock songs and the feel of the air whipping through his hair made him wish he were flying through the air instead of driving on the freeway, but he knew that the sight of a flying gargoyle was not something humans would easily forget. He would have to wait until much later in the evening to return to his true form. Maybe by two or three in the morning he could let himself take a short flight over the city. The sight of the lights below always calmed him down. And tonight Jason needed some calming. The tension over the last few days had been slowly building in him. Recent events concerning his parents had become more than a little unnerving.

  His mother Shaina was missing. Jason felt instinctively that his mother’s disappearance was related to his father Jonah’s murder. Jonah’s murderer had never been caught. It had been determined that a wizard had committed the crime but beyond that his killer hadn’t been brought to
justice.

  Jason figured Shaina had been missing for at least three days because that was the last time he had spoken to her. Their phone conversation had been fairly brief. They were both busy people, yet they tried to take the time for each other, especially since his father’s death. While growing up his mother had always lectured him on how important family was but the truth of her words never struck home until Jason lost his father. His dad and he had been very close and his father’s death left an empty place inside Jason that he felt each and every day.

  During Jason’s last conversation with his mother a few days before, Shaina had brought up her suspicions concerning the growing dissention between the clans. It seemed the Nimchava clan was actively recruiting. The Nimchava could barely be called a clan. They were more like a loosely based collection of social deviants, determined to create chaos and misery in all that they did. Their clan consisted of those gargoyles who had either forsaken or failed their Chailo, or vision quest. Once they discarded their Chailo, the Nimchava felt that they had nothing to lose. When they weren’t fighting among themselves they cruelly and without remorse strove to cause trouble for the other clans.

  “They haven’t been this aggressive in a long time, son. This is a trend your, um, y-your father started to notice right before his d-death,” Shaina had stammered, emotion evident in her voice.

  “It’s okay, Mom.”

  “I know, son, I know.”

  Shaina had cleared her throat, and when she had spoken again her voice had been steady and strong.

  “Jonah is the one that alerted me to it, and since then I’ve been keeping my eyes on the Nimchava. They’re trying to lure our members to their side, using any means to do it. You know our clan is not easily swayed by such things yet two of our councilmen have given up their Chailo and gone to their side.”