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“Theo drew this?” Joel asked.
Josiah nodded. “And there’s more.”
The next drawing was of three people asleep inside a house. Joel leaned closer, and there were enough details to determine that the people were Josiah, Ayesha, and Theo. The lagoon in the back meant this one was the Maui house, and while the three of them slept, the figure peered through the window into Theo’s bedroom.
“The last one’s the creepiest.” After an exhale so hard it dropped his shoulders, Josiah unveiled the last page.
Ayesha gasped.
Joel’s body went on alert.
The last drawing was of Josiah and Ayesha standing in front of a house, blue circles dripping from their eyes. The figure made an appearance here as well, this time with a single fang protruding from its head area. On the ground lay two bodies, one not readily identifiable; however, the other was clearly Theo. The two bodies lay side by side with Xs for eyes in a sea of red crayon.
“Is this why he’s scared to go to sleep?” Josiah asked. “Do you think these are him drawing his dreams?”
Joel stared at the motionless, sticklike little boy on the ground with Theo’s hair and complexion. “Honestly, Josiah, I don’t know, but I want to hold on to these.”
“I think the other person’s Curtis,” Ayesha said. “Theo’s only seen pictures of him, but I’m pretty sure that’s Curtis’ hair, and those squiggly lines are supposed to be hispe’a.His tattoos. So, is Theo saying that this…figure, or whatever, is going to kill him and put him in a grave like his father?”
A thought crept through Joel’s mind, that the figure could represent an actual person, but he kept it to himself. If he shared it, Ayesha would spiral. When it came to Josiah and Theo, it barely took a push to send her over the deep end.
It was why Curtis’ family triggered her the way they did. She saw their disappointment as reflections of Curtis. But if what had happened a few years back in Maui was any indication, he knew firsthand that Curtis continued to love Ayesha from the great beyond.
Josiah handed over the papers, slapped his palms on his thighs, and stood with the groan of a man fifty years older. “Ma, Joel, I’m really worried about Theo. Why is this happening? What if this never goes away?”
Ayesha gave his hand a light squeeze. “Sweetie, this could all be part of him adjusting to life outside Maui. Even if it’s something else, me and Joel will get to the bottom of it. I promise. Thanks for bringing these to us.”
Josiah nodded and left the room, dragging his feet with his head bowed and his shoulders slumped. Not long after, they followed him and headed for the outdoor dining space for dinner. As usual, Mike and Tayler had prepped the food. Everyone would be at the table, sparkling beach and saltwater pool be damned.
“Do you think it’s a manifestation?” Ayesha asked, and if they walked any slower, time would lap them. “The figure could be some sort of symbol.”
Joel took her hand.
She looped her fingers through his.
If he kissed her, she would kiss him back. She would let him tug her hair, grab her ass, and smear her lip gloss. Yet, uncertainty wasn’t what kept him from kissing her so hard she’d somehow wind up pregnant.
“I’m hoping it’s only a manifestation,” he said. “But if it escalates, we’ll have to look at other possibilities.”
“Such as?”
“If this figure could represent a real person.”
“Joel, one of those drawings is the figure at the window while we’re all sleeping.” Her chest pitched higher, faster. “Do you think somebody was in our house, and I didn’t know?”
The best-case scenario was that the figure turned out to be a symbol. He couldn’t bring himself to think about the worst-case scenario for something like this.
“Julien set up your security system.” He raised the back of her hand to his lips. “It’s not a system your average hacker can get through.”
“And if it’s not an average person?”
“Then that would present even more possibilities, but let’s deal with what’s in front of us right now.”
She continued to breathe like air was scarce, so he pulled her aside, out of view of the table, and held her against his midsection. She wrapped her arms around him, melted into him, and he realized then what was the true culprit of his hesitation.
Eventually, the rise and fall of her chest matched his, but he didn’t let go right away. Holding her felt natural, which had been the case since they took that walk on the beach in Malibu long ago, and all he’d needed then was her hand in his. Each time he touched her, he knew she was the only person he wanted this close, fabric against fabric and skin against skin.
“Better?” he asked.
