5
Lucky entered the catacombs, not
really caring how deep into the caves he went.
He just wanted to get away. Away
from the pain and grief he was feeling.
He looked up and noticed that he was in the cavern that he and Sly
frequented regularly. The cavern where
Bill Eckert had died protecting both him and Sly. But who was protecting Sly a couple of days ago? Why weren’t they able to save him from such
a gruesome death…something that was meant for Lucky instead?
“It should have been me,” He whispered
to the wall. “It should have been me.”
“Lucky?” Elizabeth tentatively entered
the cavern. She had heard about the
catacombs, but had never been inside.
She never had any plans to go inside either, but Lucky’s flight called
for it. Fortunately, she didn’t have to
walk far to find her boyfriend, who sat against a rocky wall, staring at the
opposite wall, tears freely falling from his eyes.
He looked up and wiped away the tears,
trying to smile. He didn’t want
Elizabeth to see him like this, but his grief was too great and burst into
renewed tears.
“Oh Lucky,” She bent down and took him
into her arms.
“Why Sly Elizabeth? Why did it have to be Sly? It should have been me. It was me they were aiming for anyway,”
Lucky sobbed, clinging to her as if he’d let go, she’d disappear.
“Shhh Lucky. Don’t say that. If anything had happened to you last night…I
don’t know what I would do. I love you,
your parents love you, and your cousin loved you. He would never want anything to happen to you.”
“But why did it have to be Sly? He had lost so much because of my family
already. Why did he have to lose his
life too? Wasn’t his father enough?”
“Lucky…one thing my rape has taught me
is that bad things happen to good people.
Bad things that cloud our lives with darkness. But not too far away is a silver lining in those clouds of
darkness. You were my silver lining
Lucky. You were my rock. The one thing I could cling to in a sea of
despair. Now it’s time for you to find
your silver lining. It’s still there
Lucky. It may be hard for you to see
it, but it’s there. I know it is,” She
softly stroked his hair, listening to his sobs quiet.
Lucky looked up at her, his tears
drying. He leaned his face close to
hers, his lapis lazuli eyes shining with sincerity and love. “You are my silver lining.”
Touched, Elizabeth smiled as he leaned
in for a gentle kiss that conveyed all his feeling for her. Love, trust, and respect.
“I love you Elizabeth,” He pulled
away, stroking her face as if she was a precious porcelain doll.
She tightened her embrace, pulling him
closer. “I love you too Lucky.”
. Elizabeth stayed with
Lucky as he told her once again about his and Sly’s many adventures from their
first meeting to their run in with bullies and many more. She laughed and cried, wishing that she had
known the young man a bit better. That
he wasn’t just some cousin of Lucky’s that she had seen around school every now
and then. That Sly had been one of the
musketeers like Emily and Nikolas.
“I’m going to miss him,” Lucky sniffed.
“I know you will. And I’ll
be here for you whenever you want to talk,” Elizabeth wiped away the few tears
he had spelt. “I promise.”
Lucky just smiled, getting to his feet. “Come on. Let’s get you
to Kelly’s before you’re anymore late then you already are.”
“Good idea,” Elizabeth glanced at her watch, noticing that she’s
already fifteen minutes late. She
looked at Lucky as he got to his feet, straightening up his clothes. “Are you o k?”
“Better then I was. Thanks
to you. Thank you.”
“Anytime,” She took his hand.
Together they left the catacombs and the memories behind.
~*~
That night, Luke quietly boarded the yacht. Careful not to make a sound. He didn’t want to alert Helena’s guards. He just wanted to quietly confront the woman
and leave. He knew she was behind the
attempt to kidnap Lucky and Sly’s death.
And despite Bubba’s procedures, he was going to make sure she didn’t get
away with anything. Quietly she slipped
into her room and grabbed the sleeping woman’s throat.
Helena’s eyes popped open as she felt
Luke’s tight grip around her throat, slightly applying pressure, but not enough
that she couldn’t breath or talk.
“Why Luke. What a pleasant surprise.
What do I owe this pleasure,” she croaked, not at all surprised to see
her nemesis. In fact she was expecting
him.
“I know it was you who tried to kidnap
my son. What your plans were, I do not
know and why you had poor Sly killed is another mystery. But I’m here to give you another
warning. Stay away from my son. If you’re walking on the same side of the
street, you better cross it. If you’re
in the same room, make sure you’re on the far side.”
“And if I
don’t?”
“Your precious Nikolas will pay
the price. What ever you do to Lucky,
I’ll do to your prince,” Luke growled.
“I’m sure Laura would appreciate your
method of retaliation,” Helena smiled, thinking she has Luke over a barrel, but
the man only coldly smiled.
“Laura and I are no longer
together. So what she thinks is no
longer any consequence to me,” He and
Laura may be separated, but he would always care what she thought. But Lucky’s safety came first. If protecting Lucky costed him her wrath,
well then so be it. “Do we understand
each other? Any more attempts on my
son’s well-being and there will be more then an attempt on Nikolas’s worthless
life.”
“I understand,” Helena nodded, knowing
that all plans she had for Lucky Spencer was now null and void. Luke was not a man to underestimate. If he said he would do something, that meant
he’d do it. He never bluffed. She was going to have to find another way to
enact her revenge on Luke.
“And as for Sly’s murder, it’s too much to hope that you’ll step forward. So have the men you got to do the job step forward. Say it was an old debt with the boy’s father. Just give his poor family some closure.”
Helena nodded. She took a deep breath as Luke released her
and quickly left the room. Her hand on
her throat, she picked up the phone and dialed her partner’s number. “Your services will no longer be
needed. The Spencer boy is
unattainable. Yes you will still be
paid for your time.”
Helena angrily hangs up. She needed another plan. A plan to put the now defunct plan to
shame. But what? Crossing her arms, Helena racked her brain
for a new plan. Wanting to make sure
that Luke paid dearly for killing her Stavros.