L.L. Foster - The Awakening

Irritated, irked, and angry, Luther watched Gaby disappear down the street. He wouldn't chase her down. He'd done that enough already.

Mort came up to stand beside him. "I'm worried about her."

"Don't waste your time."

"Can't help it." Hemming and hawing, his hands in his pockets, Mort said, "She's different, ya know? Most of the stuff she does isn't meant as an insult. It's just… she doesn't know any other way."

Luther sighed. "I know."

"You scare her."

Luther grunted.

"I do too, I think, but I'm not sure. Might just be that I annoy her."

Glancing down at Mort, Luther felt compelled to say, "She's lucky to have your friendship."

"Nah. I'm the lucky one and I know it." He stepped back from the door. "You want something to drink? Some coffee? I can put on fresh. While it's brewing I can check the store to make sure the guy I hired is doing okay. It won't take me long."

"Sure." Luther came in and closed the door behind him. "Do you lock this during the day now?"

"Yep." Rattling a keychain that hung from a belt loop on his pants, Mort added, "Gaby and I have keys, but if she forgot hers, we'll be here when she comes back."

"If she comes back." Luther flipped the deadbolt.

"She will." Mort headed into his apartment. "She hasn't eaten all day. Sooner or later she'll show up for food."

Mort went about rinsing out the carafe and preparing more coffee. Luther drew out a chair. He put the borrowed graphic novel on Mort's table. "I finished it."

After glancing back to see what Luther meant, Mort grinned. "Awesome, huh?"

Interesting plotline and characters, to say the least. It was a page-turner, an edge-of-your-seat reading adventure. The illustrations were incredible.

But on one level, elements of the novel had disturbed Luther. "I wanted to talk to you about something, but I need your promise you'll keep it private, especially from Gaby."

Mort went still, his hands hovering over the coffee machine, his shoulders stiff. Then he broke into inane chatter and nervous activity. "Yeah, I mean sure. Let me check the store first and we can talk when I come back."

He rushed off before Luther could decipher the crux of his anxiety. Surely keeping a secret from Gaby wouldn't send him into vapors.

And thinking of Gaby, as if he ever did anything else, what the hell was her problem?

While waiting for Mort to return, Luther simmered in his own discontent. How dare she rush off right before he was due to arrive? It couldn't have been more obvious that she wanted to avoid him, that she didn't intend to honor his wish to take her out.

Damned bothersome brat.

He should give her a taste of her own medicine and leave before she returned.

But she'd probably be relieved, not distressed, and damned if he'd do anything to assist her in her efforts to deceive him.

One way or another, he would figure out the elusive Gabrielle Cody.

Mort inched back into the room. "So." He cleared his throat. "Everything's fine at the store. Lots of sales today. Everyone loves a good graphic novel."

"Good. I'm glad your business is doing well."

Tension eased from Mort's shoulders. He went to a cabinet and retrieved two mugs. "Want a cookie? I bought some at the bakery yesterday. I thought they'd tempt Gaby into eating, but they didn't."

"Tempt her?"

Mort filled the mugs. "She hasn't taken a meal that I know of in two days. I don't know how she stays on her feet."

"That's probably why she's so thin."

"Yeah." Mort set the mugs on the table and opened a drawer to get the cookies. "Probably why she's so surly all the time too."

Luther indulged a cautious sip of the coffee before looking at Mort over the rim. "That's just her temperament and we both know it."

Grinning, Mort shrugged. "I suppose."

"And that brings us full circle. Can I have your word that you won't share what I have to say with Gaby?"

"Yeah, I guess. That is, I mean, she won't ask me about it anyway, right? She won't know that I know whatever you plan to say?"

Luther took his measure. "What's the matter, Mort? Are you afraid she'll beat it out of you if she knows?"

"She wouldn't have to. I'm a sucky liar. Guilt always shows on my face."

Luther flipped over the Servant novel he'd borrowed. "She won't know." He turned the comic toward Mort. "You say you've been reading these for awhile now."

"Yeah."

"Haven't you noticed any similarities?"

"To what?"

Suppressing his suffering at Mort's obtuseness, Luther sighed. 'To Gaby. The heroine in the graphic novel and Gaby share some unique personality traits.'

"No way." Mort looked dumbstruck.

"Yes, way, Mort. Check it out." Luther flipped to a certain page. "I know she doesn't look like Gaby, but haven't you seen that exact expression on her?"

"Actually…" Mort drew the novel around and closer. "Yeah. I have."

Going out on a limb, hoping he could trust Mort, Luther ventured, "Do you think it's possible that Gaby emulates the character?"

Mort's jaw went slack.

"Maybe," Luther continued, "given her unconventional upbringing, she didn't have anyone to look up to, so she chose a fictional character."

"A kick-ass invincible character."

"Exactly."

"Geez. I don't know." Going back to the novel, Mort turned a page, then another. Eyes wide, he gazed up at Luther with crestfallen chagrin. "Anything's possible, I suppose."

"It would explain a lot."

Falling back in his seat, Mort slumped. "Yeah, it would." He rubbed at his eyes. "Only thing is, I've never seen Gaby read the series. I've never seen her read anything, really."

"That doesn't mean she hasn't."

"No. She's so damn private."

"So secretive," Luther prompted. "Here's what I want you to do."

"Do?" New alarm drew Mort back upright at the table.

"Relax. It's nothing to unnerve you." Luther cleared the table between them and leaned forward to engage Mort's confidence. "I want you to keep an eye on her, that's all. Especially when the next novel comes out. After you've read it, watch for similarities between the characters and things Gaby says happen in her life and how she reacts. If you notice anything, let me know."

"Oh." Relieved, Mort composed himself. "Yeah, I can do that."

"Great." Luther glanced at his watch. Gaby had been gone only fifteen minutes, but that put her past the time he'd set. He should leave. Just walk out the door and not come back.

But he knew he couldn't.

Some innate incorruptibility beneath Gaby's ballsy, indomitable exterior compelled Luther to keep chipping away at her defenses.

He finished off his coffee and stood. "I have to go, Mort."

"Go?" Mort rose too. "But where? I thought—"

"I'm going to go find her."

"Oh." Mort followed him to the door. "She won't like that."

Luther grinned. "Yeah, I know."

"But you're going to anyway?"

"That's right." He dug a business card from his pocket. "Do me a favor. If she shows back up before I've returned, give me a call on my cell. But don't tell Gaby."

"If I told her, she wouldn't let me call you."

"Right." Luther clapped him on the shoulder. "Thanks for everything, Mort. You've been a big help."

Morty glowed beneath the praise. "Glad I could lend a hand." He leaned out the door as Luther went down the steps. "Luther?"

Luther turned back. "Yeah?"

"Gaby is a good girl and she has a really enormous heart. It doesn't always show, but it's there." He tapped the business card against his thigh. "To tell you the truth, she's the best person I've ever met."

"I know," Luther said, and oddly enough, he meant it. Then, as much to himself as to Mort, he added, "She's also the saddest. But I plan to change that."

Morty nodded. "Good luck, Luther. I have a feeling you're going to need it."