The Eyes of Darkness by Dean Koontz

Posted by admin_akashic on Aug 7th, 2022 in Prophecy, Stories

Elliot said, “If Danny has this incredible power, why is he sending messages just to you? Why doesn’t he at least contact Michael too?”

“Maybe he doesn’t feel close enough to Michael to try reaching him. After all, the last couple of years we were married, Michael was running around with a lot of other women, spending most of his time away from home, and Danny felt even more abandoned than I did. I never talked against Michael. I even tried to justify some of his actions, because I didn’t want Danny to hate him. But Danny was hurt just the same. I suppose it’s natural for him to reach out to me rather than to his father.”

A wall of dust fell softly over the car.

“Still think you can shoot my theory full of holes?” she asked. “No. You argued your case pretty well.”

“Thank you, judge.”

“I still can’t believe you’re right. I know some pretty damn intelligent people believe in ESP, but I don’t. I can’t bring myself to accept this psychic crap. Not yet, anyway. I’m going to keep looking for some less exotic explanation.”

“And if you come up with one,” Tina said, “I’ll give it very serious consideration.”

He put a hand on her shoulder. “The reason I’ve argued with you is … I’m worried about you, Tina.”

“About my sanity?”

“No, no. This psychic explanation bothers me mainly because it gives you hope that Danny’s still alive. And that’s dangerous. It seems to me as if you’re just setting yourself up for a bad fall, a lot of pain.”

“No. Not at all. Because Danny really is alive.” “But what if he isn’t?”

“He is.”

“If you discover he’s dead, it’ll be like losing him all over again.”

“But he’s not dead,” she insisted. “I feel it. I sense it. I know it, Elliot.” “And if he is dead?” Elliot asked, every bit as insistent as she was.

She hesitated. Then: “I’ll be able to handle it.” “You’re sure?”

“Positive.”

In the dim light, where the brightest thing was mauve shadow, he found her eyes, held her with his intent gaze. She felt as if he were not merely looking at her but into her, through her. Finally he leaned over and kissed the corner of her mouth, then her cheek, her eyes.

He said, “I don’t want to see your heart broken.” “It won’t be.”

“I’ll do what I can to see it isn’t.” “I know.”

“But there isn’t much I can do. It’s out of my hands. We just have to flow with events.” She slipped a hand behind his neck, holding his face close. The taste of his lips and his warmth made her inexpressibly happy.

He sighed, leaned back from her, and started the car. “We better get moving. We have some shopping to do. Winter coats. A couple of toothbrushes.”

Though Tina continued to be buoyed by the unshakable conviction that Danny was alive, fear crept into her again as they drove onto Charleston Boulevard. She was no longer afraid of facing the awful truth that might be waiting in Reno. What had happened to Danny might still prove to be terrible, shattering, but she didn’t think it would be as hard to accept as his “death” had been. The only thing that scared her now was the possibility that they might find Danny— and then be unable to rescue him. In the process of locating the boy, she and Elliot might be killed. If they found Danny and then perished trying to save him, that would be a nasty trick of fate, for sure. She knew from experience that fate had countless nasty tricks up its voluminous sleeve, and that was why she was scared shitless.