Pieces of Truth

Chapter 9

After the Fog

~ ~ ~

“She’s waking up,” a voice was yelling as I cracked my eyes open. My body ached and my throat was dry. I felt weak and dehydrated, but not sick in the stomach. As I opened my eyes I saw two heads. Am I seeing double? As my vision connected to my brain, I realized it wasn’t double vision, it was both Josh and Clint on their knees, staring at me as I lay on a couch.

“How long was I out?” I asked, as I tried to pull myself up so I could sit upright. Two sets of hands went around me as I tried to do it.

“I’ve got it guys,” I muttered, annoyed that they were treating me like an invalid. They ignored my resistance and continued to help me sit up.

“About nine hours,” Josh said, as both he and Clint took a seat on either side of me. Clint had not said a word yet and was staring at me with uneasiness. I looked around quickly to get my bearings. I was back in my apartment.

“Someone must have spiked your drink Norah. What do you remember? If you remember anyone or anything, you need to tell us.” Josh sounded concerned and angry. Clint remained silent, just staring at me pensively.

I held my hand to my head as I tried to piece together the fragments of the evening that were floating in and out of my mind, unable to connect. The memories and visions were flashing vividly, but no recognizable faces appeared. Just weird images of rabbits, sunshine, candy and ponies. What the f*ck?

“Ah I remember something about a white rabbit, ponies, fireflies, ummm...” I just said the words that were associated with the images as they popped into my head. I had no idea why they were there, and what they could possibly mean.

“Is she still drugged? We should get her to a hospital.” Clint finally spoke up, not making eye contact with me, but sounding worried about my mental state of mind. He tried to move his hand onto my lap, but stopped and pulled it away. It was as if he wasn’t sure if he could touch me.

“Think Norah. What else do you remember about last night?” Josh pressed me. I rubbed my eyes as I tried to clear the fog in my head.

“I’m going to get her a glass of water,” Clint stated, “maybe that will help.” Clint got up and went to the kitchen.

I rubbed my head again. Think Norah, think! There had to be an explanation somewhere in my mind fog. “I remember...I remember...candy...and...oh f*ck!” I looked at Josh, whose eyes bulged as he looked back at me. He knew I had just remembered kissing him. My mouth opened to speak, but Josh held up his hand and shook his head, as if secretly saying, “Don’t say it.” I just nodded back at him. The skin on my body pricked up with goose bumps as the image of my tongue down Josh’s throat was now all I could see in my head. Shit, this was bad! Very very bad!

Clint entered the room again. “Candy? That is weird. Anything else?” He handed me the glass and sat down next to me again. He sat closer this time, and my heart began racing. Sitting between these two boys felt very awkward, especially given the events of the past few days. I finished drinking my water and handed Clint the empty glass as I leant back on the couch and searched my head for anything else. A face, a name, anything. Hmmm. Light. There was a stream of effervescent light. A familiar person was there. It made me feel warm. There was sunlight, and it was on my mouth as well. Oh...crap. It was SAMUEL. I kissed Samuel too!

Don’t say anything Norah - just smile and pretend that you didn’t make out with two guys in one night that were not your boyfriend. That’s right Norah - just smile.

I sat up and forced an uncomfortable smile hoping it would hide the guilt I was sure was visible on my face. Both guys were still looking at me, waiting for me to speak. What do I do? What do I do? I’ve got to say more. Something. Samuel’s face was still in my head trying to talk to me. He was saying something about Clint, something to do with another name. It was...it was...

“Devon Lockley.”

Suddenly Clint dropped the glass. It didn’t break but the sound of the thud was enough to bring the room to an eerie standstill.

“What? Do you know that name?”

Clint yelled, “NO!”

His reaction was enough to show he was lying.

Lies. More f*cking lies. Arrgghh!

I rolled my eyes at both of them, making it very obvious I wasn’t a fool. Clearly the meaning of the name was going to be kept a big fat secret. He was probably a member of the Lappell or linked to it in some way. Whatever the connection might be, Clint looked like he could not discuss it any further or was forbidden to do so. There must be something to the name, given Samuel was trying to tell me something about it. I looked at Clint suspiciously.

“Yeah OK. Whatever you say. Look, I’m going to take a shower and try and clear my head some more. Alright?” I went to stand, and Josh’s hands shot out to help me up. Clint eyed him and Josh sat back down, withdrawing his hands.



“I’ve got it from here Hollows,” Clint announced, as he assisted in pulling me up. I glared at Clint, pulling out of his grip. Suddenly I didn’t feel so comfortable with him being possessive. The parts about our fight beforehand were not lost or forgotten in my head, and I still hadn’t decided how I felt about the things that we said to each other.

“I’ll show Josh out then,” I said, feeling defiant. Clint only watched as Josh and I headed for the front door while he took a seat in the lounge.



As we neared the door, and Josh stepped into the hallway, he turned to give me a hug before leaving, but my palm went up before he could pull me into his embrace. I inched towards him, speaking very quietly. “I remember seeing Samuel last night too. Did you see him and talk to him?”

Josh leaned in to me, keeping his voice very low. “Only for a second before he took off. He was trying to tell you something, but when he saw me, he bolted.”

I sighed, and lifted my eyes to meet Josh’s. I had another question on my mind. “Josh...Did we?” I asked, in a voice low enough so only Josh could hear. He knew I needed confirmation about our kiss. Josh grinned, the beautiful charming grin I knew him best for. He gave me a quick hug and whispered in my ear, “I hope you feel better Norah.”

Oh, I totally made out with him.

I shook my head. I closed the door as Josh left, and I returned to the lounge room where Clint was now standing. I walked right up to him and stood face to face. I went to talk, but Clint drew me into his chest, his arms wrapping around me tight.

“I’m so sorry Norah. Sorry for the way I acted and what I said. I love you so much and it hurts me to think something bad could have happened to you. I can’t even think properly right now because I’m so angry someone did this. If I ever find out who did this to you...I’d, I’d...” Clint breathed heavily. “I’m just so sorry. I love...”

I moved out of his clutches so I could stop him, mid-sentence. “Clint, I’m alright. Look, we both said and did things we shouldn’t have, but let’s just be adults right now and forgive each other. OK.” He shook his head, surprised at my ease to meet him in the middle. Admittedly, the guilt from kissing Josh and Samuel helped me to be very forgiving too.

“Really? You are not angry about the burlesque bar or Melanie?” Clint asked, pulling away from me and searching my face to check to see if I was being serious.

“Clint, I’m still not happy that you have meetings at a strip club. I thought that would be the type of information you would share with your girlfriend. I mean, not telling me just made it look...”

“Secretive.” Clint finished what I was going to say. He already knew how it must have looked and what I must have been thinking.

“Yes. Like you were hiding something. It just hurt me that you could do that again. And then I saw Melanie...” I didn’t want to bring up what happened in Morewell, but it was in the back of my mind like a warning signal.

“I didn’t know how to tell you about that place. I don’t want to go there, but I’m kind of forced to. And I know how it looked with Melanie, but I’m not cheating on you Norah. I swear. I would never cheat on you. You are all I want, and all I need.”

I could tell he wasn’t lying to me. His voice and his eyes said it all. He looked like a lost puppy, desperately seeking confirmation that I believed him.

“I believe you Clint,” I said, turning away from his face, now wondering whether or not I should come clean about kissing Samuel and Josh in my drug-induced state. Would it really help if I did? It didn’t mean anything, right? And what would Clint’s reaction be? I mean, there must be allowances for this sort of thing when you have absolutely no control over what you are doing. Telling Clint would start World War III, and with things already starting to crack in our relationship, I knew if I told him, the repercussions would be atomically explosive.

“So we are OK then?” he asked me, a small hopeful smile beginning to grow on his face.

“Yes,” I said. “I love you Clint.”

And I’m sorry for kissing Josh and Samuel.



“Oh Norah. I love you so much,” he responded with such overwhelming sincerity. “And I won’t ever go back to the strip club again.”

We held each other for a few minutes as we allowed everything to reconnect within our hearts and our heads. I sighed into his chest, feeling relieved that he wasn’t cheating. That was one assumption I could now happily push aside.

Clint pulled me off his chest so he could see my face. “Are you sure you are feeling alright Norah? Because I would really like to take you out for dinner. There is something special in the city that I think you should see tonight.”



I buried my face in his chest as the other problems now popped up in my head, reminding me that I was still trying to avoid reality. I had cheated on Clint while I was high as a kite; I was becoming more and more drawn to Josh, and I had just learned the name of someone who I think was part of the puzzle with that note. I knew the threads to this relationship were quickly coming undone and all I could do was hold onto Clint tightly, trying not to think about what was going to happen next.

I moved my head so I could breathe into his ear. “Yes Clint, take me out.”

I was choosing ignorance.

It was supposed to be bliss.





~ ~ ~

The smell of garlic tickled my nose as Clint held my hand, leading me down to what I believed to be a hallway and to a room. It’s funny when you lose one of your senses, that all the rest become heightened. I guess that’s why I noticed the smell of garlic first as well as the smell of freshly cut flowers, which I think were roses. Such an odd combination of scents surrounding me. I couldn’t see the source of the aromas because Clint had blindfolded me, insisting that I needed it for the surprise he had in store. I was secretly praying the surprise wasn’t of the small box variety and that Clint knew that we weren’t in ‘that’ place in our relationship right now.

“Not too much further,” Clint said, sounding happy and excited as we walked hand in hand, his body guiding mine. I had been blindfolded since we left the apartment that evening. I was wearing a deep-plum colored cocktail dress by Gucci and Clint wore a stylish pinstripe navy blue Tom Ford suit. I assumed we were heading out to dinner, but apparently Clint had different plans.

“I meant to tell you about this earlier in the week. I’m actually kind of happy you didn’t pick up the paper on Sunday, because you would have seen...”

We stopped walking. Clint’s body was up behind my back. His chest pressed onto my shoulders. He slid his hands up my arms to my shoulders, and then to my hair where he gently untied my blindfold.

“This.”

He dropped the blindfold so I could take in the sight. Of course I instantly recognized what I was looking at and where I was. We were at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and we were staring at one of the most beautiful pieces of artwork on the planet, The Kiss by Gustav Klimt.

I sucked in a short breath, and smiled. Clint’s hands gripped my shoulders as his mouth moved to be close to my ear. “It’s on tour from Vienna. You mentioned to me once how much you loved Klimt. When I saw it would be in the city, and you hadn’t mentioned coming to see it, I knew that you didn’t know it was here on display.”

This. Was. Absolutely. Amazing. “Clint, this is...I have no words.” I turned up to his face and kissed him, long and hard and without the thought of anyone and anything in the back of my head. This moment, my kiss in front of Klimt’s kiss, was just for Clint, full of love and appreciation for such a heartfelt gesture.

“How did you get access to this place at night?” I asked, but I then I internally cringed. I should have known better than to ask such a dumb question.

“There are some perks being in the Lappell, Norah,” Clint stated. It was great we finally could make use of at least one.

I thought about how much power and sway the Lappell had, and how many doors it could easily open. “Yes, it’s a world where no boundaries exist, isn’t it.”

Clint laughed at my comment, but it felt absolutely true. Their reach felt endless.

We both turned to stare at Klimt’s Kiss once more. I had stared at it many times before online and on post cards, and in magazines and books, but like all artwork, when you see the real thing, it has a magical impact that just takes your breath away. The detail, the color, and the effect it has on you when you are actually in its presence. It will move you like you’ve just seen it for the very first time.

“What do you think Clint? I know you see the beauty in art the way I do.” I wanted to hear his thoughts and interpretations.

Clint stared the way one does when they are truly captivated and moved. It was one of my favorite things about Clint and one of the reasons we fell in love. He loved art, and wasn’t afraid to see the romantic optimism of pieces, and what’s more, wasn’t afraid to express it. When we first met, we both had the same appreciation of Chagall’s Three Candles. It’s extraordinary how much you can tell about a person from their interpretations. It can show you how they see the world, and how they might see you.

Clint put his arm around my shoulders as he began to give me his thoughts. “I think the man is trying to take her, with all the love he has, and this is the moment she is finally letting herself go to him, giving herself to him, body, mind and soul.”

Yes, I felt that too. Again Clint and I were in sync and my heart swooned for him like it did the first time I told him I loved him.

“You are right. That is the moment.” I continued to stare, not taking my eyes off the woman’s face in Klimt’s Kiss, feeling the moment where she gives herself completely to the man.

It was then the darkness in me chose to suddenly pop its head up to give me its opinion too. “Yes, the man is lost in the kiss, but the woman is turning her head away, like she can’t get away from him. Like she cannot escape.” I suddenly frowned with that possibility in my head. I knew my real feelings burning inside were making themselves known, and this artwork was helping me to realize that. There was something about Klimt’s Kiss that felt like it was about the inability to escape and not about love. There are always many sides to looking at art, and now I was seeing two very conflicting possibilities.

Time to do something else.

“I smelt garlic and flowers when we first arrived. What was that?” I lifted my nose into the air to try and gather the smell again, taking in a deep, inhaling breath.

“Oh I wasn’t lying when I said we were going out to eat. I’ve also got a candlelit dinner that I had set up earlier for us in the next room.”

I spun around to look at the room we came in from. “Really? You hired caterers?”

“Yes, but they’ve gone now. We are all alone.”

I tilted my head back towards the artwork. “Except for Klimt’s Kiss of course.”

“Of course. They are welcome company. Shall we?” Clint grabbed my hand and started to lead me back the way we came. I looked at the Kiss once more and thought to myself, “She has no reason to want to escape; does she?”

I pushed my mixed interpretations aside as we walked back into a nearby room. There was a small table with wine glasses, a wine bucket and a bottle of wine was on ice on a small wooden table covered with a white linen table cloth. There were plates that were covered with silver covers. When Clint removed them, I saw we had garlic shrimp served with beautiful fragrant wild rice and a caramelized root vegetable salad.

“Wow,” I said, as Clint held out my chair.

“Am I forgiven now?” Clint asked, taking the seat across from me, taking the wine bottle and pouring us each a glass of wine.

“Yes you are forgiven, and just in time for the Garden Gala too. Tess is flying in the same day as the Gala next week. She might even come to the Gala if her flight arrives early enough. You don’t mind if she stays with us while she is in New York, do you?”

Clint moved his hands across the table and reached for mine, pulling them both to his mouth and kissing my fingers as he cupped them in his hands.

“Of course she is welcome to stay with us.”

I looked at Clint. I had to hand it to the guy, when it came to romantic gestures to prove his love and to say sorry, he really stepped up, but something inside me still had trouble deciding if Clint was using this as damage control, to avoid my suspicions that there was more going on than what I could see. I knew it had to do with that name. The name Samuel had told me, and the name Clint pretended not to know.

What was that name again? Oh yeah, that’s right - Devon Lockley.