ever made touched Web’s heart and soul.
She had to come. And soon. Or all the detailed plans, the ebony mystique of the night, the brilliant ecstasy of dawn, would be lost.
And then…a sound.
Her car on the road.
Web switched on the portable floodlight.
The bright beam blinded her. It was like the wrath of God. Her car veering, she braked to an abrupt halt. Web calmly walked to the driver’s side.
She shielded her eyes with a hand.
It might all have gone badly then. She might have had the window closed and the air on; it was cooler at night, but they were into the dead heat of summer.
But she had been driving with her windows open, luckily. It was a nice night. The air touched with coolness, a forerunner of the storm that would come in during the next day or two. The storm, of course, was part of the perfect plan.
“Who…what the hell?”
She had seen Web, of course.
“What in the world are you doing?”
“You agreed to meet me,” he reminded her politely.
“For a minute, only a minute. And I never said I’d meet you here, in the frigging middle of nowhere.”
She was angry and impatient at having her time taken up. Actually she was frequently impatient with anyone who wasn’t in her favor at any given moment.
“It’s so lovely here. I wanted you here with me, to see and appreciate just how beautiful it is here. I wanted to give you the night.” Web sighed. “I take it you’re not glad to see me?”
“Look, I just saw you earlier today. And I said I’d see you again, so we can talk then. Briefly.” Her voice had a husky growl to it that meant she was getting really aggravated. “But I never expected you to half blind me on this godforsaken road. And you are an idiot. I could have hit you.”
“But you didn’t.”
“You could have been killed.”
“Interesting thought. But to see you, and alone, it was worth the gamble.”
Suddenly she actually saw Web. “Are you wearing gloves?” she asked incredulously. “It’s summer.”
Being Sheila, she didn’t have a clue.
“It’s not so hot tonight. There’s a storm coming in. They haven’t named it. It’s not a hurricane, a tropical storm, or even a depression yet. But you can feel it. Soon rain will pound. Lightning will soar across the heavens. Thunder will sound like drums.”
“Great,” she said, bored. “Poetry. That really explains the gloves.”
“Oh…they’re just diving gloves.”
“Diving gloves? With a storm coming in? You’re going diving now?”
Web ignored her question. “I told you, I really wanted to see you. Alone.”
“Great.” She tossed her silky hair and looked straight ahead at the road. “You’ve seen me. But we aren’t going to be alone. I didn’t agree to any of this ridiculousness. I have to go. I haven’t got time for your games.”
“You’re so wrong. You’re going to make time. To spend the night on the beach. To watch the sunrise. To…appreciate. You have all the time in the world.”
“I don’t!” She frowned, growing wary.
“Yes, you do.”
Her frown deepened. “You have a camera.”
“For taking pictures on the beach.”
“We’re not taking pictures on the beach. Look, I mean it, I have to go. I don’t want to run over your feet, so get out of my way.”
“No, no, you don’t understand. There’s so much that’s worth experiencing, especially before a storm. The colors…you’ve got to see them. You never really see what’s right in front of your face. You never saw…me.”
She was staring at Web, completely confused and dismissive.
“Look—”
“Sheila, you are going to see the sunrise.”
Web tossed the floodlight into her car, then reached for her. Real alarm rose in her eyes as she read something in his.
Web meant business.
She tried to hit the button to roll up the window. Too late.
“Let go! I’m leaving—now.”
She hadn’t expected the strength in the hands that curled around her wrists. She gunned the engine, but she’d put the car in Park.
“Dammit, what is the matter with you? You can’t make me—”
“Oh, yes, I can. And guess what, Sheila? I’m going to.”
Web got the door open and forced his way in, shoving her aside.
She started to scream.
But there was no one there to hear.
No one except for the mosquitoes that buzzed so annoyingly in the darkness, the night owl, the mangroves, the stars cast in the velvet sky and the sea breeze that drifted over the island.
And Web. But he didn’t care. He just smiled, and within seconds, he had her silenced.
He was determined that they would share the coming of dawn.
Eventually the sun rose against the morning sky, the colors brilliant, despite the billowing clouds of the coming storm. Soon, soon…the rains would begin.
“See how absolutely beautiful?” Web asked.
Her eyes were fixed on the horizon.
“Really quite glorious,” Web continued.
For once, she didn’t argue. She just stared.
“You are as beautiful as the sunrise, Sheila,” Web told her. “And I won’t take long. I just want a picture or two.”
Aim, focus, shoot…
The camera was a Polaroid. Instant gratification. He only had a few minutes to linger…to see the light, the shadows, the colors of this world.
The time had come. The scene had been set. The plan had been meticulously made.
But there was more to do, and he had to take care. The task must be completed, nothing left undone.
And so Web began.
Later
