2010
In the past ten hours, Ariadne had gone through many different worlds, but at that exact moment she was about to enter one that had struck up her curiously, and had made her a little more than scared to enter.
The rain was beginning to stop, and the taxi drove up a long dirt road, surrounded by fields of beautiful trees. Sitting beside Arthur, Ariadne watched him as he dug into the back pocket of his slacks and took out a set of keys and a wallet.
"A have a woman come in a few times a week to water the plants and make sure the entire place isn't covered in cobwebs, let's see if she was worth the money."
Ariadne softly smiled before the taxi brought them up to a beautiful ranch style house entirely made out of Mexican style brick and stone. Cactus grew outside the windows along with wild exotic flowers. Ariadne heard the tires crunch down on the gravel driveway before it came to a stop. Right away Ariadne reached into her bag to split the difference of the ride when Arthur simply waved his hand and handed the driver a very large bill.
"Keep the change, thanks again."
The driver grinned.
"Need help with your bags buddy?"
"No, we're okay. Thanks again."
Arthur then handed Ariadne his jacket along with his set of keys.
"Run on up and unlock the door, I'll get the bags."
"You sure."
"Yeah, here so you don't get wet."
Ariadne smiled, Arthur might have been a little standoffish and moody, but he still was the perfect gentlemen. Making sure her bag was over her shoulder, she took his jacket and keys and opened the door the same exact moment he opened his. Quickly she draped the jacket over her head, even though she honestly didn't care if she got wet or not and ran and fast as she could up the steps. It was a warm rain, and she saw there was a stone fountain which was overgrown with vines which was collecting water. Under shelter, she turned and watched as Arthur went to the trunk and grabbed their bags. A very serious look on his face as he hurried along as the rain beated down on him. Ariadne watched him and felt that flutter fill herself again, turning she found the brass key that opened the door and let herself inside.
Inside the ceilings were ten times higher than she thought. Looking up, she admired the skylights and the echo noise the rain made outside. Standing in the hallway, she saw a large beautiful framed mirror on the clay colored wall, along with a brass table which held a crystal bowl which was filled with keys. Not wanting to track in any water, she stood there for a second and smelled the faint scent of vanilla. Just then Arthur came behind her, carrying both of their bags. Ariadne saw the taxi drive back down the road and slowly out of sight. Standing that close to Arthur, she saw that he was dripping wet. His slicked back hair had collected beads of water, and his dress shirt and tie were nearly soaked through.
"You're soaked…"
"I'll live, besides it's a little refreshing to feel something real huh?"
He gave her a cocky grin that caused her to smile and feel like a sixteen year old all over again. Handing him his jacket she looked around.
"This place is amazing…"
Arthur took his jacket and threw it over his shoulder before picking up the bags again.
"Come on I'll show you around."
"My shoes are wet."
"That's okay, come on…"
Arthur led the way, carrying the bags as Ariadne followed. Right away the hallway opened up to a beautiful living room with a huge stone fireplace in the middle. The entire North side of the house was entirely made out of glass, which showed off the vineyards behind the property. It was all hardwood floor, and the long sofas and chairs were a caramel color. The coffee tables were carved wood from what Ariadne guessed was from overseas, and the artwork that were scattered were very 18th century English and African. The entire inside looked as if it had been set up in some magazine, everything seemed to be in perfect order which Ariadne guessed was Arthur's way of living.
Arthur set down the bags before walking over to the archway that lead to the kitchen. Smiling, he took a small piece of paper that was laying on a class table surrounded by glass vases and antique clocks. Ariadne watched Arthur quickly scan it before a smile spread across his face.
"All right!"
"What?"
"My neighbor had to run into the city and left the dogs in the garage, hold on a second I'll go get them."
Ariadne nervously smiled.
"Are they friendly?"
Arthur smirked.
"Are you kidding? There're going to love you."
Ariadne smiled at this comment and watched his disappear into the kitchen. Standing there and feeling a little out of place, she walked over to a table near the hallway where she expected it to lead to the bedrooms.
Framed, were beautiful drawings of what appeared to be children's stories. She didn't exactly what which ones they were from, but she thought the artwork was breathtaking. Standing there, she closely looked at them before pausing and looking at the center photo which as framed.
It was of a beautiful woman who was standing outside a pool in a two piece bathing suit. She had her hands on her hips and a pair of oversized sunglasses on. She was laughing, and right away Ariadne knew who this was.
Standing back, she looked at the photograph and suddenly felt guilty. After everything they had been through, she was staying in Arthur's house feeling the way she did while he it was obvious he still was heartbroken over what happened to his wife. In fact, this house seemed to be a frozen tomb which showed evidence that Arthur had at one point had a very happy life. Sighing, she remembered what he said.
Right away she knew Arthur had done something…something terrible.
Just then she heard the scamper of paws running up the stairs, turning she smiled as two beautiful well groomed large German shepherds came running in at full speed. Right away a huge smile appeared on her face as the dogs ran towards her.
"Kim! Novak! Slow down!"
The dogs ran towards Ariadne, nearly knocking her down. Laughing, she knelt down and began to pet the huge horse sized dogs and giggled as they licked her. Right away Arthur ran over, kneeling down, his hair and clothes still dripping wet.
"Sorry, they get super excited whenever they see new people."
Ariadne laughed, petting the dogs.
"Their wonderful! Hello babies!"
She said in a high voice, petting them more. Arthur watched smiling and petted his dogs with her. Ariadne smiled before raising an eyebrow.
"Kim and Novak huh?"
Arthur smiled.
"I'm a big Vertigo fan what can I say?"
Ariadne smiled, kissing the dogs' heads.
"Oh, it's nice not to be dreaming anymore…"
Ariadne softly said as she ruffled the dog's hair. Arthur smiled.
"Yeah I know what you mean Regan…"
Ariadne stopped and looked at him, half smiling.
"What?"
Right away Arthur's face dropped catching himself. All color drained from his face before he stared at the ground and shook his head.
"I'm…I'm sorry…"
Quickly getting up, he went into the kitchen, leaving Ariadne puzzled.
2007
Three weeks had passed since Regan had been killed, and Arthur was patiently waiting.
He knew in order to do what he planned, he needed to play the part perfectly, this gave his mind something to do, and looking back on those horrible weeks following his young wife's murder, he knew if he hadn't of done this he would of gone completely insane.
He wasn't getting much sleep, but that was a good thing.
Every time he dreamed, he dreamed of her.
It started back with the memory of when they first met. He was in the city at the park with a few buddies of his from college. It was a beautiful crisp autumn day, and he was having a great time. Dressed in jeans and a black hoddie, his hair slightly longer back then, he remembered running with his friends Jeff, and Mark and feeling completely alive. His legs pumping, he ran across the leaf littered grass, taking deep cold breaths of the air and laughing as they attempted to tackle him.
He was laughing as he caught of football and ran as fast as he could. He was young, and away on a scholarship, his foster parents couldn't touch him anymore and he was completely happy. He had his whole life ahead of him and at that exact moment, he couldn't have been happier.
That's when he saw her.
She was sitting underneath a tree Indian style in jeans and a black vest with a fur trim hood. She had dangling green earrings on, and a book open on her lap. Her beautiful blue eyes caught his and right away he smiled.
"She's pretty…"
He thought before smiling, he hadn't ever seen her before. That's when she smiled back and he saw she was looking at him. Blushing a little bit, he grinned causing her to laugh before Jeff yelled for him and threw him the ball. Catching it, he glanced over and saw she was watching. Smiling even more, he decided to attempt to impress her and began running as fast as he could, spinning and throwing the ball.
She watched him the entire time.
Finally just when he thought he looked good, Mark threw the ball at full speed right at him as Jeff tackled him. Knocking the wind out of him, Arthur fell backwards as the ball smashed into his face. Hitting the ground hard, he nearly blacked out.
"Jesus!"
Jeff got up and Mark ran over, both looked down at him with concerned faces.
"Sorry man, thought you saw it coming."
Arthur blinked, looking up at the evening sky before taking a second. His face killed, and so didn't his chest and stomach. Trying to sit up, he felt dizzy. That's when Jeff pointed.
"You're lip and nose is bleeding man, aw jeez I'm sorry."
"You okay?"
The voice made Arthur looked up, Jeff and Mark turned as well as the girl stood there, hands shoved in the front pockets of her vest, her breath coming out in little clouds.
Mark and Jeff eyed each other and smiled before Arthur wanted to kill himself for looking so stupid. Touching his lip, he saw on his fingertip blood.
"Yeah I'm fine..."
"Listen, I can take a look at that, I've had my share of bloody noses before…"
Arthur now felt embarrassed.
"No, I'm fine…"
Jeff and Mark looked at each other before smiling.
"Don't listen to him, he's a little shaken up from the fall of course he'll go with you."
Arthur slowly got up, his chest aching before he felt more blood dribble down his face from his nose. Leaning in close to Jeff he whispered…
"What are you doing?"
"Don't be stupid man, she's hot."
"I don't even know her."
"Quit being a wimp and just do it!"
The girl smiled watching them before they pulled apart and tried to look cool. Jeff patted Arthur on the shoulder.
"We need to get going, we have night class…we'll see you later Arthur."
Before Arthur could say anything, both Jeff and Mark grabbed the football and began running off, watching them Arthur shook his head. The girl walked closer and right away Arthur smelled her perfume, it was nice.
"Some friends you have their huh?"
Arthur smiled shaking his head before putting his hand under his nose.
"Yeah I guess you could say that, sorry."
"No problem, when I was in high school I worked at a camp so I'm trained in first aid…just glad to help a cute guy."
Arthur looked at her and smiled.
"Well in that case…"
Both laughed before the girl offered her hand.
"Regan…and you are Arthur?"
Arthur used his free hand and shook hers, it was much smaller than his, but her skin was soft and smooth.
"Yeah, nice to meet you."
"Come on, there's a coffee place in the lobby of the hotel I'm staying at across from the park."
"The legacy hotel?"
"Yeah, just for the week, it's got a nice view…came here to relax for a little bit, it's such a nice day."
"Yeah I love the fall."
"Me too, Halloween is one of my favorite holidays."
Smiling, Arthur walked beside her.
"What are you reading?"
"Oh, just an old mystery novel, their guilty pleasures…"
Arthur smiled as they made their way down a path, the sun as just beginning to set and the sky looked as if it were on fire. Smiling, he walked beside her hearing their shoes crunch underneath the leafs.
"You a student?"
"Yeah, senior year…"
"What's your major?"
"Dream psychology."
"Really?"
"Yeah, I'm heading off to the University next semester for grad school."
"That's a real interesting major."
Arthur smiled and shrugged.
"Yeah, I don't think it's going to get me any dreams any time soon but it's really interesting."
"So you study dreams?"
"Yeah you could say that."
"That's really cool, I've never heard of anything like that before."
"What about you, I haven't ever seen you around here…"
"Oh I'm from Larchwood, I'm here for a book signing."
"Book signing?"
Regan blushed and looked down for a second as they walked.
"Yeah, I work for a publishing company, I wrote a book a few years back and I'm working on my new one, their children's books and my company sent me here for the weekend. I just graduated last spring and I'm just doing this for the extra cash."
"Wow that's really awesome."
Regan looked at him and they caught each other's eyes again. Smiling, they continued to walk.
Later…
It was a little after eight when Arthur offered to walk Regan up to her room. For the past several hours they had sat together on the coffee shop talking. Earlier Regan had brought him into the lobby which looked as if it belonged in New York city rather than New England. The ceilings were high and had beautiful chandeliers hanging entirely made out of crystal. The floors were a caramel and white colored marble, and most of the walls were entirely made from mirrors. Taking him into the small coffee shop, the smells of muffins, cider, and coffee filled his nose.
"Go ahead sit down, I'll get some ice."
Arthur did so and saw only a few people sitting around. Most of them were hunched over their laptops or silently sipping their coffees. Watching Regan, he saw her go up to the counter and admired the view. She was a little shorter than him, beautiful dark hair, and a wonderful body. He thought she looked cute in her vest and jeans, and noticed she had black boots on as well.
Right away he felt embarrassed. Of all ways to meet a girl it had to be him getting hit in the face. Here he was, sitting down with his head tilted back as blood dried on his face. Feeling like a complete idiot, he sighed deeply to himself. The last real relationship he had was senior year of high school. Since then it had been a handful of one night stands and horrible blind dates.
Regan walked over a few minutes later with some cloth napkins and a small cup of ice. Smirking, Arthur put his head back but carefully made sure his hand was under his nose so he wouldn't bleed all over the place.
"One hell of a way to meet someone huh?"
Regan smiled at his remark and began to put the chunks of ice one by one into the napkin.
"Okay, this might sting for a second but keep it on your lip."
Gently, she pressed the coldness of the cloth against him and Arthur winced. Laughing, Regan made a face.
"Don't be such a baby."
Arthur smiled despite the pain.
"That's easy for you to say."
Looking at his face closely, they locked eyes again and Arthur knew if he got an erection at that exact moment he would honestly kill himself. Smelling her perfume, he gazed into her eyes before she lifted the paced ice cloth and softly blew on his lip.
Arthur sat there in silence allowing her to do so before she reached over and brushed back a few of his bangs.
"I think you'll live."
Arthur smiled.
After Regan helped him clean up his face, his nose had stopped bleeding and she said his lip might be a little swollen for the next couple of days but nothing serious. Smiling, Arthur looked at her.
"So, used to work at a camp huh?"
Smiling, Regan talked a little about her old jobs she had during the summer as a teenager. This turned towards where Arthur was originally from, and then went on to his major again. By then the waiter brought over two coffees.
Arthur looked slightly surprised and began to reach for his wallet when Regan waved his hand.
"It's on me."
"No, I can't let you do that, you've done enough…"
"It's my pleasure really. You're the first person I've really met here…it's nice."
Smiling, the two enjoyed their coffee.
The conversation turned towards their favorite foods, to places they loved to go and eat, to traveling, then their favorite movies, and music and art which they couldn't seem to stop talking about. Three more cups of coffee and a shared slice of pie later, Arthur saw they had a lot in common, so much in fact it was scary.
They laughed at each other's stories and jokes, and really listened when they went on about their lives. Arthur thought it was amazing that Regan was a published author, even though she said one day she would love to write a thriller or mystery. Arthur skimmed over his whole family and past without going into detail, but went on and on about how much he was looking forward to the research he was going to do next year.
Finally the coffee shop was about to close and it dawned on them how much time had passed. Laughing, Regan said she had to go to a meeting in the morning.
"Are you leaving soon?"
"I need to get back to Larchwood, but I might come back before Halloween, I heard a ton of stuff goes down over here and I would love to bring a few friends."
Arthur told her that would be great, that the campus usually had great parties and it would be amazing if she came. Smiling, they stared at each other before Regan took out her cell phone.
"I don't usually do this, but seeing that you like pretty much every awesome thing in the world…"
Arthur saw what she was doing and opened his cell phone as well. Before they exchanged numbers, he smiled at her.
Both aggrieved they had to meet up again, in a world where they were used to meeting so many weirdo's, this was a nice change of pace. That's when Arthur offered to walk her up.
The elevator ride they stood together and when the elevator jumped a little before going up Regan laughed softly to herself. Smiling, Arthur looked at her.
"What?"
"That jump, always makes me feel like I'm gonna go flying up."
Upstairs Regan and Arthur walked down the long hallway leading to the elevators. Arthur walked around, impressed by the inside of the hotel and how elegant the building was. Everything even down to the carpets seemed perfect.
"This place is amazing."
Regan smiled digging in her pocket for her key card.
"Yeah, that's the nice thing about these signings, they always put me in nice hotels…"
Arthur looked around in wonder before Regan found her door. Putting the card in, she opened the door. Leaning against the wall she smiled.
"I would invite you in but that wouldn't be very lady like would it?"
Arthur grinned.
"Also I might turn into a pumpkin before midnight so yeah I guess it's for the best."
Laughing, Regan looked at him.
"This was nice…"
"Yeah it was."
"Listen, if you don't have class tomorrow afternoon…"
"I don't."
Regan laughed.
"Well then, maybe we can grab some lunch?"
Arthur smiled.
"I would love you."
"Okay, why don't you send me a text tomorrow and we'll meet up somewhere okay?"
"Sure, that sounds awesome. Thanks again by the way."
Regan smiled before kissing her finger and leaning over and pressing it against his sore lip.
"Sweet dreams Arthur."
Winking at him she went into her room and closed the door. Standing there, Arthur seemed completely stunned. Gently touching his lip he smiled before looking around. He honestly couldn't believe his luck. Laughing, he ran his hand through his hair before turning and walking down the hallway. After he was far enough from Regan's door, he broke out into a complete run before kicking his feet together and laughing.
That's when he nearly crashed into the maid with her cart. Laughing, he almost knocked it over.
"Sorry!"
He said laughing, before heading to the elevators.
2007, present day
Arthur knelt in front of Regan's grave.
The headstone had just been put up a few days before hand. Arthur remembered writing out the check and feeling sick to this stomach. This was coming out of the small little account Regan and himself had been saving up for their student loans and any vacations they wanted to take in the future. He had felt like a zombie picking out the headstone, but Sara and Bettina had been with him then, and he simply just pointed at one he thought looked pretty.
It was a dark marble with white lettering. It had Regan's full name and followed by two dates. Nothing special, since Arthur honestly couldn't put his heart into doing anything else.
The cemetery where she had been buried was lovely. It was a small safe little place that Regan had taken him that past autumn to do stone rubbings. Arthur remembered feeling silly but Regan had a plan to frame some of the good ones and hang them up in the upstairs hall.
The same hallway she was raped and murdered in.
Pushing away that thought, he stared at her gave and sighed.
He couldn't believe it had been just three weeks.
Underneath there, buried away was his beautiful wife. Horrible images came to him of her rotting inside that dark damp coffin. The same coffin that held their unborn daughter. Closing his eyes, he reached out and pressed his fingers against the cool marble. Flowers had been placed there, more than likely from Bettina.
He had wanted to talk to her about what had happened. In all honestly he didn't believe in the supernatural, he didn't believe that those few dreams he had of Regan was her way of showing him what had happened. He knew that it was his subconscious that had suspected Philip and his mind had just put together the pieces. The medical ring was now safely tucked away in his dresser under his shirts.
His chest began to shake before he felt tears working their way up again. Forcing them down, he wanted so badly to turn this horrible pain into something else. He wanted the rage to overtake him so he wouldn't ever have to feel again.
The last few nights he had been dreaming about Regan, and every time he woke he was crying.
He knew he needed to do something.
Slowly standing up, he glanced down at Regan's grave before shaking his head.
"What happened to you was wrong, it wasn't right. I promise I'll fix things Regan…I promise."
Turning, he silently went back to his car, unaware that someone was watching him.
2010
"Arthur?"
Ariadne slowly walked into the kitchen to find Arthur leaning against the counter, his head was down as rain splattered against the windows above the sink. Biting her bottom lip, she took a moment before silently walking in, unsure what to say or do.
"Arthur?"
She repeated. Just then Novak walked over beside her, nuzzling her leg.
Arthur looked over, his eyes for once exhausted. She saw he was on the verge of crying. Laughing it off, he cleared his throat before looking down.
"Sorry about that."
"Are you okay?"
Arthur quickly nodded looking ahead out the window.
"Yeah, can't believe I did that."
"Regan…that was your wife's name right?"
Arthur looked at her and nodded.
"Yeah, it was."
"And those are your wedding bands around your neck?"
Arthur looked down at himself, for once forgetting to tuck the chain in his shirt. Looking down at both of them he nodded.
"Arthur…how come I didn't see Regan in any of your dreams? How come you weren't like Cobb?"
Arthur gripped the counter before deeply sighing.
"Because…unlike Cobb I was able to finally accept that Regan wasn't coming back, nor ever would. She's dead…and a long time ago I learned to deal with that, maybe not completely but I know that's the only way she'll be in peace."
"Your dreams…do they have anything to do with her?"
"Of course they do, the hotel we were in…that was the hotel she was staying at when we first met. I take little memories and piece them together."
"Does she ever appear to you?"
Arthur shrugged.
"Once and a while…only when I'm alone, their memories mostly, but it's still nice to just see her face, even if it's just for a second."
"Does…anyone on the team know?"
"About Regan?"
Ariadne nodded.
"Yeah, Cobb and his father in-law were the ones who helped me out after I got into a bit of trouble after her death. They had been researching my studies for a while and offered me the position of the point man. I wouldn't have taken it any other way…but what choice did I have. Besides, they stuff they introduced me to…well you know, you can't explain it."
"So it was an escape for you?"
"In the beginning, then I learned that it wasn't…that all of that wasn't real. Don't get me wrong it's amazing, and there's nothing really like it, but it wasn't Regan. It helped me, but I guess the only reason I've stayed on the team as long as I have is because I'm one of the few that can still control it."
"Arthur…what trouble were you in when Cobb found you? Did it have something to do with who killed your wife?"
Arthur turned, leaning against the counter before Novak left Ariadne's side and went over to him. Allowing the dog to lick his hand, Arthur softly smiled.
"What happened is in the past…I did something horrible and the worst part of it is the fact I don't regret it."
"Did you kill Regan's murderer?"
Ariadne's words hung in the air for a moment before Arthur shook his head.
"Ariadne…"
"Please, I don't mean to intrude but if it wasn't for you…we all would have been trapped down there. You're special Arthur…"
Arthur smirked.
"Yeah sure…"
Ariadne stepped closer, raising his eyes he looked at her. The only sound around them was the rain falling outside. Finally he sighed.
"Yes…I did. I did it because that sick bastard not only took away my wife, but he took away the baby I was going to have with Regan. He took my entire family…"
Before Arthur could say another word Ariadne raced over, wrapping her arms around him tightly and hugging him. Arthur stood there stiff, not knowing exactly what to do before he slowly put his arms around her and hugged back.
2007
It was now nearly two months since Regan had been killed.
Bettina and her friends had come to the house weeks ago and did the clean they had promised. Bettina's son, who had been away at school and come to visit that weekend and had taken Arthur out for a few beers,. That afternoon had been a little awkward since they didn't have much to talk about, but Arthur was relieved he was somewhere else and had time to silently think to himself.
When he returned home the house seemed a little different. It was spotless of course, but it didn't seem to have Regan in it anymore. All of her clothes had been boxed up, including her work, books, records, photos, and junk. Most of the stuff had been labeled and put away up in the attic. The rest went to Goodwill.
Arthur had looked through some of Regan's things and once again it hit him.
His wife was dead.
He didn't return to school, instead he told the school he would return the next semester. They of course more than understood, even though Arthur really didn't intend to go back at all.
He had plenty of money to keep him afloat, a week or two ago he received a check in the mail from Regan's publishing company. Every month or so she would receive checks in the mail from them. Looking at the money he felt sick and just put it away in the bank. He had no use for it, nor even wanted to see it. He mostly sat alone in his house, crying, sleeping, and thinking. Nothing was the same anymore, and all he could think of was her.
He stopped using upstairs; he couldn't bring himself to walk down the hallway anymore.
Now he sat in the basement on their old couch they had thrown down there and looked at what he had bought.
A shotgun.
He had bought it in the city, unmarked from a source he had found out about at a bar after he threw down a few hundred. He didn't exactly know if the gun was clean or not, nor even cared if he got caught. All that mattered now was that he would finish this. For weeks now he had been playing the part. He got up every morning, now sleeping on the couch, ate breakfast, took a shower, changed, and sat around the house. When Bettina visited he pretended he was working on his papers, even faking a few laughs to show her he was slowly moving on.
The truth was he was hurting worse than ever now.
He would sleep most of the day, planning, and waiting.
The medical ring was in his hand as he sat there looking at the gun. It was going to happen soon, and finally it would all end. Sitting there, he leaned back and shut his eyes…
He was outside.
He was in the park, the same park where he had met his wife. It was a beautiful autumn morning and there was a chill in the air. He was on the path, surrounded by beautiful colorful trees, all brilliant colors of red, orange, and gold.
Leafs fell from the sky and the sounds of children playing came from the distance.
He walked down the path and saw Regan, dressed exactly the same way she did the day they met. She was ahead of him, walking backwards with her hands shoved in her pockets laughing.
He watched her, knowing he wouldn't be able to catch up to her.
Watching her, he stopped…knowing the only way he could ever reach her…would be to finish it
