Gabriel's Revenge (The Adventures of Gabriel Celtic Book 2) by J.T. Lewis Page B

board, I tried to remember when the pieces had turned into the elegantly carved marble ones that sat there now. Had they always been like that?
    My heart stopped for a moment when I realize that something was wrong; I was no longer in command of the game. My unseen opponent had found some strategy to put my king in danger in a few short moves. How the hell did he do that?
    I spend a long time studying the pieces, trying to fathom what I had missed. Finally I saw where I had erred. A new respect for my opponent expressed itself with the only word I could muster from my feeble brain.
    “Brilliant!” I exclaimed out loud. This was getting to be more of a challenge than I had expected…“Absolutely brilliant!”
    I spent what seemed like an hour readjusting my strategy before moving the knight to block. I truly hated being on the defensive.
    Leaning back once more into my chair, I felt suddenly exhausted as my eyes, heavy from the strenuous mental work, started to close. No sooner had they closed when I felt the comforting sensation of a hug from behind. The strange buzzing sound started once more as I concentrated on the noise while enjoying the embrace. The words escaped me once again as I was forced to concentrate harder to make anything out. The noise had stopped, but the embrace continued.
    Off behind me and to the left, I was surprised to suddenly hear a sound I thought I would never hear again in this lifetime.
    “Humph.”
    “Frank?!”

Chapter 14
    August 21, 1998
     
    “Frank!”
    I jerk awake, lifting the hat off my eyes quickly. Frank is not there; I was still in the airport, and Abby was looking at me with concern from her perch on the seats. She had apparently been up for awhile, having a fresh cup of coffee in her hand. She reached over beside her in another seat and magically produced yet another cup, which she held out to me. I stared at it for a second as my brain shifted back into gear before relieving it from her outstretched hand.
    “You don’t sleep very well, do you?” Abby asked with concern on her face.
    “I have my demons,” I stated simply, before taking a sip of the hot liquid.
    Remembering my dream again, I set down the cup, taking out the journal and making a note of my recollection of the dream.
    There wasn’t much to write about.
    I was still confounded by what the dreams are supposed to be telling me. The mysterious buzzing still echoed in my ears as I quickly shut the book and stowed it in my pack.
    Looking up, I found Abby still looking at me questioningly.
    “You look puzzled; anything I can help with?”
    I thought about her offer for a few seconds before rejecting it in my head. She probably thought I was crazy enough without letting her in on my paranormal crap. I took up my coffee and grabbed another sip before answering her.
    “No thanks, it’s nothing really. Just a little thing I’ve been working on for awhile.”
    That seemed to satisfy her and she gave me half a smile, probably still worried about me.
    ‘Why does this young woman keep hanging around,’ I asked myself again. ‘Surely she has better things to do than hang around a grizzly old man like me.’ I had to admit to myself that she impressed me though, not something that happened so quickly under normal circumstances, especially in young people. She had a very pronounced strength of character for someone so young, very remarkable.
    The plane was about ready to board. She informed me she would not be sitting with me this trip, saying she would talk to me in Atlanta if there was time, Cincinnati for sure. I also learned that she too lived in Allenville, a coincidence that gave me pause, just what were the chances of meeting someone in South America that lives in your home town?
    My suspicious mind started churning this over until the speaker announced we were boarding our flight. My suspicions were immediately replaced with the apprehension that always accompanied me when I flew. I shifted gears and