Chapter Twenty-Four

Beth and I arrive back home in one piece. Obviously, I have a lot to think about—home, the Conways, spending the weekend away from it all.

We ease around the circular driveway, Beth throwing the gears into park.

“I’ll help you inside. Wait right here,” she says. Running around to my side, she opens my door for me. Why do I feel like this happens a lot lately? Oddly enough, my leg had healed since Ben wrapped it. The hospital took it upon themselves to remove the bandages, though they never questioned why they were there. If she knew what Ben’s mom had done…

I shudder.

My arm being in a sling makes me uncomfortable. I’m not used to going to the hospital, or getting bandaged frequently.

“I need to go for a walk,” I abruptly tell Beth. I need fresh air. Everything’s been so crazy lately, and I feel like a bird—caged up and unable to fly.

She gives me a don’t-be-stupid look. “Candra, I don’t think it’s the best time to take an afternoon stroll.” As if that’s not enough, she glances over her shoulder and around the front yard, like the Conway brothers are hiding behind the trees.

“Please,” I beg. “I’ll be careful and won’t go far. Promise.” I produce the saddest facial expression I can muster.

Beth sighs and stares at me a few seconds before saying, “Fine. Don’t go far. If you aren’t back in thirty minutes, I’ll be looking for you.” She points at me.

I toss my one good arm around her neck and give her a hug. “Thanks!” Then I rush off toward the road.

No, I shouldn’t be wandering around carelessly. I might be snatched, kidnapped and killed before my thirty minute curfew is up. Cringing at the thought, I try to think of something else, something less brutal.

My legs take me to an unfamiliar area up the street. I’ve only been the opposite way to get to school and work, but never this way. It leads me to a dead-end, and the forest.

Don’t do it.

But it’s too tempting. My flesh and blood beckons me to the forest. There’s something in my heritage that screams to roam free. I know exactly what it is. I know instinctively where I want to go. It’s just not the best place to be, as a human.

My hand grates against the rough bark of the trees. The fragrances of damp earth and majestic pine trees fill my lungs. I continue walking, seeing how much further I can go, how deep the woods will allow me to go. On and on I trek, until I’ve no idea where I am. My bearings are completely messed up. The trees all start to look the same.

A bright blue color catches my eye. I snap my head in its direction, quickly taking cover behind a tree. The hue comes from a hoodie—one I’ve seen before.

Jana’s.

She and Blake must be close by, because the jacket hangs from a tree branch. As I get closer, I realize more clothes dangle from branches; hers and Blake’s shirts, jeans, shoes and even underwear.

Oh, God. They’re having an sex fest in the middle of the woods.

“But that can’t be right,” I say aloud. It’s not something I can see Jana and Blake doing. Immediately, I scan the area around me, looking for them. All I see are acres and acres of trees.

“Jana? Blake?” I call, but neither of them responds. They have to be close, right? I mean, they wouldn’t meander into the woods naked.

My body gets sucked further into the woods; like I can’t control it. My legs propel me forward, further and further. With each new step, I’m left wondering how I came so far.

“Hello?” I cautiously shout.

Nothing.

A few birds cackle in the tree tops. Wind rustles the leaves on the forest floor. My one good arm impulsively wraps itself around my other gimpy one for warmth. I need to go back, get out of here, but my soles firmly plant themselves in place.

And that’s when I hear giggling. I duck behind another tree, hoping whoever it is won’t notice I’m there. I see Jana and Blake jogging toward their clothes. At first, I just stare. Then I feel awkward for being a Peeping Tom. I want to jump out and announce my presence, but what would they think about me spying on them?

Questions race through my mind: why are they out here, in the woods, when it’s freezing? Who in their right mind would want to run around naked, especially when there are Followers, and the Conways?

The Conways are after you, not them.

After they dress, they just stand there, talking to one another. Blake’s arms rise and fall with whatever he’s saying. Jana’s eyebrows scowl then relax, concentrating on his words. I can’t hear anything, and Blake’s back faces me. So I survey Jana. Whatever it is, whatever has happened, her face turns sour, like she smells something rotten.

~*~

I make it home without them detecting me. The front door creaks open. Some show on television blares, and pots and pans clang in the kitchen.

Beth pokes her head around the corner and says, “Just wanted to make sure it was you.”

“Yep, it’s me,” I say, a little short-winded from my brisk walk home.

“Your mother called,” Beth shouts over running water. I enter the kitchen and see she’s filling a pot with the cool liquid.

I prop myself against the doorframe. “Oh, really? What’d she have to say?”

Beth carries the pot to the stove, sets it on a burner and turns on the heat. “She wanted to check on you, make sure everything’s going okay.”

My stomach twists. “Did you tell her about my…incident?”

She wipes her hands on the face of her jeans. “Huh? Oh, no. Nothing about that. You know how Amy gets. She’d go crazy. She and Bill would be on the next flight up here.”

I barely snort. “Yeah, that’s for sure.” I motion with my head toward the stove. “What are you making?”

“Spaghetti. Should be ready in about fifteen to twenty minutes,” she says.

I plaster a smile on my face. “Cool. I’ll have enough time to shower.”

Beth pours defrosted meat into a skillet, and I hear it sizzle as I leave the room. Upstairs, I toss my bag near my dresser and stand in the middle of my personal space, running my fingers through my hair, trying to make sense of what I saw. I want so badly to pick up the phone, just to see if Jana’s home yet. I want to tell her that I was there earlier, that I know she and Blake were naked, roaming through the open forest like nudists. 

But I can’t let her know, because she’ll think I’m spying or something. How will I explain that?

Oh, sorry I stumbled on your and Blake’s adventures in the great unknown around West Hartford. My bad.

Yeah, right. She’ll never believe me. We happened to be in the same place, at the same time? No coincidence. More importantly, what were they really doing out there?