Reaching the small office, she paused. She looked around, spotting the EXIT sign in red lettering above a door. A smile wanted to reach her, but she held it back. She wasn’t free yet.
Brooke sprinted for the door. She was running too fast to stop, so when she reached the door, she crashed into it. She heard the thin pane of frosted glass rattle. Her hands slapped at the knob before finally catching hold of the brass ball. As she was about to turn it, she noticed the coatrack beside the door. A heavy tan coat with a furry collar hung from one of the spikes. Grabbing it, she held it under an arm while opening the door with her free hand.
Gray light poured in, covering her exposed body with cold. She ran out.
The gravel of the parking lot was rough under her feet. She felt pokes and jabs of rocks as she bolted for the road. She stopped at the edge of the blacktop and pulled her gown down as she checked either direction. Nothing was around. What buildings she saw were farther up the road. Even from here they looked old and abandoned. Woods separated her from the ancient brick structures.
Besides, she didn’t know if there was anybody in this town she could trust. If the damn Sheriff was a madman sadist, it was hard to tell what the others were like. No, she was on her own.
She put on the coat, zipped the front and headed for the woods across the street. The idea running through her mind saw her returning to the village to get Maggie.
Ted
“If anyone needs anything,” Randy said, “now would be the time to let us know. We already have a list, but can easily add to it.”
Randy had called for them to gather at the cars. Chad and Heather leaned against the Mustang, Chad jangling the keys ringed on his finger. Randy stood in front them, facing the others.
Randy continued, “I was listening to the radio and the guy on there said the snow’s making its way down, so we need to make an emergency run into Cradle Elk to pick up some supplies to hold us over for a couple days. Plus, a new heating element for the dryer since Shaun has confirmed it’s busted. I hoped we could hold out, but don’t want to make the gamble. We all know how unpredictable the snow can be out here.”
“Are you sure it’s a good idea to head out with bad weather coming?” asked Debbie.
She was beside Shaun, who stood with his arms crossed.
Randy held his hands out in a no other choice fashion. “I don’t like it, either. But if the snow makes it so we’re cooped up for a couple days, I’d rather have this stuff taken care of now.” He waved a sheet of paper that Ted could see a list had been written on. “Chad and Heather are going, and I’ll hang around here.” He looked up at the sky. “Not much we’re going to get done, so I’m calling it a day.”
Randy handed the list to Heather. Looking less than thrilled to be going, she took the list, folded it and slipped it into her purse.
They’d just finished eating a late lunch of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Their shelves in the food pantry were rather bare, but it could last them for a few days. Ted supposed the main reason for this errand was the dryer. Randy had been here a few days already and was probably running low on clean clothes.
“Does anybody else need anything?” asked Heather.
“Beer,” said Shaun.
“That’s on your own dime and only on the weekends,” said Randy.
“I could use some cigarettes,” said Steph. As she dug out some crumpled form of currency from her back pocket, she walked over to Heather. “Pyramid Orange.”
Taking the money, Heather nodded.
Ted’s eyes lingered on Steph’s pocket. Her rump seemed to fill the seat of her jeans, pushing them out in a smooth curve from underneath the coat.
Heather turned to Ted. “Do you need any cigarettes?”
Realizing she must have noticed him peering at Steph’s firm ass, his cheeks started to warm. “No thanks. I’ve got plenty.”
Heather nodded.
“All right,” said Randy, approaching Heather. “You guys need to get going so you can get back. Don’t linger in town too long.” He looked up at the sky. “I bet it’s going to snow like hell, so make it snappy.”
Heather smirked. “Yes, Dad, we’ll hurry.”
“It’s the woodshed if you don’t,” he said, patting her shoulder.
Chad opened the driver’s side door, glancing back as he started to climb in. “Don’t burn the place down! Our insurance just started!”
“No guarantees,” said Ted. “If Mister Teddy gets a match, he likes to make fire.”
Chad chuckled, offered a quick wave and pulled the door. Its bang when it closed resounded heavily.
Heather made her way around the front of the car. As she neared her door, the Mustang’s powerful engine rumbled to life. Chad revved the gas a couple times. Cold exhaust funneled out from the tailpipe, filling the air with the smell of gasoline. It was an odor Ted had always enjoyed, for whatever reason.
With Heather inside, the gears clicked, and the Mustang rolled backward. The others gathered around Ted, like kids being left with grandparents while the parents went out for a night of fun.
Ted felt a cold nudge of dread. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he wouldn’t see the Mustang again.
Knock it off.
He turned to the others and saw the same mixture of worry on all of their faces, including Randy’s.
“I’m going inside,” said Debbie, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had gripped them. “It’s cold out here.”
“Me too,” said Shaun.
They started for the steps to the back door.
“Good idea,” said Randy. “Let’s just relax. Won’t get many days when there’s nothing we can really do. Might as well enjoy it while we can.” He was at the steps when he paused and looked back. “You guys coming with?”
Steph cleared her throat. “Um…no. I think we might wander a bit.”
Randy frowned. “Wander? Where?”
“Just around. I kind of want to explore things.”
Ted could tell Randy knew there was more than what Steph was saying. He expected Randy to say something that would keep them from going. He actually kind of hoped for it. Instead, Randy just nodded.
“Don’t be gone long,” he said.
And that was it. Randy already had his back to them and was making his way up the steps when Steph turned to Ted. She was grinning behind the lip clamped between her teeth. It was an adorable expression, just not to Ted at this moment. She had won yet again, and he wished she hadn’t. He’d wanted Randy to make them stick around the house because he knew he wouldn’t have the balls to tell Steph himself.
Damn.
“Ready?” she asked.
“Can I get a rain check?”
“Nope.”
Ted sighed. “Then I guess I’m ready.”
Still smiling, Steph said, “I was going to wait to show you this, but…”
Ted watched her reach into the back pocket of her snug jeans and tug out a folded sheet of paper. She waved it at him.
“What is that?”
“The map.”
“The what?”
Steph rolled her eyes. “The map. I swiped it after lunch.”
“I ate with you, and didn’t see you do that.”
Steph lifted her eyes. “I’m sneaky.”
Though cute in its own way, Ted figured her devious banter would turn damn annoying really quick.
“It’s like we’re supposed to go out to Mystic Lane.”
“I doubt that’s it at all, especially since Randy said it was off-limits.”
“No, he said we’re not supposed to talk about Haunchies or what happened out here, starting Monday. He didn’t say anything about not going there.”
Ted shook his head. “You know, if Randy finds out both of us will be sent home. Probably without any kind of pay too,
since we broke the main rule.”
“Whoa, cool your panties, goofus.”
Panties? Goofus?
He felt heat on his skin. Was he sounding that much like a whining twat? Never had a girl spoken to him like that. He hated and liked it at the same time. She had that snarky personality that he loathed, yet she was filled with the kind of spunk he admired in a woman with an underlying sweetness.
For the first time since they met, he began to grasp that he really liked her.
“I don’t have on panties,” he said.
Steph sighed.
“I wear thongs.”
Her scowl dropped into a smile. “You should do what I’m doing and go commando.”
Ted gulped. “You’re not…?”
“Maybe I am, maybe I’m not. Maybe you’ll find out during our walk.”
She winked then pranced away.
Following her, he wanted to turn back, give the house one last longing glance before it was out of sight. His Kindle was in there, that Brian Moreland book beckoning to be read. He wished he was kicked back on the couch, doing nothing but reading the damn story.
Instead, his eyes were aimed forward, and a forced smile was on his face. Cold no matter how much clothing he had on. Letting another woman persuade him to do something he knew better than to be doing. That seemed to be all he was good at, surrendering to the influence of every gorgeous woman in his life.
“There’s an old dirt road right back there,” said Steph, nodding to the left.
Ted looked. He could see the narrow track cutting through the trees. It looked less like dirt right now and more like a trajectory of mud.
“It used to reach all the way to the shed, I think. At least, that’s what the map makes me think. We’ll go into the woods over there.” She indicated the pond with a quick thrust of her chin. “Then we can make our way over to the road without anybody seeing us.”
“Wow, you really planned this out, didn’t you? Was this what you were doing instead of saving me from helping Shaun with the dryer?”
Laughing, Steph shook her head. “Why do I like you so much?”
She’d asked in a manner like somebody wondering why she liked raisins. He wondered the same about her. He’d been drawn to her from the moment he climbed into Shaun’s truck. When Debbie told him to sit next to Steph, he’d fought to contain his excitement.
Steph looked at him, obviously wanting him to answer the question.
Ted pursed his lips as if giving it serious consideration. “Because you’re an idiot?”
Steph’s fingers spired under her chin, pretending to consider his response. “That’s got to be it.”
Laughing, Ted put an arm around her. She leaned against him. It was harder walking this way, but neither of them seemed to care. The fruity, clean smell of her shampoo drifted up to his face. He inhaled, being careful not to call attention to it. She might find it a trifle strange that he was sniffing her.
“This is nice, isn’t it?” she asked.
They passed the stagnant pond. Flooded over, the water reached farther out than it should. There was a foul smell coming from the greenish puddles, fetid yet sourly sweet. The high grass poking out from the murky water had turned into brown wisps that hung to the side like limp penises. To Ted, the pond resembled a backyard with a busted septic tank. A thin scab of ice spread across the water.
He saw a body floating in the depths, arms drooping in front, the burden of its legs pulling it lower. He pushed that image away real fast. His already cold body chilled even more.
“Are you shaking?” asked Steph.
“Got a cold chill.”
“Not scared, are you?”
“Are you serious?”
She didn’t answer. He was kind of glad that she didn’t.
Together, they entered the woods. Steph paused and held back an outstretched tree limb. Water had frozen in a sleeve that traveled up its spindly length. Ted glanced up at the gray sky. The clouds looked like an unmoving drape of ash.
When the snow started to fall, it would fall in a fury.
If we’re deep in the woods when that happens…
“Come on,” said Steph. “Stop worrying about everything.”
Heat floated up from his collar. “I’m not worrying.”
“You are too. It’s cute, but it’s also wasting time. We’ll be there and back before you know it. Then we can get under the blankets and snuggle.”
Smiling, Ted stepped past Steph. She let the limb go. It made a crackling noise as it swung back into place.
“Did some snuggling last night, didn’t we?” he said.
“We did. And some this morning in the shower too.”
He was reminded of the noise he’d heard in there. He knew he’d heard the snick of the door, but when he stuck his head out, he’d seen no one in the bathroom with them. Steph had said it was just his imagination.
I really do worry a lot.
“I’d like to do a lot more of that snuggling tonight,” she said.
“Same here.”
“This time we can snuggle in my bed. Won’t have that bar jabbing into my back all night while you’re jabbing into me.”
Ted laughed. “Sounds like a plan to me. You can’t be as loud tonight, though. Especially if we’re in your room. Aren’t you next to Heather?”
“She won’t notice. She’ll have Chad in there with her.”
“Getting jabbed?”
“Right.”
Ted made a face. “Hopefully she isn’t loud.”
“Then we’ll just have to be louder.”
Ted laughed. It petered out when he saw Steph had escorted him to the muddy road. It didn’t look quite as hazardous in the middle where the grass was growing, but the two conduits on either side were like melted chocolate.
Steph hopped over the muddy track, landing on the grassy line. She turned to Ted. “Easy-peasy.”
Ted didn’t need to jump, and took a long step over the mud.
“Show-off,” said Steph.
“Being tall is good for something.”
“Yeah, keeps your shoes from getting muddy.”
“I don’t think being tall will protect me from all the mud that’s out here. Besides, I’m sure I’ll crack my head on something before the day’s over. The downside to being tall.”
“Get a helmet.”
“I’ll probably need one.”
Walls of naked trees enclosed either side of the road, branches entwined as if woven together. A few stray skeletal limbs poked out from the woods to tap the road.
The dry patch was too narrow for them to walk next to each other, so Ted let Steph take the front.
She was the one who knew where to go.
Heather
Chad must have taken Randy’s comment about making it snappy to heart. Heather gripped the door’s handle as Chad took another curve too fast. The tires sighed on the pavement. She felt the rear end pull to the left, but Chad got the car straightened.
He didn’t look the slightest bothered by the car’s swerve.
If he’d at least use both hands to drive…
Leaned back in the seat, he had an arm casually draped over the steering wheel. The other held the gearshift in a loose grip, the thumb tapping the knob to a song in his head. He hadn’t cut on the radio, claiming he couldn’t handle all of the religious stations and their endless preaching. And she was thankful he’d left it off. The addition of the radio would have made this nerve-racking drive even worse.
After he took another curve that would have made a NASCAR driver envious, she couldn’t keep quiet anymore. “Trying to break a record?” she asked.
He glanced at her. “What do you mean?”
“Going a little fast, aren’t you?”
“Just trying to get us there an
d back before the snow hits the fan.”
“Well, you’re going to get us there dead if you don’t chill out.”
She felt the car’s velocity fall back as the engine’s rumble dropped.
“Better?” he asked.
The trees no longer looked like smeared blots. She could actually see the road for what it was and not the dark blurry streak it had been. “Much,” she said.
She looked at the clock in the dash and sighed. There was no way they would get back without seeing some snow on the road. Didn’t matter how fast Chad drove, they would be in the middle of it coming back. Hopefully he had all-weather tires on this beast.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Sure,” she answered, turning to look out the window. She had an idea what the question would be.
“What’s bothering you?”
And she would have won a prize had she been on a game show. “Not a thing.”
“Oh?”
“Mmm hmm.”
“What did we talk about last night? Remember?”
“A bunch of shit that really doesn’t matter. Keep your eyes on the road before you kill us.”
“Ouch.”
In the corner of her eye, she saw him shake his head. He’d been looking at her, but he turned his head forward. She sighed. How she was acting wasn’t fair to him. He had no idea about the dream, so she shouldn’t blame him for anything.
When he’d found her in the hall, she hadn’t told him about the dream. Just that she’d thought he was in the shower. He was bound to ask why she was mad at him. And what would she say when he did?
You made me dream about Grunnel again!
That’d be good. Show Chad how completely bonkers I am.
Heather felt bonkers, like any moment her head would crack open and spew insanity. She felt as if Chad had betrayed her, when he really hadn’t done anything at all. This was a familiar feeling to her. It always came the morning after a good night.
“Grunnel,” she whispered.
“As in Marvin Grunnel?”
“The one and only,” she mumbled.
“And what made you say his name?”
The Lurking Season Page 16
