The Haret (The Haret Series)

by Denise Daisy

Felicitas popped the candy into her mouth. The peppermint took effect on the nausea eliminating it immediately. She took one final glance in the mirror. There was no evidence she had been crying so she left the bathroom.

  .

  Esther was right. Catlin was sitting at the small booth, her body leaning over the table, her face as close to Ian as she could manage. Felicitas fell onto the cushioned bench and slid up close to Ian.

  “Hello Catlin.”

  Catlin jumped, surprised; the look of guilt instantly showing on her face.

  “Oh my God Taz, you look horrid. You feeling okay?”

  Ian put his arm around Felicitas pulling her closer and placed a kiss on her coral lips. “She looks great to me.”

  Felicitas smiled as Catlin’s intended insult fell flat.

  Ian pulled her toward him and gave her another kiss this time on top of her head.

  “Where were you? I saw your car and thought you were here already so I ordered. Hope your ciders not cold.”

  Felicitas picked up the mug to delay giving an answer. She took a small sip. The tart cider combined with the peppermint in her mouth was utterly repulsive. She swallowed nearly gagging in disgust.

  “I was early so I took a walk. It’s such a beautiful day and all the trees on this street have the prettiest color leaves. Besides you know how I love the smell of autumn.”

  Ian smiled and Catlin attempted another disparaging comment.

  “Taz you’re such a simple little nature girl. I am at the mall with your mother checking out fall colors in the latest fashions, and you’re looking at dead leaves and smelling small yard fires. You’re too funny!”

  Ian kissed Felicitas again this time lingering a tad longer on her lips. “That’s what I love about her.”

  Catlin squirmed in her chair and gave it one last shot. “You are so right Ian. I wish I could be more like her. Taz you’re so carefree, never worrying about how you look. Like this piece of pumpkin bread, you can eat something like that and you don’t care about adding pounds. I wish I cared more about enjoying life than my figure. But I have to fit in my homecoming dress. Can’t return a fifteen hundred dollar formal.”

  Ian whistled, “You spent fifteen hundred dollars on a dress!”

  “Well of course. I'm in the court. I can’t accept the crown in just anything. Have you picked out your dress yet Taz?”

  She hadn’t yet, even though her mother and grandmother had made several attempts to take her shopping. Every time they tried something interfered causing them to reschedule. Felicitas knew they both would insist on spending a fortune on the dress and now considering her recent news she was relieved a dress had not been purchased. She had never been pregnant before and wasn’t sure how long it would be before she began to show. A dress that fit today may not fit a month from now. The nausea returned.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The brass section of the Stone River High marching band trumpeted the call to charge, while the final seconds ticked off the clock. The teams quarterback, Zach Embry, tossed the ball, landing it directly into David’s hands. He pivoted, and then dashed toward the end zone, snaking through the opposing team’s defense as if he were invisible. Score! The crowd leaped to their feet as David performed his victory dance, slamming the ball onto the blue and white turf. The cheerleaders performed aerials and high kicks from the sidelines. Air horns blared while buttery popcorn rained down over Felicitas. Stone River High continued their winning streak. The stands emptied as everyone made a victorious run onto the field… everyone but Felicitas. She remained seated, staring straight ahead, her mind on only one thing.

  Esther did an about face and bolted back up the bleachers.

  “Where’s your school spirit? Get your lazy butt on the field. You’re not still feeling sick are you?”

  Felicitas nodded. “No I’m good. Just a little tired.”

  Esther fell back onto the stadium seats and whispered excitedly.

  “Everyone’s going to Reed’s house tonight. There’s a bonfire and hayride.” Her grin remained plastered across her face, her eyes dancing in excitement.

  “I know, Ian told me to go and have fun.”

  “Wanna go?”

  Felicitas sighed. Another delay in talking to Esther about her pregnancy and the bizarre way she felt it might have happened.

  “I kind of just wanted to go back to your house and talk.”

  Esther bit her bottom lip.

  “That’s right you wanted to talk and I am being totally selfish wanting to go to the Redicks and humiliate myself by pathetically trying to get Reed’s attention. I’m just setting myself up for a major disappointment aren’t I?”

  Felicitas smiled.

  “No you’re not. I see him looking at you from a distance. I bet if you go tonight he’ll talk to you. You should go and have fun, we can talk tomorrow.”

  Esther shook her head. “No way, I’m not going without you.”

  Felicitas protested. “Hayrides are no fun without him.”

  “How late is he performing tonight?”

  “Not sure, I think they go on last. Besides, the gig is somewhere in Nashville, he said he’d never make it in time.”

  Esther remained positive and giddy.

  “Well…I don’t have a date either, but it will be fun.”

  “Fun for you, you can flirt. Besides I’ll just make everyone uncomfortable.”

  Esther laughed. “No you won’t. People don’t care Taz. You don’t go around judging everyone and they know it. If you want to remain pure until marriage that’s your business. You don’t force your ideas on everyone. You got a lot of friends girl, and I am sure they want you on the hayride. Besides you’re a challenge and a turn on to the guys.”

  “Esther!”

  “Well it’s true. Please let’s go…I really really want to.”

  Felicitas smiled at her friend pleading like a four year old. Esther had developed a crush on Reed back in the fifth grade and was faithful to her infatuation ever since. He never paid any attention to her in spite of her obvious advances towards him until recently. He began to notice Esther at the beginning of the school year and so had everyone else. She was a late bloomer but she certainly blossomed. Contact lenses replaced eyeglasses, braces were removed during the summer, and her body went from a broomstick to an hourglass.

  Felicitas had always adored Esther eyeglasses and all. She was the best friend a girl could ask for and had been since the third grade. They had grown up together playing make believe in Felicitas enormous back yard, being damsels fighting dragons and awaiting rescue by their handsome prince. Felicitas prince was always one she made up in her imagination, but Esther’s prince was always Reed. Felicitas swore she’d never tell anyone of the whimsical desires Esther played out in the privacy of her backyard. They were devoted friends, never letting anything or anyone come between their special bond. This is why Esther would be the first one to hear of her predicament. But she would have to keep her secret to herself a little longer, because right now she was going on a hayride.

  The girls made a quick stop at Esther’s house to drop off Felicitas overnight bag and laptop and grab a couple of blankets. They cranked up the heater, put the top down on Felicitas convertible, and took the two-lane road past the city limits. Within minutes, Felicitas pulled the car onto the long driveway leading up to the historical mansion home. She drove past the main house and then turned onto a dirt road leading further across the property. The Reddick estate sat on over two hundred acres complete with a small lake, tennis courts, Olympic sized swimming pool, a baseball diamond, riding stables and acres of wooded rolling hills.

  The night was dark; the moon barely a sliver hung high in the sky offering little light through the dense woods. Felicitas turned on her Bright’s as she maneuvered the narrow road. She had driven this path many times during her high school career. The best parties of the past three years were held at the Reddick estate. Most of them daytime events, such as pool parties, barbeques and
baseball games. There had only been a few events taking place at night. Legend was that the estate sat on one of the bloodiest battle fields of the civil war. According to certain publications, this area was one of the most haunted places in the south. Back in junior high, Reed and his friends often boasted of chasing ghosts through the woods. They delighted in telling the most harrowing stories just to get the girls screaming. It was their first attempts at flirting.

  “I hate this part of the drive”, Esther voiced her apprehensions. “It’s so creepy, I always think about all those stories Reed used to tell. I am always afraid I am going to see the ghost of some wounded war solider shot and bleeding calling on me for help.”

  No sooner had the words escaped her lips, than two figures fell from the trees directly in front of the car. Felicitas slammed on her brakes, and joined Esther in a blood curdling scream. Hysterical laughter erupted from the fallen pranksters.

  Stunned to silence, Felicitas and Esther sat staring out of the windshield.

  Esther rose up in her seat. “You idiots!”

  David and Danny had dressed in the latest vampire attire and were hiding in the trees, jumping in front of the arriving guest to start the night out with a scare. Due to recent book series and films, vampires seemed to be the popular thing.

  The boys ran to both sides of the car.

  “You should have seen your faces!” David said

  “Classic!" Danny echoed.

  Felicitas gave into her laughter.

  “I could have hit you, you know.”

  David leaned over the door grinning at Felicitas. He chewed noisily on a big wad of gum, obviously still savoring his MVP status, due to his winning touchdown. “So where’s your college man.”

  “He had a gig.”

  “Then you will need me to keep you warm tonight.”

  “I brought a blanket.”

  “Great we can snuggle under it.”

  “I thought you had a thing for Catlin. Why aren’t you with her?”

  “Cause she went to see your college man play tonight. Said she thought he needed some support.”

  “Hope she enjoys standing in line with all the other desperate screaming girls.”

  “So you don’t care?”

  “Do I look worried to you?”

  David continued chomping his gum and grinning at Felicitas. “That’s what I love about you Taz, you’re so cool. You don’t let anything get to you do you? Marry me. Marry me right now!”

  David had been asking Felicitas to marry him since fifth grade. He loved her spunk. She was a born leader, the bell cow as he defined it. Everyone followed her. She was beautiful, passionate about what she believed and never afraid to live out her convictions. She began the purity club her junior year of high school after her sister, Lisette, gave her virginity away her freshman year to the first guy who told her he loved her. He told another girl he loved her the very next week. Lisette cried for months, then her tears turned to self-destruction and revenge as she gave herself away to every guy she went out with.

  Had anyone else suggested such a club, everyone would have made fun of them. But not Felicitas. She was different. Her commitment to remain pure only made her more desirable to the guys, and an inspiration to the girls. Membership in the club far exceeded what she ever imagined. She knew most of the girls attending the group were not virgins and regularly had sex with their boyfriends, but she never made them feel like they didn’t belong. Her motto was: You can become pure again the moment you decide you want to be.

  David and Danny jumped into the back seat of the Mustang just as Felicitas resumed her drive down the road. She pulled the car into a clearing and parked on the thick grass alongside the other vehicles. A large fire blazed to their right, sparks and glowing embers drifted up into the dark sky. Two tractors with trailers full of hay sat facing the woods ready to depart. Zach stood on top of the highest bale and announced their arrival.

  “The Puritans have arrived. Let the party begin! Climb aboard my trailer Felicitas and we’ll give the word hayride a whole new meaning!”

  “Knuckle dragger!” Esther shouted, as they steered clear and boarded the second trailer. Felicitas nudged Esther and nodded her head toward the back. Reed was perched on a hay bale strumming his guitar. A piece of straw dangled from his lips. Esther smiled as they made their way to the back and settled down into the soft straw. Reed acknowledged them with a smile and continued to strum. David and Danny joined the girls as the trailer began to move onto the narrow dirt road heading into the woods.

  In a way, Felicitas was happy Ian wasn’t here. She knew she would not be good company; her mind was much too preoccupied. He would have noticed something was bothering her. Esther had. She leaned over and whispered in Felicitas ear.

  “We’ll leave right after the hay ride okay?”

  “We don’t have too. I’m fine….really, we can talk later.”

  “No Taz, I can tell something’s upsetting you. You asked me to talk after the game and I was selfish and begged to come. We shouldn’t have.”

  “It’s okay Esther, really it is. This is nice, I love October nights. We can talk later…besides let’s see how the night plays out for you.”

  Esther smiled and glanced at Reed who was singing a ballad and strumming the guitar.

  “I love his voice.”

  “Talk to him then.”

  “Not while he’s singing.”

  “You‘re just making excuses.”

  “I know."

  The trailer continued to wind through the dense forest, bumping along the dirt path. Playful screams and laughter echoed off the other trailer several yards ahead. The soothing sounds of crickets and the occasional hoot of an owl combined with the pleasing serenade by Reed allowed Felicitas to relax. She pulled her blanket close and leaned her head against the bale of hay.

  Four home pregnancy tests and a blood test did not lie. Still it was impossible. The only other recorded virgin pregnancy was in the Bible, and Felicitas was certain she wasn’t giving birth to the Son of God. Her mind kept returning to the one event…but she knew that was impossible. No one would ever believe her. She wasn’t sure if she could believe it herself, yet, deep inside of her…. she knew.

  The trailer continued to wind deeper into the woods. A low fog hovered near the ground, swallowing up the first hay wagon, stealing it from their sight. A brisk wind whistled through the trees, plucking the dead leaves from the branches, scattering them about, while the fog slithered across the ground, crawling up onto the trailer bringing with it a sinister presence. Felicitas shivered unsettled, feeling a premonition of impending danger. She listened to the playful screams and laughter of her friends and wished she could relax and enjoy the evening as they were. She pulled the blanket closer, but still her stomach knotted with an omen, and she thought that perhaps she should scream for the trailer to stop and tell the driver to turn back

  Another strong gust of wind and the fog parted just enough for her to catch a glimpse of a dark horse and its rider following close just behind the trees. Her pulse increased as her heart leaped into her throat, closing it off, choking the breath from her. She sat up straight, staining her eyes. But despite the darkness she saw.

  “My God it’s him!” She choked out the words.

  Throwing her blanket aside, she jumped from the trailer and disappeared past the trees.

  Esther stood to her feet surprised.

  “Taz!”

  David joined her.

  “What’s that girl on?”

  Reed put down his guitar and jumped off the trailer, giving chase through the trees.

  Esther didn’t waste a second before leaping off after him. David and Danny followed abandoning the ride staying close on Esther’s heels.

  Felicitas ran deep into the gloomy forest. The frivolous sounds echoing off the trailers grew faint, fading into the distance. She moved fast, pushing away the branches that smacked against her face, stinging and cutting into her flesh. There w
asn’t a path to follow and barely any light, but she continued her search. She knew what she saw. He was here again at the very same place where she first met him three years ago.

  The snapping of branches caused her to stop. Someone was close by. Suddenly, fear consumed her. She glanced around and strained her eyes, but it was much too dark to see anything. The fog continued to thicken, blinding her and sucking the air from her lungs. Snap! She jerked her head toward the sound and sensed a presence. Could it be him? She contemplated calling out his name. It would be the first time she ever said it out loud. She took in a deep breath.

  “Raine?”

  Fear stole her breath making her voice barely audible. She swallowed hard and tried to take in another in spite of the heavy vapor hanging in the air.

  “Raine is that you?”

  The snapping of branches drew her attention to the left. She whirled around to see a dark horse making its way through the trees. It stopped only a few feet away then reared up, shaking its head from side to side, its black eyes wild, sensing danger. The horse stomped hard, snorted and gave a whinny. Felicitas heart raced as she made eye contact with the rider. He pulled his sword and held it high. He had only one word for her.

  “Run!”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Esther stopped, bending over; she tried to catch her breath. “Where the hell she disappear too? This is crazy. It doesn’t make sense. We’ve been yelling her name for forty minutes. It’s like she vanished right in front of our eyes.”

  Esther was worried. It made no sense. Felicitas could not have been that far ahead. True, the woods were dense spreading out over several acres, but how could they have been separated so quickly?

  Reed turned around, scanning the area slowly.

  “Guys, we need to split up. David and Danny, you two head back to the fire. If she’s not there, then find my dad and tell him what happened.”

  The guys nodded while catching their breath and headed back. Any other time, Esther would have been thrilled to be alone with Reed, but her enthusiasm was overshadowed by the fear that something dreadful happened to her best friend. She studied Reed’s face as he continued to search the woods.