by Ali Parker
“He’s apparently in a ditch,” Ben said. “He just called and said that, anyway. But his tractor is out in a cornfield.”
Mason swore colorfully under his breath, already taking out his keys. “That idiot,” he said. “I saw this day coming a long time ago. We all did. Where is he?”
“Out by the old Brock Farm.”
For a minute, I thought I’d heard him incorrectly. Surely the guy couldn’t have—
“The Brock Farm?” I choked out.
“Yeah, that old haunted place!” Ben crowed. “Must’ve been the ghosts that dragged the tractor off the road, right?”
Kinsey came over to hear what Ben was yelling about, and I grabbed his arm. “Kinsey, I have to go,” I managed to say. “I have to get home.” I could only imagine the kind of damage that I might find. It was almost harvest time now, and if an errant tractor had gone off into the cornfield, that meant crops were damaged. And if crops were damaged—
We had been working so hard to save the farm, and there really wasn’t any room for error. It already didn’t look like we were going to have a very impressive harvest, but the one crop we’d been really counting on was the corn.
“Are you all right?” Kinsey asked, catching my arm. “You should sit down, you look like you’re going to pass out.”
“Maybe it’s all this talk of ghosts,” Ben suggested.
“It’s not ghosts,” I snapped, not even sure where that had entered the conversation. “The Brock Farm is my farm. I have to go make sure everything’s okay!”
Especially since if Jeff had come over to Kinsey’s to yell at me, I couldn’t count on him being back there any time soon to see the damage.
Mason stared at me in surprise. “The Brock Farm? That’s where you’re staying?”
“Yes,” I said, wondering how none of them seemed to know that. Seems like the rumor mill had left a couple things out. But where else would I be staying? They must know I wasn’t at the Dew Drop Inn.
None of that mattered now, though. I had to head home and make sure everything was okay—and everyone. What if Jeff had been on his way back home to the farm when Steven lost control of the tractor? I felt a sickening feeling in my gut, yet I knew he was probably fine. He wasn’t much of an athlete, but he could at least outrun a tractor, or swerve to avoid being hit. But all the same, I’d feel better seeing the extent of the damage myself.
“I have to get home,” I muttered, already grabbing my things.
“Of course,” Kinsey said. “I’ll take care of everything here, don’t worry. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
I nodded, even though I’d barely heard him, as I ran for the door.
Chapter 5
Mason
I watched as Abi raced around collecting her things. She was out the door almost the second Kinsey told her it was fine. I was surprised at how worried she was, honestly. The situation wasn’t ideal, of course. We had mostly cattle and horses at our farm, and it could be catastrophic for a tractor to run amok in one of our fields. Even in the fields that we used for planting, it wasn’t a great situation—plants would be no match for the tractor.
But as far as I knew, the Brock Farm had been mostly dormant for a while, whole fields going unused. No one had really seen the Brocks around town, even. For all we knew, they might have moved away.
At first, I wondered if Abi and her husband might have bought the farm from them. But we would have heard about that the second realtors or lawyers were involved. Then, I remembered a young girl who used to come into town every so often to stay on that farm. Of course that young girl would have grown up. I was willing to put money on the fact that she was Abigail. Abigail Brock.
Something the rumor mill hadn’t gotten wind of, no doubt about that.
Leaving my beer on the counter, I hurried after her, more worried about her than the state of her family’s fields. She looked so upset she was practically trembling. I wasn’t sure she should even be driving in that state.
Sure enough, she hadn’t gotten far. Just to the parking lot. She was standing next to her truck, having dropped the keys on the ground, tears coursing down her face while she swore.
“Here,” I said, bending down around her and scooping up the keys. Slowly, I guided her to her feet with a hand at her lower back. “You shouldn’t be driving like this.”
“I have to,” she said, tearfully. “I have to get out there and make sure everything’s okay. It’s my responsibility.”
“Of course you do,” I soothed. “But let me drive you. Come on, Ben wanted me to check on Steven anyway. Let me kill two birds with one stone, as the saying goes.” I was a little hesitant to really get involved in this, considering the problem she’d already had with her husband. The last thing I wanted was for him to get mad at me in the middle of all this. Not only did I not want to fight with him, I didn’t want to upset Abi any more than she already was.
Still, I couldn’t leave her to drive herself. She clearly needed someone to take care of her right now, and any decent guy would volunteer to help her out.
“Really, I’m fine,” Abi said, but her voice was weak, and I could tell she was already giving in, before she had even handed over the keys. She wiped at her eyes and sniffled a little. “Thanks,” she said. I smiled gently at her, and she went around to get in the passenger’s seat.
“Everything’s going to be okay,” I promised, as I put the truck in reverse to back out of her spot.
She made a noncommittal noise in response, clearly still worried about the damage that might have been done. “Do you know where I live?” she suddenly asked, even though I was already driving in the right direction.
I laughed, “Of course I do, darling,’” I told her. “Everyone knows about that place.”
“What do you mean?” she asked, her brows knitting together. “You mean because it’s been so unused lately?”
“No, I mean because of the murder there,” I said, glancing over at her. She had never really lived there long-term, but she must have heard the stories.
“What murder?” she asked.
I gave her another, longer look. Calculating. The last thing I wanted to do was tell her about the gruesome stories I’d heard about that farm. She was already so upset, I didn’t want to get her more worked up. I finally shrugged. “It’s probably nothing, but there have always been stories about that place being haunted. About some murder that happened, way back in the fifties. It was probably just someone with too much imagination.”
“I’ve never heard about any of that,” Abi said, and for a second, she was defensive, like she thought I was making it up just to scare her. But then, she sighed, and the fight went out of her. “Maybe that’s why no one wants to work there for very long,” she said, bitterly.
I looked over at her in surprise. It made sense that they’d be trying to hire help. There was a lot of good land there, so it could have been a great farm if they got things running again. But if the Brocks were still the ones in charge, and if Abi’s parents weren’t back there, there wasn’t much that Abi and her husband could do to help the place. Running a farm like that took a lot of manpower. Of course they’d need help.
“Are you having trouble finding guys around here who can help?” I asked. “My family’s actually about to hire some hands, but if there’s no one around, that could be a problem.” We were managing all right despite David’s absence around the farm. Everyone had a few more responsibilities, none of us more so than Ted. But we were looking for help so that we could expand the place. I could hardly imagine how stressful it must be to be desperate for hands to keep the place even running.
“It’s not that we’re having trouble finding anyone,” Abi said, shaking her head. Again, there was that same bitterness in her tone. “But none of them seem to want to stick around. A couple paychecks, just enough to tide a man over. And then they disappear on us, until they need the money again. I wish we could hire some more dependable guys, but no one seems too interested once t
hey find out just what farm we need help on. I couldn’t figure out what was going on, and thought maybe my Grampa pissed off the wrong people in town or something.” She gave a sad laugh. “He’s about the nicest guy I know, so I was really confused. But I guess it must be all this bullshit about the place being haunted.”
“That must be rough, not being able to find reliable workers” I said, knowing how impossible it would be to run a farm with flaky hands. For all the challenges of working so closely and for such long hours with my brothers, I couldn’t help feeling grateful that we had such unshakeable loyalty to one another. A real reason to stick around.
I shook my head. “To be honest, I can’t believe the place has been running for as long as it has, considering how run down the place is.”
“Thanks a lot,” Abi snapped. “That’s what I’m trying to fix. I came here as soon as I knew what was going on.”
I looked over at her in surprise. “Sorry. No offense intended,” I said, feeling sheepish. “I didn’t realize there’d been any change. I haven’t been out this way in a while, and the last time I was, half the fields were empty. I’ve been expecting to see it go up for sale at some point, and hadn’t heard anything about it.” I paused. “I’m glad to hear you’re out here, keeping everything in the family, despite how difficult it’s been.”
It probably shaded a little too close to showing admiration for her, but I couldn’t really hold back. What she was doing was admirable, and I wasn’t sure I would have done the same in her position.
It made me even more curious about her. Where she’d really grown up and what she did for work when she wasn’t trying to save the family business. But it seemed inappropriate to start asking about all of that now. She had enough on her mind without making her homesick for everything she’d left behind as well.
Abi’s look softened. “I knew my grandparents were getting up there in their years, but they didn’t ever ask for help. My dad has been neglecting everything, ever since the divorce. His girlfriend is the only one getting any attention, these days,” she sighed. “Honestly, I don’t know much about running a farm. I only came here in the summers, back when I was much younger. I’m just doing the best I can now, learning everything that I can from Grampa.”
“And the cornfield?” I asked.
Abi sighed. “If it’s the one I’m thinking it is, that was our best hope for a successful harvest. I only hope there wasn’t too much damage.” She paused, “If we take too much of a hit, I’m not sure the farm will be ours by the start of next year. We’re not in the best position with the bank at the moment.”
Reaching over, I squeezed her hand lightly. Just a platonic gesture, but it still caused something to flare inside of me. I quickly retracted my hand, aware of how inappropriate the gesture had been, what with her being married and all. But Abi smiled over at me.
All that stress may be causing the troubles in her own marriage. Suddenly, it made sense that her husband would need her back home tonight. But I could also see where Abi was coming from. Picking up the double shift at Kinsey’s, where she was guaranteed to get paid for the work that she did, was likely her attempt to do anything she could to save the farm.
I had to respect a woman who was willing to work hard to do what was right. And her husband probably respected her too, he’d just been stressed about the amount of work that still needed to be done before bed, followed by an early morning again. Ted had been under similar stress since David had left, lashing out at people in a way he never used to. I still didn’t condone behavior like that, but at least I understood it a little more.
I shook my head, wishing that I could offer something to Abi, some comfort or some help. But I had nothing to give, and anyway, we were arriving at her farm. Steven was standing by the side of the road, illuminated by the flashing lights of the sheriff’s car. “I’d better handle this,” I groaned.
“Okay,” Abi said, as we both got out of her truck. “Thanks for the ride.”
“Are you going to be all right?” I asked.
“I’ll be fine.”
I paused there for a moment, still wanting to say something else, feeling almost as though there was a tension in the air between us. But Abi seemed almost embarrassed to have needed my help, and it reminded me of her embarrassment back at the bar. She had a husband. I’d already gotten as involved as I should in their affairs. If she said she was fine, then I had to let her be.
Chapter 6
Abi
I couldn’t help but hug Jeff the minute that I saw him, standing there next to the sheriff’s car. He stumbled back a couple steps, and when we pulled apart, he was clearly taken aback by the affectionate greeting. And sure, I had intended to ream him out the next time that I saw him, still furious about the scene in the bar. “I’m just glad you’re okay,” I said, quietly.
Jeff squeezed my shoulder lightly. “I’m okay,” he intoned, nodding at me. He looked over towards Steven and the sheriff. “I drove up to this and was doing my best to help Steven.”
“What happened?” I asked, looking at the mess of broken corn stalks on the far side of the ditch.
“Guy got stuck in the ditch and his tractor pitched him off. Then, it kept going. He’s not seriously hurt, just a little dazed and might have a concussion.”
“And the corn?” I asked, waiting with baited breath to hear his response. It had to be okay. I had put too much time and effort into saving the farm for it all to be destroyed now. I didn’t know what I would do if everything was ruined.
“I haven’t checked it yet,” Jeff said carefully, but I could tell from his face that he was worried. And if Jeff, my unflappable brother, was worried, that meant there was something really worth worrying about.
I swallowed hard. “That bad, huh?”
Jeff shrugged. “Well, you can see everything that I’ve seen of it so far,” he said, gesturing across the ditch. “Like I said, Steven’s a bit woozy, so I didn’t want to leave him alone. Doesn’t look very promising though, does it?”
“No,” I mumbled, shaking my head. God, why this field? Why couldn’t the moron have crashed one field over, into our mess of an eggplant crop? We still didn’t know exactly what had gone wrong with those plants, but none of them had yielded half as many eggplants as they were supposed to, and the ones that we’d cut into had been decidedly terrible.
But no, Steven had made a mess of the cornfield. Of course.
I knew it wasn’t his fault, and getting angry at him wasn’t going to change anything. Plus I also knew that if I continued to stand here, I was going to blow up at the guy anyway, calling him reckless and careless and all sorts of other things.
Instead, I leapt over the ditch and ran off into the field, half intending to see what kind of damage had been done, and half focused on just getting out of there. I didn’t know how I had gotten into this mess, and wished I could just run away from it all. I knew that what I was doing there was the right thing to do, helping out my family and restoring the farm to its former glory. But at the same time, this wasn’t my life and I wasn’t cut out for this. Like I’d told Mason, I didn’t really know the first thing about running a farm.
But I knew enough to know that the destruction in the cornfield was going to be hell for us to deal with. The machine had driven over huge swaths of corn, plus ripped other stalks out on either side as they caught against the metal. I wished I could get an aerial view of the field, just to see the full extent of the damage, but on the other hand, I knew that there was plenty of damage.
I turned off into one of the rows of corn, blinking back tears and fighting to catch my breath. I started running again, no goal in mind, just trying to get as much space as I could between myself and the wrecked corn. Eventually, I collapsed into a sobbing heap on the ground.
Finally managing to pull myself together again, I didn’t really know how much time had passed. I got shakily to my feet, suddenly realizing I had no idea where I was in the cornfield, or which direction I had
come from. It all looked the same under the nascent moon. I whimpered a little in the back of my throat and started walking, hoping I would come across the house, the road, something. I would have to eventually, wouldn’t I?
Now, more than ever, I wanted to run away from it all.
After a while, I heard rustling. Was it in front of me? Behind me? On either side? I couldn’t tell. Maybe it was just the wind. Maybe it was my mind playing tricks on me. I couldn’t stop thinking about what Mason had said about this place being haunted. I didn’t really believe in ghosts. But murders, on the other hand?
Swallowing hard, I kept walking. But if it had happened once, it could happen again, right? What if Steven and his tractor were just ploys to get us all out into the cornfield at night, where people were waiting for us, waiting to kill us?
I screamed as a tall, broad-shouldered man emerged from the corn in front of me.
“Shh, hush,” Mason said, catching my arms before I could run away. “Jesus, Abi, it’s just me.”
Falling into his chest, I felt utterly exhausted and devoid of emotion. I would have been crying, but I’d apparently used up all my tears. Now, I just felt raw. “I thought you were going to murder me, just like what happened before,” I said.
“Don’t worry,” Mason said, petting my hair gently for a moment. “No murderers here.” He grinned crookedly as I finally composed myself and pulled away. “Zombies, maybe.”
I shuddered. “Don’t say things like that,” I begged him.
“You really believe in zombies?” Mason asked, looking surprised.
“Well, no,” I told him. “But honestly, on a night like tonight, I could never be too sure.”
“What do you mean?” Mason asked.
“Just being out here, in these fields and in the dark like this. I guess maybe it’s because you were telling me about this place being haunted, but I could almost believe in zombies. Especially since I’m lost out here.”
“Good thing I’m not lost,” Mason said, confidently.
