“This is where we walk.” Nick said and then ran around to the passenger side and opened the door for Sarah. Nick approached the barbed wire fence first and simultaneously pulled up on the middle strand and pushed down on the bottom wire with his foot. He motioned for Sarah to go through.
“Gotcha.” She said and squatted down to side step through the fence.
Nick then stepped through himself, and as he stood back up to full height, reached for Sarah’s hand. She had extended it to him and he gladly took it. “It’s just a short stroll through this field and over the hill. See the tree up there? That’s where we’re headed, promise.”
The two walked, hand in hand across the alfalfa field. When they reached the tree at the top of the hill, Sarah found herself amazed by the stunning view of the twisting river valley below. She wasn’t sure what she had expected, but it surely wasn’t this. A cool, but pleasant breeze blew up from below, blowing her hair across her face. Sarah moved her hand up to brush her hair back and at the same time turned her head to the right. She was again surprised at what she saw. There, hiding in the shadows, was the murky outline of a tall, narrow bridge. Its stark silhouette crossed the canyon, high above the twisting river below.
“This is what I wanted to show you,” Nick said while pointing at the bridge, “It’s the old RNW railroad bridge. Trains aren’t in operation anymore, but the view… well I’ll let you see for yourself.”
Sarah couldn’t help but feel a little nervous as the two stepped out onto the railroad bridge. Nick noticed her hesitation and again reached back and took her hand.
“It’s okay, Sarah, nothing to worry about. Just step where I step.” He said with a wink.
And before she knew it the two of them were standing in the middle of the 150-foot tall steel bridge, looking down at the river below. It isn’t so bad, no reason to be nervous, her mind reassured her. “It’s so beautiful,” Sarah said aloud, “thank you for bringing me out here.”
“Of course. I felt like I should show you all the good things, some of my favorite places…” Nick trailed off for a moment, and when he looked up at Sarah he looked uncomfortable and sad. “I’m sorry for earlier tonight. I should have…”
“Nick,” Sarah stopped him. “Let’s not think about it anymore, okay? I would much rather just enjoy this view,” she smiled in his direction before continuing her thought, “and enjoy the present company.” Sarah felt the tingling urge to kiss him. It was growing powerful now, but she forced herself to wait. She was sure Nick would kiss her at some point, he had to- it was the perfect setting, and she was sending all the signals.
But instead of kissing her, Nick leaned his arms up against the side guardrail and looked down at the river and out over the canyon. Sarah noticed then that he held two small rocks in his left hand.
“How about a game then?” He asked.
“Ok. What kind of game?”
“Well, how about another bet? At the bottom of these steel piers- do you see the concrete pilings?”
Sarah nodded.
“First one to hit it with a rock.” Nick smiled as he handed Sarah a small round stone. “Ladies first.”
Sarah raised her arm and then stopped. “Wait, so what’s on the line here, Nick?”
“Breakfast.” Nick smiled.
Sarah laughed. This man really has a way about him, she thought, and let loose her rock. It flew from her hand and cut through the darkness and then… splash. She’d missed the target. “I think I missed.” She frowned.
“Well, you hit the river. Keep your chin up.” Nick winked at her and then let his rock fly. It whirred through the night air and then… dank. He’d hit it- right on target.
Sarah clapped. Nick took a little bow. Sarah curtsied in response, and then the two of them laughed together for what seemed like hours, their warm breath forming small clouds in the cold air.
“I guess I owe you breakfast then.” She said as the laughter finally slowed down. “Can I add it to my tab?”
“I don’t see why not.” Nick joked back at her, and then the two of them found themselves leaning up against the guardrail and once again looking out over the river. Their bodies were only inches apart. Their elbows occasionally touching as they both seemed to be waiting on the other to make some sort of move. It was an awkward sort of silence, like a middle school dance, with two young sweethearts afraid to touch one another. Sarah decided to break the silence.
“Nick, did you ever think about leaving Homewood?”
“Yeah. I really always thought that I’d end up somewhere else. I don’t know, in some city or something.”
“Well I’m sure your Dad was thankful when you stuck around and took over his business.” Sarah said and then immediately regretted bringing up Nick’s father again.
“He was. Though it was more of my ACL’s decision than mine.”
“Football,” Sarah said.
“Yeah, how’d you know?”
“The old man working at the hotel. He told me. Said you were a football star.”
Nick frowned. “It was a shitty way to spend my senior season, but things happen, and then other things happen. And now I’m standing on a bridge next to you.”
“Well, that I’m thankful for.” Sarah blushed and then tried to change the subject. “But you can trust me on this, cities aren’t always the end-all... “
“Be-all?” Nick interrupted. “That’s funny. Elizabeth used to say the same thing to me.”
“Maybe we’re a little bit alike,” Sarah said.
Nick smiled at that. Then his smile faded. “I miss her. She was a good lady.”
“I wish I could have known her, Nick.” Sarah was truly touched by the look on Nick’s face, but she also couldn’t help but to feel slightly jealous. She really did wish she could have known her aunt- known her whole family for that matter.
Nick nodded. “Me too.” They stared at each other. It was cold. “We should probably start heading back to the truck.”
They walked back along the bridge. Sarah once again carefully following Nick’s steps. She took one last glance over into the river valley.
“It is beautiful.” She said. “What did you say the name of the river was again?”
“The Iktomi.”
“Iktomi?” Sarah asked.
“It’s Lakota... it used to be Sioux hunting ground.”
“Thanks again for bringing me out here.”
“Of course. I like to come up here sometimes. Just listen to the sound of the water. It’s peaceful.”
“It’s lovely.” Sarah said and once again took his hand as the two stepped off the railroad bridge and back out into the alfalfa field. “Ya know, besides those two assholes at the bar, I think this whole town is lovely. It’s starting to grow on me.”
Nick was pleasantly surprised to hear that. “Really?”
“Yeah, maybe I’ll stay for a while.”
●
The snow finally began to fall on the long drive back, and with it, so did Sarah’s eyes. She was exhausted from the last week- being laid off, driving non-stop from California, and her restless dreams- but with Nick she was finally feeling like she could relax and let her guard down. The sleep took that rare opportunity and crept in, building heavy walls of stone upon her eyelids. They dropped shut and Sarah’s head drooped and then rested against the shoulder strap of her seatbelt. It was a deep dreamless sleep.
Nick turned onto the long gravel driveway toward the big, white house by the river. He looked over at his peacefully sleeping companion. She’s beautiful, he thought, and hesitated for a moment before waking her.
Sarah woke up with a smile on her face, but her mood quickly changed as she saw the old, white house in her peripheral. Sarah could sense the bright, first date glow slowly being smothered by something grim and heavy. As Nick’s truck came to a stop in the gravel driveway, Sarah felt as if a cloud had now completely covered her. It was hard to breath. There were secrets in the house and she was starting to wonde
r whether she really needed to know them. Maybe Nick is enough and then, he was tapping on her window again.
Nick opened the passenger door, and then walked her to the front door of the house. Unlike earlier in the evening, now there was an unexpected awkward moment of silence between the two.
“Well, I should get going.” Nick said and then surprisingly, to both them, turned and started to walk back to his truck.
“Nick?” Sarah called out.
Nick stopped, smiled and turned back to her.
“Nick, I know we’ve only just met, so please don’t get the wrong idea... but, do you think you could…” She paused for a moment, debating “…do you think you could stay here tonight? I don’t want to be alone in this empty house again.” Sarah was embarrassed by her own request, but she felt a solace with Nick that she hadn’t felt in a very long time.
“Of course... I’ll sleep on the couch.” Nick followed Sarah through the front door. He tried to keep his smile to himself.
“It’s so quiet here, well except for the noises the house makes. It’s so old and empty and… I’m sorry. I guess I just spooked myself a little last night.”
“It’s okay, Sarah. I understand.”
“It’s weird, the silence at night. You can get very lost in your thoughts.” Sarah said.
“Is that a bad thing?”
“Well no, it’s just different than what I’m used to I guess.”
“Coming from LA, I can understand. Do you miss it?” Nick pried.
“I don’t think I do. I mean, I think I’m ready for a change. My life was getting very... predictable.”
Nick raised an eyebrow. “So you’re looking for some excitement then?”
“Maybe I am. And strangely enough, this little town seems to be full of it.”
They both smirked at the comment remembering their run in with the two gentlemen at the bar earlier in the evening. Sarah tried to make light of what had happened. She had learned early on, that sometimes the best way to deal with something sour was to crack a joke, but the lingering feeling of the tall man’s grip on her arm sent chills up the back of her neck once more.
Nick walked over to the sofa. There was an ugly, knitted orange and brown afghan thrown over the back. He sat down and started to take off his boots.
“Hold on Nick. I’ll make up the sofa for you.”
“Ok, thanks.”
Sarah went rushing upstairs to get the bedding. She went to the hall closet, trying to remember if she’d spied blankets in there the other day and really hoping there were, so she wouldn’t have to go into her late aunt’s room at night. Bingo- thank God.
A few seconds later, Sarah walked downstairs with an arm-full of warm blankets and a pillow. She was greeted by Nick’s warm smile. He really is handsome, she thought.
“Are you sure you don’t want to just sleep in my aunt’s room, Nick?”
“I think I’m gonna pass on that one.”
“I don’t blame you.”
She started opening up the blankets. Nick got up and helped her make the bed on the sofa. Suddenly, Nick stopped.
“Wait... where did you get these?”
“From the hall closet, why? Are you scared??” Sarah giggled.
“What? No, I’m not scared. I was just kidding around.”
They laughed, both a little ashamed of joking about Elizabeth, then stood in silence and shared another long, awkward moment. Sarah finally broke the silence. It was becoming her thing.
“Good night.”
“Good night, Sarah. Sweet dreams.”
“Here’s hoping.” Sarah replied with a smile and started up the stairs. It was a joke, but it was also unfortunately, her current reality.
Nick watched her as she walked up the stairs. He had already laid down on his makeshift bed. He sleepily put his arms behind his head and smiled.
Sarah also smiled as she walked up the stairs. It had been a good night, but when she got to the top, her eyes were drawn across the hall to the closed door of her aunt’s room. Her smile faded. Something wasn’t right. Just a silly feeling, she forcefully convinced herself and quickly walked into the guest room. My room, her mind corrected her.
Sarah entered the room with purpose. She headed right for her luggage and began searching through it until she found the small prescription bottle with her sleeping pills.
“Here’s hoping.”
She took two pills without water and placed the bottle on the night stand for easy access. She unzipped her other suitcase and pulled out some comfy, albeit sexy, pink pajamas in case she happened to bump into Nick in the morning. The thought made her blush. She quickly slipped out of her clothes, slipped into the pink pajamas, and slipped into bed. No sooner did she close her eyes, than the dreams started.
Sarah found herself walking once again through the dark basement. Someone called her name in the distance. “Sarah!?” It was the soft voice of a young girl. Sarah turned toward the voice, but instead of finding a young girl she saw the old woman with the long, black hair. The woman moved through a doorway and out of view. Sarah followed the woman through the doorway and down an unlit staircase to a small cellar. The woman stood in the corner- busy putting glass canning jars on a wooden shelf that seemed to be haphazardly attached to the stone wall. Sarah couldn’t see the woman’s face and the woman didn’t seem to notice her.
Sarah got closer to have a better look. She watched the woman place the jars carefully on the shelf, but suddenly one fell from her grasp and hit the dusty concrete floor. The jar shattered, but instead of marbles, a crimson liquid spattered from the broken jar. A woman screamed from somewhere off to the left. Sarah knew that she should turn around and go back up the stairs, but she was compelled to keep watching. Sarah’s feet shuffled backwards, however, trying to put some space between her and the woman. And then she tripped, landing hard on her backside. When she looked up she saw that she was lying in front of a small wooden door that was oddly placed in the middle of the stone wall.
Sarah stood up, grabbed the door handle and tried to open it- but she couldn’t. Suddenly, she was aware that someone was now standing behind her. The breath felt strange against her neck, but it didn’t frighten her. She turned slowly around and saw that it was the tall shadowy figure. He was wearing what seemed to be an old, WWI gas mask and breathing in strange short breaths. The man’s right arm was behind his back, but his left was holding a hammer. He raised the hammer high above his head. Sarah now felt the flood of fear overcome her and she was frozen there watching, her feet wouldn’t move- waiting for what would happen next. The hammer came down and Sarah screamed…
Sarah sat up in bed screaming. The screams broke through the dream wall and followed her back into her bedroom. Somehow, thankfully, Nick was already by her side, with his hands on her shoulders trying to wake her.
“Sarah, wake up!” He shouted.
Sarah opened her eyes but she couldn’t stop screaming. When she realized that Nick was there, she began to calm down, and her screams faded, but her body kept shaking.
“Nick?” Sarah was disoriented. She looked around the room searching for the masked figure from her dream.
“You were having a bad dream- a really bad one. You were screaming.”
“I’m so sorry.” Sarah was truly embarrassed.
“Don’t be sorry. He gently stroked her face. It’s okay now.”
“There were jars of... blood.... I think it was blood… and someone was screaming. And a man with a hammer…” Sarah tried to recall the details of the dream, but the effects of the sleeping pill clouded her memory.
“I think we should take you back to the motel.” Nick looked concerned.
“No, Nick. Something is wrong. Something is going on here, and I have to figure out what it is.”
“What do you mean?”
Sarah paused for a moment. Almost like she was listening for something and then she took in a deep breath and let it out. “Maybe my aunt is trying to tell me something
... You have to help me.” She looked at Nick with pleading eyes.
“You think Elizabeth is communicating with you?” He looked confused.
Sarah nodded yes, knowing what it must’ve sounded like. She tried on a smile to smooth things out and make everything normal again. It didn’t work.
“I don’t know if I’m following exactly Sarah…” but then Nick spotted the prescription bottle on the night stand. He picked up the bottle and jiggled the pills inside. “What’s this?”
“I have trouble sleeping. That’s a lie. I can’t sleep, Nick. Remember the first night we met and I told you about my parents? I still can’t believe how much I told you…how my parents were killed in a car accident?”
“I remember.”
“Well, there’s more to it.” Sarah hesitated for a moment. “I was in the car when it happened. I was five. We were driving…here, to this house… to see my aunt. We never made it.” Sarah looked down.
Nick grabbed her hand, encouraging her to keep going.
“I’ve always been a little... sensitive to things, Nick. My feelings- the feeling. It’s not easy to put into words. I don’t expect you to understand this. I don’t even really…but this is what I mean about my aunt trying to tell me something.”
“I’m not sure I understand,” Nick said.
“How do I explain this?” Sarah’s eyes were beginning to water. The tears were coming now, there was no stopping them.
“Just try...” Nick pushed a piece of hair out of Sarah’s face, once again encouraging her to keep talking.
“These dreams… these dreams that I’ve told you about?”
Nick nodded.
“God, please don’t think I’m crazy. These dreams... they’re nothing new. I’ve been having dreams like this since I was a little girl. But they really aren’t dreams at all, they’re-”
Peripheral Vision: A Supernatural Thriller Page 8
