come back.”
“They’re polite enough to ring the doorbell?”
“It’s rigged. It’s a proximity alarm. If they get within—”
She reaches toward me and plucks a piece of grass off my shirt near my shoulder. “How did that get there?” She furrows her brow.
“Do you understand everything I just told you?”
“Yes!” she says in a huff. She stands, steadies herself on the table, and wanders into the living room. I follow her. She drops onto the couch, leans her head back and closes her eyes, a contented smile on her face.
After jotting my number on a piece of paper on the table, I grab my phone and dig her keys out of her bag. I jog outside to the shore and all the way to the footbridge where River catches up to me.
“Go home. Guard the house.”
She makes a U-turn and bolts toward the house.
I jog the entire way there, and by the time I reach the cabin my endorphins are rushing. It would make my day if one of them was here. A high like this can only be satisfied by a good messy fight.
Too bad it looks like I’m out of luck. I survey the back yard and head up the side. The front yard is clear too, and I can’t see any sign anyone’s been here since my last visit.
Suddenly feeling I’m being watched, I whip around to survey the forest. The wind picks up, tossing branches. I close my eyes and listen. I hear my heartbeat in my ears.
“Come on…” Bring it on. I open my eyes, combing the land, hungry for some action. The wind settles. Everything remains still. Damn.
Inside the house I grab a duffle bag from the debris and pack it with an assortment of books and magazines and more clothes. I go into the bathroom and grab whatever is in my reach. In the kitchen, I find some wadded grocery bags and fill them with all her food. I’m thankful it isn’t much. I set everything near the front door and go to work at my next task.
It would be a lot easier if they hadn’t trashed the place. I wonder why they did. There’s no point. Once they knew we weren’t here, they could’ve simply left with no trace to make another ambush possible. Maybe they had already made a mess of the skylight and knew their presence couldn’t be concealed. They could have been looking for something, just like I am right now. But they have no reason to care about her besides her connection to me.
My purpose is different. I’m trying to help myself make a decision. I need to see what effect it would have if she weren’t around anymore. I sort through the clutter trying to find anything that could give me a clue: a photo album, a bank statement, a checkbook. Evidence of elderly parents or grandparents who rely on her for money. Children, maybe living with their father. Any family at all.
Frustrated, I come up with nothing. It’s a little unusual not to have any family pictures around the house. But look who’s talking. I dump a pitcher of water in each of her flower pots on the front porch and the half-dead one out back. I’ve been gone too long, so I take one last look around and lock the front door behind me.
When I get back home, I pull Liv’s car up to the garage which should fit two cars but has so much junk inside it doesn’t fit one. Her car needs to stay hidden while it’s here. I rearrange one side to make room for her car, pull it in, and lock the door. Inside the house, I drop the duffle bag in the entry hall and put the perishable groceries in the fridge. In the living room I find her curled up on the couch, her knees tucked practically up to her chin. I could leave her on the couch and sleep in the bedroom, but I need to be out here to be on guard.
Praying she doesn’t wake up, I slide my arms under her shoulders and knees and lift her up. Her head flops and her arm dangles toward the floor. Halfway to the bedroom, she stirs. I hasten my steps to get her on the bed before she wakes up, but when her head rolls I see the waste of my effort.
Her eyelids flutter. “Umm…You? You stink.”
As I lay her
“They’re polite enough to ring the doorbell?”
“It’s rigged. It’s a proximity alarm. If they get within—”
She reaches toward me and plucks a piece of grass off my shirt near my shoulder. “How did that get there?” She furrows her brow.
“Do you understand everything I just told you?”
“Yes!” she says in a huff. She stands, steadies herself on the table, and wanders into the living room. I follow her. She drops onto the couch, leans her head back and closes her eyes, a contented smile on her face.
After jotting my number on a piece of paper on the table, I grab my phone and dig her keys out of her bag. I jog outside to the shore and all the way to the footbridge where River catches up to me.
“Go home. Guard the house.”
She makes a U-turn and bolts toward the house.
I jog the entire way there, and by the time I reach the cabin my endorphins are rushing. It would make my day if one of them was here. A high like this can only be satisfied by a good messy fight.
Too bad it looks like I’m out of luck. I survey the back yard and head up the side. The front yard is clear too, and I can’t see any sign anyone’s been here since my last visit.
Suddenly feeling I’m being watched, I whip around to survey the forest. The wind picks up, tossing branches. I close my eyes and listen. I hear my heartbeat in my ears.
“Come on…” Bring it on. I open my eyes, combing the land, hungry for some action. The wind settles. Everything remains still. Damn.
Inside the house I grab a duffle bag from the debris and pack it with an assortment of books and magazines and more clothes. I go into the bathroom and grab whatever is in my reach. In the kitchen, I find some wadded grocery bags and fill them with all her food. I’m thankful it isn’t much. I set everything near the front door and go to work at my next task.
It would be a lot easier if they hadn’t trashed the place. I wonder why they did. There’s no point. Once they knew we weren’t here, they could’ve simply left with no trace to make another ambush possible. Maybe they had already made a mess of the skylight and knew their presence couldn’t be concealed. They could have been looking for something, just like I am right now. But they have no reason to care about her besides her connection to me.
My purpose is different. I’m trying to help myself make a decision. I need to see what effect it would have if she weren’t around anymore. I sort through the clutter trying to find anything that could give me a clue: a photo album, a bank statement, a checkbook. Evidence of elderly parents or grandparents who rely on her for money. Children, maybe living with their father. Any family at all.
Frustrated, I come up with nothing. It’s a little unusual not to have any family pictures around the house. But look who’s talking. I dump a pitcher of water in each of her flower pots on the front porch and the half-dead one out back. I’ve been gone too long, so I take one last look around and lock the front door behind me.
When I get back home, I pull Liv’s car up to the garage which should fit two cars but has so much junk inside it doesn’t fit one. Her car needs to stay hidden while it’s here. I rearrange one side to make room for her car, pull it in, and lock the door. Inside the house, I drop the duffle bag in the entry hall and put the perishable groceries in the fridge. In the living room I find her curled up on the couch, her knees tucked practically up to her chin. I could leave her on the couch and sleep in the bedroom, but I need to be out here to be on guard.
Praying she doesn’t wake up, I slide my arms under her shoulders and knees and lift her up. Her head flops and her arm dangles toward the floor. Halfway to the bedroom, she stirs. I hasten my steps to get her on the bed before she wakes up, but when her head rolls I see the waste of my effort.
Her eyelids flutter. “Umm…You? You stink.”
As I lay her
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