Aimee sat on a frosty outcropping of rock, looking down at the cottage through the trees. Her eyes were swollen and hot from crying. Just when she thought she couldn’t produce any more tears, they went ahead and came anyway, a seemingly never-ending supply.
She sniffed and dug a tissue out of her pocket. As much as she’d feared telling Jake, as much as it had terrified her, it had been even worse than she’d imagined. And she’d imagined it plenty.
Every time she closed her eyes, she saw that look on his face. The one of complete disbelief. And anger, there’d been plenty of that too. He’d been in a state of shock when she’d left. He no longer trusted her, that much was obvious. Probably feared her as well. And could she blame him? As hard as she tried to love herself no matter what she’d become, she couldn’t help but see what he had last night—some kind of freak. A monster reserved for terrifying children.
Shivering, she zipped up her jacket. Not from the cold, but from the image. Was that what he thought she was? A monster? Her throat ached. If that was it, he might never get past it. Never. And where would that leave him? How could he continue living in this town knowing what he did now?
The questions, all of them, swarmed around in her brain like locusts. Her heart felt like someone had pummeled it with their fists, leaving it bruised and barely beating. So, this was what it felt like to love someone, truly love someone, and then lose them.
But even through the pain, there was fear, sharp and unwelcome as a prodding needle. The fear of not just losing Jake and Daniel emotionally, but losing them physically too.
Aimee looked down at the tracks in the snow. They were old. Maybe a few days or so. But they were there, and so was the lingering smell. He’d been there. The wolf that she’d warned Jake about had been there. So close.
He’d been stalking them, she was sure of it now, even if she didn’t know why. The question of what he wanted was less important than the fact that he wanted it. He had to be unbalanced. She could feel it. Maybe it he wanted revenge. Or maybe just blood. But he was getting bolder.
She stood wearily. She’d make another circle. Wider this time, farther out. And she would be watching. Waiting.
Throwing another look at the cottage, she began hiking up the hill toward the setting sun.
* * * *
“I don’t want towels this year, Daddy.”
Jake squirted some ketchup onto Daniel’s fries. They sat in the corner booth at their favorite pancake house in Splendor Pass. The one where the waitresses knew their names and flirted with Jake on every visit.
But today, nobody tried. He figured it had to do with the look on his face. Or maybe the scruffy beard and the baseball cap pulled low over his eyes. He didn’t want to make small talk with anyone. Didn’t want to act like he gave a shit about the weather or how it was almost New Year’s already. He really didn’t care. At least not at the moment.
“I thought you liked the towel Grandma gave you last year,” he said. “It had Spider-Man on it.”
“I like Spider-Man,” Daniel said around a mouthful of grilled cheese. “I don’t like Spider-Man towels.”
“Ahh.”
“Is Aimee coming to my party?”
The mention of her name was like a punch to the gut. It had been four days since he’d told her to leave the cottage. Four days since he’d seen the light in her window. Four days since he’d felt her presence around the property. As far as he could tell, she was gone. Just like that.
“Well, I think she’s awfully busy.”
His little boy’s face fell. “Oh.”
Jake pushed his fries around on his plate. Four days of thinking about her, wondering where she was…what she was.
“I think she might have had to go away for a while. She might be back in time though. Let’s just wait and see, okay?”
“She promised,” Daniel mumbled. His blond hair stuck up in the back, a cowlick he’d had since birth. Lizzie used to lick it down with her thumb, but it always shot right back up again.
Jake’s eyes burned as he looked at his son. So little. So innocent. He’d been through so much in his four years. More than most people would go through their entire lives. But he was alive and healthy, sitting there talking about his birthday party.
Jake knew in his heart that it could have been so different. Daniel could have died that night up on the mountain. But he’d been saved instead. By a mythical creature that Jake still had a hard time believing in. But subconsciously, deep down, maybe he always had.
“Will you call her?” Daniel asked,
Jake considered this while reaching over to smooth his son’s hair. “I would, buddy. But I don’t have her number.”
Daniel turned his attention back to his sandwich, but not before Jake caught the unmistakable glisten of tears.
“Hey.”
Daniel didn’t move.
“Hey.”
Slowly, he looked up again.
“I think I know her pretty well. And she did promise. She seems like the kind of lady who doesn’t break promises easily.”
At that, a look of hope appeared on his little boy’s face.
And before he really knew what happened, a spark of hope flared in Jake’s heart as well.
* * * *
New Year’s Eve dawned clear and cold. Frost sparkled over the treetops and the shingled roofs of Wolfe Creek as the sun made its way over the violet, snowcapped mountains.
Aimee watched Zane throw a long leg over his motorcycle and start the engine. Giving her a look, he reached for his new helmet. Apparently Candi had insisted on one, or else. Aimee could only guess what the ‘or else’ part meant, but it was enough to make him pick one out the very next day.
“Are you sure you don’t want a ride?”
She shook her head.
Maggie was at the hospital, with more labor pains, ones that were serious enough that her doctor had admitted her again. If the baby came now it wouldn’t be terrible, but it wouldn’t be great either. It wasn’t due for several more weeks.
She was going this time. She’d be careful, and might not make it inside to see her friend, but at least she’d be close by.
“It’s okay,” she said. “It won’t take me long to get down the mountain, and I feel like a hike anyway.”
Zane put his helmet on while the bike purred underneath him. “That’s quite a hike.”
“Well, I’m more outdoorsy than I used to be, so…”
“Noted.”
She smiled at her friend, trying to relax. She hadn’t told him about Jake. Honestly, it was too hard thinking about it, let alone talking about it. And Daniel’s birthday was tomorrow. She hadn’t decided what to do about that yet either. She’d made a promise to the little boy, but she’d also been thrown out of the house by his father. So, there was that.
Zane gunned the engine. Even with the helmet concealing the lower half of his face, she could tell he grinned back. Good old Zane. Always so laid back. He couldn’t help but make people feel like they were taking life too seriously, no matter how crappy the circumstances.
“All right then,” he said. “I’m headed out. But don’t worry, I think it’s okay now.”
By okay Zane meant that whatever had been stalking them for the better part of a month had apparently decided to take a little break. Neither one of them had felt its presence for the last several days. No tracks. No scent. Nothing. She hoped it had just chosen to move on. But deep down, she knew it couldn’t be that simple.
She waved as Zane pulled away, the roar of the engine growing fainter as he rode out of sight. I’ll go check on Maggie, she thought. I won’t stay long. If it decided to come back, she’d be there when it did.
Turning, she looked south toward the direction of the cottage. She couldn’t see it, but knew it was there. Nestled in the woods, at the end of a long, dirt drive. There would be smoke curling from the chimney soon, the smell of coffee brewing in the kitchen. And there would be a man and a little boy just waking from a long night’s sleep.
She frowned, feeling the sting of tears, and hoped they’d slept well.