Chapter Four

Johanna

This ridiculous buzzing in my ears kept me up all night long, and I rolled out of bed this morning feeling like I had been socked in the side with a mallet. I’m now staring at myself in the mirror. My morning hair is wild and frizzy, and my brown eyes are shaded with dark circles. “Yeeesh,” I say to my reflection. I probably should go to the doctor for my ribs, like Andrew suggested, but I’ve also promised Gina I would cover her managing shift. Shaking my head from side to side, I try to alleviate the hum raging in my brain. “What is that?” I whisper to no one in particular.

I pull out my red work T-shirt with “The Great Outdoors” splashed across the front in yellow, and painfully reach up to the top shelf in my closet for my favorite pair of khaki hiking shorts. The best part about working in an outdoor equipment and clothing store, besides the awesome gear, is the work uniform. I slide on my running shoes and walk to the dresser mirror to tackle the jungle on top of my head. I can’t get my hands high enough to ensure a proper ponytail without feeling like my ribs are searing through my clothing, so I settle for a baseball hat with the store logo on it. It’ll have to do. I slap some powder under my eyes and smear some Chapstick across my lips before tackling the climb downstairs.

The smell of coffee and bacon is wafting through the air. “Mary-Beth, you marrying my brother is the best thing that ever happened to me,” I call from the bottom of the steps into the kitchen.

“Hey, uhhh, Jo…can you come here for a second,” she timidly calls.

“On my way, sis, my side is slowing me down, but the smell of fried bacon is putting a little pep in my—” I freeze mid-sentence. All six feet six of Max is sitting in my spot at the table. The chair underneath him is creaking and threatening to toss him onto the floor as he turns to face me. Great. I shoot MB a puzzled look, instantly regretting not throwing on some mascara or ironing my shirt.

“Hey, Jo.” His deep voice fills the kitchen, slithering its way across the floor and holding me in place.

“Yep,” is all I can manage, and I silently chastise myself for my lack of maturity.

“Max came by this morning to drop off a list and Katie’s dress for the party next weekend. It needs hemming.” MB’s words come out fast and panicked. I should rescue Mary-Beth from this scenario, but I need to rescue myself first. Over the past couple of years, I’ve become a master at evading an encounter with Max or Katie, but when one of them plops themselves at my kitchen table, it slightly forces my hand.

“And you. I wanted to check and see about you. You know your fall, I just…” Max awkwardly trails off.

“Jesus, Max, spit it out,” Andrew says, as he enters the room sipping coffee and smelling of fresh soap. He cuts his gaze to me, obviously making sure I’m okay with this situation. I’m not.

“I wanted to check on you.” Max looks at the ground. He has to know his concern for me is coming too little, too late.

“I’m fine.” My response sounds brattier than I want, but again…it’s all I got.

Max stands to leave, as if he were honestly waiting for me to appear before he left. His stare lingers on my face expectantly, and I quickly look to MB and Andrew who are pretending to have a conversation in front of the stove.

“Jo, can I talk to you?” he asks cautiously. You have got to be kidding me? I shrug my shoulders and follow him out onto the front porch. The sun is already blazing through the clouds, and the humidity isn’t helping tame the frizz I have going on. I hate today already.

“About last night,…I’m sorry. I mean, I’m sorry for Katie…the way she, ya know,” he says, mumbling through some semblance of an apology.

“What about Katie is it you’re sorry for, Max? Hmmm?” It flies out of my mouth before I can stop it.

His dark eyes that have been studying the wooden planks of my front porch suddenly snap up to meet mine. And in them, for an instant, I see his regret. Good.

I let out a sigh. “Max, it’s fine. I was tired and had been running miles on an empty stomach. I got turned around in the woods, chasing some idiot who stole my wallet. It was my irresponsibility and fault for passing out, and no one else’s. Katie was only saying hello.” It’s a lie, and we both know it.

“Chased them? Someone stole your wallet? Do you know who it was?” he questions.

“Yep. Not my smartest move. He was too far off to really recognize, but I’m positive I’ve never seen his face before yesterday. Could have been someone passing through or a fisherman visiting the lake. Speaking of, I need to go fill Andrew in on that before he heads off to work.”

I turn toward the door, my fingers twisted around the knob when Max quietly says, “All of it, Jo. I’m sorry about all of it.” I hear him going down the porch steps to his car, but I refuse to turn around. I lean my head against the door for a moment before pushing my way inside, catching my breath, and denying myself a good cry.

I walk back into the kitchen where Andrew and MB are perched on the island bar stools, looking at me expectantly.

“Oh, now you two want to be a part of the conversation?” I throw my hands toward the stove where they hid for cover earlier.

They sheepishly look around the kitchen as I walk over and fill my favorite coffee mug with the silky black liquid, a grimace spreading across my face when I reach into the back of the cabinet for creamer.

“Why was he even here? What party is he talking about? Max and Katie have avoided this house like the plague for two years, and now I’ve seen them twice in twenty-four hours,” I ask, more to myself than of Andrew and MB.

“Jesus, Jo, you’re breaking a sweat just making a cup of coffee. Why the hell are you wearing work clothes? Get your ass to the doctor and check on your ribs.” Andrew’s voice raises a decibel.

“Easy, Dr. Quinn, medicine woman. I have to cover for Gina at work. Hey MB, do we have any more Tylenol?” I roll my eyes at Andrew, attempting shallow breaths so it doesn’t hurt.

“Let me check my bathroom cabinet, Johanna. I’m so sorry Max was here this morning. It was a surprise to me as well, and I wish I could have warned you. I was just informed by Max that my dear sister has put me in charge of throwing her an engagement party.” She feigns excitement as she rubs her belly.

“Am I the only one with any sense around here? You can’t even make coffee without keeling over in pain”—Andrew points at me—“and you are thirty-six weeks pregnant, throwing an engagement party you probably don’t even want anything to do with?” He looks over to Mary-Beth. “Someone please explain to me what is happening?” Andrew paces the length of the kitchen.

“First of all, Johanna is a grown woman capable of making her very own medical decisions. Second, I am pregnant, Andrew, not on my deathbed. And for goodness sakes, did I go to bed and wake up in the 1950s?” MB silences him. Meek and mild, yet fierce. I love that woman. I throw her an appreciative smile as I skip out of the room, sticking my tongue out at Andrew along the way.

“I’m driving you to work at least,” he calls. I stumble up the stairs in agony that I’m trying to hide. Not only my ribs hurting on the inside.

“Fine by me!” I yell back. “I have a theft case for you to crack, Officer Martin.”

****

In the car, Andrew’s mood isn’t helping the headache working its way up the base of my neck. I sip the rest of the coffee Mary-Beth handed me as I walked out the door, but not before whispering, “Be easy on him, Jo.”

He adjusts the pistol on his hip and turns his patrol car radio on, static momentarily hisses in the air. “Let me see your side,” he commands.

“Seriously, Andrew?” I scowl as I lift up the corner of my shirt and expose the tender skin underneath.

“It’s pretty bruised up. You’ve definitely cracked one or two. Can you at least act like you’re not superhuman and let the warehouse workers do the heavy lifting at the store today?” And then after a beat, “Please.”

“I can manage that,” I tease. “Besides, I have to look over the site adjustments I made Thursday evening and make sure we aren’t running into any technical issues. I also have to check inventory. I’ll be in the back office most of the day.”

“That store, it’s really something special, Jo. I’m proud of you,” he says, in a rare non-annoying brotherly moment. I nod, savoring the compliment. “So, genius. How did you manage to get your wallet stolen?”

I can’t help but laugh at the change of pace.

“I dropped it running through town. I realized I had lost it down the road, and when I jogged back to get it, I saw this…guy…pick it up.”

“You’re sure it was a male?” he asks.

“I was hungry and hot, not blind.” I shoot him an annoyed look.

“You hesitated is all. When you said ‘guy.’”

“Oh. Yeah, I’m positive he was a male. He was tall, brown skin, dark hair I think. He had a cap on. There was just something off about him. Anyway, I followed him into the woods and—”

“Jesus Christ, Jo. Do you ever hear me when I speak? You followed a thief that seemed off into the woods?” Andrews face turns a shade darker than normal, and his jaw muscles work against his teeth.

“I know, I know. Actually…I don’t. I don’t know what I was thinking. I should have called you. I’m aware that was stupid,” I say quickly, and I pray it was effective so that I’m spared the lecture on being a fragile little woman in a world with so many threats around me. I have no energy for his male chauvinism this morning. “He went through the woods toward the edge of the state park. He may have been camping nearby, so you might ask around the RV grounds. I’ve never seen him around town. Anyway, he stopped in the middle of a clearing, and he must have had some weird flashlight in his hands, or something. The light was so bright. It made me hesitate, and then he saw me in the tree line and took off after me. So, I took off running too.” I pause. I know Andrew is about to lay into me. But there’s nothing. Just silence. I turn to look at him and the breath is knocked right out of me.

“Crap. Andrew? I’m sorry! Are you…crying?” My eyes widen, and my mouth is having a hard time closing.

“No! Jesus. Maybe. Just why the hell can’t you be safer? You are my little sister, for Christ’s sake. After Mom and Dad…can you please stop doing stupid shit!” He playfully slaps the back of my head.

“Ow! Asshole.” I rub the back of my hat. “I’m sorry. You’re right. Obviously, you can’t live without me.” I laugh.

“Brat. Anything else? Did he yell anything to you? Threaten you?” he questions.

“No. Well, he said, ‘Wait,’ when I took off running. I don’t even know why I ran. I went out there to confront him, and then something spooked me about the guy. The light around him and the shadows gave me the heebie-jeebies.” An image of the stranger’s eyes, cutting through the meadow straight to me, flickers in my mind. My body shudders, a chill working its way up my arms.

“I’ll ask around the park and see if there have been any unreported thefts. I’ll check with the Rangers to see if they’ve had any suspicious people around the woods. Maybe he said, ‘Wait,’ because he was going to return the wallet to you?”

“No. He was definitely chasing after me,” I say, as he pulls into the store parking lot.

I slowly ease myself out of the car and close the door. Andrew rolls down the window, honking to get my attention, “Wanna go get Poncho’s tonight?” My stomach rumbles at the thought of tacos. A peace offering from Andrew.

“Margaritas are on me.” I wave at him before making my way into The Great Outdoors.

****

“Johanna! Yes! I have to go. You’re a lifesaver.” Gina jumps from her seat as I push through the front doors, rushing around, grabbing her purse. Her black hair is swaying against her back while she runs. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

“It’s okay. Thank you for opening up.” I laugh at her, scurrying around the floor like a mouse. Everything is an emergency to her. I walk over to the new runner’s wallets we have displayed in the front aisle.

When Mom and Dad died in the accident, they left Andrew and me a sizable life insurance policy between the two of us. I was in college at the time and after returning home to bury my parents, my grown-up plans were obliterated. I was obliterated. I couldn’t force myself to leave this town where my Mama and Daddy last were, and so here I am. After months of lying in bed, sobbing, and feeling sorry for my life and the way it turned out, Mary-Beth took charge. She forced me out the door one morning to accompany her on a run, making promises of fresh air, babbling about endorphins, and it being ‘time.’ And she was right. I dove headfirst into running, training, and marathons. I found a passion inside me that had been waiting to be discovered. I used a portion of the life insurance money and invested it in a local outdoorsman shop. With the state park and lake surrounding our community, I’m proud to say it does well.

As owner of the company, I only stock equipment and products I have personally tested and enjoy. And the compact wallets designed specifically for runners, well those are a bust considering it flopped out of my shorts yesterday like a fish out of water.

“Hey Gina, I’m taking these wallets off the shelves. They suck,” I call to her, as she is rounding the counter.

“Wait! They’re cute, though. Let’s market them as wallets and not ‘runner’ wallets. No use in losing money over it,” she proposes.

“Hmmm. Sure, I’ll give it shot. Good idea. Take this green and gray one and use it around campus for a week.” I toss the wallet in the air toward her. She may be a little flighty, but Gina knows how to market the products well. Fresh out of college and eager to make her mark on the world, she’s exactly what this store needs.

“I’ll see ya Monday, Johanna. Thanks again!” She pushes open the doors, locking them behind her.

I have half an hour before I need to open the doors to customers. Gina has already prepped the store. Saturdays are typically busy for us. When the local dam releases the water this morning at nine a.m., the kayakers will flock to the rivers feeding into the lake for a weekend rush. The Great Outdoors is centrally located to the park, lake, and downtown, making it convenient to any paddler who has forgotten their gear and every curious tourist passing through. I may have abandoned my degree in business two years in, but I seem to be faring well at it so far.

Other employees begin coming in the back entrance. Two warehouse workers, three floor consultants, and two cashiers. Gina quickly earned her way into the management position with her knowledge of running, camping, and the local trails. She was the high school track star, earning her way to a full paid scholarship at the local community college. I’m happy to work around her schedule and the commitments she has now, as an assistant coach to the track team, in order to have her knowledge running the shop. After a quick check on the store and a hello to the workers, I open the doors and head into the back office.

Resting in my chair, I take slow breaths, easing the pain in my side. I pull my hat off my curls, and run my fingers through the tangled mess, smoothing it down. Taking a hair tie from my wrist, I pull back a small section framing my face, and secure it behind my head. Better.

After twenty minutes of checking inventory, and looking over the website orders, I hear a knock on the office door.

“Come on in.” Standing, my muscles protest as I limp to the mini fridge.

Lacey, my sophomore cashier, pokes her head in the door. “Johanna, there’s a guy asking for you out front.”

“Is he mad about something?” I ask, while cracking open a Dr. Pepper. It’s better to know what you’re walking into.

“Not mad. Definitely smokin’ hot, though.” She giggles and walks out into the hallway.

I shake my head at her teenage hormones and make my way out onto the store floor. I spin in a circle and scan the entire area. I don’t see who she could be talking about, and it doesn’t appear that anyone is waiting for me. Looking back at Lacey, she shrugs her shoulders, clueless herself as to where he went.

The buzzing in my ears has increased, causing my eyes to lose focus. “Lace, I’m going to the back for a bit if anyone needs me or the mystery man returns.” I walk toward the rear of the store, turning to go down the aisle housing hiking and camping supplies. I’m halfway across when my gaze is suddenly drawn to the middle shelf. The thin layer of plastic covering the compass packaging is…vibrating. I stand stock still and I realize the source of the vibrations is coming from the compass needles inside, spinning wildly out of control. “What in the…” Something isn’t right. Picking up one of the boxes, I shake it to stop the needle from turning. I continue walking back to my office, flipping the small package upside down to study the UPC code.

I see him standing in front of my office door a second too late. I feel as though my entire body has electric current coursing through it, moments before slamming into the man who stole my wallet. Fire ignites in my ribs, and static energy clings to my skin. He’s holding onto my side to keep me from falling to the ground. I can see his full lips moving, saying something to me, but I can’t hear him over the ringing inside my head. His green eyes are staring at me intently, and they look as confused as I feel.

And as quickly as it came last night in the woods, the humming stops, and the electricity subsides. I’m left clutching his shoulders for support, gazing at his oddly beautiful face, wondering what the hell he is doing in my store.