by Bella Jewel
It’s quite fascinating, actually. On the ceiling, old lights still hang, pretty lights, no doubt lights from the dance they had when everything went wrong for this place. There are old tables overturned, chairs strewn about. It has just been abandoned, just left ... untouched, for so many years. My heart aches being in here.
I walk over to a pile of old tables to the left, where dust and vines have grown in the years that have passed. Something catches my eye and I reach down, picking up an old doll. It’s so old that it’s missing an arm, a leg, and its eyes are gone. But there is something about it, something so ... innocent. I picture a young girl sitting at these tables, holding her doll as she watched her parents dance and laugh.
Suddenly, my fear is no longer.
I only feel sadness in this barn.
I place the doll down and begin walking around, stepping over piles of fallen timber as I search for something that might indicate what happened in here. When I reach the place where Taj’s body laid, my heart feels as though it might split in two. I lean down and I can’t help the tears that burst forth and roll down my cheeks as I mourn my friend. The rock he fell on is gone, but the blanket lies on the floor, untouched, tossed aside. I pick it up, and when I do, I notice something.
I swipe the tears from my eyes and take a deep, shaky breath. The blood on the blanket is patchy. It lies all over it, from one end to the other, big patches of blood. Like someone has used it to try and stop bleeding. If Taj fell, and the blanket was wrapped around him, the blood may not have even touched him, let alone gone all over it. I narrow my eyes and look behind me. If he fell here, someone would have had to push him from there.
Keeping the blanket in my hands, I walk toward the area where whoever pushed him would have been standing. I use my flashlight, and on the ground, in the dirt, are numerous boot prints. Of course, it could have been the guys, but what would they be doing over here. If you were standing here, it would be because you didn’t want anyone to hear what you were talking about, it’s sort of under some timber rafters and you have to duck a little to get in here.
No, Taj was talking to someone in here, my question is ... who?
Who the hell was he talking to?
I SEARCH AROUND FOR a little longer, but I don’t find anything else in the barn. I make my way out, keeping the blanket. I want to study it further in the light. I walk around the outside of the barn, and when I do, I see an entrance near where I saw the boot prints. It seems like an old window that has broken apart and you can sort of just step through. On the ground by that window, shoe prints. Someone definitely came in here. I use my phone to take a photo of one of the prints, I wonder if I can match it to a shoe here?
I look around the rest of the barn, and when I don’t find anything more, I do a quick scour of the bushes. That’s when I find it. A phone. At first, it almost looks like a rock, it’s upside down and sort of fallen between some branches, but when I get closer, I see the apple logo clear as day. I reach down, picking it up and turning it over. The screen has smashed, not severely, but just like it was dropped. The location of it would make it really hard to find unless you were looking, even then, it wouldn’t be easy. I’ve come across it by pure chance.
I wasn’t even going to come this far down the track, I only did because I was curious.
I try to turn it on, but it’s dead. Recent rain probably destroyed it. Still, it would have a sim card and that might just tell us who it belongs to. I take it, too, heart racing as I suddenly feel like I’m getting a whole lot closer to whoever did this. I turn and leave the area, knowing if I’m busted here, Rhett will have a fit. I walk toward the cabins, and just as I’m about to reach them, I see movement in the trees. I pause, squinting, damn me for being so blind. I push my glasses closer to my face and study harder.
There are people in the tree line near the cabins.
When I see they’re holding cameras, my eyes widen.
“Hey!” I shout. “This is private property!”
They scurry backward into the trees, and I don’t pause. I drop the blanket and phone on my cabin porch, and then I run. I run toward the trees. We might be the reason Rhett has reporters following him, but I’m sure as hell not going to be the reason they sell fake news. I hit the tree line and I can hear them shouting at each other. I pick up the pace, having no idea what I’m going to do when I actually reach them.
“Stop, you assholes,” I yell. “Stop right now or I’ll call the police.”
They keep running, so do I.
Panting and puffing, I chase them into the trees.
I’ve nearly reached a chubby man, running with a camera and tripod, when I trip over a rock and fall hard onto the ground. Landing with a thump, my leg burns in pain and I roll to my side, gripping my shin as I cry out. God dammit that hurt. I look up and see they’ve disappeared. I go to stand but see blood pouring out of a wound in my shin. My god. That fucking hurts, it hurts so bad. I go to take a step and I can’t.
No.
No.
“You fuckers!” I scream.
I sit on a fallen log, using my hands to try and stop the bleeding. I must have done some damage to my leg, the bleeding is heavy. I pull off my tank top and use it to try and wipe some of the blood away. I see a clean, open wound right on my shin bone, perfectly split. Feeling queasy, I wrap my tank around it and stand, not willing to give up just yet. I hop run toward the direction they all disappeared in.
After a bit, I reach a fence. It has been cut and just up ahead, I can hear the road. Those sneaky little assholes came in from the road, cut the fence, and snuck onto the property. Surely that’s illegal? Is there some sort of rule against breaking and entering? I turn, knowing I have to let Rhett know right away so he can do something about it. I start walking back when I notice a camera on the ground. Someone dropped the goods.
I reach down, picking it up.
This might tell me exactly who came in here.
I hang it around my neck and then hop my way back out of the trees.
I appear out of them and see a group of people standing near the cabins, it only takes me a minute to realize it’s Rhett, Enzo, Elias, and Rick. They’re all staring at the line of trees I emerge from. Oh shit. I pause and watch as Rhett turns and starts striding toward me, his face tight, his body powerful and a touch angry.
“What the fuck are you doin’?”
He pauses and his eyes go down to my shin, and the shirt wrapped around it. “What happened? You’re hurt.”
“I saw reporters,” I say, wincing as I take a step. “They were watching the cabins from those trees, so I chased them. I tripped and hit my leg on a rock, split it pretty bad. I couldn’t catch them, but they cut a fence up there near the road, and they dropped this ...”
I take the camera off my neck and hand it to Rhett.
“You’re welcome.”
I hop past him, but he reaches out and stops me. “I need to see your leg.”
“I can look after myself,” I mutter, jerking my arm out of his and hopping back toward the cabin.
I reach it and pause when I get up the three front steps. The blanket is on the floor, I’m certain I threw it on the front table. I reach down, picking it up, only to see the phone is gone. I start scurrying around, looking underneath things, shaking the blanket. It’s gone. Someone took the phone. I whip my head around and yell out to the group, “Did you take my phone?”
They all stare at me, confused.
They all answer no.
“Rick?” I yell.
“I just got here with the guys, Lei. Didn’t go near your cabin.”
Rhett comes up the front steps. “What is goin’ on?”
I snatch the blanket and go into the cabin, slamming the door.
He comes in a moment later, clearly not phased by my slamming skills.
“What the fuck is your problem?”
“Leave me alone, Rhett.”
“No, I’m not leavin’ until I look at your leg.”
<
br /> “Fuck,” I snap, tossing the blanket into my room and then going to the sofa and sitting down.
He won’t leave until this is done, and I need to find who took that damn phone.
Someone knows it was theirs.
Someone knows I’m onto them.
God dammit.
I’m fuming as Rhett unravels my leg and looks down. “Fuckin’ hell. That’s deep.”
Great.
“Please don’t say stitches,” I mutter. “I’m no good at hospitals.”
“Sorry to break it to you, but this needs stitches.”
I groan, pressing my face into my hands.
“I literally go to shit in hospitals, you don’t understand.”
I hate them.
I am so deathly afraid of them.
“I can stitch it here, do it to my horses all the time.”
I snap my head up. “I’m not a damn horse.”
“Never fuckin’ said you were, I said I can do it here. Your choice.”
“I’ll get an infection.”
“I’m not a fuckin’ animal. I have everything needed.”
I frown at him. “It’ll hurt.”
“Yep. Your choice, I can get the truck and take you in.”
Far out.
I exhale and stand. “Fine, you can do it, but I swear to god if I lose a leg ...”
“You won’t lose a leg. You really hate hospitals that much that you’d rather I stitch it?”
“You have no idea.”
“Come on then, let’s go to the main house and I’ll get everything we need.”
“Can’t wait,” I mutter.
He helps me up and we make our way to the main house. When we get there, Enzo goes into some medicine cabinet and pulls out all this stuff. I suppose they probably do this a lot, especially to each other, they don’t seem like the kind of men who go to hospitals unless they have to. I watch as Rhett lines up everything he needs, then he scrubs his hands and puts on some gloves before sitting me in a chair and putting my leg up.
“This is goin’ to hurt, but only for a second. I’m washing it first.”
I nod, feeling incredibly uneasy.
Maybe I should have just gone to the hospital.
Is this even legal?
God.
Rhett washes my leg with a container full of stuff Enzo brings over. I have no idea what’s in it, but it stings like all hell. I grit my teeth and watch as they clear off all the blood and dirt. Once it’s clean, he uses something else to spray into the wound to clean out anything that might be stuck in there. That hurts like hell, and I cry out, jerking my leg away. He holds it tightly, looking up at me. “You gotta stay still, Lei.”
I bite my tongue, eyes watering, but I nod.
He does it a few more times, until he’s satisfied it is clean. Then, Enzo prepares the string and the needle.
I watch in horror, not sure I’m ready for what’s about to happen. I glance nervously at Rhett, and he pauses for a minute before reaching over and taking a bottle of whiskey. He hands it to me. “As I push the needle through, take a long hard sip of this. I only need to do two stitches.”
I nod.
Enzo hands him the needle and string. I close my eyes, holding the bottle of whiskey in my hand and waiting in anticipation. I should have just gone to the hospital; we’re not in a third world country, there is zero need for this to be happening. They’d numb it, give me pain relief, this would all be easy breezy. What the hell is wrong with me?
What ...
Rhett pushes the needle through my skin.
I squeal, tossing the whiskey bottle, so wrapped up in my own thoughts that I didn’t even realize that he was about to do it. Enzo catches the bottle, Rhett pushes the needle through the other side and pulls the string through. I’m still gasping from the stinging pain, so Enzo hands me the bottle again and orders me to drink. I suck on that whiskey bottle until Rhett is done, and he was right, the burn of the whiskey going down my throat was a good distraction.
I put the bottle down, coughing and spluttering, tears running down my cheeks—a combination of both whiskey and pain. I swipe them away as the pain subsides. Rhett finishes up cleaning my freshly stitched leg and then covers it. “Good as new, and you didn’t have to wait hours at emergency. You can thank me later.”
I stare at him. I won’t be thanking him for a damn thing.
Not right now.
I get up, a little wobbly from the alcohol.
“Whoa, slow down, you don’t need to run out of here,” Rhett murmurs, reaching for my arm.
“Don’t I?” I snap.
I don’t know why I’m so angry at him, I think it’s because I’m overwhelmed, pissed off someone took the phone and angry that I hurt myself. I’m just ... I’m just done.
“That’s my cue,” Enzo murmurs, walking out of the room.
“What’s goin’ on with you?” Rhett asks, crossing his big arms and staring at me.
“You can’t be serious?”
He looks confused.
“You speak to me like shit because you’re in a bad mood. You took my fucking virginity and we’re due to leave in a matter of weeks and I have no idea what that means for us, for this, for anything. My friend is dead, someone knows I’m onto them, and I just got my damned leg stitched in a house, by a rancher!”
He blinks, slowly. “I didn’t take your virginity for fun, Lei. If that’s what you’re thinkin’, stop.”
I scoff. “Of course that’s all you took out of that.”
“You haven’t asked if I want somethin’ after this retreat, you haven’t even had the fuckin’ conversation with me yet you’re here, throwin’ down because you don’t know what it all means. How about use your damned words and find out.”
Oh.
Well shit.
I can’t even argue with that.
“Not right now. Right now, I just need some air.”
I turn and walk out of the house and down the steps. My leg hurts, but I don’t care, I just need some space. I go to the barn and see Porky with his head over the stable door. He nickers for me to come over, so I take a handful of hay and walk over, giving it to him. He happily chews it as I rub his face.
A stomping sound from another stall has me looking around to see Diablo in his stable, he’s not in out in the yard so Rhett must have plans to work him. He looks at me, stomping his foot again and then smacking his nose against the stable door. I cross my arms, turning to him. “You’re trying to lure me over there, but I know when I get there, you’ll just be a dick. I’ve had enough of dicks lately, Diablo. I’m not in the mood for your shit. If I come over there, you better not be nasty.”
He makes a snorting sound and taps the door again.
I take a handful of hay and hesitantly walk toward him.
“I mean it, buddy, if you so much as bare your teeth to bite me, I’m going to smack your sorry ass so hard you’ll wish you never met me.”
He makes a grunting sound.
I approach him, carefully.
He stretches his head out, acting as if he’s going to eat the hay but as soon as my hand stretches out, he bares his teeth and tries to bite my hand. I react without thought, smacking him on the nose, not hard, but enough to make him shake his head and pull back. “No,” I say firmly. “We can be friends, but not if you’re going to act like a brat all the damn time. Now, are you going to play nice or not?”
He doesn’t snort this time, instead he just watches me.
I stretch out my hand.
He tries to bite me again.
I pull my hand back and tell him off once more.
“I’m just going to stand here, so you know I’m not going to hurt you, okay,” I say, standing and keeping my body language calm.
He watches me, paces his stable a bit, and then comes back over to the door after a few minutes. He stretches his nose out over the railing again, and I carefully extend my hand toward him. His lips come out and he very carefully takes a
small bunch of hay off my hand, and then quickly pulls back.
I could cry.
My heart explodes with happiness.
“See,” I say, not pushing it any further. “I told you we were going to be friends.”
“Well fuck me,” I hear Rhett’s voice and spin around to see him standing at the entrance of the barn, leaning against the door, watching me. “He likes you.”
“And you’re surprised?” I scoff, dusting the remaining hay off my hands and crossing my arms.
“No, darlin’, I’m not.”
I swallow.
“Come with me, we’re goin’ to talk.”
Oh.
Great.
Well, this should be fun.
17
Rhett and I walk through the woods to the river, where we both watch the water flow as we sit on a rock, neither of us saying anything for quite some time. I’m not certain exactly what he intended to do bringing me here, but right now, he’s not saying anything and that’s making me nervous. After my little outburst, this could end a million different ways, and with my mind spinning the way it is, none of them are good.
“What do you want out of this?” He finally asks, turning to glance at me.
I blink.
Wait, he’s asking me what I want?
This doesn’t really feel like my choice...yet he’s making it my choice.
I swallow and look away, pondering that question.
It’s a valid question, and one I haven’t actually sat down and really asked myself. What do I want out of this? I am developing some pretty strong feelings for Rhett, feelings I haven’t felt before and that scares me because we live in different towns, we have different lives and if we were to be together, I’d have to give up everything I am used to, everything I care about. I’d have to be part of his life here, and my life in the orchestra...that will be no more.
“I don’t honestly know,” I tell him.
That’s the honest truth.
“You know I can’t leave the ranch.”
I nod, staring at the water.
“But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to see where this goes.”
I glance at him. “You want something with me?”