by Lou Grimes
The guy’s face slid rapidly from a half smirk to shock. The facial alteration was almost as fast as a light switch. One second he was fine. The other he was not. His friends were attempting to snap him out of it. A red-haired boy even waved his hand across the front of the other boy’s face, wanting to obtain his attention. They scrutinized Louvette for a moment. Their eyes darted past her, looking for the potential threat. They had looked at her and apparently crossed her off as the threat.
The only thing that released them from their battle of wills was a tray of street tacos that her mother set down before her. The world came into sharp focus. She was in Whitefish at a place called Wrap & Roll Café. Louvette breathed, relieved at being free from the mental cage she was trapped in. Louvette hated being trapped more than anything in the world. Even when blankets were twisted poorly around her and she couldn’t escape, her claustrophobia would kick in. She’d twist and turn until her bonds and shackles were removed.
“I got you extra green sauce,” her mother said, like she’d won the lottery, oblivious to what had just happened. Louvette hazarded glancing over at the table. Everyone was huddled together talking to that guy. His eyes had transformed back to a normal blue. He was busy staring at the table. Louvette was shocked that the table didn’t spontaneously combust from the fire in his burning gaze.
“Thank you,” she stammered when she noticed her mother looking at her expectantly. Sarah gave her a satisfied look.
“They had a ton of options, but I knew I wouldn’t go wrong if I got you chicken tacos,” Sarah said as she fixed her own plate of steak quesadillas, rice, and beans. She had several cups of guacamole, pic de gallo, and salsa on both of their plates.
“That’s perfect. How’s yours?” Louvette responded politely as her mother took a chunk out of her quesadilla.
“It tastes like I would imagine heaven would taste like,” her mom gushed.
“Does Heaven has a taste? That taste is beef quesadillas? No roses or lavender. Just a good old greasy beef quesadilla scented candles floating around up there,” Louvette teased lightly. She couldn’t help but poke fun at her. Louvette didn’t have any urge whatsoever to dig in. In fact, she had the exact opposite.
“Shut up. Don’t act like your heaven doesn’t smell like food,” her mother defended. The sound of her voice was distorted from her mouthful of beef, cheese, and tortilla.
“You win. I’m thinking like fresh out of the oven homemade baked pies, cookies, or bread,” Louvette replied truthfully. She was a foodie, so it was exhausting to narrow down to one favorite thing. Her favorites changed every day. She might desire something salty today, sweet tomorrow, or bitter the day after tomorrow.
The conversation of food reminded Louvette of her current situation. She looked down despondently at her meal. The food itself was not unpleasant to any degree. It was the people across the courtyard that threw her off. Louvette could only stare down at her food, unsure what to do.
“Aren’t you going to eat, Louvette? I thought you were starving to death,” her mother asked. Louvette could hear the care in her voice.
“Yes, I am,” Louvette reported unconvincingly. She picked up one taco, forgetting the cups on the side. She didn’t even add any salsa. Louvette took one bite and the food was tasteless. Her stomach clenched unhappily. Louvette painfully chewed the mouthful that she had. The urge to throw it up was so strong.
She hated to have to lie to her mother, but she knew that she wouldn’t be eating any time soon. Not while she was here under the current watchful eyes. Once she finished the remainder of the bite, she lowered her taco to the plate gingerly and regarded her mother. She had wolfed down half of her quesadilla already in the time that Louvette had managed one reluctant mouthful.
“I think the shopping and the lack of food made me sick. Can we go home, Mom?” she asked softly, just wishing to leave. She stared at the food before her. She didn’t feel right about lying, period, let alone while gazing at someone right in the eye.
Her mom glanced at her and her uneaten plate. The fact that Louvette hadn’t torn into her food already proved that she was feeling a bit under the weather and it only furthered her sick claim. Sarah’s face slid into mother hen mode instantly, like she had been preparing all her life for this exact moment. Louvette wanted her mom to save her from the beast a couple tables over. The sooner they left, the better.
“Sure thing, sweetheart. Let’s go,” she agreed as she picked up their food. Louvette could feel heat from their glaring gaze as she left. At the gate, she peered over her shoulder to confirm her fears. They were all unashamedly staring at her. She breathed out of relief as the curve of the road hid her from their sight. Only her mother’s presence kept her from dashing down the road, jumping into the car, and locking the doors.
She hoped that they were just tourists and their paths wouldn’t cross at her new school tomorrow, but she knew how unrealistic it was that there would be travelers on a Wednesday. She would see them at school. Louvette prayed she wouldn’t lock eyes again. Louvette hoped she wouldn’t disappoint her mother again and do something irresponsible, like busting them in the nose.
The two of them walked back to their car. The pace was too slow for Louvette’s preference. Once inside, she buckled up her seat belt and sat back. She was glad that they wouldn’t pass the cafe when they left town. Louvette didn’t prefer them to see their car. She sensed that she would be followed if they did.
“While you’re at school tomorrow, I’m going to try to find a job. I’ll be picking you up until I find one. Please make it to 3 p.m,” she said to Louvette as they drove the long windy road back to the cabin. The Grand Am struggled as it tried to make it up the inclining road ahead.
“I will,” she promised, sadness creeping into her. She hoped she’d be able to keep the promise because she hated not coming through on her promises. She tried to not make them when it came to a new place, but she really wanted this to work. The promise to her mother was a technique to hold her accountable for controlling her temper and making it through the coming days. She worried she’d be forced to break her end of the bargain.
They arrived back at the house and went in to finish dinner. She opened her container to reveal chicken corn tortilla tacos. Louvette slathered them in green sauce and devoured them. The tacos, though now cold, were still delicious because her stomach was eating itself before they got home. A small price to pay to not let the locals eat them, Louvette thought somberly.
After dinner, Louvette searched the web for any mention of her grandfather. She found no social media presence. There was an obituary in a local paper. With his age, he probably hardly ever got on the internet.
In her search, she found a news article on his death in Eureka, California. She knew it was him because the man in her dreams matched the picture on the article. The title read, “Montana Man Shot Several Times on Hiking Trip.” It went on to mention that no DNA was found so no killer was found. City officials believed one of the many vagrants and homeless people that called the forest their home murdered him. They did a sweep but found nothing linking him to them. It was currently still an open investigation. However, it might be closed soon if no evidence was found.
Another thing she did find was his business web page called Blackwood Accounting. As soon as she clicked on it, a large picture of her grandfather, Wilder, appeared smiling back at her. The picture was outdated to say the least since his hair was only starting to grey.
Louvette’s attention focused in on the phone number in the corner of the webpage.
The urge to hear his voice was too great. She picked up her phone and dialed his listed number. For some strange reason, she almost expected him to answer. It rang several times.
“Hey, you’ve reached Wilder Blackwood. Please leave a message with a call back number,” a warm voice recording spoke and then the phone beeped. She slowly put it down and wondered where that phone was. She expected it to be in police custody. However, she was going t
o find out.
Louvette’s head hit the pillow and her body followed. Only when she was fully relaxed did she comprehend how sore her calves were from all that shopping and moving in. Her eyes began to droop, and her breathing grew deeper. She was out before she knew it.
***
Louvette experienced déjà vu as she witnessed two beings staring each other down. The only difference was that the beings changed into wolves. One was black. The other was white. They were challenging each other, snarling and refusing to look off first. The same event that she had experienced when that guy had singled her out. Looking away would have been weakness. It would have made either one of them the loser. Trees sprang up out of nowhere. A rock grew to be a distant mountain. A river cut through the land. A moon appeared, but the moon was not ordinary. It was blood red, like a harvest moon.
Louvette knew a harvest moon meant the coming of the autumn equinox. The equinox was a signal that the night was now equal to the day. Thousands of falling meteorites painted the cloudless night sky. Far off howling resonated in the shadow of the new mountain.
The wolves attacked each other out of nowhere. The black one killed the white one triumphantly. Darkness descended. Time halted and reversed. The scene reset to the same fight. This time, the white one came out on top. Too much light blinded Louvette. This loop repeated several times, each time with an alternate outcome.
Lightening thundered to the earth, causing the loop to skip once. The sun set and rose at the same time. Both of the wolves turned to her. They began stalking together in perfect unison. As they neared, their bodies blended together. The now black and white wolf provoked her, snapping roughly. It was demanding to be heard. The massive wolf shook its head. It prepared its great body to jump, lowering itself to the ground deliberately. The apex of all hunters.
Louvette tried to run but couldn’t. The trees had grown up and twisted their roots around her feet. A rock had formed around her. Nature was claiming her as its own. The mega wolf sprang, paws first. The wolf disappeared inside Louvette.
Chapter 3
A blaring alarm wrenched Louvette from her slumber. Groaning, she dragged herself out of bed. Her mind was drawn back to the events of yesterday. She chewed on her lips for a second in distress but knew she didn’t have long, and being late on the first day was not going to win her any brownie points.
After she was ready, her curly hair was semi tamed. She had on skinny jeans, a thermal long sleeved shirt, boots, and her black coat. Her makeup was minimal. She didn’t believe that it had to be caked on for people to receive the full effect. The smoky eye look was her favorite on how it popped her grey blue eyes. She rubbed on some chapstick to keep her lips safe in the new weather and headed downstairs to her freshly dressed mother.
“Looking good! Here’s breakfast,” her mother praised, handing her a package of pop tarts. Her standard breakfast usually came out of some sort of packaging. It was just too convenient and allowed them to sleep in a few extra satisfying minutes.
“No warm meal?” she teased her mother even though she was perfectly happy with her strawberry tart. Louvette was hoping that those 32 grams of sugar would be enough to truly wake her up. However much she wished she was, she had never been a peppy morning person. More along the lines of, it would require two cups of coffee to drive her to talk to people.
“There’s a toaster over there. I know you know how to use it. Now let’s go before you’re late,” her mother shot back. They hurried out the door. The time that they had to drive was really what did them in. On top of having to wake up early to get ready, they now had to drive about thirty minutes to reach the school because of the slow progression of winding roads. They weren’t used to traveling this far for school since they were normally within walking distance.
“I can’t believe he got me into a private school,” Louvette said since she was the first one to see the school.
“Yeah, but I don’t think that they are allowed to turn you away,” her mother said when she caught view of the place. A simple sign said Whitefish Academy. Her mother’s words stayed on her mind. She had planned to ask her what she meant, but was distracted from the line that had formed.
They arrived ten minutes before the bell. The school population was small, but the campus was large and spread out like a small community college. She had read the brochure earlier out of boredom on their ride here. It offered a variety of things that the public school didn’t, like more classes, smaller teacher to student ratio, and early preparation for college.
It was made of large stones versus run of the mill school style bricks. The landscaping was sturdy to say the least since the center points were either trees, boulders, or a metal statue of some kind. Her mother made an irritated noise when she realized a teacher was directing traffic at the end of the road. He was being more of a hinderance than a help.
From the car, they could tell each student and staff member were all being checked for parking passes. The students’ cars had a wide array like any school. Some cars were beauty queens, but others would win the world’s most ugly car. There was a large gym being built off to the side as well. Their turn came to talk to the man when he put his hand out for them to stop.
“Hi, I’m here to drop off Louvette Lynskey,” her mother reported to the teacher. The portly man checked his clipboard for a second. He flipped through a few pages, his eyes scanning the list. He passed one name. Frowning, he backtracked to it.
“That name isn’t on my list as Lynskey. She’s under Louvette Blackwood. She’ll have to pick which one she wants to be called and work it out with the office,” he informed her mother, whose eyes narrowed in vexation. The guard poked his finger at the list as if to enunciate the claim.
He opened the gate and ushered them through as the line behind them continued to grow. They parked in the visitors’ section. From the cars that were already in the parking lot, Louvette stuck out like a sore thumb.
Just as she had believed, the students watched her as they headed into the main building. She didn’t meet anyone’s eyes for one main reason. Louvette didn’t wish to attract any attention at all. None was better than negative attention. Her newness had made her an easy target.
They entered the office where a secretary escorted them to the principal’s office.
“The transfer student that you were expecting is here, Ms. Valley,” the secretary announced.
The principal glanced up at them from her papers. She was a plump woman that had greying black hair that was fixed into a tight bun. She stood up primly to shake their hands, straightening her tweed skirt immediately after the handshake since it was skewed from her movements.
“Welcome back, Ms. Blackwood. This must be your mother, Sarah Lynskey. Nice to meet you both. I’m Rebecca Valley. It isn’t every day that we get a new student. I just have the regular papers for you to sign and then you can head to the counselor’s office,” she explained at their confused expressions. Louvette was dumbfounded about her welcome back remark. She’d never been to Whitefish before.
At the mention of the Blackwood last name, Sarah flinched. “Her name’s Louvette Lynskey. The lawyer must have misinformed you,” her mother corrected immediately. Ms. Valley’s brow hitched an inch or two at that statement. Her incredulous expression spoke volumes.
“Mr. Hollows sent me her school records and paperwork for the pending last name change,” Mrs. Valley said. This name change was news to Louvette and her mother.
Louvette had never seen her mother this furious. She was astounded that her mother didn’t lose it, but tolerance was a virtue that she had inherited at birth or created through the many tiresome trials of raising Louvette. She managed to rein it in and didn’t give a response to Mrs. Valley other than to politely ask, “What name change? We didn’t put in for one.”
“Any problems with the lawyer will have to be handled between the two of you, but until then she is already in our system as Blackwood,” the principal said.
After that comment, the air seemed thicker than before. They briskly completed the paperwork just in time for the bell. For once, Louvette was grateful for the bell saving her from her current situation. She tried not to let a loud sigh of relief leave her, but she knew she failed as Mrs. Valley’s head turned a fraction of an inch toward hers.
“My student aide, Cara Rivers, will show you to the counselor’s office,” Mrs. Valley notified her, directing her to a girl in the waiting room. Her hair was a soft blonde color and it was cut into a pixie cut. The girl’s eyes were a pale green. She was built average. Not too tall or skinny, but nowhere close to the midget that Louvette was.
She looked excited as heck to see Louvette in her ripped pants and concert shirt. Cara Rivers had a ton of jewelry on. Her arms were covered in bangles. Her ears had three piercings each. She had on a long necklace that clanked from the several charms on it. Unfortunately, the enthusiasm was one sided. Louvette didn’t desire to talk, and knew this girl was going to be a chatter box. She glanced toward her mother as she was leaving.
Her mother left after waving and sending one of those “play nice” looks her daughter’s direction. Her daughter put on a horribly fake clueless mask that her mother saw right through. Sarah shook her head at her moxie.
“Hi, I’m Cara Rivers. I’m going to show you to all your classes. What’s your name? Where are you from?” Cara rushed out, one question after another. Louvette made a split-second decision to be known as Louvette Blackwood. She didn’t want to spend the year correcting teachers and students. It flowed more nicely than Lynskey.
In a way, it also offered her a fresh start. Maybe as Louvette Blackwood, she could manage to not get kicked out of this school. Louvette Blackwood didn’t have a packet full of past transgressions. It was a blessing in disguise. Disguise due to Mr. Hollow not being more forthright. She knew her mother would have never willingly let him change her name.