We sat silently at the table. My scars were fully visible in this shirt. He glanced at them a few times and would frown. I ate the last bite of my sandwich and then wrapped my arms around myself, trying to hide them.
"They say you're not connected. Your family isn't in with them?" he asked, and I shook my head no. "So, what do you know that's so important you can't talk?"
I didn't know how close he was to his family. He seemed to despise them. I got up and put my dishes in the sink, before I walked away, not answering his question.
"Of course, you're not talking, I get it." He sounded a little irritated, but not really mad.
I didn't think I could get through that story without completely losing it. I was feeling kind of numb right now, and I wanted to stay that way.
For the rest of the week, I did my best to stay out of his way. He didn't say much to me, and I didn't talk to him. At most, he would ask for me to pass him something at dinner. It was a little difficult, but I established my territory in the kitchen. I washed the dishes and cleaned up. He always cooked, because I felt that would be overstepping my bounds, but I had silently insisted on cleaning the house while he worked.
He seemed to be as quiet as I was, and I wondered if he was here to hide from something he didn't want to talk about as well. I was glad he had accepted my silence and didn't push me. I think he knew if I started to talk about it, I would fall apart and be hurt all over again.
In the evening, when I couldn't watch the birds anymore, I would watch the wind. I would admit to maybe knocking some leaves off a tree or two, just so I could watch them twirl. It was quiet and peaceful. It helped me to feel peaceful inside.
On Thursday, Daniel showed up to the breakfast table without his beard, and it looked like he had attempted a home haircut, which wasn't half bad. At least he didn't look like he had his head lodged in a hay bale anymore. He looked younger, and it actually startled me, which caused him to crack a smile, a smile that had previously been hidden by his overgrown beard. I liked it. I had been nervous about coming to stay with Daniel, but he wasn't unruly to me. I worried he might have been disgruntled, since I had been forced upon him, but I could tell now that he wasn't. It had been hard to tell under his beard, but I think he had smiled at me across the table when we ate. Now that he had shaved, his straight white grin was released on me full force. It was quite nice and impossible not to smile back.
"You shaved."
"Yes, I did."
I considered asking why, but I didn't want to be pulled into a conversation. I just nodded at him, letting him know that I approved, not that he would care.
After cleaning up, I explored a couple of the paths. One led to an overlook with an amazing view, and another led to a little spring, where the water bubbled right out of the ground and flowed into a lovely pond. I sat and watched some animals come to drink. Daniel's place wasn't so bad. I was thankful he had let me stay here, no questions asked.
On Saturday after breakfast, I once again donned my hoodie and stepped out onto the back porch to watch the birds. I lay across the swing and stretched out in the sunlight, like I did ever morning.
"Do you mind if I sit?"
I nearly leapt out of my skin. Daniel stood blocking the sun, so I could open my eyes. I knew it wasn't a fluke, because when I moved, he glanced behind him and shifted again.
"You're not working." I realized that was the most I had said to him all week.
He frowned a little and shook his head no. "It's Saturday."
I sat up a little more, and I knew for sure he was blocking the sun for me, because he had put his hand out to the side to keep it out of my eyes. I scooted over and patted the bench next to me. He sat down and leaned back, relaxing. He closed his eyes, when a cool breeze blew past. I shivered a little, but he seemed to be fine in his flannel shirt.
"You've been quiet." I looked at him confused. I thought he had noticed that before. "I mean you haven't complained about there being nothing to do. My family has come out before to visit for a day or something, and they seem to go nuts in the first few hours, and here you are a week in, and you're fine."
I shrugged. "It's nice."
He looked at me excitedly, in a way I had not seen before. You would have thought I had told him he had won the lottery. "It is, isn't it? I keep trying to tell my family that, but they don't get it. I mean it's nature, what's not to get? I don't think they realize how much there is to see out here. Just look at the birds. Have you ever seen so many different colors? I remember seeing brown and black in town, but here, there are red, blue, green, yellow, and then so much more when the hummingbirds come around. It's like a tropical forest without the humidity. I plan on putting out the deer corn this weekend. They love that stuff, and so do a mess of other animals as well. The wild turkeys and quail, there's just so much out here."
I couldn't help but smile at him. He looked over at me, and then looked down at his lap, as if he was embarrassed by his tangent. I didn't know why beard man was insecure, or maybe it was because he had shaved his beard off that he felt insecure. Either way, he was adorable and a really sweet guy. I didn't want him to feel bad, so I decide to speak up for him. "I like the trails, too."
His head whipped around to me. "Really?"
I nodded yes, unable to keep my smile from growing. It was a little silly, how happy he was about me liking his home.
"Your smile is pretty." As soon as it left his mouth, his eyes widened, making me laugh. I could tell he wasn't a smooth talker, and it put me at ease.
"Thanks," I gave the guy a break. Since he wanted to talk to me, I figured the least I could do was be nice enough to help carry on a conversation. "Were the trails already in when you moved here?"
He shook his head no. "When my mother came to visit, she literally paced the floor and complained that my house was too small. She said she didn't know how I fit in it. I tried to tell her I don't live in the house. I spend most of my time outside. I grabbed my machete and my rifle and made her follow me. We walked for a while, and I swear she thought a wild animal was going to jump out and eat her. She started to bug me to go back, and then we came upon the spring. There were little rabbits around it at the time. She loved it, and so I used my machete to make a trail back to the house. That trail is named after my mother, it's Silvia's path," he said, pointing to it.
"Wow, that's really neat, what about the other one?" Talking to him came easier than I thought it would. It didn't hurt like I had expected.
"That one is my father's. He went stir crazy like my mother. I knew there was a valley in that general direction, so I took him for a walk like I did my mother, and when I found his spot, I cut the trail back. That trail is named after my father, Anthony."
"That's cool, are there any other paths? I wasn't able to find the start of another."
He grinned widely. "Right there," he pointed into some thick underbrush. "That can be your path, just let me get my gun and machete."
He was up and into the house before I could even think to protest. I considered going in to tell him I didn't want to go, but he came back out before I could get up the courage to say anything. He tromped out with a backpack and that silly grin, and I knew there was no turning back.
"I have the snacks we'll need and lunch, let's go!" I half expected him to shout, “Forward ho!”
He nearly skipped to the forest edge, whacked some bushes and held back some limbs for me. His face beamed. He was too sweet to turn down, so I followed the beard-free man into the forest. He had been kind enough to let me stay in his home, no questions asked. Keeping him company and indulging him was the least I could do. Of course, the idea of making a new path and finding something was a bit exciting, too.
"So, what do you think will be out this way?" I asked.
"Well, I've seen a bunch of deer come from this direction. You can see their prints there, and it's hard to tell, but they've made very narrow paths between some of the bushes, making it easier to walk through here. Where
ver we're going, we'll know it when we find it," he spoke, very sure of himself. He was an interesting conundrum, so confident, but with hints of insecurities. I gathered he wasn't used to talking to people outside of his family, and from what I understood, he was awkward and shy even then.
The thought of that made me smile.
Chapter 10 – Grovel
"So, why the rifle?" I finally asked, after watching it sway on his back for nearly an hour.
"Does it bother you?" his brow furrowed, and I shook my head no. "Well, I've never had trouble with the wildlife here, but you know there's a first time for everything, and me being on my own doesn't bode well for me getting out alive if there was a confrontation. I haven't had to use it, and I hope I never have to."
It was a reasonable answer. He seemed so much different than the family I had met. He was the male version of Snow White, and he definitely wasn't involved with anything illegal, unless feeding the wildlife was, but I was pretty sure that was only frowned upon in national forests. "How much land do you have here?"
He seemed pleased that I asked. "I have about eighty acres, but before you go off thinking I'm rich, remember, it's in the middle of nowhere. I don't own the front section. My property line starts forty feet in front of my house. The rest is still owned by Mr. Terrantino. He wanted to keep the 'frontage land.' It was an investment he made, hoping the small town about thirty minutes from here would grow and make his land prime business lots. Of course, after twenty years of nothing, he decided to sell the back half. It didn't appraise well. It was completely undeveloped, no road to it, no power, water, or gas, and the lines to connect it weren't even anywhere near this place."
"So, how much did you pay?"
"About three hundred dollars an acre, it was twenty-five thousand dollars, with closing costs and stuff."
"Wow, so how did you get all that stuff out here?"
"I have a brother in construction. He plowed the trees and brush down to make a road. I did pay to have the well drilled. Thankfully, they didn't have to go too deep, so it didn't bankrupt me." He looked back at me and smiled. "The rest is propane, solar panels, and a generator if the weather is bad." He turned, stopping in his tracks. "I don't have air conditioning or heating. Are you okay?"
I wasn't sure what he was asking.
"Are you cold at night? I have another blanket. I thought the heavy one would be enough, but now I'm not sure. I usually use two blankets in the winter. The daytime weather is more like spring now, but kind of like winter at night. I have two blankets on winter nights, my light one and my heavy one, and that works…well, there's a sheet, too. I have a sheet and a light blanket, then the heavy one. The sheet is one you sleep under, not on, but I have one I sleep on, on my bed as well. So it's two sheets, one on the bed, and then one I sleep under, and then the thin blanket and the heavy one on top. You probably need another set of sheets, too..."
The poor boy was going to hurt himself with all his rambling. He actually seemed upset, which was silly. I was fine with my bottom sheet, top sheet and heavy blanket. I grinned to myself as I thought that.
"I've been fine. I was a little chilled the first night, but I made sure the curtains on the window were closed."
You would've thought I had told him his dog died. "I knew it! I knew I should've given you another blanket, but I didn't want to disturb you, and I didn't know how warm my office was, the computers running nonstop kind of heat the place up in there. The thin blanket goes in the middle. I should've put it in there, but I didn't want to disturb you. I can't believe I messed it up..."
"I'm fine, Daniel."
"I'll get you another blanket and fresh sheets." He actually took a few steps, like he was turning back, but I grabbed his arm.
"I don't need them now."
His face turned bright red. "Right, yeah, you're right." He turned around and started walking again, but a little faster than before. Thankfully, with as thick as the brush and forest were, he couldn't walk very fast, so there was no chance he could leave me behind.
We walked for another twenty minutes before we stopped. There was a large rock we climbed up on and ate lunch. The brush was too thick to sit on the ground.
"So, is this it?" I asked from my perch.
"Well, I guess I could've brought some apples."
"I wasn't talking about the food, but it's great, thank you." I tried to stave off another rambling fit. I was sure he would go off on a tangent of forgotten snacks and lunch options. "I was wondering if this rock was my place."
He looked down at it and then at the surroundings. "Nah, I don't think this is it. Your place will be more than just a boulder."
Once lunch was done, we walked for another ten minutes, and then he stopped suddenly. "We've found it."
I hurried forward and tried to look past him. I jumped, trying to see over his shoulder, and failing.
He turned his head and smiled. "Welcome to Gabriella grove." He moved aside and finally let me through.
There were several very large trees with no lower branches, they made a thick canopy overhead, but let in enough sunlight for the grass to grow, as well as some flowers that were scattered about. It looked like a picture-perfect scene right out of a movie or book, but the coolest thing about it was, it was full of ladybugs.
Daniel reached down and picked up a few of them. "Are you afraid of bugs?" he held his hand away from me at first.
"No, I'm not." The bugs weren't just red, but orange, brown, yellow, and black. I didn't realize they came in so many different colors. I moved closer to him to take the bugs off his hand. When his hand was on mine, it felt warm and comfortable. His smile was sweet, innocent and contagious, making my insides flip. "It's so beautiful here, thank you for bringing me."
"No, thank you, without you here, I would've just gone about filling the feeders and never ventured out here."
"I'm sure you would’ve come eventually, but it's so cool to be here for the discovery."
My words seemed to really please him. He nodded his head in agreement with a split-faced grin. "It's nice that somebody else gets it, gets me."
"It's nature, what's not to get?" I teased him, using his own line.
He laughed, and it was a sweet genuine laugh, not forced, cruel or full of innuendos, just a happy laugh. It put me at ease and made me want to make him laugh again.
There was a fallen log on the edge of the grove, so we settled down on it. We didn't want to risk squishing the ladybugs by walking into it. "They may ease up the closer to summer we get. It's spring now, all the bugs and animals are busy, and the plants are blooming. This really is the best time to come out here. Though the summer is nice, too, it's a little warmer, but you don't see as much wildlife lingering around. I do get a lot more birds. The hummingbirds should be coming soon. As soon as it begins to warm up, they'll all start returning."
"That sounds really great. I'd like to see them."
He looked at the ground and then up at me nervously. "Did they tell you how long you'd have to stay here?"
I shook my head no. "I hope I get to stay here through the summer." I realized after I had said it that I might not be welcome. "Unless you don't want me to."
"No, no, I'd love to have you. Like I said before, you're pretty quiet, and you enjoy yourself out here. You get me." His cheeks pinked, as he looked away.
"Yeah, I get why you like it here. It's quiet, peaceful and so beautiful. Honestly, it's just what I need right now. I really needed to get away from that whole mess."
It looked like he wanted to ask me about it, but bit his lip and asked me something else. "So, what did you want to do when you went back?"
"I suppose go back to St. Mary's. Victor said he was getting a settlement for me, so I should be able to pay for my last semester."
"St. Mary's?"
"Yeah, St. Mary's private school."
"Like high school?" He was starting to look worried.
"Yup, I'm a senior there."
"Oh, ah, that'
s nice, um, 'kay, we should probably, um…" The poor guy was turning into a bumbling mess again.
"Did you go to school?"
"Yes, public school, and then a technical school to learn programming."
"Oh, that's what you do all day?"
He nodded yes. "I work from home. It's nice and quiet, and nobody bugs me."
"So, you don't like people?"
"Not people, per se, just large loud groups. I grew up in a very loud, rowdy house. I was the youngest, so I was picked on a lot. It's not that I don't love my siblings, but things got bad after a couple of them married into the Valente family. There were a lot of 'friends' in the house who probably shouldn't have been there. Being the youngest and smallest made me a target a lot. They never really hurt me, though. My sister would step in to stop them. I don't do well with confrontation, at least not off of my land. I feel like I can defend it. I'm safe here. You probably think I'm silly. You hung out with them by choice."
"Well, I am a girl, and they have a different set of rules for them." Saying that made my insides cringe. "So, how old are you? Everyone says you're the youngest, but no one said how young."
"I'm twenty-one," he glanced at me sideways.
"I'm eighteen, my birthday was back in November."
"Really?" He seemed to perk up a little, and his excitement was amusing.
"Yes, really, that's why I was able to move out of my parents’ house and drop out for a semester without any legal repercussions."
"Oh, right, that makes sense. It's good to know that no one is looking for you."
"Well, I wouldn't say that. I'm sure the Feds are still trying to use me to gather evidence. They really have nothing on me."
"Can I ask you why you'd protect the Valente’s? You do know they're bad people."
I tipped my head to the side, trying to think of a way to answer him. "They were always very nice to me and took care of me when no one else would. They called me family, so…" I shrugged, "You don't rat out family."
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