Willow

by Donna Lynn Hope

  I turned away from Tristan but heard him say, “I’ll see you soon.”

  I looked back, ready to ask when, but he was already gone.

  “Who were you talking to?” Anne inquired as she ushered me inside.

  “Someone I’ve talked to in passing,” I answered as she handed me a soft, white towel.

  “Jericho has asked me over but we’ve been together so much lately I’m afraid you and I haven’t had much time together. If you would like, I can cancel and we can do something fun, perhaps take in a movie or just stay inside and cook.”

  Knowing that Anne meant well I didn’t want her to feel obligated to keep me company, even though I knew she enjoyed spending time with me. I looked at her searching brown eyes, so round and sweet, and so much like my father’s…

  I smiled and shook my head.

  “No, go with Jericho. I’ll be fine.”

  “Are you sure?” Anne pressed.

  “I think I will enjoy a grilled cheese sandwich, some tomato soup and a movie,” I insisted. “Besides, sometimes I like having time to myself.”

  This seemed to register with Anne and she reached for her shoes. “The weather is really bad so Jericho insists on picking me up. I won’t be gone all night.”

  I nodded and moved into the laundry room where I peeled off my wet clothes and dropped them in the washer. Wrapping the towel around me, I called out to Anne.

  “I’m going to take a shower. Go ahead and have fun with Jericho.”

  Chapter 38

  The rain continued to fall with forceful abandon and the night seemed to fall into darkness quicker than usual. I had dried my hair and put on some cozy cotton pants and a red t-shirt. As soon as I opened the bathroom door I was hit by the cold air. I called out for Anne but she was already gone. I went into my room but Pandora wasn’t there. Curious, I hurried down the stairs and saw that the back door was slightly ajar and rain was coming in. I ran into the laundry room and grabbed some towels; I shut the door, soaked up the puddles and wiped down the door. I dropped the towels into the hamper and pulled my clothes out of the washer to dry. I called for Pandora, nothing. Concerned, I meandered through the entire house and looked in each room. I went back to the door and opened it. I called and called but again, nothing. Worry started to grip me and I pondered what to do. Finding Pandora was imperative. I had to go. I scribbled a quick note to Anne, put on my black windbreaker and grabbed my keys, leaving my purse behind. I wouldn’t be gone long...

  The windshield wipers weren’t working as well as they should and to add to my growing irritation, I had to wipe the condensation from the inside of the window. I was frustrated and edgy but I had to find her. Someway, somehow, she had escaped, which was so uncharacteristic of her. Pandora had never once tried to leave. Did someone take her?

  The two-way road was slick but I was driving cautiously. I could hear the roar of the water beside me; the swollen, frothing stream was now a threatening black current. I kept looking, calling…nothing. Where could she be?

  As the rain continued to fall, so did my heart. Resigned, I decided to turn around and go home, but before I could, the road took a dip and I no longer had any traction. Panic took over and I didn’t have time to react before my Jeep was thrown into raging flood waters. Instinctively I unhooked my seat belt and began rolling down the window but the car came to a sudden halt as a felled tree blocked our passage. The force of the impact threw me across to the passenger’s seat and I hit my head on the window. Temporarily dazed I shook my head and attempted to crawl across the seat but debris and branches began hitting the car and their combined pressure prevented me from escaping. I had nowhere else to go.

  Only when the swirling black waters began to rise above my lap and the forceful water frothed around me furiously, and when the bowed tree prevented my exit from what was now a watery tomb did my horror give way to screams.

  The roar seemed to grow louder, the cold of the water made it harder to move, and my clothes were weighing me down. I fought to remove my jacket and used it to try to push the branches out of the way. I felt sharp pains shoot up my arms and across my face. It was the only physical feeling other than terror that let me know I was still alive. The branches wouldn’t dislodge, the windshield was unyielding and my Jeep, as small as it was, felt even smaller. The water began to rise and reconciled to my fate, I let the jacket go, and along with my screams, I began to sob into the sinister, angry night where I knew I had no chance of being seen or heard.

  Just as the water completely filled the Jeep and encased me in darkness, I felt a jolt and soon after an iron grasp went around my waist and although partially incoherent, I felt a release from the wreckage and the bitter, swirling waters.

  I seemed to drift in and out of consciousness. I didn’t have feeling in my body and yet I could feel the sway of rocking as if I were being cradled and carried. Swiftly escorted into nonexistence my mind said; and then…I felt nothing.

  I tried to open my eyes but my head was pounding and my shoulder was smarting from a dull, throbbing ache. The ground was hard but I was warm and that seemed to take the sting out of the pain I felt. I attempted to open my eyes and after the haze cleared I looked above into a vast space. I couldn’t quite figure out where I was and then…I noticed there was someone beside me. His arm was cradling my head and his hand was holding me to him. As I stirred I heard him speak softly, “Shhh…Its okay. You’re safe.”

  I turned towards the voice and looked into his face already knowing who it was.

  Haven’s attentive indigo eyes were warm upon me. Despite our proximity, I noticed the absence of clothing, his and mine, although the undergarments I was wearing were damp against my skin. Sensing the hesitation as I tensed, Haven clarified, “Your clothes are drying. You have nothing to fear.” He always seemed to know what I was thinking. He pointed to an area where he had a small fire going.

  “No, it’s okay…” I said, wincing from the pain as I tried to get my bearings. I looked around but other than the fire, I saw little except a large, dark chamber and then I heard his voice.

  “I come here to be alone. I don’t keep a lot of items around but this mummy bag came in handy.”

  I didn’t answer him. It felt as though I was dreaming and that the nightmare I had just endured had been too much and my mind had brought me to a place of repose.

  I sat up and began to remember the gravity of what I had endured and reality washed over me in much the same way as a fresh wave of pain.

  “What happened? Where on earth are we?”

  Behind the quiet chuckle his voice was low and soothing. “One question at a time…”

  “But how…how did you free me? And how did you know where I was?”

  He sat up and the fire illuminated his bare chest, his sharp features and his messy hair. I looked away.

  “He felt your distress and sent it to me because I was closer. When you passed the last intersection, I followed you.”

  “I never saw you,” I said.

  His voice grew deeper. “You should know our strength is superior to that of humans, even the others. That is how I freed you...And to answer your other question, we’re in a cave not far from my house.”

  A cave?

  Haven reached for a lantern and struck a match, which flared and illuminated the darkness. “You were hypothermic. You needed heat.”

  “Why didn’t you take me home? Or to a hospital?”

  “Have you ever been to a hospital?” Haven asked as he looked me over.

  I shook my head…I had never been to one, let alone a doctor. The corner of his lips turned up. He knew why.

  “You should have brought me home, so why are we here?” I asked.

  He didn’t answer.

  “Haven!” I cried.

  Haven stared above, his face taught. “It’s obvious, isn’t it?”

  “Give me a straight answer,” I demanded.

  “No.”

  I fought the urge to slap him and he knew
it.

  “It’s only been a couple hours. I’ll take you home.” He helped me stand and handed me a wool blanket. “It’s enough that you live.”

  “Was I supposed to?” I whispered.

  He didn’t answer.

  We were quiet most of the way to Anne’s house but he kept looking over to check on me. It didn’t take more than fifteen minutes to get home and Tristan was waiting for us with his arms crossed.

  “You took your time getting here,” he spat at Haven.

  “I told you she was fine. She’s stronger and she heals quicker than humans do. The rest is none of your business,” Haven replied angrily.

  “I went to the house but you weren’t there. Going rogue during a crisis has consequences,” Tristan threatened.

  “Boy, you are no one to mess with me. If you want to challenge for that right, ask for it.”

  Haven and Tristan took aggressive stances and both were staring the other one down.

  “Would you both stop?!” I hissed. “You two can have your display of male dominance when I’m not around.”

  “She doesn’t belong to either one of us,” Haven said. “I took her someplace safe, the only place no one else knows about. I’m going to keep it that way.”

  “Our women, along with our men, must be accounted for,” Tristan said. “She belongs to the clan, but you’re right, she sure as hell doesn’t belong to you.”

  “I’m right here you know,” I butted in. “I may be looking for belonging but I don’t belong to anyone and I don’t belong here. I’m going inside. Goodnight.”

  Both men stepped aside hesitantly to let me pass and both men asked me if I wanted them to stay. I didn’t want to go into an empty house knowing that Pandora was missing. I hesitated at the door, not wanting to open it, not wanting to be alone. I looked down and shook my head.

  “Thank you both, but I’m fine.” Still wrapped in the wool blanket, I reached for the spare key and unlocked the door. I headed for the stairs, bypassing the phone to call Anne. All I wanted was to climb in bed and get warm. Shivering, I changed into my night gown and sat down on the bed. I pulled the covers up to my chin and laid back. I didn’t know how I was going to explain everything to Anne. I started to weep when I thought about Pandora. Mercifully, I drifted into a deep, dark, dreamless sleep.

  Chapter 39

  Sleep came often over the next several days and I found much needed rest as the last year and all that had happened seemed to be more of a dream than the dreams I sought out for solace. Anne had attended to me much as a mother would and I could see in her warm eyes the guilt she felt for not telling me that on the night of the flood she had taken Pandora with her, as she often had before. Neglecting to tell me, she felt responsible for all that had ensued.

  Tristan had come by and offered his assistance to Anne, whom he seemed quite taken with. He had driven Anne to where I had been swept from the road. Together they had looked at the debris and were told that the water had never been more than waist deep. Anne had marveled at all the damage it had done, including totaling my Jeep.

  It was three days after the accident when Reece and Amber came by for a visit. They had each come by before, but this time they had come together. Amber was feeling ill again and while they were visiting, Reece gazed at her protectively and as he did, I felt the perpetual inner tug-of-war.

  This was getting old. Something had to be done.

  I looked down at my hands and turned them up to examine my lifeline. I was no one special. They deserved someone who wouldn’t put them through uncertainty. I wanted to make everyone happy but a heart can’t be split in two, so there I was, at a precipice and I was encased by a black cloud of doubt. My mind told me that one decision could alter not only my life, but other lives as well. Who was I to command such power?

  Reece decided to take Amber home when it was apparent I wasn’t much for talking. Because I loved them both I was more conflicted than ever.

  I closed my eyes and saw Haven and heard the offer he had presented to me the last time we were together. I saw him hold out his hand, beckoning me to join him and to find belonging with his pack, a pack related to the one I came from. I looked into his eyes that so magically changed from indigo to sea-blue, and I saw protection in them. I also saw history and a link to my own kind.

  Then I saw the past. I saw my mother’s radiant smile and the gold in her hair as she let it fall in streamers around me as she cradled me to her. I saw my father as he patiently taught me to drive and laughed when I kept stalling. His encouraging face was burned inside me, a place I could go to when I needed to feel his love. I saw him finger the photo of her and whisper that they would be together again and that their separation from one another was temporary, not forever, and here I was being offered more time than was natural, but in a place where they weren’t and could never be.

  I saw Reece – the friend-who-was-more-than-a-friend. With him I felt comfortable, natural and happy. I could have a normal life with him in it but it wasn’t a choice that brought me comfort because of yet another.

  Amber…

  I had many choices and I could also choose to be alone, but I was tired of being alone. No matter what path I chose, there was sacrifice, but whose would it be? In a fair world, they would all choose for me.

  Chapter 40

  May had arrived and with it came prom, followed by graduation. Not all of it had been ideal. I found I couldn’t celebrate as much as the others seemed to. Many of them had grown up together and gone through school together. I had come in late and never felt attached.

  Graduation was bittersweet and while I didn’t have a large contingent of family to cheer me on, it made me happy to have Anne and Ben. There had been no party, either. Almost everyone was hosting Graduation parties but Anne and I had gone to dinner with Reece, Jericho and Ben, which somehow seemed even better. Afterward we gathered back at the house where we had dessert. Ben had made a graduation cake for me and Reece and while we simultaneously blew out the candles, Anne could be heard complaining that she had misplaced her camera. But no matter, the moment had been seared to memory and it was a good one.

  While we were passing around ice cream, Reece spoke up. “I’m going to head over to Amber’s and spend some time with her.”

  My heart dropped and I rebuked myself for it. Of course he should see her. She was his friend too. I stayed silent but Jericho didn’t. “This was sudden. And it’s rude. You should have mentioned it earlier son.”

  Reece nodded as he took a bite of cake and ice cream. While he did he caught my eye and winked at me.

  “I know. Sorry dad. She called and told me she would like my company.”

  Not much else was said while we finished dessert. Reece didn’t invite me to go with him and I wasn’t going to invite myself so when it was time I waved goodbye as he headed out the door. As soon as he left I felt lonelier than ever.

  Hours passed and dark descended, but with it came a stillness that seemed ominous. Everyone had gone, leftovers had been put away and the house had been cleaned. It was just Anne and I with Pandora resting at her feet. Anne was flipping through a recipe book and other than the occasional swish as she turned a page, there was no other sound except for the rhythmic ticking of a ceiling fan. I wasn’t the least bit tired although the clock had struck midnight a few minutes before. I looked at Anne who seemed unusually into her cookbook, told her goodnight and began to head up the stairs. I whistled for Pandora and as she maneuvered herself onto all fours, Anne brushed her lightly with her bare foot. I had taken my make-up off and was half undressed when I received the call. Reece didn’t sound like himself and he insisted I drive to Amber’s right away. Before I could ask what was going on, Anne, sounding alarmed, called out from downstairs. She was talking to Jericho and had been told the same thing. We needed to go.

  Anne was solemn as she drove and Pandora was alert. Anne had tried to keep Pandora inside but Pandora sensed our distress and wouldn’t leave our sides. It didn�
��t take more than ten minutes to reach Amber’s home. It was as old as Anne’s but smaller. The house was on a small section of land right off the road with nothing but woods in back and then the mountain. I quickly scanned the area, which was void of any kind of light. I made out Reece’s truck parked near the dirt round-a-bout, and behind it was his dad’s Harley. I didn’t have time to wonder. Anne parked and we hurried up the stairs. Pandora began to growl furiously and I gripped her collar tight. Before we could knock, Jericho opened the door and hurried us in. Once inside Pandora began barking and tried to bolt, but I commanded her to stay and she obeyed.

  “Amber’s room,” Jericho ordered. “They are in Amber’s room.”

  We followed him quickly and with each step forward, dread took over. The knowledge that something terrible had happened overcame me because no matter how fresh it is, there is no mistaking the scent of death.

  Chapter 41

  The first thing I saw was the full sized bed where Reece was cradling Amber to him. Anne gasped and went to Jericho’s side. I could hear him talking to her but I stood frozen in place, not even seeing Reece as my eyes were fixated on Amber’s still form. Her head was turned into Reece’s chest and her hair was matted and blood stained. Reece’s arms about her were all that kept her to him. That all too familiar pang of fear seized me; the fear of wondering whether there was life or death.

  Seconds ticked by and then I saw it. Her chest rose slightly. Amber was breathing! I rushed forward and saw two forms on the ground next to the bed. They were covered by one of Amber’s comforters. Startled, I looked at Reece whose eyes seemed blank and then I approached the bodies. I heard Anne first. “Willow, don’t.”

  I knelt down next to the body nearest me and heard Jericho’s footsteps come up behind me. “She’s gone. There is no point in looking.”