by Brinda Berry
The weather had been fairly dry with no rain this month, but I bent to look for footprints. I started feeling silly, because even if I found footprints, I wouldn’t be able to tell anything from them. I shivered, trying to rid myself of the willies.
“They walked this way.” Austin pointed at a place the brush was parted in a small area.
Wow. I was impressed. I rose to follow him, relieved to leave behind the vibrating sound that filled my ears and set my nerves on edge. Austin seemed oblivious to my discomfort.
“Cool. I didn’t know you were such a Boy Scout.” I said with genuine admiration.
“Babe, I have skills you don’t even know about,” he said. I could see his head swelling.
“Oh, really, Boy Scout… Lead on,” I said with a smile. “And Austin, don’t call me babe.”
Austin stumbled over some low-lying brambles that had caught his shoe. I followed as he made his way through the gap that seemed to be obvious now that he had discovered it. I carefully walked past a briar bush that threatened to snag at my legs, bare below shorts. Austin had on jeans and tennis shoes, so he stomped through trying to enlarge the path for me.
The thicket suddenly opened to a small clearing. Looking down, Austin nodded and pointed at the ground. “Tire tracks.” The thin tire marks in the soft ground ran parallel and led eastward.
“Motorcycles?” I asked as I looked at Austin for confirmation. “I knew they didn’t walk in. But why would they hide them?” I said to myself as much as to Austin.
Austin was staring at me. “You’re not telling your dad, are you.” A statement, not a question. We both knew that my dad would freak out if he thought someone had even been on our land without his permission. My dad worked as a computer security analyst and had recently taken on a new government contract. The more successful he became, the more he had to leave our house.
“No way.”
After Pete had disappeared, Dad had become protective though Pete had been labeled a runaway. We knew that wasn’t true. My dad had spent over two years searching online and through nearby cities for a clue to Pete’s whereabouts.
“I was kind of freaked out earlier, but it’s not a big deal,” I continued. “I have the alarm system on the house, and it’s probably nothing.”
“I don’t like it,” Austin set both his hands on my shoulders and looked me in the eyes. “I want you to call me if anything spooks you.”
I disengaged myself from his hold. “You know I will.” I steadied my emotions and took a deep breath. I didn’t like being told what to do, even by my friends. “They probably stole the bikes and hid them here until they could come back for them. Or something like that.”
I didn’t even believe that story, but I really had no reasonable explanation that would put Austin’s mind at rest. “Come on, I need to look at the rest of the memory cards and work on my project,” I said. “You can hang for a little while if you want to. My dad won’t care.”
We drove back to the house in silence. I tried to come up with plausible explanations for the guys in my woods and the motorcycle tracks. The more I thought about it, the better my fabricated explanation sounded.
Austin spent the morning on my desk computer while I browsed through the rest of the photos on my laptop. Periodically, he would glance over to see what photos had been taken as if half expecting the two mysterious strangers to show up in some more footage. I logged my results with satisfaction, copied the photos onto my hard drive, and formatted the cards to replace the next ones I switched out to view.
Finished with my tasks for my science project, I lay across my bed and tucked a pillow under my chin to watch Austin play Quest of Zion. Ignoring me, his attention to the screen was intense as he maneuvered his avatar across the wooded terrain of the playing environment.
A beep alerted me that a text had arrived on my cell. “What u doin?” said Em.
“Hangin out with Austin. Wanna come over?” I replied with the speed that comes with hours of texting.
“B there in half hour.”
Austin leaned back in my computer chair, his socked feet resting on the edge of my bed, and studied my face. “Listen, about GameCon. I was outta line saying that about your dad. I really wanted you to go.”
“Yeah, I know. And I think I was in a funk yesterday. I’ve started thinking about Pete a lot. It’s been a while since I let that get me down.”
He hesitated as if choosing his words carefully, “I miss your brother, too, but you can’t be sad every time you think about him. I have to believe that he’s fine. You should think like that too or it’s gonna eat you up, you know?”
“I wasn’t sad. I just remembered how much I miss him. The booth does that to me.”
“That bench down there?”
“I can remember sitting down there with Pete waiting on the bus.” I smiled. “Pete would get into a fight with me over something stupid and then he would make up with me by giving me the cookies from his lunch.”
My throat tightened, but I would not cry. I wouldn’t. I sat up and hugged the pillow to my chest.
“I’m glad you can talk about it. I remember when you wouldn’t.” He sat on the bed beside me. Because my throat was tight, I couldn’t say a word in fear that the floodgate of tears would open. He tugged the pillow from my arms and settled a comforting arm around me, which was the worst thing he could do. I extended my hand to push his chest away and stop him from comforting me.
“Knock, knock.” My dad opened the door.
I pushed away from Austin quickly. My cheeks flushed, and Austin scurried back to the desk chair. He was grinning uncomfortably as though he realized how bad we looked. I wanted to literally shove him back into that chair.
This was the last thing I needed. My dad had never been leery of Austin hanging out at our house all the time.
Dad cleared his throat, “How’s the science project going?” He sounded calm.
I tried to act casual. Austin grinned like an idiot, and I contemplated how to deflect the situation. Wow, this looked bad.
“Dad, could you not come busting in my room unannounced?” I asked.
The grin disappeared from Austin’s face. Uh-oh.
Dad shook his head, and his mouth formed a straight parental line. “Mia, when you turn thirty, you can lock that door. For now, I’ll ask that you act like you expect me to enter at any time.”
“Sure, Dad. Austin was just giving me a hug to cheer me up. We were talking about Pete.” And that last sentence changed my dad’s face. I wasn’t manipulating my dad. I knew that the truth was best.
“OK, kids,” he answered with relief. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who didn’t want to think of Austin as boyfriend material. “Listen, I wanted to tell you that I’m making homemade pizza for lunch. Austin, you’re going to stay, right?”
The doorbell rang, and my dad nodded reassuringly at Austin as if to say, Everything is cool with us.
“That’s probably Em. I forgot all about her,” I said as I exited the room and ran down the stairs.
Em stood in the doorway holding her laptop and a brown paper bag. It had to be the usual bag of candy from the Gas-Up Quik Stop. She’d braided her long hair into pigtails, copying her fave teen models. I thought she looked like a mischievous kid. As I neared, she opened the screen door, peeking her head into the room. I waved at her to hurry.
“Hey you. My favorite friend who always knows just what to bring when she comes over.” I took the bag out of her hands.
Dad, who’d followed me down the stairs, tugged Em’s pigtail. I groaned in embarrassment for Em since he had basically told her that her hairstyle was probably closer to a five-year-old’s.
“Hi, Mr. Taylor,” Em murmured.
“I am so glad you’re here, Emily. You can chaperone up there so I won’t have to walk in on a make out session again,” my dad said.
Em’s eyes widened and her mouth dropped. So gullible.
“Oh, Em,” I was a little irritated. “H
e’s kidding.”
“Pizza in an hour.” My dad walked toward the kitchen. He tended to cook a lot on the weekends. I didn’t know if he did it because he liked cooking or he was making up for the lack of home-cooked meals throughout the week.
Austin stood in my bedroom doorway. “Em, you gotta see Mia’s pictures from her camera. We caught some dudes hangin’ out in the woods.”
“Really? How scary,” Em shrilled, the energy of her voice pulsing in like a pink frisson around her.
I pushed the sensation down. “Shhh…” I closed the door swiftly. “I’m trying to make sure my dad doesn’t know and freak out. He’ll rearrange his work schedule, and he’s been traveling this month.”
Austin was searching the memory card files in an attempt to view the picture.
Em leaned over to look at the picture as he found the correct one and enlarged it. “Wow. I mean it’s so clear. Scoot over Austin, I wanna mess with it.” Em was totally comfortable with me and Austin but was a little bit of an introvert with other people our age. And of the three of us, Emily was actually more of a techie, so Austin immediately did what she asked.
Em opened some photo software. “I’m going to add some fill light and sharpen. I won’t change your original, but we may be able to see their faces better.”
She zoomed in to focus on the people in the photo, then clicked the mouse swiftly, executing photo editing that would put the professionals to shame. She sat back in satisfaction and grinned. “He’s cute, Mia. No wonder you’ve been hiding him here.”
“Very funny,” I replied.
Austin rolled his eyes with a sour look. “Zoom in on the second person… Good job, Em, I can see that this one’s for sure a dude. I thought this was a shadow, but I think he needs to shave.” He pointed at the darkened profile.
“He doesn’t look too bad either, Mia.” Em continued her teasing, oblivious to Austin's reaction.
“We found motorcycle tracks and a clearing where they had hidden them,” I said.
Em's dimples appeared with an impish grin. “Cool, love a guy on a motorcycle.”
“Cool? If my dad catches them on our land, he’s likely to go ballistic.”
“If I catch ’em, there’s gonna be hell to pay,” Austin grumbled.
Em and I exchanged a knowing look. Guys have to feel that they are big and bad. I guess it’s harmless to let men have their delusions. I would have bet Emily a month’s allowance that Austin had never even been in a fight.
“Yeah,” I said, trying to keep a serious face. “We’ll count them lucky. I think that the motorcycles were stolen, and they’re long gone.”
* * *
My dad called us down for lunch, and we stuffed ourselves with his “everything but the kitchen sink” pizza. I sat on the bar stool across from my friends and laughed at Austin’s stories about his summer senior trip with the guys. While some people collected hats or mugs, Austin collected stories. He seemed to have a bottomless well of tall tales that always made me smile. I didn’t care if the stories were true or not. They were always funny.
We spent the rest of the afternoon in my room listening to music and talking. Em informed us that her parents had definitely said “no” to a trip alone with Austin. I wasn’t surprised to hear it.
Austin’s appearance tended to scare some parents, and although my dad knew that he was harmless, others weren’t sure. Austin had developed a look with his haircut, or lack of, and clothes that said, “Don’t mess with me.” I really thought he was all bark and no bite. The latest addition of the tattoo was the final touch to his rebel appearance. Lots of kids were getting tattoos these days as soon as they were old enough. Dad didn’t mind since Austin hadn’t gone with any facial piercing or an ear gauge. People in Whispering Woods were old-fashioned. But even my grandfather has a massive dragon tattoo he got during his years in the service.
Although Austin really wanted us to go to GameCon, he didn’t seem too upset at me and for that, I was glad.
After Em and Austin left, I spent the rest of my Saturday night watching movies with my dad. The peaceful hum of the ceiling fan whirred and filled my mind with white wispy feathers of comfort. He fell asleep in his recliner, and I spread a sofa blanket over him before turning off the lamps and tiptoeing away. I closed and locked the doors, turned on the alarm system, and went upstairs with Biscuit.
Chapter 2
Regulus
Whispering Woods University’s bookstore was crowded with students who were halfheartedly studying their schedules, looking for books, and evaluating the dating possibilities of the incoming class. The scent of hormonal overdrive hung thickly in the air. Regulus frowned as he listened to an overzealous type talk loudly about a party he planned to crash.
“Oh, sorry,” a brunette said breathily as she bumped his arm.
Regulus looked at her flushed face and the wide, empty aisle. He smiled and said, “No problem.” He relocated to the opposite side and pretended to become engrossed by the pamphlet in his hand.
The girl stood inches away and tried to see what he was reading.
Regulus glanced up, smiled again, and turned to look for Arizona, who was talking with a girl while he examined a book. Regulus frowned as he approached them, waiting for a break in the conversation.
“So, you think that this teacher never really uses the book and only tests from the notes?” Arizona said.
“Sure. The old hag likes to see us spend all our money so we’re broke for the rest of the semester. I swear, I don’t remember one question ever coming from that book. I stopped studying from it after the second test.” The girl jutted her hip out and stuck her hand on it for emphasis.
“How could I not trust a pretty girl like you? I think I’ll wait to buy it.” Arizona smiled brilliantly. He even winked at her, which seemed a little over the top, but she was so enthralled it seemed to pass right by her.
“Arizona, we should be going now,” Regulus said. He’d been taught that patience was the key to all successful endeavors, but he failed to see the benefit of Arizona’s conversation with this female. Regulus looked at her bleached blonde hair, her makeup-enhanced face, and short skirt. He knew she met the definition of “hot,” but he felt unaffected by her. He continued, “Your girlfriend said you have to be back in thirty minutes or she’s coming to look for you.”
Arizona glared at Regulus. He turned to the pretty girl who had stopped twirling her long hair with her finger and nodded. As they walked away, Arizona said, “There’s no harm in research, Regulus. Looking for mates is an acceptable sport here. It can be fun.”
“No time for fun. Did you get the information? I could hear your conversation with the girl and that wasn’t it.”
“They’re not going to confide in strangers. I can’t help it if I’m extremely skilled at it.”
Regulus looked at him sternly. “You know it’s forbidden, Arizona. Don’t bring us in a situation where I have to cover for you.”
“I’m talking with a girl. Not a relationship…there’s a difference. I know the consequences better than anyone.” Arizona spat the words out and nervously rubbed his right wrist.
“The temptation is too great in there for you,” Regulus said laughing, trying to lighten the situation.
“You’re right. They’ve thrown me into the gene pool. But we’d both better get used to it here. These people don’t think about much else.”
Regulus answered without hesitation, “I won’t have any difficulties with it.”
Chapter 3
Caught Again
I preferred to hang out with guys until they decide that I’m a girl. Then they get all weird on me. Today, Austin was definitely getting on my nerves. Apparently, standing and watching me work was entertaining.
“You should install that lower. You know that squirrels are the only thing you’ll get here,” Austin muttered. His irritated tone washed over me in browns as the buzzing I always heard near the booth grew in intensity.
I ig
nored him.
I looked away from Austin to examine the small shelter in front. I needed to concentrate on getting finished with my task, which was difficult with his stare burning a hole through me. Looking at the place where I had attached the wildlife camera, I shook my head. I had originally thought that the roof of the waiting booth would be a great place. I pushed my fingertips against a piece of wood on the structure to test it and frowned at the dilapidated state. The red paint that had once covered the wood was now reduced to small slivers of pink that were peeling and rubbing off with the pressure of my fingers. I guess I hadn’t noticed its deterioration over the years. I would be lucky if the camera didn’t fall off.
“Why doesn’t your dad tear this old thing down?” Austin persistently attempted conversation.
“He would never do that,” I said, trying to keep the anger out of my voice. “You know that my dad built it for me and Pete to wait for the bus here.” That really wouldn’t be an explanation to most people, but Austin should understand the significance.
“No, I wouldn’t tear it down either.”
I looked down at my cairn terrier and cooed to my faithful friend, "Dad wouldn’t get rid of the waiting booth, would he now? It’s practically a historical landmark. Where else would you hide when I’m trying to find you?”
Biscuit wagged his tail.
Austin shook his long bangs out of his eyes and bent down at eye level with the dog. “Come here, boy.”
Biscuit turned away and hopped up on the seat of the old golf cart. Austin gave me a dirty look as if I had cued Biscuit, and I shrugged.
“So your hypothesis is, people tend to spook around in the woods at night, and if you get them on film…”
“I’m testing whether moon phases influence the feeding patterns of wildlife. I planted some small plots of peas and clover over the summer. My outdoor cameras are motion activated so if a deer or anything feeds at any time, I’ll get it recorded. I’ll collect my SD cards everyday and check them for activity.”