Saving Her

by Mia Ford

  While he was intensely guarded, I had no doubt in his sanity.

  I didn’t think he was dangerous, because there was nothing that he had done that even hinted he wasn’t in control of himself. So, that ruled out that he was hiding from the law, but what else would make a man take up such a solitary life?

  It wasn’t the fact that it was off the grid and in the mountains that made me so curious. There were plenty of people who enjoyed their privacy and would love to have such a place to get away.

  What intrigued me, was that this wasn’t a getaway for Johnathan. This was a permanent residence and he didn’t share it with another living soul.

  It must be such a lonely existence and to want that, something awful must have happened to him.

  I wanted to know what that was, because for some reason, I believed that whatever happened, I could help him.

  However, when I opened my eyes, my thoughts seemed silly, and overthought, as a far more jovial Johnathan greeted me.

  “Good morning!” Johnathan exclaimed, placing a plate of eggs and bacon on the table next to her.

  “Oh…Thank you!” I exclaimed, feeling my stomach rumble at the sight of the food.

  “You’re welcome. You’re going to need your strength today, because I want you to try to walk around.”

  I grinned, taking the plate onto my lap, “Are you trying to get rid of me?”

  Instead of getting defensive, as I feared he might, he grinned, knowing that I was teasing him.

  “Well, as much as I would like to sleep in my own bed at some point soon, no. I’m giving you a little tough love because I don’t want your muscles to get complacent. Trust me, you don’t want that either. If you’re ever going to make it down that mountain, you are going to have to start somewhere. Besides, I’m sure you don’t want to stay here a second more than you have to.”

  “Actually, it’s not too bad,” I mused, hoping I didn’t sound as desperate as I felt I came across. I was only trying to be friendly, but it came out sounding kind of seductive, which wasn’t my intent. Immediately, I felt my cheeks redden with embarrassment. “I mean, I told you, I find it relaxing…The cabin and all that.”

  Johnathan nodded, “Yeah, I get that. I feel the same way myself. I love it up here…Usually, there’s hardly anyone else around. It’s great.” Staring at me for a long moment, I was sure he was going to ask me a question, but it took him a while, I supposed, to figure out how he wanted to ask the question. “So, what is it that makes you want to be relaxed in a cabin, with no way to contact the outside world?”

  “I could ask you the same thing? I’m not exactly here by choice.”

  “So, you’re making the best out of a bad situation?” He asked, though not with any hint of being insulted. He genuinely seemed interested in my thought process.

  “I guess. I mean, considering what happened…But I came up to the mountains in the first place to get away. I thought hiking would be the answer, but this is much better.” I grinned.

  “Well, I can’t really take that as a compliment. I mean, the cabin is the better of two genuinely shitty options.”

  I chuckled, “The mountain wasn’t supposed to be a shitty option. However, I still think this is nicer.”

  “Wow. Maybe you hit your head a little harder than I thought,” he joked.

  “No, seriously, Johnathan. I’ve always been a simple girl. I don’t need a lot and lately, there has been a lot to deal with.”

  “What do you mean? What do you do, when you’re not…attempting to return to nature?”

  “I am in college. I’m studying to be a paralegal,” I answered. “I go to NC state.”

  “Damn,” Johnathan answered, “I guess you’re right. You do have an excuse to want to get away.”

  “It’s not that I want to get away from anything. I can’t wait to get on with my life. I love helping people and I can’t wait to start doing what I’m going to school for…Schools not that bad. It’s just…a lot.” I simpered, “I needed a break from it all, just to recharge my batteries. While I really didn’t have anyone, who wanted to go with me, I wasn’t exactly begging anyone to come with me either. I was happy to go alone, because I thought it would help me relax.”

  “What kind of high maintenance friends do you have?” He teased.

  “One of the most high-maintenance…and she knows it too. She would tell you. She’s crazy, but we’ve been friends for years. If I took her along, I would have to hear her bitching about bugs, the sun, the grass, the stones, the sky and the mountain itself for a week. She isn’t an outdoors person.”

  “And…no one else would go with you?”

  “I wouldn’t want anyone else to go with me. My parents wouldn’t climb a mountain and my other friends, they’re school friends, you know? Not, go brave the wilderness friends.”

  “There’s a difference?”

  “Of course, there’s a difference,” I answered with a slight insinuation to my voice that he immediately picked up on.

  “You realize, you’re talking to the guy who prefers the company of a dog, to any human beings, right?”

  “Fair enough. So, you just hate everybody, huh?”

  “Yeah, pretty much,” he retorted playfully, “People are stupid.”

  I rolled my eyes, “So, do you think you’re better than everyone else, or what?”

  “Oh, God no. I’m a dick. I wouldn’t want to be my friend either. I’m surprised poor Jake has stuck it out this long,” he insisted playfully.

  “Jake loves you,” I insisted, glancing at the dog, who was now looking between us, hoping that someone would sacrifice a piece of bacon for him.

  “He just loves me because I feed him,” Johnathan insisted.

  “Sometimes, that’s all you need.”

  “Yup, this pup is all I need,” Johnathan, insisted, giving up a piece of his bacon to an extremely happy Jake, as he pet the dogs massive head.

  Jake swallowed the bacon in one bite and immediately started to scour both of our plates for another.

  “That’s all you get,” Johnathan insisted, “Don’t look at her plate. She needs her strength. You’re fine.”

  As though Jake understood what his owner was saying, he huffed in protest before flopping onto the floor and laying down, away from us.

  “He’s never happy, that dog,” Johnathan laughed.

  “But he’s so cute!” I exclaimed, wishing I had given up some of my bacon while I still had the chance.

  “Ugh…He’s two-hundred pounds of pure muscle and fur… He’s not cute.”

  “And that is why, I think he might like me better,” I retorted.

  “Eh, he definitely likes you better,” he replied hastily, in a way that slightly lessened the effect of my joke. “But he’s stuck with me…Speaking of which, if you’re able to move around on it today, we’ll work on it a little more for the next few days, but I’m hoping you’ll be well enough to get back down the mountain in a little while. From what I can see of it right now, the sprain seems to be healing nicely. I’m more worried about re-injury than I am about you not being able to make it. I just want to make sure you don’t overdo it too soon.”

  “Thanks,” I answered, feeling the spark of a connection starting to take shape again. I grinned at him.

  However, this time, he didn’t respond in a positive manner. He swallowed hard and put his plate to the side. His expression wasn’t angry, but it scared me.

  “What?” I asked, my face falling to match his morose expression. “Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah…I just…I feel like I have to tell you something,” Johnathan replied, putting his plate down on the ground and settling in to have a serious conversation.

  Suddenly, the remainder of my breakfast was no longer appealing. I felt my stomach churn as I wondered what could possibly be so important, or so grave, that he would feel the need to be so serious about.

  Since, the one thing I had learned about Johnathan was that unless he was angry, he
didn’t take things overly serious. He would rather insult a problem or tell it to go to hell wit his dry sense of humor than actually address it, which I was starting to get used to. Instead, though, right now, he seemed almost too serious.

  “Johnathan, you’re scaring me…” I offered, pulling back from him.

  “Good. You should be scared,” he scowled, “Cause it scared the shit out of me and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.”

  “What?” I asked, inching back toward him, although I felt my body shaking. I wasn’t sure what he was going to tell me and I feared that something would snap in him and I would be thrown back into a terrible situation, like I was at the campsite.

  It wasn’t that I didn’t trust Johnathan, it was more that I was having a hard time trusting anyone presently. It seemed like every time I moved, since the incident, I was afraid something was going to attack me.

  I didn’t want to live this way and my only hope was that it would get better with time, but I doubted it and Johnathan’s expression wasn’t helping this idea.

  “So,” he started skeptically, as though he still wasn’t sure if he wanted to tell me what he felt he needed to. Yet, after a pause, he continued, “You know when I told you I found your tent and your bag? I told you that I didn’t find anything else?”

  “Yeah?” I prodded as my heart started to thump loud and hastily in my chest. Instantly, I felt sick and the words spilled out of me before I could stop them, “Did you find the guy? Did you kill him?”

  “What?” Johnathan seemed to be removed from the seriousness of the situation for a moment, as he shook his head. “No! Why would you think…” His voice willingly cut off there and his head bobbed in a motion as though he had answered his own question and no longer needed further explanation. “Uh…No. I didn’t kill him, but that’s partially only because I didn’t find him. I did find his bag…”

  “His hiking pack?”

  “No. Probably a bag that he had in his hiking pack. It looked like a medical bag? Kind of…Anyway, I found a knife, rope, duct tape and the damn drug he used to knock you out with in the bag.” He spoke quickly now, as though he was trying to get it all out before he changed his mind about saying any of it. “The good news is, the drug he used won’t have any lasting effects. It’s basically generic Valium, so it won’t have any lasting effects, but the other stuff I found suggests that…”

  “He was going to kill me,” I replied, saying the words aloud made my stomach curdle. Again, I felt sick.

  “Jesus, I’m sorry, Carrie. I wasn’t going to tell you, but I felt that you had a right to know…” He insisted, gingerly grasping my shoulder in an attempt to be supportive.

  However, I wasn’t listening to him. Even though I had known that was a possibility, even as the assault was happening, the pre-meditation that had gone into the attack and the obvious, ultimate intention made my head spin.

  Those eyes returned, burning into my soul and now that I was certain of their true intention, I was certain that I would likely never be able to rest comfortably and securely again.

  If the guide had intended to kill me after he had gotten what he wanted, he would definitely want to kill me now that he was interrupted.

  Thoughts of how my life was in danger, as well as Johnathan’s life flooded my conscious, making me feel guilty as well as terrified.

  I wasn’t sure what I had thought happened to him before but the thought of him coming back for me wasn’t high on the realm of my possibilities. However, now, I feared that it was the only logical conclusion.

  I supposed I had hoped this was a random act and that he was never going to try it again, because it had failed. I knew that was a dumb idea, especially now, but it was hard for my brain to contemplate anything else. Now, those ideas seemed like fantasies, wishful thinking, though I knew the reality was far darker.

  As all of this weighed down on me, I felt increasingly lightheaded as the black curtain started to close from the corners of my eyes. I heaved a breath, which was useless, as though I was punched in the stomach and was certain that I was about to pass out.

  I tried to fight it, refusing to close my eyes, but as the blackness closed over my vision, my stomach churned uncomfortably.

  I wondered if it was better to pass out or fight it and throw up. Either way, I figured I would be getting sick, so I instantly decided I didn’t want to be throwing up after I had succumbed to the darkness.

  I swallowed hard and fought for breath.

  Realizing the despair, I was in, Johnathan’s grasp tightened as he tried to keep me from falling over.

  “Carrie!” He yelled, shaking me slightly so that was pulled away from the sense of overbearing fear. When I looked at him, he pressed his other hand on my other shoulder and glared at me. “Carrie, listen to me!” He screamed.

  Eventually, my eyes settled on his and the dizziness started to dissipate, though my unsettled stomach continued to ebb and flow, still threatening to release its contents.

  “Breathe, Carrie…Relax. Come back to me,” Johnathan’s voice was soothing and calm, now that he had stopped yelling. His panic had receded and therefore, I was able to focus on him as he requested, which slowly eased the sickness I felt.

  He continued to speak softly to me, his eyes bearing into mine intently, driving out the crazed look of the guide that plagued me.

  Finally, I was able to draw in a calming breath, then another. Slowly, I started to be able to calm myself.

  “Relax, Carrie…” Johnathan told me once again, before his expression hardened in a far more serious, menacing manner. “Now, listen to me, Carrie, you are going to be okay. I am not going to let anyone hurt you. That asshole is long gone, but if he does come back, I swear to God, I’ll be ready for him. I’ll kill him, before you even know he’s here.”

  “But…What if, what if he comes after me at home? After I leave?” I insisted.

  “He won’t,” Johnathan insisted, his expression piercing. “I don’t want to scare you, but here’s the truth, if he tries to come after you again, he’s going to try to do so before you reach the ranger’s station. He’s either going to attack you here, or while we’re on the trip, so that is when you need to be the most aware of your surroundings. I will be with you the whole time and I know what to look for. I’ll know if he’s coming. Once you make it to the ranger’s station, you can report him, or you can leave it alone. Either way, once you’re there, he’s lost his shot. He’s not going to come after you again, because he isn’t sure if he’s already been made. You know his name, his face, and can direct people back to where he attacked you, which trust me, they will find evidence there…So, he’s at your mercy then. Going after you once you reach that ranger’s station is only adding time to a sentence. If you accuse him of hurting you and then you disappear, guess who their number one suspect is?”

  I contemplated all of this and nodded, “That makes sense.”

  “Also, this is his home turf. He knows this area. He doesn’t know where you live. Even if he finds out your address, he doesn’t know were to hide and where to go if things don’t go his way. Here, he feels comfortable. Where you live, he’s a caged rat. It’d be a suicide mission.”

  Again, I shook my head with understanding, “That makes sense…”

  “So, don’t worry about it.”

  “Why did you go to get my stuff?” I asked, “And don’t tell me that it was a perimeter check…” I grinned weakly, as I finally felt the color start to return to my face.

  “I don’t know,” Johnathan responded, “I was just wandering around and honestly, found myself back at the spot where you were attacked. I did briefly think about trying to find the bastard, which was how I ended up by your campsite, but when I realized he wasn’t there, but the crazy killer bag was, I thought it would be better if I came back…Just in case.”

  “Thanks,” I answered.

  “I don’t know what you’re thanking me for. If he caught up with you here, he could kil
l you and blame my ass. I was protecting myself,” he snickered.

  “Thanks,” I retorted, this time a lot more sarcastically than the first time.

  “Don’t mention it,” he insisted, before turning his attention toward my ankle. “I should probably check that. If it’s not too bad, I want you to walk, okay?”

  I nodded, though for some reason, I was a little apprehensive. Perhaps it was because I hadn’t been on my feet in so long and I didn’t want to fail, or maybe it had more to do with the fact that I was still recovering from the news. I wasn’t sure exactly what it was, but I figured that getting up and walking around was the first step in regaining my life. So, I agreed.

  Carefully, Johnathan removed the splint that he made, freeing my ankle for the first time.

  Once it was released, he pushed my pant-leg up and easily felt around my ankle.

  I grinned at the feel of his touch. I closed my eyes as I noticed that I was reacting in a sensual way to the way he was feeling my leg. His hands were rough, warm, and firm. I felt a fire start to rage in my midsection as my heart started to beat quickly.

  “Oh, admit it, Johnathan...You just want me to stay longer because you like the company,” I teased, trying to gauge whether he felt the same way as I did

  “Does this hurt?” He asked, trying to be objective, though a simper crossed his features.

  “No,” I replied, trying to be serious, though the way he was stroking my leg, massaging it in a manner that caused every bit of feeling I had to come alive, made it hard to be objective.