Dark Mountains

by Amanda Meredith

  “What else does this change?” I asked, my military-trained mind already coming up with probably situations.

  “Surprisingly little,” he explained as the machine began to print pictures of our babies. “It’s a common misconception that having multiples means having a high risk pregnancy. Libby’s had no complications so far and her and the babies appear in excellent health. There’s a higher risk for C-section since they don’t have as much space to maneuver to an ideal birthing position but even then, the chances aren’t too high. Multiples tend to come a bit earlier than single pregnancies, but again, the difference isn’t a cause for concern.”

  “We have so much stuff to get ready now.” Libby murmured, squeezing my hand.

  “Yes,” the doctor chuckled. “The hardest part is usually after the babies are born. Working out a feeding schedule, double the diapers, and double the supplies. But it only seems overwhelming. It’s not as scary as it looks.” He chuckled and pulled the wand away. We both sighed as the images of our babies disappeared. “There’s a moms of multiples group that meets every week here in Middlesboro. I suggest both of you going a few times. They’ll have some great tips and experiences to help you get ready.”

  “So everything’s going to be alright?” I whispered, my mind still wrapping around the possibilities.

  “Yes, Cole,” the doctor chuckled in response. “It’s going to be fine.”

  To celebrate the good news, we invited everyone out for dinner the nicest restaurant in Lynch, Rosie’s Chicken and BBQ. My parents, Emma Lou and John Paul were all there and when we told them the news, everyone hollered so loud that I thought we’d get kicked out for being so loud.

  “Weren’t you a twin, John Paul?” Momma asked after we’d finished dinner.

  “Sure was,” he answered. “Bobby Ray lives in Louisville now. Works at the racetrack.”

  “Too bad you didn’t have any kids, John Paul,” Libby added, not noticing that his face had reddened. “You could’ve had twins too!”

  “I think only fraternal twins are carried in the genes and they skip a generation,” I explained. “So one of his kids would have probably had twins.”

  “I must just be a fluke then,” Libby murmured.

  “Then you must be the greatest fluke of all,” John Paul said, raising his glass for a toast.

  “Here here!” Everyone agreed as we raised our drinks in salute.

  “Oh, gosh,” Libby interrupted suddenly. “That means our great-grandchildren could be twins!” All I could do was groan while everyone else laughed.

  Chapter 20

  Two months later, we were married amid the poinsettias and Christmas trees at the very same church we grew up attending. Snow had begun falling a few weeks before and two feet of glittering white covered the mountains.

  My best man, Hank, stood beside me and watched as Emma Lou came down the aisle. She paused a moment at the end when she caught Hank staring but after blushing, went to stand on the other side of me. I grimaced slightly before smiling. If Hank had his eye on Emma Lou then he had no idea what he was getting into.

  All the thoughts running around in my head suddenly went silent as I looked to the back of the church and saw Libby walking towards me. Libby had asked John Paul to walk her down the aisle as our family and friends crowded in the pews around us. Her simple white dress clung to her growing belly and accentuated her beautiful curves. She was blushing as she walked slowly between the pews, her eyes locked on mine.

  She reached the end of the aisle and traded John Paul’s hand for mine. I didn’t think I’d ever let her go. We said our vows and I slipped that tiny silver band on her finger. The preacher pronounced us man and wife and I kissed her while the people cheered behind us. I kissed her with the same sweetness of that first kiss when we were young. Like the hopeful kiss we’d shared before I’d gone off to war. Like the gentle kiss I’d given after we’d made love the first time. It wasn’t a kiss that spoke of passion; there would be time for that later. This kiss promised forever and it was a promise I intended to keep.

  Lynch was a small town so we decided to have the reception at our house. The sprawling floor plan provided adequate room for guests and the outdoor heaters allowed people to mingle on the deck without getting cold. We’d cleared out the living room for dancing and shared our first dance as man and wife in front of the fireplace. My parents joined us midway through the song, then Emma Lou and Hank before everyone was dancing with us. Hank left early with a blushing Emma Lou and he winked at me before closing the door. I knew Emma Lou’s fling with the pizza man was definitely over. I laughed, swinging Libby into another dance.

  “Are you enjoying yourself, Mrs. Andrews?” I whispered as we spun beside the fireplace.

  “I think nearly as much as my husband,” she answered with a grin. “The babies seem to be enjoying the dancing.” She took my hand and placed it on her belly. The flutter beneath my fingers had me gasping.

  “Does it hurt?”

  “No,” she murmured. “At least not yet. They still have plenty of room to move for now.” She smiled, wrapping her arms around me.

  “When did we tell everyone the party was over?” I murmured, leaning down to nuzzle her neck.

  “Two, I think,” she answered with a giggle. “Why?”

  “Because I’d really like to take my wife upstairs.” I whispered the last words and had her giggling again. I swung her into another dance as a new song came on. We had another few hours until everyone left so we might as well enjoy ourselves while we waited.

  I took Libby to the Bahamas for a week. The seventy-five degree weather was a big difference from our snow-covered home but once we felt the white sand between our toes, we forgot all about the Kentucky winter. Libby looked amazing. Her brown hair took on a coppery sheen in the tropical sun and her tan was bringing out the freckles on the bridge of her nose.

  We would sit, watching the sun go down on the ocean and I could almost forget the danger we were still facing at home. As much fun as we were having on our honeymoon, I wanted to be home, in the comfort of the house I’d built for us, the place we’d first kissed, first made love. To the place where it had all started and where I knew, deep down, where it would end.

  ***

  The drive home from the airport usually took over an hour but with another foot of fresh snow being plowed and Libby needing to stop for bathroom breaks every twenty minutes, it took us nearly four hours to get back to Lynch. It was nearly 2 a.m. when I pulled the truck into the garage. Libby was out of the car and running for the bathroom before I had put it in park. Chuckling, I took our bags from the trunk and brought them in.

  The house was warm and clean. We’d asked Emma Lou and Hank to keep an eye on things while we were gone. I suspected they’d probably kept more of an eye on each other but with Jackson still roaming free, I wasn’t taking any chances leaving the house unattended.

  I checked the messages while Libby was in the bathroom. There was one from Hank telling us he’d cranked the furnace up into the seventies since we’d probably be extra cold after our week in the tropics. I snorted when I heard Emma Lou giggling in the background before Hank hung up.

  The next message was from Momma. She wanted us to call in the morning and tell her about the Bahamas. Her and Dad’s twenty-fifth anniversary was coming up and she was trying to talk him into a second honeymoon. Their first honeymoon had been a trip to Louisville to the Kentucky Derby. Momma hadn’t even been out of Kentucky before. She didn’t even known where the Bahamas’ were until I’d told her.

  John Paul also called to remind me that I started in four days and that he hoped I hadn’t gone too soft being lazy in the tropics. He also asked me to tell Libby hello and to make sure she was taking it easy. I smiled and hit the button for the next message.

  “Carol Ann was easy,” the voice whispered on the recording. The hair on the back of my neck stood up as I listened to Jackson’s disturbing voice. “I’m going to kill you slower, boy. You�
��re gonna watch as I gut your whore and tear that bastard child from her belly.” My finger was shaking over the erase button but I restrained myself from hitting it. My training had me overriding the instinct; we needed the evidence. “Then I’m gonna laugh while I watch you all die.” Jackson’s voice changed to hysterical cackling and the tape ran out. The room was eerily quiet. I pushed the eject button as Libby walked out of the bathroom.

  “What was that?” she asked, rubbing her arms. If she’d had to ask, she hadn’t heard enough to need to know anything.

  “Just Hank and Momma,” I answered, wrapping her in my arms and noticing she had goose bumps. “Cold?” I chuckled as she nodded. “We’ll get used to the cold again soon enough,” I told her. “At least I will for sure… I’ll have to go out and shovel in the morning.”

  “Ugh,” Libby moaned in fake sympathy. I chuckled, willing myself to act like nothing was wrong.

  “Tired?” I asked when she yawned.

  “Umhmm,” She mumbled, rubbing her belly. “But not too tired,” she added with a seductive smile. I smiled and allowed my desire to override my fears. I smiled genuinely and bent down to kiss her. When I swung her into my arms, she gasped.

  “Cole! What are you doing?” She was laughing as I carried her down the hall.

  “Why, carrying you over the threshold, my dear wife,” I answered as gallantly as I could. “Well technically you already crossed the threshold since you had to pee so bad,” she giggled again as I marched up the stairs. “But the rest of the house is all on me.” I carried her up the bedroom, kicking my boots off as I went. Libby flipped her shoes off and had managed to add her shirt to the pile on the floor.

  When I lay her down on the bed, we were both half-naked. I felt like I was seeing her body for the first time, though we’d just spent a week making love on the beach. I felt like I was starving for her sweet touch. Throwing our clothes all over the floor, I ravaged her lips as we sank into the pillows.

  I moaned when Libby shifted and positioned herself over me, her chestnut hair falling over her shoulders. She guided me to her and when I slid into her wet warmth, I nearly lost it. Her body hovered, not letting me in any further. She pulled away and slowly, with great torture to me, let me back inside. It wasn’t long before I was begging her to take me fully in and she complied, relishing in the power she had over me.

  Knowing I was near the breaking point, I quickly rolled over her. Seeing her eyes haze over, I picked up the pace, urging her closer. Libby raised her hips, matching my pace stroke for stroke. She cried out as she climaxed, her body clenching around me. I moaned as I followed her, sinking into oblivion. We fell asleep, our bodies tangled beneath the covers as the full moon sank behind the snow-covered mountains.

  Chapter 21

  Late that morning, I slowly climbed my way out of sleep. Libby was still dreaming, curled up beside me. Her belly was pressed into mine and I could feel our babies kicking inside her. As my grogginess wore off, I noticed the room was cold. I glanced over and saw the balcony doors open, the curtains and a few stray snowflakes fluttering in the breeze. I was alert instantly. Had the thermostat not been cranked up, I would’ve noticed sooner. I slowly reached over to the nightstand for my gun while my other hand curled protectively around Libby’s body.

  The house was utterly quiet as I lay still and listened. The only sound was Libby’s steady breathing beside me. There was an unfamiliar, musky sent in the room, like cold earth and damp soil. Moving slowly, I sat up, scanning the room for movement.

  Libby’s shirt, that I had thrown to the floor last night, quivered. Tightening my grip on my gun, I kept my gaze moving. My pants, lying next to the bed, were also moving, as were my boots across the room. Libby’s hand was flopped over the edge of the bed, hanging over a pillow that had fallen off the bed. I reached over to pull her hand up just as the dark head of a snake slithered out from underneath the pillow.

  Libby moaned in her sleep, flipping her arm over mine. Her fingers brushed the cold metal of my gun and her eyes flashed open. She sat up, pulling the blanket over her naked chest. She looked at me and followed my line of sight to the shirt on the floor.

  “What’s going on?” she whispered, her voice shaking with fear.

  “Shh,” I whispered, not moving my eyes off the floor. “There are snakes in here.” Libby gasped, her eyes frantically searched the room. My shirt quivered again and she jumped, scooting closer to me on the bed. Switching the gun to my left hand, I reached over for my cell. I hit the speed dial and brought it to my ear.

  “Hello?”

  “Sheriff, it’s Cole.”

  “Well, I’ll be dammed. Ya’ll back already? Did you have trouble getting in?”

  “John Paul,” I interrupted. “I need you to come over to the house, now. Bring animal control with you.”

  “What’s wrong? Is Libby okay?” His voice instantly went from friend to cop.

  “She’s fine,” I answered, flicking my eyes to Libby as she sat pale and shaking next to me. “Someone was in here while we were sleeping. Came through the balcony doors I think. There are snakes everywhere. At least four around our bed.”

  “Jesus, Mary and Joseph,” John Paul cursed. “Poisonous?”

  “Probably,” I answered. “We can’t get out of bed. No telling if there’s any underneath.”

  “Shit,” John Paul growled. “The roads got snowed shut last night, it’ll take us a while to plow up to you but we’ll get there as soon as we can.”

  “Hey, John Paul?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Be careful coming in, there might be more surprises downstairs.” I hung up the phone and hugged Libby. She’d started crying, shivering against me.

  “Cole, we don’t have any clothes on!” She suddenly gasped. I had to smile. Here we were, our lives in danger, and she was more worried about a cop seeing some skin. It made me want to kiss her but instead I looked around the room for some way to ease her discomfort.

  My cane was propped behind the nightstand, not having been needed for months now. I only kept it in case my leg got stiff. I’d been thinking about getting rid of it for weeks now but for the first time, I was glad I had ever needed it in the first place.

  Grabbing the cane, I crawled to the edge of the bed and using the handle, reached out and pulled the dresser drawer open. A few minutes later and a few cuss words thrown in, I had managed to snag Libby a pair of shorts and a shirt. I switched to the other side of the bed and managed to hook a pair of flannel pants for me. Libby, more at ease, kissed my cane before kissing me full on the lips. We sat back beneath the covers, waiting for the sound of John Paul heading up the driveway.

  “How’d he get in?” Libby whispered after a few minutes. I knew who she was talking about. Those snakes hadn’t just crawled into the house. Someone had broken in, set them loose in the house and there was only one man sick enough to do it.

  “He must’ve jimmied the locks. I don’t know how the hell I didn’t hear it.”

  “Was it locked?” Libby whispered.

  “Yeah. I got up after you fell asleep and double-checked all the doors and windows. I’ve done that every night since…” I paused, moving a strand of hair from her face. “Since your Momma...” She sighed, leaning into me. “He had to have been watching for us. Nobody knew when we were coming home. I just can’t believe I didn’t see it.” I was so angry at myself. As a Marine, I’d been trained to know if I was being watched. I had failed to protect my home, to protect Libby.

  “Cole, we got in so late and we were both exhausted.” She paused as we both heard vehicles coming up the drive. After a few car doors slammed, I heard the front door being busted open.

  “We’re coming in from the front, Cole.” Sheriff Gellars yelled. “We’ll clear the first floor and work our way up to you. Just sit tight.” I groaned and shook my head. I don’t know what else he thought we were going to do. Dance around the room between snakes?

  I could hear the men moving through each r
oom downstairs. Drawers and cabinets, sinks, toilets. Nothing was left unchecked. They had started climbing the stairs when John Paul yelled up to us again.

  “Looks like a copperhead at the top of the stairs,” He yelled. “About four feet long.” I could hear them moving through more rooms upstairs. “Okay, we’ve got at least five snakes in the bathtub and one in the sink.” John Paul’s anxious voice was getting closer to our room. That made seven snakes so far, not counting the ones I could see surrounding our bed.

  “How the hell did he get all these fucking snakes in here?” I growled under my breath. It didn’t make any sense.

  “Okay, we’re coming in your room now.” John Paul was at the door. “How many can you see, Cole?”

  “At least four, surrounding the bed,” I answered.

  The door slowly opened. Randy McClure, the county’s animal control officer, came in first, carrying two snake sticks. John Paul followed, his pistol drawn.

  “Under the jeans, there.” I pointed and Randy used the sticks to move my pants. The hollow rattle was a chilling sound. Randy pinned the head to the floor before it could strike. Mitch, the back-up deputy, came up behind Randy with a burlap sack held by two long poles. Randy deftly picked up the hissing snake and slid it into the bag. Mitch twisted it, preventing the snake from escaping.

  “Do this a lot?” I asked. Randy smiled.

  “All the time. Only in warmer weather and never so many at one time.” He answered.

  “There’s another in my boot over there.” After a few minutes, another Eastern Diamondback was bagged. The cottonmouth under Libby’s shirt didn’t want to cooperate but after nearly slithering free, went into the bag.

  When Randy moved the pillow where Libby’s hand had been, the sound of two rattles had everyone freezing. As the pillow lifted, two angry rattlesnakes ducked and slithered on the floor. But the snake rising up between them made the blood drain from my face.