Brightest Kind of Darkness

by P. T. Michelle

  I coughed once more. “Ugh, not the best way to find out you’ve been holding back on me.”

  Ethan’s brows pushed together. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to kick the ball that hard.”

  I gave a wobbly smile. He had a few freckles on his nose and a chicken pox scar next to his left eyebrow, both things I’d never noticed. “I’ve never caught air like that before, but I’ll live.”

  “Jumping back to soften the blow was pretty smart.”

  I didn’t jump back, I wanted to tell him, but the gentle sweeping brush of his thumb across the hollow of my throat distracted me. Tiny shivers shot through me when I realized his palm was resting on my chest. Holding my breath, I glanced down and saw the dark edge of a tattoo on his arm where his shirt’s sleeve had ridden up slightly. Curved and intricately designed, it looked like some kind of tail that curled all the way around his forearm.

  Lainey’s comment about his scary drawings came back to me, along with that horror image I’d seen in the hall. Secrets swirled in Ethan’s eyes, making me shudder with conflicting emotions of hesitation and curiosity.

  “You’re cold,” he said, gripping my hand. “Can you stand now?”

  “Yeah.” I felt like a complete wuss.

  Pulling me to my feet, Ethan scooped up the ball. “We should pack it in anyway. You’re probably tired from the extra practice time.”

  Adrenaline pumped through my veins, whooshing to the rhythm of my thunderous heartbeat. I could do this all night, so long as Ethan was involved. “Thanks for your help, but yeah, I should get home and start on my homework.”

  As we headed toward the bench, Ethan tossed the ball in the air and caught it. “Want to practice some more tomorrow?”

  “That’d be great if it’s not too much trouble.” A thrill went through me as we stopped at the bench and I kicked off my cleats to slide into my flops. I couldn’t believe how much I’d grown to like his company, but I did. A lot.

  Ethan grabbed my bag’s strap before I could. “It’s a good refresher for me, too,” he said, hoisting my bag onto his shoulder. “Heads up.”

  I caught the soccer ball he tossed my way, and then we headed for the parking lot. When we reached my car, he dropped the bag into my trunk and I tossed his ball back to him. “Thanks for everything.”

  “Anytime,” Ethan said.

  “See you tomorrow,” I called as he walked off toward his car sitting across the parking lot. Why did tomorrow have to be so far away? Climbing into my car, I’d never felt more energized. I wasn’t really sure what was going on between Ethan and me, but I definitely wanted to spend more time with him.

  After a week and a half of mostly silent dreams, the unknown still scared me on some levels—but, not knowing what to expect had a wonderful, exciting flipside—like opening my eyes to Ethan holding me close. I didn’t want to question why he hadn’t starred in my dreams, because experiencing “Ethan-related” events for the first time in person (and not in a déjà vu scenario) was something I could become addicted to.

  I enjoyed my “after-practice” time with Ethan. While we played, he didn’t just shoot on me in goal. Part of the time, we chased one another up and down the field, trying to out-maneuver each other’s ball-handling skills. He dominated a good bit of the time, but there were times I beat him too.

  As Ethan helped me stow my gear in my car, he said, “Would you mind helping me with a project? I need an accomplice.”

  “An accomplice?” I laughed nervously. “Sounds illegal.”

  “I’m fairly certain it is.” He leaned on my car door. “Actually, I’m sure it is, but it’s something I think you’d understand and agree with.”

  Adrenaline shot through me, edged by curiosity. “Hmmm. What’s the project?”

  Ethan rested his chin on his forearm and the brisk wind ruffled his sweaty dark hair. “Rescuing an abused dog.”

  He knew just how to reel me in. “How do I fit into your illegal activity?”

  Excitement filled his eyes and he jerked his head up. “You’ll do it?”

  “You wouldn’t have asked if there was another way.”

  He nodded, his expression hardening. “I heard someone talking about this dog’s sad situation at CVAS. He’s a Shepherd mix, chained on a short leash and the links are digging into his neck, causing sores. Patches of bald skin litter his coat and he’s malnourished. The owner’s a big man, so people are afraid to act. All I need you to do is distract him while I get the dog out of the backyard.”

  “Is the dog friendly?”

  Ethan held my gaze. “Over the past week and a half I’ve driven by and snuck up to the fence, feeding him hamburger, hotdogs and chicken. He barks until he sees me, but he’s not vicious at all.”

  At least there won’t be rabies shots in our future. This probably wasn’t going to go off without a hitch, but now that I knew about the abused dog, I was all in. “How much time do you think you’ll need?”

  “Ten minutes max.”

  Ten minutes would feel like an eternity. “I’ll think of something,” I said with more confidence than I felt.

  “Thanks, Nara. This dog won’t get help without us.”

  His appreciation bolstered my shaky confidence. Plus, this was an excuse to spend time with Ethan outside of school and soccer. “When do you want to do this?”

  He scratched the back of his neck, looking sheepish. “Would you be able to do it tonight?” When I nodded, he continued, “Great. I’ll meet you back here in the parking lot in an hour. Does that work for you?”

  “Yeah, that works.”

  As I pulled in beside Ethan’s car sitting in the school’s empty parking lot, he got out and shut the door. Dressed in dark jeans and a black hoodie jacket, he swept a surprised look over my jeans and Three Wise Monkeys sweatshirt when I stepped out of my car and tugged my backpack over my shoulder. “You changed.”

  I nodded. “I didn’t think it was a good idea to commit my first crime wearing cleats. They’re hard to run in on asphalt.”

  Worry crossed his face. “Are you okay with this, Nara? You don’t have to do it.”

  I gave a reassuring smile. “I’m committed now. Plus, I’m wearing my ‘Don’t I look trustworthy?’ sweatshirt,” I said, pointing to the see-no-evil, hear-no-evil, speak-no-evil monkeys emblazoned across my chest.

  When his frown curved into a small smile, I unzipped my backpack and pulled a thick coupon book out. “Oh, and I brought this to ‘sell’ to the man. My mom bought it from some kid selling them for his school last week.”

  Admiration flickered in his eyes. “That’s perfect.”

  Warmth flooded my face. I was surprised how much I liked his approval. Glancing away, I tucked the book into my backpack. “I’ll drive.”

  “I’d planned to drive.”

  I pointed to his car. “It’s too loud. We need stealth, not startle.”

  Ethan smirked. “Deal, so long as you don’t slam on your breaks when we park.”

  I couldn’t help but chuckle as he opened my car door.

  Once we neared the neighborhood, which, as it turned out, was only a couple miles from CVAS, I glanced at Ethan. “What do you plan to do with the dog?”

  “Get him cleaned up and fed.”

  “Then what?”

  He rubbed the back of his neck. “I can keep him for a few days, but my brother’s not ready for a dog. Not yet, but I’m working on him.”

  I parked my car one street over from the owner’s house and we set off on foot.

  When we turned the corner and I saw the six-foot high chain fence, my insides began to churn. I really wished my dreams hadn’t disappeared. I’d like to know this abduction rescue was going to go as planned. As I chanted a we-won’t-get-caught-and-beaten-to-a-pulp-by-the-mean-owner mantra over and over in my head, it suddenly hit me; even if I’d dreamed about today, I would’ve never seen this part, since none of my interactions with Ethan showed up in my dreams. Tension made my voice scratchy. “I only see the one gate
near the front of the house. Will you be able to get the dog out?”

  Ethan shoved a leash in his jeans pocket, then pointed to a shed next to the fence in the back corner of the yard. “I’ll use hotdogs to get him to climb up the stack of wood to the shed’s roof, then hopefully I can convince him to jump over the fence.”

  My steps slowed. “How are you getting inside?”

  He pointed to the neighbor’s fenceless backyard. It had a huge pile of mulch butted against a matching shed located on the other side of the fence. “I’ll jump from one shed to the other. Count to thirty slowly before you knock, okay?”

  “Be careful,” I whispered as he broke off to skirt around to the back. So many things could go wrong: the dog could refuse to budge, Ethan could break a leg, we could get caught. Taking a deep breath, I chanted the mantra once more as I peeked around the edge of the house to check on Ethan.

  He was trying to climb up the mulch pile, but it kept spreading under his feet. My stomach tensed when he stepped off the mulch, then turned and ran full speed up the incline. Just as the pile seemed to collapse under him, he somehow caught air and vaulted to the roof. I blinked. Did I just imagine that? That leap wasn’t possible. Was it?

  When the dog turned and let out a surprised bark at his rooftop landing, my heart jerked. Grabbing the coupon booklet from my backpack, I bolted to the front door, then jammed my finger on the doorbell.

  My pulse whooshed in my ears as the dog’s bark switched to an “intruder alert” level.

  The door jerked open and a huge man filled the doorway. “What do you want?” he said in a gruff voice. His buzz cut shifted forward as he planted his feet and folded his massive arms over a wide chest.

  Skimming my gaze from his holey-toed socks to his ragged flannel shirt, I gulped to moisten my suddenly dry throat and held up the coupon booklet. “Hi, how’d you like to save three hundred dollars?” I said, then launched in a friendly, upbeat sales pitch.

  Twenty-five pages later, I was in the process of pointing out several great stores and restaurants listed in the booklet, when I saw movement in my peripheral vision. Someone was chasing something near the neighbor’s garage.

  I couldn’t let the man see the movement, so I hurried my wrap-up along. “Well, I guess that’s about it. Sorry you’re not interested. Have a great night.”

  Hiking my backpack up my shoulder, I casually walked away. When the man called after me, “Hey, wait.” I was thankful his sidewalk pointed in the opposite direction I’d seen Ethan.

  After the dog’s owner had closed his front door, tension eased from my neck and shoulders. I waited until I reached the end of the street before I doubled back, squinting for signs of Ethan in the darkness.

  When I rounded the corner and saw Ethan sitting in my car, I exhaled my pent-up breath. But where was the dog? Opening my door, I started to ask what happened, then saw the dog curled into a tight ball on top of the blanket in my backseat.

  “Is he okay?”

  Ethan reached back and patted the dog’s head. “Yeah, he’s tired. Once he tasted freedom, I uh, had to chase him for a bit before he’d let me put the leash on him.” His dark gaze snapped to me as I climbed in. “If you hadn’t shown in the next two seconds, I was coming to get you.”

  “Mission accomplished.” I grinned and waved a twenty-dollar bill. “This should help pay for his food.”

  His lips tilted briefly in amusement. “You actually sold him the booklet?”

  “A worthy cause, combined with self-preservation, apparently made me a powerful salesperson,” I said with a half laugh as I started the car.

  “You’re amazing. Thanks, Nara.”

  Ethan’s softly spoken compliment made me feel special. “Where to now?”

  “CVAS.”

  “Um, it’s closed.”

  “I know where they hide a spare key and the alarm codes.”

  Shaking my head, I said, “All kinds of illegal, huh?”

  He cut a sheepish gaze my way. “Yeah. You still in?”

  I turned down the street that led to the shelter.

  While Ethan bathed the dog, I made a couple of phone calls. One to my mom to let her know I was at Lainey’s and would be home late. The second call was to Aunt Sage.

  According to Ethan, the dog’s collar he’d left behind said the pooch wouldn’t need another rabies shot for two years. It took Ethan and me two hours to clean and dress the wounds the collar had inflicted. The poor dog’s neck was scarred horribly, but with lots of love and attention, I was pretty sure his black/brown coat would return to its full luster and even cover up the damage on his neck.

  As we pulled out of CVAS’s lot in the direction of school, I ached all over from our busy night, but I felt good. “We did it.”

  Ethan looked as tired as I felt. “Yeah, we did.” He patted the dog’s snout that rested on the console between us. “I couldn’t have done this without you.”

  My aunt’s car was parked beside Ethan’s Mustang when I turned into the school parking lot. As I rolled to a stop next to her car, Aunt Sage got out, her bohemian-style dress blowing around her legs underneath her long coat.

  Ethan sat up straight. “Who’s that?”

  “Don’t worry. It’s just my aunt. I hope you’re not upset, but since you could only keep the dog for a few days, I called her and told her his situation. She’s willing to give him a permanent home.”

  Relief flitted across his tense features. “Really? She’s got space for him?”

  I waved to my aunt through the windshield. “Yeah. She lives a half hour away and has other dogs who’ll make great companions.”

  Ethan cupped his hand over the dog’s head. “Did you hear that, boy? You’ve got a home.”

  Grabbing the dog’s leash, Ethan helped our rescuee out of the car and walked him over to my aunt. She rubbed the dog’s ears and gently patted his head. “Hi there, Duke. I see you’ve had a rough time of it. That’s about to change.”

  In response, he instantly sat on his haunches and leaned against my aunt’s thigh.

  “Are you really going to name him Duke?” I said with a laugh of disbelief.

  My aunt pushed her curly red hair away from her eyes, a Cheshire smile lighting her face. “But of course.”

  When she put her hand out to Ethan, saying, “Hi, I’m Sage Collins,” I instantly tensed. Please, please don’t hug him, Aunt Sage.

  Ethan shook her hand. “Ethan Harris, and thank you for taking…Duke.”

  Releasing his hand, my aunt’s smile remained, but her gaze took on a parental edge. “I hope you don’t plan to involve my niece in any more illegal activities.”

  “Aunt Sage!”

  Stern eyes met mine. “No more, Inara.”

  Ethan looked apologetic. “I promise.”

  Clasping Duke’s leash tight, my aunt waved us on. “It’s getting late. Go home, you two. Don’t worry about Duke. I have salve at home. He’ll fit right in with the boys.”

  “Thank you for taking him in, Aunt Sage. Oh, and…” I handed her the twenty. “Here’s some money for food.”

  “Thank you, Inara.” Aunt Sage took the bill and stood there with Duke, staring at us expectantly.

  Ethan and I exchanged “see-you-tomorrow” glances, but so much more was silently communicated. We’d bonded over tonight’s adventure. Our mission had held loads of potential mishaps and danger, yet we’d accomplished it. Together. Smiling, I waved goodbye and climbed into my car.

  The next day, when I didn’t see Ethan at his locker before Homeroom, I was disappointed. I told myself he was probably running late, but when he didn’t show up in Trig and I didn’t see him in the halls, I knew he hadn’t come to school. Maybe last night had totally worn him out. How many times had I hit my own alarm this morning? I thought as I headed out to soccer practice.

  “Hey, Nara.” Lainey ran over the moment I set my bag on the bench.

  “What’s up?” Lainey had been spending all her time with Jared or hanging out w
atching the football team after practice was over.

  Just as I pulled my hair up into a rubber band, Lainey sat down on the bench. “I want to talk to you.”

  She looked so serious, I instantly sat down beside her. “What’s wrong? Is everything okay with you and Jared?”

  Her ponytail bobbed up and down. “We’re fine. I wanted to talk to you about Ethan.”

  I stilled. “What about him?”

  “I had my dad check on him—”

  “Lainey!” My hands balled into fists.

  She put her hand on my arm. “That’s just between you and me. Never repeat that. My dad could get in a lot of trouble for checking on him, but he was trying to help. Just listen, okay?”

  Setting my jaw, I mumbled, “Fine.”

  She blew out a breath, her eyes sympathetic. “He has a juvie record, Nara. The charges were violence and destruction of property.”

  I curled my fingers around the bench’s metal seat. “When were these charges?”

  “When he was fourteen.”

  “Nothing recent then?”

  Her grip tightened on my arm. “You mean other than beating that guy up at his last school?”

  I stared her down. “Did that student file charges?”

  Her hand fell away from my arm. “No, the only thing on Ethan’s record was when he was fourteen.”

  “Like I said, there are two sides to every story. Why didn’t that guy he ‘beat up for no reason’ file charges? If he was totally innocent, he had every right to.”

  “Nara, you’re being so blind. I had my dad check on Ethan because you’re my friend and well, I’m worried for you.”

  “Thanks for worrying, but I’m good.”

  She furrowed her brow. “Are you? You mentioned going through some stuff the other day and then ran off. You never did say…”

  When she trailed off, I let go of the bench and casually brushed away the metal’s indentions from my palms. “No worries. Really.” Jerking my thumb toward the field, I stood. “We’d better head over.”