Shadow Cave (16 page)

“
In the woods, you say?
”
He asked as he came closer still.
“
Are you sure you are alright?
”

“
Yes
,
I
’
m just lost.
Well, and hungry.
Maybe a little tired, too…
.
”
I trailed off, looking away.
I may have been lost and dirty and one step away from dehydration, but I still had my pride, damn it
, and
asking these people for help was proving difficult and embarrassing.
It did not help that the woman was terrified and the man looked at me as though I were a parasite.

“
You have blood on your clothing and your hair
,
”
he
pointed out bluntly
, as
if I were unaware of the crusty mess cover
ing me
.

“
Yes.
Yes I do
,
”
I confirmed.
He seemed to be waiting for an explanation
,
one that I was reluctant to give.
Somehow, I did not think that blurting out
‘
I killed someone
’
was the best way to wrangle a dinner invitation out of these people.
When he continued his silent appraisal, I reluctantly told him what happened.

“
I was attacked.
I had to defend myself.
The man following me is dead.
He will not track me here.
”

He finally nodded his approval and stuck out his hand.

“
I
’
m Bill and my wife is Faith.
Come inside and Faith will help you clean up.
We have plenty of food as well.
You will be safe here for the night.
”

It was all the invitation I needed.
The delicious scent that was coming through the open door by then told me that Faith was one hell of a cook.

The front door opened into the dining room, I could see as I walked into the house.
It was a
good-sized
room, despite the cottage
’
s cozy appearance from the outside.
Faith was busy pouring ice water into glasses
,
but she looked up and gave me a smile when I took a seat at the table.
I picked up my spoon and sniffed lightly at the over full bowl in front of me.
Beef stew.
My mouth watered
,
and I realized how many days had gone by since my last decent meal.

Manners temporarily flew out the window and I finished my bowl in less than ten minutes.
I took my time with the huge slab of garlic bread and sipped at the ice water.
I wanted to gulp the cold drink, but I did not want to be the first person to finish the meal
,
especially not with half an hour to spare.
Pigging out is all well and good when you are among family
, but
I was a guest here, I reminded myself.
I cleared my throat.

“
Thank you.
This is very good
,
”
I smiled at Faith.

“
You are very welcome.
Bill and I are always happy to help a neighbor in need.
”
Faith pushed her chair back and began to clear the table.

“
Here Faith, let me help you with those.
”

“
If you feel up to it
,
”
she
murmured, eyeing my clothing once more.

“
Perfectly.
”

“
Well, then…after we clean the dishes, I
’
m sure you will want to freshen up.
I
’
ll loan you something to sleep in for the night, too.
You will feel much better in the morning, I am sure.
”

We washed dishes in silence.
I was surprised to find the kitchen was very modern.
It was small and almost perfectly square from what I could tell.
Although t
here was no dishwasher in the room, there was a small microwave, a double sink, and ample cabinet space.
I tried to be discreet as I examined the appliances out of the corner of my eye.
N
o tags or emblems
were
on them that I could see
, and I
wondered if they were Kenmore.
Of course, that was impossible, I admitted.
I was pretty sure that the Whirlpool man did not deliver this far.
Apparently someone did, though.
The appliances looked brand new
,
and not unlike the ones in my own kitchen.

“
You have a lovely home, Faith.
”

“
Thank you.
We
—
Bill and I
—
built this place with our own two hands, mostly.
We used to live in Lerna.
”

“
Lerna?
”

“
Sure. It
’
s the next town over.
”
She gave me a strange look before continuing.
“
We both grew up there.
Bill was my high school sweetheart.
”

So high school existed here, I noted
,
and mentally filed the information.

“
We were married the same day that we completed school.
”
Faith smiled warmly and gazed out the wide window over the kitchen sink as she dried her hands.
“
We could have waited, I suppose, but we wanted to have double to celebrate.
Bill was the most handsome boy in school
,
”
she
confided.

I smiled back and dried my hands on the thick
dishtowel
Faith handed me.
“
So when did you move here?
”

“
That was three years ago.
We had been married a year
,
and we finally decided that we had enough money saved.
”
She laughed.
“
We both worked two jobs that year.
We had a little saved from our personal accounts that we had before we got married, too.
We lived with my parents for that first year, though.
Saved every penny we made
a
nd now here we are.
It was always Bill
’
s dream, living out here like this, away from everyone.
”

“
What was your dream?
”

“
My dream was Bill.
”
She grinned.
“
But I love it too, if that
’
s what you
’
re asking.
”

“
That
’
s what I meant.
Do you get to see your family often?
”

Again, she gave me a strange look.
“
Sure we do.
Why wouldn
’
t we?
”

I glanced out the window.
“
Well, being so far out here
—
”

“
Far?
Lerna is just over that ridge.
”

“
It is?
”

“
You
’
re not from here, are you?
”

Boy, wasn
’
t that an understatement.
“
Not exactly
.
”
I said nothing else.
I knew I was being rude
, but
what choice was there?
Faith would never believe me if I told her.
Worse, she might think I was crazy and kick me out in the middle of the night.
No, I kept silent and let her make what she would of my short answer.

She cleared her throat and simply nodded, apparently deciding not to push the issue.

“
Lerna is just over that ridge right there.
”
She pulled me over to the kitchen window again and pointed.
I peered out into the night, following her line of sight.

“
How far is it?
”

“
Not very far at all; you can see the whole town from the top of the ridge.
”

“
Wow.
”

“
It
’
s not very far, like I said.
Come on, I
’
ll show you.
”
She grabbed my hand and eagerly propelled me through the cabin.

“
We
’
re going for a little walk
,
Bill
, just
up to the ridge.
I want to show Claire the town.
”

Bill glanced up from a small
worktable
in the living room and nodded.
“
Be careful out there.
It
’
s dark tonight.
”

“
Of course, Bill
,
”
she
called out just before the door shut behind us.

We walked the ridge in a matter of minutes, with Faith chattering happily about the town as we made our way.
Her life sounded so…normal.
Maybe we were not so different after all.

We stood at the top of the ridge and looked down the steep incline to the sleepy little town below.
It looked like a photograph from a post card.
Lights dotted the landscape here and there
,
and a church steeple stretched high and majestic in the town center.

“
It
’
s beautiful.
”

“
Thank you.
It is, isn
’
t it?
It was a wonderful place to grow up.
It really was.
”

“
What did you do for entertainment?
Is there a movie theater?
What about a museum or a shopping mall?
”
I leaned forward and surveyed the area.

Faith shook her head.
“
Lerna is a bit small for that.
Some of the bigger towns have them, though
—
theaters and shopping centers.
The coastal settlements have even more attractions.
There
’
s a lot to do there.
I
’
ve been to one.
”
She told me with obvious pride.

“
Like Florida?
”

“
Florida?
”

“
Oh, right.
”
I bit my lip thoughtfully.
“
I keep forgetting I am not in Kansas anymore.
”
I murmured.

“
Kansas?
”

“
Forget it; where did you visit?
”

“
Coztal.
Original, I know.
But it
’
s a great place to see.
”

“
Where is it?
”

“
About six hours south of here.
”

“
What about hospitals?
And what
d
o the town
’
s people do for work?
”

“
Uh…yes.
Lerna has a hospital.
They have doctors and nurses too.
People drive to work.
Claire
—
are you ok
ay
?
”

“
I
’
m fine.
Great
,
”
I nodded, all the while reminding myself to shut up.
I had come to this place vowing to get in, get my brother, and get out without drawing attention to myself.
“
I guess we should get back to the cottage.
I really need to clean up.
”