《Old Growth》


 Ch 1

    The sharp, tinny sound of her ringtone jolted Vee from her sleep with a sharp intake of breath, blindly fumbling to grab the phone from her bedside table to silence it. She fumbled as she tried to pick it free of its charging cord, and swore under her breath as the phone slipped from her fingers and fell into the gap between her bed and the table, still singing its tune. Dragging herself from the bed, she quickly retrieved it just in time for the ringing to stop, the call officially missed. She squinted against the harshness of the screen¡¯s light, reading off the number, or what would have been a number. Instead, it simply said ¡°Unknown Caller¡±.


    Her heart skipped at that, sinking down to rest somewhere next to her stomach. Unknown numbers were never a good sign, she¡¯d come to know. They usually meant Ryan was finding some way around the blocks she¡¯d put in place, either picking up new phones or new numbers from his so-called friends, or worse yet recruiting yet another lawyer to hear his case. She sighed heavily as she sank back to sit on the edge of the bed, resting her head in one hand as she stared down at the screen and her thumb hovered over the call-back button. She jumped when the phone buzzed in her hand, notifying her that a voicemail had been left, and a wave of anxiety-born nausea rose in her throat as she hastily set the phone away, both hands coming to cover her face as she buried her head and groaned in the darkness. She couldn¡¯t deal with another lawyer, not right now.


    The nausea passed and she sat up again slowly, letting out a long, slow breath. It was still dark out, she could glimpse just the faintest blue in the sky through the gaps in her blinds. The time on her phone¡¯s screen said it was almost four in the morning, not yet dawn even for so late in the springtime. What lawyer would be calling so early? That just made her more uneasy; it was certainly Ryan himself, or one of his cronies. She cast a sidelong glance at the phone again, at the voicemail notification hovering on the screen there, and sighed as she reached over and swiped it away, turning the volume off for good measure. She¡¯d check it later. Maybe.


    Vee stood and shook her hair out, scratching her nails across her scalp to loosen the tangles that sleep had made and yawning as she walked over to her closet, finding a clean towel in the pile of washed-but-yet-to-be-folded laundry and wrapping it around her unclothed figure before she set foot out of the room. To the right of her room, Eli¡¯s door was still shut, and there was no sound of stirring; the phone ringing hadn¡¯t woken him at least. To the left, the bathroom waited, and she slipped inside quickly, the door shut quietly in her wake. It was early to shower but she knew there was no way she¡¯d fall back asleep now, at this hour and after that kind of spook.


    The hot water soothed her nerves, and she savored the peace, the catharsis of scrubbing herself clean after thinking about Ryan. It always left her feeling sick and grimy, no matter how fleeting the thought. Like a stain that never came out, or more aptly, a bruise that never faded. The bathroom was choked with steam by the time she was done, but she didn¡¯t crack the window yet, taking her time to dry off and run a brush through her still-damp hair. Through the fog on the mirror she could just barely see herself, her normally soft-brown hair looked almost black when it was wet, making her skin look paler, almost sickly. She frowned slightly, regarding her dark-rimmed eyes, their normally vibrant amber hue dull and washed out from exhaustion. Interrupted sleep was simply an expectation these days, though the reasons varied.


    Most of the time it was dreams that woke her. Though she was never sure why; they weren¡¯t nightmares. Or at least they didn¡¯t feel like it, the details always vanishing the moment her eyes opened, leaving her annoyed and tired and¡­somehow yearning. Like there was something important that was just out of reach. Fantasies about a life where Ryan never got his hooks in her, probably. But then, even that brought little comfort, as without him there would be no Eli, and that was something she¡¯d never trade for anything, even at their worst moments. She squeezed more water from her hair and then ran the brush through it again, the half-muffled sound of a passing siren drawing her eyes to the fogged-up window. The song of the city, such as it was. There were always sirens somewhere in Portland.


    She wrapped the towel around herself again as she cracked the window to let the bathroom air out, before returning to her room. Eli¡¯s door was still closed, but she could hear a snuffling at the foot of the door that made her smirk briefly. Her son might have been able to sleep through everything, but Iron Man was ever-vigilant. And he knew that Vee being up meant breakfast wasn¡¯t far off. Throwing on a plain green shirt and some worn jeans that she knew needed replacing but didn¡¯t yet have enough holes for her to consider it urgent, Vee checked her phone again as she tied her hair up in a thick ponytail. It was almost 4:45, the blue in the sky was just a bit brighter, and she could hear cars starting up in the parking lot as her neighbors prepared to brave the morning traffic in the city. There was another voicemail notification and she pushed it away too. Later. Maybe.


    Iron Man¡¯s broad head slipped around the edge of the door as she quietly opened Eli¡¯s room, his snout bumping her leg as he uttered his usual bulldoggish snuffles. A pitbull mix is what his paperwork at the shelter had said, but she was pretty sure he was more akin to a mastiff mix, with his big square build. She rubbed his brindled face, scrunching his velvety ears as she opened the door enough for the rest of him. Peeking into the room she could see Eli sprawled haphazardly on his bed, heard the steady, quiet puff of air from his breath over the faint chirping and sounds of rustling branches from his sleep machine, always set to deliver soothing woodland sounds. Iron Man snorted at her and she hissed quietly to shush him, closing the door behind her again as she withdrew. The dog lumbered ahead into the kitchen, pausing to stretch while Vee got his leash in order to take him out, his tail wagging in slow, lazy arcs as they left the apartment and made their way for the stairs.


    Living on the second floor wasn¡¯t so bad, even if facing a flight of stairs at the end of a long day was not exactly the most thrilling subject. After the divorce, they had first moved into a ground-level apartment at a different complex, but after someone smashed a window in the night Vee had wasted no time in packing them up to another. It had been lucky that the managers of the previous complex had been gracious of her circumstances, and gave her a break on the lease. The window-breaking had been an unfortunate collateral from some neighbor¡¯s dispute, but Vee couldn¡¯t shake the nightmarish images of Ryan tracking them down and breaking in after it happened. So in the three different places they¡¯d lived since, she had always gotten them a place on the second floor.


    It was just after 5:00 when she returned to the apartment, Iron Man having sufficiently inspected the morning sniff-posts around the complex, and when she opened the door she saw Eli sitting on the couch, slouched over on the pillows while perusing Netflix. ¡°You¡¯re up early.¡± Vee observed as she unhooked Iron Man¡¯s leash, the dog plodding over to flop himself heavily onto the couch alongside the boy, who switched from cuddling the pillow to cuddling the big mutt without missing a beat.


    ¡°So are you.¡± Eli countered, smiling sleepily as she walked over to the back of the couch, leaning down to give him a kiss atop his head, his dark hair tickling her face where it stuck up in all directions. Vee smirked as she walked away to the kitchen, glancing over her shoulder while she opened up the fridge to pull out some eggs for breakfast. Eli had chosen a show, but while most eight-year-old boys might have defaulted to one of the cartoons about superheroes, or Transformers, or whatever other random subjects they made kids¡¯ shows about these days, Eli had always had different, quieter tastes. This morning it was a documentary about wolves in Yellowstone. Yesterday it was an episode from a series about bears. She took out a mixing bowl and focused on cracking the eggs, seasoning them before she started whisking them up. Eli had always had a fascination with animals and nature, something that was hardly unusual for many kids in Oregon but which she felt was particularly profound in him. He¡¯d never known a life outside of the concrete jungle of Portland. And while it was a city better at preserving nature both within and without itself than most, it was still very much a city, and in the neighborhoods and circumstances they¡¯d been relegated to throughout his childhood there hadn¡¯t exactly been many opportunities to indulge his wanderlust.


    Guilt simmered in her chest as she turned on the stovetop, melting some butter in the waiting pan there. Vee didn¡¯t have many memories of her own childhood by this point, but she knew she had grown up outside the city. Nearly an hour away there was a small town where she¡¯d once spent her days running out the door to play among the trees that surrounded them. That had been her childhood once, before her father had remarried and moved them away. Here to the city, where she¡¯d been ever since. She didn¡¯t remember the last time she¡¯d left. She didn¡¯t remember the last time she¡¯d been ABLE to leave.


    A wolf howled on the TV and Iron Man uttered a low woof in response, making Eli giggle. The sound distracted her from the darkening thoughts at the edge of her mind, and she pushed them aside quickly. That unpleasant feeling was coming back, that hollowness in her chest that made her feel like something was missing. It was so hard to think back that far, beyond Ryan, beyond her stepmother. The memories grew fuzzy, like trying to look through static that only got worse the harder she tried to recall them. ¡°Eli, breakfast time.¡± She called as she plated the omelettes, snatching a couple tangerines from the fruit bowl to accompany the simple breakfast. She set the plates on the table, leaving Eli to get himself settled while Iron Man came trotting for his own breakfast, waiting by his bowl as she got out a hefty scoop of kibble¡ªplus a small scrap of egg she¡¯d saved for him, dropping it on top of the crunchy brown pebbles and leaving him to scarf it down eagerly while she rejoined her son.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    ¡°Thanks, Mama.¡± Eli had his head in one hand, elbow set on the table while he used his fork to cut the omelette into small, methodically-spaced pieces. He had a faraway look in his eye, which wasn¡¯t an uncommon thing, but rarely seen so early in the morning.


    ¡°Feeling okay, baby?¡± Vee asked, watching him while she took a bite of her own meal, studying the way his pale blue eyes skimmed over his plate, darting beneath his lashes as he seemed lost in thought.


    He nodded, though his silence made the response distinctly unconvincing. But he glanced up at her soon after, spearing a bit of egg on his fork. ¡°Can we go to the zoo?¡±


    Vee blinked at him, the question not what she¡¯d expected¡ªthough to be fair she hadn¡¯t had many expectations. ¡°The zoo? Mm¡­I¡¯ll have to check my schedule for the weekend, but yeah, I think we can do that.¡± She smiled, but he didn¡¯t mirror the expression, turning his fork over and over in his fingertips as he watched the piece of egg wobble at the end of the tines. ¡°Can we go today?¡± He asked, and there was something curious in his tone. Almost urgent, pleading.


    ¡°...I don¡¯t know about today, baby. You have school, and I¡¯ve got the night shift today, remember? But we can plan for the weekend. It¡¯s already Thursday, so it¡¯s just a couple days away.¡± She smiled again, renewing the expression to try and assuage whatever was gnawing at him as he met her eyes again. He stared at her quietly, and she had the distinct sense he was trying not to show his disappointment before he faintly smiled back and nodded, taking the bite from his fork and lowering his eyes to the plate again. ¡°Okay.¡±


    The uneasy quiet only hung between them for a few moments before it seemed like a switch flipped, and Eli began talking about the day to come, the strange pensive mood broken. Thursdays meant it was pizza day at school, and he would get to have art class, his favorite. He wanted to draw a new picture for his room. Vee listened happily, watching him as he chattered away and peeled his orange, her own sitting uneaten on the edge of her plate. She hadn¡¯t quite the appetite for it after all, it seemed. Iron Man set his heavy head on her lap and she ignored the wet spots that his drooly jowls made on her thigh while she enjoyed her son¡¯s company.


    When breakfast was done she sent Eli off to get dressed while she cleaned up. It was almost 7:00 now, and she inwardly mused on how easy children could fill time with their boundless chatter while she washed the dishes, giving them a quick simple scrub before tucking them into the dishwasher. She still felt a bit strange about that earlier interaction, though. Going to the zoo wasn¡¯t such an odd request, but it was the way he¡¯d said it that just didn¡¯t sit right with her. He had seemed worried, but what would be worrisome about going to the zoo? She was tempted to ask, but at the same time she felt like digging would only serve to unsettle him. Whatever had been making him pensive, he seemed to have shaken off for now. Dredging it up now might trouble him for the whole school day. He had always been sensitive like that.


    By the time 7:30 rolled around they had packed up into the truck, a somewhat weathered but reliable old Tacoma that she¡¯d bought with the last of her savings after their previous car had been totaled after Ryan took it for a ¡°joyride¡±. Iron Man¡¯s heavy head loomed between the front seats as he sat behind them, panting in Vee¡¯s ear while they made their way to Eli¡¯s school. He stared out the window as they drove, humming faintly along to the music that played on the radio, a classic station that Vee favored playing quietly. Vee couldn¡¯t help but glance over at the boy while they drove, watching him as he gazed out the window. ¡°You¡¯re gonna have a good day, yeah?¡± She broke the silence, and he seemed to come out of some kind of reverie, turning his head to look at her with a blank expression that thankfully melted quickly into the smile she knew so well. ¡°Uh huh.¡± He nodded, adjusting his hold on his backpack as they turned into the driveway of the school, pulling in behind the other cars who¡¯d come to drop their kids off. Vee recognized a couple of them, parents and kids alike who she¡¯d met at occasional school events.


    They¡¯d managed to stay at this school for two years, and she hoped they wouldn¡¯t have to uproot to another district again now that Eli was finally settling in and making friends. She leaned over, pushing Iron Man¡¯s slobbery jowls out of the way so she could plant a quick kiss on Eli¡¯s temple while he unbuckled himself and shouldered his backpack. ¡°Love you, kid.¡±


    ¡°Love you, Mama.¡± He giggled, giving Iron Man a hug and receiving a lick that slicked up the whole side of his head before he climbed out of the truck and jogged off to join the other kids on the playground before class started. Vee watched him go, the heaviness in her heart lifted as she watched him join a group of other kids and quickly engage in their game. It had been a hard road to get here. He had been so intensely anxious during his first year of school, first grade had nearly been impossible for him. He was very bright, and caught on to his lessons quickly, but had shied away from the other kids and had been so timid with his teachers that he had to do most of his work in the counselor¡¯s office where he wouldn¡¯t be so stressed. He had been getting better by the end of the year, but then Ryan had found them and taken the car, and they¡¯d been forced to move, which meant a new school.


    Vee realized she was chewing her lip as she pulled back into the apartment complex, the skin already tender and raw, scarred from previous absentminded gnawing. ¡°Ugh, damn it.¡± She muttered as she pulled into her parking space, running her tongue gingerly over the hurt spot. It was a habit she had thought she¡¯d finally kicked, an anxious tic born of stress in the midst of a turbulent marriage and messy divorce.


    Reaching for her seatbelt, she felt the vibration of her phone in her pocket and she felt that surge of nerves again, fumbling to get it out of her pocket and looking at the number on the screen. Unknown.


    ¡°Fuck.¡± She sighed heavily, breath hissing through her teeth. Whoever it was really wasn¡¯t going to let up. But at this point, if it WAS Ryan, there was no way she was getting caught in a phone call with him. No, she¡¯d just wait for another message and then listen to what he had to say, if it was anything coherent at all. It had been months since he¡¯d called her last and he¡¯d been drunk out of his mind, his words so slurred she barely recognized his voice. Not that she¡¯d listened too long, having hung up the moment he started in on the insults.


    She got out of the car, taking up Iron Man¡¯s leash as he hopped out after her. The sky was hazy, caught between hanging onto the clouds that stretched in long uneven swaths across it and clearing up to let the sun shine through. Either way, the air was pleasant by now, not too warm but not chilly. By all rights, a perfect late-spring morning.


    ¡°Mrs. Hanes?¡± A voice behind her made her jump, and she turned quickly, Iron Man giving a low woof that was enough to intimidate most people even when his tail was wagging like it was. She must have looked more startled than she even thought, because the man who stood there lifted his hands placatingly, taking a half-step back. ¡°Sorry. Are you Virginia Hanes?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Vee so seldom heard her full first name these days she almost forgot what it was, blessedly. But far be it for her to be quite so lucky. ¡°It¡¯s just¡­Ms. Hanes, actually.¡± She bit back the urge to give him the more casual moniker she went by, too skeptical of who he was and what he wanted. He was dressed in a nice button-down shirt beneath a plain but well-kept vest bearing a badge, sleeves rolled up over forearms that bore the muscle and scars of a man who did a lot of work with his hands. He was probably around her age, certainly not out of his 30s at least, with a kind-looking clean-shaven face that bore just a bit of stubble at the corners of his mouth where he hadn¡¯t quite gotten his razor in flat enough. Beneath his rusty brown hair which was combed back neatly from his face, his hazel eyes were scanning her just as intently as she figured hers were scanning him, though with much less wariness. ¡°Sorry for startling you. I¡¯m Douglas Atkins, Sheriff of Woodwill.¡±


    A cold jolt ran down her spine at that. Woodwill. She hadn¡¯t even thought of the name that went with the place from her fragmented memories in years. But the shock quickly turned to suspicion, and confusion. What would the sheriff of a town she hadn¡¯t set foot in since she was eight years old want with her? The question must¡¯ve been obvious in her eyes because he reached into the pocket of his vest and produced an envelope. ¡°Does the name Kato Hanes mean anything to you?¡±


    Another jab of ice in her heart, and Vee must have visibly winced because Sheriff Atkins¡¯ face fell, his brow creasing in a worried manner. ¡°Ma¡¯am?¡±


    ¡°Sorry, I¡­¡± She fumbled for a response, a reason for her reaction, but even she couldn¡¯t be sure why. Instead she redirected herself to the biggest question at hand, shaking her head as she focused on him. ¡°Sorry, why are you here?¡±


    ¡°Kato Hanes. Your grandfather, assuming I¡¯ve got everything correct?¡± He lightly slapped the envelope against his free palm, raising his brow as he observed her, no doubt gauging her response. But Vee was a bit more prepared now, and she held steady despite the turbulent emotions boiling in her guts, nodding in reply. ¡°We received a call from his property a couple weeks ago. We found a letter that explained we needed to give you this. Took us a while to track you down, but here we are.¡± He offered her the envelope then, and she felt a terrible conflict rise in her mind. Half of her wanted to grab the envelope, to see what it could possibly contain after so many years. The other half wanted to recoil, to run upstairs and lock the door as if that would make it all go away. She closed her eyes, swallowing hard before she forced her hand out, taking the paper from his hands. ¡°...You received a call?¡± She focused on that, one detail among so much ambiguity that she could grab. ¡°What does that mean?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Ms. Hanes.¡± He shrugged, and she believed he really was sorry as he fixed her with a solemn look, head inclined and brow knitted together just enough to set a crease between them. ¡°I¡¯m afraid your grandfather¡¯s gone.¡±

 Ch2

    ¡°What do you mean, gone?¡±  She¡¯d asked him, the shock of the statement giving way to an indignant anger.  What did that mean?  ¡°Gone¡± was such an ambiguous term, what did he MEAN, ¡°gone¡±?


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, ma¡¯am.  When we responded to the call, the house was empty.  And the letter he left us made it pretty clear he¡¯s not coming back.¡±  He shrugged awkwardly, not willing to meet her eyes as her demeanor turned prickly.  ¡°There was no evidence of foul play.  Nothing out of sorts, save for the situation itself.  Best we can figure, he just¡­walked off into the woods.¡±


    ¡°Best you can figure?¡±  She repeated, an incredulous laugh escaping her.  ¡°You¡¯re not sure?  No one actually KNOWS what happened?  No one¡¯s going to go out there and¡­find him?¡±


    He gave her an odd look, then sighed in a manner that made her suspect he¡¯d gotten used to explaining this sort of thing to city folk a lot over the years.  ¡°Ms. Hanes¡­I don¡¯t think you understand the nature of the woods out there.  The Woodwill region, and especially Mount Elden, are off-limits to hikers for a reason.  People go missing in those woods, it¡¯s an act of God if they come back.  And that¡¯s no joke.¡±


    Mount Elden.  That word stirred something in the back of her mind.  She could almost see it, a dark shape towering among the other pine-crusted peaks throughout the region.  She remembered a feeling more than the sight though, a strange ominous sense that the mountain itself was watching her when she laid eyes on it.  It was an intensely uncomfortable memory to dwell on, that strange staticky feeling burning behind her eyes again.


    More uncomfortable though was the thought of her grandfather himself.  Kato Hanes.  She hadn¡¯t thought about him in years; part of her had thought he had died long ago.  Or perhaps Debbie had told her that.  It didn¡¯t matter now.  All these years though, and he¡¯d remembered her.  Enough that when he decided to¡­whatever it was he¡¯d done, he¡¯d left a note for her.  Her, specifically.  An estranged granddaughter who barely remembered he existed at all, by this point.  There was a guilt in that, one that she didn¡¯t know how to reckon with.  It just burned in her heart, like a ball of molten lead that hung heavily in her ribcage.


    So here she was, an ungrateful granddaughter staring at the last remnant of the grandfather she¡¯d forsaken, even though the rational part of her brain reminded her that she was only a child when they left Woodwill.  She had no control over it, or the things that followed.  She glanced at the clock on the stove.  It wasn¡¯t even 10:00 yet and the day felt like it was nearly over, or that it should have been from the amount of bullshit she was already facing.  ¡°Ugh.¡±  She sighed, leaning back in her seat and rubbing her hands over her face before she lowered her head again to stare blearily at that damn envelope that lay so peacefully just in front of her.


    Vee set her elbows upon the table and clasped her hands together, knuckles pressed to her mouth as she stared.  It was like she expected it to come alive and bite her if she reached for it, or perhaps it might burst into flame if she looked away.  She hadn¡¯t been able to bring herself to open it yet, in either case, but neither could she walk away.  Iron Man huffed, still laying patiently at her feet.  She appreciated the moral support, if nothing else.  ¡°Fuck it, just open the thing, you big baby.¡±  She muttered to herself, flattening her hands on the tabletop and growling through her teeth as she steeled herself, before reaching out and snatching the envelope up, ripping it open as neatly as she could while still being quick enough not to lose her nerve.


    Vee.


    She dropped the letter again, a sudden surge of grief rearing within her and making her choke back a sob.  Hugging her arms around herself, she bowed her head and tried to collect herself, breathing harshly. A memory had come to her unbidden, rising as if from the grave.  She was suddenly eight years old again, standing between a pair of yelling adults.  Her father one of them, his expression a mask of fear and anger, neither of which she understood the reasons for.  Her stepmother on her other side, clutching her hand tight enough it made her squirm, but Debbie¡¯s eyes were cold, never looking away from the old man in front of them.


    The old man.  Kato.  Her grandfather.  His face wasn¡¯t clear, a void in the fragmented memory that made her heart ache.  But she could feel the pain in his blurry expression, heard the confusion in his voice even if his words were garbled.  What WAS it they had been saying?  She shook her head stubbornly, exhaling a forceful breath as she picked up the letter again.  She could fret about the unclear past later¡ªthere was a very real and present piece of the puzzle right in front of her.  She knew she was chewing her lip again as she raised the paper to read, but she didn¡¯t care to stop it.


    Vee.


    I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ll ever see this.  And if you do, I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ll even remember who I am, or what you think of me.  You may very well think me some kind of monster.  But I hope not.


    As you will have learned, I am gone by the time you read this.  I leave all that I have to you.  My home, my possessions, my land.  And, regrettably, my duty.  I am sorry that this is how it must be.  That I cannot walk you through the days to come.  But the woods are your home too, and I know you will find your way.


    The mountain calls me.  I know it calls you too, though I am sure you have been made to forget.  I¡¯m sure this letter may feel like the ramblings of a mad old man, but if you can trust me one last time, I promise it will all be clearer soon.


    Goodbye, my little warrior.  Take care of them.  And yourself.  All my love to you and yours.  I am so very sorry I didn¡¯t get to see the woman you¡¯d grow up to be.


    Kato.


    Vee pushed the letter away again and let out a long, aggravated breath as she slumped against the table, pressing her forehead to the cold surface.  Iron Man snuffled at her leg curiously and she lowered a hand to brush her fingertips over his smooth brow, tilting her face so her cheek could press against the table.  ¡°You¡¯ve got to be fucking kidding me.¡±  She mumbled to herself, eyes closed tight as she fought to make sense of things.  The cynical, jaded part of her that had grown world-weary and suspicious of everything raged at the letter¡¯s contents.  Mad old man indeed.  No wonder her father had sought to distance himself, to distance her from that life.


    But as soon as those bitter thoughts came to light she recoiled from them, shaking her head and pressing her forehead into the table again with a groan.  No.  It didn¡¯t feel right.  That wasn¡¯t it.  She remembered a kind, wise voice.  Strong hands that lifted her up easily to show her tiny flowers growing in the crook of a tree.  She could see herself looking down at her own feet, stretching to match his strides as she followed his footprints along a winding game trail, the dense forest just a wall of green and brown swirled together in her minds¡¯ eye, all the detail lost to the years.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    What had he said, though?  He left her¡­everything?  She grabbed the paper again and pulled it close, staring at the words numbly.  She could almost remember his house.  Not the outside, though.  Just bits and pieces, snapshots from memories in the various rooms.  Her lip stung as she chewed it, her brow furrowing as she grabbed her phone and began running an assortment of searches.  Woodwill was over an hour away, well beyond the city.  A tiny hamlet of a town that barely even registered on the map, nestled in the middle of mountainous forest land.  Where Tillamook and Clatskanie regions met, and the nearest grocery store was at least thirty minutes¡¯ drive down a windy road she wasn¡¯t even sure was fully paved.  The town didn¡¯t even have a school of its own.  A population of barely 500, but the satellite images didn¡¯t line up with that, so she wondered how much of the regions¡¯ random rural properties were counted in that census.


    What was she supposed to do with a property out there?  It was entirely unreasonable for her to even think about packing up her life, breaking yet another lease and going off to live in a cabin she hadn¡¯t seen since childhood.  And what about Eli?  He needed his routine, he needed the stability the city provided.  She couldn¡¯t uproot him again, and in an even more dramatic way.


    ¡°This is insane.  Am I dreaming?¡±  She sat up finally, looking down at Iron Man as the dog set his chin on her knee, huffing.  She rubbed his thick snout, sighing as she let her head fall back, her eyes fixing upon the ceiling.  There was a stray thread of dust swaying up beside the light fixture and she followed its motion silently for a few long moments.  Even Iron Man stayed still, his eyes focused up on her while his head rested on her lap.  If she¡¯d had an analog clock lying around, the only noise beyond the muffled street noises outside would¡¯ve been the tick-tick-tick of the seconds going by.


    Her phone abruptly vibrated in her grip and she jumped.  ¡°God damn, what is up with today?¡±  She let out an exasperated sigh as she looked at the screen.  It was the school calling, and she felt a twinge of anxiety.  Was Eli hurt?  Had he gotten sick?  She hastily accepted the call, bringing the phone to her ear.  ¡°Hello, this is Vee Hanes.¡±


    ¡°Hello, Ms. Hanes, sorry to bother you.  There¡¯s just been an incident, I¡¯m afraid.  Eli got into a bit of a scuffle with another student, and we need you to come down here as soon as you can.¡±


    ¡°Is he hurt?¡±  She asked, pushing Iron Man¡¯s head off her knee as she got up from the table, already pacing back to the counter where she¡¯d dropped her purse and her keys.


    ¡°He¡¯s alright, just some minor scrapes, but Mr. Meyster needs to speak with you.¡±


    ¡°Right, of course.  I¡¯m on my way.¡±  She ended the call, not caring whether the abruptness might come across as rude, giving Iron Man one more pat before she slipped out the door and locked it behind her.  As she drove out of the parking lot, trying hard not to let her nerves weigh down her foot upon the gas pedal, Vee grumbled to herself.  It wasn¡¯t even noon.  How much more weirdness could fit into a day?  Eli getting into a fight, of all things¡­that was very out of the ordinary.  Even if he wasn¡¯t as painfully shy as he¡¯d once been, he was still far too timid to ever think of being so confrontational.  A flash of anger crossed her mind as she wondered whether it was really a scuffle at all, and not just Eli being picked on by some kid who had a problem with a sweet, sensitive soul like his.


    Soon enough she was sitting in the principal¡¯s office, waiting.  Mr. Meyster¡¯s name usually made her snicker a bit inwardly whenever she thought about it.  But not today, not while she waited, lip chewed to hell and back and her knee bouncing restlessly.  Finally the door opened, the principal moving to take a seat at his desk while Eli, bleary-eyed and sniffling, followed him.  The moment he saw Vee his face crumpled, and she reached out to catch him as he rushed to her, burying his face against her shoulder.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Mama.¡±  He hiccuped, his voice muffled against her shirt.  Vee shushed him gently, stroking a hand over the back of his head as she shifted, letting him lean into her while she looked toward Mr. Meyster, frowning.  ¡°What happened, exactly?¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s to my understanding that he and the other boy were out on the playground for recess when things got heated.  Both of them insist the other one started it.  But I¡¯m afraid¡ª¡±  Meyster¡¯s words were cut off as Eli lifted his head, scrubbing the tears from his eyes.  ¡°He was hurting a frog.  He had a stick and he just kept poking it, even when I told him to stop!  Then he¡­he¡­¡±  The boy stuttered, his chest heaving as he struggled to stop himself from breaking down again.


    Vee¡¯s brow furrowed and she nodded reassuringly as his meaning became clearer, pulling Eli into her arms again as she looked to the principal, who shifted uncomfortably in his seat.  ¡°I know violence is never good on school grounds, but my son isn¡¯t violent, sir¡­his record should speak for itself.¡±


    ¡°Yes, well¡­unfortunately, as I was about to say, we have a strict zero-tolerance policy on violence here.  So I¡¯m afraid Eli is going to have to face a five-day suspension, and we¡¯ll have to file a referral.¡±


    ¡°A suspension?¡±  Vee couldn¡¯t help the octave that spiked in her tone, but she quickly bit back the temper that flared.  ¡°Mr. Meyster,¡± the name was so hard to say with a straight face normally, but she was too mad to appreciate the humor now, ¡°I understand your policy, I do, but obviously he wasn¡¯t just picking a fight for no reason.  Five days seems¡­harsh.¡±


    ¡°I understand your concern, Ms. Hanes, but rules are rules.  If you are in need of additional support for childcare, we have resources we can¡ª¡±


    ¡°What does that have to do with anything?¡±  Vee cut him off curtly, her eyes narrowed.  ¡°We¡¯re talking about suspension, not childcare.¡±


    ¡°Y-yes.¡±  Mr. Meyster faltered briefly, before clearing his throat again.  ¡°Yes, of course¡­I just mean that considering your¡­situation¡­if you are in need we have low-cost resources ready for¡ª¡±


    ¡°Nevermind.¡±  Vee shook her head, getting to her feet and hauling Eli up along with her, letting him keep his arms wrapped around her neck while she hooked an arm under him.  ¡°Five days, is it?  Does that roll over into next week, then?¡±


    Mr. Meyster¡¯s mouth flapped noiselessly for a moment, before he nodded.  ¡°Y-yes, ma¡¯am.  Starting from tomorrow, which is Friday the 18th, he¡¯ll be on suspension until the following Thursday.  The, uh..the 24th.¡±  His eyes darted briefly to his computer monitor to verify the numbers, but Vee was already nodding, her own eyes fixed on the door as she turned toward it.  ¡°The 24th.  Got it.  Have a good day.¡±  She didn¡¯t wait for his response, her free hand pushing the door open as she strode out, Eli rubbing his eyes as he remained hugged against her.  Neither of them said anything as they made their way out to the car, Eli getting into his seat silently and buckling in, eyes downcast all the while as Vee got behind the wheel and started them back up the road toward the apartments.


    It wasn¡¯t until the complex came into view around the block that Eli finally spoke.  ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Mom.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, baby.  You just wanted to do the right thing.  I¡¯m not mad.¡±  She sighed, navigating the cracked asphalt lot to get back to their spot.  ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.  We¡¯ll work it out.¡±  She flashed him a smile, hoping to alleviate his worry.  She would be lying to herself if she claimed she wasn¡¯t a bit worried herself, but there was no good in holding it over the child¡¯s head.  She trusted him, and she wasn¡¯t about to punish him for what must have been a terrifying confrontation to make, even if he felt strongly about it.  She glanced sidelong at him, watching as he rubbed the last of his tears away.  There was a discoloration on his cheek that she could tell was forming a bruise, and it made her feel sick.  After she¡¯d fought so hard to keep Ryan from ever leaving another bruise on him, it turned out she couldn¡¯t stop some random kid at school from doing it.


    After a moment¡¯s deliberation, she made up her mind.  She turned the other way as they came to the last intersection before their complex, and Eli perked up curiously as he realized they were going the other way.  ¡°We¡¯re not going home?¡±  He questioned, wide blue eyes blinking over at her quizzically.


    Vee shook her head, smiling again as she solidified the plan in her mind. ¡°Nah.  Not yet.  It¡¯s still early, and I think we both need a break.  So¡­how about the zoo?¡±

 Ch3

    Thursday came and went without much further fanfare, thankfully.  The zoo trip was a much-needed break, Vee realized as they walked along between the various habitats.  It had been the middle of the day, so there hadn¡¯t been much of a crowd to rush them along, and so she had savored the moments with Eli as they stopped at each animal¡¯s section, competing to see who¡¯d be first to spot the more elusive specimens and swapping assorted facts. Dinner had been a casual affair, a rare indulgence in a McDonald¡¯s run that they¡¯d enjoyed in the bed of the pickup before heading home with just enough time to spare for Vee to get ready for her night shift.  She¡¯d been quick to snatch up the paper from the table when they got home though, not wanting Eli to get ahold of it. She wasn¡¯t ready to have that conversation, to answer those questions.  She had enough of her own right now to deal with.


    When she got home just shy of 3:00am, she let herself into the apartment quietly, shushing Iron Man before he could woof an alert.  The dog came lumbering from his spot on the couch, and she crouched to ruffle his ears fondly.  ¡°What a good guard.¡±  She whispered, tiredly kissing his wrinkled forehead before pacing down the hall to her own room.  First she stopped to check on Eli, letting Iron Man into his room while she peered in at the sleeping child.  He was curled up on his side right where she¡¯d left him, a rarity as he was usually so active in his sleep.  His brow was creased slightly, an almost worried look on his sleeping face, but as Iron Man slumped down beside the bed Eli seemed to relax as if he could sense the dog¡¯s presence.


    Vee closed the door quietly, then headed into her own room.  There on the bed, the letter where she¡¯d left it.  She watched it from the corner of her eye like it was a poisonous snake curled and waiting while she undressed, swapping out her store uniform for an oversized shirt that hung comfortably around her shoulders.  Then she sat, pulling herself up to rest cross-legged on the mattress while she picked up the paper and scanned it again.  The words had been burning in the back of her mind all day and all night, stuffed down stubbornly so she could keep her focus on her son and her job.  Now though, with the buffer of several hours¡¯ distraction to give her time to process, she let herself read them again.  And again.


    She had already resigned herself to the fact that she couldn¡¯t ignore this forever.  Even if she felt utterly incapable of handling more bullshit on her plate, there was no avoiding this.  And first things first, she needed to see it.  She told herself it was because she needed to see it before deciding to sell it.  She couldn¡¯t consider taking her grandfather up on his offer; it simply wasn¡¯t practical.  She had a job, Eli had school, they had a life that couldn¡¯t just be uprooted and dropped down in the middle of the woods.  And yet¡­


    ¡°Ugh.¡±  She sighed, folding the letter and putting it aside on her bedside table, flopping back against the bed and shimmying her way under the blanket.  She had the day off, and then Saturday as well.  Plenty of time, especially with Eli out of school.  Vee took a deep breath, closing her eyes as she turned off the lamp.


    Sleep came easily, her exhaustion overriding the lingering anxiety of the day.  But her dreams were fretful.  Full of blurry faces and distorted voices.  Places that felt familiar, and yet looked alien in her dreamscape.  She found herself standing naked in the middle of a forest, endless and dark and vibrant, creeping ivy coiling around the moss-crusted trunks of the trees around her as she watched.  The lichen hanging from the heavy branches of the mighty pines and firs swaying in a breeze that she couldn¡¯t feel, but she could smell the earth in the air.  A heady mixture of petrichor, dirt, greenery, and something else.  A strong, earthen smell that nagged at something in the back of her mind.  She looked down at her feet, at the pair of massive wolf¡¯s prints in the soft earth beneath her, and felt a chill run up her spine as a distant sound bellowed through the trees, a primal call.  The mountain calls me.


    Her grandfather¡¯s words rang in a voice that belonged both to him and to herself as she jolted awake, catching her breath.  Light gleamed around the edges of the blinds in her window, and she rolled over to grab her phone, checking the time.  Nearly 7:00.  A few hours¡¯ sleep wasn¡¯t bad, at least.


    Heading into the shower, she heard Eli¡¯s cartoons playing in the living room.  By the time she got out and dressed though, the TV had been turned off and Eli was laying on the floor, idly scribbling in one of the many sketchbooks he¡¯d accrued over the last couple years since taking an interest in drawing.  Vee always found his work fascinating; it was unpolished and crude, as any child¡¯s work might be, but as she paced over to look at the page while still wringing her hair out into a towel, she couldn¡¯t help but admire the distinct artistry to his doodling.  He didn¡¯t draw figures like other kids his age usually did.  Instead, he had a knack for scribing patterns and knotwork-like designs that curled and twisted in on themselves.  She¡¯d asked him before what he was drawing, if there was any purpose to the designs, and he only ever shrugged.  ¡°I just like the patterns.¡±


    Fair enough, she thought, smiling at him as he peered up at her from his work, a shy smile pulling at his lips before he went back to focusing.  Iron Man was upside down on the couch, snoring away while Vee took a seat next to him, exhaling softly.


    Then the phone rang, and she groaned inwardly as she hastily tied the towel up around her still-damp hair, grabbing the device from her pocket.  It was the Sheriff Atkins¡¯ number, no longer unknown since they¡¯d cleared up that little confusion.  She frowned, her thumb hovering over the reject button¡­but she thought about her decision from late in the night, and sighed irritably before she answered the call.  ¡°Vee Hanes.¡±


    ¡°Ms. Hanes, it¡¯s Sheriff Atkins.¡±  He sounded different over the phone, his voice made gruff by the audio filtering.  ¡°Sorry to call so early.¡±


    ¡°Not as early as last time.¡±  She pointed out, smirking to herself, and she heard him chuckle.  ¡°No, I suppose not.  But all the same.  I know we didn¡¯t have much time to talk details, yesterday, but I was hoping you¡¯d taken a look at that letter by now.¡±


    ¡°I did.¡±  She leaned back, toying with a stray bit of hair that had escaped the hold of the towel.  ¡°I was actually just thinking about calling you to ask¡­can I come out there and talk about it in person?  I¡¯d like to see the property.¡±


    ¡°Oh, of course.  Uh¡­I know you¡¯re a fair distance out, but my schedule¡¯s clear today.  Barring any emergency, of course, but those hardly happen around here, woods willing.¡±  He chuckled and Vee couldn¡¯t help but echo the sound, even if she thought the statement was a bit odd.  ¡°Today¡­yeah, I can do that.  Um¡­I¡¯ll have my son with me.  And my dog.  Is that alright?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡ªsure.¡±  She heard a note of surprise in his voice, and bit back the cynical impulse to assume he was judging her already, a single mother clearly in some chaos given her bristly interaction with him the previous day.  But to his credit, he recovered quickly and sounded sincere enough to almost be believed as he followed up with, ¡°That¡¯d be great, sure.  No problem at all.  When do you think you¡¯ll get out here?¡±


    ¡°I can be there around nine.  Just have to get ready.¡±  She glanced over her shoulder at the time on the stove clock, ensuring there was still time.  ¡°Does that work?¡±


    ¡°Works for me.  Just come right to the Sheriff¡¯s office, I¡¯ll be here.  Then we can go up to the house.¡±


    ¡°See you then.¡±  Vee listened for his acknowledgment, then ended the call.  She looked up and took note of Eli¡¯s curious gaze on her, the boy tilting his head as she met his eyes.  ¡°Who was that, Mama?  Are we going somewhere?¡±


    ¡°A¡­new friend.¡±  She sighed, then nodded.  ¡°Yeah, we gotta run an errand today.  A special one.  We¡¯re gonna take a little trip out of the city.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±  He sat up sharply at that, and his excitement was so palpable Vee felt a twinge of guilt for the fact they¡¯d never really done this before.  Certainly not to the extent they were about to.  But she smiled and nodded again, trying to remain as nonchalant as possible despite her innards tying themselves in knots.  ¡°Yeah.  We¡¯re gonna go see the place I used to live, when I was real little.  Younger than you.¡±  She chuckled at his awestruck expression, getting up and unwinding the towel from her head and shaking her hair out.  ¡°Go get dressed, kiddo.  We¡¯re gonna leave in about twenty minutes, okay?  I¡¯ve gotta go make another call.¡±


    He scrambled to his feet without further argument, Iron Man huffing as he rolled over to trot after him into the boy¡¯s room while Vee headed for her own.  It was only a half-truth.  She didn¡¯t need to make a call, but she did need to send a text.  Sitting on the edge of her bed, she listened to the muffled thump of Eli¡¯s drawers and his muted speech as he babbled excitedly to the dog while getting dressed, slowly typing out a message, doubling back and rewording it as she went to try and keep things as simple and casual as possible, while also informative.  She didn¡¯t expect that Tess would have a problem with her going out of town for the day, but she also knew Tess was fighting a near-constant battle on her behalf against Ryan¡¯s legal team as they fought for any inkling that could buy them Vee¡¯s whereabouts, or get Ryan some form of custody of his son.  If Vee was going anywhere, Tess needed to know.  Just in case.


    Soon enough the three of them were piling into the truck, Iron Man planting himself in the backseat space between them while Eli nestled into the passenger seat, his sketchbook tucked under his arm and his skinny frame nearly vibrating out of his seat with excitement.  He was firing off questions at a rapid pace, and Vee laughed as she found herself hardly able to keep up while they pulled out of the complex and made their way to the highway.  ¡°I haven¡¯t been there since I was little, baby.  I moved away when I was about your age.¡±Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    ¡°What was it like?  Why did you move away?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t really remember.  It¡¯s¡­a small town, though.  Real small, nothing like the city here.  It¡¯s way out in the hills.¡±  She gestured vaguely, and glanced over as Eli¡¯s eyes widened, drifting to look at the distant shapes of the tree-covered hills just visible in snippets past the structures and high slopes that formed Portland¡¯s landscape.  ¡°As for why I moved¡­¡±  She trailed off at that, her brow furrowing slightly.  There had been a reason.  Not one she recalled well enough to repeat now, but which she knew had been important, or had been seen as important, at least.  ¡°...My dad just decided it was time to move.¡±  She finally said.  It wasn¡¯t untrue, even if she wasn¡¯t sure of the motivations.  She decided against mentioning Kato just yet.  She didn¡¯t remember enough of him to give an adequate description anyway, and it felt¡­wrong, somehow.  Like trying to explain who he was made no sense in the truck here, still surrounded by the mostly-concrete jungle.


    Eli spent some of the car ride doodling in his sketchbook, continuing his designs from earlier.  But it was a long car ride, and inevitably he drifted off, lulled to a peaceful snooze by the steady rumble of the truck, his head tilting over against the door.  Vee heard Iron Man snuffling, and knew he was dozing in the back as well.  But she kept her eyes forward, her hands set stiffly in position on the steering wheel.  She hadn¡¯t driven outside the city in years, and it felt strange to do so.  Stranger still as they headed onto less-populous roads, the highway that stretched out west from the city not quite as trafficked as the interstate exchanges.  She had mounted her phone on the dashboard in order to use the GPS, but despite all the years behind her, despite the fact the last time she¡¯d set foot in Woodwill was years before she was of driving age anyway, it felt as if something was guiding her.


    Even before the name ¡°Woodwill¡± showed up on a road sign, faded and battered despite all the other signs in the area being shiny and relatively new-looking, she knew which exit she needed to take.  As the roads turned narrower and unmarked, winding more and more through less and less populated woodland, she felt a quickening in her heart.  Out here the landscape was beautiful.  The forests so verdant and lush, especially in mid-May, before summer truly began.  She had to tighten her grip on the wheel to keep herself focused, watching the road when all she wanted to do was gawk at the surrounding woods.  That staticky hum was back in the back of her mind, a fluttering sensation that made her briefly wonder if she was going to have a heart attack.


    The road eventually turned to gravel, but a hand-carved sign that pointed onward to Woodwill assured her that she was still going the right way, and that the GPS¡¯ failing signal hadn¡¯t completely let her down yet.  Trundling along the rougher road woke up Eli though, and the boy mumbled faintly as he stirred, rubbing his face before he realized what was around them.  ¡°Mom?¡±  He questioned, his eyes widening as he took in the sight.  ¡°How far away are we?¡±


    ¡°Just a few more minutes.¡±  She answered steadily, the crunching of gravel under the tires vibrating through the chassis and into her hands as she squeezed the wheel.  ¡°It¡¯s pretty out here, huh?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­¡±  He trailed off, clearly wracking his mind for a word to convey his feelings, before he grinned.  ¡°It¡¯s incredible.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it is.¡±  She mused in response, her eyes darting as they came around a bend in the gravel road.  She could¡¯ve sworn there was something there beyond the trees just off the side of the road.  There were elk out here, she was pretty sure.  Bears and mountain lions too.  What a shock it¡¯d be to see one now, of all times.  But whatever it was, if it had been anything at all, it was gone by the time her eyes followed the shape to her peripherals.


    Finally the town itself came into view.  It wasn¡¯t completely rustic; a water-treatment facility was the first thing off to the left of them as they drove in, the roads returning to a paved, if potholed-and-cracked, condition.  It was certainly quaint, though.  A small general store boasting ¡°grocery, pharmacy, hardware, and more!¡±.  A small town hall that was also apparently the town museum and library.  A couple small shops, clearly family-run local affairs.  A coffee shop that also stated their dinner and bar hours.  A gas station with a single pair of pumps; she was honestly impressed by that one.  Gas was hard to come by out here.  Even where things were cleared for the little main street shops and the small neighborhoods that flanked the town, the forest was almost oppressive out here.  The trees positively dwarfed the structures; there were hardly any buildings that were more than one story high.  And the neighborhoods were clearly old, moss and ivy having made themselves home on the shingles and eaves of the houses.  Fences that seemed to be somewhat absorbed into the greenery, feeble efforts to keep the forest out of their backyards.  As they pulled up to the police station, which also apparently doubled as the firehouse, a single engine visible in the open garage bay, Vee swallowed the ball of nerves that had slowly climbed its way into her throat.


    ¡°Mom!¡±  Eli¡¯s voice suddenly broke through her haze of anxiety and she realized he must have been talking the whole time, though none of it had registered.  ¡°Are you listening?¡±  He stared at her quizzically, and she huffed as she rubbed the heel of her palm into her brow.


    ¡°Sorry, baby, I was¡­focusing on getting here.  What is it?¡±


    ¡°This is the place you grew up?¡±  He gestured out the window, and Vee nodded, looking around.  The more she stared, the more familiar things started to become.  The place hadn¡¯t changed much in the last twenty-ish years.  If it had changed at all.  ¡°Yeah.¡±  She nodded vaguely, undoing her buckle and turning to ensure Iron Man¡¯s leash was clipped on.


    ¡°Why would you ever want to leave?  This place looks amazing!¡±  Eli crowed as he unbuckled, following her example.  As she climbed out on her side, Iron Man hopping out after her, Eli practically leaped from his open door, scampering around to join her while his head seemed to be on a perpetual swivel, taking in the immense scale of the woods around the tiny town.


    By the time they had collected themselves, Sheriff Atins was pacing across the lot toward them, smiling warmly, though he slowed a bit as they turned to face him.  ¡°Ms. Hanes, good to see you.  He friendly?¡±  He gestured at Iron Man, who was wagging his tail placidly as he watched the man approach, but even in a relaxed state his size was intimidating to most folks.


    ¡°Very.¡±  Vee nodded, and Atkins approached more comfortably, greeting Iron Man with a friendly rub along his cheek, the dog slobbering on his hand in thanks.  ¡°Sheriff Atkins, this is my son Eli.¡±  She nodded to the boy, whose excitement had quelled a bit in the presence of a stranger, and he hovered close at her side, peering up at the Sheriff warily, but curiously.


    ¡°Hello there, Eli.  Is this your dog?¡±  Atkins smiled, nodding to the canine.


    Eli nodded shyly, managing a faint smile in return.  ¡°His name¡¯s Iron Man.¡±


    ¡°Oh, Iron Man?  That¡¯s one of my favorites.¡±  Atkins laughed, patting the dog¡¯s head before he looked back at Vee.  ¡°Hope it wasn¡¯t a bad drive out here.  I know the road to get in is a bit rough, tends to put people off.¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t so bad.  I imagine it¡¯s expensive to pave all that way.¡±  She shrugged, trying to find some relief from the anxiety in the mundane conversation.


    ¡°Eh.  We¡¯ve had it paved before.  It doesn¡¯t stick, though.¡±  He replied somewhat vaguely, but before Vee could even think to press him on that, he had clapped his hands together and cleared his throat, switching gears abruptly.  ¡°So.  We got the property all locked up, and it¡¯s clean.  Didn¡¯t touch anything but removing the foodstuffs from the kitchen.  Want to go see it now?  I can drive us up in the big Jeep.  The dog¡¯s more than welcome, I¡¯ve got three of my own.¡±  He chuckled pleasantly.


    ¡°Oh¡ªuh, yeah.  Yeah, that¡¯d be great.¡±  Vee nodded, her free hand absently poking into her pocket where the folded letter sat.  It was hardly a legal document, but hopefully Kato¡¯s word would be enough to prove that the place was meant to be hers now, to whatever end.  Atkins waved them along and they followed him to where a big old vehicle¡ªto call it a Jeep was a loose term, as truthfully Vee wasn¡¯t sure what it was supposed to be, all patchwork and custom-retrofittings to suit a life out here where access to commercial mechanics was scarce if it existed at all.  But the inside was quite comfortable, and she let Iron Man climb into the backseat alongside Eli while she took up the shotgun position, kneading her nails against the denim of her jeans as Atkins started them off.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t tell him much, did you?¡±  Atkins spoke quietly while Eli chattered half to himself in the backseat, excitedly relaying random factoids to Iron Man while the dog leaned heavily over his lap.  Vee glanced at the man sharply, and he gave her a knowing look, raising his brows.  ¡°I¡¯m not judging; it makes sense.  I take it he never even met the old man, hm?¡±


    ¡°...No.¡±  Vee replied, shaking her head briefly.  ¡°I¡¯ll explain it at some point, once we see the place, it¡¯s just¡­complicated.¡±  She let out a sigh, lowering her gaze to her hands as she picked at a loose string coming from a frayed spot on her thigh.  ¡°...He left the place to me, according to the letter.  I don¡¯t even know where to begin handling that, though.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll sort it out.  The town hall should have any legal documents we need, you¡¯ll have to sign a bunch of stuff, I¡¯m sure, but out here¡­well, between you and me, we¡¯re not gonna run you through the ringer over it.  We all knew the old man well enough to trust his word.¡±  Atkins nodded sagely, one hand casually guiding the wheel as he navigated them out down a small road that led westward, further into the forest and away from any semblance of a town.  Small as it as, Goodwill disappeared frighteningly quickly behind them even though she knew they hadn¡¯t even gone that far yet.


    ¡°You knew him, then?¡±  She asked, trying to keep herself from staring too hard into the woods.  Something about them made her more uncomfortable right now, as if the forest itself was watching and judging her, an ungrateful child who had spent so long away, forgetting all about this place and her own kin who had apparently meant a lot to everyone else here.


    ¡°Yeah.  He was a good man.  We¡¯d talk whenever he came down for his weekly supply run, heh.¡±  Atkins nodded.  ¡°I drove him back in the winter sometimes, even though he¡¯d always insist on walking by himself with his little wagon to carry everything.  We all knew him, really¡­¡±  He sighed, shaking his head as a distant look crept into his eyes.  ¡°...Hard to believe he¡¯s gone.  Guess we should¡¯ve expected it sometime, but¡­I swear, I thought the old man would live forever sometimes.¡±


    Vee swallowed hard, ignoring the faint sting in her eyes as she felt a guilty grief welling in her chest.  ¡°Sounds like he was lucky to have you.  The town, I mean.¡±  She cleared her throat.


    ¡°Nah.  We were the lucky ones, I think.  The forest is harsher now, without him.¡±  Atkins shook his head again, before turning from the overgrown road into an open space that led up to the front of a large old cabin.  Despite the age that clearly weathered the thatched roof and the wooden walls, it was obviously a well-loved and maintained property, save for the few weeks it had apparently been sitting empty and abandoned.  Vee¡¯s heart thudded heavily in her chest, her breath catching in her throat as she gazed upon it.  She felt like a stranger, and yet as she opened her door and the rich earthen smell of the forest enveloped her, the echoing calls and chirps of birds and squirrels and all manner of other creatures dwelling amongst the greenery, it felt like coming home.

 Ch4

    Vee stared at the cabin numbly, barely aware as Atkins walked past her to go and unlock the heavy door, framed in hand-carved leaves and creeping vines.  Her eyes followed the flowing pattern of carvings down to the base, where she noted the leaves were cut more roughly, as if by a far more unskilled hand.  She felt her heart catch in her throat, her hand flexing around a chisel long since abandoned.  She remembered sitting in the towering shadow of her grandfather while he worked on the higher sections of the doorframe, while she dutifully helped at the bottom.  She remembered the sting of realizing her efforts didn¡¯t look so nice as his, and the way he¡¯d laughed and taken her into his arms to comfort her.


    Eli¡¯s hand slipped into hers as the door opened in front of them, and she startled a bit at the contact, looking down at him and blinking to bring herself back to reality.  ¡°Whose house is this, Mama?¡±  Eli was asking, his wide blue eyes fixed up on her as he leaned against her hip, his other hand outstretched to keep hold of Iron Man¡¯s leash while the dog sniffed curiously at the open doorway.


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­it was my grandpa¡¯s house.¡±  She answered after a moment¡¯s hesitation.  It was a bit of a foreign concept to Eli, she realized.  He¡¯d never gotten to meet his own grandfathers; her father had died when she was fifteen, and Ryan¡¯s father was distinctly uninterested in being involved in any part of his son¡¯s life beyond throwing money at him to solve his problems.  Another twinge of guilt plucked at her heartstrings as she wondered what it might¡¯ve been like to introduce Eli to Kato.


    ¡°Where¡¯s your grandpa?¡±  Eli asked, and Vee swallowed hard as she took a step forward, following Atkins as he beckoned them forth into the quiet cabin¡¯s interior.  ¡°He¡¯s¡­not around anymore, baby.  But this was his house.  And¡­now I have to decide what to do with it.¡±


    The inside of the cabin was a fairly open space, rustic but homey, and the handcrafted nature of the entire abode meaning there was a distinct aura of love and care that permeated every detail.  A large stonework fireplace built into the opposite wall had been swept clean, a neat bundle of firewood still stacked beside it, as if it had been freshly chopped just yesterday.  ¡°The place gets electricity from a windmill he installed a few years back on the roof.  But there¡¯s a generator in the cellar too; gas-powered. And the place gets its water from a private well.¡±


    ¡°I see.¡±  Vee nodded absently, letting go of Eli¡¯s hand as the boy took Iron Man boldly forth to explore the space, admiring the carved details that decorated the walls and furnishings.  Kato had built just about everything in here from scratch, she remembered him saying.  The stove was still a wood-burning one, his fridge still a classic model from some decades back, meticulously maintained to keep it as fresh and functional as the day he¡¯d bought it.


    She suddenly became aware of Atkins¡¯ eyes following her as she wandered aimlessly through the room, her fingertips outstretched to trail along the edge of the bookshelf laden with faintly dusty titles. Mostly educational pieces, classifications of woodland flora and fauna, guides to foraging, hunting, survivalist information¡­she remembered spending cold evenings in front of the fire reading while Kato prepared dinner.  She had spent so much time here¡­how could she have forgotten?  She looked back at Atkins, feeling somehow defensive and vulnerable as if there was some unspoken accusation in his gaze.  How could there not be, when she¡¯d all but abandoned her grandfather who had evidently meant so much to the townspeople here?


    ¡°Like I said, we didn¡¯t touch anything aside from taking the perishables out.  Didn¡¯t want rotting food locked away in here.¡±  He smiled, but she could see a hint of unease in his eyes and the slight crease between his brows. Like he was nervous about being there. Or maybe she was projecting, because she certainly felt it. The nerves, the unease as if the house itself was looking at her, walls that hadn''t seen her in years judging her for her absence. Her heart quickened in her chest as her fingertips brushed the spines of those dusty books, and she flinches as if it stung her to touch them, as if some invisible force had swatted her away. "No." She heard a voice in her head that reminded her all too much of her stepmother''s. "You don''t have the right."


    "Ms. Hanes?" The Sheriff''s voice brought her back to the moment and she exhaled heavily, shaking herself before looking over at him. "Sorry." She offered him a wan smile. "It''s just weird being here again." She folded her arms tight across her chest, rocking on her heels a moment as she looked around and noticed the main room suspiciously empty aside from them. "¡­Eli?"


    "Back here, Mom!" He called from one of the rooms down the short hall. Three doors; two bedrooms and the bathroom, she recalled. One of the bedroom doors was open, and Vee felt her stomach do another funny little flip as she approached. The room inside looked starkly unchanged from the hazy memories that stirred upon looking at it. The walls were still decorated with her childhood artwork, including the various crafts and trinkets made from branches and stones and even bits of bone and antler Kato had carved for her. Eli was sitting in the middle of the floor, having pulled out a box from under the bed full of more only slightly-faded papers covered in her scribbly sketchwork, while Iron Man snoozed against his side. The boy smiled up at her as she appeared in the doorway. "Did you draw these?" He held up some of the sheets and Vee felt an awkward smile tug at her lips.


    "I did. Once upon a time, I used to fancy myself an artist." She chuckled, shaking her head as she tried not to think about how that interest had died not long after moving away. She wanted to simply appreciate the way Eli''s face lit up while he examined her old drawings, most of them centered around the forest she''d spent her days in. Trees and mushrooms, deer and squirrels, simple nature themes.


    Atkins was lingering at the end of the hall still, as if unwilling to tread too deeply into the house, or perhaps he was simply being courteous and not wanting her to feel trapped between him and the door at her back, the one which led to Kato''s room. "He kept the place in good shape, all these years. Hardly ever called for outside help. He even thatched the roof himself, real old-fashioned." He looked at the rafters spanning the main room''s ceiling, nodding to himself. "A real man of the earth, he was."


    "Yeah, he was." She echoed, chewing her lip. She suddenly felt lost. What was she supposed to do now? This place didn''t feel like it COULD be hers, much less that it apparently already was. She took a deep breath to steady her racing thoughts before looking back at Atkins again. "¡­Do I need to do anything right away? It''s just a lot to take in. I¡­I could use the chance to sleep on it."The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    "Oh, right, of course." He was quick to offer her a reassuring smile and nod, though she could see a flicker of something like apprehension in his eyes. Perhaps he was afraid she''d back out, for some reason. But why would he care so much about that? A house like this, so unassuming and out of the way, what difference did it make if she DID decide to simply turn and run? Not that she was going to; as stressful and bewildering as she found the whole situation, that was never really in any serious question. A revelation which surprised her as much as it would have anyone else, she was sure.


    It took some coaxing to get Eli out of her old room, the boy still smitten with the adventure of it all. But after promising him¡ªand by extension Sheriff Atkins as well as herself¡ªthat they would return in the next day or two, he finally acquiesced and the four of them headed back out to get into the car again. Vee followed while Eli led Iron Man ahead, the dog scrambling up into the backseat after the boy while Atkins regaled him with some story Vee only half-listened to as she closed the door behind them. She paused as she looked at the key in her hand, pressed to her palm by Atkins in passing despite her half-hearted protest. It wasn''t really the key she was looking at though, instead a strange prickling sensation on the back of her neck making her hesitant to turn around. She felt suddenly like the forest was watching her, like the trees were holding their breath as they waited for her to turn that key and turn to face them.


    "Ms. Hanes?" Atkins'' voice broke her trance and she shook her head forcefully to clear the irrational sensation from her thoughts, locking the door and turning on her heel to head for the Jeep again. She was being stupid, she chided herself inwardly. Letting her nerves get the better of her. Still though, she didn''t lift her eyes to scan the dense forest even once she was settled in the passenger seat again, the Jeep trundling off back down the road toward town.


    "I can email you some paperwork to bring back when you''re ready. No rush; no one''s gonna mess with the place." Atkins assured her with another smile as they stood in the parking lot between the Jeep and Vee''s own weathered truck, Eli chattering happily to Iron Man as he and the dog wandered around the otherwise empty lot.


    "I appreciate it. And¡­thanks for taking us out there. I''m still wrapping my head around everything." Vee nodded to him, and Atkins made a noncommital sound, waving off the thanks. "It''s nothing." He chuckled, but there was just the briefest hesitation in his words, a flicker of his eyes that told her he was trying to decide how to word his thoughts. "So¡­do you have any idea what you''ll do with it? I mean, as far as selling it, or¡­keeping it? Woodwill''s not much to look at, I know, but it''s a good little community we''ve got here."


    Vee felt her guts tighten at that, and she swallowed thickly. "There''s just¡­a lot to consider, you know? I need to do some thinking. But I''ll be back out here in a couple days, after I go over the papers and, uh¡­talk to my lawyer." She wasn''t sure if Tess would even have any particular input on this sort of thing; she was a divorce lawyer, not dealing with matters of real estate and inheritance laws. But Atkins didn''t need the extra details.


    "Of course." He nodded, extending a hand to her. She shook it, forcing a smile that she hoped would cover for the unease still simmering in her heart. With their goodbyes said, Eli and Iron Man loaded back into the truck, and Vee behind the wheel once more, it was time to make the long drive home. Eli dozed off pretty quickly despite the rumbly gravel road that met them outside of town, and Vee was glad for a chance to let her mask slip, letting out a tremulous breath as she made her way through the dense forest corridor that would lead them back to the highway.


    "Where did you go, Kato?" The question leapt unbidden from her lips and with that, the dam broke. She felt her eyes burn, a tightness in her throat that barely stifled the sob that threatened to slip out. Was that a thing people did? Just¡­wander off into the forest to die? Why did he do it? Why didn''t he reach out before now? How much easier would things have been if she had just come out here, after the divorce? Skipped all the bullshit of navigating the city and just¡­run back to the woods she''d been dragged away from so long ago?


    Suddenly she gasped, slamming on the brakes. The gravel under the truck screeched and scraped as they came to a sudden halt, having rounded the next bend and found themselves blocked. Vee caught her breath as she stared at the herd of elk that placidly trotted across the road, a couple of them having stopped with ears perked, staring at the truck that had halted so suddenly, but then they went back to their business, hopping over the shallow ditch at the side of the road as they melted back into the forest. Iron Man''s heavy head loomed over her shoulder, his jowls trembling as he uttered a muted woof, and she lifted a hand to pat his face, shushing him. Eli somehow hadn''t stirred despite the jolt of the truck, and Vee steadily exhaled as she relaxed, looking him over briefly before extending a hand, ready to gently shake him awake so he could enjoy the admittedly breathtaking sight of all the elk filing across ahead of them¡ª


    Iron Man suddenly growled, and she reflexively looked back up to see what it was that had suddenly troubled him, and she felt a cold spike of shock run down her back. There, among the elk, something else stepped out from the trees. The gravel crunched under heavy footfalls, the creature towering in the dappled light that sprinkled across the ground below. Its head was like an elk¡ªno, that wasn''t quite right. It looked like it was wearing a mask made of an elk''s skull, great bone antlers stretching above its head, while thick, dark fur coursed down over its thick neck and shoulders. Vee''s eyes flickered, struggling to comprehend what it was she was seeing when the creature''s head turned and she saw the glint of great yellow eyes within the bone-rimmed eye sockets of that mask-face.


    "What the fuck-!" She stammered out, recoiling into her seat while Iron Man growled again. But then she blinked, and the beast was gone. The last of the elk disappearing into the trees, tails wagging and hooves delicately picking through the undergrowth. Vee didn''t dare move, barely dared to breathe, the rumble of the truck''s idling engine the only sound aside from Iron Man''s heavy breathing in her ear. What WAS it? Was it even real? It was so large¡ªnothing that big could vanish THAT quickly. But then, had it just been a stress-induced hallucination? It had seemed so vivid, so real¡­she swore she could see the glimmers of sunlight caught in its shaggy pelt.


    "Mama? What''s wrong?" Eli''s sleepy voice nearly made her yelp as he startled her, but she bit back the reaction and looked to him with a shaky smile. "Nothing, Eli¡ªg-go back to sleep. It''s okay. I was just¡­looking at something." She reached over and patted his knee as he smiled, his eyes already flickering closed again as he slumped back in his seat. Vee cautiously looked ahead again, almost expecting to see the monster in the road ahead of them once more, but there was nothing but the gravel road and the idly drifting leaves in the air.


    It had to be a trick of the eye, she told herself as she began driving again, rumbling on down the road toward the highway with her heart hammering against her ribcage. Just a result of her overly strained mental state. She needed a good dinner, a hot shower, and a good night''s sleep, that was all.


    By the time they got back on the nicely-paved highway and rejoined the flow of traffic, mild as it was, on the way back to the city, she was already feeling better. The "creature" fading into the back of her mind easily, dismissed as a figment of her imagination, spun up by the inherent stress of everything and the weirdness of being back in Woodwill again after so long. In a couple days things would feel more clear, she was cautiously optimistic. For now, she just needed to sign some papers and take care of her business. There was certainly more than enough of that to keep her plate filled.

 Ch5

    After dropping off Iron Man at home, Vee decided to fill the remainder of the day with running some errands with Eli in tow. Both because there was a lot of stuff to get taken care of, but also because she wanted to keep her mind off the bizarre events of the day. Thankfully by the time the evening turned late and they made their way home and she ushered Eli off to take a shower before bed, she had put the strange elk incident out of her head. Or at least she had dismissed it thoroughly enough as a bizarre trick of the light that she could almost believe it without questioning.


    "Are we gonna go back out there tomorrow?" Eli asked while getting tucked in, pulling the blankets up comfortably while Vee tried in vain to smooth out his still-slightly-damp hair.


    "Mm. Maybe not tomorrow, but we''ll see about the day after." She smiled at him, combing back a stray lock that immediately sprang back into unruly place. "I have to take care of some things before we go again."


    He nodded, rolling over and settling in against his pillow comfortably. "Night, Mama."


    "Night, kiddo." Vee murmured, leaning down to kiss the top of his shampoo-scented head before she took her leave, shutting the door quietly in her wake before she headed back into the living room. Iron Man was on the couch, wagging his tail as she approached, and as she plopped down beside him he scooted close to set his heavy head in her lap, receiving the ear-scratches he was after while she pried her phone loose from her pocket underneath him. Now she could open her email and take a look at the forms Atkins had sent over, though trying to look at anything even vaguely legal-ese made her head hurt, and she sighed as she simply copied over the files and attached them to a new draft that she prepared to send off to Tess.


    It took a few drafts before she felt she had explained the situation properly, with just enough detail to give context while keeping it succinct enough to not¡­ramble? Truth be told she wasn''t sure what she was afraid of in that regard, only that she desperately hoped Tess would give her some sort of clarity, some kind of straightforward answer that would make everything seem so much clearer and take away the burden of guilt she felt when thinking about any of the potential outcomes.


    With the email sent, she placed the phone on the cushion off to the side before letting both hands rest on Iron Man''s head, kneading the smooth fur that covered his muscular blocky head. "What a day." She mumbled, and his tail thumped against the couch mildly. "You''ve got such short hair, you''d be miserable out in the forest, wouldn''t you?" She glanced down at the dog, as if expecting him to reply somehow. Of course he just kept wagging, enjoying the attention with no comprehension of what any of her words meant. It was a flimsy excuse, not one she even needed to dwell upon as a reason not to take the cabin. Eli needed school, after all. And she needed work. She couldn''t imagine there were many jobs out there available to an outsider, and while she was hardly making much money working at the store as it was, it was still consistent enough, and gave them insurance if nothing else.


    It would be irresponsible to uproot them all over again and go out to the middle of nowhere. Vee shook her head, trying to silence the increasing clamoring in the back of her mind. She couldn''t make such a decision based solely on childish guilt and nostalgia. It made much more sense in all aspects, and perhaps most of all financially, for her to just wash her hands of it and sell the place off. Good forest property in Oregon was worth quite a lot, even in such backwoods locations.


    Iron Man huffed against her thigh and she blinked slowly, bringing her thoughts back to the present as she lowered her gaze to him. "¡­Wanna go outside?" His tail thumped in response, his brow crinkling adorably as he looked back up at her, and as she shifted he happily jumped up off the couch, plodding over to the door where she could hook up his leash and step outside.


    She took a deep breath of cool night air, but the acrid taste of the city lingered on her tongue. It wasn''t like the air out in the woods, where it had smelled of richness, earth and moss and rain despite it being a dry month. She walked down the stairs and out across the parking lot, letting Iron Man lead the way with his strong sniffer picking up all the fun little tidbits of information that only a dog could appreciate. Standing by the grassy stretch at the front of the complex''s lot, she tilted her head back and looked skyward. It was a clear night, but the city lights made it difficult to see much in the way of stars. She wondered how vivid they might be out at Kato''s house, right now. How quiet the woods must be, compared to the ever-present noise of Portland at night. She could hear a distant siren somewhere, and there were still cars on the road, lights piercing the darkness between streetlamps as they went on their way.


    She lifted a hand to shield her eyes from the light as one car turned into the parking lot, and sighed as she looked to Iron Man while he inspected a particularly smelly patch of clover amid the grass. "Come on, buddy. It''s getting late." She gently tugged his leash and he amicably padded after her, the pair skirting around the edge of the lot while the car that had entered cruised slowly, looking for a parking spot. It was an older car, somewhat weatherbeaten and rusted on the bottom panels; familiar, but Vee couldn''t place which of her neighbors it belonged to, not at this hour. She climbed the steps back to the apartment, yawning as she ushered Iron Man back in and locking the door before she went about turning off the lights and taking herself off to bed. She let Iron Man into Eli''s room before retreating to her own, smiling as she listened to him flop over at his designated spot beside the boy''s bed.


    Tired as she was though, she found herself struggling to shut her eyes once she''d laid down. She stared up into the dark, the thin rays of light from passing headlights in the street below tracking across the ceiling above her. Vee twisted and wrung her hands together, tangling her fingers in the blanket as she pulled it up over her chest, only to push it back down to her midriff as she found herself too warm too quickly. Every time she closed her eyes to try and will herself to sleep, something gnawed insistently at the back of her mind until she opened them again. She tossed and turned, struggling to find a position comfortable enough to ignore the restless nerves that hummed beneath her skin, and only after she''d spent the better part of an hour fidgeting did she finally throw her hands up with a scoff of irritation and sit herself up, grumbling as she rubbed the heels of her palms into her tired eyes.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    A faint sound caught her attention then, a faint scratching sound that made her pause. For a moment she felt the rise of dismay in her heart¡ªnot another bout of rodent troubles, she hoped. The last apartment they''d lived in was in constant struggle with rats chewing through the walls and wreaking all kinds of damages. But the longer she listened, the less it sounded like scurrying paws in the walls and more like¡­the sound of branches scraping on the outside of them. Of course, that made no sense. Perhaps Iron Man had gotten disturbed by something and was asking to be let out of Eli''s room. She rose and crossed to the door, pulling it open¡ª


    The hallway before her had disappeared. Instead a dark corridor lined with the dense, heavy drapery of evergreen fronds lay before her. The next moment, the doorknob in her hand was gone as well, the bedroom at her back vanishing into the dark of the forest. She shivered at the feel of the pine needles that brushed her spine, as if coaxing her along down the path that lay ahead despite the way it melted into pitch black nothingness. Vee swallowed hard, her heart pounding with something between fear and excitement, a nameless apprehension churning inside her as she forced herself to obey the pushing of the fronds at her back and the pull of the dark ahead. The needle-crusted branches around her shifted and swayed in a breeze she could not feel, and the sound was almost like whispering, but of course no coherent words could be picked out of the muffled cacophony.


    One step at a time she made her way down the dark path, the blackness that stretched ahead of her beckoning her onward despite the nervous hammering of her heart against her ribs. Something was there, waiting for her¡ªbut what? She could see something changing ahead; a light, a pinprick like a match-flame in the swirling dark that was at the ever-moving end of the path. Slowly that light got bigger and brighter until she realized it was no match-flame, but the light of a bedside table''s lamp in a bedroom that looked familiar and yet felt entirely foreign. A room she remembered well, despite wishing she could say otherwise. The blackness dissipated abruptly, the branches around her melting into solid walls that only warped a little if she tried to focus on them too long. The room was sparsely decorated, plain white walls surrounding a small four-post bedframe where a child sat, knees pulled close to her chest and hands over her ears. Vee knew what she was trying to block out even before she found herself suddenly in the child''s place, assuming the same position, and she closed her eyes tight as if it would do any good to block out the noise that became clearer on the other side of the closed door across from her.


    "There''s nothing left to talk about!" Debbie''s voice was shrill in the way it always got when she was afraid of losing an argument. "That¡­barbarian is trying to corrupt your daughter, and you seem happy to allow it!"


    "You''re taking it all wrong, Deb." The voice of her father¡ªshe barely remembered it in her waking hours, but she knew it without question here in this strange dreamscape. "He''s harmless, she''s just being a kid. Kids love to make up adventures and stories, you know."


    "Not like this, Dean." Debbie sounded like she was trying not to cry now. "He''s putting wicked ideas in that girl''s head, I know it. How can you be okay with them being alone together out in the woods like that? It''s not right."


    "Are you insinuating¡ª"


    The room suddenly pitched hard to the left, then the right, like a ship caught in the dreadful swells of an ocean storm, and Vee heard her child-voice cry out in fear as she was thrown toward the wall, bracing herself as she prepared to crash through the window. But the impact never came. Instead her nostrils were filled with an earthy, damp smell. The smell of the forest after a heavy rain. The rustling of branches muted from the water that clung to everything, the forest dripping and breathing around her as she sat up and found herself surrounded not by the darkness any longer, but by green.


    She ached all over and her head was pounding so hard she could barely see straight, but still she turned over, clawing her way through the sodden moss and pine litter. "Come back!" She called out in a voice raw from crying, her heart pounding as she struggled to focus through the pain and the blood that trickled down her forehead into her eyes. There were voices coming from behind her, someone calling her name. "Come back!" She called again, reaching out to the greenery, to something that had long since disappeared. Her vision swam, her head throbbing painfully, and her hand fell back to the dirt, settling in the curve of a massive paw print.


    Vee jolted awake with a gasp, the harsh beeping of her alarm only partly responsible for shocking her back to reality. She sat up sharply, flailing briefly as she untangled herself from her blankets and got to her feet, only to stand there motionless in her room, her alarm still beeping steadily from her bedside table. She felt electrified, like a deer caught in headlights, thrilled and paralyzed by fear all at once. Finally the beeping became just annoying enough to snap her from the trance, and she scrambled to her bedside table to silence her phone. Then she sat on the edge of her bed, her hands shaking as she struggled to collect her racing thoughts again. A dream, but not entirely. No, there was memory in there too. Fragmented and lacking context, as all her patchy memories of her childhood were, but she still knew what she''d seen were no mere figments of imagination.


    But they were missing pieces. She looked at her hands, flexing her trembling fingers slowly as she remembered the feel of the moss and mud underneath her. She had fallen. Running from something, or someone. Yes, that was it¡­it was before they moved. She had been trying to run away, a childish maneuver born of panic and desperation. She didn''t want to leave the forest. Her grandfather. Her friends. The mountain.


    The mountain calls me. Kato''s words still inked on that folded bit of paper tucked away out of sight, but not out of mind. "God." She mumbled, burying her face in her hands as she folded in on herself, dragging in one ragged breath after another. I know it calls you too.


    Was that what was happening? The mountain calling her? Were the answers somewhere out there, left behind all these years and just waiting for her now, puzzle pieces that had been lost just waiting to be found so she could see the whole picture again?

 Ch6

    "What are you looking at?" Vee craned her head as she backtracked down the sidewalk, Iron Man snuffling along at her heel while she approached Eli. The boy had stopped seemingly-mid-stride, his eyes rooted down on a small patch of moss clinging to the crumbling concrete that formed the base of a building they''d just walked past. She had looked over her shoulder to see him crouching, staring intently at the tiny patch of greenery amid the gray, and when he did not seem to hear her say his name, she''d doubled back to see what was so enthralling.


    "A frog." He finally answered as she drew near enough to see it, a tiny green frog nestled amid the dewdrops clinging to the moss. She leaned down to see it better, the tiny throat of the amphibian pulsing as it sat otherwise motionless. She wondered what they looked like to its eyes, a couple of wide-eyed giants looming overhead, gazing down at the little oasis it had found amidst the harsh city streets. Iron Man was oblivious, simply sniffing around the edge of the sidewalk without paying any mind to what his people were so enthralled by.


    "Good eye, Eli." Vee reached over with her free hand to ruffle Eli''s hair, before straightening up again. "Come on, we''re almost home. Then I''ll make some lunch, hm?"


    "Okay." The boy nodded, smiling up at her before he glanced back at the frog. "Bye, froggy." He giggled a bit before moving to follow his mother again, jogging briefly to bring himself up level with her and allowing him to scritch Iron Man''s back fondly as the dog plodded along between them. "Can I walk him?"


    "Let''s get off the main road first. Just in case." Vee trusted the dog and his training, but he was still big and strong and this street was full of potential distractions; pigeons pecking around in the alleys, stray cats occasionally darting by, that sort of thing. She adjusted her hold on the leash as they made their way down the block, approaching the corner that would lead them back around to the front side of the apartment complex in whose shadow they currently walked.


    A rust-fringed car rattled past, churning out bitter-smelling exhaust that told her it was in dire need of some maintenance, and she watched as it turned to round that corner they were approaching. And she felt her blood turn to ice in her veins as her eyes drifting to the window, catching just a brief, hazy glimpse of the driver and passenger sitting behind the dirty pane. No, it couldn''t be¡ª


    "Mom?" Eli queried, now the one to pause and look back as Vee''s stride halted abruptly, even Iron Man grunting in apparent confusion as he looked up at the woman holding the other end of his leash. Vee blinked hard once, twice, then shook her head to clear her thoughts. No, she was just paranoid. Seeing things. The odds of Ryan being in this exact part of town were ridiculously low. She hadn''t heard anything from his end in months, after all; it wouldn''t make any sense for him to show up now.


    "Nothing, baby." She forced the tremble out of her voice, disguising it by clearing her throat. "Let''s just keep going." She picked up the pace again, Eli''s arms swinging as he walked alongside her, his eyes on the sidewalk as he dodged the cracks and seams in the concrete. They neared the corner and Vee could feel her heartbeat thrumming in staccato against her ribs, a tightness in her throat that threatened to choke her out as they came to the bend in the sidewalk. She almost expected that he would be there, standing just out of sight waiting for them to walk right into him.


    The corner came, they rounded it, and there was nothing there. Vee felt a brief surge of relief, but the nerves refused to quiet fully as they reached the mouth of the complex parking lot and headed in. Her eyes swept, scanning the parked cars restlessly, fervently taking stock of those that she''d come to recognize in their time living here, when she heard a car start up, an engine growling reluctantly to live, and she saw the battered vehicle pull out of a parking spot up ahead, wheeling just a bit too sharply around to face them.


    "Eli, go upstairs now." Vee''s words rushed out and she pushed the boy toward the stairs, a bit harder than she meant to; he stumbled and looked up at her in confusion, but any question he might''ve wanted to voice died on his lips when he saw the look on her face. For Vee was sure her expression no longer fit the mask of nonchalance she''d been trying to maintain. Iron Man''s claws scrabbled on the concrete steps as they raced up to the second level, the sound of her ragged breaths as she struggled not to panic and the pounding of her heart in her ears almost¡ªbut not quite¡ªdrowning out the sound of the engine rumbling up to the base of the stairway. This wasn''t even the right building, but the walkways around the upper levels reached across in select spots. They weren''t far from their door, they just had to be faster than¡ª


    "Vee!" The voice that barked from downstairs sent a chill down her spine. Eli stumbled a bit in surprise, and his eyes were wide and glittering with fear as he looked up at her. "Is that¡ª"


    "Go inside!" Vee pushed Iron Man''s leash into Eli''s hand, hissing through her teeth. "Go in and lock the door, right now!" She waved him off, tearing her gaze away from the tears that filled Eli''s bright blue eyes as she heard him run, his sneakers slapping the concrete walkway in tandem with Iron Man''s heavy padding steps. Vee turned around, looking back down the stairwell as Ryan came into view, his brow furrowed over eyes that were a bit too bloodshot, whether from sleep deprivation or who-knows-what substance, she didn''t know and she didn''t care.


    Ryan Wallace had been handsome once. When they had met, Vee had been only sixteen, and Ryan nearly thirty. She liked to think she should''ve known better, looking back, but she had been angry and depressed, mourning her father''s still-recent death and fighting against the stepmother who had never cared to understand her before, and certainly didn''t in the wake of his demise. It had been all too easy for her to fall for Ryan, who called her beautiful, complimented her art, and gave her all the attention she craved.


    But then, as it so often happened, she''d come to learn, the truth had eventually made its way out. His devoted attention turned possessive and jealous. His affectionate touches left her with bruises and a vaguely sick feeling. His compliments turned snide, reminders that she was worthless. Just an unloved orphan who didn''t belong anywhere, except at his side. As long as she kept him happy. And even that was unattainable, as it became clear the only things he really loved were the various poisons he took.


    Vee didn''t recognize him anymore. Even his eyes, which lived in Eli''s skull, looked wrong¡ªthe once-clear blue of his irises was hazy, his pupils too contracted even in the darkened stairwell as he stared up at her. He hadn''t shaved in a few days at least, judging by the dark golden stubble that patchily covered his cheeks and chin. His hair was greasy, combed back from his face and laying too flat against his skull, making him look like he was perpetually sweaty. But even at her elevated position, looking down at the ruin that drugs and alcohol had left of the man, she felt herself quaking with fear. "Go away, Ryan." She forced herself to speak, though her mouth was desperately dry. "I don''t want to see you."


    "Is that any way to say hello? I don''t talk to you for months and this is what I get?" He sneered, raising his arms indignantly and letting them slap back down against his sides, his eyes narrowed as he glared up at her. He paced there on the landing below, like a starving wolf watching a squirrel hide in the trees above. "I thought you''d have cooled off by now, Vee." His mouth twisted in a way that seemed like he was trying to pout, to draw some sympathy from her.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    "I don''t want to see you." She repeated more firmly, her fists clenching at her sides. "You shouldn''t be here. This is private property."


    "I''m here to see my son. Ain''t a man got a right to that?"


    "Not when he puts his son in the hospital." Her voice shook, with rage as much as fear now as she stared at him. It still kept her up sometimes, remembering the look of utter shock and pain in Eli''s face when she''d rushed him to the emergency room, cradling his broken wrist. How heartbroken and confused he was that his father would hurt him so badly. Until that point, Ryan''s hands had only ever laid on Vee, and she had been willing to suffer that. But something had woken up in her when Eli got involved, and for the last three years they had been trying to be normal. Eli learning to be a regular kid, and Vee¡­well, Vee just trying to put herself together again. Which, considering the events of the last couple days, seemed to be a much more complicated affair than she had anticipated.


    Ryan took a step up the stairs, his eyes never leaving her. "I told you that was an accident. You just had to kick up such a fuckin'' fuss about it." His lip curled as he took another step. "I''ve been cooperatin''. You wanted a divorce so bad, I gave you one. I just wanna see my fuckin'' son, Vee."


    "He doesn''t want to see you either." She seethed, fighting every muscle that urged her to bolt. He had found the complex, but perhaps he didn''t know the apartment. If she held her ground, he''d either back off on his own or someone would come investigate the commotion and chase him away. She couldn''t let him find out where exactly they were living.


    "You''re a lying bitch." He lunged up the steps after her, but while she staggered back against the railing, she did not run, even when he grabbed her arm with cruel, bruising fingers and brought his face close enough she could smell the stink of cigarettes and alcohol on his breath and clothes, see the veins in his bloodshot eyes pulsing with rage. "I''m done playin'' games, Vee! You''re gonna let me see my son, or I''m taking your ass back to court. You think I won''t?"


    "You don''t have anything!" She turned her head away, fighting the urge to gag. "I don''t have to do shit; the judge gave me full custody and you know it!"


    "Yeah, but the judge didn''t know about the hospital stays, did he?" Ryan''s tone turned sickly and Vee''s stomach did a flip. She knew what he was referring to. One of the few memories from her youth that remained unfortunately intact. In the years after they had left Woodwill, Debbie had insisted on sending Vee to "therapy", to deal with whatever issues she was convinced the girl was suffering with. These "therapy" programs were run by Debbie''s church, and needless to say they hadn''t helped. Vee had only grown more sullen and rebellious, until they had insisted she be committed to a psychiatric facility.


    The first time it happened, her father finally put his foot down and said it would never happen again. But then he died a year later, and in the two years between that and Vee leaving the house to move in with Ryan, Debbie had gotten her committed twice more. It had been an ugly period of her life, one she had hoped to someday be able to forget and leave behind. One that she had hoped Ryan might have forgotten, between all his binge-drinking and drug-fueled benders.


    Ryan, whose mouth curled into a cruel smile as he realized that he''d struck the right nerve, tightened his grip on her arm. "Yeah, you didn''t count on that, did you? I got hospital records. Unstable behavior, they say. Violent mood swings."


    "That''s all bullshit though." She finally found her voice again, trying to pull away from his grip.


    "Judge don''t need to know that, hm? Of course, there''s still a way we can put all this behind us, if you wanna stop fighting and be a good girl." Ryan growled, and she recoiled as he leaned in closer, close enough his breath heated her cheek. Her heart quickened in her chest til it felt like a caged hummingbird, and her vision narrowed. For a terrible moment she was afraid she might pass out right there, left at his mercy. Poor Eli, locked away in the apartment, would be so confused, so frightened if she didn''t get back to him soon. And if he decided to come out looking, Ryan would get ahold of him and¡ª


    She moved before she even really finished formulating the idea. Her knee came up, connecting solidly with Ryan''s groin and drawing a choking sound from his throat. His hand fell from her arm as he reflexively grabbed at himself, doubling over while Vee scrambled free of his looming presence. He screamed some slurred epithet at her back, but she didn''t even spare a glance as she bolted down the walkway and around the corner, across the little bridge linking the building blocks together. She skidded to a halt as she reached the door of her apartment, hastily banging her hand against it. "Eli! Eli, baby, open up please!" She didn''t want to raise her voice, didn''t want Ryan to figure out where she''d gone. Her eyes darted back the way she''d come, terrified he would come lurching around the corner any moment.


    But then the door clicked unlocked and opened, Eli''s tear-streaked face staring up at her, and she swept him into her arms as she stepped inside, kicking the door shut behind her. Iron Man woofed and grumbled, bouncing around them as she leaned back against the door, hugging her son tight. He was almost too big for her to hold like this, but adrenaline made him seem light as a feather as he anchored his arms around her neck and sniffled against her collar. "It''s okay." She breathed, closing her eyes as she willed her heartbeat to slow back down. "It''s okay, I''m okay. We''re okay." She repeated the word enough it started to lose meaning, at least for her. Eli seemed comforted though, and that was enough. Iron Man growled suddenly, and Vee heard footsteps stomping along the walkway outside. She hastily stepped away from the door, locking it quickly before retreating a safe distance and shushing the dog, who bristled as he stared at the locked entry. The footsteps stomped past, frighteningly close, and then they paused. Vee held her breath and Eli whimpered into her neck, squeezing hard enough she had to adjust herself to avoid being strangled on accident by the fearful boy''s grip.


    The footsteps lingered, then stomped back away again, Ryan''s muffled cursing thankfully mostly-inaudible through the walls. Still, Vee held Eli long after those footsteps were gone, waiting until she was sure he wouldn''t be hanging around. Then she moved to the couch and sat down, letting Eli curl into her lap. "It''s okay. He''s gone." She sighed, letting out the breath she''d involuntarily been holding way too long.


    "Are you sure?" Eli''s voice was very small as he sat up, rubbing his eyes and sniffing as he peered at her warily. His eyes drifted to her bare bicep, where marks were starting to show already, and she quickly redirected his focus back to her face, smoothing a hand across his brow to push his unruly hair away. "It''s okay." She repeated yet again. "What''s important is that we''re both safe. He''s not gonna get you, I promise." She was glad her voice sounded more confident than her heart felt, the nagging fear that she was telling an unknowing lie gnawing at the back of her mind.


    "Okay." Eli mumbled, and he flopped back into her arms to hug her again, Vee sighing softly as she embraced her son. Iron Man came plodding over and hauled himself up on the couch after them, leaning in to snuffle and lick at both of their faces until Eli couldn''t help but giggle, pushing him away playfully. Vee smiled, the two of them rewarding the dog by scratching his broad chest, and Eli sighed quietly before he looked back at his mother. "¡­I wanna go back to the woods-house. He can''t find us there, can he?"


    Vee blinked, looking back at him for a moment, and the gnawing stopped as she pondered his words. Despite her other, unrelated reservations about the subject of the forest cottage, he had a point. And even if Ryan had given up now¡­he knew they were here somewhere. Maybe he didn''t know which door exactly yet, but he was close enough that it wouldn''t take him long.


    She chewed her lip, looking away. She wasn''t sure she could miss work. But then, they had said if she had a legitimate crisis, they would be accomodating. And this felt like a crisis¡­


    "¡­No, he won''t." She finally spoke, leaning in to press a quick kiss to his forehead. "¡­Let''s pack up some stuff. We can leave in an hour."

 Ch7

    "Hey, Tess." Vee spoke to the voicemail receiver, her phone awkwardly crammed between her cheek and shoulder as she lifted her duffel bag into the back of the truck. She lobbed in Eli''s ragged suitcase, and then the box of foodstuffs hastily dragged from the pantry. Their small cooler was already crammed in the truck''s cab behind the driver''s seat, holding the more perishable stuff like eggs and milk. Things she was sure they could buy again in Woodwill, but she didn''t want to leave behind to go sour in the fridge anyway. "It''s Vee. We had a situation come up, so Eli and I are going out of town for a few days. I''ll text you the address and we can talk later, I''m packing things up right now. See you." She hastily ended the call, her phone shoved into her pocket and the tailgate shoved back upright, safe and secure.


    Eli himself and Iron Man were already situated in the truck, Iron Man laid across the narrow backseat and Eli in the passenger spot as usual, his backpack and a trash bag holding his favorite blanket and pillow squished into the footwell. It felt like they were moving again, but this time without any furniture. But the adrenaline was still there, even though Vee kept reminding herself it was only temporary, and they were going somewhere that was at least vaguely familiar, anyway. "It''s like a vacation." She said aloud as she got behind the wheel, flashing a quick smile at Eli as he looked up from his sketchbook. But she wasn''t entirely sure whether she''d said it more for his benefit, or her own.


    Getting out of the city was nerve-wracking in a way she hadn''t anticipated. Ryan''s threat had rattled her deeply. And even though she knew there was nothing forbidding her from leaving the city, the last nearly-twenty-years of being caged within the concrete jungle had her still slightly convinced that every police car they passed was watching her, ready to swoop in and stop her, send her back to her apartment to continue sitting and waiting. At this point, she wasn''t sure what she''d be waiting for in this scenario. Maybe for Ryan, if he was still this hellbent on getting his way. Waiting for him to swoop in and finally strongarm his way into taking her son.


    She felt like she could only breathe deeply once the city finally fell away behind them, replaced by the long, sweeping lines of the highway cutting between the hills. The sky was so clear and blue overhead, a pleasantly warm afternoon breeze floating in through the partly-opened windows. It tousled Eli''s hair and stirred the wispy strands that had escaped Vee''s ponytail. If she tried really hard, she almost believed that it really was just a vacation.


    With everything that had happened, she hadn''t even given the elk incident a spare thought. But when they trundled along the gravelly road that led into the heart of the forest where Woodwill sat, she found her thoughts flickering back to it. She watched the sides of the road intently, bracing herself for something, anything, to appear. She still wanted to dismiss the whole thing, convincing herself that it had been a trick of the mind. She was under a lot of stress, after all, and stress did funny things to the brain, it wasn''t impossible to say that¡ª


    "How long will we stay?" Eli asked, jarring her out of her spiraling thought pattern, and Vee shook herself briefly before clearing her throat, her eyes staying on the road as it stretched ahead, flanked by the towering pines. "I don''t know, Eli. We can stay a few days, but I can''t stay off work for too long. And after this week, you''ll be going back to school."


    "Oh." He spoke quietly, and from the corner of her eye she could see him slump a bit in his seat. She didn''t blame him. Public school was hard for a kid like Eli, for one reason or another. But private school was expensive. And Vee knew it wouldn''t fix the deeper problems.


    Eventually the gravel gave way again to the mostly-paved streets of Woodwill, and Vee made her way through town slowly, watching people go about their business. It was the weekend, so there was a good assortment of people out and about. Old and young alike; she watched as a couple families crossed the street ahead on their way to the small park structure that was half-hidden behind the main street''s shops. They make it work out here. A little nagging voice in her mind whispered. A long commute could be worth the peace of mind.


    She shrugged the thought off. She wasn''t in the right headspace to entertain such notions, not right now. As they drove past the police station, heading for that narrow road that led up to the cabin, she saw Sheriff Atkins standing outside taking a phone call. He looked up as they passed, and she saw the confusion and recognition bloom on his face as he caught her eye. She lifted a hand to wave, somewhat awkwardly. She wondered if she should''ve called¡­but the cabin was hers, wasn''t it? She had the key in her pocket, the key he himself had given her. It was just the paranoid nerves getting at her again, she reminded herself. They weren''t doing anything wrong.


    The cabin was, just as she expected, exactly the same as it had been the previous day. It felt like it had been ages since she''d laid eyes on it, with everything that had happened in such a short time since. Eli''s excitement was obvious, the boy practically bouncing in his seat as they pulled up in front of the building, and Vee couldn''t help but laugh when he fumbled with his door and seatbelt in tandem, eager to get out. "Careful. I don''t want you running off and getting lost, okay? Stick close to the house, I''ll unload. Take Iron Man with you."


    "Okay, Mom!" He grinned at her brightly, and Vee felt a pang of relief seeing that expression after such an intense day. They still had some hours left before the sun was going to go down, and she figured that was plenty of time for settling in. Tess hadn''t called her back yet, but it was the weekend, after all. She was sure she''d get a call by dinnertime, surely.


    Climbing out of the truck, she paced to the door of the cabin while Eli and Iron Man went jogging around the corner, apparently going to investigate the backyard. She hesitated as she slid the key into the lock, remembering how she''d felt the last time she''d stood at this door. The way it had felt like the forest was watching her. She waited to see if that feeling came back, but there was nothing. Nothing but the faint rustle of trees in the breeze, the chirp of birds and call of crows echoing here and there. And of course, the faint echoing of Eli''s voice as he joyfully bounded around behind the house with Iron Man. Vee listened, closing her eyes as she absorbed the sounds, before she let out a long exhale and pushed the door open. Time to settle in.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    She was halfway through unloading the truck when the crackle of tires on the rough track leading up from town alerted her to someone''s arrival. Atkins was coming up, his rugged "Jeep" grinding through the gravel as it came to a stop beside the truck, and again she felt the instinct to brace herself, ready for trouble¡ªbut he was smiling when he got out, waving as he strode toward her. "Hey!" He beamed, his sleeves rolled up over his forearms and his face still clean-shaven aside from the spots just at the corners of his mouth, which crinkled as he smiled at her. "You''re back! I wish I''d known you were coming, could''ve set up a better welcome, heh." He rocked on his heels for a moment, his hands tucked into his pockets as he looked at her truck, then past her through the open door where she''d just been setting things down, deciding to sort them later. "¡­Planning on staying a while?"


    "A few days." She replied, her tone a bit more clipped than she meant it to be. His brow quirked, and she hastily followed it up, "I had some time off work I could take, and Eli¡­well, we both really wanted to come and get a better look at things." She smiled, hoping that would smooth over his curiosity and lessen the sharpness of her initial response. It seemed to do the trick, and she was relieved when he nodded pleasantly, his attention diverted when Eli and Iron Man came back around the other side of the house, Iron Man letting out an emphatic woof at the sight of the man. "Hi, mister Sheriff!" Eli waved, far removed from his shy and reserved manner from before, his cheeks flushed and eyes bright with excitement. He''d somehow already gotten pine needles in his hair, and Vee snickered as she brushed them loose when he came up alongside her, Iron Man leaning forward to sniff at Atkins and receive some well-deserved ear rubs for it.


    "Hey, kid." Atkins smiled, waving at Eli. "Having fun already?"


    "Yeah!" Eli nodded enthusiastically, before turning his shining blue eyes up to his mother, tugging at her wrist. "You gotta come see, the back of the house is so cool!"


    "In a minute, baby, I''m still unloading stuff. You go on and play, I''ll be around soon." Vee smirked down at the boy, giving him another affectionate ruffling of the hair, sending more needles sprinkling over his shoulders. He giggled and nodded, bouncing away again with Iron Man loping at his heel. "Good kid." Atkins observed, and Vee felt her cheeks flush as she realized he was watching her. Maybe he realized it too, because he suddenly cleared his throat and looked away, nodding as he scanned the trees and she couldn''t help but mirror the detached behavior. "Alright, well¡­if you''re gonna be staying, I''ll just give you some tips¡ªcommon sense stuff really, but I''d kick myself if I didn''t at least mention them. It''s best not to hang out after dark; we do have bears and such out here, after all. Among other things." The last sentence was said almost quietly enough that she might''ve missed it. But as soon as she heard it, Vee''s focus snapped back to him. "What was that?"


    He shrugged and shook his head. "Just be careful, right? Especially with a kid and a dog out here. Most critters won''t bother people, but¡­well, you know smaller targets are harder to pass up for hungry beasties. Kato''s property''s always been pretty safe, but¡­well, with the old man gone, who knows."


    Vee raised a brow, unable to help but scoff faintly. "You make it sound like he cast a spell on the place or something, heh."


    Atkins didn''t laugh, and the smile on his face faltered, his brow creasing in what looked like a worried manner, his eyes searching hers as if he was trying to determine something. "¡­Or something." He finally muttered, almost as if he was pondering those words. But as quickly as the strange mood came over him, he shook it off, smiling again. "I''ll let you get back to it, won''t keep you from getting all comfortable. You''ve got my number; I take calls at all hours if there''s ever an emergency. Maybe I''ll see you in town later, or tomorrow, hm?"


    "Uh¡­" Vee trailed off, blinking. She wanted to ask him what he meant, what his odd response was supposed to imply. Why he looked at her like that, as if she had said something¡­concerning. But before she could decide which question to ask first, he''d already retreated to his car, rumbling into reverse as he turned himself around and started back off down the road to town, waving out the window as he went.


    "What the hell?" Vee muttered to herself, shaking her head. Strange small-town stuff, she told herself. That''s all it was. She rolled her shoulders, sighing as she turned and grabbed the last box from the truck, closing it up before she hauled the stuff inside and started putting the foodstuffs away first. She took Eli''s things down the hall to what had been her childhood room, sparing herself a moment to look around the small space, telling herself it was out of nostalgia, and not just because she wanted to stall, still unsure how she felt about going into Kato''s room, which she supposed was hers now. That felt weird.


    Some of the old papers she''d drawn on were still laid out from when Eli had been looking through them, and she bent to pick up a couple. The paper felt brittle, the years having taken their toll, even if they''d been kept safe and sound in this room for all that time. She shuffled through them gently, looking at the old work. Childlike, but she was still somewhat pleased to see her old talent shining through. It was bitterswseet, considering she hadn''t put a pen to paper for anything more than signing documents in years, it felt like. She smiled fondly, studying the careful etchings of the colored pencils on the pages while Eli and Iron Man dashed by the window outside, the boy''s muffled whoops helping to ease her nerves. This would be good for them. It''d be nice to have a break from the city, some true peace and quiet and the security of knowing that they were safe out here.


    Vee turned over another page, and her heart thudded to a stop. There, on the twenty-year-old paper that felt brittle as old parchment in her fingers, was a creature. A beast coated in shaggy black-brown fur, standing like a centaur on four powerful legs. The front looked wolfish, broad paws splayed on the ground. The back legs were deerlike, ending in sharp hooves. Above the thick shoulders was a skull-face, like a mask made from an elk''s skull complete with antlers that stretched upward. Child''s drawing it might have been, but Vee felt her breath catch in her throat as she remembered the elk crossing, and the glimpse of the massive beast that had accompanied them in their migration across the road.


    "What the hell?" She repeated, shaking her head as she quickly put the pages down on the bed, turning to rush back out of the room in a near-panic. What did it mean? What could it mean? No¡­no, she forced herself to stop, sucking a deep breath in through her nose, and breathing out through her mouth, closing her eyes as she stood there in the hall. She was getting ahead of herself. She was being silly. She must''ve just glanced over the drawing yesterday while Eli was going through them, and hadn''t really registered it because of everything else occupying her thoughts. And then on the drive out, she had just had a little lapse of concentration, that little stress-induced hallucination¡ªno, she didn''t like that word. If she said she was hallucinating, then any potential claims of her being unstable were only further confirmed. It was just a subconscious trick of the mind.


    She ran her hands over her face, smoothing back the stray bits of hair escaping her increasingly-untamed ponytail. She had to keep it together. They''d only just arrived, it was natural that she had some jitters. She took a deep breath, hefting her duffel bag and looking back toward the door at the end of the hall. Now or never, she mused, and headed for her grandfather''s old room.

 Ch8

    Stepping into Kato''s room brought on a new slew of memory, buried and half-forgotten somewhere in the murky parts of her brain. Vee paused in the doorway, catching her breath as she looked around. She was bigger than she''d been last time she''d seen this room, but somehow it felt like it looked bigger than her memory allowed. The ceiling vaulted up higher than the rest of the house; from the front outside, you couldn''t really tell because of the angle of the thatched roof. But it made the space feel cavernous. There was a fireplace against the wall, opposite the one that faced the living room on the other side, sharing the chimney that jutted from the middle of the cabin''s roof. A great woven rug stretched across most of the room''s floor; Vee wondered where he''d gotten such a large furnishing. It was clearly handmade, but she couldn''t imagine anyone taking on such a massive task. Even with her shoes on, the material felt warm and inviting as she timidly stepped forth onto it.


    The bed was a wonder to behold in itself. It was huge, for one, and comprised of the massive mattress set into a hand-carved frame covered in the motifs of blackberry vines and cords of ivy and lichen creeping out across the woodwork. The bed itself was made neatly, as if Kato had spent extra time tucking in the thick blankets and sheets to make it presentable before he left. Vee trailed her fingertips across the intricate carvings at the foot of the frame, her brow furrowing slightly as she wondered on that, before she looked to the opposite wall, the back of the cabin The wall was unlike any other in the house, a massive archway built into it that housed a huge door. Flanking it were windows that looked out over the back "yard" of the house, the empty garden plots and silent chicken coop laid neatly in the open grassy space that stretched a couple dozen yards until the treeline resumed, surrounding the property in that unbreakable wall of towering pines.


    Vee dropped her duffel bag heavily onto the end of the bed, crossing to the door and taking hold of one heavy ironwrought knob, sliding the heavy bolt out of locked position. The door creaked and groaned as she pulled at it, but it was not too difficult to move, and she chased the pensive look from her face as she opened it to see Eli and Iron Man out on the deck that jutted from it, the house set on just enough of an incline that it was a steeper drop from this back door than it was from the more level front. "Hey, kiddo." She stepped outside with him, looking back and forth. Out to one side, she could see the dome of the water pump that sourced from a private well. She chewed her lip, something uneasy gnawing at the back of her mind, but she couldn''t quite place what it was¡ª


    "Mom, look." Eli held up a hand, waving something at her. Distracted from her worried thoughts, Vee stepped closer to see, humming curiously as she eyed the small disc, perhaps a centimeter thick and maybe two inches wide, sitting in Eli''s palm. "What is it? A rock?" She reached for the piece and picked it up, squinting as she studied it. The middle of the disc was a strange texture, porous like a pumice stone.


    "It''s from an antler." Eli spoke, confidently as he watched her inspect it. "The inside''s where the blood vessels go." He nodded affirmatively, holding his hand out for her to delicately place the disc back into it.


    "An antler, really?" She frowned, but more out of curiosity than anything else. She didn''t doubt him¡ªshe agreed actually, the more she looked at it. A cross-section of an antler, and a big one at that. Cut clean and polished smooth, a deliberate act. "Where did you find it?"


    "Right here. It was all alone." He gestured at the middle of the platform they sat on, just next to where Iron Man lay with his tongue lolling, his side heaving with happy, tired panting after having spent so long running around with his boy. Vee''s gaze swept around the balcony slowly, looking for any signs of other similar discs. If Kato had made it¡ªwhich seemed likely, because who else would?¡ªthen she couldn''t imagine him only making one and leaving it at that. But the balcony was clear. If there were more, they were elsewhere. So why just the one left alone?


    She was thinking too much, Vee scolded herself as she shook her head, before nodding toward the large, still-open door. "Is this what you wanted me to see? It goes into my bedroom, heh."


    "Yeah! It''s so big! And it''s cool-looking, look at the carvings!" Eli grinned brightly, and Vee turned her gaze back to the door with a grunt of interest, realizing she hadn''t actually taken the time to look at the outside of the entryway. She had to stifle a gasp when she looked at it, though; there in wood-carved relief, blatant and unmistakable, were more of those¡­things. Skull-mask faces beneath great branching antlers, powerful centaur-like bodies with strong arms and four beastly legs beneath. There were three of them on the door, circling a ring of odd shapes, each marked with different symbols. Runes, she thought, but not like those you''d see upon viking motifs. As she looked at the beasts again though, she realized they were not all the same. One had the thick forelegs of a bear and the short tail of a deer or elk, to match its hindquarters. Another had what looked like a cougar''s forelimbs, and a long matching tail. The third, oddly enough, had front legs that looked like a bird''s, the shaggy belt carved to look more feathery around its elbows and along its sides. The tail was more familiar, wolfish in appearance like that of the beast she''d drawn.


    So much variety. Too much, she thought, swallowing back a wave of anxiety-born nausea. "Mom?" Eli spoke, drawing her focus back to him, his blue eyes wide and brow creased in concern beneath his sweat-slicked hair. "Are you okay? You changed color."


    "Oh. Y-yeah, I''m fine, baby." Vee forced a smile, shaking herself with an exaggerated sigh to lighten the mood. "It''s just warm out, huh? Been moving things a lot, I should take a break and drink some water. You should too, hm?" She waved him along. "Come on, let''s go inside. Iron Man could use the break too, I think."


    "Okay!" He got up, patting his hip and prompting Iron Man to scramble to his feet with a dramatic groan. They headed back through the carved doorway, Vee following them in order to haul it shut again, but just as she set her hand on the handle again she felt it. That odd, prickly feeling like she was being watched. Her heart raced, her breath quickening as she felt herself freeze, torn between confronting her fear and turning to face the woods, and just rushing inside to the safety of the house. Eventually, the latter option won out, and she shut the heavy door as hastily as she could behind her, exhaling roughly. The sensation cleared, and she managed to smile again as she heard Eli chattering down the hallway as he rummaged around for Iron Man''s bowls. Kato just had a fondness for strange mythical wilderness motifs, clearly. She was being silly, letting it rattle her so. It was time to put that out of her mind and focus on what mattered: making this place comfortable and homey enough to make a proper vacation away from their troubles for the both of them.


    They spent the rest of the day inside, occupied with putting things away and organizing, as well as familiarizing themselves with the stuff left behind. Kato had a TV, albeit a bit of an older model, a heavy set with a screen that felt fuzzy when it turned on. No cable, but there was an old VHS player set up, and a collection of movies. Vee was delighted to see some old Disney classics from her childhood nestled amid the nature documentaries and other randomly labeled tapes. She put those ones aside, unsure what to expect of their contents, but let Eli have his pick of the others after they finished dinner, laughing as he marveled at the now-obsolete technology of her youth. She washed the dishes while he lounged on the couch, dozing against Iron Man''s side while Aristocats played, and Vee hummed along with the familiar tunes. Outside, the sky was still somewhat light beyond the trees but the sun could no longer reach over them or through, and so within the forest itself things had gone dark.


    Vee kept her eyes pointedly on the dishes in the sink, though. She had pulled the curtain across the little window overlooking this part of the counter space in the kitchen, but that uneasy feeling had come back. Not only the paranoid sensation of being watched, but the vague unease from earlier. Only now it had a name, a source.


    How did Kato have the money for all of these things? Installing a windmill wasn''t cheap. Nor was maintaining a private well. And that door in the back of the house¡ªnevermind the door itself, but the windows were clearly a custom job. Also not cheap. It felt greedy to wonder where the money was, in all this talk of inheritance, but it was a question she felt was valid nonetheless.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.


    Unless the people of Woodwill had really gone out of their way to provide for him. Which seemed¡­bizarre, and illogical, and yet¡­the way Atkins talked about Kato, there was a sort of reverence in his voice. Something cryptic in his words that made Vee wonder¡­who exactly was Kato? What significance did he hold with the people of this tiny town? They were only a half-hour''s drive from the nearest town of significance back up the highway, but it felt like an entirely different world out here. That was partly why it had appealed so much as a hideout, after all. But there was something¡­otherworldly about it, even so.


    She nearly jumped out of her skin when her phone rang. Fumbling to dry her hands, she wiped them roughly on her shirt before grabbing the device. Tess'' name read across the screen, and she let out a breath of relief as she brought the phone to her ear. "Hey, Tess."


    "Vee, what the hell." Tess'' irritated tone was just a cover for her concern, Vee knew well enough by now. "You can''t just take off like that. What happened?"


    "Sorry, Tess, I know. It was¡­kind of a rushed choice." Vee winced a bit, crossing the room to look at the couch. Eli was snoozing, the light of the TV dancing off his features, and so she carefully redirected herself to head down the hall. "One second, let me get out of the way so I don''t bother Eli. Okay." She sighed as she carefully shut the bedroom door behind her, crossing her free arm across her chest as she idly paced further into the large bedroom. "¡­Ryan found us, Tess."


    "He what?" Tess'' irritable tone faded in exchange for surprise. "That bastard, I should''ve known it was too good to be true that he''s been quiet so long¡­what happened?"


    "He was driving by, caught us walking back into the complex." Vee frowned, scuffing a foot lightly against the densely woven fiber of the rug. "He tried to run us down. Grabbed me, threatened me¡­I got away and got back to the apartment itself without him figuring out which one we''re in, but¡­yeah." She chewed her lip. "I know it was really hasty of me, but I just¡­I had to get us out of there. Eli was so scared, Tess¡­"


    "Where are you staying?" Tess asked, and Vee chewed harder, not answering immediately. That was the other part of the situation she hadn''t gotten around to informing her lawyer about, after all. "¡­Vee?" Tess probed, and she sighed in defeat, giving up on her feeble effort to figure out a simple way to explain it.


    "¡­We''re at my grandfather''s house. Or¡­my house now, I guess. He left it to me."


    "What grandfather? You''ve never mentioned a grandfather." Tess sounded skeptical, and Vee could just picture the shrewd scowl on her face.


    "I know." Vee grimaced. "I¡­it''s a long story, okay?" Her gaze drifted to one of the large windows, focusing past the vague reflection to try and see through the dark settling outside. "Listen, we''re in a little town called Woodwill. It''s out in the Clatskanie region, just east of Mount Elden."


    "Woodwill." Tess echoed absently. Vee could hear the clicking of a keyboard in the background and knew she was looking it up. "¡­Vee, this place barely exists. You should''ve called me first, you could''ve come stayed here."


    "I know, I''m sorry. I wasn''t really thinking clearly, and the last few days have been¡­strange." Vee sighed, lifting her free hand to rub at her eyes, finding the effort of trying to focus through the glass exhausting. "I just figured it would make a safe place to lay low for a couple days¡­give you a chance to see what the deal is on the legal end of things. Eli''s suspended anyway, so¡ª"


    "He''s what?" Tess cut in sharply and Vee winced, knowing she''d said the wrong thing. Not that it mattered; it wasn''t like she could lie to Tess. "How did that happen?"


    "It wasn''t his fault. Just the school''s zero-tolerance shit, he got in a fight trying to stop some asshole kid from mutilating a frog." Vee felt irritation creeping into her own voice as she rehashed the conversation with the principal in her mind.


    Tess let out a long breath, and Vee could picture her pinching the bridge of her nose in the way she always did when she was trying to think logically, without letting her emotions get in the way. "¡­Of course. Poor kid. Look¡­I know it''s getting late. I can imagine you''ve had a long day. I''ll call you tomorrow and we can¡­figure out a game plan, okay?"


    "Yeah¡­that sounds good." Vee nodded, her body already feeling heavier as she eyed the large bed. "I''ll talk to you tomorrow then. Thanks, Tess."


    "Mmhm." Tess grunted affirmatively, before the call ended. Vee tucked her phone away again, sighing as she rubbed her palms over her face. She made her way back out to the living room where Eli was still sleeping on the couch, and she turned the TV off before carefully scooping him up. He mumbled sleepily, leaning his head on her shoulder, but he didn''t wake as she carried him down the hall to her old room. Iron Man padded at her heels, yawning, and as she settled Eli into the old bed the dog sprawled out beside it, just as he did back home. Vee gently fixed a couple unruly strands of hair on Eli''s head, the boy mumbling again as he rolled over and resumed his quiet snoring, before she departed the room with the door closing quietly in her wake.


    Returning to Kato''s room¡ªher room, she reminded herself, she sighed as she crossed to the bedside. She hadn''t put her duffel bag away, but she didn''t have the energy to bother now, simply setting it down on the floor before she pulled her shirt off over her head, only hesitating a moment before dropping her bra to join it on the floor. The big windows had no curtains, but she figured Kato must not have been worried about peepers out here. The woods weren''t exactly easy to traverse in the dark, given how pitch-black the gaps beneath the trees had become even before the sun fully sank.


    Stripping off her pants, she climbed into the bed in just her underwear, too tired to bother scavenging her pajama clothes from the bag tonight. The faint light still coloring the sky beyond the trees, thanks to the late-spring days lengthening, made it so the room wasn''t TOO dark to navigate, but dark enough she had no trouble falling asleep almost the moment her head hit the pillow, before she could even fully appreciate how comfortable the bed was.


    She was so tired, it was a wonder she had the mental energy left to dream at all. But dream she did. She was in the bed, in Kato''s room, which by all accounts looked unchanged aside from the fact the walls were replaced with dark, rustling pine branches, needles scratching together as they swayed in an unknown breeze. That wasn''t entirely right; not ALL the walls were replaced. The door remained. Just the door, no windows or wall to surround it. It loomed against the dark forest around her, an out-of-place portal amid a sea of sweet-smelling firs. She lay there in bed, her eyes open but her body heavy and still, as if paralyzed. No, not paralyzed¡ªasleep. There was a strange sense of anticipation that wormed through her, as if she were expecting something. But what?


    As if to answer her, the door suddenly creaked, the heavy iron handle turning slowly before it clicked free. Had she locked it earlier? Did it matter? The door opened slowly, swinging wide into the room, and outside it was just more forest. But a shadow stretched across the floor, slowly, backlit by some unseen light source. A towering shadow, crowned with a mighty set of antlers, the shaggy mane of fur that cascaded down its neck and over its broad shoulders obvious. Vee felt a thrill of fear run through her. But there was something else there too. Something like¡­yearning.


    The shadow stretched closer, all the way to the bedside and onward, and she felt a chill run through her as the shadow engulfed her. But she couldn''t move, and her eyes still saw nothing but the rustling branches around them, darkened by the shadow that lay across her. Then there was a slight pressure, as if something were leaning in close, and she felt something stir the hair on the back of her neck. A hot puff of air, a breath¡ª


    Vee''s eyes snapped open and she lurched upright with a gasp, fighting her way free of the blankets as she caught herself. The sky outside was turning pale pink, the sun rising. Not yet high enough to crest the trees, but enough that the ambient light was seeping into the room. She rubbed her face, catching her breath. Just another bizarre dream. She stretched, shaking her hair out and wincing as she pulled it free of the ponytail she hadn''t bothered undoing before bed, working her fingers through the left-behind tangles as she cast her gaze drowsily across the floor.


    Her eyes stopped when she saw it. There, sitting directly in the middle of the span between the bed and the door. A round disc of bone. She blinked as she stared at it. Perhaps Eli had dropped it yesterday, when they came in. Except¡­no, because he''d been toying with it at dinner, and she knew it had been in his pocket when she took him to bed. Maybe he snuck in before she woke? But that wasn''t like him, and he had no reason¡­but then¡­where had it come from?


    She got up and paced over to the disc, staring down at it for a moment before she bent and picked it up. It was much like the first, cleanly-cut and polished smooth, save for the slightest roughness where the bone turned porous in the middle. She curled her fingers around it and looked out the window, chewing her lip pensively. Had someone snuck in during the night after all, only to leave no trace?


    It was a mystery she didn''t have the energy to puzzle through. No, there was no logic to it. She had to put it aside. It had been a long day yesterday. Perhaps the disc had been there all along, and they''d just happened to miss it. She moved over to the carved dresser set against the wall beside the bed, placing the disc on top with a soft click as she pressed it to the wood. She had enough of her grandfather''s secrets to sort out without convincing herself of strange woodland superstitions on top of it all.