Page 278 of Heart So Hollow

But now I don’t know. Why did Colson send me an address so close to the Garrison’s property? Was it even Colson? Did Dallas miss something?

“Let’s just drive up and check it out,” Barrett pulls back out onto the road, “we don’t have to get out of the car.”

She follows the directions down a few windier roads I’ve never travelled before and finally turns down a long gravel drive lined with pines. Soon, the pines reveal into a clearing scattered with birches and ashes and maples surrounding a two-story house with dark wood siding, green metal roof, and wide front porch. An ancient, cracked tire swing hangs by a fraying rope from the jagged burr oak in the middle of the yard. Just past the house, the dirt path leads to a pole building with dented white metal siding, the edges laced with rust. Beyond that, the grass dips down and I can see the creek flowing just through the trees.

It looks deserted. I pinch my index finger and thumb together over the screen to zoom out, “What the—” my eyes round in shock, “what the hell is this?”

The more I enlarge the map, the picture becomes clearer. Our destination lies near the western end of the large green square. This square butts up right against a more massive green square with a house situated on the eastern side—Bowen’s house.

Barrett sucks in a breath and looks up, her eyes darting across the windshield, scanning the tree line around the house.

I stare at the map, paralyzed with fear, “Oh my god…”

Barrett moves to shift into reverse, “We need to go.”

Before she can pump the brake, both our eyes dart up to the rearview mirror as a pair of headlights whips into the gravel drive. The vehicle’s tires spin and the engine revs, kicking up dust in its wake. It’s coming fast. Both of us jerk around in our seats as it barrels through the pine tunnel, nothing but blinding lights in the shadow of the trees.

“Shit!” Barrett shrieks, grabbing the steering wheel.

But there’s nowhere to go, and it’s too late. The car bursts into the clearing and looks like it’s about to crash into the back bumper of the Jeep before it jerks to the side and skids to a stop, blocking us in. Only then do I see the rest of the car outside of its bright lights.

It’s a blue STI.

“It’s Colson,” I breathe, my heart still pounding.

A low rumble emits from Barrett’s chest as she scowls over her shoulder. She kicks open her door and propels out of the seat, “Colson fucking Lutz!” she roars, slamming her door so hard, the entire Jeep rocks.

I scramble out my door just as she rounds the back of the Jeep, fists clenched and knuckles white.

“Nice to see you, too, Barrett,” Colson smiles as he walks toward us. He furrows his brow when he sees the dubious look on my face, “What’s wrong?”

“You live behind Bowen?” I blurt out in astonishment, “How?”

Before he can respond, Barrett marches up to him and backhands him across the arm with a crack, “What the hell is wrong with you?” She barely comes up to his shoulder. “I was ready to drive us through the fucking forest!”

Colson glances down at her with amusement and shrugs, “It’s like a drag strip, you get some good speed. Couldn’t you see me?”

“No!” she shrieks. “You could’ve at least—” suddenly, she lets out a scream and stumbles to the side as a giant, black German shepherd appears out of nowhere and pokes its wet nose into her hand.

My shoulders shake with laughter as Barrett hops around in fright. The dog looks up at her with curiosity, its pointy ears twitching as she jerks around. I can’t help it, she’s more wound up than I am. She paces back and forth across the grass, hands on her hips, trying to calm down.

I look up at Colson, “We thought it was a trap,” I mutter before turning back to the Jeep.

I tug the back passenger door open and swing my duffel and tote over my shoulder. I’m tired of carrying them, a reminder of the only belongings I have left. I don’t want to think about that, either.

When I turn around, Barrett is standing next to Colson, much more solemn now. The forlorn look on her face makes me want to climb back into her Jeep, pick up some takeout, and go back home with her to watch Euphoria and send each other memes from across the sofa. But I know I can’t.

My Tahoe is still there. My Tahoe…I scoff under my breath. It’s not even mine. I never got around to adding myself to the title, and Bowen never cared either way. Now I see why…

The GPS tracker is also at her house. She’ll turn it off eventually, but as long as I’m not there, Barrett will be safe and Bowen won’t have any reason to come after her.

“I’ll let you know what I’m doing—you know—when I find out.” I crack a smile as I reach for her.

We hug each other all the time, every time we see one another, but this time feels different. We hold just as tight, like a cocoon woven around all the history and the memories that have kept us together so long. We sear each other into our collective consciousness in a moment that reminds us why we’ve stuck together.

When Barrett lets go, she turns to Colson, her jaw tight and her eyes ablaze, “I know Brett trusts you, and she has more sense than either of us,” she points her finger up at him, her voice raspy and threatening, “but I swear to God, Colson—" she can’t get the rest of the words out before her chin begins to tremble.

Colson gently takes her by the wrist and wraps his other arm around her neck. She lets him pull her to his chest, gripping his shoulder as he presses his mouth to her ear. I can’t hear what he’s saying, but eventually Barrett starts nodding and takes a deep breath. When she pulls away, her eyes are wet and her cheeks flushed, but she looks calmer.

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