Page 35 of Fire
Opening the liftgate, I grabbed a backpack and handed it to her. “It is going to be dark soon, so we better get a move on.”
Even though the markings on the trees would guide us to the shelter, I didn’t want to walk in the dark. There was no way of seeing what else was out in the woods. Grabbing the two remaining backpacks, I pulled down the liftgate and slung one over each shoulder. Before heading out, I checked the handle to ensure I had locked the liftgate.
As we walked toward the shelter, I found myself looking back to ensure Kenzi was keeping up with me. My strides were long, and for every step I took, she took two. I couldn’t chance that we would get separated, or worse, that she would take off.
The terrain, sometimes steep, made it difficult for Kenzi to climb, so our conversation was limited to the occasional “Thank you” and “You’re welcome” whenever I offered my assistance. Once we got to the shelter and settled in, I was sure her line of questioning would continue where it left off. I just wasn’t ready to tell her the truth about her boyfriend. As much as I wanted to keep her here with me, I didn’t want to hurt her. She probably wouldn’t believe me anyway.
When I came upon the last tree with the special marking, I knew the shelter was just beyond it. The surrounding area looked like the rest of the wooded area, but with one difference. Beneath the carefully planted brush was the shelter. Scanning the area for anything out of place, the memory of the last time I had been here surfaced. It seemed so long ago. After Joselyn’s death, I vowed never to come back. That all changed a few years back. If I wanted to keep my sanity, I had to finish it.
I stopped in front of the bushes and placed my backpacks on the ground. The door leading to the shelter required a key which I pulled from my front pocket. Pushing back the leaves, I found the padlock and inserted the key. When I looked over my shoulder, Kenzi stood behind me deep in thought. She didn’t appear scared but only curious about what was beneath the metal door covered in brush.
Using both hands to lift the metal hatch, I pushed it open as far as the hydraulic spring rod would allow. When I picked up the backpacks I placed on the ground, Kenzi stepped beside me and peeked her head inside the shelter. “How far down does this go?”
“Not far,” I said, pulling the flashlight I had packed from the inner pocket of the backpack Kenzi was carrying. “Come on. Let’s get you to safety.” I took hold of Kenzi’s hand and helped her down a few steps before I pulled the hatch closed.
Once we got to the bottom of the stairs, I turned the flashlight on the wooden door. I unlocked another padlock and swung open the door. Kenzi held her hand over her nose when a musty smell filled the dark space. Her reaction reminded me to turn on the air exchanger. The switch was on the wall just inside the door. Reaching around the corner, I flipped the switch and said, “The air will be filtered soon, clearing the musty smell.”
It wasn’t hard to find the light switch since it was also next to the door. The light flickered for a moment until the room lip up. Memories flooded in as I looked around the large room. Everything inside were things I thought would make Joselyn feel comfortable. In a sense, it would have been her home away from home.
“Wow. This isn’t what I expected a shelter to look like,” Kenzi admitted dropping her backpack on the floor.
I picked up her pack from the floor and took it to the kitchen just past the living area. Most of the supplies I had packed for us were food and drinks. I wasn’t sure how long we would remain here, but I wanted to keep us supplied with food to last a month.
As I unloaded the backpacks, Kenzi remained close to the door. This would be her new home for a while, and I wanted her to know that. “Make yourself comfortable. You can look around if you’d like.”
Besides the living area and the kitchen, the shelter had two bedrooms and a bathroom. It had the same amenities as the big house but on a much smaller scale.
Kenzi removed her coat and placed it over the back of the leather couch before walking over to the entertainment center, where the large flat-screen TV was. On either side of the flat screen, bookshelves were bursting with various fiction and nonfiction books to stimulate the imagination. Reading was one of Joselyn’s favorite things to do.
Running her hand along a row of books, Kenzi turned my way. “Just how long are you going to keep me here?”
I didn’t have an honest answer for her, but hopefully one to satisfy her question. “Until I can find out what Harris and Wilkerson are up to and what it is they want from your boyfriend.”
“I still don’t know why you think Axe has something to do with this. He would never do anything to get me hurt.”
“Niles Harris and Van Wilkerson mentioned your boyfriend by name. They wouldn’t have mentioned his name unless he was a part of the plan.” Maybe Axe wouldn’t intentionally hurt Kenzi, but my brothers wanted him to do something, and given their history, I had a funny feeling it had to do with arson. Even though it had been fifteen years, their ways wouldn’t change, nor would their employment choice. I couldn’t prove it, but I was certain it was their doing every time I read or heard about an unexplained explosion.
“So, what are they planning?”
Did I want to go there? I thought about it for a moment, weighing what it could mean for us and what it could do to her. “I can’t be certain,” I said. “Whatever it is, someone is bound to get hurt.”
“I think I might have an idea what it is.” Kenzi made her way to the kitchen, where I was stocking the cabinets with supplies. “I searched Niles Harris,” she began. “Besides being involved in illegal gambling and drugs, he was a prime suspect in an unexplained fire a few years back. Maybe whatever they are planning has to do with that.”
“Why would you be searching Niles Harris?” I stopped what I was doing and turned to Kenzi.
“Because up until a month ago, I thought he was dead.” Kenzi took a seat at the kitchen table before she continued. “I don’t know why I am telling you this, but I feel like I can trust you. Can I trust you, River?”
“You can trust me, Kenzi.” Taking a seat next to her, I took her hands in mine and waited for her beautiful eyes to meet mine. “I would never do anything to hurt you.”
Something happened between us. The connection was unexplainable. Leaning closer, my lips met hers, and instead of resisting, her lips parted, allowing me inside.
Pulling away, Kenzi stood to her feet. “Who are you, River?
~27~
Axe
With all the men ofThe Societylooking for Kenzi, I thought for sure we would find her. The tree that I marked before I went for help turned out to lead nowhere. I thought for sure with eight of us looking, we would find her. The only clue we had was the blanket left behind and the footprints outside the window of the old cabin. The wire I found could have belonged to anyone. God knows how many women Niles Harris and Van Wilkerson kidnapped and brought here. I began to think that smelling her scent was my imagination.
