Page 10 of Walker

Lynn backs up so fast I slide out of the seat, my back hitting the dashboard. “I guess I will just have to put it in reverse.” He slides under the back of the truck and this time she doesn’t move off of him, leaving him underneath the truck.

The guys come out of the woods and I let out a huge sigh of relief. I was so worried for them all. They are ragged, what they have faced in the woods must have been bad.

They see us and take off running toward us and I unlock the door so they can get inside. Tristan wrenches open the door first checking on us. “He got away.” That’s all I can hear, my face grows hot, my mind swirling it over and over.

He got away.

He said he was going to come for me.

Terror flows through every part of me. I look down at my shaking hands trying to control my breathing, to break me out of this phase and haze.

The door beside me opens, a hand touches my knee. I let out a deep breath, coming face to face with Walker who’s in the driver’s seat.

He pulls the truck forward moving off of the guy under the truck. “Well fuck, you should have run over his head,” he tells us and I bust out laughing.

God, I needed that.

Tristan reaches under the truck dragging him to the police officers down the field.

Lynn is helping the mom in the back seat, looking at her scalp. Well what’s left of it.

“What happened?” Lynn asks, adjusting my jacket on her head to help stop the flow, the blood has covered her whole entire front, her blonde hair is completely stained red.

“Josh literally went crazy. I began to ask him what happened when I heard the screams. Then all of a sudden, he reaches inside the ticket booth pulling me out by my hair and starts to drag me into the woods. He kept on calling me Summer over and over, mumbling weird things. One of the guys who worked here tried to get me loose, but he just wouldn’t let me go.” She lets out a sob, her face showing her anguish. “So, he used his knife to cut me loose but he got my scalp too.”

Oh my God.

She looks so much like me. I cover my mouth in horror that I was the cause of her pain and suffering.

I look to the guys; this hurts me so much worse than I ever imagined. It’s one thing for things to happen to me but to others? It's unbearable.

“Wanda!” a man screams, running past us like he is searching for someone. She gasps and sticks her hand out of the door, waving. “Frank, I’m here!” His head snaps around to our truck. He runs over to the truck taking them out, holding them tight.

“Daddy!” the little girl sobs, reaching up to hold onto her dad.

My nose burns with unshed tears, he looks to all of us holding his family. “Thank you for taking care of them,” he expresses to us, pulling them tighter in his arms taking them to his vehicle.

I slide out of the truck, needing a moment to myself. I just need to breathe and come to terms with everything that has happened. I stare into the woods, trying to forget everything that is happening behind me.

I rub my eyes, trying to stop the tears.

A hand touches my back and I turn around and see Walker standing behind me. “Sweetheart,” he says softly, his face is showing his anger but his voice toward me is tender.

I can’t stop the tears that are let loose. He pulls me to him palming the back of my head holding me to his chest.

Another set of hands touch my back, running his hands down my back and the back of my arms.

I let out a deep breath, that lets loose the sob that I have kept inside. “It’s not your fault, Summer. You did the right thing all those years ago,” Lynn tries to reassure me.

I know that deep down it’s not my fault, but it doesn’t change what I feel. I nod against Walker’s chest, not wanting to leave the warmth and safety just yet.

“Let’s go home. Stay with us tonight okay, Summer?” Lynn asks and I can’t help but feel relief. My dads are out of town. I know being home I wouldn’t feel safe and I don’t want my mom to be in danger so I’m avoiding her.

“Who is Josh?”

I back away from the guys, moving to sit in the back seat so I can talk to them all. I let out a deep breath, looking at each of them.

“He used to be my best friend, we grew up together. He lived next door, stayed all night with me.” I stare at the ground, mentally gathering what to say.

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