Page 115 of Spark

With all the surrounding mountains, it made me curious of their ski lifts. I was sure those mountains had some excellent powder to snowboard down, but with my recent injuries that probably wasn’t possible right now. I might be fully recovered, but it had been a while since I snowboarded, and I didn’t want to jeopardize anything just yet.

As we walked, I tried hard not to stare at the people, looking at just the buildings and scenery. When I was able to lose myself in it, the entire scene was simply breathtaking. The mountains surrounding us were everything I thought they would be and more. But then I’d feel a slight tug on my arm and remember where I really was. Darren held my hand the entire time, never letting up on his tight grip, but I did notice the slight decrease in speed of his typical walking pace. I normally walked the same pace he did, but I appreciated his slowing down to allow me to enjoy the city. With the number of times I wasn’t looking ahead of me, it would have been very easy for me to trip over myself and stumble into something.

I could feel my personal guards, as well as Scott and the other remaining guards behind us. They traveled at a respectful distance, not wanting to appear obvious as a security entourage. I appreciated their discretion and the fact that Darren was allowing it. It was almost as if it was just the two of us out for a stroll, or hell, even a date.

As the sun went down shortly after four p.m., a light snowfall had begun to fall over the city, adding to the magic that made Anchorage a special gem to cherish. And for some reason, it only made me sad. The entire time, I fought to ignore the fact I was finally out in the open. I was being seen by people who had no idea I was a walking ghost, that I was once a missing girl who was later found dead in the back of an alley in downtown Detroit. No one here knew that. No one recognized me or barely even looked at me for that matter. And to be honest, I was glad. I didn’t want a scene. I didn’t want anything to happen that would affect the safety of my family. I despised that Darren was still able to hold them over my head, but at least, he was no longer hunting every single one of them. Just the ones who had actually foiled his plans and escaped him.

“So what do you think?” Darren asked me as we walked along the outside path of Delaney Park.

“It’s beautiful. Thank you for letting me see it.”

“You’re welcome,” he said, but there was a hint of smugness hidden in his tone. “Come on; let’s step in here for a minute.”

Darren pulled us into what seemed like a small pet store, the door ringing as we stepped inside to signal our entrance. He leisurely led me over to the section of the store containing all the collars and told me to pick one. But as I looked over all the collars, my fingers couldn’t help but casually tap against the one around my throat. Why was he making me do this? Why hadn’t he just picked one out himself as he had for everything else that might be considered mine? Why did giving me the choice of selecting the collar matter so much to him? It felt like a cruel slap in the face.

Gazing over the large selection, I had a hard time figuring out what to pick out for my dog. There were collars of all different sizes and colors, some with spikes and some with bows. Eventually, I finally decided on a sparkly silver one with little rhinestones around the center.

“Really? That’s the one you want?” Darren asked, his eyebrows raised in obvious surprise.

“The irony is not lost on me, Darren. It only makes sense that Camaro’s collar should match my own,” I said boldly.

Darren stepped closer to me, his anger becoming evident. Luckily, we were the only two in the store and we were well hidden by the numerous shelves around us.

“Are you trying to push me right now?” he asked, his voice low but still just as menacing.

“Not even a little bit. But you are certainly trying to push me with this, and it’s not fair.”

Darren stepped even closer, his hand wrapping around my arm in a tight warning grip and lowered his lips to my ear. “When are you going to get over the idea that I’ll ever be fair to you? You’ll live your life as I see fit, and I’m beyond the point of caring how unfair you think that is. Now, stop complaining and pick out a damn tag for Camaro.”

I huffed my sigh as he returned to his full height, and I focused on not rolling my eyes as I searched through the tags next to the collars. Not giving a damn anymore, I picked the typical metal bone-shaped tag and handed it, along with the collar, to Darren. He took my selections to the front counter and had Camaro’s name engraved onto the metal. I kept my mouth shut, and my eyes unfocused as Darren answered the clerk’s questions and paid for everything.

When we left the store, he handed the bag to one of the guards who waited outside, and we carried on our way, my hand still stuck in Darren’s. We walked back to the SUV and took off again, and even though I wanted to ask where we were going now, I stayed quiet. My answer eventually came when we pulled in front of a nice restaurant with a beautiful view of Knik Arm and the mountains beyond it.

Darren ushered me out of the SUV and led me inside where we were seated at a private table in the back that allowed for the best view. The guards and Scott stood off to the side, almost surrounding our table and naturally making me uncomfortable. It felt like they were garnering unnecessary attention that I didn’t want.

My heart was racing, and I couldn’t stop myself from glancing from table to table as people stared at us. My knee started to bounce against under the table.

“What’s wrong now?” Darren asked, his voice hinting at his annoyance.

“Everyone is staring,” I murmured under my breath.

“And you’re concerned by this because?”

“I’m just… not used to that.”

Darren shifted in his seat, leaning forward to place his forearms on the table. “You’ll get used to it.” His voice was clipped and stern, and it was making me uneasy.

A few short moments later, a group of waiters showed up and placed two plates down in front of Darren and me. They also poured us each a glass of white wine and placed the bottle in the ice bucket before leaving us alone.

I stared down at the grilled salmon, green beans, and redskins, confused as to when I had ordered anything and looked at Darren for an answer.

“I had everything ordered before we got here,” he answered, noticing my confusion.

“Oh,” I replied, ignoring the fact that even when we went out, I still didn’t get to choose what I ate.

Thankfully, dinner was delicious anyway. It felt so strange being seen again, being so exposed. There was so much hustle and bustle going on around me. Between the people dining and socializing behind us, and the scenery above, it was more stimulus than I was used to, and for some reason, it made me nervous. It felt like every single eye was on me; whether they were Darren’s or his guards or the people around us, it didn’t matter. It was nerve wracking, and it made it difficult for me to eat. Again.

Halfway through my dinner, I felt sick, like I couldn’t hold another bite down. And the idea of asking to use the public restroom absolutely tormented me.

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