“I’ll never be able to repay you for what you did.” The gentleness in his eyes captured her. “And I wouldn’t dream of expecting that you’d choose me. Just know that no matter what happens, I’ll always look out for you, and I will always put your happiness ahead of my own.”
“You mean that, don’t you?” She studied his expression. “I mean, I’ve had a lot of guys make a lot of promises. It’s almost metaphysical how, when you open up to me, I can feel that everything you’re saying is the truth.”
“I don’t know about metaphysical.” He stretched. “But you’re opening my mind to new possibilities, that’s for sure.”
“No.” She smiled, leaning in to kiss his cheek. “The first time you spoke to me in the woods, I could feel that you meant me no harm. I trust you, and that’s something that’s not always easy for me to do.”
“I trust you, too.” He smiled. “Just promise me that you’ll always be honest. I don’t want to make an ass out of myself if you fall for someone else.”
“I feel like a terrible person, stringing you all along like this.”
“I get it.” He shook his head. “We all feel whatever this force is. Normally I wouldn’t even put myself in the middle of something like this. Seeing Conner and Vincent fawn over you makes me want to back off. I even tried to keep my distance when I started feeling this way, but as soon as you come near me, it’s like I’m powerless.”
“I know what you mean.” She sighed. “It’s messy and complicated, and I only have until the first full moon of winter to make a decision.”
“Guys!” Conner’s door swung open, and the loud whine of an analog radio screamed behind him. “I got some bad news.”
“What is it?” Jillian got to her feet.
“Your fiancé made it back to civilization and told everyone that a Grizzly tore through your campsite.”
“What happened?” The front door opened as Vincent entered, carrying an armload of freshly split wood for the stove.
“Ted is not my fiancé.” Jillian scowled.
“Apparently, according to him, you guys were planning a spring wedding.” Conner held up his hands. “Don’t shoot the messenger.”
“And what happened to me in this scenario?” She huffed.
“He said you both ran and then you slipped and fell into the river.” Conner pressed his lips together. “So, the park rangers aren’t expecting to find you alive.”
“I’m kind of surprised they’d give up so easily.” Her anger deflated as she imagined her mother shopping for a dress she could wear to the funeral.
Her father would probably quote scripture for her eulogy. Thousands of people who had never cared about her would suddenly be offering their condolences and celebrating all the charity work she had done when her father was campaigning. It was just as well; she hadn’t done much else worth remembering. The person in her life who would be devastated by her untimely death would be Elaina.
“Oh no, the park rangers think this is a body recovery at best. But your father is still convinced you’re alive. He insisted on putting together a massive search party that’s combing the woods as we speak. They are all armed with what they’re calling RIP rounds, in case they come across the bear that may or may not have eaten you.”
“Appropriately named.” Finn rubbed his ribs, the pain still fresh in his mind. “I guess if I were one of those guys and I saw a bear running through the woods carrying a duffel bag, I might have shot me, too.”
“You were a bear when you got my duffel bag?” Jillian’s eyes widened.
“Well yeah, a guy picking through the campsite of a missing girl is a lot more suspicious than a bear.”
“Look, none of that matters now.” Vincent put his hands on his arms. “We can’t be here when the search party finds the cabin.”
“So, what are we supposed to do?” Conner shrugged. “They’re going over the place like a grid, and they’ll be expanding to this side of the river first thing tomorrow.”
“You guys aren’t going anywhere,” Jillian interjected. “There’s no reason to abandon the cabin. I’ll intercept the search party.”
“I’m not sure that’s such a good idea.” Finn looked at Vincent. “She could get hurt.”
“I’m not going to get shot; I have until the first full moon of winter to make good on my promise to the spirit. I don’t think she’d let out of my deal that easy.”
“The spirits aren’t going to keep you from getting shot.” Vincent tugged his ear.
“If I don’t go back now, I won’t be able to stop my father from passing that bill. Construction on that oil rig will start as soon as the weather allows and we’re screwed anyway.”
“You’re more important than the circle.” Conner shook his head.
“Really?” She leveled her gaze at them. “Do you know what drilling for oil will do to this place? Even in a perfect world where they do everything by the book, they could still hit an underwater river that would spray out in a flash flood, putting all of this under a nice thick layer of mud.”
“That seems extremely unlikely.” Finn curled his lip back.
“An entire town in India got taken out like a month ago.” Her eyes widened. “If I had my phone, I could pull up an article on it right now.”
“Calm down.” Vincent held his hand up. “We need to think about this rationally.”
“I won’t be gone long, guys, I promise. I’ll make an appearance, show them I’m alive. After I tell my father what Ted tried to do to me, I don’t see him taking any more kickbacks from DuPont.”
“And you think your father is going to let you disappear, no questions asked?” Conner scoffed.
“No.” She sighed.
