At home, I find a note stuck to the door. It’s not my neighbor this time. The note says just one word, and I don’t recognize the handwriting.
Hello.
I would have been scared out of my wits by this find, but I’m so numb that I can’t even comprehend the seriousness of the situation. I go about my routine of checking the windows and doors, but not as thoroughly as I should, considering the haze I’m in.
I need a break from all of this. Being invaded in my own place like this is unsettling. I don’t know who it is. Well, notfor sure, anyway. I could speculate because c’mon, I’m a reporter, that’s what we we’re taught to do, but I try to be another kind of reporter. The one that uses only facts and doesn’t write clickbait.
Regardless of that, I still need to know who the fuck my stalker is. My only suspicion turned out to be false because the guy is still in prison, so I truly have no idea who’s been shadowing me.
But I’m overwhelmed with the wedding and my weird newfound feelings for a certain bad boy, so my head isn’t in the right place. I need a break, and I know just the place.
Chapter Eleven
LEILA
“Are you sure you cleaned the sheets?” I ask into the phone for the tenth time while trying to drop groceries into the cart.
“Of course, we did, weirdo,”Kayla replies, and I can almost hear her roll her eyes.“You asked me so many times, I’m about to punch you through the phone.”Then she adds with a chuckle, letting it trail off, making me gag,“The walls, though….”
Alex bought this cute little house for Freya a while back when shethoughtshe wanted a home away from the house, but when she found out how deep in the woods the place was, she changed her mind and put it up for sale. But no one local wants to buy a place in the middle of nowhere when they already live in the middle of nowhere, so the house has sat without visitors for afew months. And it’s not like it’s even a real house, more like a tiny cabin that can protect from the elements, but I’m not sure if it’s good for all the seasons or long-term.
About five months ago, Justin and Kayla went there for a little getaway slash fuck party for two, and she still happens to have the keys. While Freya and Alex are honeymooning—they left right after the wedding—I don’t want to bother my brother with my problems. I’d have to explain why I need the keys to such a remote place, therefore ruining his vacation. Kayla having the keys is such a convenience for me.
“You are nasty.” I gag, throwing a bottle of bleach into my cart.
“And you’re a prude.”She laughs, and something clicks on her end.“Okay, I gotta run. We’re swamped here. Make sure to get some gas; it starts snowing soon.”
“Will do, thanks.” And I hang up.
Adding gas for the generator to my already long shopping list since I don’t know how long I’m going to stay there, I browse the shelves, deciding what else I should get.
Kayla is right; it’s starting to snow, and I’ll most likely be there for a few days until the snow stops and the roads are cleared. And I’m totally okay with that. This scary situation I found myself in won’t go away on its own, but it’ll stay in the background since no one but Kayla knows I’ll be there, and the ownership of the house isn’t connected to my name. So yeah, I should be good.
Not knowing what’s in the pantry and how long ago it expired, I fill the cart with everything I might need (or not) and move to the register. If the fridge there doesn’t work, I’ll just store the perishables outside in a bag.
Standing in the line, I glance at the condoms on the right and suppress the urge to giggle. I don’t remember the last time I had sex. Was it last year? The dating pool of Little Hope is notdeep to begin with, but when your brother is the sheriff, it makes it even shallower. All my adventures were done in college and during occasional trips to the big city.
Yeah, I don’t need those,I think as I give the condoms the stink eye as if I have personal beef with them.
Loading the trunk of my sedan, I look around, assessing my surroundings. It has become a sad habit of mine recently. Happy to not find anything or anyone, I get in the car and punch the address of the house into my GPS. It’s an hour drive deeper into the woods and closer to the Canadian border. Is it a smart idea to stay remote like that by myself in my current situation?
It’s probably better that I stay in town where everyone knows everyone. But that can also be a problem since everyone likes to gossip and spill all the beans about everyone’s business and whereabouts. That’s precisely what happened to Freya and her ex—“helpful” locals.Yeah, it’s a good thing,I decide and drive off. Probably not the smartest move on the other hand, but I’m getting too overwhelmed, and my ability to think doesn’t exist at this point. I don’t like the feeling, so staying in the mountains while no one but Kayla knows doesn’t sound like such a bad idea after all.
A quick stop at the gas station to get some gas for a generator in case the power goes out and a shitty macchiato from the vending machine makes my mood brighter, and I switch my playlist from melancholic to cheerful. While my fellow ginger sings about how he loves the shape of me, I sing along and tap on the wheel, not noticing how bad the snow gets.
It’s only when I turn off the main road that I notice it. Here I can see how the snowflakes become one big mass, pouring down from the sky, quickly covering the road that was obviously cleared before.
Hmm, I hadn’t thought about that before—someone must have plowed the driveway since it’s pretty snow-free consideringthe amount of snow we’ve had. Alex most likely paid someone to take care of the house in case Freya changes her mind about visiting the place.
I’m glad he did, because even my four-wheel drive sedan wouldn’t be able to drive through anything more than what we have now. Yeah, not very smart of me after all, but there is no going back, since I’m not planning on sliding down the slippery mountain road all the way down to Little Hope.
I’ve never seen the house in person, to be honest. Only the picture Freya showed me, her eyes horrified. I expected some half-broken shed, its windows falling out, but in reality, it’s a cute mini version of a fairytale house.
I climb out of the car and look around—Maine is beautiful, but here, it feels even more untouched. It’s preserved in its raw ferocity with tall mountains and never-ending forests. I feel so small and yet so big. I don’t need to share this beauty with anyone here. It’s all mine.
I don’t understand why Freya wants to get rid of this place—it’s gorgeous. If I had money, I’d buy it in a heartbeat.
As I walk to the house, I notice that the walkway and the stairs are clean from snow as well. Interesting. Someone must have cleaned it very recently. Weird since it’s aremote,seasonalcabin. I don’t know why Alex would pay someone to maintain it, but he clearly does. Kudos to him. I make a mental note to thank him later.
