Force of Nature (Aaron Falk #2)(68)

The closest trees and shrubs glowed red, with the campfire giving the illusion of twitching movement. Beyond that, it was like staring into a void. She shook her head. She was being ridiculous. Still, she didn’t look in the direction of the horrific dent in the ground, which really wasn’t so horrific at all when you considered it was probably soil erosion. Alice was right, though, a little voice in her head whispered. There had been no helicopter.

Lauren took a few deep breaths and dragged her gaze away from the bush, instead looking up to the sky. She felt a rush of surprise as her eyes adjusted, blinking to soak in the sight. The clouds had cleared for once, and stars spilled across the inky night in a way she hadn’t seen in years.

‘Everyone, look up.’

The others leaned back, shielding their eyes from the low fire.

Had it been like this on the other nights? Lauren wondered. She could remember only oppressive cloud cover, but perhaps she simply hadn’t bothered to notice.

‘Does anyone know any constellations?’ Alice was leaning back on her elbows, staring up.

‘The Southern Cross, obviously.’ Bree pointed. ‘And you can sometimes make out one of the main stars in Virgo at this time of year. Sagittarius is too low on the horizon to see from here.’ She noticed the others staring at her and shrugged. ‘Men like to show me stars. They think it’s romantic. Which it is, a bit. And original, which it’s not.’

Lauren felt the hint of a smile.

‘It’s amazing,’ Jill said. ‘You can see why people used to believe their futures were written in the stars.’

Alice gave a short laugh. ‘Some people still do.’

‘Not you, I’m guessing.’

‘No. Not me. I think we all make our choices.’

‘I think so too,’ Jill said. ‘Sometimes I wonder though. I mean, I was born into BaileyTennants. I followed Dad into the business like I was told to, I work with my brother like I’m expected to.’ She sighed. ‘Every day I do what I need to do for the business, and for our family legacy and everything Dad worked for. Because that’s what I have to do.’

‘You have a choice, though, Jill.’ Alice’s voice had a quality to it Lauren couldn’t identify. ‘We all do.’

‘I know that. But sometimes my hand feels a bit –’ Jill flicked something into the fire. It flared and hissed. ‘Forced.’

In the dark, Lauren couldn’t quite tell if there were tears in Jill’s eyes. It had never occurred to her that Jill might be unhappy with her lot at BaileyTennants. She realised she was staring and looked away.

‘I know what you mean,’ Lauren said, because she felt she should. ‘Everyone likes to feel in control, but maybe –’ She pictured Rebecca. So controlling with what she ate, but so out of control with the illness that was destroying her. Something that no number of therapy sessions or hugs or threats or mindfulness bracelets seemed able to touch. Lauren ran a finger over the woven bracelet on her wrist. ‘I don’t know. Maybe we can’t help how we are. Maybe we’re born a certain way and there’s nothing you can do about it.’

‘People can change, though.’ Beth spoke for the first time. ‘I have. For the worse and for the better.’ She was hunched forward, lighting the tip of a long straw of grass in the flames. ‘It’s all bullshit anyway, that astrology and destiny stuff. Bree and I were born three minutes apart under the same sign. That tells you everything you need to know about your destiny being written in the stars.’

There was a soft laugh at that, from all of them. Later, Lauren would remember it as being the last time.

They fell quiet, looking up at the stars or down at the fire. Someone’s stomach rumbled loudly. No-one commented. There was no point. They had managed to fill their water bottles partway with rainwater, but the food was long gone. A cold breeze rushed through, sending the flames dancing and all around, in the dark, invisible trees rattled and groaned in a collective chorus.

‘What do you think will happen to us out here?’ Bree’s voice was small.

Lauren waited for someone to reassure her. We’ll be all right. No-one did.

‘Are we going to be okay?’ Bree tried again.

‘Of course we will,’ Beth answered her this time. ‘They’ll be looking for us by tomorrow afternoon.’

‘What if they can’t find us?’

‘They will.’

‘But what if they can’t?’ Bree’s eyes were wide. ‘Seriously? What if Alice is right? Forget having choices and being in control, what if that’s all bullshit? I don’t feel in control at all. What if we don’t have any choice in anything, and we’re actually all destined to stay lost out here? Alone and scared and never found?’

No-one answered. Overhead, the stars looked down, their cold and distant light blanketing the Earth.

‘Bree, staying out here is absolutely not our destiny.’ Across the fire, Alice managed a small laugh. ‘Not unless one of us has done something really terrible in a past life.’

It was almost funny, Lauren thought, how in the relative privacy of the flickering half-light, every face looked a little guilty.





Chapter 17



‘That was uncomfortable,’ Carmen said.

‘Which part?’