Following Me(23)

“Good night then,” he said finally as he stood.

She stared up at him, her brow furrowed with trepidation. Was that it? He wasn’t mad? He wasn’t going to push the topic? Didn’t he have more to say?

He made it all the way to his bedroom door before turning back to look at her. He seemed to be waiting for something, but she didn’t know what it was.

“Good…good night, Brennan,” she told him.

Whatever she was supposed to say…that wasn’t it.

He hung his head a little and then nodded. “Have a safe trip tomorrow, Devon.”

As Brennan shut the door behind him, she realized that was the first time he had ever called her by her name.

Chapter Eight - Mirror Image

DEVON WALKED DOWN the dirt lane kicking her cowboy boots against the small rocks in her path. The day was approaching dusk, and the sun was hanging heavy over the horizon, splattering the sky with pink, orange, and yellow. She finger combed her blonde hair down to her waist. She wished she had a hat because her hair was a rat’s nest.

She whistled her latest tune recalling the lyrics she had sang for her parents earlier that day. They liked them the song so much that they wanted to send it off to a label. They thought their Dixie girl would be a star. She didn’t know about any of that, but she liked writing it all down.

Devon veered off the road, taking a shortcut through an open field. She was thankful for her boots as she trekked through the waist-high grass. It had been a warm day, but the night was rapidly cooling the temperatures. She shouldn’t have been surprised in the least, but somehow, she would always forget her cardigan for the walk.

The wind whipped across the grass, tying her hair in knots and matting it to her face. She struggled to keep it away, but there was just too much of it for it to make a difference. While she fought with her hair, her sundress flew up around her stomach. She yanked it back down to cover herself, but she was having little luck. Grumbling in frustration, she cursed the wind for its timing.

She and her brother, Dustin, had taken this shortcut for years. It was only a matter of time before Dani knew about it as well. That thought terrified Devon.

When she crossed the halfway point between the road and the woods, she heard boots crunching against the earth behind her. Rolling her eyes, Devon turned back around.

Dustin better not be trailing me again, she thought.

Her eyes roamed the field, trying to make out if someone was on the road. She couldn’t really see anyone, but out here, that didn’t mean no one was there. Shaking off the feeling, Devon turned and continued across the open field. She had plans, and getting spooked out in the open wasn’t going to stop her.

When her feet hit the tree line, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. Devon swallowed and looked around, her stomach sinking in apprehension. She felt ridiculous for feeling anxious like this, but her parents had filled her head with stories from the news about girls getting abducted, being sold into prostitution, and then getting killed. Too many stories like that had happened recently. She had always told her mom that she was a worrywart, but now that her nerves were getting to her, Devon was wondering if her mother worried for good reason.

She still didn’t see anyone approaching, but she could feel eyes on her. It was an obvious feeling, like the way Matt had stared at her in the back of the classroom. But this was worse.

Hightailing it out of there, Devon broke through the trees onto the narrow trail. It wasn’t a long walk from there, but she increased her pace anyway. She had a terrible feeling about all of this. Why hadn’t she just stayed home? Why couldn’t she listen to anything anyone told her?

She definitely heard footsteps behind her. They weren’t exactly close, but they didn’t have to be to freak her out. She was alone after all, and all things considered, she was a small person. There was no way she could fend off someone purposefully chasing her. Her only hope would be for her to make it out of the tree line.

Fear pushed at her pores, and she felt panic hitting her like a ton of bricks. What kind of person would chase after her in the middle of the woods? Would she be one of those news stories—pieces of a dead body from a young woman found buried in the woods near her house? Bile rose in her throat, and she swallowed it down. She was only freaking herself out more.

Taking off at a sprint, Devon pushed forward as fast as she could go. She had never been a runner, and the last beer she’d had was sloshing around in her stomach, slowing her down. Why had she done that? If she hadn’t, would she be faster? She couldn’t think about it.

Her boots slowed her down even more. They weren’t meant for running distances. They were meant for horseback riding, and more importantly, they looked good.

Her feet pounded the dirt as she tried to hold her pace. The end of the trail was approaching, but she could feel her pursuer gaining on her. On a straight stretch in the trail, she looked over her shoulder, and her long hair flew out in every direction around her face. She could definitely see a figure, but with a quick look, she couldn’t tell who it was or if she even recognized the person.

Hadn’t her mother told her that 95 percent of reported cases were people that the victim knew firsthand?

Finally reaching the road, she looked both ways before crossing. She ran straight across the lawn between the double oak trees and up the creaking wooden stairs. She yanked open the screen door and banged on the front door. Devon heard a familiar answering call, and she pushed into the house without another thought.