Chapter 11: Heather
My parents were so happy to see me. My friends acted like it was a miracle I survived the storm. There were tears and questions, but I tried to dance around them. I really didn’t want to talk about any of it. I just wanted to hide in my room until everything was forgotten.
The news made a big deal of the story, and I was in shock when I heard them spin our story to be one that continued to push headlines. My situation was never as dire as they painted it, but it would have been if Shane hadn’t saved me. They seemed to be willing to overlook his past because of his heroism, but the words I heard bothered me.
He wasn’t just a hermit in the mountains. He was hiding from the things he had done. It made me sick to my stomach to see him in handcuffs, but his crime didn’t sit right with me. There were a lot of conflicting stories—some even suggested the man might have been with his wife prior to the divorce, but there was no evidence to support it without Shane himself saying it was true. The injuries claimed by the man he hit sounded a little exaggerated to say the least.
I had to admit that I didn’t understand the situation and I couldn’t exactly ask Shane about it. I waited until my parents were asleep and I walked out to the back porch with a glass of wine. I just needed to feel something besides the melancholy of my own thoughts and the buzz would remind me of my time with Shane. As soon as I got the glass to my lips, I heard the door open behind me.
“Daddy.” I groaned. “I thought you were asleep.”
“It’s okay Heather. I’m not here to judge you for a glass of wine.” He waved off my transgression. “You’re an adult now and after what you went through, I’m just happy you’re alive.”
“Thank you...” I muttered. “The news is making it so much more than it was.”
“They get paid to do that.” He sat down beside me and put an arm around me. “It’ll be over soon. There will a Kardashian mishap or a rapper will slap his girlfriend and then you’ll be old news.”
“It just sucks.” I shook my head and sat down my glass of wine. “Shane doesn’t deserve to be arrested for helping me.”
“He was arrested for what he did long before he met you. The news story made a big deal out of it, but it’s hard to know how you would react if you aren’t in that situation. I can’t even imagine what I would do to any man that was stupid enough to climb into your mother’s bed while I wasn’t home—there would be hell to pay, that’s for sure. Shane will be fine.” He patted my arm and smiled.
“How do you know?” I raised my eyebrows at him.
“There’s no fucking way Shane is going to jail after he saved my baby girl. I sent Amos to deal with those assholes.” His brow furrowed with a hint of anger.
“Wait...” I pulled away. “Are you serious?”
“You’re damn right.” He nodded. “The man is a hero and he saved your life. Amos will have him out of jail tomorrow. I promise.”
“You’re amazing...” I shook my head. “Thank you so much.”
“From what Amos has heard, Shane’s ex-wife wants this to be over. They don’t want to drag any of the past up.” He shrugged. “I can’t say I blame them. It has been six years.”
“Yeah...” I nodded.
“Don’t stay up too late.” He leaned over and kissed me on the forehead.
There was a time when my father would have lost every bit of his cool if he walked outside and saw me with a glass of wine. It was clear that he saw me in a different light after the ordeal. I was no longer his little girl, the one he had to look after. I had grown up and I made mistakes, but I had gotten lucky because Shane was there to save me. Shane had shattered the veil of innocence that made me a child.
I was a woman in his arms. Once my father was back inside, I picked up my wine glass and kept drinking. I liked the peace and quiet of the evening, but it was nothing like the peace I felt in the mountain cabin with Shane. It was easy to admit I missed him, but hard to do anything about it.
I hoped my father was telling the truth when he said that Shane wouldn’t have to do time because of his crimes. The man that had existed six years ago was clearly not the man who came down the mountain just to keep me from freezing to death.
I would never be able to thank him enough and I would never forget him, even if our lives never came together again. It hurt to think about that, but I knew life had to go on.
I miss you.
***
MY CELEBRITY STATUS faded when classes started. I got the window replaced in my car, but it never really ran the same again. It made me late for class a couple of times and I had no choice but to trade it in. My father was willing to get me a new car, but I didn’t really care about having anything fancy.
I settled for an old Toyota that promised good gas mileage instead of the BMW he tried to push on me. I faded into the scenery of school, not really caring much about the parties on the weekend or getting wasted with my friends. I just wanted to finish school and leave it behind.
I often thought of Shane. Sometimes it was over a glass of wine at the end of the day and sometimes it was long nights alone in my bed, imagining the things we did when we were together. I had no idea if he even thought about me, but I knew I could never forget him—I didn’t want to forget him.
God, I miss having you inside of me.
***
A YEAR PASSED AND THE winter winds blew through Tennessee again. A storm was on the horizon, but it was nothing like the one I faced the previous year when I met Shane. They said that one was once in a lifetime. They didn’t know how true those words really were.
“You really won’t come to the mountains with us this year?” One of my friends, Amelia, nudged my arm as she walked beside me.
“I think I’ve had enough mountain vacations to last a lifetime.” I shook my head.
“We’ll give you directions.” She laughed. “Hell, you can ride with us this time.”
“I think I’ll just spend my winter break at home.” I shrugged and shook my head. “I’d prefer not to risk it.”
“Have you heard from him at all?” She asked. “The guy that saved you.”
“No, he doesn’t really have a phone.” I sighed. “He probably doesn’t want to hear from me anyway since I got him arrested.”
“Damn, he was hot.” She raised her eyebrows a couple of times. “I’d love to get trapped in a cabin with him for a few days.”
“He was a gentleman.” I said, although technically it was a lie.
“I wouldn’t want him to be a gentleman.” She licked her lips. “You missed out.”
“Yeah, I guess...” I shrugged.
I didn’t miss out on anything—I had every inch of him inside of me.
She had no idea what it was really like at that cabin—nobody did except for the two of us that spent time there. The chill of winter was in the air and the cold made me think of him. I had thought time would separate me from those feelings, but it hadn’t done anything to pause the longing I felt when he crossed my mind. When he entered my thoughts, my heart shuttered. When the thoughts got a little hotter, I got so wet and excited I had to satisfy myself just to maintain my sanity.
I drove in silence as I approached my apartment. I could have gone to the mountains with Amelia and the rest of my friends, but Wolf Creek almost felt like it occurred in another lifetime. I wasn’t sure I could see a mountain cabin and not go rushing off in the middle of the night to find him. He might not be there to save me if I got lost again.
I parked in the back of the apartment building and walked around the corner to the front door. It would be a lonely night, a lonely winter break—a continuation of what had become a lonely life. When I got to the top floor, I heard a noise behind me. I turned around to see my neighbor, Paul, opening his door. He stopped when he saw me and gave me a slight nod.
“I know you keep telling me no, but the invitation is always open.” He folded his arms and leaned against the wall. “One night out wouldn’t kill you, you might even enjoy yourself.”
“You’re sweet.” I smiled. “I’m just not looking for that right now.”
“You can’t blame me for asking.” He turned and walked towards the elevator.
Paul wasn’t the first guy to ask me out, but he was the most persistent. The problem with all of them was they barely even compared to Shane. I couldn’t take them seriously when I was certain they didn’t know how to build a fire, much less protect me. They were nice enough, but there was just something missing in every one of them.
I didn’t feel like I could just settle for a lesser man. The fact it would be settling was the worst part. I had tasted something that couldn’t be replicated, which meant I was always going to compare them to the man who showed me what it meant to be a woman. I sat down on my couch and turned on the television, trying to find something decent to watch.
I poured a glass of wine and sipped it while I skimmed through the television. A yawn confirmed it would be a short evening, and I didn’t care. Sleep sounded better than the meaningless rattle of the television and it came quickly once I turned the television off.
***
I WOKE UP THE NEXT day and showered, putting on my makeup just for the sake of going out to get food. I checked my mail and headed towards the exit, when I saw the man at the front desk waving towards me.
“Ms. Westbrook.” He smiled when I approached.
“Yeah?” I asked.
“This came for you. I was supposed to give it to you last night, but I was on break when you arrived. I hope it wasn’t time sensitive.” He grimaced as he handed me a folded piece of paper.
“Thanks.” I took it from him and held it up to the light.
I had no idea who could have left something for me at the front desk. Everyone I knew would call or text before they would bother with the trouble of pen and paper. The front was scrawled with ‘Heather’ in dark black ink. I turned it over in my hands and then started to open it, trying to figure out exactly what it was.
Across the top of the paper were the words Wolf Creek, faded but clearly visible. It was a map. I continued unfolding it and I saw a red line drawn from my apartment to a spot in the mountains. My heart started to beat hard in my chest when I realized exactly where it was pointing.
Holy shit...Is this?
It felt like a dream suddenly manifested in real life. I walked over to the light and unfolded it completely on a table. It was the size of two regular sheets of paper with my apartment on one side and Wolf Creek on the other. I traced the line, one that led straight to Shane’s cabin.
I looked over at the man at the desk to ask him who left it for me, but he was already gone. I stared at the paper and then I noticed there was writing along the bottom. I traced it with my fingers as my eyes opened wide.
You know where you belong.