Chapter Five
Levi
I don’t know who the hell he is, but I sure as fuck don’t like the way he’s looking at me, or my family. Especially my woman. I probably have no right to call her that, but deep down I can’t deny the possessiveness I feel toward Dallas; and I intend to protect what’s mine this time. The only family I have left.
“This way,” Dallas says, steering the stroller through a parting of the crowd and toward the exit gate. “There’s a park across the street.” I follow behind her, looking in all directions for signs of our unwanted visitor, or anyone else for that matter. Everyone seems to be going about their business, and my hackles slowly lower back to normal. We settle in on a park bench under a huge maple tree, its leaves ablaze in a riot of russet and gold.
It’s beautiful, but I’m more awestruck at the beauty and innocence of this tiny human who’s snuggled beneath a battery of blankets and sucking blissfully from his bottle. His eyes are closed and appears ready to fall asleep. If only I could sleep as peacefully.
“Are you ready to talk?” Dallas asks, nudging the stroller back and forth. I think the little guy is out completely now. The sun is slowly descending, the late afternoon light illuminating her golden hair and casting sharp shadows on her face. I reacquaint myself with the curve of her cheeks, the straight, regal plane of her nose, and the soft blueness of her wide eyes. I’ve missed her more than I allowed myself to remember.
“You won’t like it, but I promise to tell you the truth, as long as you promise to keep what I’m about to say between us,” I begin, acutely aware of the heat blossoming where her knee touches my thigh.
“I promise. Until I’ve heard the whole story, anyway.”
“Not even then, Dally. I’m serious.”
She looks at me for a long moment. “Okay.”
I drape my arm across the back of the bench and take a deep breath. “I was pretty screwed up when I left the bank that day, you know that.”
“Of course. You’d been through hell. You were exhausted.”
I nod. “Not just physically. My mental state wasn’t the best.”
“I know that too.”
“I went out to my truck. I didn’t know anything about the robbery. I was repacking my stuff, hiding my cash in a secure place. I had a lot of stuff in there, I didn’t really think hard about what to take and what to leave behind. Hell, I was no backcountry hiker. I had no idea what I’d need, but I had my dad’s rifle. Thinking I might have to shoot a rabbit or a duck at some point for food. Then all of a sudden, there he was, his own gun in my face, telling me to hand over the bag.”
Dallas pales as my words sink in. “One of the thieves,” she whispers. “He must have seen you take out all that cash.”
“That’s my guess too, since you told me what actually happened inside. I…” I break off, looking skyward as if for some divine redemption to befall me for what I’ve done. “The rifle was right there, inches from my fingers. I made as if to reach for the bag, but grabbed the gun instead.”
“You shot him,” she gasps. “You’re the one who shot him…oh my God, Levi…you’re the shooter they never found?”
I nod slowly and close my eyes, trying to block out the truth, the memory. “I pulled the trigger. Then I got in and drove like hell. I didn’t stop until I was out past Lake Pleasant. I don’t even remember the drive, only that it was dark before I stopped.” I open my eyes and turn to her, her pretty face as smooth and still as though etched from marble, like some ancient Hellenistic statue. “I couldn’t come back. I didn’t dare call you. Eventually my phone battery died and it was a moot point. I’m sorry, Dally. Truly sorry.”
Her stony countenance begins to soften, and she blinks those gorgeous blue eyes. Will she ever forgive me, or even believe me? Her silence is deafening, even as I hear the rustling of leaves scuttling across the ground, being pushed by the breeze. “Why did you come to Forks this week, then?” she finally says.
“I had to report some poacher activity to the ranger office. I don’t make a trip to town often, believe me, and I didn’t at all for the first several months. But I got to know some of the rangers eventually. They never looked sideways at me, or questioned me. I was just minding some family property in the area, and that was a good enough reason for them.”
“So, you never went back to Seattle…never looked for…” She shakes her blonde head. “Never mind.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Yeah, I know. You said that. You had no idea I was here. Annie’s was just coincidence.”
“Yes. You probably wish now I’d never come up to you.”
“No. I mean…oh hell, you surprised the shit out of me, Levi. How else could I have reacted?”
“You’re right. You probably thought I was dead by then.”
“Pretty much.” She tilts her head. “Is that where you were? This family property?”
“Yeah. It’s an old place, off the beaten track. My mother’s family owned it for several generations. It’s still in their name, but no one’s used it for years. Just a cabin and a few acres. I went there a couple times as a kid. It was always a good place to get away from it all.”
“I guess it worked,” she scoffs. “What will you do now? Stay up there for the rest of your life?”
Her words smack of scorn and doubt. I don’t want to lose her again, but does she even want to let me back into her life? I’ll never know unless I ask. “You could come with me. You and Mason. We could all be together.”
“Up in the woods? In the middle of nowhere? Living in Forks is bad enough. I want to go back to Seattle someday, go back to work, stop living off my parents.”
I reach out to stroke a lock of her silky blonde hair. I know she feels cheated out of her future, and I can’t say I blame her. But I’m not sure I’m ready to rejoin society. I don’t know if it’s safe, but I do know I don’t want to live without her and our baby another day. “You know I have money, Dally. You’d never have to worry about that.”
“And spend it on what? Hiking boots and kerosene? What good is money if we’re isolated from the rest of the world? Living like hermits? And what about Mason? What if he needs a doctor’s care? What about school when he’s older?”
“Then we’ll get whatever he needs…whatever you need. The place is remote, but it’s not like it’s on top of Mount Rainier. We can come to town, visit your folks, shop anytime you like. I’ve learned to love it up there. I think you will too, if you just give it a chance.”
Dallas brushes my hand away, her eyes flashing pale blue fire. “I can’t know that, Levi. I’ll have to think about it.”
“Then why not take a ride up there with me, right now? See for yourself? I’ll bring you straight back to your folks’ place.”
“I have my own car,” she says crossly, reaching into the stroller and placing a hand on Mason’s tiny forehead. “And we have a doctor’s appointment in town in fifteen minutes. His fever seems to be rising again. I’m sorry, Levi. I have to go.”
“I’ll go with you.” I don’t want to let either of them out of my sight. The need to be with them is growing in me like a storm, and my newly acquired internal radar is telling me I need to stick close, but also not to stay in one place too long.
“Stop,” Dallas says. “Stop pushing. You can’t force yourself to fit into my life, or me into yours just like that. We’re different people now, and we have Mason to consider. It’s not just about you and what you want.” She rises from the bench and takes hold of the stroller handle. “Don’t forget you’re potentially a wanted criminal. I wouldn’t show your face around town too much, even if you are disguised as a grizzly bear.”
She’s right. I’m letting my emotions rule my head, and I need to keep both in check right now. I’ve almost forgotten what I’ve brought with me, and quickly slip the rucksack from my shoulders. “Fine. I’ll go. But hang on a minute. I got these for us.” I pull out the new set of long-range radio transceivers I ordered from Forks Outfitters under one of my relative’s accounts, and give her one of the handsets. “These have a thirty-mile range, and long-life, rechargeable batteries. Call me and let me know how you’re both doing, okay? And when you’ve had a chance to think about what I’ve said.”
She glances back and forth between me and the device, seeming reluctant to take it.
“Please, Dally. I don’t want to lose you again. We’re a family now.”