“Yeah, like my parents would go for that.”

“Okay, then stay at my Uncle Danny’s and Aunt Becky’s. They have a spare room. You’d love it there.”

“Elliott, be reasonable babe.”

I pressed my forehead against hers and gazed into her eyes.

“I can’t be reasonable. Prudence left my intentions for us the day I met you, even when we were kids we were out of control but when time slipped away from us I had intended to be an acquaintance of yours, seeing you at reunions and joking about fishing with you as a kid then saying goodbye.

“I had no idea the knockdown, drag out astonishing hold you’d put on me Jules. It’s your fault I can’t live without you and it would be cruel for you to leave me now, no matter how long you’re gone.”

I was thoroughly aware of the guilt trip I was laying on her. If I’m going to do it, I might as well really do it.

I took one deep breath. “You know, I’ve held back with you out of respect but I want so badly for you to just agree to marry me already Jules! The minute we walk across that stage I want us to walk into the nearest courthouse because I love you Julia Jacobs! And!” I took two more deep breaths. “The hell with it!”

I attacked her. I pinned her to the driver’s side door and thoroughly pressed my lips into hers. I abandoned all control and did what I wanted. I breathed her in and could hear the air fill my lungs. It was the deepest I’ve ever breathed my entire life and I felt the strangest confidence in that freedom.

She groaned and tried to push me off of her but eventually surrendered, despite the fear that her family was just inside, a few walls away, as I kissed harder and deeper.

I pressed my body into hers, thread my fingers through her thick hair and held the back of her head against the window, with my free hand I put my thumb through the belt loop next to her left hip and pinched the bone between my fingers.

“Alright,” she whispered breathless.

“Alright, you’ll marry me?” I asked, a huge grin on my face.

“No,” she laughed, “alright, I’ll compromise. I’ll stay. I don’t think I would have been able to do it anyway, not with my insatiable need to be touched by you, especially after you’ve touched me like this.”

“Sorry,” I said, dropping my hold on her, “I literally couldn’t help myself. The thought of your leaving was enough to make me lose my cool.”

“Well, gain control,” she scolded playfully, “because I’m staying.”

“You know I need you to do more than just stay Jules,” I said resting my lips against the hollow beneath her ear. She paused for a long time, contemplating my offer. Pausing was good.

“Eventually, we’ll marry Elliott.”

“Eventually, I’ll run out of ways to convince you.”

“No need to convince the already persuaded. We only differ on the time frame.”

“We’ll marry sooner than later,” I jested.

“Or, not,” she said.

I kissed her neck again and this made her eyes roll to the back of her head. I laughed. I knew my own powers of persuasion.

I didn’t get enough of her to satisfy the greed but it was late and I caught a glimmer of light from the house where someone peeked through a closed curtain.

“They know you’re here,” I said.

“Oh,” she complained.

“It’s okay,” I said, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow.”

I woke late and hurriedly showered and dressed. I needed to see Jules and arrange for her to be safe somewhere else, just closer than Mauch Chunk.

“Bye mom!” I yelled while swinging my coat over my shoulders.

“Where are you going son?” She asked me, confused.

“I’m going to Jules’ house. She changed her mind. She’s staying and we’ve got to figure out a place for her to stay. I was thinking Danny’s...........”

“But she already left this morning,” my mom interrupted.

“What?” I said, only one arm in my coat.

“Yeah, she came by but you were asleep. She thought it best not to wake you and left this letter for you.”

I sunk into the soft arm chair in defeat, not bothering to even remove the jacket from my one arm.

“She was here and didn’t wake me?”

“Her dad was honking his horn honey. I was surprised you didn’t wake from that. Does it make you feel better that she was bitterly sad to be leaving?” She joked.

“No, it doesn’t. It makes me feel worse.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that, but what’s the big deal? She’ll be back before you know it sugar.”

“Yeah,” I sighed in consolation, “her dad must have forced her to go. I probably would have done the same thing if I had a daughter going through that.”

“You’re a good boy.”

She handed me the letter and I retreated to my room, my coat still half on.

Elliott,

So you got my note. Yikes, right? Our plan for my staying didn’t sit well with my family, especially my dad. They’re so worried and I don’t want to be the one who causes anyone pain, least of all you, but they feel it’s the safest thing. I know you and Danny will catch Jesse and Taylor soon and it will only be a matter of time before I’m gathered in your arms........oh.........and try to do it before school starts back up, ha ha, because my dad is threatening to enroll me up here. That only gives you a week, but no pressure or anything. Don’t feel hurried at all. I’ll only be nine hours away for the duration of the investigation but by all means take your time......just kidding. Or am I?.........Yes, I am. Honestly, I really hope it’s resolved quickly but I absolutely dread the danger it’s putting you in. So you HAVE to promise me you’ll be exceedingly careful. I hate your being in Bramwell without me. It makes me queasy at the thought of it. I have to know you’re safe, always. I need four times daily updates, MINIMUM. I need love letters, t-shirts that have swum in your cologne, all that pathetic mushy stuff. I promise in return to write ‘Mrs. Elliott Gray, after earning our bachelor’s’ *wink, wink* on all of my notebooks and wear your letter jacket to all the dances. “I’m taken,” I’ll say when the boys ask for a dance and raise my palm.

You’ve probably had enough of 4 a.m. Jules’ humor, so with that, I’ll say.......

Until I can kiss you again. I love you Elliott Gray.

Your Jules

Her dad was threatening to enroll her in a Mauch Chunk high school? She may have been joking about catching them in the act before Christmas break ended but I was serious as a heart attack about confronting them as soon as possible, now, actually, but not before I went to Charleston. I was looking forward to the after Christmas sales just not the same way most others did.

I hopped in my truck not even bothering to see if I matched at all. The ride to Charleston was deafeningly quiet and allowed so many sad thoughts to seep into my mind.

I thought about every single kiss I’d ever given Jules. I knew them by heart because that’s exactly what they were, tiny slivers of my heart given to her.

I was starting to feel overwhelmingly sad when I noticed something white on my floorboard. It was Jules’ handkerchief, neatly folded and pressed, her tiny embroidered initials in light green. She ironed her handkerchiefs like a little old lady, which made me laugh and almost cry at the same time. I picked it up and held it in my hand. Her perfume wafted into my nose. It smelled just like Jules. It must have fallen out of her pocket last night or maybe she did it on purpose. She is clever like that. I could just imagine her own thought process, if she had done it on purpose. I’d have to tease her about it when I called her later. I laughed out loud to no one. If there had been anyone else on the highway they would have pegged me a lunatic, laughing uncontrollably as I was with a handkerchief plastered to my nose.

I needed to focus on the task at hand but it was becoming increasingly hard for me to think straight. I was starting to feel like a drunk, stumbling around. Jules had replaced my center of gravity with herself. I even tripped on a rock I’d known had been next to my driveway since I was a baby. I felt like I was no longer symmetrical, completely off balance.

I walked into the massive electronic store in Charleston and thoughtfully walked the aisles looking for anything I’d think would help me catch them.

Something caught my eye but it was over a thousand dollars and that just wasn’t feasible, it’s not that I wouldn’t have spent it, it’s just I didn’t have it and that felt horrible. I settled for three night cameras, two I planned on positioning in the trees outside Jules’ window, one pointing outside the shrubbery they seemed to always come out from, I was hoping to catch them putting on their masks in side those bushes and the other pointing directly at the window they favored. Another I planned on actually hiding inside her room.

The cameras were of an ingenious nature. I could hook all three to one hub and digitally record the video through the software that came with the cameras on to the laptop I planned on keeping hidden in their living room. Nobody knew Jules had left town. As far as her neighbors were concerned the only people seen leaving Jules’ home the past few days were her visiting relatives. It worked out really well that way since I was hoping Jesse and Taylor would continue with their nightly visits.

“Lunatics”, I shuddered.

Through clever questioning while ‘shooting the breeze’ with Mr. Williams, Taylor’s dad, Danny found out that Taylor had a hidden GPS tracking device in her car so he could keep track of his out of control daughter.

That was a lucky break. Danny said that he hoped they used Taylor’s car for everything so they could subpoena the information to use as evidence. Danny was starting to warm up to the idea that it was Jesse and Taylor who might be responsible though he wasn’t singling them out and still considering all other possibilities. It was only a matter of time until he saw exactly what I did.

With my purchases in hand, I began my drive straight for Jules’ house. I didn’t want to waste any time. Before I arrived though, came the lonely hour and a half car ride home and again the sense of sadness overwhelmed me. I was determined to get this separation over with. It had only been a couple of hours that I’d been separated from Jules but it was already taking a serious toll on me. I felt weak, drained. I didn’t want to find out what several days of an untouchable Jules meant. I’d be the walking dead.

Jules’ house was empty but her dad told me he left a key at the neighbor’s house. That was awkward. Mrs. Stevenson looked at me strangely and I didn’t really feel like offering an explanation as she held the key a bit too long, obviously waiting for me to explain myself. I took the key, said thank you and walked over to the Jacobs’ house. I went to my truck and got the bags of my snooping loot.

Using Mr. Jacobs’ ladder, I scaled the trees and directed the cameras toward the most ideal spots. I stapled the cords to the part of the tree that would be invisible at the angle Jesse and Taylor intrude from and ran them along the hidden parts of the grass through Jules’ back door.