“Not worth it,” he says under his breath.
He’s right. What’s the difference if Warner would have broken Lindsay’s heart? There’s nothing I can do about it at this point anyway. Better to let it go. After this week, I’ll never see Warner again anyway.
“I’m exhausted,” Michelle announces. “Are we still reminiscing or can we go to sleep?”
I want to be irritated at Michelle for her comment, but I have to admit, I’m tired too. I can’t even keep my eyes open anymore. Everybody nods in agreement and with the fire still going, we curl up on the uncomfortable forest ground to try to snatch a little bit of sleep. Michelle and Jack cuddle up together, and I feel a jab of jealousy. Noah and I are sleeping as far apart as we do in our bed at home.
The ground is not comfortable. That’s an understatement. I never considered myself any sort of princess, but sleeping on dirt is not ideal—the leaves do nothing. A rock pokes me in the small of my back and there’s some sort of plant jabbing me in the shoulder blade. Every sharp edge in my body is suddenly in pain.
I turn onto my side, hoping that might be better. It isn’t. I try my back again. That’s probably the best position, but it’s far from comfortable. I would give my little finger for a pillow or a blanket. Hell, I might give up two fingers for that.
Even so, I’m very tired. The sky is overcast, but I can still see the moon above. It’s a full moon, and there’s something almost hypnotic about it. My eyes start drifting closed. Until…
I hear a howl.
I sit up straight, suddenly wide awake. “Did you hear that?”
Michelle groans. “Oh my God, Claire, go to sleep!”
“Something howled.” My heart is pounding as I look around. “Nobody else heard it?”
“I think you’re hearing things again,” Jack says.
My face burns. He’s taking her side. Yes, she’s his wife. But he doesn’t love her. My relationship with Jack has been the only thing keeping me going for the last few months. It’s really hard to see him all lovey-dovey with his wife, even if I know it’s just an act.
Noah sits up, rubbing his eyes. “I heard it.”
At that moment, I forgive him for all the toilet paper rolls he failed to change over the years. “You did?”
He nods. “It sounded like a wolf or coyote or something.”
“It was probably just the wind,” Jack insists. “But whatever it was, it’s very far away. I wouldn’t worry about it, especially with the fire going.”
I scramble to my feet and look around us. For the most part, we’re surrounded by trees, blocking my view of our surroundings. There could be a coyote ten feet away, licking its lips, and we would have no idea. There are small gaps between the trees, but there’s no visibility. Especially not at night, with only the small fire and the moon illuminating the clearing. If only we had brought a flashlight.
I hear the howl once again. Is it getting louder?
I step over to one of the trees in the direction of the sound. I squint into the darkness. I can’t see anything. I take another step, my heart thudding in my chest.
“Claire?” Noah says. “What are you doing?”
I take another step, listening for the rustling of leaves. Or the sound of an animal’s footsteps growing closer.
Something brushes against my ankle. Something that feels like fur. I let out a screech and jump away. But when I look down at the ground, there’s nothing there.
“Claire!” It’s Jack’s voice this time. “Stop worrying about it. We’re fine. The animals will leave us alone with the fire here.”
I take a shaky breath. I suppose he’s right. And even if it’s not, what can we do? One of us could stay awake and be coyote watch all night, but I don’t see any volunteers. I might volunteer, but my eyelids feel like lead.
“I’m sure it will be okay,” Noah murmurs.
I nod and settle back down on my makeshift bed of leaves. There’s not much we can do either way. I’ll just have to hope for the best.
Chapter 17
ANONYMOUS
My dad taught me how to shoot in our backyard.
We had been planning a hunting trip for weeks—just me and him. It ended up later getting canceled because of an unexpected business trip to Toledo. But at the time, I thought we were going. And my dad said I had to know how to shoot if we were going hunting.
He set up a bunch of tin cans on a cardboard box. He said we were going to practice until I could shoot all of them. Our neighbors wouldn’t mind. Most people in our town owned guns and were proud of it.