Page 44 of Blackwood

He had a sweet streak. Who knew? I adjusted myself on the leather couch, the cushions squeaking a little as I lifted my leg onto the ottoman.

I opened the file again and scrolled to where I left off. Instead of getting snared in the picnic photo again, I skipped to the next date.

Woods. I zoomed in on the photos but wasn’t sure what I was looking at other than woods similar to those around Blackwood. I clicked to the next and then the next. Ten photos in, and I couldn’t tell what the hell Lillian thought she’d captured on the photos. But I did find a pic with my father’s hand and wristwatch in the side of the frame. Whatever she’d been looking for, Dad had been with her.

I clicked through the rest, but I saw nothing that would help me figure out what happened. Deciding I had to have missed something, I started over, scrutinizing each photo for any missing clue. Other than a hunter’s mark on a few of the trees—a circle with a squiggly slash through the center done in orange spray paint, I found nothing.Shit.I closed out of the file and pressed my hand to the top of the monitor. I’d almost closed the laptop when a thought hit me.

I clicked on the memory card again. After a right click and changing some settings, I had the computer show me all hidden files.

“Bingo,” I muttered under my breath when a new file emerged, the last date of all the folders. I clicked inside and saw one file.

Click-click.The image filled the screen, and my breath stopped. Another shot of woods, the sun barely peeking between the branches. But this one had much more; a shallow grave filled with what looked like at least three bodies unearthed. To the side of the pit, my father leaned on a shovel and stared just above the camera with a look that turned my blood to ice. The sparkle had left his eyes and in its place—raw horror.

“Red?”

I yelped and slapped the laptop closed.

Garrett threw his hands up. “Damn.” He walked in and sat next to me as I furtively freed the memory card and stowed it in my pocket. “Cat videos getting to you?”

I swallowed and tried to play it off. “Just tired, I think. You scared me; that’s all.”

“You’re acting sort of…” He scrubbed his beard, the rasp reminding me of how it felt against my thighs. “Weird. Even for you.”

“Even for me?” I tittered out a fake laugh and kept my hand on the top of the computer.

“Yeah, especially what you just did right then. That bizarre laugh.” He stared at me. Could he hear my heart beating faster and faster?

He glanced to the computer. “Are you going to share?”

I wanted to trust him. My instincts told me to open the computer and show him what I’d found, but my mind was still on the fence.

I hedged. “Maybe, but not right now.”

“Fine. Keep your secrets.” He stood and sighed.

I took his hand.

He couldn’t have looked more surprised if I’d smacked him.

“Just give me some time, okay? Just some time? Please?”

His demeanor softened, and he squeezed my fingers. “You know I can’t say no when you use that word.”

I smirked up at him. “I play to my strengths.”

“I’ve noticed.” He helped me up and held my waist as I hopped to the stairs.

Fatigue began to weight my limbs, and the stairs seemed impossible. Maybe I should have stayed on the couch.

He scooped me up and smirked down at me. “Ready for this, Red?”

“What do y—”

I gasped as he bounded up the steps two at a time. Strengthening my grip around his neck, I pulled myself closer to him.

“I’ve got you, Scarlett.” He laughed when he reached the top of the stairs and carried me into my room.

“I told you no Rhett Butler shenanigans!” I laughed through the scolding.

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