Page 8 of Wolf Cursed
But it was different now. It was all different now.
Reeling and completely drained, I stowed the cash in the glove box and started the car. At the main road, I hesitated, trying to decide where to go. Dad’s instructions rang in my mind. Ridley Falls. His brother. Oscar. Whoever the hell that was. He’d never mentioned any family before. It had always just been us. Him and me against the world. And Mom. Until she decided not to include herself.
I opened the glove box and checked the map Dad kept there. A cell would have been easier but our minutes had run out two months ago and there hadn’t been money to afford more.
According to the map, Ridley Falls was nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Right smack in the middle of nowhere from the looks of it. More rural than even this town.
That’s where Dad wanted me to go?
Somewhere so remote I’d have zero chance of blending in? This from a guy who’d always insisted that I not let myself be seen for fear it would bring monsters to our doorstep.
I almost decided against it, but then I thought of Vorack and his parting promise to return. The monsters had already come to my door. They’d kicked it in and taken the one person I had in this world. If I didn’t get someplace safe, somewhere off that asshole’s radar, I was going to end up like my father.
And the one thing I refused to become was my parents.
With resignation and a heavy heart, I made the turn that would take me to Ridley Falls. To a family that couldn’t possibly be any more terrible than the one I’d left behind.
Chapter Three
The drive took me two days. Even that was probably impressive considering how many times I had to pull over and cry. Altogether, I made it through three states and four mountain passes—nearly all the way to Ridley Falls—before the car gave out. Steam leaked out from underneath the hood but more concerning was the thump-thump-thumping of something that went along with it. I’d ignored the noise for the last hour, but there’d been one last loud thump and then the engine had died. I barely managed to pull over to the shoulder before the tires stopped coasting.
By then, according to the last sign I’d passed, I was five miles out from the town’s limits. The last car that passed was miles back, and in the fading light of dusk, the tree-lined road had a quiet sort of vibe that was comforting.
With no other choice, I stuffed the cash from the glove box into my bra, re-adjusted my sunglasses, and started walking.
It wasn’t long before the night sounds of insects surrounded me and my footsteps faded into the background until all I could hear were my own thoughts and the cricket’s song.
Images flashed in my mind as I followed the road. The memory of my father being shot. The way he’d transformed into some sort of demon beast.
I might have begun to believe I imagined that part if Vorack and his men hadn’t fled the way they did.
A few tears slid down my cheeks as the loss hit me square in my chest. A hollowed-out hole formed where once there had been love, safety, security. My father had been paranoid, terrified, and erratic, but he’d been mine. And now he was gone. And I was alone. Surviving was all on me now.
Inevitably, my thoughts drifted to the bookie. Vorack. He’d promised to be back, and I had zero doubt he meant it. Ten thousand plus interest. I’d been in my father’s toxic world long enough to know it would take twice that to get those assholes off my back, and even then, they could just as easily kill me as let me walk away.
A cool breeze whispered through the trees and down my spine, making me shudder. Suddenly, I was keenly aware of how quiet it had become. No more night sounds. No more anything. Just…stillness.
The feeling of eyes on me scraped along the back of my neck.
When I turned to look, there was no one there.
I forced myself to keep moving.
Steady pace.
No running or I’d only attract whatever predator was out here. Absently, I clutched at the pendant I wore. My last promise to my father. I wasn’t about to take it off, no matter how much shit he’d put me through.
I still wasn’t ready to accept he was really gone.
Or that this Oscar guy I was headed toward was my only family left.
Although, whatever awaited me in Ridley Falls had to be better than my life leading up to this. That’s what I told myself as I forced one foot in front of the other.
The feeling of being watched never went away, but soon, lights from town came into view, and I relaxed. If someone or something was going to try and hurt me, they wouldn’t wait until I’d strolled into public to do it.
The first building I came to was a gas station.
Pushing my way inside, I approached the clerk and waited for him to notice me. The kid couldn’t have been older than sixteen and was just beginning to sprout that first attempt of facial hair.
