3. Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Dylan
A s soon as I had driven far enough out of the canyon to be within service range, my phone lit up with all kinds of notifications. If I hadn’t been following Elise to make sure she made it home alright, I would have pulled over to figure out who was blowing up my phone.
Mindlessly, I drummed on my fuzzy steering wheel cover— a gift from my little sister from back when she didn’t hate me. I still used it, even though she’d given me the silent treatment ever since we moved here almost a year ago, and even though it muffled my drumming.
Normally, I would’ve been harmonizing right along with the amazing vocals of Mr. Freddie Mercury and his Bohemian Rhapsody that blasted through my speakers, but not even Queen could lighten my mood right now. Not when all I could think about was Elise.
Back when her dad was still alive, she’d been a much happier person. Reserved maybe, but she’d still seemed happy.
Last year, when we were both seniors, and co-team captains, we’d done a lot of stuff together. And believe it or not, we’d actually gotten along, at least mostly.
A couple of days before our big invitational race where her dad had gone missing, we went to visit each of the kids on our team, give them a gift and wish them luck, slash give them advice about the race.
I could count at least three times that I’d gotten Elise to laugh while we were driving around that day. Since her dad’s disappearance, I hadn’t seen her laugh once. Now that she’d actually seen his dead body, would she ever laugh again?
Up ahead, Elise flipped on her blinker and turned into a gas station surrounded by tall pines. I did the same. Normally, the place would probably have been deserted, considering it was almost three in the morning, and the only building for at least a mile. Not today. Today, reporters and cops spilled out of the store like ants spewing from an ant hill.
That sheriff must have called in backup after the reporters we’d found waiting for us at the trailhead had practically mobbed Elise with their questions. Why didn’t we tell everyone to keep this quiet before sending them home yesterday?
The cops all watched me with my blaring music like I was ready to rob the place. A few even lowered their hands to their holsters.
I pulled my black Outback into the stall beside Elise’s silver Honda, shut off the tunes and lowered my window.
“You alright?” I asked.
She nodded, then opened her gas cap. “Just filling up. I was also going to use the restroom and grab a snack. Want anything?”
“I wouldn’t turn down a Gatorade. Orange’s my favorite.”
“I noticed.” She gave me a pointed look. “Can you keep an eye on Bessey while I go in? She’s never jumped out before, but I like to be careful.”
On cue, the dog leaned her bandaged paws over the cracked window and sniffed the air. I doubted the poor animal would be jumping anywhere until those paws healed.
“Sure thing.”
After I hooked the pump up to my car and heard the whoosh of gas flowing, I walked over to rub Bessey’s head while I checked my notifications. Sixteen missed calls, seven voicemails, and twelve text messages. All except one were from Mom. The other was from Dad. “Call your mom please.”
I tapped Mom’s number, expecting to be sent straight to voicemail since my parents’ phones switched to Do Not Disturb mode every night at ten. She picked up on the first ring.
“Hello, Dylan? Are you alright?”
“Yeah, Mom; I’m fine. Didn’t you remember I was going with the team up to our running camp this week?”
Bessey licked my hand, then stared up at me with her wide golden-retriever grin.
“You were supposed to be back yesterday. Do you have any idea what’s been going on up there?”
A handful of police officers walked by their radios buzzing with voices. Should I play dumb or answer and risk telling Mom even more than she already knew?
“Kind of. But I’m fine.”
Mom snorted. “You’re fine. What about us? We heard that a body’s been found in the Cathedral Mountains, where you’re supposed to be camping, you didn’t come home last night like you said you would, and you aren’t answering your phone. What are we supposed to think?”
I winced. I really should have had one of the families that had come to pick up their kids from camp yesterday relay my parents a message saying that I was alright and staying longer so they wouldn’t worry.
“Look Mom, I’m really sorry. The head coach needed my help, so I decided to stay until everything was squared away.”
“Isn’t the head coach that Sudbury girl?”
“Sudbury?” came Dad’s muffled voice in the background. “You mean Dave Sudbury’s girl?”
Oh boy, here we go.
“Every last member of that team is dirty; I’ve told him that. It’s why I didn’t let him run for that guy last year.”
No, that’s why mom signed the waiver to let me run, and I didn’t tell you about any of my meets.
“Now, he’s coaching with that guy’s daughter?” Dad shouted. “Why’s the daughter coaching instead of the dad anyway?”
Ding! A bell announced Elise’s exit from the gas station. She walked with one hand around a Gatorade bottle and the other clutching an apple.
“Uh, I gotta let you guys go. I’m about an hour away from home, and as soon as I get there, I’m going straight to bed. Can we talk about this tomorrow?”
“Oh no you don’t; don’t you dare hang up this phone, Dylan Armstrong Harper,” Mom ordered. “What is happening up there; did one of your runners get killed?”
Elise handed me the Gatorade and I mouthed a “thank you.” I really needed to end this phone call so I could talk specifics with her. Besides, she shouldn’t overhear this conversation.
“I gotta go, Mom; I’ll call you back in a little bit. I promise everyone is fine.”
Kind of.
“Dylan…”
I hit the red end call button, cutting off Mom’s argument.
Elise studied me, with a curious expression.
“Sorry about that. I might have forgotten to let my mom know I was staying longer, and she’s pretty miffed about it.”
“Makes sense,” she said, biting into her apple.
“So how about I follow you back to your place to make sure you get there safely?”
She popped a hand on her hip. “You think I can’t take care of myself?”
“That’s not what I meant. It’s just been a really long couple of days, and I wanted to make sure you get home okay. I know if my sister were ever mixed up in something like this, I’d want someone to do the same thing for her.”
“You have a sister?”
“Yeah, no brothers. Just one sister. What about you?”
“I’m an only child. My mom died a little after I was born.”
Way to make her feel worse, idiot.
“I’m really sorry. I wasn’t trying to make you talk about things you don’t want to.”
“It’s fine,” Elise said, but then she rubbed Bessey’s head and turned her gaze first to the pump meter, then the cops chuckling to each other in the far corner of the parking lot, her car keys, anything to keep from looking at me.
“Hey, thanks for the Gatorade. Let me pay you for it.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Her voice was low. She turned to walk to the front of the car.
“So, I really hate to ask this, but I’d be a total loser if I didn’t check,” I called before she got into her car. “Do you have a roommate or someone else you live with so you won’t be alone when you get home?”
Elise opened her door. “I live with my grandma. I won’t be alone.”
I nodded. She didn’t see it, but I didn’t think she really cared what I said or thought at this point. Before I could offer one more time to follow her home, she shut her door. I gave Bessey one last pet, which she leaned her furry head into. Then, I stepped away.
Before I could even start my car, Elise had pulled onto the highway. Should I follow her, even after she’d turned me down? I don’t think she’d appreciate that.
My best bet would be to watch for her to show up to practice on Monday. Which meant that I was in for a long weekend of worrying until I saw her again. Hopefully, she would be alright.