Chapter 46
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
I spend two hours in a coffee shop waiting for the funeral to finish, only to find out from Bradley that there’s a small reception afterwards at a house rented by Grace’s family.
I don’t want to go back to Pine Ridge alone—or pay for the massive taxi ride—so I find an arthouse theater and buy a ticket to a screening of Rebecca.
I try to switch my brain off, but after thirty minutes, I walk out.
It’s too stressful. I go to a Mexican restaurant, and while I eat my burrito, I make my way through a carafe of sangria.
By the time I finish, it’s nearly nine. Where is Bradley? I call his phone three times, but there’s no answer. I do laps of the busiest city streets, and eventually get a text.
I’m with family. They won’t let me leave tonight, so you’re on your own, sorry.
I’m annoyed by his tone, but with the alcohol and the emotions of the day, I just want him near me.
I miss you.
There’s no response, so I scrawl another text.
I’m scared. Jesse threatened me.
He was drunk.
What if he comes to Pine Ridge?
Call the police.
The police? That seems like exactly the wrong thing to do, especially as they only just closed their investigation into Grace. I see that he’s typing, so I wait for his next message.
We shouldn’t text.
That explains it. Bradley doesn’t want to write anything incriminating. Fair enough. But we’re still together, aren’t we?
I type out “I love you”, then delete it.
I stand on the street corner staring at my phone until a guy yells out from a passing car. It’s getting late to be walking around the city on my own. I pull up the taxi app and order a ride home. It’ll cost a bomb, but I guess I can afford it now.
In the car, I think about Bradley’s family. How many of them were at the service? Does he have brothers and sisters? Where did he grow up?
I know nothing about him. But don’t I know the most important things? I know how he kisses, how he laughs, how his body feels, how I feel when I’m around him. I know that he’s funny and kind, and that he’ll do anything for me. He’s not showing it right now because he can’t.
Walking down the dark driveway to the homestead, I fantasize about raising kids at Pine Ridge.
The property would be an incredible place to grow up.
I imagine a pack of them, running through the trails, exploring the woods, climbing trees, laughing and screaming.
There’s no school nearby, but maybe I could homeschool them.
I wouldn’t be the only mom in the area to do so.
Despite the day, I feel genuinely happy as I go inside the house. The hard part is over. Tomorrow, our new life will begin.
I pour myself a glass of wine and take it upstairs. I leave all the lights on, get into bed, and put on a podcast.
I’m asleep in minutes.
HONK!
I wake to the sound of a car horn. It’s still dark outside. I check my phone and see that it’s 3 a.m. My mouth is dry, and I can feel the dull thud of a headache coming on. That’s what I get for finishing the sangria.
HONK!
As I sit up and turn on the lamp, I feel uneasy. It sounds close. It must be coming from the driveway.
A man’s voice, screaming. Then the horn again.
I want to turn off the light and put in my earplugs, but instead, I creep out of bed. The hallway lights are still on, but it’s dark in the spare bedroom. I walk quietly, as if the man outside can hear every creak of the floorboards. I kneel and crawl towards the window.
I raise my head slowly. A car is parked by the barn, its headlights on full beam.
He lets rip on his horn again. I cover my ears with my hands, but it doesn’t drown it out. After a minute, the sound stops. But now I can hear something else.
A howl of despair, violent and primal.
When I dare to look out the window again, I see a dark figure staring right at me.
It’s Jesse, I’m sure of it.
When he’s quiet again, I can hear the car idling and feel a rush of relief. That means he’s not staying.
“I’m coming for you, Bradley!” he yells out. His voice is uneven, and I assume he’s still drunk. “And you, Brie-like-the-fucking-cheese!”