9. Chapter Eight
Chapter Eight
Noah
I lied to her.
So fucking what.
If I had told her the truth, that no, she isn’t the first woman I’ve brought here, she would have panicked and I finally fucking feel like she’s warming up to the idea of staying here with me.
Besides, Alannah was years ago. My first attempt at finding love. She was beautiful, in a classical kind of way, but far too uptight. Always screaming, always trying to escape. She had loved her life in the city too much to appreciate the small things. Like the butterflies and dragonflies that grace the meadows just beyond the waterfall.
She had been a failure of epic proportions and Kairo was fucking furious that I had killed her. He kept saying he wanted a turn, but I’m too selfish for that. Besides, I didn’t kill her. I was just chasing after her and she fell and smashed her head on a rock. I don’t kill women unless absolutely necessary. She was breathing when I got to her, but she didn’t make it. Might have if I’d have gotten her some help, but I didn’t. What the hell else was I supposed to do? Let her go and let her tell the cops about our little activities?
Yeah, that would go over well.
Hi officer, don’t worry, we just hunt women up here, holding them captive until they agree that they’re ours to keep. Please don’t arrest us, I promise our motives are pure.
Kairo is such a fucking moron sometimes. I have about as much love for him as I can feel for another person, which isn’t much, but it’s enough for me not to club him to death when he pisses me off.
Which is often.
He told his friends about our cabins, which led to me beating him to within an inch of his life. This is supposed to be our thing. But, unfortunately for us, and the world really, his friends are even more depraved than he is.
Which leads me to this moment, here, with Cassidy.
Kairo never understands why I am the way I am. Why I am ‘kind’, his words not mine, to my marks.
Probably because I don’t actually want to hurt them. I want them to love me the way I love them. And where Alannah failed, Cassidy won’t.
I can see the love in her eyes, even if there’s a healthy dose of fear in them too.
Which, to be honest, I expect.
In fact, I would probably be a little concerned if she had no fear at all.
That sense of self-preservation just means she is everything I have been searching for. Soft. Vulnerable. The perfect compliment to my darkness.
Once she realizes that I will never hurt her, she will wonder why she ever resisted me in the first place.
I listen to her breathing, getting more and more ragged until it evens out. My eyes begin to droop as the comforting music of her sleeping body takes over my senses.
I’ve done it this time. I know it. She’s perfect.
And mine.
Forever.
Just as I’m about to drift off, an alert beep goes off. Shit, shit, fuck. I slip into the room and stand over Cassidy, making sure she’s out before heading into the closet and opening the door to my security room.
Flipping the switch, the screens burst to life. Dana and Mike are heading up this way, about a mile down from my cabin.
What the fuck are they doing up here? They never come up this far.
I zoom in, seeing their breath puff out like steam in front of them. They’re arguing, Dana's hands flailing wildly as they make their way over the frost. Mike drags his feet, shoulders hitched up to his ears.
Dana’s voice crackles through the speakers. “You know Noah’s gonna lose it when he sees us.”
Mike shrugs, looking like a petulant child. “What the hell is he doing up here anyway?”
“Dunno, but I tracked him yesterday. Had that chick with him. Think they’re boning.”
“Then why the hell are we up here?”
“Because I’m tired of waiting for him to finish this little love affair,” Dana snaps back, “he’s mine, Michael. I want him. He just thinks he can fuck me and then abandon me because he found some pretty little lawyer? Fuck. THAT. I am gonna show him that I’m the one for him.”
“He’s gonna be pissed, Dana. Why can’t you just be happy with me? We’ve been dating months now and you just can’t let this asshole go. Why are you always harping on that freak?”
Because you’re whining like a fucking pussy, Mike.
She turns, hands on her hips as she stares at him. “He will be fine with a little visit, okay? Just for closure, baby. Then we can start decorating your apartment and I’ll move in, okay?”
I grit my teeth and consider my options. They could survive if they turn around and go back to the lodge and if Dana gets it through her thick skull that she was nothing more than a come receptacle for me. If not... Well, I've got more than one way of dealing with them.
I turn and head into the bedroom, closing my door behind me. Cassidy shifts under the duvet as I lean over her, pressing my lips against her forehead. She stirs but stays asleep.
“Be back soon,” I whisper before clicking the bedroom door shut and slipping into my boots and coat.
The cold bites at my face as I step outside into the night air. It’s dark, but I know these woods like blood cells know veins. I move quickly, making sure not to leave any obvious tracks that might lead Cassidy to ideas she shouldn't have when she wakes up.
I catch sight of them before they see me. Dana is still talking—she never shuts up—and Mike looks like he’d rather be anywhere else.
“Lost?” I call out.
Dana stops, her mouth dropping open. She closes and opens it a few times, looking like a startled fish. “Noah… I… I…”
“Yes, Dana?”
“I came to see you.” She finishes lamely.
I pause, staring at Mike who looks like his balls have shriveled into his stomach. “How did you find me?”
“Well… I followed you yesterday and saw that you brought that girl. I wanted to talk. About us.” She’s wringing her hands now, almost as if she regrets coming up here.
Honestly, it’s better that she did. I had no idea how deep her obsession for me was, and that poses a threat to everything we’re doing here.
“Oh. I see.” I motion down the path that leads towards the cliffs. “Come, I’ll show you my cabin.”
It is a cabin. But it’s not my cabin. It’s a… hunting cabin. With a very specific area.
Mike stammers, turning to head back down, “I think I’m just gonna go back.”
“Oh, don’t be ridiculous Mike. You’re soaked. Come, let’s warm up with some coffee.” I smile as wide as I can, the motion splitting my lip.
He stops in his tracks, like a deer that knows it’s fucked. Dana grabs his arm, yanking him back towards her. “See? I told you he’d be cool with it.”
“Cool isn’t the word I’d use,” Mike mutters.
Dana turns to me, eyes wide and hopeful. She thinks she’s won something here. “I knew you weren’t serious about her.”
“Of course not,” I say, leading them up the path towards the cliffs. The wind picks up, howling like an animal in heat. “You think so little of me?”
Her relief is almost embarrassing. Mike says nothing, but looks dejected as fuck. I don’t blame him… knowing your woman is pining after another man. But I do blame him for letting her come out here. And for letting her drag his ass out here too. Utterly pathetic.
The trees thin out as we reach the old hunting cabin perched precariously near the edge. It’s falling apart and smells like fox piss inside, but this is as good as it’s gonna get for them.
Dana shivers and pulls her coat tighter around herself as I push open the creaky door. “Wow, you actually do have a cabin up here,” she says, trying to sound impressed.
“Yeah, I stay here when I just want a break from the retreat,” I tell her, gesturing for them to enter first.
Mike hesitates but then ducks inside after Dana. They’re in agreement on one thing at least—neither wants to be left out in the cold.
I stand at the threshold, watching their silhouettes against the dark interior. I think of Cassidy warm and perfect body at the real cabin, so beautifully unaware of how fucking close she came to being discovered.
The door slams behind them with a satisfying thud, shaking rain drops from the roof like a mini flood. Grabbing a thick piece of wood, I secure the outside. No windows big enough to escape, no way they’re getting out of this door. Not unless Mike grows a pair and figures out how to break through. Which he won’t. Because he’s a little bitch.
I turn and head back through the woods as Dana’s muffled voice screams my name over and over.
“I’ll be back soon Dana!” I yell, smiling.
If they don’t freeze to death, then my skinning knives are going to see some much-needed action. It’s been a while since I’ve had to process meat.
The walk to my cabin is beautiful. I’ve always loved the smell of fresh rain and thankfully, it stops just long enough for me to enjoy the wildflowers that are springing up wherever patches of sun can pierce through the canopy.
I’ll have to bring Cassidy to the meadows. She will love it there.
Finally, I make it back to my cabin and close the door behind me, kicking off my boots and shucking my jacket. Exhaustion hits and I lay on the couch, pulling a blanket over me. A few hours of sleep and then I’m going to make my girl some breakfast. Hopefully I can distract her long enough today so I can slip out and go take care of my unwanted guests.
The morning comes with the sweet smell of coffee and pancakes as I finish up in the kitchen. Her sleep-addled eyes blink open, finding me exactly where I want to be— by her side with a steaming mug of coffee and blueberry pancakes in a neat little stack that would make Martha Stewart jealous.
She sits up, rubbing her eyes before stretching. “Morning.” Her voice is thick with sleep.
“Morning,” I say softly, handing her the mug as she shuffles back against the headboard. “Hungry?”
She looks at the plate and then at me, something like suspicion flitting across her face before softening into resignation. “Yeah.”
I leave her to eat while I try not to stare holes in the walls from the living room, sipping my own coffee and feeling more like a real couple than I ever did with Alannah.
It’s almost domestic, if you ignore how we got here.
Today, I want to take her to the falls and then show her the clearing beyond it. Looks like the weather will hold, even though the clouds are getting darker. At the very least, if it does start to rain, I can give her a book and head out to ‘check on my traps’.
Disposing of Mike and Dana shouldn’t take more than a few hours. Worst case, I can string them up and bleed them out. It’ll take longer, and clean up is annoying as fuck, but it also means that dumping their bodies will be easy.
So much easier to dump a corpse if it’s been drained of blood first. Less chance of animals following the trail too.
Maybe I should call Kairo. I helped him with Kristine, maybe he can help me with these two assholes.
Before I make my choice, my girl comes to stand in the doorway, holding her cup.
“I… uh… can I have some more coffee?” She blushes as she speaks.
I nod, “Help yourself. Should be enough for another couple cups if you’d like. If you want to make a latte, I have a milk frother in the drawer.”
She looks almost shocked as she ponders on that before turning and heading into my modest kitchen. This cabin is small, that’s why it’s temporary, but I do my best to keep it stocked of modern amenities and I just so happened to do a big shop just before she checked in.
Speaking of checking in…
I should check her out before any other nosy Nellies decide they want to come sniffing around.
The milk frother buzzes quietly in the kitchen and I smile. She’s getting back to doing things that bring her joy. Soon, I’ll teach her how to hunt, how to fish. My intuition was right.
She is the one.
Cassidy returns with the steaming cup cradled in her hands; the hesitant smile she gives me a small victory. “You got a lot of stuff here for someone who’s supposed to be living off the grid.”
I shrug, watching her as she sits across from me, curling her feet underneath her. “I like my comforts,” I say, and she nods, sipping at the latte. “How’d you sleep?”
“Okay, I guess.” Her eyes find mine over the rim of her cup, guarded but curious. “Kind of surprised you didn’t try to… you know.”
“You were tired,” I tell her smoothly. “I want you ready for today.”
She tilts her head, suspicion and intrigue dancing across her face. She’s trying to figure me out. The way she studies me feels like a soft touch. Maybe someday she’ll admit it.
“What is today?” she asks, feigning disinterest.
“I thought we’d hike out to the falls.” I watch for her reaction. “And there’s a meadow I want you to see.”
“More hiking?” A ghost of a smile plays on her lips. She probably thinks I’m up to something.
“Unless you have other plans?” I keep my voice sincere even though we both know the answer.
Her shoulders relax, and she takes another sip before answering. “Fine. But if it rains like yesterday, you’re carrying me back.”
She’s joking—I think—but doesn’t realize how much I’d love that. “Deal,” I say.
The tension eases as we spend what feels like a real morning together. She’s less skittish now, more confident. Making her coffee’s and eating pancakes off the pan. Like a wild animal, she just needs to realize that safety is not something she has to fight for here.
Being in the wild isn’t like the city. There’s no competition out here. No rat race. Just pure, uninterrupted peace.
Well, usually. Dana and Mike have interrupted my peace, and they will pay for that. For every moment I’m forced to be away from Cassidy, they will feel it ten-fold.
But that’s an issue for later. For now, we eat and then go for a hike.
We finish breakfast, and I’m restless as she takes her time getting ready. I remind myself the more I allow her to feel like she’s making choices, the less likely she is to try and leave.
She emerges in the clothes I got her, somehow making even a thermal top look hot. “Ready?” There’s a challenge in her voice.
I grab our gear, excitement pushing me as we head out into the open. The mist is thick, and the mountains are draped in low clouds. It might rain, but Cassidy doesn't mention it again, falling into step beside me like it's natural.
She speeds up to walk beside me as the path widens. Grasping her hand in mine, I hold it tightly. Her eyes are wide as she looks up at me, but she doesn’t fight it. Doesn’t try to pull away. We walk in silence until we reach the falls. The water roars louder the closer we get until finally, we’re just steps from the water’s edge.
She let’s go of my hand and rushes forward to stand at the edge of the pool, mesmerized by the power in front of her. “Wow,” she breathes out.
I come up behind her, close enough to touch but holding back just enough to make her want to step towards me. She doesn’t. She just stands and stares at the water rushing from fifteen feet in the air.
The cabin I built us is just behind the small grove of trees. I can spot it from here, but she won’t be able to. It’s designed to blend in, to mold to its surroundings. To be hidden.
Safe.
Suddenly, Cassidy drops onto the moss and starts pulling off her boots and socks before stepping forward, squealing as the cold water hits her toes.
“God that’s freezing!” She says.
A smile washes over my face. “Yes. It’s glacier water. Comes directly from the top of the mountain. Freshest water you can drink.”
She eyes it skeptically, then crouches down to cup some in her hands, bringing it to her lips. I watch, captivated, as she drinks, a shiver running through her.
“Holy shit,” she gasps. “That’s amazing. Nothing like that bottled glacier water back home.”
I laugh, the sound surprising even me. “Told you.”
She cups some water in her hand and tries to splash me, but I’m too quick, dodging back and pulling her into my arms before she can react. Her breath catches but she doesn't pull away, looking up at me with bright eyes that match the sky just before a storm.
“Put me down,” she says, but there’s no force behind it.
I loosen my grip enough for her to slip away if she really wants to. She doesn’t. Just stays there, finding the rhythm of my heartbeat under her cheek. I can feel her breathing even out, her head pressing against my chest. My throat tightens. This is all I ever wanted.
“Well,” I say as the clouds grow darker above us, “if you’re not going to fight me…”
Cassidy pulls back slightly to look up at me. There's a challenge there and it ignites something in both of us. “Maybe I will.”
It’s the answer I didn’t know I needed.
“I’ve got something else I want to show you. This time of year, we get some amazing flowers. It’s just beyond the ridge.” Just as quick as I pulled her in, I let go. Cassidy stumbles back onto the mossy shore and I wait patiently as she slips on her socks and boots and starts walking further up the trail.
“Where are we going?” She calls over her shoulder.
“You’ll see. Just keep going straight.”