THIRTEEN DEVIN
THIRTEEN
DEVIN
My legs are getting heavier by the minute. I keep the phone open as a tracker, watching if she has moved at all. I looked around the cabin for as long as I could, and my bag was nowhere to be found. I don’t have a flashlight other than the light on this phone.
The campground is busier at night. Everything…seems different. Distorted. Dark. I haven’t paid much attention to those around me while I’m here, but I don’t recognize any of the faces I walk past this evening. Things are different once the sun goes down, I suppose.
Emily hasn’t moved; the phone is still in the same spot as it was before: on the hiking trail somewhere. I don’t remember the trail very well since I was more focused on not falling every other step, so I’ll need the flashlight on the phone to ensure I don’t go off the edge.
No one is around the start of the trail, and there is a small gate closing it off.
There is an opening to the side of the gate that I can slip through, so I do.
I turn on the dim light and start my trek up the trail.
I remember there being an overlook point at the end; she must be there waiting for me. Or someone else.
Every step I take crunches beneath me. The rocks and pebbles skid around as I drag my feet step by step. So much for being quiet; she’s going to hear me coming from a mile away.
Why would she be out here at night? It’s obvious it's dangerous in the dark, and the campground doesn’t want people taking this trail after hours. Is this where she’s gone off to the last few nights we’ve been here?
My chest feels tighter; every breath I take becomes shorter.
It’s the altitude, that’s all, I tell myself.
The more I think about it, the more my skin becomes itchy and hot too.
Sweat starts to collect on the back of my shirt.
Why am I so sweaty? It's not even that warm out. It’s actually much cooler than it was the morning we were up here.
I pass by a sign that reads: Halfway Point! Overlook ⒈／⒉ Mile Ahead.
Only halfway there. I can do this; I need to focus on getting there without passing out first. I’m starting to feel like I did yesterday: shaky, sweaty, dizzy, and numb. I shake my head and push those thoughts away. Whatever it is, it can wait.
Emily is smaller, weaker, and will be easier to manage than some of my victims. Although I don’t have my tools with me, I won’t need them. I’ll let the cliff and woods dispose of my wife for me.
As I approach the end of the trail, I slow down, I make sure to land my feet gently on the ground and control my movements as best as I can.
There is someone up there, and they have a flashlight.
The steady, bright beam shines in the opposite direction.
I turn off the light on the phone, put it in my pocket, and hide behind a branch to watch the person leaning on the railing.
I realize it’s my flashlight, the one that I keep in my bag. Bile rises in my throat, and my legs quiver under me. She’s found the secret bag and the items I keep with me. I’m up here with no weapon, no light, and I feel like I may fall over at any moment.
She’s set this whole thing up. She thinks she can get me to confess, but she is so wrong. I won’t ever tell a soul what I am, and she’s about to find that out.