Chapter 4
Ethan
I hear Susie-May’s laugh as she bounds in my direction, and I turn toward her, only to almost choke on my beer because of who stands directly behind her.
It’s the woman from earlier. I wasn’t sure she would show up tonight, given the way she ran from me earlier.
She doesn’t seem to like people that much.
But that does raise the question of why she would come to a campsite full of people during the summer…
She looks bewildered as she sits down on the log to the right of me, and I can’t help but smirk at her. She looks out of place. But Susie-May doesn’t care. She plops next to her and grabs her hand like they are the best of friends.
The woman stiffens slightly at the contact, but she doesn’t push her away. Her eyes just flick down to where Susie-May’s hand is wrapped around hers, and for a second, there’s a hint of a smile on her lips.
She leans in and whispers something to the woman, and I watch as the woman shakes her head. Susie-May gets up anyway and heads toward the bag of s'mores stuff by Avery.
The woman glances around the circle. Looking from one group to the next, like she is assessing a threat of some sort.
The firelight dances across her face, throwing shadows along her sharp cheekbones.
Her black hair falls around her shoulders in a mess of waves.
I watch as the fire flashes across the skull on her band shirt and can’t help but smile.
God, she is so out of place right now.
Jared nudges my shoulder, forcing my body to sway to the side. “You going to go over there and introduce yourself or just sit there staring at the poor woman like a creep?”
I elbow him back, but it doesn’t stop the heat from creeping up my neck from embarrassment. “Shut up.”
Avery walks over to the woman with the s’mores and smiles at her. “I’m Avery. Sorry again about Susie-May dragging you over here. She doesn’t do well with boundaries or personal space.”
The woman shakes her head and gives her a genuine smile back. “It’s okay. I’m a school teacher,” she laughs softly. “I know all about kids and their lack of personal space,” she holds out her hand for Avery. “Kayla. Nice to meet you.”
Jared raises his beer at the woman. “Jared. Welcome to the chaos.”
Kayla’s eyes trail from Avery’s to Jared’s and then briefly on mine. A flicker of recognition in them.
Susie-May comes barreling back with a graham cracker already half eaten. “You have to make s’mores! It’s the best part of a bonfire,” she demands, climbing onto the log beside Kayla.
Avery laughs. “You don’t have to listen to her. She thinks she’s the boss of everyone.”
Susie-May frowns at her mother. “Mom!”
I can’t help the chuckle that slips out of me. Kayla finally looks over at me, and for a second, our eyes lock, and the rest of the campfire fades. Her gaze is intense. It’s like she’s trying to figure me out the same way I’m doing to her.
I hold my beer up. “You want one?”
She shakes her head. “No, thanks.”
I shrug. “Suit yourself.”
The fire crackles as someone tosses one of those fire color packs into it, and I turn my gaze toward the light.
The rest of the groups’ murmurs get louder as I pay attention to them.
Some of them are talking about the firework show at the end of the week, others are talking about the new fishing spot they wanna try by the falls.
I look back at Kayla. She doesn’t join the conversation. Just listens and watches.
After a while, Jared stands and stretches, tossing his beer in the nearby trash can. “Alright, we’re going to get the kid to bed before she turns into a tiny demon.”
Susie-May groans loudly. “I’m not tired!”
Avery scoops her up anyway. “Say goodnight.”
The kid twists around in her mother’s arms and waves at Kayla. “Goodnight! Come back tomorrow!” Then she turns toward me. “Night, Uncle Ethan!”
I wave at her. “Night, kid.”
The rest of the people around the fire begin to disperse, and before I know it, it’s just me and Kayla sitting by the fire.
She runs her palms along her jeans before standing. “I guess I'd better get going.”
I quickly stand, nearly falling over the log backward, and grab the flashlight hanging on the stick next to the log. “I’ll walk you.”
Her eyes narrow slightly, like she might think I’m joking, then sighs. “That’s not necessary.”
“Probably not,” I agree, flicking the flashlight on anyway. “But the woods get dark here at night.”
She looks over her shoulder toward the darkness, and her shoulders hunch. “Fine.”
We start down the narrow path leading away from the fire. The noise of the bonfire fades behind us until all that’s left is the crunch of leaves under our shoes. I shine the light ahead of us as Kayla walks beside me in silence. I hate silence, so I fill the space. “You don’t talk much, do you?”
She glances over at me. “You don’t know me.”
I shrug. “Fair.”
We only walk a few more steps before I fill the silence again. “You always come camping alone?”
She nods. “Yeah.”
The way her voice dips in sadness tells me there’s more to that story than she’s willing to share. The beam of my flashlight catches the side of a small camper tucked deep into the trees, and Kayla stops.
“That’s me,” she points at it. But she doesn’t walk toward it. Just stares in its direction. Then she does something I’m not expecting. She clears her throat. “Uncle, Ethan?”
I smirk. “That’s me.”
“So that’s your family?”
I shrug. “Kinda. Jared is my best friend since high school, and the rest kinda came along with him as we grew older. When Susie-May was born, he asked me to be her godfather, and I couldn’t refuse.” I give my best Godfather impression, and this makes her smirk.
She pushes a loose hair behind her ear. “They seem like nice people.”
I nod. “They are.” I shift on my feet. “Well,” I rub the back of my neck. “It was nice meeting you.”
She smiles at me before heading toward her camper. I let the light illuminate her path before I hear her door open and close.
I stand there for a second longer than I probably should before turning and heading back toward the campsite. As I walk through the trees, one thought keeps circling in the back of my mind. That woman is hiding something. And for some weird reason… I really want to find out what it is.