Chapter 15
When I ran away, I momentarily forgot what I vowed to do and who I vowed to do it with. After running away, it all seemed moot because my son was happy where he was and I didn’t have to face Alaric’s death glares and threats each time I opened my eyes.
But… When he showed up, my mind started to race again, wondering if I did the right thing. After he dismissed me from giving what I consider our version of a peace offering, I marched back into the diner with a new purpose; to change things around.
Things seem to die down when Alaric is in his car and not hunting. There’s no other word for it but hunting. He’s not hunting for a fight, he’s hunting to eat me alive. One slip up and I’m done for. I saw it in his eyes the second our eyes clashed.
“Order up, Juliana!” The cook, Jason yells out.
That snaps me back into reality and I turn away from the window then get busy with my tables.
BY THE TIME that I finish work, I’m so exhausted that I forget about Alaric as I pack up saying goodbye to everyone. He didn’t show up or anything else, which doesn’t give me relief because I know he’s going to pop up like he did earlier.
After cleaning up, we all head out as the manager closes up.
One thing I love and hate about a smaller town is the lack of bus service. I hate being out here alone but I’d rather be than anything else.
My feet hurting kicks in by the time I make it to the bus station and this time I’m not alone, there’s the town drunk, Godric, who always takes the bus at the same time as me.
I don’t think he’s the town drunk because he’s always somewhat sober to me. Maybe he just needs some guidance and friends. He’s a really sweet guy.
He looks up at me and moves over, giving me space to sit.
He smiles at me and I smile back. He does have a really great smile.
If I wasn’t so badly scarred by men or rather a man, I’d consider saying Godric was attractive.
I’d even say he could be a guy I’d befriend so that he wouldn’t feel so alone in this world.
“Feet hurting again?”
“Badly.” I respond and he chuckles.
“I told you to pour some whiskey on those puppies. It’ll soothe it.” He runs his fingers through his long hair.
Godric is half Native American and half white. He told me he wasn’t raised much with his father hence his lack of knowing his home and his people. He was only raised around his white mother.
“Godric, you’re just saying anything now.” I laugh.
He’s the only one that’s been able to help me laugh lately even through my misery.
“I’m not but that’s alright, it’s an old thing to do. People don’t do that anymore.”
“Godric, what would you know about being old? You’re younger than me.”
Which is what made me wonder how he became the town drunk at such a young age.
Godric laughs.
“Being older means nothing. For all you know I’m stuck at the age 18.”
“Yeah right,” I laugh. “18? You look just a year younger than me. Life has just made you look older.”
He smirks. “Yeah.”
When he smirks, he oddly reminds me of Alaric. His eyes, the brows, even the cheekbone structure somehow points to Alaric. The difference is, he isn’t mean looking or mean at all.
“Can I ask you something, Godric?”
“Sure.”
“Why do people avoid you? They pretend like they don’t see you when you’re out in town.”
Godric shrugs his shoulders. “Because they feel guilty for what they did.”
“What did they do to you?”
Godric doesn’t speak, instead he just runs his fingers through his waist length hair again and looks up at the night sky.
“Don’t trust the people in this town, Ana,” he gave me his own nickname that my sister calls me and now, I expect to hear it.
“They aren’t worth shit and they’ll betray you or ostracize you.
If you have a way out, leave. This is a ghost town.
It’s not a town worth getting stuck in, you don’t want to be stuck here. ”
He says it so sternly, it makes me think of Alaric and it spooks me a little. It sounds eerie.
“Is that what they did to you? Is that why when I ask anyone about you, they immediately change the subject?” My heart skips a beat at the change in his expression. There is such profound sadness on it that it breaks my heart.
“It doesn’t matter anymore. None of it ever mattered.”
“Why didn’t you ever leave and go find your father? Maybe h—.”
Godric cuts me off with a harsh, bitter tone.
“He already had a family. Right before my 18th birthday, when the town made me feel like it wasn’t worth my time, I went to see him and found out he had 2 sons and a daughter.
He turned me away on his son’s 10th birthday.
It was a crazy one too for as big as it was.
The theme almost like an entire carnival itself and don’t get me started on how sweet the fucking rides looked but none of that mattered. ”
“That’s why you came back here?”
“No, I came back because my mother died and then the town, this wicked, sick fucking town …” he stops talking and shakes his head. “ I don’t want to think about it.”
Before I can ask another question, the bus pulls up and Godric stands. “See you. I can’t make it tomorrow so make sure you’re not working super late. Got it?”
“Got it.” I nod and he smiles at me.
I don’t get the chance to get on the bus because a horn honks behind the bus. It’s Alaric’s car. I sigh and am too exhausted to explain this to Godric then fight with Alaric over it.
“Is that your someone that you ran from?” Godric asks from behind me.
“Yes.”
“Okay. Is he hurting you or is he of any harm to you?”
“Not in the way you are thinking, if anything, I’ve hurt him more than he’s hurt me. I need his forgiveness so I can move on with my life.” I look down at the ring and then back at the car. “I’ll go with him because I’m tired.”
“Okay.” Godric says after a moment of silence and hesitation.
“I'm leaving this town as soon as I can so please, please, don’t take the bus late and change all your schedule time, okay? Or ride with that man only. Because he’s not from here, I know he’s not here for these people.
And when you get the chance to leave this town, leave. ”
“Where are you going?” I ask.
“I can’t say 'cause if I do, you’ll want to come too.” He chuckles and it makes me smile. I want to tell him I’ll miss him but I don’t, I hate goodbyes.
I begin walking away and he calls my name. I face him and he smiles at me. “Maybe when you go back to the bigger city that you’re from, you’ll send me a postcard?”
I nod as tears form in my eyes. I don’t know why this feels like goodbye.
“And who should I address it to?” I ask.
“Godric Crowne with an e at the end.”
My mind blanks as Godric smiles and walks away. The bus and Alaric both honk at me. It jolts me out of my shock and I face the bus to tell the driver that I’m not getting on. He rolls his eyes and shuts the door, driving off.
Alaric further pulls up and without saying anything, I enter the passenger side of the car.
“Seatbelt.” He says but I’m too stunned to speak. He repeats it again but I just can’t move. How do I end up meeting a Crowne everywhere I go? Did Godric approach me on purpose?
“You’re annoying.” Alaric says as he leans over to my side and puts on the belt for me. When it clicks, my eyes snap to him.
He stares back at me. We watch each other for a moment, neither of us move as we’re so close that if we were lovers, we’d kiss.
Breathing each other’s air is intimate no matter the situation and it confuses my heart because there’s a loud beat echoing in this quiet space. So loud that I fear Alaric heard it.
“Godric Crowne.” I blurt out and it pulls us out of whatever trance we were in.
“What?” He asks.
“Godric Crowne.”
Alaric watches me for a second. There’s a moment of sadness that passes on his face but he masks it. “Why are you bringing him up?”
“You know him?” I ask.
Alaric sits back in his seat and puts on his belt. He zips out from the bus stop. The car is quiet and I look out the window to see Godric walking. I stare at him wanting him to see me so I can know … something, anything.
“Can you answer my question?”
“Matter of fact, let me ask you, did you come here knowing that Godric was my brother?”
“Was?” I repeat. “I don’t understand.”
“If you did your research well, you’d know that my older brother Godric died when I was ten. 33 years ago so I don’t know what you would’ve gotten out of it. Bringing me back to this fucked up town that fucking murdered my brother. Fuck!”
I don’t understand… Godric is dead? Am I seeing things? Is someone playing a trick on me?
My heart further breaks apart.