Hidden in the Heartwood {sapphic paranormal}

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

21. || i walked away from the wreck.

"You killed someone?"

The woman kept her back to River, but slowed to a stop. "I didn't have a choice."

And River didn't have to see her face to know she was telling the truth. That darkness they felt every time she was close was something familiar, something akin to their own, something sourced from this very mountain. It was no wonder the ancients were so drawn to her, and no wonder River felt so drawn to her.

"It was that Demon you're runnin' from, right? And I'm guessin' that's also who shot ya?"

"My ex." Turning around, she nodded and hugged the armful of blush dahlias closer to her body. "Every time I tried to leave, it would escalate. Believe me River, if I thought I could've gotten out any other way, I would've."

"You don't gotta say any more." River could see the relief in her eyes, like them saying it out loud released her in some kinda way, like it absolved her guilt. That was the difference between the two of them though. River never felt remorse for their kills. "You sure you're up for this?"

Her non-answer answered enough. "Will you bring your rifle?"

"If it'll make ya feel better." Their hand went to their belt where the bone knife was sheathed. A bullet would do nothing but piss a demon off in these woods. They'd have to get close enough to mark it for the ancients which more often than not got messy, and shared darkness or not, that wasn't a part of themself they wanted her to see. "We'll take Two Lick west, then cross the river. No need to climb down Devil's Elbow."

And risk gettin' caught, they wanted to add, but the woman had enough to worry about than knowing Sheriff Holden and his boys were searching for her. Like Blaire had mentioned, they probably weren't the only ones looking if this undead demon was still prowling around the mountain.

Together, they walked in silence back to the cabin to vase the flowers and prep for the excursion. River packed a lunch for the two of them and then grabbed that jagoff's phone from their nightstand to dispose of at the dam. It wouldn't be long before the sheriff found the abandoned car on the old logging road and it'd be wise to throw him and his crew a literal bone or two. But that would mean going back up to Vera's hemlock, and that other jagoff's body gone missing was a whole extra mess on top.

But that'd be tonight's problem.

Dragging out the old wooden rowboat from the barn, River struggled a little to hoist it up to the jeep because that gash in their ribs was still smarting like the devil for some reason, but then the boat lifted with ease as another set of arms and a dark head of hair appeared beneath it with them. She helped raise it up to the roof rack and they did-up the straps and fastened them down tight.

With a slight smile, the woman pushed the hair from her eyes, no longer too concerned about hiding behind her bangs. She had on one of their old white undershirts knotted at the midriff and a pair of athletic tights that Blaire had bought them some time back that looked absolutely ridiculous on them, but quite perfectly fit her curves. They'd be sure to dig the other pairs out from the bottom of the closet for her.

As she bent to pick up the oars from the ground, she caught them staring. "River, you've seen me all bruised up, strapped in gold fishing waders from the 70s, covered in mine crap, and now I just told you I killed someone, and you still got that look in your eye like when we met."

Smirking, River shrugged as they took the oars from her and slid them into the back of the jeep next to the rifle. "You want me to be scared of ya or somethin'? Shall I call the sheriff?"