The Woods | Harvey #1

Chapter 6

Once Nicole left his house, Ashton grinned. She understood. He knew he loved her for a reason. It seemed almost too good to be true, how much she got him. He walked back to his bedroom and took his shirt off. As he walked into his bathroom, he wiped his face off with the shirt. The smile left him as he thought about what Nicole said she'd told the cops.

She said she told them that she was going to sell him out to them. He knew they thought he did it. He turned on the shower. As the running water heated up, he walked back into the bedroom part, stripping. He rummaged around in his dresser. What would she tell them? He really didn't do it, and she knew it. She trusted him.

Didn't she?

He sighed as he closed the drawer and then he got in the shower. Hot water rained on his head. He turned his face into the spray and felt rivulets of water stream down it. It was relaxing. He felt his mind clear a little.

What did he expect her to tell them? Their trust could only be won if she said that. Plus, he did tell her to say that or something along those lines. He couldn't really begin doubting her over this. It was at least partly his fault.

He picked up the shampoo and before he could squeeze out any, his nose picked out a scent he didn't recognize. At least, one he didn't want to recognize. He sniffed the shampoo, but that wasn't it. The smell was familiar, but he couldn't quite remember where he'd smelled it before. He stepped out, wrapping a towel around his hips.

The water still running, he stepped into the bedroom and suddenly remembered where he'd smelled the odor before when he saw Hailey sitting on his bed. The girl seemed to have taken a bath in her perfume. He stifled a groan. "What do you want?" His tone was gruff, and he instantly regretted how he asked.

She looked at him, her eyes first widening and then narrowing. He crossed his arms over his chest, a little self-conscious. "Where's Nikki?"

He sighed. "She went to go find you." She shook her head. He raised one eyebrow. "She did. I saw her leave. That's what she said before she left."

Hailey shook her head again, harder. "I walked here from the house. We never crossed paths. I did see a cop in the woods, wandering around, but that's it."

Ashton kept his face indifferent. "What did the guy look like?"

She thought, face scrunching up in a way Ashton found cute before he caught himself. "Um, I don't remember. I just know I saw him at the beach."

Mason, then. Ashton forced himself not to smile. He knew why Hailey hadn't seen Nicole: she'd tried to avoid Mason. Simple. He didn't want to tell her that, though. "Why don't you go back to the house or beach and see if she's shown up yet." He jerked his head to his bathroom. "I'm gonna finish my shower in the meantime." In other words, he wanted her to leave.

She sighed, shaking her head as she stood, but at least she was leaving. At the door she lingered, back to him. Her fingers ran up and down the jamb. "I'm onto you. I know what you did." He stared at her back as she walked away. He heard the front door open and when it closed, he nearly dove for his cell phone on the top of the dresser.

When he pulled up the conversation with Nicole, he stopped. What was he going to say? She'd know soon enough what her friend thought of him. Dejected, he sat the phone back down, took off the towel as he walked back to the shower. Before he got in, he looked at his face in the mirror. What made these people think he was a killer? He loved kids. It would have to be a monster to harm any kids, let alone little girls. He wasn't a monster. He was just a man with depression that had a dad that beat him up until he moved out. That didn't make him a bad person. He thought he was better for it.