Deep Dark Blues

Prologue

The gentle strumming of the guitar filled the tiny space of their car, soothing Anne's nerves like a balm on a fresh blister. She watched the passing trees in silence, her head resting against the glass, scanning the barks peaking from the seemingly impenetrable darkness of the woods. The quiet humming of the engine paired with the angelic voice of Richard Marx and the fading high from the alcohol in her system created a sort of nostalgia, a sense of longing for perhaps easier times. She couldn't help but drunkenly reminiscent of the times driving with her parents, then little Anne sleeping in the back seat. That sense of ease and security, when existence was nothing short of bliss. Everything was the same, from the buzz of their Ford to the tunes on the radio... Everything... Except...

"You know I love you, right?" Josh glanced at her from behind the wheel, the question falling flat as if he was trying to reassure himself, rather than her. Anne remained silent, blue eyes watching the passing barks of the pine woods, illuminated by the car reflectors. She could have sworn she saw the reflective eyes up in the trees. Maybe an owl?

"Anne... Can we please talk?"

Her eyes shifted, taking in the worried if not a bit stunned expression of her fiancé.

"What do you want to talk about?" she asked.

"Everything, I..." he stopped, biting down his lip in unease. 

Anne turned away, once again facing the window. He was never much of a talker, often having trouble stringing a sentence when it mattered.

"Why didn't you tell me you were going out?" He asked. Anne shrugged, not really willing to discuss what she might or might not have done. Maybe she had gone for the sake of proving something? Perhaps she'd gotten tired of rotting in bed while he worked? Maybe she just wanted to forget who Anne Clarke was just for a little bit? Whatever the reason might have been, she would not bring it up with him. It was all too easy, juvenile even, to just snap back at him, like a teenage girl back talking to her father, but she couldn't help it.

"What, so I have to tell you everything I do now?" she rolled her eyes. Josh sighed, growing more and more exasperated with his counterpart.

"How much did you drink?" he prompted, ignoring her quip to the best of his ability.

Silence.

"Anne?"

"Not enough..." she muttered, unwilling to look him in the face while her cheeks grew red in shame.

"You shouldn't drink, it's bad for you-..." the last syllables were high pitched, indicating he wanted to add something before deciding against it. But even though Josh tried to choose his words carefully, Anne knew exactly how the sentence would have ended had he spoken his mind.

"Just say it..." she mumbled, pushing her burning cheek against the cool glass of the passenger seat.

"What do you mean?" he asked dumbly, worsening the burning sensation within her soul. Her eyes filled with tears, the inebriated state she was in hindering any form of emotional control.

"You wanted to say "baby"... me and the baby..." it felt as if the inside of the car had frozen as soon as she'd said those words. The elephant in the room. The forbidden word they haven't used since the last appointment. They both knew it, but Anne was tired of feigning ignorance. Acting as if she didn't notice those glances, the hovering or Josh's sadness infecting every part of their lives. Maybe she'd gone out drinking to free herself from the guilt and the disappointment Josh tried so hard to hide from her...

The man reached for the radio before turning it off, the only sound being the engine and the droplets falling from the night sky. He exhaled, looking at Anne with those sad eyes of his. It felt as if she couldn't remember seeing him happy anymore... Or maybe she just didn't want to...

"I am sorry..." his voice barely above a whisper. 

They fell into an awkward silence once again. Anne re-adjusted herself, leaning back into the seat as she watched the downpour outside through the windscreen somewhat thankful for Josh finding her before she had to walk back. The silence between them was suffocating, feeling as if the air itself turned solid. He wanted to ask... She knew he wanted to ask to try again, but even the tiniest possibility of going through that again made Anne's stomach churn. Could she handle another loss? Could she handle growing life inside of her once again, only for it to fade before it's even born?

"I care about you..." Josh interrupted her inner turmoil.

"I... I know that this is wrong. That it wasn't supposed to be like this. I want to support you, I truly do, but I can't if you won't let me... I got really worried when you weren't at home today. I thought..." Before he could finish, however, Anne interrupted him, her voice strained at the sight before her.

"Stop the car..." she said. Josh looked at her stunned.

"Wha-"

"Josh, stop the fucking car!" Anne yelled, pointing at something ahead of her. Josh slammed the brakes, the car sliding on the wet asphalt, eyes as wide as saucers.

It was barely visible, a white spot amongst thousands of raindrops collecting at the windscreen, and yet Josh saw it just in time... A small, child-like silhouette standing in the middle of the road, looking straight at them. Before Josh could utter a single word Anne was pushing the car door open, jumping out of the Ford.

"Hello?" Anne called, shielding herself from the rain with her left hand. She was right... Just a few meters in front of them stood a little girl, shivering in the rain as she stared them down. Her short auburn hair clung to her skull, eyes wide-open and unblinking. She wore a dirty pair of children's pyjamas, the white cotton being what caught Anne's attention in the first place, despite the numerous mud stains. However, maybe even more disturbing than a small child being out in the middle of nowhere at night during a storm, was the blood slowly trickling down the girl's forehead, a deep gash hiding somewhere in her hair.

"What the hell..." she heard Josh whisper somewhere behind her.

"Little girl? Are you all right?" Anne asked, taking a cautious step towards the child. Those big green eyes shifted towards her in a terrifying far-away stare. She too stepped back, stumbling slightly as if she couldn't stand properly upright. 

"Hello?" the girl rasped out innocently, scratching her bloodied head.

"Josh, call 112*..." Anne commanded, taking off her jacket as she approached the girl. The man didn't have to ask why, dialling the number with shaky hands, eyes stuck on the barely visible hind lights of the car, smashed and buried in the ditch on the side of the road.

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*Emergency number in Europe