Camp Driftwood

Chapter 3 - Commandment

Chapter 3 – Commandment

The wooden stairs creaked as Kaylee walked down them, her curly black hair tied into a messy bun to keep it out of her eyes. The morning sun filtered in through the blinds, casting dappled shadows all over the living room and kitchen. Kaylee's foul mood persisted from last night's drama, and even her morning coffee wasn't going to fix things completely.

Well, it certainly couldn't hurt.

She walked through the kitchen practically without looking, walking the same steps she had memorised years ago. This entire process was such a well-rehearsed routine, she could do it with her eyes closed. She grabbed a mug from the nearby shelf, humming to herself as she pulled a carton of milk from the fridge with her other hand. Her mother wasn't going to let what had happened yesterday go, and chances are she was going to be under house arrest until her next birthday. Great, an entire year with no friends. Her mom was probably up already, but Kaylee was in no mood for a conversation. At least not before she satisfied her budding caffeine addiction.

Kaylee turned, using the hand holding the mug to brush a stray lock away from her face, when she noticed who was sitting at the kitchen table. His silver hair hanging free, ice-blue eyes staring directly at her, Deacon Hale didn't even flinch as she dropped both the mug and carton of milk, shocked. The mug fell in what felt like slow-motion, dropping through the air as Kaylee's still-tired brain struggled to process the information. He was here. He was in her house. It was like something out of a nightmare. Deacon Hale had followed her home. He'd been waiting for her. Danger.

Reacting on the most basic reflex, her now empty hands flew to the side, wrapping around the handles of the two largest kitchen knives in the holding block. She ripped both free violently, holding them between herself and the old man in a firm grip. The mug that had been falling finally collided with the ground, shattering and breaking the silence of the kitchen.

"Mom!" Kaylee called, her voice cracking as the adrenaline hit her, "Mom!"

Kaylee reaffirmed her stance, standing firm as the broken shards of the mug and spilt milk moved around her feet. She never took her eyes off Deacon Hale, afraid that he was going to vanish if she so much as blinked.

"Jesus, Kaylee!" Her mother yelled from another room, running into the kitchen at the sound of the mug shattering, "What in god's name's gotten into you!"

"He's in our house mom!" Kaylee shouted in return, gesturing wildly with the knife towards the man sitting at their dinner table.

"Of course he's in our house, I invited him here!"

It took Kaylee a moment to really understand what her mother had said. Her hands lowered slightly, the pounding heartbeat that now rang in her ears slowing.

"It's quite alright, Miss Adams," Deacon Hale said, seemingly amused. "I did startle her, after all."

"Kaylee, drop the damn knives." She heard her mother hiss, and only just noticed that she was still holding them.

Shocked with herself, Kaylee dropped with a clatter onto the kitchen cabinet.

"I... I'm sorry," she said, "I don't know what happened..."

"I do. You were about to attack a man of the church! What's wrong with you?"

"I'm perfectly alright Miss Adams," Hale assured her again, "I'm sure many other children would have similar reactions to a stranger in their home, though few would react nearly as quickly."

With an exasperated sigh, her mother did her best to drop the issue. "Go and talk to Mr Hale, I'll clean up this mess." 

"I'm sorry mom," Kaylee started.