Never Look Back

Chapter Five

Sammantha

I hate planes. We weren't even off the ground when the stupid thing started wobbling and bouncing, and it barely even stopped once we were in the air!

I swear, if Jade isn't real I am going to hurt somebody. I did not suffer a plane ride from hell to go find someone who doesn't exist. Then, even if she really does, there is the issue that I have no idea what part of Tennessee Jade was from, which means I'll be on a wild goose chase. I decided to call Marcus and see what he thought.

"Why don't you track down the store?" He suggested once I explained my predicament, "There can't be many general stores in Tennessee."

"That's right! Thanks Marcus!" I answered before hanging up

Quickly, I googled Ol' Marshall's General Store in Tennessee, but about five popped up. On the bright side, it narrowed down my search. Then I typed in Female Serial Killer- Tennessee and got a hit. The article I clicked on gave a quick background on Jades sister, Grace Brown, and it said she was from a White County, which matched one of the General Stores! I sent Marcus a quick text saying I was off and headed to Music City Dream Cars to rent a car. Marcus wasn't too happy about me renting a car, but I'd rather drive myself around than to ride in a cab with a complete stranger. Then again, I wouldn't of had to find directions to where the she worked.

It took about three hours just to get a dang car, so it kinda set me back a ways. I had to call Marcus so he could co-sign it considering I am only 16. Then I asked the dealership dude for the nearest directions to White County and soon found myself leaving Nashville with a herd of traffic. By the time I had arrived in a town called Sparta, the sun was starting to set and my GPS seemed like it wanted to explode. I figured people knew each other in small towns like this, so I pulled over into a Walmart parking lot and asked the first person I saw for directions. He was this creepy looking teenager with greasy black hair and a bunch of piercings that unsuccessfully covered a bad case of acne.

"Ol' Marshall's General? Yeah, that's just down the street on the left. Be careful though, it's ran by a crazy chick." He said

"Um, thanks." I answered, trying not to punch him. Even if I didn't exactly know Jade in real life, I still thought of her as a friend.

"Names Carter by the way," he said, "In case you want to hang out some time."

"No thanks." I answered right before driving out of the parking lot.

I pulled into the general store's parking lot expecting to see Jades 65 Ford truck, but all that was there was a couple of vans from the electric company. Instantly, I felt all the positive emotions and hope leave me. How could I be so stupid as to think that dream was actually real. Maybe I really am crazy.

"Excuse me Miss, but are you lost?" Asked someone from outside my car window

"Actually, I was looking for someone, but I guess she doesn't work here anymore." I answered

"Well, I've been here for about 63 years and I am pretty sure I can help you if you're trying to find someone." The voice belonged to an older gentleman who had grey hair and blue eyes.

"Yeah, okay. I'm looking for a Jade Brown. I know she used to work here, but I don't remember where she lived."

"You mean Jay!" He said laughing, "She still runs the general store, but it's closed right now. You can probably find her at the Taco Bell over on West street, she usually works the night shift for them."

"Thank you so much!" I said

I was restarting my car when the man stopped me. He asked, "Excuse me, but may I ask your name?"