Sweet Like Candy (The Series)

Chapter Two: The Old, Creepy Cabin

For two days straight, I could not find a window of opportunity for myself, Carter and Harper to visit Gregory Maguire's cabin in the woods, just north of Oak Hills town center. Harper was busy with her mid-term exams, Carter had other clients and I... well, Mr. Matthews and I were busy being passionate.

It had been over two weeks since my husband and I had even a glimmer of intimacy. Things felt awfully stagnant. Even though I married Mr. Matthews for his finances, he did have a nice side that treated me so well. But there was still a darkness surrounding him and I had no idea what that darkness was. Mr. Matthews was a mysterious man. He never shared much with me. He never told me anything about his family, childhood or his past. I thought maybe he had an open wound surrounding his family. I felt sorry for him.

Nevertheless, three days after Carter told me all about Gregory Maguire, my husband announced that he would be out of town in Phoenix for five days, for a business meeting with his oil company. The stars had finally aligned for myself and Carter, who was free of all clients, bar me. Harper, on the other hand, failed a mid-term paper and had to study like crazy, which I completely understood. And then there were two... I was nervous to be around Carter all by my lonesome. Usually, the group included Harper. She was a healthy distraction for me from Carter Lockwood. He had such a masculine energy that made him seem so proud of who he was. I admired that about Carter. His eyes were as blue as the sky on a sunny summer day and his skin was as shallow as sand. I felt lost at sea in Carter's presence, like he had me on tender hooks. I didn't know this at the time but I had fallen head over heels for my private investigator. He was everything Mr. Matthews was not: kind, warm, friendly and caring. I needed that in my life.

Anyways, I need to get back to the story. Carter arrived at my home on a dull Tuesday evening in late October. It was an eerie time of year considering Halloween was right around the corner. Carter drove up my driveway in a rustic Shelby 69, the kind of car I only ever imagined a grandfather driving. He honked the horn foolishly, as I rushed out of my front door, dressed in black from head to toe, as if I was heading to a funeral. I hopped in the car very eagerly, and I smiled, sarcastically:

"Dark evening, October, old, creepy cabin. What could possibly go wrong?". Carter chuckled, obviously brushing off the comment.

Carter pulled out of my long, windy driveway swiftly, though it was poorly lit. The only light around was the left headlight of Carter's car. The other, he mentioned, broke on a drunken night out with one of his best friends, Alexander. I pulled out my iPhone 5 (I told you: broke) and I typed into Google Maps the address of Gregory Maguire's creepy cabin in the woods. The device told me the drive would take six minutes. Carter arrived at the gates to my home, which were shut. I was confused by this considering they are never closed. I apologized profusely to Carter and stepped out of the vehicle, for what I thought would be a moment as I fixed a mechanical issue. However, as soon as I slammed the rickety car door shut, a shaky, old choice echoed in the darkness behind me. I jumped, terrified.

"Wh...wh...who's there?", I stuttered, frozen with fear. I felt like I was about to be murdered several times. Yeah. A tall woman, with sallow skin and brunette hair, with grey streaks appeared to me and said, "Gabriella Penny". I sighed with relief and my body language went from rigid to relaxed. The eerie voice was that of Gabriella Penny, my 45-year-old neighbor, who lives alone with her dog, Roxie. I thought she was harmless. Gabriella grabbed my arm viciously and whispered, with a terrible quake on her voice:

"Do not trust that Harper girl. She will be your downfall".

When Gabriella uttered those heart-stopping words, I was puzzled as all hell. Harper? My best friend for seventeen years, Harper? The girl who broke my jaw in fifth grade by shoving too many cupcakes in my mouth? That Harper would be my downfall. I was so lost for words that I didn't even reply to Gabriella statement. I simply rushed back into Carter's car, and we drove north to Gregory's cabin.