Hunt of the Night

c h a p t e r t i r t y t h r e e ( j a m e y )

Previously...

Chris held the pillow in the air, hesitating as he gazed at the deranged girl. Guilt washed through him first, but then flashes of the night came to the front of his mind.

I have to do this.

With one last glance at the girl, he forced his eyes shut and pressed the pillow down. Turning his head to the side, keeping his eyes closed, he felt the body beneath him grow still. Deciding not to waste one more second in the dainty house, Chris took off without a second thought.

Through the house, the clearing, he finally caught back up to the rest of the guys who stood around a fresh pile of dirt.

It was done.

None of the boys exchanged words in this moment. Whether the silence was for the strangers whose lives they took, or the silence for their innocence that was taken away from them that night, was unknown. Words couldn't describe the pain and discomfort they were feeling as the shovel fell from one of the boys' hands next to that pile of dirt. Words wouldn't be able to fill the void this night would bring, their heavy breathing and panic stricken looks were enough.

With a nod of the head, they knew.

They had managed to do the unthinkable.

They were free.

Currently...

Sunday

I stared at this group of kids who, just like me, had an innocent night turn into one of the worst nights of our lives. It was just suppose to be a scavenger hunt, but it turned out to be so much more. We were breathing hard, standing in a circle, staring at each other. No words could make tonight any better.

My eyes grazed over the group. We were all tired, we had been up for forty eight hours almost, we were all starving, we were all scarred.

What was going to happen now? Were we going to pretend like nothing happened? I opened my mouth to speak, but the words wouldn't come out. I looked at my feet, shuffling at the dirt underneath me.

I shifted my gaze to Katie and Jade who were sitting on the ground, holding each other. A breath escaped my lips as a realization hit me: We were going to be okay.

I willed all the courage in me to speak, "We won't talk about what happened this weekend, right?"

Chris looked at me, tilting his head slightly to the side, "What happened?"

Wyatt dusted himself off as he stood up, "There's nothing to talk about."

With that, silence fell around the group. That was when we knew, it was time to go home. One by one, we all headed back to our own vehicles. Cranking the engine never felt so good. Mechanically, I rolled the windows down before backing up.

I made sure to take the long way home, so I could think about what I was going to tell my parents. Slowly, I felt the guilt creeping its way into my mind. I shook the thoughts away; we did what was right. Jade needed us. The night had fallen by the time my car rolled to a stop in my driveway.

I grabbed my bag, untangling my house key from my keychain. Something white caught my eye as I stared at the car in front of me. Just under the windshield wiper, a folded piece of paper rested against the cool glass of the front windshield. Reaching out, my fingers grasped the white paper, but before I could open it, my mother came wandering out of the house.

"Jamey? Honey, come inside. I warmed up your dinner." Mom stood on the porch, her voice so soft, so innocent. I shoved the paper into my pocket, turning around to face her. I forced a smile that mirrored the one she wore. Without a word, I walked to her, hugged her.

"Long weekend?" She laughed, but I closed my eyes and tightened my grip on her.

"If you only knew," I whispered, slowly withdrawing from her warm embrace. I followed her inside, shoving the guilt deep, deep down.

"Well, I made you your favorite," She walked into the kitchen, pulling out leftover lasagna from the oven. Making myself a plate, I sat down. I decided instead of spilling out the truth about this weekend, I would shovel the food in instead.

"Did you win?" I couldn't speak for fear of telling the truth, so I settled for a shake of the head instead.

"Did you know who did?" I shook my head again, swallowing hard. After placing the dishes in the sink, I looked at my mom one more time, "I'll tell you about it tomorrow, right now, I just want to sleep."

She smiled again, pulling me in for a hug, "Goodnight honey." She kissed my hair, and I found myself walking up the stairs shortly after. I shut my door, taking a long, deep breath.

My eyes found my reflection in the mirror across the room.

I looked like shit.

My eyes traveled down to the white paper which was beginning to poke out of my pocket. With shaky hands, I pulled the paper out of my pocket.

I have never had so much trouble trying to unfold paper in my life.

Once I managed to open the piece of paper, I dropped it as if it had burned my finger tips.

My eyes widened at the check which was now resting on the floor.

I don't know how long I stared at the check before I had the courage to actually bend down and pick it up. My fingers grazed over the check, tracing over the writing.

The amount on the check was written for ten thousand dollars, but that wasn't what took the remaining breath out of my lungs.

No, the amount wasn't the problem.

The problem was the signature at the bottom of the check.

On that line, written in beautiful script with jet black ink, was a name that would haunt me from this day on.

Edward Parker.