Keep Me Safe

Chapter Twenty-Three

Agnes and Lottie didn't stay at James' long. As soon as Lottie said she was feeling better, they were on their feet and out the door. Agnes took with her a small flask, filled with a liquid that caused Lottie to frown.

By now, the day was in full swing. The hot sun, merciless as ever, hung high in the air. Every labored breath filled their lungs with humidity. Not even the shade from the trees lining their path was enough to keep the heat off their backs. Fearing a sunburn on the back of her exposed neck, Agnes pulled her rumbled cap out of a deep overalls pocket and pulled it down over her head. Sweat quickly began to collect on her brow.

Agnes wanted nothing more than to talk to Lottie. She wanted to ask about their relationship, what the kiss meant, just exactly what they were. She wanted to confess all her feelings to Lottie, to say that she had never loved a boy the way that she had loved her. Her fingers itched to grab onto the other girl's shoulder and pull her down into a deep, passionate kiss. But she didn't. She restrained herself and kept her mouth shut, letting her heart pound violently in silence.

Sometimes she would cast a glance at Lottie, before quickly looking away in embarrassment. She had no problems with her feelings for Lottie, but she knew, without a doubt, that the rest of the town certainly would. And maybe Lottie would agree. Maybe she was disgusted by the thought of two women kissing. However, going by the enthusiasm with which Lottie kissed her, Agnes was fairy certain that she wasn't against it.

In the end, she was too frightened to speak. The fear of Lottie rejecting her, of Lottie crushing all the feelings that were harboring in her crazy heart. Agnes found it almost more relaxing to suffer in silence than risk having her heart broken. She hoped that Lottie would initiate the much-needed conversation, but, as they left the woods and entered town, she realized that wasn't going to happen.

"Where is everyone?" Lottie mused as the deserted main street came in to view.

Agnes, pulling herself out of her own miserable thoughts, glanced around in surprise. "There's nobody."

They walked down the eerie street in silence. The streets were never like this, not even in the middle of the night. When normal people were sleeping, one could still count on drunks leaning against unsteady walls or vomiting in bushes. Now, even they were absent.

"I've got a bad feeling," Lottie said. Her hand suddenly latched onto Agnes', their fingers tightly intertwined.

It took all of Agnes' strength not to collapse then and there. Lottie's touch was enough to make her want to scream with joy and then faint. A wave of ecstatic happiness and something resembling peace followed close behind her fluttering heart. For her, it was like diving headfirst into a cool stream on the hottest day of summer or seeing the first bloom of spring after an especially long winter. It was wonderful.

Of course, everything came crashing down as soon as they heard the yelling.

The wind carried with it the sound of shouting and a general feeling of dread. All the angry voices melted together into a rumble that rippled down the streets. There were still no people in sight, making the sounds eerie and worrisome.

Agnes' eyes flitted anxiously, going from storefront to storefront. Every muscle in her body tensed up the louder the noise the got. She half-expected this to be one giant prank. "What's going on?"

"I'm just as baffled as you are."

Their pace quickened as they passed the beauty salon, the official end of the main strip, and entered into winding stretch of road that would take them to the house. The noise continued to grow. By the time they passed Smith's house, they both knew where the noise was coming from, although neither wanted to say it.