Running From the Devil

Chapter 18

A/N I apologize for the long delay in my updatting.  We were dealing with a critically ill family member.  Even now as she has mostly recovered I've been thrust into the role of caregiver and all of my writing time has been sucked up by Dr's appointments and therapies and meetings.  I hope to get back to a regular updating schedule.  Thanks for sticking with me. 

Chapter 18

Laney (Continued)

I expected Jenna to be overjoyed at my statement but instead she just stood there blinking at me.  Her head was cocked to the side, her silver hair cascading down over her shoulders and her amber eyes boring holes through my skull.  After a moment she cleared her throat and began running her hands up and down my arms in a soothing gesture.  I could see she was trying to form some thoughts so I just waited.  The seconds clicked by and the silence grew longer until I was ready to bolt for the hills rather than hear what she was getting ready to say.   I wanted to give Jenna the time she needed but the fireplace was heating up my legs to an uncomfortable degree so I shifted to the right slightly, just enough to move out of the direct heat wave from the fire and the movement was enough to snap her back to the moment. 

Her slender fingers gripped my upper arms in a tight squeeze and she let out a long breath. 

“Is this because of you and Ben?”

I allowed myself a minute to think through my motivations and in silence we moved over to the leather chairs, both of us sitting on the edges, facing each other with our hands clasped. 

“Partly.  He’s shown me what real happiness can look like but in the end this is something that I need to do.  I need to have my life back Jenna and I can’t just hide here forever.”

Her eyes widened even bigger.  “Oh but you could!  We could protect you Laney; you would never be in danger.”

My breath caught in my throat as she offered me a permanent stay on the mountain.  She must not have realized what exactly she was offering me.  As gently as possible I removed myself from her grasp and stood. 

“I could be happy here Jenna, I know I could be.  But unless I sever all ties from my old life I will never be free.  The mountain will become another cage for me.  A bigger one and certainly a nicer one but a cage none the less and I just can’t allow myself to be trapped again.” 

Her breath left her in a whoosh and she stood with me. 

“I understand Laney.  Let me talk with Mark so we can set up some security measures before we begin the process ok?  We couldn’t bear to lose you.”

Relief flowed through me and I gave the woman a hug. 

“Thank you Jenna!  This means so much to me!”   I turned to leave when she stopped me again. 

“I almost forgot!  Tonight is the full moon.” 

Visions of horror movie werewolves began streaming through my mind and my heart rate kicked up ten notches. 

“Oh?”  I started fidgeting, fighting the sudden surge of anxiety and the urge to start twisting the hem of my shirt.  “Do I need to take some precautions?” 

She suddenly collapsed back in her chair laughing until I thought she would choke herself.  “Oh my goddess Laney, you are one funny cookie!  We are going in the woods to meditate and I was inviting you to join us!”  

Without warning the horror movie reel stopped running through my head and was replaced with the picture of a wolf sitting back on its tail with its rear legs crossed and its front legs out to the sides.  The laughter bubbled up in me before I could stop it and before long I was gasping for breath.