The Forest Follows

03 | Tiril Hansen

Chapter Three: Lies So Thick They Seem Like Truths

_______

It all happens so fast. The new girl disappears into the trees as two police officers come crashing onto the path. Their reflective yellow vests glow underneath the oppressive gloom of the trees. Damola shifts away from me and closer to Nasha, but all I have eyes for is the iPhone lying on the ground. My ears are ringing, it's like I'm underwater. I can't hear a thing they say, lost to the cloud of silence in my head.

"You'll have to come with us, frøken," one of them says. My brow wrinkles at the formal title.

It takes all my willpower to not look at Fiona's phone, and I force myself to look up at him. Shock flashes through my heart like lightning striking a pole. He's the same policeman that was there by the old Esso when Mia went missing. My tongue feels heavy and dry in my mouth but I nod at him. For a brief second, his eyes widen, and I know he will tell mamma where I've been. Then he gestures to where everyone else stands further along the path.

If you could call it that. It's where the forest ground has been trodden by tourists, their hiking boots pressing the soil down. I lick my lips, flicking my tongue against the dry crevices and flaking skin.

"Yeah," I say. My voice sounds far too breathy. "I dropped my phone, sorry. I'm coming."

The officer nods as I grip Fiona's phone in my hand, wincing as wet mud clings to my fingers. Stuffing it into the pocket of my jacket, I scramble to stand behind Anja Pettersen. My stomach curls and I grip the edge of my jacket. They all came to humiliate me, every single one of their precious 'Flock'. What a stupid group name. One time Mia came home with the infamous tattoo of a bird's footprint on her wrist, and mamma flipped out. "You're only seventeen, lillemor," mamma had said. She slammed around her office, pulling file after file out. She always cleans when she gets stressed. "You're not grown enough to make these decisions." I stood in the doorway, and even though I couldn't see Mia's face, I knew it was all twisted in anger. She adores her Flock, and the strange pecking order they run in.

The police herd us out of Marka through the broken chain link fence. The sight of it turns my stomach and I squeeze my eyes shut, shivering in my winter jacket. I'd trusted Damola, which was my mistake.

I glance up at the sky. "God, why am I like this?" I murmur.

But God doesn't answer, much like he didn't when I begged him for Mia to come home. Pastor Jakob promised me she'd return. He's a liar. A dirty, stinking liar.

I want Mia back. At least then I wouldn't have this gaping hole in my chest, even if she'd kissed Dammy. I don't care about that, all I want is for her to stumble out of the snow, her sardonic smile on her face, her eyes bright with life. All I want is for the forest to spit her back out, whole. We march down the side of the road in single-file. Sharp pain blooms on the back of my calf. Someone kicked me. My head snaps to the officers, but they're busy murmuring between each other. Sometimes, one tilts his head back to watch us. When he turns back around, I glance behind me, straight into Nasha Adeyemi's face.

"What do you have there, little Hansen?" Nasha says, jerking her head at my jacket pocket.

I'm no longer breathing oxygen, but the inky, tar-taste of dread. I thought nobody else had seen that.

"Don't tell them," I say. It sounds like a plea, the words scraping against my throat.

Nasha shrugs, a giddy smile forming on her face and she melts back in line with Damola and Anja. The thudding in my chest abates somewhat, and I force myself to unclench my fingers. I glance at the officers. The officer from the old Esso stares at me, his gaze pinning me in place. When he looks away, his mouth is set in a grim line. I blink and stare at the hazy white horizon of Asker until we reach school.