Page 97 of Where Roads Lead

My hand gripped the flashlight tighter as I scrambled for something to say.

“Elsie, I—”

“Look!” she said, pointing excitedly in the direction of the light beam. “No more corn! We’re free!”

She laughed and ran headfirst out of the maze, freaking out a group of workers as she ran past them with maniac energy.

“Hi!” She waved. “You should really hand out maps before sending people off in there.”

“It’s a corn maze?” one farmer said.

“Yes, but by the time we made it out of there on our own, the corn would’ve been decomposed back into the earth. So, unless you think—”

“Sorry about her,” I said, tugging Elsie to my side. She looked up at me with a frown, as if I’d ruined the lovely conversation she’d been having. “Two of our friends are still stuck in there—”

“You guys left your friends in the corn maze?” the younger of the farmers said. “That’s low.”

“Maybe they wanted to have some time alone?” the older one suggested. “We’ve got a lot of young folks doing all sorts of disgusting things in our maze. I mean, really degenerate, scum of the earth things. Despicable.”

Elsie paled, looking up at me in horror.

“Oh, well, we weren’t doing anything like that,” she quickly reassured. “I mean, we aren’t even together. We’re just pals. Buddies. We definitely don’t do anything foul and disgusting in corn mazes.”

Oh God, I internally rolled my eyes.

“I don’t think they were accusing us, Elsie,” I said, pleading with her to stop talking.

“Right.” Her face was crimson. “Sorry.”

“Any who, we’ll go in and get those friends of yours. Good thing you told us, because we were about to head out for the night,” the older man said, sending the young one off into the maze.

“I told you, they would’ve left us in there.” She yanked my shoulder down to whisper in my ear.

“I think they’re kidding,” I told her, but I wasn’t sure.

“Hey,” the farmer said, “while you kids wait, how about a cup of hot chocolate?”

“That would be great!” Elsie clapped her hands together in such a jovial display of excitement I nearly laughed.

“Great! You can buy it over there for two bucks a cup,” he said and pointed in the direction of a little stand that was lit by a single bulb.

Elsie’s face fell, and she looked up at me in grave disappointment.

“The way he said it, I thought he was offering it for free, you know, to make up for the traumatic experience his maze inflicted upon us.”

“I’ll buy you a hot chocolate, Elsie,” I said, feeling a smile tug at my lips.

I couldn’t help it. Something about her earnestness just amused me like little else ever did.

“Really?” She beamed, as if it were the best news she’d ever heard.

“Come on,” I said. Placing a hand on her lower back, I ushered her toward the stand.

“See,” she said, looking up at me with twinkling green eyes. “I knew I could trust you to take care of me.”

And God help me, if that wasn’t the only thing I found myself wanting to do anymore.

Chapter Twenty-Eight