Page 50 of Five

“Wait!” I say, running after him. But he slides into the driver’s seat of his rental and slams the door before I can stop him. “Cliff!” I say, knocking on the window. But he doesn’t even bother looking me in the eyes. He just… takes off.

“What the fuck?” I say to the night sky. “Just what the fuck is happening?”

My phone rings as I stand there in the middle of the Shrike Bikes parking lot looking lost. I glance down at the lit-up screen in my hand. Tab accept. “Hey,” I say.

“Where the fuck are you?” Kate says, her voice filled with worry and frustration. “I’ve been calling your phone for hours. Five isn’t picking up his phone either. What’s going on?”

“Sorry,” I say. “It’s a long story.”

“So you’re at home still?” she asks.

“No,” I say. “I’m at Shrike Bikes. Standing in the middle of the parking lot. Feeling foolish and confused.”

“What’s going on, Rory? You disappear all day while some guy asks about you all over town. And where is Five?”

“I think he’s still out at the farm. At least, that’s where I left him when I took off.”

“OK, stay right there. I’m coming to get you.”

“No,” I say, stopping that little idea before it can bloom. “No. I have Five’s car. And I need to go back to the farm and talk to him before I do anything else. I’ll call you tomorrow, OK? Just give me a night to figure all this shit out and then I’ll tell you everything tomorrow.”

I don’t give her a chance to argue with me, just end the call and get back into my car. I have no idea how this day went so sideways. But the answer to all my questions is back in Bellvue.

So that’s where I’m going.

I get back on the road that will take me up north to my farm and get lost in the darkness of the forest surrounding me. The road follows the river, the very river that runs through the back of our property. The very river Five and I have played in our entire lives. If anyone had asked me how I felt about this place before today, I’d say, It’s nothing but a long string of wonderful childhood memories. But now… everything about home feels like a lie.

My parents, Five… that fucking secret command center his father has hidden underneath his garage. Cliff and his cryptic messages. That weird meeting Five was at in Denver yesterday. Hell, the fact that I’m here and not in the Hamptons with Tera is part of this too.

I have no clue what’s happening to my life right now, but it feels a lot like a death spiral.

It’s always been a long drive out to my family farm from town. Thirty minutes. But tonight it feels like I’m making no progress at all. The twisted tree on the side of the road I have been using as the first landmark takes forever to appear. And the little bridge I have to cross feels far away. Each second I remain in the dark about what’s really going on is agonizing.

My phone rings in the passenger seat and my heart flutters for a second, hoping to see Five’s name come up on the screen. But it’s not Five. It’s Tera.

I grab the phone, tab accept and say, “Tera?”

“Rory?” Her voice sounds small and… frightened.

“Tera, are you OK? What’s wrong?”

“I just… please…”

“Please what? What’s going on?” Why the fuck does everyone have to be so cryptic tonight?

“Don’t let him hurt Cliff. He didn’t know, OK? Neither of us knew. I don’t pay much attention to what happens with that sort of stuff. You have to believe me. I wasn’t… I didn’t—”

“God! Fucking! Dammit!” I yell into the phone. But I slow down, because I just passed the little bridge and a twisted canyon road is coming up. With the way my luck is going tonight, I’ll be so distracted I’ll drive the car right into the river. “Would someone please tell me what the hell is happening?”

I take the first twist in the road, then the moon is blocked out by the tall conifer trees, which isn’t helping my mood any.

“Tera?” I say. “Tera? Are you still there?”

“—why we’re friends. You have to believe me. I swear—”

But the connection is going in and out. And a few seconds later, the phone beeps three times in my hand, letting me know we’ve been dropped.

I press the tab to call her back, but it doesn’t even ring.