AllFreeNovel
Share Us
EVE KNOX
Friday, December 22, 1995
4:00 p.m.
Eve carefully picked her way down the bluff. The rocky terrain was slick and she held on to spindly tree branches to help steady herself. She was afraid for her friend. Mr. Harper knew that Eve was in the house, that she was aware of what was going on between the two of them. Eve needed a few minutes to catch her breath, to clear her head so she could figure out what to do next. And she needed to make sure that Nick wasn’t staked out in front of the house.
If Cam Harper was horrible enough to have sex with a teenage girl, what would he do to try to keep it quiet? She shivered at the rage she heard in his voice when Cam told Maggie to take care of things.
Behind her, Eve could hear Maggie calling her name. She hoped that Maggie would give up and go back to the Harpers’. Eve didn’t want to be talked out of this. Loose stones shifted beneath her feet and she reached for a branch, the pine needles leaving behind a sticky sap on her palms. She stopped, regained her footing and cautiously continued downward.
When she finally reached the bottom of the bluff she was breathing heavily and her legs ached. The caves loomed in front of her. She would stay here for a little while, then go back home. Nick couldn’t sit outside her house forever.
Eve peered into the scowling mouth of the cave. It was dark and still. Daylight was fading fast and Eve was hesitant to step over the threshold but she was curious. She had never been here in the dead of winter and had never come alone. When she and Maggie came during the warmer months, they were used to the sound of dripping water, a constant plunk, plunk that Eve found comforting.
But now it was quiet. Too quiet. And too dark. When they did come, they always made sure to come armed with flashlights. Without a beam of light to guide her way, Eve felt naked, exposed to whatever might be lying in wait behind each limestone corner. Thoughts of coyotes and bats crossed Eve’s mind.
“Eve,” came another shout and her name bounced back to her in soft whispers. Eve whirled around and Maggie was standing there.
“What are you doing here?” Eve asked. “Did you leave the kids all alone?” She looked behind Maggie, almost expecting to see Rebecca and Riley. “Did Mr. Harper come back home?”
“No, and if you tell on us he will never talk to me again,” Maggie said, her voice heavy with tears. “Why did you have to come over? Why can’t you just stay out of it?”
“Because it’s wrong. I want to help you,” Eve said. “It’s going to be okay. Maggie, we can work this out together,” she pleaded.
“It’s not okay and I don’t want to work it out,” Maggie lashed out at her. “Eve, I’m pregnant. If you tell, it will scare him away. I need time to figure out how to tell him.”
Eve stood there, stunned. Maggie pregnant? This was bad. “Maggie, he’s not going to want a baby. He has two at home already. With his wife. He should have left you alone. It’s against the law. Come home with me,” Eve begged.
“No,” Maggie said defiantly. “We aren’t going anywhere until you promise you won’t say anything.”
Eve shook her head in frustration. “Well, I’m leaving.”
As she turned to leave, Maggie tugged on her shirt. “You ruined it. You ruined everything. I hate you for this, Eve, I hate you!”
Eve shook her off. “Come on, Maggie, knock it off. Let’s just go. It’s dark and you left the kids all by themselves.”
“Not until you promise me you won’t say anything.” Maggie roughly grabbed at Eve’s arm.
“Let go of me.” Eve pulled her arm back but Maggie held tight.
“No,” Maggie said defiantly. “You can’t tell anyone. I won’t let you.”
“How do you think you’re going to stop me?” Eve scoffed. “The man’s a rapist.”
Maggie’s hand shot out and connected with Eve’s cheek. The sharp slap reverberated throughout the cave. They both stopped, not believing what just happened. In all the years that Eve and Maggie had been friends, they had rarely argued and it certainly never came to blows.
At first Eve thought that Maggie would apologize, say she was sorry. But Maggie’s shocked expression turned stony and she squared her body so that Eve couldn’t move past her.
“Get out of my way, Maggie,” Eve said, angry tears filling her eyes. Maggie refused to budge. Eve shook her head with disgust and tried to step past, her shoulder connecting with Maggie’s sending them both off balance.
Eve was the first to right herself and kept moving, eager to get out of the caves and back home. “I’m sorry, but he’s just using you,” Eve said apologetically, “and the sooner you figure that out the better.”
With a cry of rage, Maggie grabbed onto the back of Eve’s coat and the two fell to the ground in a knotted heap. “You can’t tell,” Maggie said through clenched teeth. “You can’t. I love him.”
“Get off!” Eve tried to squirm out from beneath, but Maggie wouldn’t let go. Eve kicked out, striking Maggie in the belly with her heavy boot. Maggie inhaled painfully and then bent over, cradling her stomach. Eve scrambled to her feet. She hadn’t meant to kick Maggie so hard but she was being so unreasonable, so crazy. Eve was done. She was going home.
Behind her, Maggie’s moans of pain turned to a roar. Stunned silence. Eve staggered to her feet and eyed the narrow patch of light that lay before her. Nightfall came early in the winter and they had moved too far into the cave and Eve knew she had only a few minutes before they were plunged into complete darkness.
Eve began to move forward when in the distance a shadowy silhouette dropped from above and landed with a soft thud. Nola. The two gazed at one another for a brief moment and then Nola was gone so quickly that Eve wondered if she imagined that her sister was there at all.
