Chapter Text
The cold September rain fell against the long road that stretched before her. The rain here was relentless. It had soaked her hoodie, run down her hair and stained the fabric of her backpack. She’d tried to find shelter under the trees but had given up hours ago. She was drenched to the bone and the straps of her backpack had started to scratch against her skin over the fabric. Once every few minutes, a car passed although none of them had stopped. She'd been trying for a while.
Maelle hadn’t really slept since Tuesday. The last time she'd eaten had been thirteen hours ago – a granola bar at a rest stop just outside Astoria. The purchase had drained the last bit of the money she'd taken with her.
The City of Forks Welcomes You
She had never heard the name of this town on the sign. That was probably a good thing. Anonymity was hard-earned and difficult.
Her arm was aching from holding it out too long. Her thumb felt stiff and numb. Every shift of her weight pulled at the bruises on her legs. She knew their shape without looking at them, had been careful not to think about how she’d gotten them, careful not to think about Tuesday evening at all. Her ribs ached from the cold air when she breathed too deeply. Her stomach felt wrong; a deep ache that she'd managed to successfully ignore. So far. She just needed to get away. Anywhere but back.
A vehicle slowed.
It was a blue pickup truck. Surprised and relieved, she staggered back to make room. The person behind the wheel rolled the passenger window down halfway. She tried to look as confident as she could muster – straightened back and shoulders, neutral face.
A man who appeared to be in his mid-thirties stuck his head out, leaning across the seat. “Hey! You okay out here?” he called over the rain, keeping the engine running. “You headed somewhere?”
Maelle hesitated. Although she had told the story several times over the past two days, it wasn’t getting easier. She had to be careful not to give too much yet enough to make it convincing. “Um. Yeah. Could you maybe take me to a gas station?”
“A gas station?”
“I need to call my aunt and my phone died. She's supposed to pick me up for … to stay with her a few days.”
The man studied her for a moment. Maybe he was thinking about her soaked clothes. At least, they hid most of her fading bruises. “Sure … there’s one a few minutes back toward town. Hop in. You’re gonna freeze standing out here.”
Warm air spilled out as Maelle opened the door and climbed inside. The heater was running hard enough to fog the windows. The man pulled back out onto the road while Maelle watched as the windshield wipers swept against the rain.
“My name’s Rick,” the man said casually and glanced over. “And who are you? You look like you took a tumble or something.”
His eyes lingered on her jaw. He'd probably noticed the the faint discolouration there. Maelle didn’t respond.
Lights of a gas station glowed from a distance. Rick pulled in under the gas station’s awning.
“There you go,” he said, putting the truck in a parking space. “There should be a payphone inside by the counter.”
Maelle nodded. “This is perfect. Thank you.”
She opened the passenger door and went out, back into the cold rain, to the station's convenience store. As she entered, the bell above the entrance jingled loudly. Quickly, she cast a look over to the counter where a bored-looking clerk was flipping through a magazine. Good. Not much attention. The last few days had taught her that gas stations were ideal places to meet people who would forget you ever existed.
The store had a smell of burnt coffee and hot food, mixed in with cleaning solution. Maelle walked the aisles and headed towards the shelves with quick meals.
Through the glass of the store, she could see Rick lingering just outside the entrance. He’d gotten out of the car too and was pretending to check something on his grey flip phone.
Now that she was inside, she became truly aware how cold she was from the rain. She skimmed the crowded shelves of the refrigerated section. A selection of wrapped sandwiches, prepped salads, fruit cups, and protein and chocolate bars were on offer, as were bottled juice and soda. The sight of this much food made her stomach turn. At this point, she wasn’t even sure anymore whether it was hunger.
Maelle pulled the few bills and coins from her pocket and counted them in her palm. Not enough, not even close. All her money spent.
When she glanced back at the counter, the clerk still seemed distracted. Her stomach twisted again. She pressed against it and felt a bit of relief. She definitely needed to eat something – it had begun to hurt so much she’d lost her appetite. She’d already been nauseous from the hunger last night and didn’t want to repeat that.
Before she could overthink it, she tucked in one of the turkey sandwiches. She put it into the front pocket of her hoodie and smoothed the fabric over it. The gesture had come so quickly to her, there was no time for guilt. She turned and headed for the door, trying to keep her steps inconspicuous.
“Hey, girl! Yes, you! Hold up.” The clerk’s voice echoed through the noise of the empty convenience store. He set the magazine aside.
Maelle froze.
“You gotta pay for that!”
She felt her face burn. It was impossible to hide the bulge of the sandwich in her hoodie pocket.
The door opened and Rick entered. “Hey. Everything okay here?”
“This girl’s trying to steal a sandwich.”
Rick went from concern to suspicion. His eyes wandered down to her hoodie pocket. “Is that true?”
“No, no, I swear. I didn’t, I swear … I …” Maelle took half a step toward the door. “I really need to go. I’m okay. It’s nothing.”
The clerk didn’t look convinced. “Then empty your pocket.”
Maelle fiddled with the hem of her hoodie pocket without making a move.
Rick seemed uncomfortable. “You sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine. I just … I have to go now.” She tried to sidestep them.
The clerk blocked her path. “Oh no, you’re not leaving with unpaid products.”
Rick snorted. “Look, kid, if you’re hungry, I can—”
“I said I didn’t take anything,” Maelle snapped.
“All right,” the clerk said. “Then I’m calling this in. I’m sure our Chief will be thrilled to hear about yet another teen shoplifting.”
Rick hesitated, then murmured reluctantly, “I already called when I saw the marks on her face. Just … to be safe.”
Called.
“You what?” she whispered.
“I don’t want trouble. I just thought … errm, you’re most likely a minor, you look hurt, you’re acting very nervous. What else was I supposed to do?”
“Yeah, well, police can sort it out,” the clerk said.
Maelle’s pulse roared in her ears. Without further thinking, she bolted toward the door. The bell shrieked overhead. She stumbled back into the rain. As her foot slipped on the wet concrete, she fell forward, trying to catch herself … and went down hard. Pain shot up her arms and into her shoulder.
Behind her, the store door was opened again.
“He! Hey! Don’t run!” Rick shouted.
Then came the sound of an engine slowing down. In the reflection of the wet ground, Maelle spotted red and blue lights before the police car had pulled in. Maelle pushed her palms against the wet concrete, trying to get her legs to cooperate. Her shoulder throbbed sharply. She nearly lost her balance again as she forced herself upright.
The police car stopped a few yards away from her. After about five seconds, the driver door opened.
Rick was suddenly behind her. “Easy. Stay put.”
They were approached by an officer with curly brown hair and a moustache. “Morning. What’s going on here?”
Rick lifted his hands. “Morning, Chief, I called. Kid here was hitch-hiking to get to her aunt, looked hurt. Then there was a shoplifting thing inside.”
The officer narrowed his eyes as they turned to Maelle. “You hurt?”
“I’m fine. And I didn’t do anything, I swear!”
“All right. Mhm. Why don’t you tell me what happened?”
“Nothing happened,” Maelle’s voice sounded small. She forced herself to keep breathing normally. “I was just late to my aunt’s. My phone died, and I asked this man to take me here so I can call her. That’s all.”
Rick harrumphed. “She seemed unstable on her feet when I picked her up. Real nervous too. I mean, who goes to their aunt via hitch-hiking? And the clerk said she tried to take a sandwich.”
The officer turned toward the clerk. “You saw her take it?”
The clerk hesitated. “Not exactly. But it’s probably in her hoodie pocket.”
The officer glanced back at Maelle. “Mind if we clear that up? If you got something you didn’t pay for, give it back to the clerk. Now.”
Before she could stop herself, her hand moved to her hoodie pocket and she pulled out the sandwich.
“Yeah. That. I don’t want trouble for you, girl. I'll put it back on the shelves. It’s fine.” The clerk exhaled and pulled the sandwich from her hand.
“That’s very generous of you,” the officer said.
When the clerk he went back inside the shop, the officer’s attention turned to her again. “You’re a minor.”
Maelle’s throat tightened. She knew she didn’t exactly look like an adult.
“And you say you’re heading to your aunt’s. Where does she live?”
In truth, she had no idea where she was really. She didn’t own a phone either.
The officer waited a while for her to respond. “Maybe think your story over again. For now, I wanna make sure you’re not hurt … or intoxicated.”
“I’m not drunk.”
“You’re looking rather unsteady, kid,” Rick said.
The officer took a small black device from his jacket pocket. “I’m going to have you blow into this. Ever seen any of those? It’s a breath test. Takes about ten seconds.”
“I don’t do alcohol,” she said quickly. “And I’m fine, I told you.”
“And I heard you.” He held the device out toward her. “Deep breath in. Then blow until I tell you to stop.”
Her lips trembled as he lifted it to her mouth. She knew she hadn’t had anything to drink. She knew it. But her mind and body didn’t care about logic right now. The smell of the heavy rain and the station's gasoline mixed strangely in her nose. Suddenly, she wasn’t at the gas station anymore. Her foster father’s breath hit her. The kitchen on Hickory Road appeared in her mind. His hand already held up, his voice slurring, his empty bottles on the counter.
“A slow and deep breath.” The officer’s reminder pulled her back to reality.
She closed her lips around the mouthpiece of the device and blew in. At first, her breathing came out shaky. Her vision tunnelled, the edges blurring as the memory of the Shepherds pressed too close. She forced herself to keep blowing.
The device beeped.
“Good, you can stop.”
She pulled away. Her breathing was too fast now. And once again, her stomach twisted with some leftover panic and the ache that had been nagging her for days.
The officer raised his eyebrows. “Zero. Huh.”
Rick exhaled behind her. It sounded relieved.
“That rules that out,” the officer mused. “But that doesn’t explain your bruises. Or why you’re out here alone hitch-hiking, especially in this weather.”
“Told you, Chief. Something’s not right.”
“What’s your name? Got any identification on you?”
Maelle weighed the question. She wasn’t exactly feeling bold, but … “I’d rather not say. I don’t even know yours.”
“Don't be smart with me.” The officer pointed to a badge with a logo and a name tag underneath on his uniform. “Name’s Swan. Chief Swan. And you don’t have to give me your name here in front of other people. But you’re a minor alone with no clear destination. That puts you in my responsibility.” Chief Swan looked at Rick. “You did the right thing calling it in.” Then back to Maelle: “Let’s go to the station, so we can sort this out properly.”
Images of locked doors and cool rooms and endless questions appeared instantly in her mind at the word station.
Before she could react, he added, “Before that, though, I want you checked medically. You’re shaking and quite pale. You feeling ill at all?”
Right on cue, her stomach gave another uncomfortable twist, deeper now.
“No need to answer that. I’m not leaving you here.” His tone wasn’t threatening, but it sounded firm and final.
“You can’t make me come with you.”
“Listen, I don’t want to arrest you, kid. But if you keep up like this, that becomes resisting, which means I’ll have to escalate this and detain you.”
Rick stiffened behind her. “Kid … just do what he says … please.”
Chief Swan softened his voice. “Nobody here will hurt you. You’re clearly not okay.” He gestured toward his cruiser. “Come sit in the car with me. It’s warm and dry, and we’ll talk. If what you tell me checks out, we’ll go from there.”
The words checks out didn’t make her confident. That meant her name and her name meant a file and her file meant Hickory Road, the Shepherds and someone calling them.
Three days. She’d made it to three days.
As much as the thought of being found out unsettled her, there was no way she’d be able to outrun a Chief of Police. After a long, tense moment, she gave in with slumped shoulders. Then she nodded.
“Good, you’re being sensible.” The chief gestured for her to enter his car, passenger seat. “Let’s go.”
Reluctantly, Maelle climbed inside and put the seat belt on. Chief Swan closed the passenger door so forcefully, it gave a heavy, final-sounding thud.
He walked around to get into the driver’s seat and started the motor.
After a moment of silent driving, Chief Swan said: “We’re stopping at the hospital first. I want a doctor to make sure you’re okay. After that, go to the station.”
Maelle’s body still felt high from all the adrenaline.
He kept his eyes on the road. “I realise you don’t like giving answers but you have no choice but to tell me who you are and what happened to you at the station. Actually, you better do so at the hospital already, it’s always good to be honest with doctors. If there is someone responsible for you I can call now, tell me.”
She curled up in her seat without meaning to, pressing her knees together and wrapping her arm around her middle.
“Are you going to be sick? It’s just a few minutes to the hospital. They’ll check you out.” He must have noticed her movements. “You said you were headed to your aunt’s. I’m going to ask again. Whereabouts does she live?”
“Not … far …”
“Does your aunt exist?”
“N… I mean, yes.”
“I see,” he said grimly.
For the rest of the drive, they didn’t speak. Maelle’s body felt uneasy, a wave of nausea had settled. She couldn’t get her hands to stop moving.
Suddenly, Chief Swan pulled inside a drop-off lane. She looked out the passenger window and saw that the hospital entrance waited just a few steps away.