“Argh!” Ruby grumbled. “That seems to be the favorite phrase of all men these days.”
Her father’s gaze cut to her. “Ruby, is Rafe back? I thought I saw him, but . . .”
“Yes, Dad, he’s back. He was here a few nights ago.”
Her father’s head dropped in shame. Ruby could guess he knew exactly when it had been.
“Did he tell you to go?” he asked quietly, lifting his head.
“Yes.”
“You should listen, Rubes. We should go.”
“Where, Dad? Where would we go? Grandma’s?”
He was shaking his head before she finished. “No, not Grandma’s. You know I can’t go there.”
“Then where?” When he didn’t answer, Ruby said, “There’s only one place for you to go, Dad. Until you go there, we can’t go anywhere.”
He dropped his head into his hands. “I can’t, Rubes. I can’t do it.”
Ruby left her chair and crouched on the floor in front of him. “Don’t you think it’s time, Dad? She’s been gone nine years now. She’s not coming back. That doesn’t mean you get to check out of life, too. What about me?”
Her father glanced up at her. “Do you know how she died, Rubes?”
She nodded. “Of course I do. She was killed in a car accident.”
He shook his head. “No, Rubes, she didn’t. That’s what you were told because you were twelve. Someone else told you that, and I let you believe it because it was easier.”
Ruby dropped from her squat to sitting on the floor. “She wasn’t in a car accident?”
Her father leaned forward, urgently. “It was the wolf. That’s what killed your mother.”
“No!” The word was exhaled on a breath. “Dad, that’s not true. It was a car—”
“It was the wolf, Rubes. But then it went away. Or they killed it. Or something. I don’t know. I just know that after it killed her, it was gone, and I was left without my beloved wife.”
Ruby’s mouth quivered as she looked at her dad. She’d known his alcoholism was bad, but had no idea it had completely turn his brain to mush. “Please, daddy, please go get help.”
Her grandma had promised to pay the exorbitant fee for rehab if he’d go. That was two years ago. Ruby had been trying to convince him since.
“Rubes, I can’t. Especially not now.”
Ruby had an idea. “What if I leave too, dad?”
His eyes locked on hers. “If I go to . . . that place, you’ll go away?”
Ruby hated lying to her father, but she’d say anything to get him the help he needed. She nodded.
“Where will you go?”
“I’ll go to Grandma’s,” she said.
“That’s too close. You need to go far away, so that you’re nowhere near the forest.”
Ruby quickly agreed. “Yes, okay, I will. I’ll talk to Rafe and see if he knows someone I can stay with in New York for a while.”
She saw the fear and hesitancy in her dad’s eyes. She knew he was terrified of getting sober and facing his personal demons. She got up on her knees and wrapped her arms around him.
“It’s going to be okay, Dad.”
He held her tightly, his tears warming her shoulder.
* * * * *
Ulric Wolfe drove her father to rehab. It would take him two days to make the trip. Once Ulric and her father had been close friends, but after the death of her mom, their friendship died. He told Ruby he felt this was the least he could do.
Ruby packed as her father did. She told him she’d leave the next day. Because he’d spent the entire previous night completely drunk, and was now suffering the consequences, he didn’t question her. As soon as he left, she quickly unpacked. Marina had given her the day off so that she could tell her father goodbye. She spent the rest of the day dumping all of his alcohol down the drain and carrying empty bottles out to the trash can.
The following day when she left the shop, she found a pacing, angry Rafe waiting for her out front. Deciding to pretend she didn’t see him, she turned for home. He strode up to her, stepping in front so that she couldn’t continue her progress. Glaring down at her, his anger was momentarily stumped by her hair. He lifted a strand from her shoulder.
“What did you do to your hair?”
“I dyed it.”
“But . . . why?”
“I was tired of red,” she answered, moving around him to continue toward home. As if her action called his anger to remembrance, he stalked after her.
“You lied to your father.”
Ruby glared at him. “That’s none of your business, Rafe.”
“It’s my business when you tell him I’m arranging for you to go away.”
She tightened her lips. She couldn’t really argue with that.
“So that’s what I’m doing, I’m arranging for you to go away, Red.”
Ruby stopped and swung toward him, shoving against his shoulder. It didn’t even move him an inch. “I’m not going anywhere, Rafe! And stop calling me Red!”
His eyes flicked to her hair once again. “Shall I call you ‘Black’?” he growled. “That’s the color of your soul, you stubborn, lying, pig headed—”
Ruby turned and walked quickly away from him, stopping his speech and causing him to jog to catch up to her.
“Changing the color didn’t change your red-headed temper, did it?”
“Look, Rafe, I’d’ve said anything to get him into rehab. You more than anyone should understand that.”
“I do, Re—Ruby. I completely understand that. But I also understand that you need to get away from here until it’s safe. What do you think your dad is going to do when he realizes you didn’t keep your end of the bargain?”
Ruby had considered that. “He’ll be sober. It won’t matter.” At least, she prayed it wouldn’t matter.
“You are so stubborn! How am I supposed to protect you when you refuse to listen to reason?”
“It’s not your job to protect me.” She couldn’t keep the bitterness from her voice. “Leaving for three years isn’t exactly protecting me, is it?”
“I told you, I had reasons—”
“And do those reasons explain why you didn’t write or call, Rafe?” She stopped again. “You were supposed to be my friend, my best friend. Whatever else happened between us, that’s something I thought I could always count on.” Ruby bit her lip. She hadn’t meant to sound so pathetic.
“I’m so sorry,” he said, and he actually sounded as though he meant it. “I never meant to hurt you, Re—Ruby. Part of the reason I left was to avoid hurting you.”
That made no sense, but she had a feeling asking him what it meant would give her as much clarification as he’d given her so far. Instead, she looked at him.
“Well done you, then.”
He opened his mouth to say something else, then snapped it shut, his eyes reflecting the sorrow he felt. She began walking again, and saw Lowell standing at the next corner. As they came even with him, he said, “Everything okay, Ruby?”
“Fine, Lowell. Can you call your brother off, though?”
Without waiting for a response, she turned the corner and jogged the rest of the way to her house.
* * * * *
The phone ringing in the middle of the night woke Ruby from a restless sleep. She didn’t own a cell phone. Not only was the reception in Piera poor enough to make it a waste of money to have one, she couldn’t afford one. They only had a house phone without even anything as fancy as voicemail.
She rolled over sleepily and grabbed the receiver from the cradle. “Hello?” she mumbled.
“Ruby?”
“Grandma?” She forced herself awake. She sat up, turning on her bedside lamp. “What’s the matter?”
“I miss you, Ruby. Why haven’t you been here to see me? I want you to come see me.”
“Okay. I can do that. Why, Grandma? What’s going on?” She rubbed her eyes blearily.
“I can’t . . . I can’t tell you over the p
hone, Ruby. I just want you to come see me. I miss you.”
“Grandma, it’s the middle of the night. I’ll leave when the sun comes up, and I’ll be there by tomorrow afternoon, okay? I’ll bring you some cupcakes and muffins.”
“Okay, Ruby. I’ll see you then.”
Ruby yawned and hung up, staring at the phone. That was the strangest phone call she’d ever gotten, from her grandma or anyone else. She worried that maybe her grandma was getting Alzheimer’s or something. Why else would she call in the middle of the night? Then she wondered if her grandma had heard about her father going to rehab. Of course she would’ve heard. They probably contacted her for payment. No wonder she was upset.
Ruby tried to go back to sleep, but wasn’t able to. She got up and prepared for her trek. She figured she’d be safe enough during the daylight. All the wolf’s attacks were at night. She could drive to the barge, but it would take her much longer than just walking. She’d walked it plenty of times and knew she could make it in about eight hours. Driving would take her most of the day. Besides, she could use walking all the nervous energy off caused by Rafe and Lowell.
She loaded a backpack with water, a sweatshirt, flashlight, matches, a poncho, an extra pair of shoes, a small first aid kit, and a knife. When she was younger, her father had taught her the essentials for the short trek as he’d made it himself multiple times.
The morning air was cool enough that she pulled her red hoodie on before leaving the house. Sirens in the distance caught her attention and her shoulders slumped. She’d be willing to bet the wolf had struck again, and someone else was suffering a loss because of it.
As she walked toward the shop, a shadow detached itself from the side of her house. She startled until she recognized Rafe’s form.
“What are you doing here, Rafe?” she demanded.
“Trying to keep you safe.”
“By giving me a heart attack?”
He walked behind her. “What’s the pack for, Red?”
“None of your business, Rafe.”
He followed her into the bakery where Marina was already hard at work.
“What brings you in so early on your day off?” Marina asked, hugging her. She saw Rafe behind her. “And bringing in something so delicious looking with you.”
“Nothing’s as delicious as your baking, Marina,” Rafe said, hugging her.
“And that gets you your choice of anything you want,” Marina said.
“I was hoping,” he grinned.
Ruby rolled her eyes. “I need some cupcakes and muffins to take to my grandma,” she said quietly to Marina as Rafe perused the glass case, hoping he wouldn’t overhear. “And I need tomorrow off.”
“Sure thing,” Marina said. “You know I love your grandma. Are you walking or going by river?”
Rafe’s head came up at Marina’s words, and Ruby groaned.
“You’re on your way to your grandma’s?” he asked.
“None of your business,” she repeated. She grabbed a delivery basket, and filled it with a variety of pastries. She’d fill her grandma’s freezer so she could enjoy them for the next few weeks.
“I’ll drive you to the barge,” he said. He wasn’t asking, he was telling.
“No, thanks,” she said.
“You know your dad’s car isn’t going to make it that far,” he said.
Ruby didn’t answer, simply closed the basket and walked over to Marina. “Thanks. I’ll see you day after tomorrow.”
Rafe followed her from the shop, eating a warm blueberry muffin. When she turned toward the forest rather than her house, he grabbed her arm.
“Wait a sec, Red. Are you planning to walk?”
“Again, Rafe, none of your—”
“No way am I letting you do that.”
“Last time I checked you weren’t my father, or my keeper. I’m an adult. I’ll do what I want.”
“C’mon, Ruby. It’s one thing to be stubborn about not leaving Piera. But this is just plain stupid.”
“It’s faster to walk, Rafe. I’ll be to my grandma’s by this afternoon, and spend the night. There haven’t been any attacks during the day, right?”
“Because people have been avoiding the woods.”
“I have a knife,” she said, then wished she could take the words back.
“A knife? You think a knife will protect you against something that can tear a lock from a barn?”
“I’m going, Rafe.”
“Please, Ruby. Let me drive you.”
“No.”
“Then let me go with you.”
Ruby thought about spending the whole day with Rafe, alone, listening to him harp on her about leaving Piera. She’d rather be bitten by a rattlesnake. She sighed. “Can I stop you?”
“What do you think?”
“Fine. Let’s go.”
“I need to run to my place and get some supplies.”
“I’ll walk slow and you can catch up,” she said.
Rafe growled at her and she yielded.
“Fine, Rafe. I’ll wait for you by the oak, okay? I won’t go any further than that.”
Ruby kept to her word, and stood beneath the oak tree, waiting. She looked up at the green canopy above her. She wished for the simpler days of childhood when things were easy between her and Rafe. She knew that if she relented, things could be easy between them again—for a time. But then he’d go, and she’d be left to try to pick up the pieces of her heart once again.
Part III: Into the Woods
Rafe returned carrying a pack much larger than hers, as well as a rifle. She thought it overkill for a day trip, but didn’t say anything. They walked down the path that would eventually lead to her grandma’s house.
“Why are you going to your grandma’s anyway?” Rafe broke the long silence.
“She called and asked me to come.”
Rafe glanced at her. “How long ago was that?”
Ruby glanced at her watch. “About 4 hours ago.”
Rafe’s brow scrunched together. “She called you that early in the morning? Is there an emergency?”
Ruby shook her head. “No. She mostly seemed . . . confused, I guess. Sounded a little off. I’m worried that maybe she’s getting too old to live alone.”
“Red, your grandma is like, what, sixty-five or so? She’s one of the sharpest women I know. She’s hardly getting too old.”
Ruby agreed, but couldn’t think of any other explanation. “Well, you haven’t been around for a while. People change, you know?”
Rafe didn’t say anything for a few minutes, then, “It just seems odd. Suspicious. Like someone is trying to draw you out here.”
Ruby laughed cynically. “Yes, Rafe, my grandma is in cahoots with the wolf, and she wanted me out in the open forest so he can attack me.”
Rafe looked at her. “I didn’t say anything about the wolf.”
He was right. Why had she said that? “Sorry. I guess my dad’s delusions stuck more than I’d thought.”
“What delusions?”
Ruby could’ve smacked herself. She kept forgetting that things were different with Rafe now. He wasn’t her best friend that she could tell just anything to anymore.
“Not really delusions. Just, the other day, he kept going on about the wolf being after me. He claims my mom was killed by a wolf instead of in a car accident. Just drunken ramblings.”
Rafe stayed silent for so long that Ruby finally looked up at him. His tight, drawn face held a mixture of anger and guilt. What in the world would he have to be guilty about? Or angry, for that matter.
“Rafe?” He looked at her, and she was startled by the pain in his eyes. “You’ve seen how he is. It’s no biggie.”
He stopped and grabbed her upper arms tightly, urgently. “You should listen to him, Red. He might sound like a rambling drunk, but he knows what he’s talking about.”
“What are you talking about?” She asked, trying to wiggle free of his painful grip. “Let me go. You’re scaring m
e.”
He released her and she stumbled backward as he swung away from her, running his hand through his hair. She rubbed her arms as she watched him warily.
“Do you know something I don’t?” she finally asked.