Sudden Independents

Anger rose up in Jimmy again, but he buried the feeling deep and closed the lid. The time for anger had passed. Hunter settled the score, and Jimmy was confident his brother did it right. Ginger was here and Jimmy only wanted to be here for her. He sat down next to her, letting a quiet moment pass.

“I made candles today,” Ginger said.

He nodded. “That’s an important job.”

“I’m so sorry, Jimmy.” She brought her hands up and caught her tears before they fell. “I didn’t know what to do.”

He wrapped his arms around her. “What happened is not your fault. I’m just glad you’re back and you’re safe.”

“But it’s not safe. That boy is still out there. He put his hands on me in front of all those strangers. I don’t want to think about how terrible things could have gotten if it hadn’t been for Hunter. It’s just not safe here.” She shook in his arms.

Jimmy felt helpless, holding her close. He stared at the candlelight for so long that when he closed his eyes, the image of the flame had burned into his mind. Ginger’s tears lessened with time and she slowly sat back, holding his hand tightly while they gazed at the floor together.

“How many candles did you make today?” he asked.

“Fifty or so,” Ginger said. She sniffed and wiped her nose with a linen handkerchief. “I enjoyed making them.”

“You helped a lot of people today just by doing that one job.”

“I guess so.”

“You know what’s important about candlelight?”

She turned to face him, and he briefly lost where he’d been going with the whole candlelight thing. After everything she’d gone through, she was still so beautiful.

“When it’s dark, a tiny flame from a single candle can make so many people feel safe. Think of how many kids out there who may be afraid of the dark now has one of your candles helping them to feel safe tonight.”

Ginger smiled. “I love you.”

“And I love you.”

She fell asleep in his arms soon after. Jimmy counted the beats between each of her soft breaths as they brushed against his neck. He wished he could say he felt safe lying next to the girl he loved. But he couldn’t. His birthday was only a week away and they still hadn’t found Catherine.

Darkness covered the city like a heavy blanket without the warmth as the search for Catherine’s whereabouts continued with the nightshift. After a little subtle convincing, Scout got his way and was able to escape the stifling confines of their hideout. He and Raven ran swiftly away from the front yard, concealing their movements through the deep shadows of the surrounding neighborhood. Litter lay everywhere. Whole houses were gutted, contents spilling out front doors, strewn into yards. Even furniture decorated the lawns, rotting and falling apart. Scout’s boots crunched over the jagged pieces of porcelain and fine china. He always kept his eyes open for baseball gloves, or better yet, an official Boy Scout uniform with an Eagle Badge.

“I can’t believe the way they’ve ruined everything here.”

Raven reached for his hand. “They’re just kids.”

“Must be due to Chase’s influence if Molly’s theory about him being Catherine’s opposite holds any water. That dude must seriously put out some bad vibes.”

“He’s bad. Trust me.”

Raven averted her eyes. She never openly discussed her past life in Denver. Molly told Scout to have patience and understand that she still needed the space and time to heal, but there were things he wanted to know.

“You and him used to be close? Is that it?”

Raven tore her hand away and ran. Scout followed close behind, soon reaching out for her to slow down.

“It’s not what you think. Chase is always sick and he never let’s anyone touch him. So there was never that between us. But the things he made us do to other people was horrible,” she said, gasping to catch her breath. “I can never tell you what it was like. I can’t tell anyone. I just want to forget everything.”

Scout gently pulled her to him. “It’s okay. We don’t have to talk about it.”

Raven hugged him tightly, reminding him of Catherine. Scout squeezed back.

“I’m sorry,” she said as they started walking again. “Thanks for not pushing it. All I want to do is help you guys get that little girl back and then get the hell away from this place. I just wish I could get Kessie out of this mess when we leave.”

“Is it okay to assume you were pretty tight with Kessie?”

Raven punched Scout in the arm. “She was there for me when my sister died. We did everything together after that and took care of each other. I’d do anything for her and I know she’d do the same.”

“Even now?”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“You’re playing for the other team, Raven. Might be different if she found out.”