The Clearing by Tom Deady

Author:Tom Deady
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Vesuvian Books
Published: 2021-07-13T00:00:00+00:00

She bounded past the police car and through the front door. Officer Benson and Dad turned at the same time. Scout began barking outside the door and she opened it to let him in, realizing Marcus was also standing there.

“Is everything okay?” he whispered.

Marcus looked totally confused and more than a little nervous.

“I... I don’t know. Come on in, Marcus.” Hannah nodded toward Dad and Officer Benson. “Dad, Officer Benson, this is Marcus Diaz, my friend from school.” Before anybody asked a question, she continued. “What’s going on?”

Benson and Dad looked at each other and she knew it was bad news.

Oh, my God... Ashley.

Her knees went wobbly and the room was doing that tunnel vision thing again. She staggered to the couch and sat down hard, putting her head between her knees. Dad was next to her instantly, gently rubbing her back.

Benson cleared his throat. “Hannah, this has nothing to do with Ashley.” It was like he’d read her mind. “One of our other officers found Jacob’s car out on Route 33.”

Hannah’s head snapped up. Route 33! She was overwhelmed with mixed emotions—glad there was no bad news about Ashley, but afraid for Jacob’s safety. She couldn’t even look at Marcus.

“The car had a flat tire. It’s being towed to the station now. Jacob wasn’t with the car.”

“Maybe he started walking to get help?” She hated the desperation in her voice.

“We’ve got cars combing the area and foot patrols in the woods around where Jacob’s vehicle was found. No sign of him yet.”

Hannah stood quickly, too quickly, because the room tilted like a ship in rough seas, and she almost fell.

“Was Ashley’s phone in the car?”

Officer Benson shook his head. “The initial search came up empty. The strange thing—your bike wasn’t in the trunk. I was going to bring it to you.”

Hannah stared at him, not comprehending what that might mean. A coughing sound from behind her broke her train of thought. Marcus.

“Uh, maybe I should go?”

“I’m sorry, Marcus. Things are kind of weird right now. Can I talk to you when things settle down a little?”

Marcus nodded and backed toward the door, unsure of what to do. Dad stood up and pulled out his keys.

“I’d feel more comfortable dropping you off,” he offered.

Officer Benson also headed for the door. “I’ll keep you folks posted.”

Hannah followed Dad and Marcus to the car, and they drove across town in awkward silence.

When they got to Marcus’s house, Hannah got out of the car with him. “I’ll explain everything, I promise,” she said.

Marcus nodded and said goodbye, then jogged up his driveway. Dad gave her a knowing look when she got back in the car, unable to hide the hint of a sad smile. They pulled out and Dad made a U-turn, accelerating toward home and more uncertainty.

“I went to the library and logged into Ashley’s email. I think I know where the body is.”

Dad turned to look at her, trying to keep one eye on the road. “Hannah, we talked about this. We need to let Benson know.

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