Towering over me, staring down at me with his curious brown eyes, Stone held out a hand.

20. Stone

20

STONE

I had just one day of freedom left before I knew I had to face my Supervisory Agent. I’d made the call and agreed to meet him in Briarport. What he didn’t realize was, I was already there. It bought me a few days, but Sunday, I had to finally meet him.

For now, I had one last day.

It was Len’s birthday, and instead of spending it with her, I was running around town to find everything I needed to make it perfect.

This was what unprepared felt like?

Not a feeling I was familiar with.

When I got back to the house, finally, Len wasn’t anywhere to be found. I was slightly thankful, since I would have the opportunity to finish what I started.

Everything I planned was almost completed. There was just one last thing to do.

What I hadn’t expected was for it to take me another few hours to finish. By the time I was done, it was already well into the afternoon. Len still hadn’t turned up at the house, and I had a sneaking suspicion I knew exactly where she was.

I packed everything I prepared into a picnic basket and closed the lid. The basket had been laying around in the house, perfect for the rest of the day I planned for her.

The door shut behind me as I walked out of the rental and made my way through the garden. I could hear the ocean and knew if I just followed it down the path, I’d find Len.

I took the first outlet I saw to the private beach, free from tourists but a perfect spot for locals. I spotted her long, curly hair straight ahead of me, sitting in the sand, her favorite place.

“There you are,” I said, reaching out a hand as I approached her.

She was already turning around, tipped off by my shadow. There was a gloom in her eyes that made my heart sink.

She took my hand and stood without a word.

“Come on. I’m taking you somewhere new,” I said, trying to be upbeat.

You’re imagining it. It’s her birthday; she can’t possibly be this upset, right?

She barely reacted.

Wrong. Time to work double time to fix it. 

It didn’t take us long to walk back to the rental and to my car. I opened the door for her like I always did and shut it behind her. The drive would only be fifteen minutes, from everything I calculated. The chance I was taking was starting to feel like a bit of a miscalculation. Maybe I’d been wrong to think this was what she’d want…