Trails

Chapter 4: Old Flames

After shaking Ben out of my thoughts, I put my phone back on my nightstand and started getting ready for Nebraska. First, I pulled my blue suitcase from my closet and set it in the center of my bed.

Next, I unzipped the front and dumped the contents inside, such as clothes, books, my knapsack, and my detective gear. Finally, I stuffed my phone into my pocket, zipped the suitcase back up, and drag it by its handle.

As I waited for Mom's car to appear on the driveway, I carried my luggage downstairs and played with my cellphone.

My purple phone cover had my favorite Pretty Little Liars character, Spencer Hastings, smiling  proudly like an intellectual genius. She had wavy brown hair, matching brown eyes, and an ivory skin complexion.

Attached to the phone was a Sherlock Holmes hat. As well as the hat, Ben bought two phone charms for me: a Nancy Drew silhouette and a golden Spencer Hastings figurine.

I swept the brownish black bangs away from my eyes and tucked them in my cap. So far, my mother hasn't texted me. I wonder if she's still in meeting or something.

Taking a deep breath, I shoved my phone back into my pocket and I hopped on the couch. Since I passed the ACT and SAT flawlessly, I didn't have to study anymore. It gave Mom the chance to make me wear girly clothes, jewelry, and makeup.

Instead, I bought my favorite pair of skinny jeans, more black leather boots, and picked out a few blouses and a couple of shirts to show off my tattoos.

I changed a couple of channels until I heard a loud bang on the door.

"Coming!" I sang. I quickly rose up from my couch seat and walked over to the entrance. But when I open the door, I saw Jason standing in front of the doorstep.

He wore a white t-shirt, navy blue jeans, and sneakers. Blond hair rested stiffly against Jason's sunburnt neck and his eyes glowed blue.

I noticed Jason's hands were covered in car grease, the same substance that was smeared against a red handkerchief stuffed inside his right jeans pocket.

"Hey Cole," he greeted. "Is your boyfriend here?"

I shook my head no and smiled at him.

"We broke up," I explained, earning Jason a surprise stare.

"Are you okay?" he asked worriedly.

"Yeah," I answered with a shrug. "It wasn't  that big of a deal, Luke is just not comfortable with the whole long distance thing."

"We're still friends, though."

Jason nodded very slowly, but I could see traces of confusion sticking to his eyes.

"Anyways, how's your car?" I asked, changing the subject. "Is it still working?"

His blond eyebrows rose in a peculiar way. He then nervously looked at his greasy hands and down at his muddy shoes.

"How did you know that?" he ask in embarrassment.

"You have car grease on your hands and on your handkerchief. Due to the fresh stains on the cloth, your car has just sprung a leak."

"And there is another theory," I added. "Your car must have been old. So, it must have been a pain to get the diesel fuel into the engine."

Impressed, Jason did a casual shrug and explained that he is trying to get rid of his father's rusty Mustang for almost four weeks.

"I still don't understand why my mom keeps his trash after everything he did."

I knew what he had meant: about a year ago, his alcoholic father murdered Kimberly by shoving her down the stairs to the school basement. Apparently, she was my classmate and Jason's little sister.

Due to his drunkenness, he forgotten about the encounter with Kimberly and hired Ben and me to investigate her case, along with his wife.

"Do you want to come inside?" I ask hopefully.

Jason reluctantly nodded as his brown shoes stumbled across the white tiled floor. As soon as I gestured him to the table, I went over to the refrigerator and pulled out a pitcher of lemonade.

While I was pouring Jason a cup, he noticed my suitcase standing next to my chair and asked if I was moving again.

"Nope," I answered. "My mom and I are going to Nebraska to visit my aunt."

"I ask Ben if he could come along, and he agrees."

I look to see Jason staring at the surface of the wooden table, like he was angry or something.

"What?" I asked.

"I don't think you should trust that guy," Jason began carefully.

"Seriously?" I scoffed. "Luke isn't a bad guy-"

"Not yet," he interrupted. "Hell, I don't even know  if his brother is aware of Luke's criminal activities..."

Despite his perfect reputation as a police officer, Jason was unaware of Luke's real identity. Instead of listening to his warnings, I focused my efforts on preparing lemonade.

After filling Jason's cup of lemonade, I put the pitcher back into the refrigerator, and handed the beverage to Jason.

Soon afterwards, I handed him a napkin to wipe the car grease off of his fingers.

"Look, Jason."  I insisted. "You got it all wrong, Luke is a good person and so is Seth."

"They're the reasons why The Expedition has made it this far."

"Cole, you don't know these people as well as I do-"

"Yeah right," I scoffed. "You have been a rookie for a year, Jason."

He bit his lip and got up from his chair. I watched as Jason took two hesitant steps towards me and grabbed my shoulders.

"I care about you more than anything in the world. I don't regret the night we kissed at the Great Gatsby prom."

I stared at him in disbelief. Is he saying what I think he's saying?

"I love you," he breathed. "I love you so much-"

"Stop," I interrupted. I took three steps back from him and crossed my arms.

"Like I said, I don't feel the same way. So, you could just leave me alone." Just then, Ben came into the house with hands full of his belongings.

His polite smile turned into a frown as his emerald eyes flicked back at mine and Jason's.

"What's going on?" he asked.