Trails

Chapter 22: Goodbye Sherlock

After surviving the fire, I noticed Ben clutching onto his bleeding stomach.

I made him lie down as I took off his black shirt. I pulled the phone out of my pocket and checked if it had a signal.

"Oh, come on!" I screeched. My cellphone is always pathetic in the woods.

I could see Ben's hand covered in thick blood. The police is going to find us, sooner or later. But in the meantime, I need to help Ben.

As I reach into my pack, Ben gave me a weird stare.

"What are you doing?" he moaned.

I pulled out my lock picking kit and a small bottle of alcohol.

"I need to get that bullet out of you," I insisted. "Hold still, okay?"

Taking a deep breath, I pulled the bullet out of his stomach with two lock picks and poured the  liquid on the wound.

"OUCH!" Ben yelled.

"Shut up," I snorted. I laid the bullet on the ground and took out my sewing kit.

Ben winced as he felt the needle penetrating his skin.

I later sewed up the wound, cleaned the lock picking instruments with the alcohol, and put my things away.

Ben looked down at my work in amazement.

"How did you know how to stitch a wound?" he asked.

"I used to be a Girl Scout when I was six," I explained.

"Can you walk?"

Ben nodded as he tries to get up on his feet. He took a couple deep breaths, and tries to move.

"Don't move so much," I advised. I handed him his dark shirt and turned away at the sight of his flawless body.

Just then, I heard the sounds of a fire truck, police cars, and the SWAT team rushing inside the woods.

While firefighters try to extinguish the flames, police officers fled over to the scene. "What the hell is going on here?" someone demanded.

An ambulance came rushing to us, checking our temperatures and asking us our names.

Meanwhile, I saw Ben rolling his eyes as Shane demands him to explain what was going on. He was sitting on the back of the ambulance truck, playing with his fingers while Shane kept pressing him for details.

"Where's Beverly?" he yelled.

Instead of answering, Ben pointed his finger at the dilapidated warehouse.

"She's dead," Ben answered. "I could answer a few more questions, but I just got shot in the stomach." Shane grumbled under his breath, but left him alone.

As soon as we arrived in the hospital, we had nurses surveying our diet, wounds, and made sure that we didn't leave our beds. The reporters came rushing into the crime scene, announcing the world that the killer has been murdered in the fire.

However, the police didn't give them any details about us or the name of the serial killer.

In the aftermath, Mom, Aunt Jessica, and Seth came to our hospital rooms. While Seth is delighted to see us recovering, Mom blamed Aunt Jess for letting us getting barbecued, much to my annoyance.

"Mom," I say. "It wasn't her fault-"

"Cole," she said slowly. "Right now, you need to rest and forget this incident. Your aunt and I are going to have a small chat."

After kissing me on the cheek, Mom carefully closed the door.

One night, I decided to sneak out of my room and go to Ben's. Although his dark brown hair is covering his eyes, his skin is still pale, and his bag is on the chair.

Closing the door, I slipped into his bed and threw on his bedsheets.

Just then, a smile stretched on his lips.

"Is that you, Cole?" he asked.

"Yeah," I answered. "How did you know?"

"I can smell your gingerbread perfume," Ben explained. "It's all over your hospital gown."

I'm not wearing gingerbread perfume, I thought. But still, I didn't complain.

"How's your stitch?" I ask, leaning my head on his shoulder. 

"Not bad," he answered. "The doctors didn't have to check it, you stopped the bleeding just fine. However, they do think we're reckless of going to that warehouse."

Seriously? I thought annoyed. 

"I guess it's another case solved," I sighed. "Now, we can go back to San Francisco."

"What am I going to tell Mom?"

Ben turn his head to look at me. 

"You can tell her how amazing you were at kicking butt," he grinned. 

"My parents would have been relieved to see me alive."

"They would also think you're reckless," I replied, kissing his cheek.

Ben smiled as he brushed the dirt off of the corner of my lip. 

"My parents would have been so happy to meet you," he sighed. 

"They will?" I asked in surprise. "Why?"

"Because," he began. "You have bewitched me, heart and soul and I love...I love...I love you."

My heart fluttered as Ben leaned over to me. At first, I thought he wanted to kiss me, but then he put something inside my pocket.

I stared at him in shock and disappointment.

"You're an expert at killing the mood," I grumbled.

"Tomorrow, I'm going to Boston." Ben announced.

A wave of surprise came over me.

"Why?" I asked.

"I am going to tour around Harvard," he shrugged. "Seth is coming with me."

Oh, I thought sadly.

"But, what will I do without you?" I asked.

Ben stroked my hair and gazed into my eyes.

"You could go and see Princeton for yourself." he replied. "See the world, date men-"

"There is nobody I love, but you." I protested.

"Cole," Ben said. "You can do this, okay?"

"I'm sure there is another Sherlock somewhere."

In spite of his plea, I stubbornly refused.

"Do this for me, Nicole." he insisted. "Live your life."

He held my hand when he said those words.

"Okay," I answered.  "Are you going to miss me, Sherlock?"

"Always, Irene." Ben chuckled. "Always."

For that, he kissed my mouth gently and went back to sleep.

I doze for a couple of hours, until I woke up at least seven o'clock.

I stretched my arms and slipped off out of his bed, smoothing down my ombre curls.

I looked at my sleeping Ben and touched his cheek. Immediately, I caught a glimpse of a piece of paper and a pen, sitting on his drawertop and thought of something.

Uncapping the pen, I wrote my favorite quote from Jane Eyre and left it for Ben to read:

I am no bird; and no net ensares me; I am a free human being with an independent will.

"Goodbye, Sherlock Holmes." I whispered.

Soon afterwards, I kissed his lips and walked out of his bedroom.