The Whispering in the Trees

Chapter 2

(BTW- this is an image of my other character Rae! You'll see why she looks so lost and helpless in future chapters :)  )

------Rae's POV------

  Rae walked down the street from their very small school in Pinetop, Arizona. The sky had begun it's cloudy haze and tiny droplets of water were sprinkled out of the sky, as if sprinkling a bunch of sprinkles on a cupcake. The rain had only just begun, so it was still in it's enjoyable, 'let's run around and play in it' phase. 

  Rae had been walking to the local library where Nola and her met everyday to finish up the remaining homework they had. Rae entered the library, it was small and cozy, not too big. If you wanted a book, you knew exactly where to look. (Hey! That rhymed! Anyway...back to the story!)  

That's what Rae liked about it. Her eyes scanned around the library with almost no human beings in sight. The librarian was there, looking less than happy being there. There were two other people, teenagers from their school, who were in the corner reading quietly. They were there, but Nola was not. Rae was a bit worried, Nola was always there, where could she be?

 That's when Rae had a 'duh' moment. She remembered that it was Wednesday and that Nola went to see Ben every Wednesday. So, she settled down in a nice, comfy arm chair and started reading a book. It was a wonderful book called Keeper of the Lost Cities. It was the story of a young girl named Sophie who found out that she was a telepath. Soon, Rae was lost in her book. She found herself being whisked off to the lost cities. Rae was so engrossed in her amazing book that she forgot to check the time. 

  Later, when Rae finally looked up from her book, it was already 6:55 PM. School ended at 4:00 so........ where was Nola? She should be here by now. Rae was worried, very worried. She was supposed to look after Nola, until she was ready, and now she didn't even know where she was?! Rae had to find Nola, before it was too late. 

  Rae whipped out her phone and pulled up her phone tracking app. She knew it was creepy, and seemed as if  she was stalking Nola, but desperate times call for desperate measures. She found that Nola was still at the gas station and hadn't left since around 4:05 PM. She needed to find out what was going on. So, she ran as fast as she could down the darkened street. The rain was extremely heavy now as she bolted around twists and turns, trying her hardest not to slip. When she finally arrived at the gas station, she found a load of police cars parked there.

'Was there a robbery here?' Rae thought worriedly as she ducked under the caution tape. She saw a red haired man standing on the side looking very worried. Rae turned another corner and found herself in the back room, were all of the police men were conveniently standing. She peeked over there heads and saw a gruesome sight. A dead man with dry blood framing the corners of his mouth and running all the was down his neck. His face was pale and his eyes were closed. Rae then saw a girl backed up towards the couch  asleep on the man's chest. Her eyelids were puffy and red from crying and her fingers gripped the man's lifeless hand as though it were the only thing she had left. She saw a police officer walk towards her slowly, as if the girl were some wild animal and slowly shook the girl awake. Rae knew exactly who the girl was the moment the girl's unique cobalt blue eyes opened. It was Nola, and the poor old man was Ben. Nola's friend. 

  Rae ducked towards and out of the gas station, not wanting to see any more. She sprinted down the street towards the old, abandoned cabin she stayed in. Rae knew where Nola was, and she was safe. But if Rae knew her friend, she knew Nola would need some space after what had happened. Nola had loved that man like her father, and in Rae's opinion, she even tried to replace her father. 

 Rae laid down in the dusty, un-used bedroom and ducked under the musty covers as she fell into a sleep full of nightmares about her family and what had happened to them.