Forest of Rope

Chapter 11

Hey guys, sorry for the really long delay. Doing my best to get back into a rhythm of writing now that I have time. Bear with me I promise it'll pay off <3 Big thanks to everyone who made it this far, there'll be dedications for you all :) 

'Am I dropping you off here?'

Riley snapped up from his daze to get his bearings of the street. The two hadn't spoken a word to each other since leaving the park.

'Slow down,' he instructed as they swerved toward the terrace.

Tracey rolled her eyes and continued at her current speed.

'What are you doing?' Riley demanded, clutching his seatbelt for support.

'I'm not about to leave you scuttling around their neighbourhood like a stalker. If you're going to see them then do what normal people do and go knock on their door. Honestly, if I let you out now you'll just wind up talking yourself out of it.'

Riley wanted to protest but found himself speechless. Before he could invent an excuse it was already too late and he was forced to accept defeat.

'Fine,' he said bitterly when they came to a stop outside the driveway.

Riley looked at the house with dread. What if he wasn't there? What if he was no longer welcome?

'Well go on then,' Tracey urged, killing the engine. Riley checked his reflection in the wing mirror and pretended to adjust his hair. His eyes were still a little red.

'Oh for God's sake, just go!' she ordered him, shoving him against the window. Too tired to fight back Riley threw back his seatbelt and let himself be evicted.

He took small, cautious steps across the garden patio with his head faced down.

If he had any luck there'd be no one home. However, the presence of an SUV inside the darkness of the adjacent garage soon ruled out that possibility.

He took a quick glance over his shoulder where Tracey watched him, daring him to go on. Was it too late to back out? Riley considered the thought for a moment, consequently slowing his pace to a hobble, but immediately discarded it. He couldn't just take off like he knew he would have done had Tracey let him out at the beginning of the terrace, not now that she was watching.

The plastic Christmas wreath that hung daintily from the entrance glared at him with a certain ironic level of hostility as he approached, appearing almost as a lidless, all-seeing eye of prickly holly, placed there to judge the soul of all intruders. Riley swallowed his fear and reached out for the doorbell, preparing to be judged.

To his surprise, the mahogany door burst open before he could lay a trembling finger on the switch. Startled, Riley retreated a few steps backward in response.

'Oh my God... Riley? Riley Steward?'

He nodded nervously, almost apologetically in reply to the mother of his childhood best friend. She stood in the doorway, perplexed at the sight of him. The pink, puffy coat she wore with matching handbag suggested that she was about to leave the house. She couldn't have been expecting Riley of all people to be standing on her front porch but the blank, calculating look on her face frightened him.

'Hi, Mrs Kress,' he said weakly, hating every strained moment of stunned silence that slid between them. They stood and faced each other for what felt like an eternity before Mrs Kress finally reacted. To Riley's shock, she took an invasive step towards him, her arms stretched to their full length at his throat. For a second Riley thought she was about to strangle him with her handbag but was instead pulled without warning into a forced hug he didn't have the heart to shrug off. In the painful, excruciating seconds that she held him Riley didn't think it could possibly get any worse. That was until a noise from inside the house proved him wrong.