Finding Beauty (Rewrite)

Chapter 34

She only had to turn her back to the deer for a second to put on her things and exit the house. In that blink of an eye, the deer disappeared. Beth was standing outside in the exact same spot it had stood with the creature nowhere in sight. She would have thought she had imagined it had it not been for its prints in the snow. Curiously enough, the deers prints only extended for a few steps making it impossible to track where it came from or where it was going. It was almost like it grew wings and flew away.

She rubbed her head, deciding she would not hurt her brain trying to figure it out. Instead, she walked over to the rose garden Teigan had made for his mother.

There was an iron archway at it's entrance with roses and vines wrapping around it from top to bottom. The roses were a light shade of pink when they were in bloom. At the moment they were covered in snow with few buds. All of the bushes that lined the small area were barren as well. She wished she could have seen what it looked like in springtime.

His mother's rose or his mother trapped in the form of the rose - Beth hated to think about the concept too deeply - rested in the middle of the rows of bushes. She sat on an elegant garden stand in a black vase. It was usually covered with a glass lid to keep it from the elements though Beth had assumed its enchanted nature would keep it safe. As she gazed upon it, she observed the glass lid was discarded on the ground and a bluebird was hopping dangerously close to the flower.

"Shoo! Shoo, bird!" She waved her hands at the bird to scare it off but rather than fly away, it perched itself onto her outstretched fingers. Beth held her hand closer to herself. It was not startled in the least bit. It cocked its head to the side as if Bethany was the one acting strangely. "What is with the wildlife today?"

The bird fluttered its wings and landed on the ground a few paces in front of her, watching her from its spot. She took a tentative step towards it. It did not move. When she had almost reached its side, it took off again and landed further back into the garden. It stared back at her, expectantly.

"Are you trying to lead me somewhere?" Beth didn't definitively know the intelligence levels of birds but this was beyond what she thought they were capable of. Perhaps it had grown used to other humans feeding it and wanted her to give it some bird seeds.

She followed the bird to the end of the garden where it perched on the top of the fence. The white painted boards were a few inches taller than Beth but a step ladder was conveniently placed beside it like someone had climbed over it already. Seemingly displeased with her lack of action, the bird flew around the step ladder in a frenzy.

Something clicked her mind.

This was a test. Not one that the bird set up but one that had created itself by accident.

Teigan was hours away, Carina was heavily distracted and a ladder marked her means of escape. If Beth wanted to, she could leave. No one would be able to stop her. She could run through the woods until she reached the next house or saw a car driving down the road. She could be home by the end of the day.

She took a step back from the fence.

This had been what she wanted once but not anymore. She wanted to stay.

Beth despised the idea of putting Teigan and Carina in danger. She was not desperate to leave anymore. She was safe where she was and though it stressed her out to think about how far behind she was with her college classes, how it hurt her to think that her family and friends were suffering not knowing where she was or if she was okay, she liked Teigan's plan.

Beth turned her back on the bird and the fence, walking back to the house.

A cry shredded through the orange glow of the evening. It was coming from beyond the fence in the woods surrounding the house.