Taylor removed her eyes from the green that made her sick. She bent her head down and looked out the windshield at the brown log cabin that sat high on a cliff surrounded by snow and pine trees. It was hidden in the pines somewhat making it easy for someone to miss if you weren't looking. She kicked herself menatlly as she was angry at herself for her angry outburst, he didn't mean to make her mad, afterall, it was just a simple question. But the question hit a nerve. Her fear nerve. Her fear of actually never seeing her parents again, she'd been scared from the start that she would never ever see them again. Never hear them say another good morning, never hear another happy birthday, never have her dad walk her down the aisle, or have them see her first child. The thought tore at her sole and she couldn't contain herself. She had pushed all of her thoughts and feelings down deep inside her because she knew that Stone didn't actually care about those types of things. And now after hearing about his past, she knew he had a heart of some sort, but it was hardened by years of torment from his dad and his brother Igor.
"It's beautiful!" She breathed out. Stone just answered with a grunt as they went up and curved. Soon they were in front of it. It wasn't pretty, it was simple. A simple door with large windows all around the cabin. But it was just right and she couldn't wait to see what the inside looked like. Stone stopped the car and turned it off.
"Wait here."
"Why?"
"Because I need to make sure it's safe."
"Oh." Taylor watched him take a gun from the glove box and then step out. She watched him walk to the cabin and check the door. Then he walked around the back and disappeared for some time before reappearing on the left side of the building. He waved at her and she opened the door and stepped out into the snow. Her boots crunched all the way to the door as the cold wrapped around her like a hug. An unwanted hug.
"We're all good." He said as a white puff of air came out of outh from the cold. They walked to the door and stone used the key that was hidden under a rock and opened the door. The inside was musty and cold. Filled with beautiful wooden furniture and lush rugs. A chandelier hung above them in the open vault ceiling with a skylight above the couch that was near a real fireplace. It was rustic and just like what a cabin should feel like.
"It's enchanting." She said as she walked to the couch and sat on the soft cushions.
"It is. That's why I like it up here. I'll go unload, you make yourself comfy and then I'll get started on the fire."
"Alright." Stone left, closing the door behind him. Taylor rose and walked about the cabin, there was the dining room in a room off of the living room, then in the back was the kitchen and back behind the kitchen were two rooms. Both were set up similarly with big beds, wooden dressers, stand alone mirrors and small closets. Not much decoration was in there either except for some deer skulls, bear skins and a deer head mounted to a wall in the first bedroom. She shuddered at it and hoped it wouldn't be her room. She went into the kitchen and poked around, she found pots and pans in a drawer under the stove, rows of mac N cheese boxes filled one cupboard. Two loaves of bread and some butter sat in another cupboard. Opening the fridge, she found lunch meat, lettuce, cheese and pickles. There was mayo and ranch and bottles of beer. All the causal normal things you'd find in a cabin belonging to a man that rarely came up. In another cupboard were canned beans, brown and green, corn, peaches, and pineapple. Taylor's stomach growled just then as the hunger set in. She decided she would ask him when he came in if he wanted something to eat, surely he was hungry too. The front door shut and she made her way out of the kitchen to see him in the entryway with all their stuff
"Thank you for bringing it all in."
"Sure. You can pick which bedroom you want, but the one with the deer head is mine."
"I figured." She said cheekily.
"Hey now. I didn't actually kill it, the man that owns this did."
"Well that makes me feel a little better." She hoiseed her bag onto her shoulder and walked back to the bedrooms, she chose the one across from him, the one with a view of the snow capped mountains. The floor creaked and she felt his presence behind her
"Beautiful isn't it?"
"Yeah, it is. A sense of serenity and peace. Like nothing has happened these last few days."
"Yep. That's why I come."
"Is that why you were gone so often?"
"How would you know tha?"
"Oh um, I-I watched you." She said sheepishly.
"It's okay, I watched you too." He walked out and she followed him
"For real?"
"For reals. Your a very hard worker when it comes to school."
"Gee thanks." She said, flopping on the couch. She watched him shrug on a coat
"I'm going to go get some wood. Feel free to read, or work on a puzzle or something. All games are in the drawers on either side of the Fireplace."
"Thanks." Then he was gone again. She sighed and blew a raspberry. Her stomach growled again but she didn't want to just make something without asking, so she went to the bookshelf she'd seen in the dining room and grabbed out a book and brought it back to the living room. Stone came in just then with an armload of wood, she watched it place it all inside and then start it. The smell was heavenly and the sound of it cackling divinely. He got up, smiled at her then went and hung up his coat, she heard him go into his bedroom and shut the door. She realized then that he probably wasn't thinking about food as much as she was because he would have said something by now, so she took it upon herself to go into the kitchen and look at her choices which were slim. Mac N cheese or a sandwich. Going to the entryway before the hallway, she waited a bit. Then she went to his door and called out,
"Stone?"
"What?" Came his response
"Do you want Mc N cheese or a sandwich?" The door opened and she stumbled back, catching a glimpse of a smile on his lips.
"Doesn't matter. Whatever your feeling."
"You know that doesn't help." She said with a roll of her eyes.
"I know." He smiled cheekily as he walked past her and took a seat at the table, map in hand. Taylor chose Mac N cheese seeing how they weren't going to run out of it anytime soon. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Stone dig into his pocket and take out a paper. He spread out across the table, she saw that it was a map with a red X on it.
"What's that?" She questioned as she set the pan of water on the stove.
"It's a map."
"Well duh, I can see that." She replied with a chuckle. "What's it for?"
"Ah would you believe me if I said treasure."
"I might be persuaded." She said lifting the lid of the pot.
"Well, it is a treasure. A map to my life savings."
"So you mean the safe house?"
"Yes."
"But why have a map? Don't you remember where you stashed him?"
"No. I had a friend bring him somewhere that only she knew. Then she gave me this map and I will now go visit him." Taylor slammed the lid down.
"So you mean to tell me that you haven't actually laid eyes on him for fifteen years!?"
"Correct."
"How do you know he's still alive?"
"He writes me letters." Taylor shook her head and sat down across from him.
"But he's your brother."
"I know but I didn't want to have any ties with him. I didn't want to accidentally somehow lead my father to him if he found out that Igor was still alive."
"That's a lot of love right there, Stone. I don't think I could be separated from my sibling for that long."
"It has been hard. But just knowing I will see his face gives me the strength to go on."
"How come you haven't gone to see him yet?"
"Because she only just gave me the map."
"But why just now?"
"Because I needed one more thing"
"And what was that?"
"You." Her face pale as she blinked slowly.
"Me! What do I have to do with it?" She sighed. Stone was about to open his mouth to say something when she held up her hand "Wait, you're going to say that you can't tell me right?" She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms
"Actually yes, you're right. I can't tell you. But Taylor, I promise you that very shortly I will be able to tell you. The plan is going very smoothly and once I know we are in the clear, we will sit on the couch and have a nice long talk."
"It better be soon Stone. I'm serious." She rose and put the noodles in a strainer. "If I have to go one more day of hearing nothing but I can't tell you, I don't know what I'm going to do. Scream. Run away. Kill you. I don't know." She put the Mac N cheese in bowls as silence hung in the air.
"You won't have to hear it for long." He said softly. Taylor picked up the bowls and set one in front of him.
"That's good." They ate in science for a while and then Taylor, after thinking things over decided that it was a mood ruiner, the discussion that had just happened, so putting a spoon in her bowl, she looked at Stone and said "Let's just set everything aside and pretend it never happened. After we eat, what's the plan?"
"Whatever you want." He said with a nod of his head. They finished lunch and Stone did the dishes while Taylor rifled through the drawers of games trying to find one that would ease the day of ups and downs.
"How about checkers?" She asked hopefully. Stone turned around, a light smile on his lips
"Sure. I mean I'm okay at it."
"Well you're probably really good, I don't even know how to play."
"Oh?"
"Yeah my parents and I never really played games. I played a few games with my friends. This was Neal's favorite game, he spent hours teaching me, but I never could quite catch on."
"Well then, I guess now is a good time to start." Stone said with a smile as he came over and took the box from her. He sat down and began to assemble it. Taylor got a cup of water and then took a seat as well.
"D-do you think your father will find you?"
"Eventually yes. I think he will. But I wouldn't worry about it. Why are you asking?" Taylor shook her head.
"I don't know. I have this nagging feeling in my stomach that something bad is going to happen and no one will be able to stop it."
"It's probably just stress, no need to worry."
"Yeah, you're probably right." Taylor smled, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was about to go down.