Chapter Fifteen
Atlas
Ithoughtaboutbacking out of the trip to the falls no less than seven times within the next several days. But I was extremely glad I hadn’t.
The humidity was high like every summer day in the South, but the trail to the falls was shaded by tall trees and lush greenery so at least the sun wasn’t blazing on us.
We’d been hiking for a good half hour. The trail was often only wide enough for one person, so the five of us had formed a single file line, with Ty leading the group while I brought up the rear. Which happened to be directly behind Wren.
She wore a tight athletic top and gray linen shorts that clung to her curves in all the right ways. Not even the scenic views along the trail could take my eyes off her.
Wren stopped suddenly on a steep incline, and I almost ran into her. The toes of my boots dug into the loose dirt as I tried to keep my balance.
She didn’t notice me struggling as she gazed, open-mouthed, off to our right.
The trail followed along the river and every once in a while, the thicket of trees and brush parted enough to get a glimpse of the water.
Now was such a view. We were elevated enough that the river was partly visible over top of some of the trees.
While Wren looked out at the water and surrounding forest, I looked at her. Her eyes shined with awe and reverence, as if she were looking at something holy.
And maybe she was. I didn’t often admire the beauty of my town because I’d lived here for so long. I forgot it was something special. If it had been God who formed the river and the forest and the falls, then maybe it was holy. Something to cherish.
I shifted behind Wren, stepping closer so our bodies almost touched.
She stiffened, her hands gripping the straps of her backpack.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she breathed, not taking her eyes off the sight.
I didn’t take my eyes off her.
“Yes.” I nodded. “It is.”
We stood there until Ellie noticed Wren wasn’t following her.
She turned and called down to us. “Everything all right?”
I waved up to her. “Just enjoying the view.”
Ellie put her hands on her hips. “Come on, y’all. There’s a place to rest up ahead with a better one than that!”
I knew this, of course, but hadn’t wanted to rush Wren. When she heard Ellie’s call, she tore her gaze away and scrambled to catch up with the group.
Each step brought us higher up on the trail; my legs ached and lungs burned by the time the perfume of honeysuckle hit my nose. We were almost there. As the earth below us leveled out, the path widened, and we broke through the tops of the final trees into the sunlight. We came upon a larger cleared area that had several large rocks to sit and rest on. Smaller trees and bushes and vines filled with thousands of small white, yellow, and orange blossoms surrounded us.
Ellie collapsed onto the nearest rock, gasping for breath. “My God,” she huffed, pulling her legs up to sit cross-legged. “I always forget how much that climb kills. I’m going to feel that in my thighs all week.”
Ty laughed as he stretched his arms over his head. “I could make an insanely inappropriate joke about your thighs, El, but lucky for you I’m a gentleman.”
Ellie scoffed. “You? A gentleman? You wish, Tyson Ranes.” She rolled her eyes and Knox chuckled, taking off his worn cowboy hat. His sandy-blond hair was dark with sweat and stuck to his forehead.
I studied Knox. He’d been best friends with Ty for most of the time we’d lived in Cypress Falls, so I knew the kid well. I graduated with his brother, and his family owned an equestrian rehabilitation center on the outskirts of town. It had become a well-known counseling facility for all kinds of people by the unique way they used the horses in therapy. They had been trying to keep it on the down-low, but an incident occurred there recently. The police department had been involved, but I didn’t work on the case directly. And I was glad for that. I’d heard whispers about what happened, but I wanted to stay out of it if I could. There was little room in me to handle other people’s tragedy unless they asked me for help.
Knox replaced his hat despite the heat. He always wore it, rain or shine, blistering hot or freezing cold. The old cowboy hat was worn, yellowed, and scuffed with age. I think it’d been his grandfather’s, so I didn’t blame him for being sentimental. Knox gazed at the unobstructed view of the Blue Cypress River. We were high above the water line and though it was similar to looking out from the bluff, this view had no town on the other side. Here, there were nothing but cliff sides and water and trees. This section of the river had nature preserves on both sides. It felt like being away from all civilization.
My eyes sought out Wren, finding her where I expected. She stood as close to the cliff edge as possible, staring out over the blue expanse below. Her hair was pulled up into a knot at the top of her head, but a few rogue tendrils had escaped, rustling around her face in the warm, welcome breeze that wafted over us.
I slipped off my backpack, tossing it against the base of Ellie’s rock. The breeze cooled the sweat coating my back as I approached Wren. I breathed in, savoring the scents of the fresh river and honeysuckle.