My Silver Mate

Lakeson

[Samara]

The drive to Lakeson was quiet and I was still surprised that Evan even owned a car. It was ridiculous. This whole thing about him being a wolf had just made me mad. He wasn’t a wolf. He was a human being that lived in the forest with his followers. Of course, he had a car. Why wouldn’t he?

“Here we are,” he said as he parked the car. “I wish you safe travel home,” he added.

“Why couldn’t you just have taken me to Oakville?” I questioned as I looked out the window. I didn’t have a clue how I was going to get back home, and I hadn’t even thought about what I was going to tell everyone.

“Well, I was thinking that maybe you could say that you knocked your head…or something and that you wandered out of the forest and…you basically hiked all the way to Lakeson…maybe you are a bit disorientated but then you finally remembered…I don’t know, Samara…” I nodded thoughtfully. It was something I could work with, so I pushed open the door and climbed out. “And remember…” he added, and I rolled my eyes.

“I remember,” I said before I slammed the door shut. The tar was hot under my feet, and I moved quickly to the sidewalk to get into the nearest store. It was a clothing store and the woman behind the cash register looked up and smiled.

“Good morning…oh…my…are you all right?” she asked as her smile fell. She glanced out the window, but I knew Evan had already driven away. “Should I call someone?” she then asked, and I nodded.

“If I could use your phone…that would be great,” I said. The woman quickly handed me the phone and I sighed as I relaxed. In just a few hours, I would be back home. As I held the phone in my hand, I realized that I didn’t know Heather’s number by heart. In fact, I didn’t know Ben’s number either. I considered calling my parents, but I didn’t want them to freak out.

“I’m sorry…I don’t mean to stare,” the woman said, and I frowned as I glanced at her. “But are you…Samara Da Luca?” my eyes went wide when she said my name and she suddenly went pale. “You are, aren’t you?!” I wasn’t sure what to say so I shrugged as I set the phone down. It was at that moment that I decided that I would take on the idea Evan had given me.

“I don’t…I don’t remember,” I lied. The woman handed me a piece of paper and my eyes filled with tears. It was a missing poster. A poster that had a picture of me and all my details.

“I believe it is you,” she said, and I simply nodded. “I’ll call the Sheriff,” she added. I set the poster down as I listened in on her conversation. “Hi, yes…my name is Daisy. I work at Elle’s boutique in Lakeson…” she paused for a moment and then she continued. “A woman just wandered into my store and…I believe she is Samara Da Luca,” another pause, this one was longer. “Yes? Oh yes, Sheriff, I believe it is her, but she seems…confused,” she whispered that last part, but I heard her clearly. “She wanted to use the phone but…she…yes, I will…of course, thank you,” she then hung up and turned to me. “They are on their way,” she said. “Would you like something to eat? Drink?” I wasn’t necessarily hungry, but if I was going to sell my idea, I had to play the part.

“Sure,” I said. It was while I was waiting for her that I realized something. If I said I had hit my head, then they would have wanted to take me to the hospital and, of course, they wouldn’t find anything. I needed to come up with a new plan. I couldn’t say I had been kidnapped because how had I escaped? I couldn’t say I had been attacked because – again – I didn’t have any wounds. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do and while I did have a piece of paper with Evan’s number on it tucked into my bra, I couldn’t exactly call him to ask. I headed over to the bench that ran along the window and sat down. I would have to hold onto the story about being confused and all I could then do was hope no one questioned me too much. I knew I would have to tell the police something, but I would cross that bridge when the time came. Daisy returned from the back with a salad and a glass of water, which I accepted gratefully. She kept an eye on me as I ate and when I was done, I thanked her.

“Where…what…I’m so sorry…but everyone thinks you were kidnapped or murdered or something,” she blurted out and I smiled. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to say, but she could be a test for me to see how it would all sound.

“I don’t really remember anything,” I admitted. I didn’t remember that night as clearly as I should have, so it wasn’t a total lie. “I was walking…I don’t know…I heard you say Lakeson…how did I get here?” I decided to act like I had no idea. My feet weren’t all that dirty so…what was the plan here?

“You were dropped off,” she said slowly, and I frowned. s**t. She had seen that. “You slammed the door and then you came rushing in here,”

“Right,” I said. “Any idea who dropped me off?” I asked and she gasped in surprise.

“You…you don’t know?” she asked, and I wasn’t sure if she was that good of an actress or if she was just that stupid.

“No, I don’t…I think I asked for a ride into town…” I frowned as I continued with my lie. “Yeah, I think he picked me up alongside the road and gave me a ride into town…we didn’t talk much but…he asked me for money for the ride…” I shrugged then as I looked out the window. I would have to get my story straight and quickly.