Page 37
Throttling the engine again, I increase speed. From the curves in the terrain, I can make out a small glimpse of the town now and then. But I don’t particularly care to venture there, so I keep going until I wind up at a tunnel carved into a mountainside. The icy darkness steals my breath and spits me out on the other side.
A bridge materializes before me. I halt, braking too fast for the momentum of the motorcycle, and the tires skid noisily beneath me. I almost lose control, but I steady the handles and drag to a stop several yards away. My heart hammers loudly in my chest, and my ears follow the tune.
Old iron railings coated in frost frame the narrow width that spans a small inlet connecting my side to another section of the mountain pass. Someone is standing near the center of the bridge where I can make out a rupture in the road that tumbles down into the sea.
A tall, broad-shouldered man cloaked in a long coat covered in flurries of snow, stands still, staring back at me. I can’t make out his face in the dark, but his presence crowds my senses.
“Sheriff Valen?” I call out, recognizing the familiar silhouette. He’s the one who’s been lingering beyond the estate.
He takes a few steps toward me and stops right in the beam of my headlights. “Evening,” he calls over the wind.
The Sheriff’s coat flaps listlessly in the blustering wind, appearing unbothered by the biting chill.
“What are you doing out here?” I ask.
He tilts his head slightly, studying the motorcycle. “There’s a town curfew in place.”
“Since when?” This seems like information Kieran should have supplied to me. Then again, I don’t think he expected me stealing his motorcycle for a joyride.
Before the Sheriff can respond, an animalistic sound echoes through the winding roads, carried by the wind. It’s a sound crossed between a woman’s scream and a wolf’s howl.
Get back to the house.
“Since now.” The Sheriff’s response is a deep growl, drifting across the cold.
The answer irritates me more than it should. “Are you planning to arrest me for violating it?”
I can make out the rise and fall of his chest.
“Rules are in place in Devil’s Bay for a reason…what was your name again?” His tone is gruff, restrained.
“I never mentioned,” I reply, tugging my scarf over my head. He should know though, isn’t he the one following me around?
Am I slightly annoyed that he never provided a follow-up visit after Kieran found me? Maybe. But I’m not sure where the irritation dancing across my tongue comes from.
“No one gets arrested in Devil’s Bay.” He sounds like he is measuring his words. “But—people who wander too far regret it. Besides, this bridge connects the only road in and out of this town. You’re stuck here for now.”
Stuck. My gaze sharpens for a moment, but I poise myself atop the motorcycle and position myself to leave.
“Will I see you again, Sheriff? I take it you recognize who I am?”
“I will know who you are, and you will know who I am. Just head back. The town’s nocturnal creatures dislike visitors out after dark.”
“Then why are you out here?” I ask.
There’s another screech, this time coming from the tree line hugging the road. Sheriff Valen takes a step toward the railing on the opposite side and peers outward at the rift between the mountainsides. Water churns noisily below.
“Go. Now.” The wind howls across the bridge, carrying a thin layer of snow along the ice like drifting smoke.
“Were you waiting for me here?” I ask, hope curling out of me through cold vapor. It’s entirely possible the Sheriff has been tracking my movements, just like he’s been watching me under the cloak of night. He does not deny it.
Screech.
Something appears to be approaching through the dense foliage, and Sheriff Valen brandishes a gleaming sharp object.
“This is the last time I’ll ask you to leave. I suggest you do it.”
A strange heaviness settles in my limbs. I don’t hear what happens after a bellowing howl echoes around the mountain pass. I turn the motorcycle around and accelerate toward the opposite side of town, forcing myself to focus on the narrow ribbon of asphalt ahead of me.
