Hide and Seek

I knew of a safe place to put the car, off a narrow access road

through the woods about a quarter of a mile from the house. Nobody

would notice it there, at least not till early morning. By then we'd

be gone.

Even with the moonlight it was dark. It was one of the few places

around where the trees grew tall and spread wide, covering the sky,

black pine and birch and poplar. We parked beneath a stand of white

birch. When we cut the headlights the trees seemed to carry a glow as

though we'd irradiated them with light.

Beyond that it was black.

You could already hear the sea. A distant rumbling. There was no

wind. The trees were still. Just the dry scrape of crickets and the

faraway tumble and boom of ocean.

"Clan, you know this road, right?"

"Sure, Case."

"Any surprises?"

"Shouldn't be. No big storms this season."

"Then douse the flashlights."

"Why?" There was a tinge of whine to Steven's voice I didn't care

for.

"Try it."

I knew what she was after. There we were in the dark, with the smell

of damp earth and overheated car around us, listening to the mix of

strident arid scrapings and liquid thunder.