Towering

following me? Me, who knew nothing, who wasn’t even from around here? Could it be because I’d asked about Zach? But no, I hadn’t even given my real address. What if it was someone looking for Rachel, someone who’d seen me go to her? But even that seemed insane. No one knew about Rachel. She said she hadn’t seen anyone but the woman who took care of her, a woman she called Mama even though she wasn’t her mother, in years. Still, I had to lose the guy before I went to her. I approached the register. The car was still out there.
    The cashier was a girl about my age. I remembered what Astrid had said, about everyone knowing everyone around here. “I think that blue car’s been following me. Any idea who it is?”
    She glanced outside, squinted, then shrugged. “Doesn’t look familiar. You from around here?”
    Considering the circumstances, I said, “I’m from Long Island, staying at the Big Spruce Lodge.”
    “Shame. We don’t get many new people here.”
    “I’m staying a month. I’ll stop by again. You always work mornings?”
    “No, during school I work nights.”
    “Perfect. I’ll stop by.
    She nodded. “I’ll look for you.”
    She was still watching me as I walked out the door. Which was good because she could be a witness if anything happened later on.
    Clutching my groceries in one hand, my keys in the other, I sprinted for the car. It took a minute to open the door since Mrs. Greenwood, of course, didn’t have remote door locks. I got in, locked the door, and waved to the check-out girl. I drove to the exit, signaled left, but turned right. The guy still followed me. I accelerated. It was about half a mile to the expressway entrance, and I wanted to be going fast, real fast, when I got there. The guy kept pace with me.
    As soon as the expressway signs came into view, I started to signal. The guy signaled too.
    I took the ramp and made like I was going for the southbound entrance. The guy followed me. We were going close to eighty. At the last minute, I swerved left, taking the northbound entrance.
    The Taurus missed it and soared into the southbound lane. I headed north.
    I’d lost him. But it didn’t explain why he’d been following me in the first place.
    The distance between exits around here might be ten miles or more. I had lost him in a real way. Still, I would keep one eye on the rearview.
    To further evade the guy, I got off at a later exit, then drove back. No one was on the road but the snowplows. I followed them until I got to the back road I’d taken to the cabin, then realized it hadn’t been cleared. Fortunately, the trees protected it a great deal, so the snow coating was light. Still, I pulled over earlier than before and began to slog through the snow. It was even harder than the first time, but now, I had a goal. Rachel. Beautiful Rachel, Rachel who knew better than me or anyone what it was to be all alone.
    My legs ached, and it was hard to lift them in and out of the soft snow. Still, I did. The pain felt good. It made me feel alive and like my life had purpose.
    I knew what that purpose was too, to persuade Rachel to come with me, to run away with me. It was the only safe way. I was certain the guy who had followed me was really after her. He knew about her, somehow. She had told me about her mother’s killer. He wanted to find her. Maybe I had tipped him off. If she came with me, we could find someone, the police, the FBI. Someone who wasn’t me to get to the bottom of this. After all, what reason did she have to stay, other than some woman who was holding her captive?
    And suddenly, I heard a voice in the distance, singing something. But it couldn’t be. The tower was tall, and surely, the window was closed against the cold and snow. Was I delirious from the frigid weather? Or was some supernatural force calling me toward her?

Rachel
    He would come today. I was certain of it. I sensed him. And, more than that, I sensed that he was struggling to get to me.
    I loved him. Though we had barely met, there was some power greater than me, greater than all, that bound me to him.
    I looked out the window, certain I would see him in the distance. Nothing. Yet I knew he was coming.
    For every reason and no reason, I began to sing. Even though the tower was high and the weather was windy, I knew he would hear me. I knew it would urge him on toward me.

Wyatt
    Finally, I could see the tower in the distance. The voice, Rachel’s voice, grew louder in my head, and